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A reminder that The Satanic Temple is not to be confused with the Church of Satan, as there has been a few comments in-thread which have confused the two. It's

A reminder that The Satanic Temple is not to be confused with the Church of Satan, as there has been a few comments in-thread which have confused the two. It's extremely common for them to be confused. The Satanic Temple was founded in 2013, and rejects many of the beliefs of other Satanic organizations. To see their differences from The Church of Satan, see [1]. I would encourage anyone remotely interested (positively or negatively) to read through their FAQ[2], and if you have the time, to peruse some of their recommended readings[3]. [1] https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/church-of-satan-vs-satanic-temple https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/church-of-satan-vs-satani... [2] https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/faq https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/faq [3] https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/the-satanic-temple-library https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/the-satanic-temple-librar...

rich_sasha 3y ago
The FAQ reads quite sane, in particular their belief list. But then they choose a weird mascot. Satan as a metaphor for the rebel is drowned by the other metaphors, like the ultimate evil, the liar who corrupts you, who will happily look nice and friendly if that's what is needed for the job. Especially if you then insist you don't believe in any supernatural, Satan included. It's a bit like an art movement in Hitler's name, insisting it's nothing to do with Nazism, and only his painting style. If you want to preach kindness and rational words thinking, but your symbol is a ram's head in a pentagram, then you can't be surprised people are terrified. I have no personal experience with this organization.
- drcongo 3y ago
  I think you may have rather missed the point. If they set up the "fluffy bunny after school club", how much attention do you think it would have brought to the hypocrisies they're trying to highlight? There would have been no religious fundamentalists protesting outside, it would not have made international news, and the in-school Christian indoctrination would have continued unchallenged. (Full disclosure, I've donated to them in the past)
  - rich_sasha 3y ago
    You make it sound like a bad thing. Is the point to preach rationality or to piss people off? Surely they would get more people through the door with different branding. But then, American debate in religion is weird from all angles so what do I know.

rich_sasha 3y ago

The FAQ reads quite sane, in particular their belief list. But then they choose a weird mascot. Satan as a metaphor for the rebel is drowned by the other metaphors, like the ultimate evil, the liar who corrupts you, who will happily look nice and friendly if that's what is needed for the job. Especially if you then insist you don't believe in any supernatural, Satan included. It's a bit like an art movement in Hitler's name, insisting it's nothing to do with Nazism, and only his painting style. If you want to preach kindness and rational words thinking, but your symbol is a ram's head in a pentagram, then you can't be surprised people are terrified. I have no personal experience with this organization.

drcongo 3y ago
I think you may have rather missed the point. If they set up the "fluffy bunny after school club", how much attention do you think it would have brought to the hypocrisies they're trying to highlight? There would have been no religious fundamentalists protesting outside, it would not have made international news, and the in-school Christian indoctrination would have continued unchallenged. (Full disclosure, I've donated to them in the past)
- rich_sasha 3y ago
  You make it sound like a bad thing. Is the point to preach rationality or to piss people off? Surely they would get more people through the door with different branding. But then, American debate in religion is weird from all angles so what do I know.