Hallowe’en…
Despite what some misguided folks say, Hallowe’en has nothing to do with Satan and his cohort. I’m just using Hallowe’en as an excuse to talk about the Evil One.
Hallowe’en itself is a harmless holiday…promoted by dentists? or so I’ve 
always suspected. Back in my day, Hallowe’en consisted only of kids in costumes going around collecting candy. Modern Hallowe’en has turned into a major festival, with ghosts and skeletons and orange lights and what-not decorating many front yards and stores. Why? My guess is that, with so much of the mystery removed from modern Christian worship, and many people not going to church at all, people feel a natural need for something supernatural.
In parts of pre-Christian Western Europe, November 1 was the day when spirits of the dead were thought to come back for a spree. The Roman Catholic Church took advantage of that and put their All Saints’/ All “Hallows” Day on November 1, Hallowe’en being the even[ing] before.
I note that the Church of Satan – yes, there is such a thing – now lists Hallowe’en as one of their holidays. So maybe I’m wrong? Does Hallowe’en now have something to do with the Evil One?
The Devil
I’ve heard people say they don’t believe in the Devil.
Then they must not believe in Jesus, Who talked about, warned us against Satan many times, as did the rest of the New Testament writers. Pick up your Bible and check it out.
Then they must not be paying attention to the state of the world today. Look at what’s happening to America, where in one case I suspect direct demonic involvement – and what’s going on in Ukraine and Gaza and now Lebanon – and Sudan which is worst of all and everybody ignores it. There is a superhuman, subhuman power at work undermining things in this world today, fomenting lies and mistrust, destroying what is good. If people don’t see that, they’ve got their eyes closed.
This Post will have three sections: 1 Names and activities of the Evil One. 2 Orthodox pre-Baptismal Exorcisms and Renunciations. 3 Some words on the subject from Father Alexander Schmemann.
Names of the Evil One
Each of these will give us a warning about what he’s up to.
1. Satan – from the Hebrew word śāṭān, which means “adversary” or “accuser”, who opposes us, undercuts all good things, plots and works against us, trying to separate us from our God and our salvation.
2. The Devil – from the Greek word diabolos (διάβολος), which means “slanderer” “liar”. Don’t trust him. He promises much and produces little or nothing – or less than that, much less. Dressing him up in a red suit with horns and a pitchfork was a clever ruse on his part, because who could possibly believe in that?
3. Formerly he was Lucifer (Latin: light-bearer), the morning star, the daystar, the greatest of Heaven’s archangels, before his fall. Now he is the lowest of the low.
4. The “Liar and father of lies” John 8:44, who from Eden till now has been the source of all deception, All who tell lies serve him.
5. The Tempter who tries to bring out the worst in us. “The tempter came and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’” Matthew 4:3
6. Beelzebul which means “lord of the flies,” or “lord of dung.” The Pharisees said “It is only by Beelzebul, the Ruler of the Demons, that this fellow casts out the demons.” Matthew 12:24
7. The Evil One. “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path.” Matthew 13:19. The “Our Father” properly translated concludes “…but deliver us from the Evil One”. Many are now reciting in that way.
8. “I will no longer talk much with you, for the Ruler of this World is coming. He has no power over Me.” John 14:30 Of course, God is the ultimate Ruler. Satan rules in this world as an invader, a usurper, an occupier, who one day will be cast out.
9. Belial from Hebrew “bəliyyaʿal,” a combination of the words beli- (בְּלִי “without-“) and ya’al (יָעַל “to be of value”). The devil has no value. The idea behind Belial is “vileness.”
10. Apollyon or Abaddon, from Greek “the destroyer”, the angel of the bottomless pit, whose aim is to destroy all good things and finally all things.
Therefore:”Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” I Peter t:8
Exorcisms
If you have attended an Orthodox Baptism, have you ever wondered why these exorcisms are read over an innocent little baby? In the ancient Church, it was chiefly adults who were being baptized, all of whom had fallen into evil behavior, and the need to cast out the Devil was obvious. However, infants, just by being born into this world, have already been subject to the work of the Devil – through heredity, environment, direct demonic activity. In order to rescue these little ones from Satan, in these powerful Exorcisms we let the devil “have it” head-on, and give them a fresh start.
