Devil's Advocate?

[Floatingaxe]

Should a Christian play "Devil's Advocate"?

"Have you ever used a phrase or saying that you do not fully understand? We all have and do. We too frequently use idioms, especially, in our everyday conversation without the foggiest idea of where the particular expression originated or what it really means.

For instance, we might tell our children to "pipe down" when they are being a bit too noisy, and we need quiet to study. Most of us probably do not realize that this idiomatic statement comes from life aboard naval ships. The boatswain would blow various signals on a pipe or whistle to command the crew to do various things. Among the signals he blew were orders to "turn in" for the night and blow the "lights out" for sleep, when it was time for quiet.

Recently, I realized that, when I spoke of "playing devil's advocate," I had been using a phrase without really knowing what it entailed. Immediately after using it, I was left wondering what it really means.

Where did this phrase come from? What is its meaning today? More importantly, should we as Christians personify this phrase in our daily lives?

A little thought and study shows that a Christian faces real dangers in playing the role of "Devil's Advocate." It is time that we learned what it is all about."

Remaining article here:

http://cgg.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Librar...ls-Advocate.htm

[Guest man]

Advocate means to speak, plead, or argue in favour of.

3 John

11 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God.

[Floatingaxe]

It is wrong for a Christian to do. Satan banks on the unwise one who will take on the argument for him.

[Larry 2]

Should a Christian play "Devil's Advocate"?

"Have you ever used a phrase or saying that you do not fully understand? We all have and do. We too frequently use idioms, especially, in our everyday conversation without the foggiest idea of where the particular expression originated or what it really means.

Dear Flotingaxe, here is a quote of the original meaning of this saying according to Wikipedia - Hope it helps - I have been advised to not trust its authority, but find it very helpful in things not requiring absolutes.

Devil's advocate

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search For other uses, see Devil's advocate (disambiguation).

In common parlance, a devil's advocate is someone who takes a position, sometimes one he or she disagrees with, for the sake of argument. This process can be used to test the quality of the original argument and identify weaknesses in its structure. During the canonization process of the Roman Catholic Church, the Promoter of the Faith (Latin Promotor Fidei), popularly known as the Devil's Advocate (Latin advocatus diaboli), was a canon lawyer appointed by the Church to argue against the canonization of the candidate.[1] It was his job to take a skeptical view of the candidate's character, to look for holes in the evidence, to argue that any miracles attributed to the candidate were fraudulent, etc. The Devil's advocate was opposed by God's advocate, whose job was to make the argument in favor of canonization. The office was established in 1587 during the reign of Pope Sixtus V and was abolished by Pope John Paul II in 1983. This abolition streamlined the canonization process considerably, helping John Paul II to usher in an unprecedented number of elevations: nearly 500 individuals were canonized and over 1,300 were beatified during his tenure as Pope as compared to only 98 canonizations by all his 20th-century predecessors.

Such a dramatic increase suggests that the office of the Devil's Advocate had served to reduce the number of canonizations by complicating the process. Some argue that it served a useful role in ensuring that canonizations did not proceed without due care and hence the status of sainthood was not easily achieved. In cases of controversy the Vatican may still seek to informally solicit the testimony of critics of a candidate for canonization. The British born American columnist Christopher Hitchens was famously asked to testify against the beatification of Mother Teresa in 2002, a role he would later humorously describe as being akin to "representing the Evil One, as it were, pro bono".[2]

[Floatingaxe]

Thank you, larry!

Here's a quote from the link:

"Origins and Meaning

The term "Devil's Advocate" dates back to the sixteenth century to an official office within the Roman Catholic Church known in Latin as the Advocatus Diaboli

[Floatingaxe]

It is wrong for a Christian to do. Satan banks on the unwise one who will take on the argument for him.

you are very fast to proclaim things right and wrong.

If you cannot address the OP and choose instead to make personal judgments, please stay out of this thread. Thanks.

[KC02]

I an enrolled in "Religious studies" and we frequently have little debates. Part of the class will argue for, and the others, against. For example, the professor may give a topic such as: "God no longer heals."

It's a great way to learn both sides of an issue. Invariably, some have to play the "devil's advocate."

The devil will get Christians to the point where we are afraid to open our mouths. This fear is not of God. Of course this is not our main problem; we would do well to keep our traps shut more often!

It is wrong for a Christian to do. Satan banks on the unwise one who will take on the argument for him.

you are very fast to proclaim things right and wrong.

If you cannot address the OP and choose instead to make personal judgments, please stay out of this thread. Thanks.

Edited September 13, 2008 by KC02

[Floatingaxe]

I an enrolled in "Religious studies" and we frequently have little debates. Part of the class will argue for, and the others, against. For example, the professor may give a topic such as: "God no longer heals."

It's a great way to learn both sides of an issue. Invariably, some have to play the "devil's advocate."

The devil will get Christians to the point where we are afraid to open our mouths. This fear is not of God. Of course this is not our main problem; we would do well to keep our traps shut more often!

It is wrong for a Christian to do. Satan banks on the unwise one who will take on the argument for him.

you are very fast to proclaim things right and wrong.

If you cannot address the OP and choose instead to make personal judgments, please stay out of this thread. Thanks.

In a controlled situation in a Bible school setting, I can certainly understand it. Thanks!

[Floatingaxe]

"We need to be careful to examine the meanings and origins of idiomatic phrases of our common parlance, like "Devil's advocate," and not just repeat them without knowledge. Our Savior warns us "that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment" (Matthew 12:36). As we have seen, we may be playing into Satan's hand. He is a formidable enemy whom we must never ignore nor underestimate. We must be spiritually sober and vigilant in resisting him because he is the last being for whom we should ever want to advocate.

Instead, we must follow Christ's encouraging instruction by letting our light shine before others so that, as His ambassadors, we will be God's advocates!"

[Guest shiloh357]

There are a lot of expressions and phrases that we use innocently today that may have had less than righteous origins, but I think it is necessary to understand what they mean to us today, and that in light of the current meaning and usage such phrases are not inappropriate.