A ‘devil's advocate’ is when somebody argues for a position they do not actually believe in, and while most people see it as a debating trick or something annoying people do at parties, it has an interesting historical story, and it is important philosophically. In the Catholic Church, if somebody is nominated for sainthood, the Vatican would appoint an official called the Devil's Advocate. The person's entire job was to argue against the candidate. They were to find every flaw, every doubt, eve