{"id":173,"date":"2005-03-05T00:52:42","date_gmt":"2005-03-05T05:52:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ericbrooks.com\/soapbox\/?p=173"},"modified":"2006-03-03T16:16:06","modified_gmt":"2006-03-03T21:16:06","slug":"the-facts-and-myths-of-satanism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ericbrooks.com\/soapbox\/the-facts-and-myths-of-satanism\/","title":{"rendered":"The facts and myths of Satanism"},"content":{"rendered":"

You know the Satanists… the dark robes, and ceremonies in which they sacrifice an animal or baby to their Dark Lord? The demonic power as they conjure up the fearsome demons to strike at their enemies?<\/p>\n

Yeah Satanists get a kick out of those fictional movies too. \ud83d\ude42
\n
\nI’ve been doing a lot of researching into Wicca<\/a> and Satanism<\/a> recently.
\nPersonally I find them about as similar as Buddhism and the NRA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"Anton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Anton Szandor LaVey (1930-1997)
Photo by Nick Bougas
© Church of Satan (Used with permission)<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n

Myth: Satanists worship the devil<\/strong>
\nFact:<\/strong> Most Satanists are either Atheists or Agnostics. They hardly believe in God, much less a big red guy with a pitchfork. To a serious Satanist, Satan represents the concept of the pre-Christian Satan or even the earlier Egyptian concept of Set. He was “The Opposer”, “The being who questioned authority”, “Pride, virility, self-indulgence and strength”. He is the archetype of what they strive to be, what they were born to be. The only god they believe in is within themselves.<\/p>\n

It’s Social Darwinism, in a sense. A practical view based on how the world really works. The belief that only the strong will (or should) survive. They believe in Lex Talionis (“Let the punishment fit the crime”). They expect to always be a minority, because they believe most of society has a “herd mentality” that lacks critical thinking and has been conditioned by media imagery and tradition to believe and accept things without ever questioning it.<\/p>\n

I bought a copy of the Satanic Bible<\/a> back in the 80’s. Of course someone from my church confiscated it. What little I read was basically the typical Atheist\/Agnostic arguments against God’s existence. Truth be told, I was kind of disappointed as I was expecting to read some juicy stories about sacrifices, Black Magic, and sex rituals. I’m sure the person who confiscated my book saw the Sigil of Baphomet on the cover and decided that was all she needed to know.<\/p>\n

Talk about “judging a book by its cover” !!!
\nIronically that was the point Anton Szandor LaVey was trying to make the whole time. People will make their own decisions without checking out the facts.<\/p>\n

First and foremost, LaVey was a showman. He knew what was running though his detractor’s heads and he gave it to them in spades. A Black Mass, the Pentagram, the robes, the works… What ever it took to keep the media’s eyes on him.<\/p>\n

The man was a friggin’ genius! <\/p>\n

He was an artist, a musician, a magician, and obviously a study of human nature. If I had a top ten list of people whom I admired… Anton LaVey would be somewhere in the upper half. <\/p>\n

I see a lot of myself in him in his thinking, his background and his flair and panache for infamy. Neither of us care what other people think.<\/p>\n

Myth: Satanists sacrifice animals (or babies), and subject children to Sexual Ritual Abuse<\/strong>
\nFact:<\/strong> In the 11 Satanic Statements of the Earth (A fundamental staple of their doctrines), “Do not kill non-human animals unless you are attacked or for your food.”, and “Do not harm little children”. Children are believed to be pure magicians, and the “highest form of life”. So that debunks that claim. There is also a statement that Members of the Church of Satan WILL be expelled for committing violent and illegal acts.<\/p>\n

Perhaps you’re thinking of the “Satanic scare of the 80’s”, where a book called “Michelle Remembers” comes out, and suddenly victims of Satanic Ritual Abuse<\/a> were coming out of the woodwork with “recovered memories” of the horrors they sufferred as children. The Wenatchee Witch Hunts<\/a> were one of the most notorious…<\/p>\n

