After hearing American evangelist Joyce Meyers giving a Christmas-type sermon about the seductive temptations of Satan, I read RC Archbishop Jason Gordon’s repeated appeal for our citizens to resist evil habits and keep faith in God.
Two weeks ago, the tireless Archbishop Gordon, noting the collapse of the country’s “value system,” called upon our 1.4 million young and old citizens to help turn back the country from crime, wickedness and hedonism. Last year, he condemned widespread “disrespect, indiscipline, lawlessness, ingratitude and unaccountability” while pleading for better values and habits. Nothing changed. And I began to think.
How many times must the dutiful archbishop and other worried ones say the same things? What is wrong? Are Satan’s temptations so powerful? Archbishop Gordon, well-qualified in theology, author of three books affirming faith in the existence of God, backed up by his many years of dedicated community service to Belmont youths, cannot give up. But as my teacher friend asked me: Is Satan winning? Is evil necessary for the existence of goodness? Not many have the power to say: Get thee behind me, Satan.
Last week too, Rev Dr Joy Abdul-Mohan, moderator of the Presbyterian Church, in her Christmas message, repeated her pleadings against evil, also asking parents to instil good values in their children. But how many times must the same call for better habits and values be made? It is reasonable to ask: Why no change? God, in whatever written way or form worshipped, represents values of goodness, righteousness and virtue. Satan, in whatever description, represents values of evil, wrongdoing and vice. In fact, it’s said that Satan’s best trick is to have us believe he doesn’t exist.
So from the Russia-Ukraine war to our annual murder rate and the devilish reasons for them, it looks like God has serious challenges. Remember what started World War I and II and wars before these. In sum, it was ethnic jealousies, national “pride,” selfish ambitions for power and land with millions of followers falling prey to misguided, unholy leaders. Could you imagine, as reported, the Russian Orthodox Church “strongly supported Russia in its war against Ukraine and justified it on religious grounds"? What about the war-driven deaths and destruction of thousands of homes, schools, hospitals and churches?
Hence Pope Francis, at last week’s international conference of religions, called upon the church to fight for peace and against “the ‘childlike’ whims of powerful leaders who make war.” What really gets into such leaders who instigate such satanic wars without regard for the suffering of so many innocent people? Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, when asked about Russia’s invasion, said it was “to preserve Russia’s national pride.”
Quite a devilish explanation. It seems as if there is some sinister force behind such thinking, as it was behind Hitler’s massacre of Jews. We feel forced to wonder if it is Satan at work. What else?
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