2PM “Devil’s advocate.”

Having used the phrase “Devil’s Advocate” numerous times in my life, both as an ordinary person and also as someone who loves debate, I was surprised to learn the origin of its meaning yesterday when doing some research on the Catholic process of canonization. Because the point of this process is to decide whether someone can be officially known as being a saint (residing in heaven), evidence of various kinds must be introduced in their favor. (This doesn’t make them a saint, it only seeks to recognize whether they are one.) Well, since supporters might put all sorts of good words in for someone, Pope Sixtus V created the office of “Promoter of the Faith” in 1587, with the purpose of being the lawyer who tries to argue against canonizing someone just to be sure the evidence is sound. This person’s role became known popularly as “Devil’s Advocate” because he argued against “God’s Advocate” the lawyer promoting canonization.