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Text File | 1994-01-15 | 11.5 KB | 459 lines

alt.satanism message #22 from LUPO THE BUTCHER to ALL.
  Entered on 02-Jan-94, at 03:43:00, 226 lines.

Subject: #2 FAQ
===============

From: locklinÉphyast.pitt.edu (Lupo the Butcher)



     The goal is for the individual to achieve self-actualization and divinity.

     atmosphere than the Church of Satan. There is material on the Temple of

     Set archived in slopoke.mlb.semi.harris.com (as well as other files of

     interest to the occultist) and quartz.rutgers.edu (pub/magick/set)



     The Temple of Set can be contacted at:



          Temple of Set

          P.O. Box 470307

          San Francisco, CA 94147



      Recently, the Temple of Set has taken the stance that they are "not

      a Satanist organization" -other groups, such as the CoS and the ONA

      have said this about the ToS for years, but because of their historical

      association with the CoS I will continue to include them in the FAQ

      (barring any future ToS objections to their inclusion herin).



4.   Satan is a Christian God!

     You aren't Satanists, just nasty atheists!



     Most (probably all) religions have gods or demons that represent the

     principle of adversity:  that which is forbidden by society.  Satan is

     one among these, originally conceived by the Hebrews long before the

     birth of Jesus.  The name first appears (in _The Bible_, at any rate)

     in the book of Job.  Satan was a fallen angel, not a god, in the

     monotheistic religions of Christianity and Islam.





     "Satan" is understood by most Satanists in a context different than

     that of Christian theology.  Satan is a powerful archetype, to the

     Euro-American Usenet majority at least, bringing to mind such things

     as sexuality, power, individualism and control over one's destiny.

     The Satanist can choose what s/he likes from the varied portrayals of

     Satan, and may add principles of adversity from other cultures as

     well.



5.   Aren't Satanists ritualistic baby murderers?



     Some misleading reports exist about Satanists:  they are organized

     into nationwide cults; they commit ritual murders on a grand scale;

     they raise their children with psychological disorders; they kidnap

     people for blood sacrifice; they organize day-care centers and abuse

     the children placed in their care.  A whole class of books exists

     detailing the exploits of these Satanic groups.



     The problem with all these works is that they are fictional rather

     than truthful accounts.  Much is claimed based on scanty evidence that

     would be better explained by another scenario.  Claims of involvement

     with Satanism are made by patients under hypnosis (hypnotized subjects

     are notorious for their suggestibility and tendency to produce

     fictions).  Other "former Satanists" distort the truth in search of

     attention and money.  These sensationalists never go to the police

     regarding the criminal activities they allegedly took part in, which

     calls the veracity of their claims and the sincerity of their remorse

     into question.



     Evidence does not exist to support what is said to occur.  If the

     number of murders said to be committed by Satanists was accurate, some

     bodies should have been found by now.  While means have been suggested

     by which bodies could be concealed, it stretches the imagination to

     believe that every body has been successfully hidden thus.  Evidence

     in other areas is similarly lacking.



     Individuals investigating suspected Satanic crimes misinterpret what

     they find to fit their expectations.  The _Necronomicon_, published by

     Avon Books, is used as an authoritative guide to Satanic practices.

     Yet few Satanists take the book seriously in any way, and none follow

     it to the letter.  This and other things lead some non-Satanists to

     see what simply is not there.



     The observant reader may note that there have been a few crimes linked

     to Satanism.  In all cases the criminal(s) worked alone with no

     connections to other groups.  Some cases have been publicized by the

     media as being related to Satanism when in fact they involve another

     religion, as in the Matamoros case, which involved some elements of

     Palo Mayombe (an African religion), and some rituals taken from popular

     motion pictures.



     The lesson to be learned is that although a book may appear in the

     "Non-fiction" section of a bookstore, that doesn't make it so.



     There is a copy of an FBI report on "occult crime" archived

     at slopoke.mlb.semi.harris.com   pub/magick/INCOMING/OLHP/lanning.txt

     which shows what the FBI thinks of the claims of fundamentalists.



     The most definative book to date on the topic of rumors of Satanic

     cults involved in ritual murder/abuse is

     _Satanic Panic; the Creation of a Contemporary Legend_ by Jeffry

     S. Victor. Open Court Press, 1992



6.   Do Satanists have orgies?  If so, where do I sign up?



     Hmmm...I trust that some do, but I have been unable to locate any as

     of yet.



7.   What is Xian?  COS?  TOS?  TSB?

     Do you say "Xian" rather than "Christian" in order to insult

     Christianity?



     Some users in this and other newsgroups find themselves discussing

     Christianity frequently.  In order to cut down on keystrokes they type

     "Xian" and "Xianity" rather than the longer versions.  A few users may

     intend it partly as a slur, but most do it only for convenience.  The

     abbreviation itself is far from insulting; it is accepted and used by

     many Christians including (I am told) the Pope.



