Devil in the Detail. A Comparison Between Iblis and Lucifer

Seminar paper from the year 2017 in the subject Theology - Comparative Religion Studies, grade: 1,7, Ruhr-University of Bochum (CERES), language: English, abstract: This work will outline the most important steps in the creation of the images of a personified devil, starting with the Jewish religion and the earliest appearances of the term Satan. The author will then continue to compare the figures of Lucifer/Satan and Iblis in Islamic and Christian literature, based upon their development, mentioning and role.

Evil as a supernatural force is a topic that unites all Abrahamitic religions. Jewish sources about a personified supreme evil as imagined today are scarce, but the image of Satan as the divine adversary and subsequently the idea of Lucifer as a fallen angel in Christian religion is better documented. The Islam knows Iblis as a rebellious angel cast out of heaven by Allah. While all these personifications of evil show some similarities, their development shows some striking differences.