Satanic Temple: A political group with religious overtones?

Baphomet the ‘Sabbatic goat’
A symbol promoted by the ‘Satanic Temple’

Michael Synder posted the following about the group called the Satanic Temple:

The Satanic Temple is the perfect religion for progressives. You can believe anything you want, as long as you hate what Donald Trump, Christians and conservatives believe. Unlike the Church of Satan, the Satanic Temple doesn’t even believe in a supernatural entity called Satan. Instead, they celebrate Satan as “the ultimate rebel”, and they relish in using the symbol of Satan to greatly upset Christians. The Satanic Temple was founded in 2013, and from the very beginning it was clear that they were primarily a political movement. …

Satanism in America had always been a shadowy underground movement, but the Satanic Temple has changed all that.

Instead of avoiding the public eye, they believe that their rebellion against conservatives and Christians “requires a level of political participation”…

‘Traditionally, Satanists practice very privately, closed doors, black candles, black metal music, but with the Satanic philosophy being where Satanism represents rebellion against arbitrary authority, we believe it requires a level of political participation. I think that we need to go into the public sphere and announce ourselves without shame.’

The organization grew rapidly after it was founded, but if Hillary Clinton had won the 2016 election that probably would have put a damper on their political activism.

But once Donald Trump won the election, interest in the group absolutely exploded…

“The Satanic Temple attracted ‘thousands’ of new members in just the first 36 hours after the election of Donald Trump,” the group reported. “The 4-year-old temple, which had a pre-Trump membership of around 50,000, has never before seen a spike in registration nearly this big.”

“We’re definitely a resistance movement,” spokesperson and co-founder Lucien Greaves said after a speech outside the University of Colorado Boulder. “We stand in stark opposition to this idea that we must unify under a single religious banner.”

Thanks to a favorable new documentary about the group, it is getting a lot of attention right now.

And even many leftists that have absolutely no intention of joining the Satanic Temple are saying very positive things about the organization. accessed 04/25/19 http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/the-satanic-temple-has-evolved-into-an-anti-trump-movement-and-leftists-are-flocking-to-it

Last month, it was granted tax-exempt status:

Good news for those who worship Satan and Satan-adjacent deities (goats, I wanna say?): the Satanic Temple has officially been granted tax-exempt status by the IRS, according to a post from the religion’s official Instagram account.

Being granted tax-exempt status essentially means that the Satanic Temple has the same legal protections that other religions do, including “access to public spaces as other religious organizations; affirming its standing in court when battling religious discrimination; and enabling The Satanic Temple to apply for faith-based government grants,” according to a press release sent to Rolling Stone. 04/224/19 https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/irs-satanic-temple-church-tax-exempt-826931/?fbclid=IwAR1K10IziyPjv1sRECL5eIjSY7kwqApN6MWTOCYxb_XU_ickgZQPEL-I22w

I have reported about this group before.

Back in August, the Satanists pushed for their statue of Baphomet if a monument related to the Ten Commandments in Arkansas was not removed (see also Satanists want Ten Commandments out or Baphomet in). According to Wikipedia, Baphomet is a Sabbatic Goat, created by Eliphas Levi in the 19th century. Sabbatic is defined as of, relating to, or appropriate to the Sabbath as a day of rest and religious observance. The Satanists want a monument that mentions the biblical Sabbath removed ifro they cannot promote their religion (which does not advocate actually keeping of the seventh-day Sabbath).

In 2015, the Satanic Temple performed the ‘first state sanctioned satanic ceremony in history” according to news reports (see ‘Satanic Temple’s state-sanctioned capitol ceremony’).

Here is the logo of the group:

On the home page of its website, The Satanic Temple has sought donations to fight restrictions against abortions:

PLEASE SUPPORT OUR EFFORTS TO USE RELIGIOUS EXEMPTIONS TO PROTECT WOMEN’S REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

The Satanic Temple is accepting donations to assist our efforts to challenge arbitrary, insulting, and outright harmful regulations imposed on women who seek abortions.

Since there are a lot of abortion supporters, this could be one reason some are promoting The Satanic Temple.

Here is some information that was at the FAQ page of The Satanic Temple’s website:

To embrace the name Satan is to embrace rational inquiry removed from supernaturalism and archaic tradition-based superstitions. The Satanist should actively work to hone critical thinking and exercise reasonable agnosticism in all things. Our beliefs must be malleable to the best current scientific understandings of the material world — never the reverse.

DO YOU PROMOTE EVIL?

The Satanic Temple holds to the basic premise that undue suffering is bad, and that which reduces suffering is good. We do not believe in symbolic “evil.” We embrace blasphemy as a legitimate expression of personal independence from counter-productive traditional norms.

Of course by promoting blasphemy and abortion, the Satanic Temple is promoting evil.

