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 The UK Church of Satan says it supports a variety of views on abortion. But is the church real?
July 9th, 2013
03:27 PM ET
Satanists square off on abortion (Yes, really)By Daniel Burke, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor (CNN)- Are Satanists for or against abortion? Apparently, there's a hot debate. A group calling itself the "UK Church of Satan" on Twitter says it's open minded, tweeting out "Why Wouldn't Satanism be pro-life?" on July 5. But the High Priest of the New York-based Church of Satan says it's squarely in the abortion-rights corner. How to settle this diabolical duel? Let's back up first. As Texas legislators debated a law last week that would restrict abortions in the Lone Star State, a group of abortion rights protesters tried to drown out a group of anti-abortion protesters at the state capitol by chanting "Hail Satan!" The phrase trended on Twitter. Megapastor Rick Warren rapped our wrists (and The Associated Press's, too) for not covering the "Hail Satan" serenade. Actually, pastor, our man Josh Rubin was on the ball. The UK Church of Satan (assuming it's real) jumped on the trend, tweeting on July 3:
Which raises the question: What does Satanism represent? We asked the New York-based Church of Satan, and we got an earful. First of all, Magus Peter H. Gilmore, High Priest of the Church of Satan, told us, there is no "UK Church of Satan." "I have not authorized any of our UK members to create such a thing claiming to represent our organization, its members and our philosophy," Gilmore said. "So, whoever is behind that feed is committing a fraud." Gilmore's group, which, unlike the UK church, has a website, also keeps a P.O. Box in New York City. (Radio City Station of all places. Watch out, Rockettes.) As a matter of policy, the Church of Satan doesn't give out exact membership numbers, the magus said, but it's in the thousands. "Our organization, founded by Anton LaVey in 1966, is worldwide," Gilmore told CNN in an e-mail, "and we have many members throughout the UK and none of them have heard of any self-proclaimed 'Church of Satan in England.' There was a hoax using a title like this a year or so ago as a political prank." We put the question to the UK Church of Satan, who said, "There is no 'UK' Church of Satan. It's worldwide. We represent and connect those followers 'in' the UK." We've followed up with more questions but haven't heard back yet. To be sure, the UK Satanists' tweets have been surprisingly unsulfurous. Take this one, for example:
Or this sweet-natured nugget:
This is a church that worships the Prince of Darkness? And who in hell is JMG? Getting back to abortion, here's what the supposed UK Church of Satan said:
Yeah, kinda, Gilmore told CNN. But there's much more to it than that. Many Satanists practice "rational birth control," saith Satanism's high priest, leaving matters of personal morality up to individuals. "We generally consider the use of abortion to be the purview of the woman whose body is carrying the child," Gilmore said. "We consider sexual experiences to be an indulgence between consenting adults that should be taken seriously, particularly when the possibility of pregnancy is concerned." But the magus didn't appreciate hearing the name of his lord taken in vain. "Shouting `Hail Satan!' to abortion protesters is both ludicrous and meaningless," said Gilmore, who's led the Church of Satan since 2001. "Only attention-seeking fools would do so." Unsurprisingly, Satanists take a strong stand on separation of church and state, believing the government "should be entirely secular." "So religion should neither force upon nor deny an abortion for any woman, in our thinking," Gilmore said. "Freedom with responsibility is the hallmark of civilized behavior to the Satanist." Now that that's settled, what's the Satanic stance on gay marriage? *** In a follow-up email, Gilmore made it clear that Satanists don't actually deify Satan. In fact, they're atheist, he said, and use Satan as a "symbol of pride, liberty and individualism." "If you chose to mock us, then you should have done so based on what our philosophy actually is, rather than on an assumed `horror film' stereotype," the magus said. Fair criticism. We'll try to improve our coverage of Satanism. Oh, one more thing. Gilmore said the Church of Satan does approve of same-sex marriage.
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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All people are Satanists, actually. If you do ANYTHING for your own gratification it means you're a humanist...which is all Satanism really is. They only do the theatrics to mock Christians. At it's core, Satanism is pretty awesome because it is what we all are. To deny the self is to deny life. I own the Satanic Bible and consider it the greatest self-help book man has ever created. If you think the Bible beats it, you clearly have never read it.