Well, like many sensational front page stories of our time… the truth comes out months later, buried in a small paragraph on page 14 of the newspaper when everyone stops giving a crap. None of those cases turned out to be true. Investigators found no evidence, and the “science” of “Recovered Memory Therapy<\/a>” turned out to be quackery in the form of post-hypnotic suggestion.<\/p>\n

But the mindless herd will still cling to the front page stories as gospel truth.<\/p>\n

According to ReligiousTolerance.Org, there are three types of Satanists:<\/strong> \t<\/p>\n

  • Gothic Satanism<\/em>, A figment of the 16th Century Church’s imagination and then a product of Hollywood. The stuff you see in the movies like “The Devil’s Rain”, which btw, Dr. LaVey was a technical advisor.<\/li>\n
  • The Dabblers<\/em>, aka “The Wannabes” who WILL commit some crimes, torture a defenseless animal and spraypaint a pentagram in the hopes of a “Devil made me do it” defense in court. They tend to know NOTHING about Satanism when interrogated<\/li>\n
  • Members of the Church of Satan<\/em>, a legally recognized religious organization, who by the way believes in “Responsibility for the Resonsible”; take responsibility for your own actions or suffer from your own stupidity.<\/li>\n

    Basically, if they’re not members of the Church of Satan… they ain’t Satanists! <\/p>\n

    Wiccans are often mislabeled “Satanic”<\/a> by people who don’t know any better. Their only similarity with real Satanism is that Satan has nothing to do with Wicca either.<\/p>\n

    The Church of Satan Information Pack<\/a> (pdf) is readily available for anyone to see what they’re really about.<\/strong> In the day and age of the internet there’s no excuse for ignorance and speading falsehoods because “this is what I heard about them…”<\/p>\n

    When you get a grasp of the facts and purge your mind of the silly misconceptions about them worshipping the Prince of Darkness standing on a bloody altar in a grotto somewhere… you can then get a good belly laugh out of “Exposing Satanism<\/a>“. <\/p>\n

    (Warning: The second I see links to “Government Conspiracies<\/em>” and the “New World Order<\/em>“, my first reaction is… “HOO BOY! We got a LIVE one here!!!” \ud83d\ude42 )<\/p>\n

    \n

    But hey, don’t take my word for it… check the facts out for yourself.<\/strong><\/p>\n

  • Church of Satan: Official Site<\/a><\/li>\n
  • Disinformation: Anton LaVey<\/a><\/li>\n
  • Satanism 101<\/a><\/li>\n

    While I normally go where other gOdOfMiScHiEfS fear to tread, I have to admit, I was nervous as hell approaching the subject.<\/p>\n

    But I realized it was my pre-conditioned unfounded fears instilled in me by years of church brainwashing and propaganda. Once I freed my mind, I found many of these Satanists to be very charming, intelligent, and down to earth people. We both share a “Nietzche-like” philosophy, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I’ve met Satanists in everyday life.<\/p>\n

    It’s unlikely that I’d ever consider myself a Satanist though. Not because of them. I’m sure I will find myself agreeing with much of Dr. LaVey’s insights when my new Satanic Bible comes here from Amazon, perhaps apply a lot of his teachings and adapt it as my own. <\/p>\n

    I just simply refuse to adhere to any label, and I pride myself on my individuality and doing things my way.<\/p>\n

    Which, on a hilariously ironic note, is EXACTLY what I understand Satanism is all about! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    You know the Satanists…the dark robes, and ceremonies in which they sacrifice an animal or baby to their Dark Lord? The demonic power as they conjure up the fearsome demons to strike at their enemies? Yeah Satanists get a kick out of those fictional movies too. \ud83d\ude42 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-religion"],"yoast_head":"\nThe facts and myths of Satanism - SoApBoX<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ericbrooks.com\/soapbox\/the-facts-and-myths-of-satanism\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The facts and myths of Satanism - SoApBoX\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"You know the Satanists...the dark robes, and ceremonies in which they sacrifice an animal or baby to their Dark Lord? 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