Why then does evil want to be in the church? Why do they want to be called Christians? Is it a diabolical thing where they want to get in and wreak havoc not to actually pretend to be His?
Evil seeks the Church not because it loves Christ, but because the Church is the very “body of Christ” that the devil wishes to corrupt, destroy, and turn into a source of falsehood. The fallen angel, having definitively rejected God, “tries to associate man in his revolt against God” (CCC 414)1. His primary weapon is deception: “Satan is the deceiver of the whole world” and “the father of lies” (CCC 2852)2. By infiltrating the Church he can spread lies, sow division, and lead the faithful away from the truth of the Gospel.
The desire to be called “Christian” is part of that deception. When heretical groups or “false apostles” present themselves as part of the Church, they gain the credibility needed to lure souls, to spread “pestilential doctrines” and “poisonous books” that appear respectable (Qui Pluribus 18‑21)3. The devil’s strategy is to disguise his attacks as legitimate religious activity so that the faithful are not immediately alarmed (In Dominico Agro 1‑4)4. This is why the Church warns that “the insidious tempters would use their work to try to infect unwary minds with errors which are hostile to evangelical truth” (In Dominico Agro 1‑4)4.
Such infiltration is indeed diabolical. The devil does not seek to “pretend to be His” in a sincere way; he seeks to mislead. He wants to “plant weeds while the workers sleep” and to “sow tares into the field of the Lord” (In Dominico Agro 1‑4)4, thereby turning the Church’s own mission into a vehicle for error.
In practice, the Church combats this infiltration by:
• Teaching the faithful the true deposit of faith and warning against “false apostles” (In Dominico Agro 12‑13)9.
• Exercising canonical discipline: those who obstinately reject definitive teachings are subject to excommunication (AD TUENDAM FIDEM)6.
• Promoting prayer and penance as the “most efficacious remedy” against the devil (Divini Redemptoris 59)10.
• Maintaining vigilance in formation of clergy and laity, ensuring that “the young are not led into the abyss by the devil’s temptations” (Gaudete et exsultate 162)11.
Thus, evil wants to be in the Church because the Church is the means by which souls are saved; corrupting it is the most effective way to thwart God’s salvific plan. The devil’s masquerade as a Christian is a deliberate, diabolical strategy of deception, not a genuine desire for Christ. Our duty, following the Magisterium, is to remain watchful, to teach sound doctrine, and to pray fervently so that the devil’s lies are “quashed like a fire” (Eucharistic concelebration 1987)12.
do most people that are not really Christian think they are and are self deceived or are they malicious?
Most people who call themselves “Christian” while in fact living outside the true faith are usually not driven by a deliberate desire to harm the Church, but rather by a mixture of genuine misunderstanding, cultural identification, and, in some cases, a willful rejection of what the Church teaches. The Church’s own teaching distinguishes these degrees of error.
1. Ignorance that is not culpable
The Catechism teaches that “unintentional ignorance can diminish or even remove the imputability of a grave offense” (CCC 1860)1. When a person has never received a proper catechetical formation, or when the truth is concealed by false teachers, his or her mistaken self‑identification as a Christian is often invincible ignorance – a lack of knowledge that could not have been overcome by ordinary effort. In such cases the person is not morally culpable for the error, even though he or she may sincerely believe he/she belongs to the Church.
2. Ignorance that is culpable (vincible ignorance)
Thomas Aquinas draws a clear line between ignorance that is excusable and ignorance that is voluntary. He explains that “ignorance which is in some way willed… does not excuse the sin” (ST II‑II q. 76 a. 2)2. When a baptized person chooses not to learn the essential doctrines of the faith, his or her error becomes culpable. Aquinas calls this “vincible ignorance” and says it is a sin because the person ought to know the truth (ST II‑II q. 76 a. 2‑3)3.
3. Heresy as obstinate denial
The Catechism defines heresy as “the obstinate post‑baptismal denial of some truth which must be believed with divine and Catholic faith” (CCC 2089)4. This definition presupposes deliberate obstinacyafter having received baptism. For those who have never been baptized, the Church speaks of “error” rather than “heresy,” but the same principle applies: willful rejection of revealed truth is a grave fault.
4. The danger of following false teachers
Thomas Aquinas, in his Quaestiones quodlibetales (III q. 4 a. 1), asserts that “in matters that pertain to faith and good morals no one is excused if he follows the erroneous opinion of some teacher.” He stresses that “ignorance does not excuse” when the error concerns core doctrines (doc 8). This shows the Church’s view that malicious or obstinate adherenceto false teaching is not merely a harmless mistake.
5. The reality of many contemporary “self‑identified Christians”
The International Theological Commission notes that “heretical opinions can be spread by those who present themselves as part of the Church” (Qui Pluribus 18‑21)5. Likewise, the apostolic letter In Dominico Agro warns that “insidious tempters use their work to try to infect unwary minds with errors hostile to evangelical truth” (doc 5). These sources indicate that some people are deliberately co‑optedby false movements that masquerade as authentic Christianity, but the majority are caught in errorrather than motivated by malice.
6. Pastoral assessment
Pope Pius IX, in Quanto Conficiamur Moerore, reminds us that “the devil draws up his forces to join battle against the Church of Christ” (doc 9). The Church’s response is to form the faithful, to guard against “false apostles” (In Dominico Agro 12‑13)6, and to encourage prayer and discernment (Gaudete et exsultate 162)7.
Synthesis
• Most are self‑deceived: Their claim to be Christian stems from cultural identity, inadequate catechesis, or exposure to deceptive groups. Their error is rooted in invincible or vincible ignorance, not in a conscious wish to damage the Church.
• A minority are malicious: Those who know the Church’s true teaching and choose to reject or distort it—whether out of pride, rebellion, or a desire to lead others astray—commit heretical obstinacy and are morally culpable.
The Church therefore calls for vigilant formation, charitable correction, and prayerful discernment so that the faithful can distinguish genuine belief from self‑deception and from the diabolical intent to corrupt the Body of Christ.
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