Demons do seem to have properties that are different from the angels we see depicted in scripture. The angels in scripture are always creatures with their own bodies, whether human or humanoid. Demons seem to lack that.

The “slave under a slave” statement made me think that this idea might have some credence. Also, the idea of a demon coming in as a “spirit guide” lends itself to this theory as does the idea of the “guardian angel”. The whole guardian angel idea is not based on scripture, is it? (Scripture does not state that we will have specific angels for each person, only that He will give his angels charge concerning us).

However, I suppose it could be argued that we didn’t need such guides before the fall of man and furthermore, that demons seems to have been in their own fallen condition prior to the garden (already useless to humans in assisting with a relationship to God).

I have a small ancient coin collection. One of my Roman coins bears a religious title for the Roman Emperor the head of the Roman pagan religion–borrowed from Babylonian religious origins, Pontifex Maximus. It is the title for the head of that pagan religion. Emperors tried to appeal to a broad range of constituent religious forces in the empire as part of the Pax Romana (Roman Peace), which, beside military might, included the tactic of support for various religions. The Pontifex Maximus was literally a “builder of bridges” between religious beliefs systems. The later emperors also were worshiped as gods.

When the political center of the empire shifted to the east, leaving the Roman Catholic Church to deal with the impending barbarian invasion threat, the religious title, Pontifex Maximus, came with the job. To this day the Pope bears the title, often shortened to simply, Pontiff. One Pope, Leo, was even so bold as to claim to be god on earth.

By legalizing and elevating Christianity to not only one of many religions, but to the primary state religion of the empire under Emperor Constantine, a little “tactful” compromise was inevitable given the history of Rome. The army was baptized on a single day with a march through the river. They came out wet calling themselves Christians, but ignorant to its meaning other than that that is what the Emperor’s orders said they now were. For the church to even try to make them real Christians was a daunting task.

Pagan temples confiscated and given to the church contained idols. The church was not allowed to destroy these works of art, so these too became “baptized” into the so called “saints.” (According to the New Testament, all believers are “saints.”) Look closely and you can still see the thunderbolt in “the apostle Peter’s” hand (formerly the hand of Zeus) in the Vatican.

A compromise to appeal to the sun worshiping Mythraites converted the Sabbath into worship on Sunday (“the venerable day of the sun”). The excuse was given that it was because of the resurrection. This was not so. At first many Christians kept both days in order to comply, then laws forbidding the keeping of the Sabbath from Friday evening through Saturday evening were gradually introduced and enforced and turned into days of fasting to embitter people against that day.

Christmas too, as you mentioned, was a compromise (Christ being born somewhere around late October of 4 BC.). So also were many other pagan holidays incorporated and “Christianized” in vain attempts to win over the new, but ignorant, “converts” via edict or law as the state religion mandated citizens to be.

Eventually, the origins were forgotten even by the Church itself and no attempt to undo the harm was made. Even the 10 commandments in the Roman Catholic catechism were changed to match practice. God’s unchangeable Law of Exodus 20, literally written in stone by the finger of God, was trampled underfoot with the Papal claim that the Pontiff/Pope had the power to change anything he wanted. Thus, the second commandment against making and worshiping images was removed entirely, the fourth commandment became the third and shortened and changed from the seventh-day Sabbath to Sunday (the 1st day of the week). In order to not have only nine commandments the last one about not coveting was split into two parts and viola, there were ten again.

So much more could be said about the theological changes, the distortions of the character of God, the inquisition and other evils of the Church centering around, as you pointed out, “money,” but also power and national and international intrigues. Eventually the Pope became the king maker, more powerful than the emperors and eventually replacing the emperor.

This is why the reformation, the revolt against the errors of the fallen so called Christianity that plagued the church, finally took its stand. Unfortunately, so much error had infused the religion by then it would take centuries to find and overcome some of them. As you can see, the errors are not all out yet. It was all part of Satan’s evilly brilliant though horrid plan.

If you want to see the big picture with most of the details check out the old book, The Great Controversy between Christ and Satan. There you can see what demondope is all about, pulling back the curtain to see behind the scenes and the devil’s often repetitive (how little human nature changes; how little need for anything more than slight variations for evil to often gain the advantage) plans. But the book does not leave the reader in despair. It looks to God’s glorious plan for the final victory as revealed in prophecy. As Revelation 12:12 points out, the enemy of souls knows his defeat is at hand, “…the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.”

The book is available free on-line from the author’s estate at:

http://www.whiteestate.org/books/gc/gc.asp