     A few other abbreviations occur frequently in this newsgroup.  They

     are normally defined in a conversation, but here they are for your

     convenience:



          CoS = Church of Satan

          ToS = Temple of Set

          TSB = _The Satanic Bible_

          OT  = Old Testament

          NT  = New Testament

          OLHP = Order of the Left Hand Path

          ONA = Order of the Nine Angles



8.   Have you considered the message of _The Bible_?



     Yes.  Most Satanists, along with most other members of Western

     cultures, are familiar with the teachings of Christianity and many

     have read _The Bible_ or part of it.  They simply consider _The Bible_

     to be false and disregard it much like Christians would disregard

     books which represent the foundation of another religion.  Attempting

     to discuss Christianity will, in most cases, only get you flamed and

     not inform the Satanist of "something they didn't know".  If you are

     still tempted to post about _The Bible_ because you feel that we may

     have missed an important point, I suggest you seek out and read the

     alt.atheism FAQ before proceeding.  Many of its points are applicable

     to alt.satanism.



9.   For the Christians among us:  should you feel inclined to preach.

     You are all going to hell.

     Jesus saves!



     Quite often, members of fundamentalist Christian groups see fit to

     post various evangelical messages in alt.satanism.  The reason for

     this is not clear.  It has been suggested by various members of this

     net, who I shall lump under the convenient category of "Satanist,"

     that the reason for this posturing is that many (perhaps most)

     Born-Again Christian types are closet masochists.  It has also been

     suggested that Christians need to save a certain number of souls to

     get a good seat in paradise, similar in spirit to selling candy-bars

     or magazines to fund various extra-curricular activities in school.

     Presumably Satanist souls, being sold to the devil already, are worth

     more points.

          While these theories have some merit, considering the teachings

     of their (allegedly) chosen religion, an attempt should be made to be

     open-minded enough to see their side of things.

          Many Christians, when asked why they do this, respond something

     to the effect that it is charity, something they do out of the

     goodness of their hearts, out of concern for people etc. etc.  Well,

     if the Christian is really concerned with people, why not preach to

     those who have not heard the message?  Most "Satanists" are well

     acquainted with the messages of Christianity.  They have been preached

     to ad infinitum, and are fed up with it.  That is part of the reason

     they are Satanists instead of plain old agnostics.  Many Satanists are

     angered by such posts, and justifiably so.



     Now consider this:

          You will never convert a Satanist over USENET.  You either

               1) are too infuriating;

               2) look like a fool.



          There is NO logical reason to convert to Christianity.  The only

     appeals are to the emotions, and as stated before they either look

     foolish or infuriating.  Things like, "But Jesus LOVES you; he died

     for your sins!" or "Your soul is in danger!" are appeals to guilt and

     fear respectively; not reason.  As most Satanists have chosen this

     path out of reason, these appeals will never work.  As for those

     Satanists who are so for emotional reasons, their minds are as closed

     as that of the Born-again Christian.  Perhaps, if indeed preaching is

     done for humanitarian, and not egotistical or masochistic reasons,

     your energies are better spent educating those who know little of your

     faith: those born atheistic, communists, buddhists etc.  If, as

     suspected, your purposes are more egotistical (look reverend; I

     converted a Satanist!) forget it.  There are no "lost souls," waiting

     to be found in this community.

          For the masochistically inclined, we suggest self-flagellation.

     It costs less disk space, is probably more satisfying, and is

     certainly less offensive to the general public.



     Otherwise; GROWL!  BOOGA BOOGA!  HASTUR, ASTAROTH, LEVIATHAN

     ISHTAR!!!!!!!!!  XILKA XILKA!  BESA BESA!  go away already...





10.  How can I get more information about Satanism?



ÄLupo's note; The Temple of Set files at Quartz contain an extensive reading

listÅ



Recommended Reading:



(technical stuff/true satanism)

     _The Satanic Bible_, by Anton Szander LaVey, Avon Books, 1969.

          Presents the Satanic views and doctrines of the Church of Satan,

          along with an introduction to its rituals.



     _The Compleat Witch_ (the new edition is called _The Satanic Witch_),

       by Anton LaVey, Lancer Books, 1971.

     _The Satanic Rituals_, by Anton LaVey, University Books, 1972.

          More books discussing LaVey's brand of Satanism.



     _Black Magic in Theory and Practice_, by Michael Aquino (unavailable

     to non-Setians). Details the Setian theories of Magick. Similar to but

     more detailed, rigorous and self consistant than the section in the

     Satanic bible on magick.



     _The Diabolicon_, by Michael Aquino (unavailable to any but Adept-

     recognized Setians)



     _Book of Coming Forth by Night_ by Michael Aquino (Same comments as

     Diabolicon)



     _The Black Arts_, by Richard Cavendish, Perigee Books (Putnam), 1967.

          An objective introduction to magic, demonology, and classical

          views of Satanism.



     _The Necronomicon_ Äby the Mad ArabÅ, Avon Books, 1977.

          Purported ritual book of great efficacy.  Generally regarded as



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