THE REAL HELLRAISER

From a blue, haloed "bearer of light" named Lucifer, to Satan, "Lord of the Flies", the image and collective persona known as "The Devil" was radically changed from the times of the Old Testament to the New.

This article written by Marina Montesano for the September/October 2018 issue of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC HISTORY (yes, even National Geographic can make it on the blog roll of MONSTER MAGAZINE WORLD!) traces the earliest origins of Satan to the Last Judgment, even challenging some of the assumptions about this most wicked of entities. For example, the serpent in the Garden of Eden, while commonly considered to be an embodiment of Satan, may not have originally been intended to be so and was only associated with him because of his evil nature in later beliefs.

In Old Testament scripture, Satan is mentioned sparingly and is identified as being God's adversary. In the New Testament, Satan has been transformed into the demonic opponent of God. Just goes to show you what a few ecumenical councils will do for you. No matter which side of the fence you're on religion-wise, however, the information in this article is very informative and... enlightening.