- **Epistemic status:** #evergreen ![[Pasted image 20220824105513.png]] A group of philosophical and ideological beliefs based on Satan derived from Christian mythology. Groups of Satanists can be divided between non-theistic like TST and The Church of Satan and theistic like Luciferianism. On the book The Devil's Party, Ruben van Luijk approaches the history of Satanism as a continuous process between of interaction between attribution and identification [[#^71ccc8]]. - **Attribution:** When Satanism is attributed to others. The scholars Asbjørn Dyrendal, James R. Lewis, and Jesper Aa identified that historically has been used against disliked people [[#^17a9b5]]. Generally, up to modern times, Satanism history is almost exclusively of attribution. - **Identification:** When identifying oneself with the concepts of Satan and perceiving Satan as either a symbolical or real being. Contemporary Satanism displays clear examples of identification. The following quote should help get a clearer idea between these two concepts: > “Adversary you make us, adversary we shall be” Stu De Haan By being a person of color, a woman, queer, gender non-conforming, atheist, etc. or standing for your rights you get perceived as a threat and adversary no matter if you want to be seen that way or not. Satanists resonate with being labeled as the “other” and respond with strength and self affirmation. - “Adversary you make us” = attribution - “Adversary we shall be” = identification ## History The French Revolution of 1789 represented the end of an era where a new society was born, where the Catholic Church was no longer the producer of culture or shaping institutions. A number of catholics started making claims of a conspiracy, where the revolution was directed by a secret cabal of Satanists and magicians. Satan resurfaces as not only the protagonist, but the actual occult cause. Among the first to do so was French Catholic priest Jean-Baptiste Fiard, publicly claimed that a wide range of individuals, from the Jacobins to tarot card readers, were involved in the conspiracy. Following Fiard's ideas, Alexis-Vincent-Charles Berbiguier devoted a lengthy book to this conspiracy theory that claimed satanists had supernatural powers, giving them the ability to curse people and shape-shift into cats and fleas. --- ## References - Dyrendal, Asbjørn, James R. Lewis, and Jesper Aa Petersen. _The Invention of Satanism_. Oxford University Press, 2015. ^17a9b5 - Faxneld, Per, and Jesper Aa Petersen. _The Devil’s Party: Satanism in Modernity_. OUP USA, 2013. ^71ccc8 - “Non-Ordination (Coursework Only) - Satanic Ministry.” Accessed August 24, 2022. <https://ordained.satanicministry.com/courses/take/non-ordination-track/lessons/26998820-1-1-overview>. - “Satanism.” In _Wikipedia_, July 13, 2022. <https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Satanism&oldid=1097925556>. - Starr, Lilith. _Compassionate Satanism: An Introduction to Modern Satanic Practice_. Lilith Starr Publishing, 2021.