My friend and the devil, please help!

[emma2481]

This may sound like a stupid question to some people, but is there anything a person can do that is so bad they cannot be redeemed even if they repent and ask for forgiveness? Is it possible to irrevocably give oneself over to evil and the devil, even if one repents of it later? I have a dear friend who confessed to me that she fears she may have promised her life and soul to the devil many years ago. She is too ashamed to even tell me all the details, but she said she invited the devil into her life for some reason that she did not want to tell me (this was before I knew her and I suspect she was involved with a bad crowd). But she despairs for her salvation, and suffers from anxiety and depression because of this. She is not a Catholic and not even baptized, but in recent years has come to believe in God and Christ and wants to become a Catholic, but she fears her soul is already irredeemably lost. I am terribly worried for her and don’t know what to say to help her. I told her to talk to a priest but she is too scared. Can anyone give me guidance, please?

(PS - I don’t know much about OCD but I think she may have some form of it based on other observations of her. But I do not know if this promise or pact she made was deliberate or due to OCD. She says it was deliberate.)

 

[presidentjlh]

Is there anything a person can do that is so bad they cannot be redeemed even if they repent and ask for forgiveness?

I am most happy to tell you that the answer to that is a big, big NO!



Tell her to be glad! She is obviously seeking God, and is starting to find the Church!

I will tell you more soon.

 

[presidentjlh]

Okay, now, first of all, it is merely an old legend that one can sell their soul to Satan. While you can indeed sin and give into the worthless fallen angel’s temptations, you cannot lose your soul to him while alive. It’s impossible. Your soul is attached to you by God, and Satan is nothing to God, absolutely nothing!

However, it is indeed true that to attempt to sell one’s soul to the devil is mortal sin, but I believe that, from what it sounds like, your friend was not fully aware of her deed, therefore, your friend is not in a state of mortal sin when it comes to that. However, they do have original sin on their soul, which isn’t good. However, this can be resolved by baptism.

There is a long journey ahead for your friend. The time when youth and adults are baptized is only on Easter Vigil, and that’s not even a week ago, so it’s going to be about a year until she is baptized.

Yet, be strong! Her faith is going to save her! She need not fear anymore.

If anything, a priest will be fully understanding. She cannot receive the sacrament of Confession, that is for those that are full members of the Catholic Church. However, I do believe in God’s mercy, and I think that one who is trying their best to become Catholic is given the grace of mercy, for they are trying to do right.

I ask that you go to your friend, and embrace her. Wipe the tears from her eyes and tell her the great news. May the pain and misery she has felt be instantly lifted by the love of Christ. She was lost, but is now found!

 

[emma2481]

Thank you SOOO much, this is what I wanted to tell her but didn’t have the words. Is there a reference from the Bible or Catechism that I could show her as proof? From what I understand, she did not exactly try to sell her soul to the devil but invited him into her life and offered him power over her, if that makes any difference. Apparently she lived a very sinful and depraved life for awhile. She also confided to me that she used to take a lot of drugs, and that at the peak of some psychedelic experiences she felt demons or spirits come and snatch away pieces of her soul, which she was not able to retrieve. I have no idea if that makes any sense or is even possible, but it causes her anxiety. I didn’t know what to say so I told her that she had just imagined it. Thankfully she doesn’t take these substances anymore. I think she is on the right path now, but needs a lot of guidance and a lot of prayer. I’m trying to help her as much as possible but I’m really overwhelmed by all this. I’ve known her for several years but never knew any of this. She was an atheist when I met her and this stuff didn’t bother her then. It’s only since she’s come to believe in the Holy Trinity that she despairs for her soul. Recently it’s become so unbearable that she had to tell someone, and confided in me. She is suffering terribly and can barely function in her life. She’s desperate to repent and be forgiven, but would not go to a priest for fear of what he would say. I told her to get baptized and confess, and if I can get her to understand that she is not condemned, I think she will very eagerly become a Catholic. Praise God for His goodness and mercy!

