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By Hr. Vad
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Philosophically the question has shown itself to be difficult -- if
not
impossible -- to answer. Nevertheless, an attemp to answer will be
done.
The greatest use of this answer will possibly be to illustrate what
a can
of worms this is.
This answer focuses on "real Satanists" meaning one-true-wayism-Satanism
and on trying to cast some light on who is _usually_ considered a
Satanist. The answers is certain to displease some people, but remember
that none of this essay contains the definitive say on the matter.
Those
who require ALL the details and subtleties are encouraged to skip this
introductory document and go directly to the many books in the
alt.satanism FAQ v2.3 section on ressources on Satanism, or the books
found in the Temple of Set reading list.
My basic proposition is:
"Those who say they are Satanists probably are."
This is the simplest answer, and it will be the foundation to the answer
of this frequently asked question.
One valid objection to this answer and definition of "real Satanists"
is
that it is too inclusive -- that it includes a lot of individuals whom
most people wouldn't call Satanists. Thus, later on the definition
of
"real Satanists" will be narrowed down a bit.
One very big problem with the "real Satanists" question is that at times
a group or organization (or individual) harps on the issue, usually
promoting themselves as the "One True Way." Those people usually
try to
convince everybody else that they are the only true Satanists, and
everyone else is a pseudo-Satanist or unauthentic. However, those
who
have been involved in those bloody catfights usually recognizes that
no
unanimous decision is reached and no hard facts can settle the matter.
What is at issue is often not _truth_ or _fact_ but simply differences
of
opinion which are essentially impossible to resolve in a way which
relates meaningfully to _truth_. The discussions between members of
a
religious movement are certainly important to the involved parties
and it
also helps to define the movement in the long run.
Does this sound crazy? Well, try to think of the problems Christians
have had defining who are the "real Christians": Protestants calling
the
Catholics Satanists; Jehovas Witnesses calling everybody else Satanists,
false teachers and so on; Baptists, Mormons, Davidians, Methodists,
etc.
calling other Christians names -- most of them claim that it is _they_
who have the pure and unadulterated truth. The same applies in
the
Moslems where Sunni and Shiite factions have quite divergent views
of who
is the proper and true representatives of Islam. To an outsider
these
"Battles of the True Ways" seem impossible to resolve. This looks quite
a
lot like the Satanist scene. At most we can say who has the most
followers, but this doesn't solve the _philosophical_ question;
practically, in the long run, size have shown to be important. Thus,
not
only in Satanism, but also in Christianity, the only useful answer
is
that whoever calls himself a Christian or Satanist probably is.
Because organizations have the same problems as individuals, the basic
proposition can be extended to include groups too:
"Modern Satanic organisations reserve
the right to define
Satanism as they see fit."
This is in accord with how things work most of the time, and it is
practical too. Most investigators would not ask Adolf Hitler
about the
joys of Passover or Hannukah, or just _who_ and _what_ Jews really
are,
AND take his word as gospel. In the same vein, one should be cautious
when asking the Satanists' enemies who or what "real Satanists" are;
many
Christians behave quite paranoic and see Satanists everywhere.
But can the definition be narrowed down a bit more? Yes, hopefully,
and
this will be done later on by discussing some specific persons or groups
which are often associated with Satanism -- some almost certainly
Satanists and some which are questionable at best.
At caveat when trying to determine whether someone is really a Satanist
is the problem of enemy _demonization_. This is a common propaganda
strategy where one accuses the enemy of unspeakable deeds in order
to
legitimize persecution, oppression or war. This is said to remind the
reader that Xtian propaganda is not necessarily true and this is
important to remember when trying to determine whether someone is a
Satanist or not.
It may also be helpful to compare a person's or group's beliefs with
the
things traditionally held to represent Satanism or Satanic thought.
This
may help point out those who are either deluded and/or insincerely
promoting themselves as Satanists. "Satanism" is a label which sells
quite well, so _caveat_emptor_.
Also it may be worth mentioning that almost all Satanists have a
respectful relationship to scientific truths and most often do NOT
try to
deny reality (contrary to Christians for example). So a number of
problems CAN be resolved in a _factual_ way; some already have been.
EXAMPLES:
~~~~~~~~~
--- CRIMINALS WITH A M.O. SUGGESTING SATANIST LEANINGS ---
What is often the case for this kind of criminals is that they are
mentally unstable persons who are searching for a way to justify their
deeds. Often they have already decided to commit the crime, but
they
just need a little justification. Justification is a rather ubiquitous
human need because it gives a feeling of security and mental well being.
Sometimes an individual will choose Satan or Satanism as the
justification mechanism: "Satan made me do it!" (much like many people
say "...but I was drunk"). Schizofrenics hearing voices could
be an
example.The choice of religion could just as well have been any other
prevalent one, e.g. Islam or Christianity. Remember that many,
many more
crimes have been committed in the name of God/Jehovah than Satan.
