Florida County Allows Satanism in Schools

[Rizzo in a box]

Sorta...

The Satanic Temple has announced that it will provide pamphlets on Satanism to students in Orange County, Florida, in response to a school board decision that allows for religious materials to be disseminated in public schools.

Among the materials to be distributed are pamphlets on the Satanic Temple’s tenets, philosophy and practice of Satanism, as well as information about the legal right to practice Satanism in school, the group said in a press release.

The move comes after the Orange County school system decided earlier this month to allow Bibles, as well as atheist materials, to be distributed at public schools.

The Temple said that though it does not agree with the school board’s decision to allow religious materials in schools, it will continue “to ensure that pluralism is respected whenever the Church/State division is breached.”

Temple spokesperson Lucien Greaves explains: “We think the responsible thing to do is to ensure that these students are given access to a variety of differing religious opinions, as opposed to standing idly by while one religious voice dominates the discourse and delivers propaganda to youth.

“I am quite certain that all of the children in these Florida schools are already aware of the Christian religion and its Bible, and this might be the first exposure these children have to the actual practice of Satanism. We think many students will be very curious to see what we offer,” Greaves added.

The Satanic Temple is best known for their ongoing efforts to erect a goat-headed Baphomet statue next to a Ten Commandments monument at the Oklahoma State Capitol.

The group describes Satan as “the ultimate icon for the selfless revolt against tyranny, free and rational inquiry, and the responsible pursuit of happiness.”

Personally I think this is a fairly reasonable and level headed decision from Florida of all places. I'm sure some people will see this as more evidence of their insanity but this gives me great hope for the future of religious diversity and tolerance. I'd love to teach some kids about Discordianism, on Pastafarianism, or gnosticism, or Sufism, or any other number of things that would broaden their cultural and metaphysical perceptions.

[mmmmmmmQuestions]

dumb question time: does "Satanism" believe in Creationism?

[Rizzo in a box]

dumb question time: does "Satanism" believe in Creationism?

no they believe in Createdism. lol

[mmmmmmmQuestions]

ok. ahhh, HA! AHAHAH! so they believe (a) God made us or whatever?

[Rizzo in a box]

ok. ahhh, HA! AHAHAH! so they believe (a) God made us or whatever?

To be honest there's a lot of different stylings of Satanism that believe in different things, some are more like atheists and some are just weird(nothing wrong with that). There are also people that believe in Lucifer as a being separate from Satan, a bringer of light and beauty...I am one such fan. that's a different story entirely though.

[mmmmmmmQuestions]

ok. ahhh, HA! AHAHAH! so they believe (a) God made us or whatever?

To be honest there's a lot of different stylings of Satanism that believe in different things, some are more like atheists and some are just weird(nothing wrong with that). There are also people that believe in Lucifer as a being separate from Satan, a bringer of light and beauty...I am one such fan. that's a different story entirely though.

interesting. all of that seems weird to me but as you said, there's nothing wrong with that. unless of course their beliefs spawn bullshit that I have to deal with directly or indirectly. I can't say that I've seen firsthand any type of satanic worship that has caused widespread terror or unnecessary loss of life, but I'm not privy on all fucking matters so who knows. I am a bit curious about the "Satanists" that are atheists of sorts. In their case what the fuck is satan and what is his/her role?

[Rizzo in a box]

ok. ahhh, HA! AHAHAH! so they believe (a) God made us or whatever?

interesting. all of that seems weird to me but as you said, there's nothing wrong with that. unless of course their beliefs spawn bullshit that I have to deal with directly or indirectly. I can't say that I've seen firsthand any type of satanic worship that has caused widespread terror or unnecessary loss of life, but I'm not privy on all fucking matters so who knows. I am a bit curious about the "Satanists" that are atheists of sorts. In their case what the fuck is satan and what is his/her role?

To be honest there's a lot of different stylings of Satanism that believe in different things, some are more like atheists and some are just weird(nothing wrong with that). There are also people that believe in Lucifer as a being separate from Satan, a bringer of light and beauty...I am one such fan. that's a different story entirely though.