 

[presidentjlh]

Thank you SOOO much, this is what I wanted to tell her but didn’t have the words. Is there a reference from the Bible or Catechism that I could show her as proof? From what I understand, she did not exactly try to sell her soul to the devil but invited him into her life and offered him power over her, if that makes any difference. Apparently she lived a very sinful and depraved life for awhile. She also confided to me that she used to take a lot of drugs, and that at the peak of some psychedelic experiences she felt demons or spirits come and snatch away pieces of her soul, which she was not able to retrieve. I have no idea if that makes any sense or is even possible, but it causes her anxiety. I didn’t know what to say so I told her that she had just imagined it. Thankfully she doesn’t take these substances anymore. I think she is on the right path now, but needs a lot of guidance and a lot of prayer. I’m trying to help her as much as possible but I’m really overwhelmed by all this. I’ve known her for several years but never knew any of this. She was an atheist when I met her and this stuff didn’t bother her then. It’s only since she’s come to believe in the Holy Trinity that she despairs for her soul. Recently it’s become so unbearable that she had to tell someone, and confided in me. She is suffering terribly and can barely function in her life. She’s desperate to repent and be forgiven, but would not go to a priest for fear of what he would say. I told her to get baptized and confess, and if I can get her to understand that she is not condemned, I think she will very eagerly become a Catholic. Praise God for His goodness and mercy!

Although I am no priest (Alas, I am merely an 18 year old boy), I am reasonably certain that Christ must be full of joy at your great, great act of charity, and Christ remembers the good that people do!

Here is some Catechism explaining the thoroughness of forgiveness of sins.

978 When we made our first profession of faith while receiving the holy Baptism that cleansed us, the forgiveness we received then was so full and complete that there remained in us absolutely nothing left to efface, neither original sin nor offenses committed by our own will, nor was there left any penalty to suffer in order to expiate them. . . . Yet the grace of Baptism delivers no one from all the weakness of nature. On the contrary, we must still combat the movements of concupiscence that never cease leading us into evil.

As to the soul,

365 The unity of soul and body is so profound that one has to consider the soul to be the “form” of the body: i.e., it is because of its spiritual soul that the body made of matter becomes a living, human body; spirit and matter, in man, are not two natures united, but rather **their union forms a single nature. **

As we can see, one cannot sell their soul, as it is is directly attached to the body. Of course, this changes in death, but by then, the choice is already made.

In addition, while drug abuse is, of course, a serious matter, it is definitely forgiveable. All things are forgiveable by God if one truly desires forgiveness: Murder is forgiveable, rape is forgiveable, etc. The sin does not matter when it comes to forgiveness, they are all forgiveable.

 

[presidentjlh]

Oh, and be sure to tell her that no one, and I mean no one, is ever condemned to Hell by God. We choose to condemn ourselves through sin. One cannot be truly condemned to Hell while alive, as there is still the possibility of confession. She is not condemned, unless she wants to be. From the looks of it, she desires the exact opposite of condemnation: salvation.

And as she desires it, thus she shall receive, in the sense that, if she tries her best and goes to Confession regularly after becoming Catholic, I have no doubt that when the day comes when she breathes her final breath, she will find Christ, smiling, with his arms extended out, ready to embrace her.

 

[Lief_Erikson]

The Scripture says that Jesus could save even a man who had an entire legion of demons in him.
Mark 5:1-15:

1
They came to the other side of the sea, to the territory of the Gerasenes.
2
When he got out of the boat, at once a man from the tombs who had an unclean spirit met him.
3
The man had been dwelling among the tombs, and no one could restrain him any longer, even with a chain.
4
In fact, he had frequently been bound with shackles and chains, but the chains had been pulled apart by him and the shackles smashed, and no one was strong enough to subdue him.
5
Night and day among the tombs and on the hillsides he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones.
6
Catching sight of Jesus from a distance, he ran up and prostrated himself before him,
7
crying out in a loud voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me!”
8
(He had been saying to him, “Unclean spirit, come out of the man!”)
9
He asked him, “What is your name?” He replied, “Legion is my name. There are many of us.”
10
And he pleaded earnestly with him not to drive them away from that territory.
11
Now a large herd of swine was feeding there on the hillside.
12
And they pleaded with him, “Send us into the swine. Let us enter them.”
13
And he let them, and the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine. The herd of about two thousand rushed down a steep bank into the sea, where they were drowned.
14
The swineherds ran away and reported the incident in the town and throughout the countryside. And people came out to see what had happened.
15
As they approached Jesus, they caught sight of the man who had been possessed by Legion, sitting there clothed and in his right mind. And they were seized with fear.

The Catechism says that there is only one unforgivable sin, and it is a persistent refusal all the way up to death to come forward and repent of a mortal sin. Here’s the reference:

"Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven."136 There are no limits to the mercy of God, but anyone who deliberately refuses to accept his mercy by repenting, rejects the forgiveness of his sins and the salvation offered by the Holy Spirit.137 Such hardness of heart can lead to final impenitence and eternal loss.

