Satanism

I have been writing some copy for the Dutch Wikipedia in the last few weeks. Most interesting was some work I did on articles on Satanism, specially the contemporary Satanism of Anton LaVey (Church of Satan) and Michael Aquino (Temple of Set).

I have come to respect the satanic philosophy, specially as developed by Michael Aquino. Satanism attracts a lot of attention as soon as the word is mentioned because of its connotations with Christianity. I believe, however, that it is the Christians themselves that have created Satanism. The whole concept of Satanism is nothing more than a counter reaction on Christianity. The knee-jerk reactions of Christians as soon as the subject gets mentioned shows that it has the desired effect! LaVey's Black Mass is a great example of the provocative and theatrical aspects of Satanism.

The Satanic philosophy is ant-Christian. It is the mirror image of Christianity. It does not proclaim that one should go around and whack everybody on the head and other forms of unruly behaviour. Satanism is a philosophy which embraces personal freedom and places the source of morality within ourselves, while Christianity seeks to find truth in a transcendent reality.

It was very amusing and enlightening to discuss Satanism with a Christian :)