Historical Satan Excavated in a Book by Iliff Professors

September 01, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Greta Gloven
303-765-3109
Cell: 303-229-8042

HISTORICAL SATAN EXCAVATED IN A BOOK BY ILIFF PROFESSORS

Courtesy of Fortress Press

(DENVER) – The Quest for the Historical Satan, a book by Miguel De La Torre, professor of social ethics, and Albert Hernández, academic vice president, dean of the faculty and associate professor of the history of Christianity, was recently released by Fortress Press. Their new work excavates how the figure of Satan has for centuries embodied or incarnated absolute evil. Existing alongside more intellectualist interpretations of evil, Satan has figured largely in Christian practices, devotions, popular notions of the afterlife, and fears of retribution in the beyond. Satan remains an influential reality today in many Christian traditions and in popular culture. But how should Satan be understood today?

De La Torre and Hernández’s volume probes the murky origins of the satanic legends and beliefs back to their pre-Christian roots in the Middle East. They unearth the Satan’s roots in Egyptian and Babylonian understandings of evil. They also show that the ancient Satan has some characteristics we would hardly recognize, especially his appearance in most ancient cultures and survival in many traditional religions as the “trickster” figure. While a minor tradition in historic Christianity, the authors argue, seeing Satan as trickster is historically accurate and holds real promise for Christian rethinking in “theology, philosophy, and practice of evil” and how it can be dealt with. This is a fascinating story that helps the reader reframe basic elements of our worldview of good and evil.

The Quest for the Historical Satan is available from Fortress Press and through Cokesbury bookstore. Detailed information about the Iliff School of Theology can be found at www.iliff.edu.

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The Iliff School of Theology is a graduate theological school related to the United Methodist Church, serving more than 38 different faith traditions. Founded in 1892, the school provides several degree programs, including a Joint Ph.D. Program with the University of Denver.