“The Devil is the patron genius of theological Christianity. So “holy and reverend is his name” in modern conception, that it may not, except occasionally from the pulpit, be uttered in ears polite. In like manner, anciently, it was not lawful to speak the sacred names or repeat the jargon of the Mysteries, except in the sacred cloister. We hardly know the names of the Samothracian gods but cannot tell precisely the number of the Kabeiri. The Egyptians considered it blasphemous to utter the title of the gods of their secret rites. Even now, the Brahman only pronounces the syllable Om in silent thought, and the Rabbi, the Ineffable Name, YHVH. Hence, we who exercise no such veneration, have been led into the blunders of miscalling the names of HISIRIS and YAVA, by the mispronunciations, Osiris and Jehovah.
A similar glamour bids fair, it will be perceived, to gather round the designation of the dark personage of whom we are treating; and in the familiar handling, we shall be very likely to shock the peculiar sensibilities of many who will consider a free mentioning of the Devil’s names as blasphemy, the sins of sins, that “hath never forgiveness.”
Several years ago, an acquaintance of the author wrote a newspaper article to demonstrate that diabolos or Satan of the New Testament denoted the personification of an abstract idea, and not a personal being. He was answered by a clergyman, who concluded the reply with the deprecatory expression, “I fear that he has denied his Saviour.” In his rejoiner he pleaded, “Oh no, we only denied the Devil.” But the clergyman failed to perceive the difference. In his conception of the matter, the denying of the personal objective existence of the Devil was itself “the sin against the Holy Ghost.”
This necessary Evil, dignified by the epithet of Father of Lies”, was, according to the clergy, the founder of all the world-religions of ancient time, and of the heresies, or rather heterodoxies of later periods, as well as the Deus ex Machina of modern Spiritualism. In the exceptions which we take to this notion, we protest that we do not attack true religion or sincere piety. We are only carrying on a controversy with human dogmas. Perhaps in doing this we resemble Don Quixote, because these things are only windmills. Nevertheless, let it be remembered that they have been the occasion and pretext for the slaughtering of more than fifty millions of human beings since the words were proclaimed, “LOVE YOUR ENEMIES.””
H. P. Blavatsky
The Mark Of God: Understanding Your "I AM Presence" 