Within Christian thought, the idea developed that certain individuals could make a pact with Satan. This may have emerged after observing that pacts with gods and goddesses played a role in various pre-Christian belief systems, or that such pacts were also made as part of the Christian cult of saints. Another possibility is that it derives from a misunderstanding of Augustine of Hippo's condemnation of augury in his On Christian Doctrine, written in the late 4th century. Here, he stated that people who consulted augurs were entering quasi pacts (covenants) with demons. The idea of the diabolical pact made with demons was popularized across Europe in the story of Faust, probably based in part on the real life Johann Georg Faust.
Within Christian thought the idea developed that certain individuals could make a pact with Satan This may have emerged after observing that pacts with gods and goddesses played a role in various pre-Christian belief systems or that such pacts were also made as part of the Christian cult of saints Another possibility is that it derives from a misunderstanding of Augustine of Hippo's condemnation of augury in his On Christian Doctrine written in the late 4th century Here he stated that people who consulted augurs were entering quasi pacts (covenants) with demons The idea of the diabolical pact made with demons was popularized across Europe in the story of Faust probably based in part on the real life Johann Georg Faust