Author: Stephen Bradford Long

Stephen Bradford Long is a writer, yoga teacher, and Satanist living and working in North Carolina. His work focuses on religion, sexuality, culture, and other subjects that strike his fancy.

A Satanism of Mastery

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Everyone’s Satanism is different. For some, Satanism will be a religion of hedonism and reclaiming physical pleasure from the clutches of repressive religion. For others, it will be based in centering outsiders or embracing outsider status. All of these are valid expressions of Satanism, and I share many of them myself.

As I’ve contemplated my Satanic path, I’ve come to realize that my own Satanism is one of mastery. In the myth, Satan rejects the tyranny of God and sets out on a path of self-deification. In my view, the icon of Satan as the eternal rebel, the triumphant iconoclast, and the unbowed will is the ultimate symbol of mastery.

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Guest Post: Praying a Satanic Rosary

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 3 Comments

This is a guest post by Ida Carolina. Ida Carolina is a Drag Performer based in Asheville NC. She has performed and represented titles across the country and the southeast. She is also an academic having earned an MLIS and is working on an MALS. She is a devout Satanist in the tradition of the Seven Tenets and a lover of artistic blasphemy. Find Ida Carolina here.

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More Thoughts on Normie Satanism

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 3 Comments

One of the most popular articles I wrote last year is titled On Being a Normie Satanist, in which I pushed back on some Satanic stereotypes that exclude normal-seeming people like myself. I think these stereotypes (mostly from non-Satanists) are rooted in the notion that Satanism is less a religion and more a trend. But because Satanism is a religion, it will attract all different types of people – some who are more “stereotypically Satanic” and others who are less so.

However, despite the positive response, there was also some pushback, and I’d like to take a moment to explore three primary categories of pushback in Normie Satanism Discourse.

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Satanism and Reinventing Religion

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 2 Comments

Satanists are often told that our religion is “fake.” Many people – especially those from older and more venerable religions – often seem affronted by sincere Satanic religious practice. When I try to get down to the bottom of this, the complaint seems to be (among many things):

“your religion is fake because you made it up. You co-opted Satan from older, wiser, more authentic religions and completely reinvented him.”

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The Satanic Practice of Learning From Demons

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 5 Comments

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a blog post titled, Jordan Peterson on the Utility of Horror. I expected some pushback, and I got it.

“Fuck that dude all the way.” Wrote one person. “He is a transphobic piece of trash that uses big words to make himself look smarter than he is.” Another response read, “Jordan Peterson a well known con, I guess what I see on the internet is true and The Satanic Temple [my church] isn’t divorced from bigots. Sad to see it.”

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Sunday Curiosities: The Exorcist Effect, a Satanic Cross, and the Disturbing Movie Iceberg

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Sunday Curiosities is the weekly series in which I share interesting, controversial, or thought provoking things that caught my attention from around the web. Do you have any suggested content for this series? Do you have any creative work you’d like me to check out? Please email me.

Twitter Destroyed a Young Trans Writer

A young trans writer named Isabel Fall wrote a brilliant short story titled “I Sexually Identify as An Attack Helicopter.” The internet responded badly. Emily VanDerWerff of Vox explored the story. Special thanks to reader Azura for the submission.

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Jordan Peterson on The Utility of Horror

~ Stephen Bradford Long ~ 3 Comments

I’ve spent a good portion of my online career bashing Jordan Peterson. I’ve often found him clownish and, at times, downright dangerous.

His new book Beyond Order, however, surprised me. The Peterson that emerged from its pages was a far more complicated and interesting figure than I had previously given him credit for. He lives with brutal addiction and depression, and yet doles out advice on how to lead a good life. He’s weird, eccentric, verbose, and surprisingly progressive and conservative at different turns. I found parts of his book genuinely helpful, and other parts frustrating and overly esoteric. None of this is to say that I’m a fan or that I agree with him on everything. It’s simply to say that I found his most recent book worth engaging.

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Sacred Tension: Getting Sober with Satan feat. Ministers Joe Dee and Jon Eldritch

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In this episode of Sacred Tension, I speak with Ministers of Satan Joe Dee and Jon Eldritch about the new Satanic Temple campaign Sober Faction. We discuss recovery culture, theistic and nontheistic recovery programs, the 7 rituals of Sober Faction, and more. 

Find Sober Faction here.

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