The Church’s official teaching, and the words of Jesus Himself, quoted in the first line of this paragraph, show that there is absolutely no sin that cannot be forgiven. Only if someone refuses to come to God for mercy until death will that person not receive it – that refusal to repent is the meaning of “blasphemy against the Spirit.”

It sounds like your friend is really coming closer to God in some very profound ways right now. I believe if she only would talk with a priest, she would swiftly find all her fears removed. Perhaps the enemy is attacking her with fears to try to keep her from the Church. Keep talking with her, be patient and loving, and show her these Scriptural and Catechism teachings.

Or better yet, use presidentjlh’s Catechism references, as they’re more focused on the issue your friend has brought up than is the one I found.

 

[presidentjlh]

I always found that part where the demons enter the pigs and then the pigs go drown themselves to be one of the more humorous passages of the Bible.

Oh, Satan and his minions, you are a bunch of worthless, detestable fools, who only bring me joy when you fail miserably at your goals. Continue to fail, Satan, it only brings goodness to the world.

 

[BluesPicker]

Fr. Foretea on pacts with the devil:

“The soul can repent at any time with just a simple act of the will. With repentance, the pact results null and void whatever the terms of the contract were. Even if the terms had excluded the possibility of repentance, this clause would not be valid at all. God, who gave us our freedom to do whatever we want, has not given us the freedom of renouncing freedom. This is valid also in eternity; both in Heaven and in Hell, we will remain free. The only difference is that, in Heaven, we will no longer want to sin and, in Hell, we will no longer want to repent.”

fortea.us/english/teologicos/pacto.htm

 :)

  I  suggest  you yourself  Baptize  your  friend  at  the next time you are with them.  This will mark  their Soul  for enternity  for Christ.    The fact they are not Baptized perphaps is the problem.  It may open them  for  influence.

This is perfectly valid. Then encourage them to join the Church. By your Baptism you are called to be a blessing and to bless. Pour water on their head and say " I Baptize you in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.’ One only has to be Baptized themselves to do this. Do everything you can to get them to join the Church.j

 

[prodigalson12]

This may sound like a stupid question to some people, but is there anything a person can do that is so bad they cannot be redeemed even if they repent and ask for forgiveness? Is it possible to irrevocably give oneself over to evil and the devil, even if one repents of it later? I have a dear friend who confessed to me that she fears she may have promised her life and soul to the devil many years ago. She is too ashamed to even tell me all the details, but she said she invited the devil into her life for some reason that she did not want to tell me (this was before I knew her and I suspect she was involved with a bad crowd). But she despairs for her salvation, and suffers from anxiety and depression because of this. She is not a Catholic and not even baptized, but in recent years has come to believe in God and Christ and wants to become a Catholic, but she fears her soul is already irredeemably lost. I am terribly worried for her and don’t know what to say to help her. I told her to talk to a priest but she is too scared. Can anyone give me guidance, please?

(PS - I don’t know much about OCD but I think she may have some form of it based on other observations of her. But I do not know if this promise or pact she made was deliberate or due to OCD. She says it was deliberate.)

Anything that you place before and ahead of God, is selling your soul to the devil, this means, anything, and the vast majority of our generation has sold it through greed, the difference between them and your friend, your friend is aware of the discretion, the rest are not, and in the end, they’ll see the errors of their ways all too clearly, and it will be too late for them, it’s not too late for your friend. While we draw breath, God is absolutely never far away from us, we cannot find a place to hide away from his presence. The thing is, we tend to lose hope when his presence is not manifest as being noticed, so we only perceive him as not being there, yet he still is.

 

[Dorothy]

Thank you SOOO much, this is what I wanted to tell her but didn’t have the words. Is there a reference from the Bible or Catechism that I could show her as proof? From what I understand, she did not exactly try to sell her soul to the devil but invited him into her life and offered him power over her, if that makes any difference. Apparently she lived a very sinful and depraved life for awhile. She also confided to me that she used to take a lot of drugs, and that at the peak of some psychedelic experiences she felt demons or spirits come and snatch away pieces of her soul, which she was not able to retrieve. I have no idea if that makes any sense or is even possible, but it causes her anxiety. I didn’t know what to say so I told her that she had just imagined it. Thankfully she doesn’t take these substances anymore. I think she is on the right path now, but needs a lot of guidance and a lot of prayer. I’m trying to help her as much as possible but I’m really overwhelmed by all this. I’ve known her for several years but never knew any of this. She was an atheist when I met her and this stuff didn’t bother her then. It’s only since she’s come to believe in the Holy Trinity that she despairs for her soul. Recently it’s become so unbearable that she had to tell someone, and confided in me. She is suffering terribly and can barely function in her life. She’s desperate to repent and be forgiven, but would not go to a priest for fear of what he would say. I told her to get baptized and confess, and if I can get her to understand that she is not condemned, I think she will very eagerly become a Catholic. Praise God for His goodness and mercy!