I'm so glad you asked! Did you notice the part in the article that says,

The group describes Satan as “the ultimate icon for the selfless revolt against tyranny, free and rational inquiry, and the responsible pursuit of happiness.”

because this is what most self-described Satanist's values will be in line with. The best example of this would be LaVey

Satanists do not believe in the supernatural, in neither God nor the Devil. To the Satanist, he is his own God. Satan is a symbol of Man living as his prideful, carnal nature dictates. The reality behind Satan is simply the dark evolutionary force of entropy that permeates all of nature and provides the drive for survival and propagation inherent in all living things. Satan is not a conscious entity to be worshiped, rather a reservoir of power inside each human to be tapped at will. Thus any concept of sacrifice is rejected as a Christian aberration—in Satanism there’s no deity to which one can sacrifice

"Satan" translates to "adversary", and in some ancient christian mystery schools and gnostic sects the adversary was seen more as a teacher. Indeed in the Gnostic mythos of Genesis, the snake is not a tempter but a savior, the tree of knowledge freeing man from the tyranny of the blind god Yaltabaoth, also known as Samael, who was created as a cosmic mistake and shrouded in darkness & emptiness and mistook his sole existence in the world of darkness to assume that HE was God above all else.

You'll find that there are some occultists that one could describe as "Satanic", and they might have varying degrees of belief in Satan as an entity and indeed the entire Biblical saga. There are also some very mentally damaged people that are full of hate and pain that they go around doing horrible things and putting a mystic spin on it and calling it satanic.

I'm trying to remember the name of that cult in the 60s or 70s that at one point incorporated both jesus and satan into their worship. they were an interesting bunch...

[Ninja]

How much do you want to bet that guy was not born as Lucien Greaves?

[aldra]

I always preferred crowley to lavey

that said I almost wish I was in school there so I could practice old-school Nazi occultisim, ala Karl-Maria Willigut and be protected for it.

[mmmmmmmQuestions]

I always preferred crowley to lavey

that said I almost wish I was in school there so I could practice old-school Nazi occultisim, ala Karl-Maria Willigut and be protected for it.

devry university brother


devry.edu 

[Rizzo in a box]

I always preferred crowley to lavey

that said I almost wish I was in school there so I could practice old-school Nazi occultisim, ala Karl-Maria Willigut and be protected for it.

I don't consider LaVey a legitimate occult teacher, he's more of a philosopher really. Or a self obsessed asshole. whicheva.

I'd be down for some nazi occultism in school. ORDER OF THE BLACK SUN!

I mean, shouldn't we be teaching kids about what's actually in the world (a lot of people with a lot of wacky beliefs) or try to shelter them so they're completely unprepared for the war on(/for) their minds?

[Zanick]

Only LaVeyan Satanists would be volatile and immature enough to see middle schools as viable battleground. It may be better than letting the fundies have their way, but I don't see this bringing occultism of any sort good press in the long term.

[Rizzo in a box]

Only LaVeyan Satanists would be volatile and immature enough to see middle schools as viable battleground. It may be better than letting the fundies have their way, but I don't see this bringing occultism of any sort good press in the long term.

Middle school IS a viable battleground! It certainly was for me, as the only atheist in 6th grade. Incidentally I got called Satanist a lot - would have been nice if those kids had some fucking education.

[Zanick]

Education is important, I think it should be up to the district to incorporate that into their curriculum without parents or religious bias getting involved. But I don't think many students at that age will be able to make an informed decision to choose or deny faith. That's why most of them are still practicing whatever their parents stuck them with.

I could really get down with some Buddhist monks showing kids how to meditate, some occultists teaching kids to vibrate sacred names, etc. Real skills that can be used in various spiritual orders. But I expect in OC it'll look a lot more like one side of the school hosting non-denominational Christians asking, "Are you aware of the feminine image of God?" And the other will be, "Are your parents wrong because they don't understand you?"