In The Devil and Miss Prym: A Novel of Temptation, characters are pictured with angels and devils beside them, each trying to gain influence. I don’t agree with that understanding of anthropology for a couple reasons:

1. It implies that we have the freedom to choose between good or evil, independent of God.
2. It smacks of a good/evil dualism that’s so popular in modern thought, but so antithetical to Biblical reality.

That said, I’m only half way through the novel, and Coelho could surprise me.

Enough of the disclaimers; on to Weekend Wisdom. The evil character in the story is the Stranger, whose devil vanquished his angel years ago in dramatic fashion. After a discussion between the Stranger and the hero, Miss Prym, the Stranger retires for the night and we hear this:

The stranger was shivering now, but decided to leave the window open a while longer.

God, I did not deserve what happened to me. If you did that to me, I can do the same to others. That is justice.

The devil was worried, but resolved to keep quiet—he could not show that he too was terrified. The man was blaspheming against God and trying to justify his actions, but this was the first time in two years he had heard himself addressing the heavens.

It was a bad sign.

I’ve been fascinated with the book of Job lately. In it, Job gets angry and rages at God. Job’s friends pontificate at great length and try to defend God. In the end, Job was right. The person who’s angry at God is far closer to Him than the one who’s indifferent.