There are hard-core satanists who have come out of that and now follow Jesus! Jesus said “Be not afraid”. She has nothing to fear…obviously the grace of the Lord has enabled her to desire Him and be sorry for her past.

 

[CB_Catholic]

Fr. Foretea on pacts with the devil:

“The soul can repent at any time with just a simple act of the will. With repentance, the pact results null and void whatever the terms of the contract were. Even if the terms had excluded the possibility of repentance, this clause would not be valid at all. God, who gave us our freedom to do whatever we want, has not given us the freedom of renouncing freedom. This is valid also in eternity; both in Heaven and in Hell, we will remain free. The only difference is that, in Heaven, we will no longer want to sin and, in Hell, we will no longer want to repent.”

fortea.us/english/teologicos/pacto.htm

 :)

  I  suggest  you yourself  Baptize  your  friend  at  the next time you are with them.  This will mark  their Soul  for enternity  for Christ.    The fact they are not Baptized perphaps is the problem.  It may open them  for  influence.

This is perfectly valid. Then encourage them to join the Church. By your Baptism you are called to be a blessing and to bless. Pour water on their head and say " I Baptize you in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.’ One only has to be Baptized themselves to do this. Do everything you can to get them to join the Church.j

I disagree with this. We can baptize, but only in an emergency. Your friend should talk to a priest and make arrangements to be baptized. Sometimes arrangements can be made to receive private instruction rather than going through the RCIA process. That depends on the circumstances and the priest. Perhaps you could go with her to see the priest, to give her support and encouragement.

 

[Tom_Qualey]

**Hi, Presidentjlh

I think you have given an excellent answer.

These groups that go to great lengths to worship the Devil are real - and their efforts to “sell their soul” are gravely sinful. The idea of kind of Faustian contract has always made me wonder. Admittedly the Devil is the biggest fool in all of creation - this does not mean he is stupid on negotiations! So many souls are willing to ‘give themselves’ freely - there is no need for him to do anything!

This troubled person really needs encouragement to talk to a priest - and prayerfully consider entry into the Catholic Church.

God bless

Tom **

Although I am no priest (Alas, I am merely an 18 year old boy), I am reasonably certain that Christ must be full of joy at your great, great act of charity, and Christ remembers the good that people do!

Here is some Catechism explaining the thoroughness of forgiveness of sins.

978 When we made our first profession of faith while receiving the holy Baptism that cleansed us, the forgiveness we received then was so full and complete that there remained in us absolutely nothing left to efface, neither original sin nor offenses committed by our own will, nor was there left any penalty to suffer in order to expiate them. . . . Yet the grace of Baptism delivers no one from all the weakness of nature. On the contrary, we must still combat the movements of concupiscence that never cease leading us into evil.

As to the soul,

365 The unity of soul and body is so profound that one has to consider the soul to be the “form” of the body: i.e., it is because of its spiritual soul that the body made of matter becomes a living, human body; spirit and matter, in man, are not two natures united, but rather **their union forms a single nature. **

As we can see, one cannot sell their soul, as it is is directly attached to the body. Of course, this changes in death, but by then, the choice is already made.

In addition, while drug abuse is, of course, a serious matter, it is definitely forgiveable. All things are forgiveable by God if one truly desires forgiveness: Murder is forgiveable, rape is forgiveable, etc. The sin does not matter when it comes to forgiveness, they are all forgiveable.

 

[Tom_Qualey]

**Hi, Carolyn,

I believe you are correct abou this. The person in question appears to be in at least adequate physical health with no hint of being in danger of death given by the poster. My understanding is that Baptism would be inappropriate in such a situation.**

I disagree with this. We can baptize, but only in an emergency. Your friend should talk to a priest and make arrangements to be baptized. Sometimes arrangements can be made to receive private instruction rather than going through the RCIA process. That depends on the circumstances and the priest. Perhaps you could go with her to see the priest, to give her support and encouragement.