Atheists acknowledge the existence of no God. Your Satanists are derivative of people who acknowledge a particular God, it seems. No them, no you. It's better when believers are the followers. As when they try to justify themselves to atheists, claiming that there is no proof that their God does not exist.
Tom, I am an atheist. I, like any atheist, reject the PROPOSITION that a God exists because there is absolutely no evidence that suggests one does. If a God were proven to be real, I would have no choice but to change my viewpoint. Christians definitively say that there IS a God, but when pressed to explain themselves, they resort to regurgitating Bible verses and other meaningless activities. No Christian reading this now, or ever, will ever be able to prove that there is a God...but they also REFUSE to acknowledge that it's probable that there isn't one at all. To the Christian, it is impossible for God to be non-existent or WRONG in any way, shape, or form. So their beliefs are rendered meaningless to everyone but fellow Christians because it dissolves when exposed to reason. Only a severely indoctrinated person is "capable" of seeing through the solvent of reason to cling to the fantasy.
You ask for proof of God, darknesscrown, and believe there is none because you say that man cannot prove His existence. But the answer is that GOD IS SPIRIT. Thus, man no matter how smart or intelligent they may think they are, cannot ever prove that which is composed of and is in Spirit. It simply is. Just as radio or television waves cannot be seen but yet produce sound and picture for us. And the air all around us cannot be likewise seen yet there can be absolutely no doubt that it exists. People have faith in that their radio and television sets will work and that there is air around them for them to breathe to stay alive. Christians thus go by their Faith in God which is spiritual in nature. With faith in your heart, you do not need to pursue proof or empirical evidence through human means which you will never find because God Is Spirit, thus, so much greater than mortal men which He created who have limited knowledge.
Message
Radio waves are detectable. Television waves are detectable. Air is detectable. Gods are not. Saying something is there that is 100% undetectable is illogical and irrational.
After reading this article, it seems that I too am a Satanist...now what?
The traditional satanic orgy would be in order.
Ozzfest
You ask now what, Samra? Now that you have self-identified that you are a satanist thus, your soul is imperiled, you know that you can always seek salvation from Jesus Christ by using your free will and becoming Born Again. That is the logical course to take if you truly want to enter into Heaven at your appointed time. To do any less is to deny investing in your soul when you die and entering into darkness for eternity. Make the right choice and Become Saved.
Message
The bible says that is the way to "save" your "soul" but why would I need to be saved by a god, who is the same god that is threatening you in the first place.
You offer no evideence that you are correct. There are many religions that teach differently than you, show why you do not subscribe to their positions. To blindly accept one unprovable premise, while you have not fully explored any of the others, or even have one shred of evidence to believe the premise you say, is illogical and irrational.
Satanists are just as ridiculous as any other religious people.
Sigh. Read the article first. Satanists don't actually believe in satan, nor anything that could qualify them for the status of a religion. It's lite philosophy with a provocative (but rather silly) name, that's all.
ignore the above poster he doesn't understand what real satanists are
Read the Satanic Bible before you spout off about things you don't understand. No Satanist actually believes that there is a "devil" or a "god". They only wear the black clothing and have black masses and to make fun of Christians...to poke a finger in their chest to let them know they think they are stupid. In reality, Satanism is humanistic atheism.
Yes, I shouldn't have used the word "any", but Satanists are indeed as ridiculous as religious people, I stand fully by that comment.
*any other*
So Satanists are what they are and do what they do in response to Christianity and its God?
*Exodus 1:8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph. Acts 7:18 Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph. (Matthew 13:55 and Genesis 37:3) *Psalm 77:15*
I don't know any Joseph. I guess that makes me King of Egypt.
Could I be King of Tahiti instead? Please?
I think he was using "know" in the biblical sense in those quotes.
Who is "he" Joey. Are you saying that it was odd for a king to not have s3x with his slave-revolt leaders?
How will Satanists be able to do their baby sacrifices if they can't kill babies?
Now you are making me hungry./
This story seemed condescending and not objective. I did not enjoy even though I believe that it had the potential to be an interesting topic.
Rumor has it that the Belief Blog is where the owner's ne'er-do-well nephew and the people having affairs with the boss get to pretend they work, in between getting coffee and servicing the boss.
