The Fourth Tenet of The Satanic Temple reads, “The freedoms of others should be respected, including the freedom to offend. To willfully and unjustly encroach upon the freedoms of another is to forgo one’s own.”
Continue reading “In Defense of the Fourth Tenet of The Satanic Temple”
If there is one thing I find myself continually communicating about my Satanism, it is this: my Satanism isn’t about you. You might feel such a unique revulsion at my practice, or you might be so flummoxed by the religion that you can only assume that it is about deliberately provoking you.
This all assumes that you, the offended, are at the center of my religion. But my Satanism isn’t about you. You, the offended, don’t figure into 99.9% of my religious practice. It isn’t about offending, hurting, or provoking you. My Satanism is about me — my catharsis, my fulfillment, and how I choose to practice compassion toward all other creatures. That it offends you is incidental.
But offense, even if that is not my Satanism’s primary goal, does have its utility, and it is this: my Satanism is the test of your commitment to religious liberty.
Continue reading “My Satanism Is the Test of Your Commitment to Religious Freedom”
In this episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by Satanic minister and expert in ritual Shiva Honey to discuss her new book The Devil’s Death: Your Satanic Companion for Grief and Dying. We discuss the utility of ritual, our cultural aversion to discussing death and dying, the dangers of the medical field, protecting your bodily autonomy in death, and much more.
Continue reading “Sacred Tension: The Devil’s Death | Shiva Honey”
In this episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by Lucien Greaves to discuss The Satanic Temple’s legal battle against religious discrimination in Boston.
Continue reading “Sacred Tension: The Satanic Temple vs Religious Discrimination | Lucien Greaves”
In this episode of Sacred Tension, I’m joined by author, activist, and storyteller Gareth Higgins to talk about his new book How Not To Be Afraid. We discuss the challenges some modern men face, how growing up during the Troubles in northern Ireland informs his storytelling, how to tell stories that are both true and empowering, and much more.
Continue reading “Sacred Tension: How Not To Be Afraid | Gareth Higgins”
In this episode in Sacred Tension, I am joined by my friend Matt Langston of the formerly Christian pop punk band Eleventyseven to explore the finer points of Satanic religious blasphemy.
Continue reading “Sacred Tension: Religious Blasphemy 101 | Matt Langston”
Of all the challenging aspects of Satanism, blasphemy is perhaps at the top. I have known people to literally weep with horror when they first encounter the concept of the Black Mass, and others to simply shut down and say, “I can’t do this,” when they are confronted with the full breadth of Satanic blasphemy.
Blasphemy can be an important part of Satanism. But there are many different types of blasphemy, and I believe that understanding them might help outsiders better engage in inter-religious dialogue with the Satanic community. (It’s also important to note that there are many Satanists who don’t connect deeply with the notion of blasphemy at all.)
Continue reading “Varieties of Satanic Blasphemy”
In this episode of Sacred Tension, I am joined by dandy and Minister of Satan Vyvyan des Esseintes to discuss the restorative power of enjoying things in times of crisis. We discuss fandoms, music, wrestling, Magic: The Gathering, and much more.
Continue reading “Sacred Tension: Just Enjoy Things | Vyvyan des Esseintes”
I recently listened to a fascinating conversation between the Catholic writer Arthur Brooks and the atheist Sam Harris about the role of spirituality and religion in a healthy life. You will need to get a subscription to either the Waking Up app or to Harris’s private feed to listen to the section in question. I leave your support of Harris up to your own discretion.
For the time being, let’s set aside the political and ideological differences I have with both these men. I’d like to focus on a fascinating difference between Brooks and Harris.
Continue reading “The Bound and the Unbound: Religion and Transcendence”
In this episode of Sacred Tension, I speak with La Carmina about her new book The Little Book of Satanism. We discuss the deep roots of Satanic thought, key historic moments that shaped modern Satanism, the Satanic subculture in Japan, and much more.
Continue reading “Sacred Tension: The Ancient Roots of Modern Satanism | La Carmina”
Stephen Bradford Long 