Satanism

“'Hail Satan?' Documentary Shows Rise of Satanic Temple” — Inside Edition, 2019, 5:17 — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw4MAko-uCs

Why might someone be drawn to satanism? The argument here appears to be that satanists desire the social structure of a religious organization but without the dogmatic teachings. This brief video gives us an overview of an upcoming documentary titled “Hail Satan”. The documentarian (a non-satanist) follows the satanic temple for 6 years and shows us how the organization get itself involved in politics, activism, and more. Like this week’s other video on the modern spiritual groups (see “Online Cults & Millennials”), this group appears to be more about community than ideology.

Is satanism the “anti-religion”? Should their deity recieve equal recognition with other religious deities (think about the 10 commandments controversy)? Why would someone join this group rather than remain a non-affiliated atheist?

From the video’s description: Are they evil or just misunderstood? The documentary "Hail Satan?" explores those questions while following the rise of the Satanic Temple. Director Penny Lane says the creation of the film took her on a spiritual and educational journey. A goal of her film was to debunk myths and misconceptions about this religion. "Modern Satanism is an atheistic religion," Lane says. "There's no sort of belief in supernatural deities at the core." InsideEdition.com's Mara Montalbano has more.