The Invention of Satanism

273 Pages·2015·3.16 MB·English

by  Asbjorn Dyrendal

The Invention of Satanism

The
Invention
of Satanism
z
ASBJØRN DYRENDAL
JAMES R. LEWIS
JESPER AA. PETERSEN
1
1
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Dyrendal, Asbjørn.
The invention of satanism / Asbjørn Dyrendal, James R. Lewis, and Jesper AA. Petersen.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978–0–19–518110–4 (hardback : alk. paper)
1. Satanism—History. I. Title.
BF1548.D97 2015
133.4'2209—dc23
2015013150
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
Contents
List of Tables  vii
Acknowledgments  ix
Prologue: Introducing Satanism  1
1. Anthropology of Evil: The Folklore of Satanism  13
2. Satanic Precursors  27
3. The Age of Satanism: Anton LaVey and the Church of Satan  47
4. The Satanic Bible  71
5. Reading Satanism through Demonology: The Satanism Scare  102
6. Adopting Satanic Identities  133
7. Little Nicky Grows Up?  156
8. Satanic Attitudes  178
9. Children of the Black Goat  198
Epilogue: Satanism in Play  218
Notes  225
Bibliography  235
Index  249

Tables
6.1 Census data for New Zealand Satanists,
1991–2006  139
6.2 Census data for New Zealand Druidry,
1996–2006  140
6.3 Initial point of contact for recruits to movement
for spiritual inner awareness  147
6.4 Introduction to Satanism in three-year
time periods  148
6.5 Introduction to Paganism  150
6.6a How often do you communicate with
other Satanists? (SS-2)  151
6.6b How often do you communicate with
other Satanists? (SS-3)  151
6.7 How often do you communicate with
other Pagans?  152
6.8a How often do you meet with other Satanists
for “religious” or ritual purposes? (SS-2)  152
6.8b How often do you meet with other Satanists
for “religious” or ritual purposes? (SS-3)  152
6.9 How often do you meet with other Pagans
for religious/spiritual/ritual purposes?  153
7.1 Age at which one became involved  157
7.2 Number of years involved  157
7.3 Current age  158
7.4 Gender ratio  158
7.5 Age by year of the New Zealand census  159
7.6 Age x year of the UK census  160
7.7 Sexual orientation  161
viii Tables
7.8 Marital status  162
7.9 If you have a mate or spouse, how does s/he
relate to your participation in Satanism?  163
7.10 Children  164
7.11 Nationality  165
7.12 Highest degree  166
7.13 Major  167
7.14 Occupation  168
7.15 Religious heritage  170
7.16 Political orientation  172
7.17 Attitudes on social issues  174
7.18 Social engagement  176
7.19 Military service  177
8.1 Explored which other religions before settling
into Satanism?  179
8.2 Have been a member of how many different
satanic groups?  180
8.3 Conception of Satan?  181
8.4 Which best describes your view of the afterlife?  182
8.5 Magic  183
8.6 How often do you practice magic?  185
8.7 Your view of magic?  186
8.8 Out of the following options, which category
BEST fits Satanism?  187
8.9 How often have you had any of the following
experiences?  188
8.10 Which of the following have you found to really
be of help to you? (SS-3)  189
8.11 Which of the following have you found to really
be of help to you? (PCR)  189
8.12 Specific thinkers other than Anton LaVey are
often mentioned as influencing modern Satanism
in one way or another. To what extent are you
familiar with the following? (SS2)  190
8.13 Your general attitude toward each of
the following (SS-2)  191
8.14 What types of violence can be justified? (SS-2)  196
Acknowledgments
The auThors would like to thank the many Satanists and occultists
who have been willing to spend their time showing us the complexities of
modern Satanism and life on the Left-Hand Path. A special word of thanks
to members of the satanic community who supported the questionnaires
we use in the second part of the book. At the risk of failing to mention
important contacts, and in no particular order, thanks to Amina Olander
Lap, Venus Satanas, Anton Long, and “Troll Towelhead.” We would also
like to thank the many scholars of Western Esotericism and Satanism
studies who have contributed to the emergence and gradual maturation of
the field. You know who you are.
To acknowledge prior published sources for some of the informa-
tion in this book: Chapter 7 is a thorough rewrite of Lewis’s “Fit for the
Devil: Toward an Understanding of ‘Conversion’ to Satanism” that origi-
nally appeared in the International Journal for the Study of New Religions 1,
no. 1 (2010): 117‒138. In less direct ways, select information was also drawn
from Lewis’s popular reference volume, Satanism Today (ABC-Clio, 2001);
“Who Serves Satan? A Demographic and Ideological Profile” originally
published in the Marburg Journal of Religious Studies 6, no. 2 (2001): 1‒25;
and “Diabolical Authority: Anton LaVey, The Satanic Bible and the Satanist
Tradition,” which also appeared in the Marburg Journal of Religious Studies 7,
no.  1 (2002):  1‒16; and Petersen’s “Introduction:  Embracing Satan,”
published in Controversial New Religions, edited by Jesper Aa. Petersen
(Ashgate, 2009), 1‒25; and “Satanists and Nuts: The Role of Schisms in
Modern Satanism,” published in Sacred Schisms: How Religions Divide,
edited by James R. Lewis and Sarah M. Lewis (Cambridge University
Press, 2009), 218‒248.