Most
people would say those persons were not real Christians, or at least
most
people would agree that their acts were not a legitimate part of their
religion. Thus, a crime would not be called "Christian ritual
abuse" if
a Bible or crucifix were found in the criminal's home or at the scene.
What one must remember with these people is that they are first and
foremost _criminals_ and the _religious_ aspects enter at a later point
_because_ of their criminal inclinations. Their religious leanings
are
_secondary_.
Upon close examination most of these people also show themselves to
lack
any systematic, philosophical or theological base on which they found
their so-called "religion" -- this is exactly due to the fact that
they
are not religious people, it isn't _religion_ which is important.
These
thoughts are also valid for people like cannibal Stanley Dean Baker,
the
Matamoros (drug gang) killers and the Norwegian Black Metal Mafia.
The
latter, some of whom killed each other, are now serving time for murder
-- they have been referred to by many Satanists as "nasty Christians"
because of their loose and admittedly _Christian_ based theology.
Just as there are criminal Satanists there are criminal Xtians. Remember
this: what is considered criminal is a cultural and time-bound decision
which is subject to change, but nevertheless much effort is used on
excommunicating members from their religion in an attempt to look good
to
the public. That a person is criminal does not always conveniently
exclude that person from the religion, no matter whether the religion
is
Satanism, Christianity, Islam or Jewish.
For a much more thourough introduction to law enforcement see Ken
Lanning's reports on ftp.lysator.liu.se/pub/religion/Satanism/Crime/.
--- WICCANS AND OTHER PAGANS ---
More than once there have been debate whether Wiccans are Satanists.
Christians often claim that the Wiccans are Satanists. Likewise, some
Satanists have claimed that the Wiccans are really Satanists (or that
they _should_ be). Other Satanists say that Wiccans are really
more like
Christians. The Wiccans themselves claim that they are neither
of the
above. Whom do we believe? Well, according to the findings above,
it is
reasonable to grant the Wiccans the right to define among themselves
who
and what they are. Thus there is no good reason to call these
folks
Satanists or Christians -- they are a "breed" of their own and have
every
right to define themselves as such. The same can be said of other
types
of pagans.
This said, it is worth mentioning that within the Wiccan community there
are a lot of cross-overs, e.g. some call themselves Satanic Wiccans
or
Xtian Wiccans. This is generally true for most religions: at the fringes
there are those who are an eclectic blend of two or more established
religions. Have this in mind as you proceed.
--- ALEISTER CROWLEY & THELEMITES ---
In many ways the jury is still out on this question. One thing
is for
certain though: Most Thelemites and/or O.T.O.'s do not call themselves
Satanists -- nor do most Satanists consider Thelemites to be Satanists
--
which according to the findings above more or less settles the matter.
Crowley himself is a little more difficult because there is no doubt
he
used some Satanic symbology, e.g. he referred to himself as the Beast
of
the Revelation, called his current woman "The Scarlet Woman" (a reference
to the Whore of Babylon) and generally tried to appear as "the wickedest
man in the world." However, in all fairness, Crowley should probably
not
be called a Satanist -- even though many present-day Satanists are
inspired by his life and works; at best he could be labelled a _de_facto_
Satanist (see below). Crowley's beliefs were an eclectic blend of many
different religious ideas from around the world; his Satanic imagery
was
only one of the many ingredients in the mix.
Analogous to the Wiccans, Thelema has a lot of cross-overs and more
than
one considers himself a Thelemite _and_ a Satanist.
--- FASCISTS & NAZIS ---
Once in a while Fascist or Nazi Satanists make the headlines, but quite
often this is because other Satanists refuse Nazism to be lumped together
with Satanism. Most consider the expression a "Nazi Satanist" to be
an
oxymoron and "Nazi Satanists" to be deluded wrt what Satanism represents.
You basically get two opinions on the "Satanism and Nazi question".
One
is that Nazism and Fascism are terrible, terrible things and they should
be battled, avoided and refused. The other is a more disinterested
attitude by those who consider words like "Nazi" and "Fascist" largely
as
buzzwords intended to manipulate the public.
If you have spotted some similarity between Nazism and Satanism it is
probably because of a shared Nietzschean lineage. This, however,
is not
enough to conclude that Satanists are Nazis -- most aren't because
they
feel that the fascist/national-socialist/collectivist doctrines conflict
with the Satanic emphasis on individualism. Simply saying that a Nazi
is
a Satanist, because one doesn't _like_ Nazis, is a stretch.
Some refer to themselves as Occult Fascists which is often in reference
to the great "fascist" emotions of love, hate, glory and victory and
so
on. However, this line of thought predates the fascists and nazis.
