Feeling Sorry for Satan?

[sarahpierzchala]

My young daughter is plagued by guilt over her deep compassion for Lucifer. I am having a hard time walking a fine line between encouraging her feelings of empathy, explaining about God’s mercy, but also explaining about how some choices are pretty serious and that her sympathy is misplaced! Anyone have any advice on how to handle this situation? I try to get her to focus on her guardian angel, but she feels her prayers aren’t being heard.

 

[stuartbrianhenlis]

Sarah,

Perhaps a talk with your youth pastor could help her.

 

[Wesrock]

Satan is exactly where he wants to be. There is tragedy in the fall of any angel, but it is their choice.

 

[Dan_Defender]

Tell her to leave Satan to God’s judgement. He cannot help her, God and his angels/saints can.

 

[dbranch]

I’m not sure if this will help, it may be too complex to describe to her, but to help her understand how willingly evil Satan is,…
Father Chad Ripperger, an exorcist, said that he told a demon “let’s make this clear… you were created good by an all loving god, you knew the consequences of your choice to be evil, the suffering, and that it was eternal, and you did it anyway?” “Yup” “and you’d do it again?” “Yup”

Also it might lessen her sympathy if you explained that Satan’s full time job is to drag the world and herself down to hell to suffer with him,

Also remind her that her very empathy for Satan is Satans own weapon against her. If Satan who tempts your daughter can convince her , because she doesn’t resist him, that sin is ok, then he’s caught a fish.

 

[dbranch]

Encourage her to have a devotion to St. Michael and teach her his prayer. Explain how good hearted Michael is and how he wants to save us from Satan

 

[Inquiry]

We are commanded to love our enemies. Satan is our enemy. If Satan were in his right mind he would not want to harm us. Therefore if we love him we should not let him harm us.

Seriously, sometimes the most loving thing you can do for someone is not give them the opportunity to do more evil.

 

[esieffe]

I don’t know how you could soften the blow, but in some terms explain that Satan would like nothing better than to wipe us all out, that he takes delight in hurting people, that he is not sad or hurt, but full of anger, hatred, and cunning, without empathy for anyone. He is absolute horror in it’s purest form.

 

[Wesrock]

She wouldn’t have read Paradise Lost, would she? Because that’s just popular fiction and not representative of Satan’s actual fall or angels in general.

 

[Psychae]

We are commanded to love our enemies. Satan is our enemy. If Satan were in his right mind he would not want to harm us. Therefore if we love him we should not let him harm us.

This. Very much this.

 

[Zaccheus]

We are commanded to love our enemies. Satan is our enemy. If Satan were in his right mind he would not want to harm us. Therefore if we love him we should not let him harm us.

Seriously, sometimes the most loving thing you can do for someone is not give them the opportunity to do more evil.

This this this this.

 

[lil_user]

guilt over her deep compassion for Lucifer.

Tell her compassion is a good thing, but the devil is bad and it is not possible for him to change his mind. Instead we should have compassion and pray for humans who ignore God and risk going to hell.

 

[whichwaytogo47]

Tell her compassion is a good thing, but the devil is bad and it is not possible for him to change his mind. Instead we should have compassion and pray for humans who ignore God and risk going to hell.

I can see where she’s coming from. My understanding is that her belief is one of goodwill, but where she doesn’t seem to understand how disobedience in of itself can make someone worthy of an eternity in Hell or how someone can ever possibly be so evil as to deserve an eternity in Hell w/o God.

The problem with Satan and why we pray the St Michael prayer is because he is constantly plotting as an envious demon to take away the salvation of others by having them reject God and follow the Evil one. The devil can only influence someone because God lets him and God knows why a person is deserving of Hell and will not only reject God for eternity but curse Him for eternity. Satan tries to make sure you are all alone and at the weakest point when he tempts you to commit a sin of grave matter.

In purgatory, there’s hope you will be with God for eternity. You suffer to purify yourself for heaven and that suffering is intended to bring others to salvation / an eternity with Christ; it is not merit-less suffering as it is in Hell. Hell is endless purposeless suffering; you chose an eternity without God.

For those whom are living with grave matter sin, I have a really hard time with believing that they will have an eternity in Hell. I don’t know how they can’t still love God and love neighbor. As children, we struggle with disobedience as a result of the sins of the flesh. Many might be sorrowful for their sins, but don’t have the will to change their lifestyle or to have the steps available to turn away from their sin.

The #1 thing I can think of is that there is more joy with the angels in heaven over 1 person that is eternally saved / follows the will of God than 99 righteous people with no need of repentance.

 

[lil_user]

Where I struggle with this is someone can be sorrowful / feel guilt for their sin, but reject God

There is a subtle but significant difference between contrition and pride.

how disobedience in of itself can make someone worthy of an eternity in Hell

It’s not about being worthy of hell. It’s a radical choice to reject God. Mortal sin is no joke. It requires

• grave matter
• full knowledge
• deliberate consent

And to top it off, it’s not like sin is unforgivable. It’s final impenitence that ultimately leads to damnation. It’s not something easy to explain to children, but fairly straightforward for adults.

Hell is endless, purposeless suffering

On the contrary, such suffering moves sinners to repentance and is a sign of justice fulfilled. It’s not, as it were, gratuitous. Our God is a just and merciful God, who would not allow any suffering to be without a purpose.

Sure, that suffering doesn’t benefit the damned, but there we should address the word “endless”. Their decision was made before time existed and stands outside of time, so they don’t experience the pain of damnation as we would imagine it. It’s a more “present” awareness of a consequence, which by the way they fully embrace.

Many might be sorrowful for their sins, but don’t have the will to change their lifestyle or to have the steps available to turn away from their sin.

This is very tricky. If someone is repentant, repentance is not a feeling but involves volition, that is, the will to change one’s way of life, avoid occasions of sin, and sin no more. God will take into account even the smallest step in the road of penance.

 

[Nelka]

Don’t think of Satan as someone who made a slight mistake, he knew exactly what he was doing and did it anyway. Does she feel sorry for Hitler or Jack the Ripper? Satan is worse!

Satan could end up turning her against God and make Him out to be the bad guy.

 

[GraceJ]

“Do not feel sorry for the fallen angel. They survive the fall. How many souls did they bring with them?”
A helpful quote from a DnD handbook.

 

[Brian_K]

Perhaps her image of Satan is like a boy who agrees to mow a rich man’s lawn, but doesn’t do a very good job, so the rich man doesn’t give him anything at all. We feel bad for the boy because he’s in a weaker position and should have at least gotten something.

The reality is more like a kindly rich man who offers a boy $1,000 to simply go out and get the mail. Instead the boy tries to set the man’s house on fire and murder his children. The rich man says, “Get away from us!” I don’t feel so bad for the boy in this scenario.

 

[mdgspencer]

I friend told me he began praying for the devil.
And then he felt a horrible presence that made him shudder–and made him shudder when he told me about it.

 

[Psychae]

Eeep! Well that’s no good

 

[whichwaytogo47]

I friend told me he began praying for the devil.
And then he felt a horrible presence that made him shudder–and made him shudder when he told me about it.

That’s why yoga, mindfulness, Ouija boards, and card reading can be so dangerous!!! It’s the work of the devil and he’s masterful of distraction. Remember that the reason why we have original sin is because man caved to Satan’s deception. And why pray to God thru Mary is because she crushed the serpent’s head. And it was Jesus that is the reason why if we repent of our sins, we can have an eternity in heaven because he died for them and the Holy Spirit poured out on the Church.