Satanism in Literature – Faust and his pact with the devil
While there are several variations of the Faust story, the general idea is this: Faust makes a pact with the devil, Mephistopheles, in exchange for unlimited knowledge, worldly pleasures, and power.
It’s easy to see it as a retelling of the story that supposedly took place in the mythical Garden of Eden. Gaining knowledge and understanding are considered bad. It’s bad because knowledge and independent thought debunk religion. Living a pleasurable life on your own terms negates the need for a dependence on God. When you’re living a life of pleasure and comfort, God easily gets kicked out of the picture.
Having knowledge and pleasure sounds like a great way to live, but there is a common theme to cast knowledge as a shameful thing.
The Faustian story, like the tainted apple story in the Garden of Eden, making a pact with the devil or setting the wheels in motion for a satisfying life is bad. There is the idea that too much of anything can be bad, or that absolute power corrupts absolutely. But, let’s have a look at the other side of the coin.
Yet you can’t pass a church marquee or a billboard offering you to make a deal with God.
I’ve seen dozens of variations on the following phrases:
Got an addiction, make a deal with God to take it away.
Got problems in your life, make a deal with God to give you guidance.
Marital problems, make a deal with God to give you counseling.
Lost a loved on, make a deal with God.
Got yourself in a mess, make a deal with God.
Not to mention the silly little banners and signs all over the place of, God’s got this. All you need is God. You won’t get X without God’s help. A satisfying life is being a servant of God.
Isn’t this a massive contradiction? How are these different than the Faust deal? It’s the same concept of making a pact with God, or turning over control over your life to God to get a reward.
In the Faustian example, there is the sacrifice of the spiritual soul, which doesn’t actually exist, while being a servant of God is a real forfeit of physical needs and pleasures.
That last one sounds pretty terrible as it’s a simply case of depriving yourself in the hopes of getting some reward.
You find yourself up a creek, so making a pact with God amidst total desperation is fine? Yet, asking for knowledge and wisdom from the devil is a no go?