Because of our modern increasingly un-churched society, adult Baptisms are becoming much more common. As you read these Exorcisms, imagine them being read over a person who has been part of “the world” and now wants to repent and become a Christian.
First Exorcism
Priest: Let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord have mercy.
Priest: The Lord rebukes you, O Devil, He that came into the world and made His dwelling among men, that He might cast down your tyranny, and deliver men;
He that upon the Tree triumphed over the opposing powers, when the sun was darkened, and the earth was shaken, and the tombs were opened, and the bodies of the Saints arose; He that by death destroyed Death, and overcame him that held the might of death, that is, even you, O Devil. I adjure you by the Living God, Who has shown forth the Tree of Life, and posted the Cherubim, and the flaming sword that turns about to guard this: be rebuked, and depart, for I forbid you, through Him that walks on the waves of the sea as upon the dry land, Who forbade the storm of the winds, Whose glance dries up the deep, and Whose threatenings melt the mountains; for it is He Himself that now forbids you through us.
Be afraid, and depart, and absent yourself from this creature, and come not back, neither hide yourself in him (her), nor encounter him (her), nor influence him (her) either by night or by day, nor in the morning or at noon; but get you hence to your own Tartarus, until the appointed day of Judgment. Fear God, Who sits on the throne of the Cherubim, and looks upon the depths, before Whom tremble Angels, Archangels, Thrones, Principalities, Authorities, Powers, the many-eyed Cherubim, and the six-winged Seraphim; Whom Heaven and earth fear, the sea, and all that live therein.
Come forth, and depart from the sealed and newly-enlisted soldier of Christ our God; for I adjure you by Him that rides upon the wings of the winds, Who makes His Angels spirits and His Ministers a flame of fire. Come forth, and from this creature which He fashioned depart with all your power and might; for glorified is the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen.
Second Exorcism
Priest: Let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord have mercy.
Priest: God, the Holy, the Terrible, and the Glorious, Who concerning all His works and strength is incomprehensible and unsearchable, Who Himself has ordained for you O Devil, the retribution of eternal torment, through us, His unworthy servants, commands you, and all your cooperating might to go forth from him (her) that is newly sealed in the Name of our Lord God and Savior Christ.
Therefore, you all evil, unclean, abominable, loathsome and alien spirit, I adjure you by the power of Jesus Christ, Who has all authority in Heaven and on earth, Who says to the deaf and dumb demon, “Get out of the man, and enter no more into him.” Depart, know the vainness of your might, which had not power even over the swine!
emember Him Who bade you, at your request, to enter into the herd of swine. Fear God, at Whose command the earth was established upon the waters; Who has founded the Heavens, and fixed the mountains with a line, and the valleys with a measure; Who has placed the sand for a boundary to the sea, and made safe paths through the waters; Who
touched the mountains and they smoked; Who clothed Himself with Light as with a garment; Who has stretched out the Heavens as with a curtain; Who covers His upper rooms with waters; Who has founded the earth on her firm foundations, so that it shall not be moved forever; Who calls up the waters of the seas, and sprinkles it on the face of the earth.
Come out! Depart from him (her) who is now being made ready for Holy Illumination; I adjure you by the saving Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, by His Precious Blood and All-Pure Body, and by His terrible Coming Again for He shall come and not tarry, to judge all the earth, and shall punish you and your cooperating might in the Gehenna of fire, consigning you to the outer darkness where the worm dies not and the fire is not quenched; for of Christ is the Might, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen.
After another short Exorcism and a prayer, the Priest turns him (her)that is to be baptized to face westward, unclothed, barefoot hands upraised. If the person is a child, the Sponsor holding him (her) faces West. the Priest then says thrice:
The Renunciations
Repeating something three times was the ancient way of making something firm.
Priest: Do you renounce Satan, and all his works, and all his worship, and all his angels, and all his pomp?
Each time the Catechumen (or the Sponsor if the person to be baptized is a child or a foreigner) answers and says:
Catechumen: I do renounce him.
