SATAN MUST ASK GOD PERMISSION

January 28, 2021

QUESTION/COMMENT

I heard you speak in West Des Moines, Iowa. I was hoping you could clarify two things for me?

You mentioned that God has to grant permission to Satan to do things? How can that be? Why would God ever want to approve anything Satan would want to do?

ANSWER!

In Job chapter 1 the bible demonstrates that Satan has to ask God permission to tempt Job. The power of the Devil is not infinite and the Devil only acts with the permission of God, see CCC paragraph#395. 

God allows the evil one to tempt us because the struggle against temptation benefits us spiritually and we grow in grace.

QUESTION/COMMENT

You talked a lot about psychics, witchcraft etc. I agree with everything you said. I serve on Catholic boards, nonprofits and on occasion one of our founders will make sole decisions based on what her spiritual director advises her. Inevitably, she will say God spoke to him and said we need to do etc. and she will make decisions based only on those conversations. Catalina Rivas and others state that Jesus and Mary speak through them. How should we believe that and how is that any different than going to a medium or psychic? Mediums believe they are led by the Holy Spirit just like Catalina.

ANSWER!

Proverbs 15:22 says, “Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counselors they are established.” Proverbs 11:14 and 24:6 also mention the value of a “multitude of counselors” or having “many advisers.” The general principle is that there is wisdom in seeking a wide range of advice from others instead of relying solely on one’s own knowledge or intuition. Considering other points of view and drawing on the experience of others is good.

Fr Sebastian White O.P.: “Few souls are privileged to hear an audible voice from heaven (I am not one of them). To be fair, such as extraordinary grace is not one we need or ought to expect. In fact, impressive  as private revelations, visions or locutions may be – and though they can aid devotion or call attention to an aspect of the faith – they pale in comparison to the awesome and yet ordinary gift of sanctifying grace. Additionally, the official or public ‘deposit of faith’ contains everything necessary for our salvation. As one great theologian (Fr Garrigou Lagrange – the young JPII’s doctoral advisor) explained, the Church may investigate the teachings of extraordinary mystical revelations, declare them free from error, and promote them ‘without judging infallibly about the divine origin of the private revelation.’ We can therefore read about them, visit their shrines and adopt certain devotional practices without putting them on the same level as Scripture and ‘big T Tradition” (Magnificat ‘Editorial’ January 2021, vol. 22, no,11; p.3).