Turku Society for the Spiritual Sciences (Turun Hengentieteen Seura) was an occult group founded by Pekka Siitoin on September 1, 1971. [1]
Turku Society for the Spiritual Sciences (Turun Hengentieteen Seura) was an occult group founded by Pekka Siitoin on September 1, 1971. [1]
The society stated its founding principles as “promot[ing] nationalist patriotic activity [and] development of Aryan spirituality". The society also stated opposition to capitalism, communism amd "the Jewish religion based on Jehovah’s tyranny.” Speakers included Aino Kassinen, personal clairvoyant of Marshal Mannerheim, President Risto Ryti, and Johannes Virolainen. [1] The honorary chairman of the society was Boris Popper, white emigre satanist and ex-gulag inmate. [2] Popper would make incidentiary speeches against Jewish people and communism in the society's premises. Another prominent member was ex-French Foreign Legion soldier Timo Pekkala, who acted as a military trainer for Siitoin's other neo-Nazi group Popular Patriotic Front. [3] The Society allegedly performed satanic orgies which researcher of religion Pekka Iitti opined might not be "far off from the truth". [4]
Although Siitoin bragged the Society had 1000 members, the meetings usually had "about 50" attendees at most. [5]
The communists in Finnish parliament inquired about the society, whether its activities would harm the relations with the Soviet Union. [6] The society was banned in July 1977. However, Siitoin would go on to form several, even more openly neo-Nazi groups. [7] Several of the perpetrators of Kursiivi printing house arson in November 1977 were members of the society. [8]
The society operated its own printing house that published books on paranormal, satanism, occultism and holocaust denial, most of which were written by Siitoin. According to Yleisradio, the press was notable during its time for publishing Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses, or the Black Bible and making it accessible in Finnish. [9] [10]
Siitoin believed in neo-Gnosticism and Theosophy and combined these with antisemitism and satanism. To him, Lucifer, Satan and Jesus were subordinate to the Monad, and could be worshiped together. According to Siitoin Moses invented magic, but jealous Demiurge-Jehova seeks to obscure its knowledge from the gentiles. Lucifer was a Promethean figure who created the original humanity and granted them wisdom so that they would evolve to be equal to Gods in time, while Jehova created the Jewish race to usurp Lucifer's power and lord over humanity. Siitoin was also influenced by Christian apocrypha, like Gospel of Judas and to him Jesus was an agent of the Monad against the Demiurge. These are combined with elements of Finnish folk magic. [11] [12] [13] [14]
In 2010, a group calling themselves Turku Society for the Spiritual Sciences was founded. In 2012 they held a ritual to "consecrate Finland to Satan". About 500 people said on Facebook that they would attend the event, but its unknown how many actually did attend. [15]
Satanism refers to a group of religious, ideological, and/or philosophical beliefs based on Satan—particularly his worship or veneration. Satan is commonly associated with the Devil in Christianity, a fallen angel often regarded as chief of the demons who tempt humans into sin. The phenomenon of Satanism shares "historical connections and family resemblances" with the Left Hand Path milieu of other occult figures such as Chaos, Hecate, Lilith, Lucifer, and Set. Self-identified Satanism is a relatively modern phenomenon, largely attributed to the 1966 founding of the Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States—an atheistic group that does not believe in a supernatural Satan.
The Temple of Set is an occult initiatory order founded in 1975. A new religious movement and form of Western esotericism, the Temple espouses a religion known as Setianism, whose practitioners are called Setians. This is sometimes identified as a form of Satanism, although this term is not often embraced by Setians and is contested by some academics.
The Church of Satan (CoS) is a religious organization dedicated to the religion of Satanism as defined by Anton Szandor LaVey. Founded in San Francisco in 1966, by LaVey, it is considered the "oldest satanic religion in continual existence", and more importantly the most influential, inspiring "numerous imitator and breakaway groups". According to the Church, Satanism has been "codified" as "a religion and philosophy" by LaVey and his church. Founded in an era when there was much public interest in the occult, witchcraft and Satanism, the church enjoyed a heyday for several years after its founding. Celebrities attended LaVey's satanic parties and he was invited on talk shows. His Satanic Bible sold nearly a million copies.
Anton Szandor LaVey was an American author, musician, and LaVeyan Satanist. He was the founder of the Church of Satan, the philosophy of LaVeyan Satanism, and the concept of Satanism. He authored several books, including The Satanic Bible, The Satanic Rituals, The Satanic Witch, The Devil's Notebook, and Satan Speaks! In addition, he released three albums, including The Satanic Mass, Satan Takes a Holiday, and Strange Music. He played a minor on-screen role and served as technical advisor for the 1975 film The Devil's Rain and served as host and narrator for Nick Bougas' 1989 mondo film Death Scenes.
The Satanic Bible is a collection of essays, observations, and rituals published by Anton LaVey in 1969. It is the central religious text of LaVeyan Satanism, and is considered the foundation of its philosophy and dogma. It has been described as the most important document to influence contemporary Satanism. Though The Satanic Bible is not considered to be sacred scripture in the way that the Christian Bible is to Christianity, LaVeyan Satanists regard it as an authoritative text as it is a contemporary text that has attained for them scriptural status. It extols the virtues of exploring one's nature and instincts. Believers have been described as "atheistic Satanists" because they believe that God and Satan are not external entities, but rather projections of an individual's personality—benevolent and stabilizing forces in their life. There have been thirty printings of The Satanic Bible, selling over a million copies.