It's not exactly the department where you would put your heavyweight journalists.
They didn't so much 'square off' as offer mutual noncommittal shrugs.
Jesus Christ was rightfully crucified for his sins against God and humanity. Jesus pretended to be the son of God, but he was in fact a messenger of the devil. All those that accept Jesus into their hearts are inviting the devil in as well. Reject Jesus, the spawn of Satan! I am trying to save you Christians from eternal damnation. That is the only thing that the blasphemer Jesus offers. He has created a false cult of peace around his teaches. The God of Abraham would have never allowed his crucifixion if Jesus was his son. The death of Jesus is proof that he was a fake. His resurrection was a fraud. Why do you think so few witnessed it? Why do their accounts vary so much?
Jesus was an agent of the devil. Jesus was only trying to damn the innocent with his lies. Jesus deserved what he got.
Ask yourselves this, Christians. What if you are wrong, and I am right? What if you are following the devil? Do you want to take that chance?
If you were right there would be no path to salvation so it wouldn't really matter lol
There is a path to salvation. It is through the religion of Abraham, Judaism.
Judaism doesn't have a concept of eternal damnation though. At most it has a temporary period of punishment and perhaps even the ability to avoid that by repenting before it begins.
It is salvation and damnation of not the individual, but of us, as whole, the children of Abraham.
The real question is whether you dare scoff at Bippy, the Super Overlord Squirrel God Of Everything Except Mimes, Disco, And Hoola Hoops, for such scoffery shall verily toss you into the torments of eternal haggis! Oh woe unto he, she, or it who decides to scoff most scoffily at the truthiest truthiness of Lord Bippy! He resurrected from that heinous death due to unknown circumstances in Paris Hilton's penthouse at Circus Circus in Elko, came back to wash your sin and your socks, came to save your soul (at a fairly reasonable price).
Oh beware! Beware! If you are wrong, doomy doom shall bedoom you! Convert now! Operators are standing by! Shipping and handling extra!
Bippy, fuck off, along with the rest of your alleged supernatural buddies!v
I am not Bippy. I am his floppy boneless chicken-prophet Cluckles. And though I am his prophet, we have never met. We were supposed to, but he set up the meeting for a place called KFC. Well, when I walked in . . . it . . . it . . . I can't go on, it was too terrible! It was the Auschwitz of boneless chicken! Oh the humanity . . . uh, no, uh, oh! The poultryity! Loving chickes turned into greasy batter-dipped and deep fried strips of boneless . . . I can barely say it . . .
Oh Bippy is a moron, having a meeting there! He is evil, pure evil! Well, okay, so he just isn't ambitious enough to be evil, he's, uh, vexing, yes, no, oh he doesn't even have the ambition to vex. He's inconveniencing, slightly, uh, okay, he's just a lame and lousy god, and you can just ignore him. Heck, he doesn't even get out of rehab for a few more weeks. Miley Cyrus is teaching him to twerk there.
People who claim to worship satan are idiots.
People who don't bother to read the article and find out that Satanists don't believe in satan are idiots.
Yes, people who worship Satan are idiots. If you know of an article on another website or something that discusses people worshiping Satan, could you post the link? I think you may have posted on the wrong comment section by mistake. Let's see if we can clear this up for you, ok?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuOPW1XSzwk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr6econ-__E
Enjoy the Romanian subtitles
For a more balanced view of where people's ideas about the devil came from, watch this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5mYFJ4irxM
Every church is really against abortion.
You can't teach hate of non followers to dead babies.
Please, whatever!
"Satanists square off on abortion"
That's kinda harsh on the liberals... CNN, bad boy.
Actually, the Satanists are on the pro-life side.
Explains a lot, actually.
For those desiring salvation, that is, to become born again through Christ Jesus, even for those who are not quite decided but who nevertheless want to err on the side of caution, say the following prayer Out Loud. It's so simple that this is all it takes to Guarantee that you will be able to enter into Heaven when you pass-on, according to the Holy Bible.