**To the best of my knowledge, RCIA is not the only way to prepare for Baptism - but, what alternatives are available would best come from the local priest. This peson’s DESIRE to be baptized may have to be sufficient for the time being, until they are officially welcomed into the Catholic Church.

The Devil is real - and is really going to try hard to get this soul back into his hellish grip. Devotions and Prayers to the Blessed Virgin Mary may truly be something to talk to this person about at this time.

God bless

Tom **

 

[lutherlic]

I agree with the other comments, an appointment with a priest would go a long way to answer her questions, bring hope and peace, and put her on the right path. Speak with her and reassure her. Recommend a specific priest and give her his number. Offer to call in her behalf if necessary and/or go with her if necessary.

 

[BluesPicker]

Carolyn,

 You are right.  I stand corrected.  I  just  spoke to  my priest.  So I apologize.    Obedience to the Church is paramount.  

   So   I came to amend my mistake.     Happily others caught it.   I  truely don't see why  we Baptize babies   but  adults who desire to be a Christian have to wait.  I believe this is to make certain that they are serious.   

     However,   I  am postive about  free will.   

Sorry,

BluesPicker

 

[Tom_Qualey]

**Hi, Lutherlic,

I think this is a very good idea…

God bless

Tom**

I agree with the other comments, an appointment with a priest would go a long way to answer her questions, bring hope and peace, and put her on the right path. Speak with her and reassure her. Recommend a specific priest and give her his number. Offer to call in her behalf if necessary and/or go with her if necessary.

 

[ArizonaMom]

This is a cautionary tale for folks out there that invite satan into their lives by occult practices. I too have a friend that I’ve known for nearly 30 years. She goes to people who read her hands, her feet, her essence. She goes to people who claim to see ghosts and speak with them. She believes in numerology. I can not begin to tell you how much this saddens me as she was raised Catholic, went to Catholic schools her whole life and even to DePaul U. a Catholic University. There she told me that she took a religions of the world class that changed her mind about Jesus and the church. She lost her faith back then, AT A CATHOLIC INSTITUTION! Several years back she told me that she no longer considers herself a christian. This made me so sad. I pray for her all the time, say the rosary and have asked others to pray for her too. She has lost her hearing and the doctors can not find any possible physical cause. I think she can’t hear because she doesn’t WANT to hear the truth about God. The occult now rules her world and I can’t spend a great deal of time with her because all she wants to do is talk about all her odd, disjointed, down-right satanic beliefs. Don’t fall down that long road down! Guard your soul and keep God at the very center of your mind, heart and soul. Life is so happy when you trust in Him and follow His ways. God bless you all and keep Jesus in your life always!

 

[emma2481]

Thank you to everyone for your answers, your support and help, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Presidentjlh, I am very impressed at your wisdom and knowledge at only 18 years old! I wish I had been so strong in my faith at your age. LeifErikson, BluesPicker, Prodigalson, Dorothy, CB Catholic, and lutherlic, thank you so much for your advice, insights, and wisdom. ArizonaMom, I am praying for your friend and all who are trapped in occult practices, that they find their way back to the Church and into the light of God. Tom Qualey, thank you for your help and advice. If I may ask, what do you mean that the devil is not a fool in negotiations? Do you mean that these “pacts” still have some validity? My friend may have “given” herself freely in the past, but no longer wishes to do so!

Update - I spent all weekend with my friend. I showed her this thread, she cried while reading it, it brought her some much needed peace and hope. We went to mass together on Sunday and afterwards she told me she felt the strength and goodness of the Church there, and wants to become a Catholic (YAY!!!). She believes in what the Church teaches and believes it’s the only way to save her soul. I’m going to help her find an RCIA program and go to classes with her (it will be good for me too - I’ve been pretty lukewarm in my faith for many years now and could use a refresher course). Right now she is oscillating between happiness during her moments of faith, and despair during her moments of doubt, which I think is understandable given what she’s gone through. She wants so badly to believe she can be saved, but it’s not easy for her to overcome the despair in her soul. But I think as her faith increases she will overcome her doubts and find lasting peace. She is in a very fragile state right now, but tells me that for the first time since coming to believe in God, she feels a bit of true happiness. She still won’t go to a priest because she’s too ashamed of her past, but perhaps sometime she will get the courage to go. I did some research and showed her some links about Bl Bartolo Longo, and she is now eagerly reading everything she can find about him, and praying to Blessed Mary for intercession. His story is the perfect message of hope to people like my friend.