Again the Priest asks him (her) that is to be baptized (3x):
Priest: Have you renounced Satan?
And the Catechumen or the Sponsor answers (3x):
Catechumen: I have renounced him.
After the third time, the Priest says:
Priest: Then blow and spit upon him.
And this being done, the Priest turns the Catechumen to the East with lowered hands, and repeats the following three times:
Priest: Do you join Christ?
The question is answered three times:
Catechumen: I do join Him.
Again the Priest asks three times:
Priest: Have you joined Christ?
Catechumen: I have joined Him.
Again the Priest asks:
Priest: And do you believe in Him?
Catechumen: I believe in Him as King and as God.
Then the Priest asks thrice:
Priest: Have you joined Christ?
Catechumen: I have joined Him.
Priest: Then bow before Him and worship Him.
Catechumen (or Sponsor) bows down, saying:
Catechumen: I bow down before the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit; Trinity. One in essence and undivided.
Then the Creed is said.
Father Alexander Schmemann on the Exorcisms and Renunciations
from his book Of Water and The Spirit: A Liturgical Study of Baptism (SVS Press, 1974): pages 28-30
“When [the pre-baptismal] rite of renunciation came into existence, its meaning was self-evident to the catechumen as well as to the entire Christian community. They lived within a pagan world whose life was permeated with the pompa diaboli, i.e. the worship of idols, participation in the cult of the Emperor, adoration of matter, etc. He not only knew what he was renouncing; he was also fully aware to what a “narrow way,” to what a difficult life—truly “non-conformist” and radically opposed to the “way of life” of the people around him—this renunciation obliged him.
It is when the world became “Christian” and identified itself with Christian faith and Christian cult that the meaning of this renunciation began to be progressively lost so as to be viewed today as an archaic and anachronistic rite, as a curiosity not to be taken seriously. Christians became so accustomed to Christianity as an integral part of the world, and to the Church as simply the religious expression of their worldly “values,” that the very idea of a tension or conflict between their Christian faith and the world faded from their life. And even today, after the miserable collapse of all these so-called “Christian” worlds, empires, nations, states, so many Christians are still convinced that there is nothing basically wrong with the world and that one can very happily accept its “way of life,” all its values and “priorities,” while fulfilling at the same time one’s “religious duties.” Moreover, the Church herself and Christianity itself are viewed mainly as aids for achieving a successful and peaceful worldly life, as spiritual therapy resolving all tensions, all conflicts, giving that “peace of mind” which assures success, stability, happiness. The very idea that a Christian has to renounce something and that this “something” is not a few obviously sinful and immoral acts, but above all a certain vision of life, a “set of priorities,” a fundamental attitude towards the world; the idea that Christian life is always a “narrow path” and a fight: all this has been virtually given up and is no longer at the heart of our Christian worldview.
The terrible truth is that the overwhelming majority of Christians simply do not see the presence and action of Satan in the world and, therefore, feel no need to renounce “his works and his service.” They do not discern the obvious idolatry that permeates the ideas and the values by which men live today and that shapes, determines and enslaves their lives much more than the overt idolatry of ancient paganism. They are blind to the fact that the “demonic” consists primarily in falsification and counterfeit, in deviating even positive values from their true meaning, in presenting black as white and vice versa, in a subtle and vicious lie and confusion. They do not understand that such seemingly positive and even Christian notions as “freedom” and “liberation,” “love,” “happiness,” “success,” “achievement,” “growth,” “self-fulfillment”—notions which truly shape modern man and modern society, their motivations and their ideologies—can in fact be deviated from their real significance and become vehicles of the “demonic.”
…
To renounce Satan thus is not to reject a mythological being in whose existence one does not even believe. It is to reject an entire “worldview” made up of pride and self-affirmation, of that pride which has truly taken human life from God and made it into darkness, death and hell. And one can be sure that Satan will not forget this renunciation, this rejection, this challenge. “Breathe and spit upon him!” A war is declared! A fight begins whose real issue is either eternal life or eternal damnation. For this is what Christianity is about! This is what our choice ultimately means!
culled by W. Travis McMaken – February 10, 2009
Next Week: possibly Truth, Hope, Decency