Father in Heaven, I come to you with contrite heart as I am a sinner who acknowledges my sins. I am asking you to forgive me. I also come forth to declare that I Believe that Jesus Christ is LORD and the One and only beloved Son of God and I accept Jesus into my life right now. I believe that He was crucified, died, and was buried but arose on the third day through God. I thank you for coming into my life, LORD Jesus Christ, and I will follow you always. Amen.
You really need help with the rules of capitalization. And a better grip on reality would really help too.
You can be a mass murderer, and as long as you say that, as Hans Frank did, you go to heaven. All the Jews he killed in the Holocaust go to hell, but the Nazi mass-murderer who returned to Catholicism (conveniently) before his sentence was carried out, yeah, it's just so Jesusy!
I don't respect your god because I disprove of his behavior. He's untrustworthy and he chooses to allow a place of eternal torture when he could just destroy it. That's the creepiest and most disgusting thing I can imagine, and I don't think that sort of being would think much of me saying a sixty-two word magic spell. Love your enemies, he says, I'm frying mine in an eternal fire. The good news, he's invisible and undetectable, so he's probably not there.....or at least he's irrelevant.
Glad you were paying attention, athy, now maybe you can learn how you can save your soul.
Just buy some Jesus snake oil and you too will be cured of sin! Really! Can you afford to be wrong?
Cpt. Obvious, the place of eternal torment has been prepared for Satan and it's his punishment for misleading mankind and causing so much suffering in the world all these years. All those wars, all the atrocities, all the suffering people have experienced. Satan is going to burn forever for that.
Who wants to spend eternity buzzed out in some god's presence like you're on some never-ending LSD trip?
I save my "sole" in a fridge until it's ready to fry.
So Dave, where will Jesus burn for being able to stop all that suffering but not doing anything?
The fact of the matter, Cpt. Obvious, is that it is not God who condemns people. It is people themselves by their very actions towards others who condemn themselves into darkness. God simply allows it to happen since He gave everyone free will to do as they choose. But one must also remember and bear in mind that part of choosing is in making the right choice because there are consequences that go along with it also, both for right choices and wrong choices. Therefore, if you're Smart you'll choose to live life by helping others in a decent and loving manner and Become Saved. But if you choose not to do so, then you have already chosen to dig your own grave by direct disobedience to God's spiritual law of Cause and Effect. So, don't blame God. Blame careless, evil people for going to where they will be ultimately going for direct disobedience to God if they don't repent beforehand and become Born Again in Jesus. And think about it, what a small price to pay, to just say the Prayer of Salvation in order to attain Eternal Salvation. Give your life to Jesus and you automatically go to Heaven.
"Satan has been the best friend the church has ever had, as he has kept it in business all these years" Anton LaVey
"And think about it, what a small price to pay, to just say the Prayer of Salvation in order to attain Eternal Salvation. Give your life to Jesus and you automatically go to Heaven." I just wanted to add that while God will always forgive those who have sinned and who go to Him asking for forgiveness of their sins and will allow them to enter Heaven if they also become Born Again and Saved by Jesus Christ, Man's Law is not so forgiving. As the ol' saying goes "If you do the crime, you do the time." Therefore, those who get caught in this world doing wrong and hurting others will surely have to answer to man's law as well and pay the price but when they pass-on, they can enter into Heaven if they were saved.
So - the bible says you're a sinner. The bible gives you a rather arbitrary list of the things that make you a sinner. The bible says that you will be punished for all eternity for being a sinner. The bible has a method to save you, if you do exactly what the bible says, but the bible offers no way to verify anything it claims.
And you fell for that?
Have you ever actually met someone who got to heaven? Because I haven't met anyone who has. It sounds made up to me, if there isn't anyone to tell you its real. You believe what a book says, and if that book is wrong your entire life has been a lie.
You want to know about people who have been to Heaven, tallulah and especially umm? Actually, there are many who have already seen what Heaven is like, Hell too! You need go no further if you want actual proof from a medical professional, of many, who had a NDE and was for all practical purposes declared dead and went on to the Afterlife and upon returning to his physical body after days in a coma was able to tell not only what had happened in other rooms and places which would be very hard to do if not impossible especially while he was in a comatose state, but he explains what Heaven is like and has written books, along with many others worldwide, about their experience. Just ask Dr. Eben Alexander, M.D., a medical expert and noted neurosurgeon, for one, who had the experience and knows first hand what it is like being in spirit. There are many others who can undeniably reveal details about their experience with proof of Heaven while they were out of their physical body and in that state.
