The Salvation of Satan?

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(Thomas Talbott, Fr Aidan Kimel, Robin Parry, Enrique Ramos, and George Sarris all give their takes on whether or not even Satan will be reconciled to God.)

Preaching on Romans 16.20 this Sunday, I mentioned how the church fathers understood the redemption even of Satan and the fallen spirits as a necessary component to salvation. While scripture gives us few handholds for such speculation, the ancient church— along with more recent Orthodox theologians— nonetheless boldly incorporated such an affirmation into their theology.

This surprised some listeners.

So I thought I should show a bit more of my homework.

In addition to Origen and St. Gregory of Nyssa, both of whom I cited in my sermon, St. Isaac of Nineveh wrote about the salvation of even the Adversary. Isaac saw the salvation of the fallen angels as a necessary correlative to the total victory of God’s work in Jesus Christ as well as to the absolute, ultimate irresistibility of the Triune love.

Isaac writes:

Nor are we able to say that the love of the Creator is diminished towards those rational beings who have become demons as a result of their demonic action, and is any less than the fulness of love which He has towards those who remain in the angelic state; or that it is less for sinners than for those who are justly named righteous. This is because the divine Nature is not affected by what happens and by opposition, nor does there spring up within it any causal stirring which takes its origin from creation, and which is not to be found with Him from eternity; not does He have a kind of love which originates as a result of events which take place in time.

Rather, everyone has a single place in His purpose in the ranking of love, corresponding to the form He beheld in them before He created them and all the rest of created beings, that is, at the time before the eternal purpose for the delineation of the world was put into effect. For it was not with an adventitious love that He had, without any beginning, the stirring that initiated the establishment of the world. He has a single ranking of com­plete and impassible love towards everyone, and He has a single caring concern for those who have fallen, just as much as for those who have not fallen.

And it is clear that He does not abandon them the moment they fall, and that demons will not remain in their demonic state, and sinners will not remain in their sins; rather, He is going to bring them to a single equal state of perfection in relationship to His own Being—in a state in which the holy angels are now, in perfection of love and a passionless mind. He is going to bring them into that excellency of will, where it will not be as though they were curbed and not [free], or having stirrings from the Opponent then; rather, they will be in a state of excelling knowledge, with a mind made mature in the stirrings which partake of the divine outpouring which the blessed Creator is preparing in His grace; they will be perfected in love for Him, with a perfect mind which is above any aberration in all its stirrings…

The Fathers tell us that at the hour when the saints will be attracted by the divine wave, they will be raised to that beatitude by meeting our Lord Who will attract them with His power, like a magnetic stone drawing iron particles into itself. Then all the legions of heavenly hosts and Adam’s descendants will gather together into one Church. And then the purpose of the Creator’s providence will be fulfilled which He prepared from the beginning of the world, making the creation by His benevolence. To this purpose the long course of various events of this world was prepared, serving to rational (beings) as to its master. And henceforth the exiles of the Kingdom will enjoy a life in peace in which there is no end or change.

And since in the new World the Creator’s love rules over all rational nature, the wonder at His mysteries that will be revealed (then) will captivate to itself the intellect of (all) rational beings whom He has created so that they might have delight in Him, whether they be evil or whether they be just.

Yesterday’s New Testament lectionary text was from the Book of Hebrews, whose author speaks of our Great High Priest sitting down beside the Father, his sacrificial work having been perfectly completed. On this note, Isaac says:

“You are a Priest forever” (Ps 110.4). This “forever” (means) that our Lord Jesus Christ is a priest now and ministers to us for our redemption. It always continues (and will continue) until He elevates us all to Himself…

The ministry of Christ consists in saying prayers on behalf of all rational natures to the Divine nature which dwells in Him . . . The Apostle testifies: “He entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence” (Heb 9.24). This “for us” should be understood (as follows): He rose for the sake of us all and sat down on the right hand of God and intercedes for us. He did it not only for the sake of human beings but also for the sake of holy angels…

No part belonging to any single one of all rational beings will be lost, as far as God is concerned, in the preparation of that supernal Kingdom, which is prepared for all worlds. Because of that goodness of His nature by which He brought the universe into being and then bears, guides and provides for the worlds and all created things in His immeasurable compassion, He has devised the establishment of the Kingdom of heaven for the entire commu­nity of rational beings—even though an intervening time is reserved for the general raising of all to the same level. And we say this in order that we too may concur with the magisterial teaching of Scripture.”

Once again, given that the scriptures do not answer every question we might bring to them, the final destiny of God’s Enemy and his minions remains speculation. Nevertheless, it’s speculation we can engage as boldly and playfully as the fathers, for they’re questions born of faith and wonder— the magisterial teaching— in the fullness of Christ’s saving love.

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