“Indeed, the safest road to Hell is the gradual one.” This is what Screwtape says in his twelfth letter to his nephew Wormwood, something that is all too real in our society today. Most people do not realize that the bad habits they are forming can be dangerous to themselves. Whether its smoking, drinking, or taking drugs, there are way too many bad things for people to get involved with. In a recent online article from CNN they state that marijuana is “safer” than alcohol. Sure smoking pot may not cause all of the same adverse effects as alcohol, but what they do not take into account is the fact that the use of marijuana can lead to the use of other, more harmful drugs. The gradual use of pot can lead to wanting a “better high” or a “bigger trip”, things that can endanger not only our self but also others. Things like doing drugs and being under the influence are not what God wants for us, and can (in harsh terms) take us on the road to Hell. There are many things that can lead us onto this dangerous road, so we need to be smart and careful in the choices we make in life.
Another way to look at this quote is from the perspective of the demons themselves, because for them the safest road for us to get to hell is gradual. It’s safe for the demons in the story to sit back and hide their identity from their patients by just doing little things to change them. If they were to make themselves known, or make a big show of something, they are in danger of being beaten. By that I mean it is sometimes in our darkest days where God’s light shines the brightest. The safest thing for the demons to do is attract us to new unknowingly hell-bound ideas gradually, because then it is harder for us to see the bad within them. Also, the longer it takes for us to attach to an idea, the longer it takes to detach or leave that idea once it has solidified with in us. That is why for us as humans it is so hard to break from addictions because we have slowly grown into them. So be careful when you hear that any drugs are “safer” than others, because we have no idea where that road might take us.
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