Regarding baptism, she has not requested to be baptized immediately, if she did I would take her to a Protestant minister who would do it right away, rather than baptize her myself. She is in her 20s and physically healthy, so emergency baptism would not apply.

So for now, things are looking good for my friend, as long as she stays strong and does not fall into despair. I feel very blessed that I get to play a role in bringing her into the Church. Thanks be to God!

 

[presidentjlh]

Thank you to everyone for your answers, your support and help, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Presidentjlh, I am very impressed at your wisdom and knowledge at only 18 years old! I wish I had been so strong in my faith at your age. LeifErikson, BluesPicker, Prodigalson, Dorothy, CB Catholic, and lutherlic, thank you so much for your advice, insights, and wisdom. ArizonaMom, I am praying for your friend and all who are trapped in occult practices, that they find their way back to the Church and into the light of God. Tom Qualey, thank you for your help and advice. If I may ask, what do you mean that the devil is not a fool in negotiations? Do you mean that these “pacts” still have some validity? My friend may have “given” herself freely in the past, but no longer wishes to do so!

Update - I spent all weekend with my friend. I showed her this thread, she cried while reading it, it brought her some much needed peace and hope. We went to mass together on Sunday and afterwards she told me she felt the strength and goodness of the Church there, and wants to become a Catholic (YAY!!!). She believes in what the Church teaches and believes it’s the only way to save her soul. I’m going to help her find an RCIA program and go to classes with her (it will be good for me too - I’ve been pretty lukewarm in my faith for many years now and could use a refresher course). Right now she is oscillating between happiness during her moments of faith, and despair during her moments of doubt, which I think is understandable given what she’s gone through. She wants so badly to believe she can be saved, but it’s not easy for her to overcome the despair in her soul. But I think as her faith increases she will overcome her doubts and find lasting peace. She is in a very fragile state right now, but tells me that for the first time since coming to believe in God, she feels a bit of true happiness. She still won’t go to a priest because she’s too ashamed of her past, but perhaps sometime she will get the courage to go. I did some research and showed her some links about Bl Bartolo Longo, and she is now eagerly reading everything she can find about him, and praying to Blessed Mary for intercession. His story is the perfect message of hope to people like my friend.

Regarding baptism, she has not requested to be baptized immediately, if she did I would take her to a Protestant minister who would do it right away, rather than baptize her myself. She is in her 20s and physically healthy, so emergency baptism would not apply.

So for now, things are looking good for my friend, as long as she stays strong and does not fall into despair. I feel very blessed that I get to play a role in bringing her into the Church. Thanks be to God!

My friend, we are all thankful to you and to God for helping lead your friend back into the arms of Jesus Christ. Reading this news brings me great joy, and I feel humbled and thankful to God for giving me the opportunity to help you and your friend on this most sacred and crucial journey.

I think I can address what Tom Qualey meant. (If I am wrong, I apologize to you, Tom. I do not wish to put words into anyone’s mouth) By saying “the devil isn’t a fool when it comes to negotiations,” Tom was basically saying that the devil knows how to get people to fall away very well by persuading them with lies and the allures of evil. Satan gets people so caught up in their sins that he, in a way, does get a hold on them. However, as strong as this hold can get, it is never too strong for the love and mercy of God. Your friend is a perfect example of the strength of God’s love. Your friend was once lost! She hadn’t given Satan her soul per se, but she was lost in sin and misery. She was (and it brings me joy to say “was” and not “is”) giving herself freely to him.

Now, as you have stated, you two aren’t out of the thick of the woods yet. This will be a very important time for growing her faith, and you must continue to serve as her inital guide into the faith. The initial hurdle is over now that she believes in God. And, of course, God is always willing to forgive her. But the next step is in getting her to forgive herself.

Allow me to explain. By “forgive oneself” I do not mean thinking to one’s self, “It’s okay that you sinned, I forgive you.” No, no, no. By “forgive oneself”, I mean thinking, “I have sinned, but I am truly sorry for these sins, and I know that, through the Sacrament of Confession, God will grant me his mercy since I am truly sorry.”

Your friend must be made aware of how much God wants to forgive her, and that it doesn’t matter what she has done in His eyes. She could have done every single mortal sin, but if she is truly sorry for her sins, and asks for God’s forgiveness at Confession, then she is cleansed of all those sins. It’s as if they had never happened.

St. Paul was a persecutor of Christians before he converted. Look how highly thought of he is now. We all can be forgiven, we just have to truly want it.