OLD SCRATCH

By Marilyn Armstrong on 06/11/2021 • ( 2 )

Old Scratch is the devil. Ask anyone down down here by the river. We know him when we see him. We don’t talk about him much. The less said about that old devil, the better. That’s what I think, anyhow.

**“Old Scratch has got his own at last, hey?” Arthur Rackham – 1915 – Illustration from the original “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens**

Opponents of Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum recently publicized his comments from 2008 that Satan has his sights set on America. And last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Iran considered the U.S. to be a “great Satan” and Israel a “small Satan.” Here are 10 facts that show a devil-may-care attitude:

Satan goes by many names, including Beelzebub, the devil, the deuce, the Great Deceiver, the Father of Lies, the Prince of Darkness, Old Mr. Grim, Old Ned, Old Nick, Old Sam, Old Scratch, the Old One, Old Rip, Old Poker, Old Splitfoot, the black spy, the gentleman in black, El Diablo and bogey.
While belief in Satan is ancient, many people are certain that the devil plays an active role in current events. Pat Robertson said Haiti suffered an earthquake in 2010 because its people “swore a pact to the devil” to gain independence from France two centuries earlier. And Miss California USA 2009 Carrie Prejean said that when she was asked about gay marriage at the Miss USA Pageant, “I felt as though Satan was trying to tempt me in asking me this question.”
Buddhism also has many names for the devil. As Mara, he represents temptation and death and sin. But as Varsavarti, he is a hedonistic evil, who fulfills the thirsts for existence, pleasure and power.
Chicago Tribune, 10 Things You Might Not Know About Satan
by Mark Jacob and Stephan Benzkofer

But why “scratch?” Well, I think without any proof of any kind, that the devil is like an itch. You can deal with pain. You can ignore pain. But itching never stops. You’ll tear your skin off to make it go away. Like that itch you get right below you shoulder blade which you can’t reach no matter how hard you try. It just keeps itching forever.

It’s the ringing of the devil’s call. He wants to get in touch. Make you an offer you can’t refuse. Personally, I keep a back scratcher handy. You just never know when you will need one.