It is true, I had an NDE and met Allah, and was just about to meet the first of my 72 virgins before that stupid doctor brought me back to life.
If you haven't read the signs of the lights in the heavens (as per Gen 1:14), you've missed all god's updates. His bible is at version 342,345,121.89 now.
I really don't miss any of god's updates. And, oddly enough, it doesn't affect me in the slightest.
Wow, this really brought out the atheist core of CNN's viewers! Just what America needs from a "news" network!
It's just great that you can turn on Rush and FOX every day and find out what your opinions are.
I always suspected those pro-lifers were evil. 👿
Here's a little history of religion on Earth. After God had created humans and they had begun to form communities, they started to receive visits by angels, both good and bad. Some of these angels had halfbreed children with humans. These beings took many forms, some of them were like giant men, tall and handsome. Others had the body of a man but the head of an animal like a jackal. They were extremely strong and probably had many impressive powers. They may have contributed to the building of the pyramids. They encouraged people to worship them as gods and this is where the stories of the ancient gods originated. They were real beings here on Earth. Satan is just the most powerful angel, in this case an evil one, and he still wants to be worshipped as a god, but his way of getting people to do that is to cause them to rebel against the real God.
Well, we can tell who has all the seasons of Ancient Aliens on DVD, can't we?
Aside from being totally insane, that's a great comment.
Where does the ring and all the Hobbit fit in?
No hobbits. This is based on recorded history, it may look a little strange in today's language.
The recorded history of beings with the body of a man but the head of an animal like a jackal . . .
BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
I saw that movie, Clash of the Ti.tans, right?
Tundra
History?! Where's the archeology, the doc uments, photos, bones, or any other artifacts that support that myth? As it is, it's right up there with the stories of Hades and Persephone, and Loki and Hel.
Tundra's story fits in nicely with the bullsh!t of The Babble.
Who cares what satanists think? And who cares what Christians think? They both clearly have poor judgment if they believe in invisible all powerful wizards,
Church of Satan members don't believe in Satan. They're just a philosophical club for free-thinkers. They picked Satan as their mascot because organized Abrahamic religions have historically labelled free-thinkers as Satanists.
@uwotm8, they aren't so much free thinkers as organized atheists with some other very specific beliefs. People who belong to an organization with a list of fundamental beliefs and precepts for action are not free thinkers. Unitarians are a little closer, but even they wouldn't quite qualify for the term.
If someone explained the evolution of gobs in the evolved from nothing universe with it's evolved from nothing laws it might help.
If there's one thing I've learned in life it's that old wisdom is usually the best wisdom. Those old sayings you hear aren't just quaint reminders of the past, they're often a lot more sensible than things you'll hear today. Old folk remedies are often the best cure for ailments. When I hear what people have said about religion through the ages and what they believed, I trust that too because people in the past were much wiser and more understanding than we give them credit for.
Sally, if you are sick, the dumbest thing you can do is choose a folk remedy over modern medicine. Antibiotics work much better than Granny Clampett's leech bleeding.
Oh, do you trust what people say about ALL religions?
Many medicines are derived from folk remedies. The drug companies like to create a synthetic version which they can patent. Leeches are actually surprisingly beneficial for some conditions and they see plenty of medical applications today. Did you know that leech saliva contains enzymes which could clean arteries and treat heart disease? Each time a leech attaches to you it releases saliva into your bloodstream. It's one of those mutually beneficial relationships that exist between species.
Leeches as used in old times as folk remedies killed. They didn't heal anything. Your answer is especially silly since you are relying on MODERN SCIENCE to provide a legitimate use for a highly ineffective ancient technique.
Sally
And the best scams are the old scams.
Actually, leeches are a part of modern medicine. They are used as tools to draw blood back into very small vessels where flesh is being lost to bacteria or whatever. Gangrene, perhaps?
That isn't the folk remedy use of leeches that was the original topic, now was it? We were talking about the efficacy of modern medicine versus country folks doing their home remedies, and which would Sally choose.
I am glad people are experts in leeches.