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It was a Unitarian church, not a Christian one
I attended for around six years and almost always stayed behind for coffee and conversation after the service and not once did the Goodness of God or the way to eternal life ever come up e.g. nobody ever wanted to talk about Jesus
One of the reasons I left
And he was worried about my mental health, not offended by what I mentioned
(((Edit: He obviously thought that a belief in Satan is the product of a mental disorder rather than a part of Christianity! - another reason I left)))
Naturally, I'd never bring up the topic of Satan in my current (Christian) church
"In fact, Origen's contribution to theology was arguably greater than that of Augustine.” I agree.
I believe Karl Barth is right in this case: Karl Barth: Believing in Demons makes us Demonic. There is a negative force, represented in the Bible by demons and Satan. It's what I would call "suprapersonal evil," a kind of madness that can suck people and whole group in. But as negation, it's not really a person. Augustine saw that evil wasn't created by God, because it's not a thing. It has no power of its own, but is a corruption of good things. Barth points out that Satan can't be a fallen angel, because he is a murderer and liar from the beginning (John 8:44). Jesus seldom speaks of it, and only in rejection. (Indeed Luke 10:18 suggests its destruction.) I recall Barth once saying (and I haven't found a source for this, so my memory may be wrong), we don't believe in Satan; we believe against it. To give it reality and study it, even as an enemy, is dangerous. But still, there's no question that suprapersonal evil is a real danger, even if in some sense it doesn't exist.
Im afraid we have very different assessments of Anthony. He’s the last person I would point to.A much better and more ancient approach to facing the Adversary can be founded in the Life of St. Anthony, which shows how the devil operates, and shows an example of the devil being overcome. The Ladder of Divine Ascent is another classic in this respect.
I believe Karl Barth is right in this case: Karl Barth: Believing in Demons makes us Demonic. There is a negative force, represented in the Bible by demons and Satan. It's what I would call "suprapersonal evil," a kind of madness that can suck people and whole group in. But as negation, it's not really a person. Augustine saw that evil wasn't created by God, because it's not a thing. It has no power of its own, but is a corruption of good things. Barth points out that Satan can't be a fallen angel, because he is a murderer and liar from the beginning (John 8:44). Jesus seldom speaks of it, and only in rejection. (Indeed Luke 10:18 suggests its destruction.) I recall Barth once saying (and I haven't found a source for this, so my memory may be wrong), we don't believe in Satan; we believe against it. To give it reality and study it, even as an enemy, is dangerous. But still, there's no question that suprapersonal evil is a real danger, even if in some sense it doesn't exist.
IF what he posted happens:So does believing in suprapersonal evil make us suprapersonally evil?
Maybe lots of churches also ? (haven't checked recently)
Im afraid we have very different assessments of Anthony. He’s the last person I would point to.
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