Posted by Holly Ordway in Christian Life | 2 Comments
Just Ignore the Lion in the Corner? Facing the Reality of the Enemy
“My dear brothers, never forget, when you hear the progress of the Enlightenment vaunted, that the Devil’s best trick is to persuade you that he doesn’t exist!” – Baudelaire
Our culture has largely forgotten God; should we be surprised that we have forgotten the Enemy as well?
The idea of a malevolent, personal entity that exists in opposition to God, and with the intent of keeping us from God, seems patently absurd to most people. I’ve gotten some strange looks even from Christians when people hear me, a college professor with a Ph.D., say straight-out that the Enemy is real – not a metaphor, a literary device, or a quaint superstition.
Yet most people recognize that there is such a thing as evil. How do we explain it and deal with it?
For the “spiritual but not religious,” the forces of evil get vaguely described as “bad karma,” “bad luck,” or the equivalent: in other words, as something that is neither personal nor possible to oppose. You can’t fight bad luck; you can only keep your head down and hope for the best.
As a culture we seem to believe readily enough in forces that shape our culture, society, and individuals in negative, even horrific ways – but we call them things like “the economy,” “racism,” “stress,” “peer pressure,” and so on. The terms take on a solidity beyond what they describe: racism, for instance, is often discussed as if it were a literal disease that can be eradicated, like polio. The trouble is that we cannot really do anything at all about “racism”: we can only address specific instances of unfair treatment and educate and (more to the point) civilize our children so that they will treat others with respect regardless of skin color or national origin. That approach – despite having had marvelous results in the U.S. in a remarkably short time – doesn’t satisfy us at a spiritual level, though. Whatever we do is never enough; we must address not just actions but intentions, feelings, thoughts, at an ever-finer level: in short, racism takes on the characteristics of a permanent Enemy. Why? Perhaps because we know there is one, but we don’t want to admit who he is.
If we do we have an unsettling intuition that it is not just “forces” that assault us, but a Being, that might account for our tendency to demonize specific institutions and people. In the absence of a known Enemy, we attack whoever is at hand. For example, it is not uncommon in liberal circles (or at least academic ones) to hate Starbucks. Honestly, I am not quite sure what Starbucks has done to merit such opprobrium, except that it is a successful company that sells a product people enjoy, but a certain subset of people basically hiss and give evil eyes at the very mention of Starbucks. Never mind that Starbucks supports organic and fair-trade coffee growing, and water for poor children in developing countries; never mind that Starbucks is an employer noted for excellent benefits to part-time employees; it is a large and successful corporation, and it must be evil. Perhaps Starbucks has done enough environmental penance to be absolved of its sin of success; never fear, another target will be forthcoming.
Even among Christians, who acknowledge to at least some degree the reality of the supernatural, we tend to lose sight of the fact that there are evil forces out there. Forces that mean us harm; forces that work consciously, deliberately, and maliciously to turn us from God.
What better playing field could the Enemy possibly ask for?
Our culture’s failure to recognize the spiritual forces of evil as real is a significant problem: it essentially gives the Enemy a free pass to mayhem. The failure of Christians to recognize the reality of the spiritual forces of evil is also a very bad thing. Not only has the country been infiltrated, but the warriors are asleep at their posts.
As Christians, we need to recognize the reality of the Enemy as a personal and malevolent force, no matter how un-cool that makes us seem. And yes, it does make us sound like freaks.
Yet we should not despair. Scripture tells us that the Enemy has been defeated by Christ, in His saving work on the cross. As Christians, we need have no fear about the ultimate outcome of the war between good and evil: Good wins.
However, we in the Church Militant are still on the ground of that warfare, despite being en route to joining the Church Triumphant. Let us be watchful and wary, for our adversary “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
Related posts:
Another terrific posting, Holly. I couldn’t resist posting it at jitterbuggingforjesus.com. I think I posted your blurb about “God is not a vending machine” only a couple of weeks ago, breaking my own rule not to post somebody else twice within the same month! Oh well. You’re that good in my book.
I think this is a wonderful post, Holly. I agree that we are going to be at war with the enemy while we are alive here on earth. St. Paul is clear about the existence of the enemy in Ephesians 6:12: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,[a] against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places,” and the Jews even understood that the devil existed (see the book of Job).
I am grateful because my close Christian friends do acknowledge the existence of the enemy, and when a person becomes a catechumen in the Orthodox Church, she renounces the devil. But I agree with you that there are many people who are confounded (and dumbfounded) that an educated woman like me with an advanced degree believes in the existence of the enemy. However, these same people are confounded that I believe in the truths of Christianity.