Theological Tidbits

The sin of Satan and his devils was different from most of the sins human persons commit. Since the angels do not have bodies, their sin was a choice in their wills, uninfluenced by any bodily desires, to accept a false understanding of their own position as creatures vis-à-vis God. While we are capable of such sins of pure pride, most often our sins begin with the selfish seeking of bodily pleasure or the avoidance of pain. The desire for bodily self-gratification makes it difficult for us to express in and through our bodies the values we choose. Our bodily desires influence our minds and wills. This kind of sin does not occur in angels because they do not have bodily desires. But sins of pure pride do occur because the angels do have intellects and wills. Satan and his followers were guilty of a sin of pure pride. Satan and his followers seek to entice others—i.e., human beings to follow them in their rejection of God. Satan tempted Adam and Eve in the garden of Paradise. He and his followers continue to tempt human beings to reject God. Thus, human persons are enticed not only by their bodily desires, but also by Satan and his followers.

The fallen angels did not accept that God knew what was good for them. They wanted to define what was in their own best interests. In other words, they themselves wanted to define truth—i.e., they claimed to “know good and evil” like God. In making this claim to define truth, they rejected God, Who is Truth, and tried to make themselves gods. Satan and his followers wanted to be more perfect than they actually were—i.e., they wanted to be truth as God is Truth. All this is summed up concisely in the words: “I will not serve.” With this rejection of Truth, Satan and his followers became liars. A liar is one who rejects truth. Satan himself became the cosmic liar and the father of lies. In addition, he consigned himself to hell, that place of loveless, everlasting separation from God. Totally separated from God and deprived of grace, Satan will never be as he was before he sinned. Further, he will never be fulfilled. Milton aptly expresses Satan’s rejection of God and its results when he has Satan say, “Better to reign in hell than serve in heav’n” (Paradise Lost).

Men and women can “change their minds” because we often make our choices based on incomplete knowledge or understanding. When we gain further knowledge or understanding, we “change our minds.” But it is not possible for an angel to change his mind because angels are created with all the knowledge they will ever have. Thus, an angel does not acquire greater knowledge or a greater understanding as we do. Therefore, angels always make an informed choice. Consequently, once an angel has chosen, the choice cannot be changed.

Some might suggest that we “change our minds” because of new and unforeseen circumstances. This is true. However, this also betrays an incomplete knowledge or understanding—i.e., we did not know what possible circumstances could occur. The angels know all the possible circumstances regarding any decision they make.

In some respects, man resembles an animal. He is a material being because he has a body that is not unlike the bodies of animals. However, as an image of God, man is a person, a spiritual being. Thus, within the sphere of material creation, man represents the boundary between the visible and invisible creation. The pinnacle of earthly development is reached in man because all other earthly beings are material—but man is both material and spiritual. Above man is God Who is perfect spirit. It is reasonable to suggest a gradation in the spiritual world similar to the one that exists in the material world—i.e., the order in the universe suggests the existence of pure spirits, beings in between God and man.

In creating human beings and angels, God establishes their value creating them in His own image. As images of God, they are persons—i.e., they have the faculties of thinking and choosing, minds and wills. Unlike human persons, the angels are pure spirits. As pure spirits, they do not have bodies and therefore are more like God than are human beings. However, they still are not God because they are not the source of their own being. Rather, God created them.

In creating persons, God gives Himself to them—i.e., He loves them. God’s love establishes a value—i.e., a goodness, in those He creates. Without God’s love, there would be no value or goodness outside of God because nothing outside of God would exist. Clearly, then, God’s love is not a response to an already existing value because His love is the source of all value. However, the self-gift of created persons does not establish value in others as God’s love does. Instead, the love of created persons is a response to the value they discover in others.

The creation of persons out of nothing is a stupendous act of power. We, as powerful as we are with all our advanced technology, cannot create. We cannot call things, not to speak of persons, into being from nothing. In creating persons from nothing, God shared His power. However, the creation of persons also reveals God’s wisdom—divine self-knowledge—because God makes Himself known in a unique way through persons who are made in the image and likeness of God. Further, the creation of persons is an act of love because in creating persons, God shared existence. Since He is existence—Being—itself, God gave Himself when He gave existence to persons. In other words, He loved. Thus, the creation of persons was not only an act of power and wisdom, it was also an act of love.