Also, Satanism scares a lot of people -- so does Nazism -- so some
Satanists like to dress up Nazi style simply because they love those
horrified, shocked expressions on the faces of ordinary folks.
Finally, most Satanists don't give a damn about Fascism or Nazism as
they
harvest their share of fear and loathing when they proclaim themselves
to
be members of something even _more_ dangerous: Satanism.
--- HEAVY METAL & ROCK BANDS ---
So are heavy metal bands into Satanism? Well, most Christians would
have
you believe so, but let's have a look. There is a kind of bands which
should not be labelled as such. Examples of such bands could be AC/DC,
Black Sabbath, Dio, Iron Maiden and Slayer. What usually characterizes
these bands is that they use a lot of Satanic imagery because they
think
it is fun, it shocks (now that the sex theme is fairly burnt out),
and it
sells records. The lyrics from these bands should _not_ be taken
literally, as they are often intended just for dramatic impact:
Surprise! Heavy metal bands often write fictional lyrics! However,
very
few of them actually call themselves Satanists, and when asked usually
deny any and all connections with the dreaded religion.
It isn't unlikely, though, that many people consider some of this music
_Satanic_. However, according to Satanists a lot of music is Satanic
ranging from: classical works, to old 1920-30 tunes, to ABBA, to techno,
to black metal and who knows.
There are some anti-Christian bands, or bands which have been critical
towards Christianity in one way or another, e.g. Carnivore, Manowar,
Metallica, and Sucidal Tendencies (or Phil Collins for that matter).
They have lyrically criticized Christianity, but this doesn't make
them
Satanists -- they deny any such affiliation publicly. They are
simply
atheists, skeptics, or otherwise critical of Christianity. Not
all
critics are necessarily members of the _enemy_. Nor do most of
these
bands spend all their time in opposition to Christianity. Most
often it
amounts to a few songs and no more.
There are, however, a few bands or individual musicians in the heavy
metal scene who _are_ Satanists, e.g. King Diamond, Acheron and Deicide.
Some members of these bands openly call themselves Satanists and they
probably are. Views differ sometimes. E.g. in the view of many Satanists,
Glenn Benton of Deicide violates certain rules of Satanism (and vice
versa). However, there isn't any objective way of "ruling anybody
out"
unless we are ready to accept one specific kind of Satanism, e.g. the
kind espoused by one of the various Satanic groups.
That, eventually, some heavy metal bands would come to have Satanists
as
members seems inevitable. But remember that no laws have been
broken,
nor any rights transgressed by these bands and Satanists. In
some bands,
like King Diamond, the lyrics aren't even especially "Satanic" in the
sense of trying to influence the listener to accept Satanism. Some
of
course do, but it is my impression that the preaching is kept at a
MUCH
lower level than among Christian (metal) bands.
It cannot be denied that some heavy metal bands may influence their
listeners or even make them interested in Satanism -- let's not be
naive
-- but remember that this is NOT a crime. Satanism is a legal
and
recognized religion (in most countries). All kinds of music influences
their listeners, but no one forces anybody to listen to heavy metal
--
actually even less than other kinds of music -- the fans listen to
it of
their own free volition.
I'd recommend the book _Running_with_the_Devil:_Power,_Gender,_and_
Madness_in_Heavy_Metal_Music_ (1993) by Robert Walser for a more detailed
introduction to this genre.
--- _DE FACTO_ SATANISTS ---
_De_facto_ Satanists is a name for (mainly historical) individuals
who
are regarded by many Satanists as having possessed certain Satanic
virtues, even though they did not _call_ themselves Satanists.
This
includes a wide variety of people; The US founding fathers (Benjamin
Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, etc.), Gabriele D'Annunzio, Niccolo
Machiavelli, Friedrich Nietzsche, Ragnar Redbeard, Basil Zaharoff,
Rasputin, P. T. Barnum, Aleister Crowley, the apostle Paul (who invented
Christianity as we know it, as alluded to in The Dead Sea Scrolls),
the
Yezidies, Albert Pike, etc. Probably not all are agreed upon
unanomously
among Satanists -- some Satanists do not even like the de facto label
--
but the picture should be clear: These are all people who have
been one
of the few influencing and ruling the many; they have been strong willed
individuals; they have been the ones writing the history books; the
leaders of the pack; they have expressed vital ideas of Satanism in
their
writings, behaviour or religions; and so on.
A FINAL WORD:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Some definitions of Satanism are more widespread than others, while
some
are virtually unknown but to a few select individuals. What is
one to do
then, when somebody claims to be a Satanist? You need not pontificate
on
whether someone is a "true Satanist," but it _is_ up to you to decide
whether the person is _your_kind_ of Satanist. Look at: who the
person
is, what he does, how he behaves, treats animals, other people, things
and the nature around him, etc. Based on that, you can decide whether
you
wish to associate with that particular individual.