Rabbit Trail

I'm going to go off on a short rabbit trail re Non Servium before we go back.

Some points I thought might be worth mentioning.

It seems to me that whether a person is an atheist,agnostic or in one of these Satanist groups they could concede [or at least give some consideration to] the fact that Christianity has had a positive affect on mankind.

How bout those thou shalt nots?

Thou shalt not kill(murder),steal,covet or commit adultery?

Consider the positive commands:

Love neighbor and self, the Golden Rule(do unto others as you would have them do unto you), give up your riches to the poor, help a neighbor in need, visit the imprisoned and sick, feed the hungry,clothe the naked,give drink to the thirsty,the Beatitudes.

Jesus taught what many could hardly expect,such as love your enemies,do good to those who hurt you,turn the other cheek,give to people who can't repay you.

Jesus Himself said He came not to be served,but to serve.

Now i don't claim to have all the answers re God.The Catholic Church makes no such claim either.If you have all the answers re God,it's probably NOT God.

You want to know about God read the mystics.They had overwhelming experiences of the mercy,tenderness,love and suffering that Jesus endured for man.

There are non theistic Satanists.It's a philosophical system that does not believe in the actual existence of Satan.

Then there are the religious Satanists who do believe in an actual being but viewed more as a Gnostic(a heresy btw) diety.

I think that both groups practice magic;You're practicing magic you believe in the supernatural.

I'm not sure why these individuals founded an organization based on Satan to begin with UNLESS they wanted to attack Christianity.It seems to me you could choose a hedonistic lifestyle without having to organize a group promoting it.I don't get it.It also seems to me that with or without the Satanist name choosing a hedonistic lifestyle is both self centered and totally opposes the teachings of Christianity.We would call it SIN.

Now we're back to the Garden of Eden with Satan tempting Eve.

He begins with a lie disguised as a question-remember Satan is not more powerful than God BUT he has an intellect superior to man's. "Did God really say you were not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?"

God never said any such thing. God said they could eat of ALL the trees except one.

Eve replies, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden. But of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden God said, 'You must not eat it, nor touch it, under pain of death."

What did God ACTUALLY say? Genesis "You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and bad. From that tree you shall not eat; the moment you eat from it you are surely doomed to die."

Satan is telling Eve that God lied and here comes the inordinate desire;Serpent: "No! You will not die! God knows in fact that the day you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods, knowing good from evil."

Man(male and female)was created in the image and likeness of God. No need to be like 'gods'. Satan's claim here that God is deceitful should have been rejected. God created male and female;gave them life.Now Eve is tempted by an inordinate desire;she lusts after something that she did not need and in free will both failed to trust God and to desire something she felt she was being denied.She touched the fruit,did not die and that is when she used her free will to act on her desire and believed the lie.

Catholic apologist Scott Hahn pointed out something from Genesis I had never noticed.God actually gave Adam and Eve a chance to admit their sin and repent.Instead Eve blamed the serpent(Satan)and and Adam blamed God. Yep,God. He replied to God that God gave him the woman.Adam is saying,God's fault.