July 12, 2005
“Should we pray for Satan?”
I guess if you ask for questions – you’ll get them – and all kinds!
Actually, this is a question theologians love, and out of their discussions and debates, you get more than one answer. Although I’m not a theologian, let me at least offer you my thoughts.
One intriguing question I sometimes like to ask a congregation is this: “Does God love Satan?” What do you think the answer is? Well, I suspect you guessed it already – yes, God loves Satan. The simple reason being, God cannot do anything but love! Philosophically it would be stated this way: “Love is God’s essence, His being is His act.” In this regard, a purist would not say that God is loving, just, or merciful. He is love, justice, and mercy. Therefore, God loves whatever He has created, including Satan. Evil is not a creation of God, rather, the absence of God. For this reason, God cannot “hate” even evil – since He cannot hate a “no thing”.
Perhaps an analogy might be helpful. Can the sun ever bring darkness to the earth? No. The “essence”, that is, what the sun is made of, is ignited gas. The “act” is light. If it ceases to give light, it ceases to be the sun. However, the sun can bring darkness by casting light and creating shadows. The shadow is the absence of the sun; in fact, the brighter the light, the darker the shadow!
Now, to approach and answer the question, “could or should we pray for Satan?” Well, if you are in the desert you certainly can pray for rain, but it will do no good. Simply put, you can hope (and pray) for rain, but there’s no hope for anything to grow because of it. Another example can also be found in nature. A stone will not absorb water, while a sponge certainly can. You can soak a stone, yet its inside is never affected. A stone, by its very essence, its “being”, does not absorb. So, the question, “Could I submerge this stone in water?” The answer, “Well, yes, but for what purpose?”
Finally, in the Gospels we read about the “unforgivable sin”. Our Lord says that such a sin is one which has no hope for forgiveness. Remember, in this account some of Our Lord’s opponents were saying that He was in league with Satan. So, if you think Jesus is an emissary of Satan, where does one go to for forgiveness? The answer? Nowhere.
So, if you feel divinely inspired to pray for Satan, may I suggest you turn your attention to those whom he has deceived. Pray for the most wretched, lost, abandoned, evil, foul, and sinful person on this earth (or in purgatory). Now, that’s a prayer which can make a difference – stone hearts can be changed into sponge. Yet, as for the evil enemy and his minions, they don’t want to change. They believe the sweet life-giving water of God’s grace as poison – they don’t desire to see, smell, or even touch it.
Could it be that heaven and hell is the same place? There the damned suffer terribly because they spend all their energy resisting the sweet presence of God’s holy grace – like stones on the ocean floor. The saints, however, are empty and open like fat sponges – soaking Him all in!
How’s that for an interesting question?
Fr. Glenn Sudano, CFR
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