The USA is becoming more accepting of many things that go directly against the Bible. Blatantly promoting satanism is just one more. Promoting satanism is wrong (cf. Isaiah 47:13-15; John 8:44; 2 Corinthians 11:12-15)

Promoting satanism and other forms of paganism is absurd, but sadly not unexpected.

The Bible warns that God will send punishment “against an hypocritical nation” (Isaiah 10:6, KJV). The promotion of satanism is only one of MANY hypocritical practices in the USA.

Some items of possibly related interest may include:

Did God Create a Devil? If not, what happened? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet.
What Does the Catholic Church Teach About Christmas and the Holy Days? Do you know what the Catholic Church says were the original Christian holy days? Was Christmas among them? Is December 25th Jesus’ birthday or that of the sun god? Here is a link to a related sermon: What do Catholic and other scholars teach about Christmas?
Did Early Christians Celebrate Birthdays? Did biblical era Jews celebrate birthdays? Who originally celebrated birthdays? When did many that profess Christ begin birthday celebrations? A related sermon video is available and is titled: Birthdays, Christians, and December 25th.
Abortion, the Bible, and a Woman’s Right to Choose Do you know what the Bible teaches on this? Has the Roman Catholic Church allowed abortions? What about the real Church of God? Some may wish to view the YouTube videos Abortion, the Bible, and US Debt. and Land of ‘Free’ Abortions and Debt.
The Ten Commandments: The Decalogue, Christianity, and the Beast This is a free pdf book explaining the what the Ten Commandments are, where they came from, how early professors of Christ viewed them, and how various ones, including the Beast of Revelation, will oppose them. A related sermon is titled: The Ten Commandments and the Beast of Revelation.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be: Are Chinese threats against Australia for real?
Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas? l
The Bible and Astrology Should Christians avoid participating in astrology or did God inspire it? Does the Bible encourage astrology? What does the Bible actually teach? What is astrology? How does astrology differ from astronomy? Should Christians Be Involved In Astrology?
OMENS? DIVINATION? HOROSCOPES? THE ORIGIN OF ASTROLOGY Where did astrology come from? Should you read your horoscope?
Does Astrology Work? Many believe and follow astrology–but does it work?
Close Encounters of a ‘Spirit’ Kind discusses some experiences I believe were (demon) ‘spirit’ related.
Angels, Cherubim, and Seraphim This is information about various types of angelic beings.
Is Halloween Holy Time for Christians? This article provides some historical and biblical insight on this question.
Walpurgis Night: Witches’ Sabbath? This is observed in parts of Europe April 30th-May 1st. Though named after a Catholic saint, it tends to be like Halloween.
Do You Practice Mithraism? Many practices and doctrines that mainstream so-called Christian groups have are the same or similar to those of the sun-god Mithras. December 25th was celebrated as his birthday. Do you follow Mithraism combined with the Bible or original Christianity? A sermon video from Vatican City is titled Church of Rome, Mithras, and Isis?
Is God Unreasonable? Some have suggested that if God requires Sabbath-keeping He is unreasonable. Is that true?
Holy Day Calendar This is a listing of the biblical holy days through 2024, with their Roman calendar dates. They are really hard to observe if you do not know when they occur 🙂 In the Spanish/Español/Castellano language: Calendario de los Días Santos. In Mandarin Chinese: 何日是神的圣日？这里是一份神的圣日日历从2013年至2024年。.
Where is the True Christian Church Today? This free online pdf booklet answers that question and includes 18 proofs, clues, and signs to identify the true vs. false Christian church. Plus 7 proofs, clues, and signs to help identify Laodicean churches. A related sermon is also available: Where is the True Christian Church? Here is a link to the booklet in the Spanish language: ¿Dónde está la verdadera Iglesia cristiana de hoy? Here is a link in the German language: WO IST DIE WAHRE CHRISTLICHE KIRCHE HEUTE? Here is a link in the French language: Où est la vraie Église Chrétienne aujourd’hui? Here is a link to a short animation: Which Church would Jesus Choose?
Continuing History of the Church of God This pdf booklet is a historical overview of the true Church of God and some of its main opponents from Acts 2 to the 21st century. Related sermon links include Continuing History of the Church of God: c. 31 to c. 300 A.D. and Continuing History of the Church of God: 4th-16th Centuries and Continuing History of the Church of God: 17th-20th Centuries. The booklet is available in Spanish: Continuación de la Historia de la Iglesia de Dios, German: Kontinuierliche Geschichte der Kirche Gottes, French: L Histoire Continue de l Église de Dieu and Ekegusii Omogano Bw’ekanisa Ya Nyasae Egendererete.
The History of Early Christianity Are you aware that what most people believe is not what truly happened to the true Christian church? Do you know where the early church was based? Do you know what were the doctrines of the early church? Is your faith really based upon the truth or compromise?