A non-theistic religious organisation that is primarily based in United States. Co-founded by Lucien Greaves, the organisation uses Satanic imagery to promote egalitarianism, social justice, and the separation of the church and state.
It’s mission: “to encourage benevolence and empathy [among all people]”
The Satanic Temple has utilised satire, theatrical ploys, humour, and legal action in their public campaigns to “generate attention and prompt people to reevaluate fears and perceptions” and to “highlight religious hypocrisy and encroachment on religious freedom.”
The Satanic Temple does not believe in a supernatural Satan; instead it employs the literary Satan as a metaphor to promote pragmatic skepticism, rational reciprocity, personal autonomy, and curiosity. Satan is thus used as a symbol representing “the eternal rebel” against arbitrary authority and social norms.
Tenets
The Satanic Temple has seven fundamental tenets:
- One should strive to act with compassion and empathy toward all creatures in accordance with reason
- The struggle for justice is an ongoing and necessary pursuit that should prevail over laws and institutions
- One’s body is inviolable, subject to one’s own will alone
- The freedoms of others should be respected, including the freedom to offend. To wilfully and unjustly encroach upon the freedoms of another is to forgo one’s own
- Beliefs should conform to one’s best scientific understanding of the world. One should take care never to distort scientific facts to fit one’s beliefs
- People are fallible. If one makes a mistake, one should do one’s best to rectify it and resolve any harm that might have been caused
- Every tenet is a guiding principle designed to inspire nobility in action and thought. The spirit of compassion, wisdom, and justice should always prevail over all written or spoken word