LaVeyan Satanism is the name given to the form of Satanism promoted by American occultist and author Anton LaVey (1930–1997). LaVey founded the Church of Satan (CoS) in 1966 in San Francisco. Although LaVey is thought to have had more impact with his Satanic aesthetics of "colourful" rituals and "scandalous" clothes that created a "gigantic media circus", he also promoted his ideas in writings, such as the popular Satanic Bible. LaVeyan Satanism has been classified as a new religious movement and a form of Western esotericism by scholars of religion. LaVey's ideas have been said to weave together an array of sometimes "contradictory" "thinkers and tropes", combining "humanism, hedonism, aspects of pop psychology and the human potential movement", along with "a lot of showmanship", His ideas were heavily influenced by the ideas and writings of Friedrich Nietzsche, Ayn Rand and Arthur Desmond.
Luciferianism is a belief system that venerates the essential characteristics that are affixed to Lucifer, the name of various mythological and religious figures associated with the planet Venus. The tradition usually reveres Lucifer not as the Devil, but as a destroyer, a guardian, liberator, light bringer or guiding spirit to darkness, or even the true god. According to Ethan Doyle White of the Britannica, among those who "called themselves Satanists or Luciferians", some insist that Lucifer is an entity separate from Satan, while others maintain "the two names as synonyms for the same being".
Timo Pekka Olavi Siitoin was a Finnish neo-Nazi, occultist and a Satanist.
Theistic Satanism, otherwise referred to as traditional Satanism, religious Satanism, or spiritual Satanism, is an umbrella term for religious groups that consider Satan, the Devil, to objectively exist as a deity, supernatural entity, or spiritual being worthy of worship or reverence, whom individuals may believe in, contact, and convene with, in contrast to the atheistic archetype, metaphor, or symbol found in LaVeyan Satanism.
The Order of Nine Angles is a militant Satanic left-hand path occultist and terrorist network that originated in the United Kingdom but has since branched out into other parts of the world. Claiming to have been established in the 1960s, it rose to public recognition in the early 1980s, attracting attention for its neo-Nazi ideology and activism. Describing its approach as "Traditional Satanism", it also exhibits Hermetic and modern Pagan elements in its beliefs.
Greater and lesser magic, within LaVeyan Satanism, designate types of beliefs with the term greater magic applying to ritual practice meant as psychodramatic catharsis to focus ones emotions for a specific purpose and lesser magic applied to the practice of manipulation by means of applied psychology and glamour to bend an individual or situation to one's will.
Our Lady of Endor Coven, also known as Ophite Cultus Sathanas, was an American Satanic cult founded by Herbert Arthur Sloane in Cleveland, Ohio, with a claimed origin in 1948 though definitive documentation of the group does not appear until the 1960s. Heavily influenced by gnosticism, the group equated Sathanas with the Serpent in the Garden of Eden as revealer of true knowledge.
The Black Order or The Black Order of Pan Europa are a Satanist group formerly based in New Zealand. Political scientists Jeffrey Kaplan and Leonard Weinberg characterized the Black Order as a "National Socialist-oriented Satanist mail order ministry".
In Finland, the far right was strongest in 1920–1940 when the Academic Karelia Society, Lapua Movement, Patriotic People's Movement (IKL) and Vientirauha operated in the country and had hundreds of thousands of members. In addition to these dominant far-right and fascist organizations, smaller Nazi parties operated as well.
Joy of Satan Ministries, also referred to as Joy of Satan (JoS), is a western esoteric occult organization founded in 2002 by Andrea Herrington. Joy of Satan Ministries advocates "Spiritual Satanism", an ideology that presents a synthesis of theistic Satanism, Nazism, gnosticism, paganism, western esotericism, UFO conspiracy theories and extraterrestrial beliefs similar to those popularized by Zecharia Sitchin and David Icke.
The Kursiivi printing house arson took place in the early morning of 26 November 1977, destroying the printing house Kursiivi in Helsinki in Lauttasaari. Kursiivi printed the newspaper of the Taistoist wing of the Communist Party of Finland Tiedonantaja, the Swedish language communist newspaper Arbetartidningen Enhet and Finnish People's Democratic League youth wing's Pioneeritoveri.
Boris V. Popper was a White Russian émigré living in Finland who was one of the so-called Leino prisoners. He later used the names Boris Berin-Bey and Batu Berin-Bey.
21 Paths to the Kingdom of Darkness is a collection of essays in Finnish that largely presents the tenets of David Myatt's Order of Nine Angles movement. The movement supports accelerationism, i.e. promoting the collapse of society through terrorism and sabotage. The movement's worldview combines theistic Satanism and far-right ideology; the movement despises the typical forms of Satanism in Western countries. The idea of the Order of Nine Angles, represented by the book 21 Paths to the Kingdom of Darkness, is also marginal in the circles of both esotericists and extreme right-wingers. However, the current gained somewhat more visibility in Finland around the years 2018–2024.
Finland – Fatherland was an extreme right party led by Väinö Kuisma. The organization was founded in early 1990s under the name Aryan Germanic Brotherhood (AGV) and changed its name to Patriotic Right (IO) in 1993. In 2002–2003 it was known as Finland Rises Up – Nation Unites. IO/AGV was also a member of National Council, an umbrella organization of neo-Nazi groups, led by Pekka Siitoin and Kuisma, both notorious neo-Nazi occultists.
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