Satanism refers to a group of religious, ideological and/or philosophical beliefs based on Satan – particularly the worship or veneration of him. Satan is a figure of the devil in Christian belief, a fallen angel and leader of the devils who tempts humans into sin. For many centuries the term was used by various Christian groups as an accusation against ideological opponents. Actually self-identified Satanism is recent, and is thought to have begun with the founding of the Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States in 1966 – that "church" being an atheistic group that does not believe in a literal Satan. Sharing "historical connections and family resemblances" with Satanism, and sometimes overlapping with it, are paganism, ceremonial magic, and "other dark entities such as Set, Lilith, Hecate, and Chaos", from the occult and the 'Left Hand Path milieu.'
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.
The Satanic panic is a moral panic consisting of over 12,000 unsubstantiated cases of Satanic ritual abuse starting in the United States in the 1980s, spreading throughout many parts of the world by the late 1990s, and persisting today. The panic originated in 1980 with the publication of Michelle Remembers, a book co-written by Canadian psychiatrist Lawrence Pazder and his patient, Michelle Smith, which used the controversial and now discredited practice of recovered-memory therapy to make claims about satanic ritual abuse involving Smith. The allegations, which arose afterward throughout much of the United States, involved reports of physical and sexual abuse of people in the context of occult or Satanic rituals. Some allegations involve a conspiracy of a global Satanic cult that includes the wealthy and elite in which children are abducted or bred for human sacrifices, pornography, and prostitution.
Anton Szandor LaVey was an American author, musician, and Satanist. He was the founder of the Church of Satan and the religion 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.
A Black Mass is a ceremony celebrated by various Satanic groups. It has allegedly existed for centuries in different forms, and the modern form is intentionally a sacrilegious and blasphemous parody of a Catholic Mass.
Lawrence Pazder was a Canadian psychiatrist and author. Pazder wrote the discredited biography, Michelle Remembers, published in 1980, with his patient Michelle Smith, which claimed to detail satanic ritual abuse.
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 own 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 own 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.
Bob Larson is an American radio and television evangelist, and a pastor of Spiritual Freedom Church in Phoenix, Arizona. Larson has authored numerous books critical of rock music and Satanism.
The Church of Satan: A History of the World's Most Notorious Religion is a book by Blanche Barton, published on November 1, 1990 by Hell's Kitchen Productions.
Peter Howard Gilmore is an American writer and LaVeyan Satanist. He is the current High Priest of the Church of Satan. As a representative of the Church of Satan, Gilmore has been interviewed on numerous television and radio programs dealing with the topic of Satanism, including appearances on History, the BBC, Syfy, Point of Inquiry, and Bob Larson's Christian radio show.
Laurel Rose Willson was an American con artist and author. She authored books alleging Satanic ritual abuse (SRA), and later assumed the guise of a Holocaust survivor. The general theme of her writing, from adolescence, was horror fiction, often violent and sexual, in which she was the victim.
Michelle Remembers is a discredited 1980 book co-written by Canadian psychiatrist Lawrence Pazder and his psychiatric patient Michelle Smith. A best-seller, Michelle Remembers relied on the discredited practice of recovered-memory therapy to make sweeping, lurid claims about Satanic ritual abuse involving Smith, which contributed to the rise of the Satanic panic in the 1980s. While the book presents its claims as fact, and was extensively marketed on that basis at the time, no evidence was provided; all investigations into the book failed to corroborate any of its claims, with investigators describing its content as being primarily based on elements of popular culture and fiction that were popular at the time when it was written.
Cornerstone was a newspaper and later a magazine published by Jesus People USA, focusing on topics of evangelical Christian faith and engagement with politics and culture.
Theistic Satanism, otherwise referred to as religious Satanism, spiritual Satanism, or traditional 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 contact and convene with, in contrast to the atheistic archetype, metaphor, or symbol found in LaVeyan Satanism. Organizations who uphold theistic Satanist beliefs most often have few adherents, are loosely affiliated or constitute themselves as independent groups and cabals, which have largely self-marginalized. Another prominent characteristic of theistic Satanism is the use of various types of magic. Most theistic Satanist groups exist in relatively new models and ideologies, many of which are independent of the Abrahamic religions.
Robert Passantino, was an American author and journalist who wrote on subjects related to Christian apologetics, philosophy, and the Christian countercult movement.
John Wayne Todd, also known as "John Todd Collins", "Lance Collins", "Kris Sarayn Kollyns", and "Christopher Kollyns", was an American speaker and conspiracy theorist. He claimed to be a former occultist who was born into a 'witchcraft family' before converting to Christianity. He was a primary source for many Chick Publications works against Dungeons & Dragons, Catholicism, Neopaganism, and Christian rock.
The Satanic panic is a moral panic about alleged widespread Satanic ritual abuse which originated around the 1980s in the United States, peaking in the early 1990s, before waning as a result of scepticism of academics and law enforcement agencies who ultimately debunked the claims. The phenomenon spread from the United States to other countries, including South Africa, where it is still evident periodically. South Africa was particularly associated with the Satanic panic because of the creation of the Occult Related Crimes Unit in 1992, described as the "world's only 'ritual murder' task force". According to anthropologist Annika Teppo, this was linked with powerful conservative Christian forces within the then-dominant white community in the last years of apartheid. Christian belief is a prerequisite to serve in the unit. The concern with the alleged presence of Satanism and occult practices has continued into the post-apartheid era.
The Satanic Temple (TST) is a non-theistic organization and new religious movement, founded in 2013 and headquartered in Salem, Massachusetts. Established to "fight a perceived intrusion of Christian values on American politics", congregations have also formed in Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Co-founded by Lucien Greaves, the organization's spokesperson, and Malcolm Jarry, the group views Satan neither as a supernatural being, nor a symbol of evil; but instead relies on the literary Satan as a symbol representing "the eternal rebel" against arbitrary authority and social norms, or as a metaphor to promote pragmatic skepticism, rational reciprocity, personal autonomy, and curiosity.
Joy of Satan Ministries, also referred to as Joy of Satan (JoS), is a website and western esoteric occult organization founded in 2002 by Andrea M. Dietrich (a.k.a. Maxine Dietrich). 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.
