The fallen angel

It finally makes sense! I've never understood why people hold so adamently to the theological position that satan is a fallen angel. But, as I am reading Maximus the Confessor in the context of class discussions about the meaning of suffering and questions about theodicies, I get it! Maximus the Confessor, relying upon the writing of Dionysius, argues that "neither are the demons evil by nature; rather they have become evil through the misuse of their natural faculties." The point being that God only creates good. Here the argument goes that if God is a good god he could not create evil, but it would be important for him to create free will. Thus Satan wouldn't have been created as evil, but rather as good with a free will to choose to go against God's good nature. Thus this angel had to "fall" or choose to "misuse" its "natural faculties" in order to become evil. It makes sense now why it matters so much to people that we view Satan as a fallen angel.

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