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Why the church of satan is not banned? Is satanism a religion?

Kelly of the Phoenix

Well-Known Member
In the faith realm, the satan is the personalized evil. That is definition of satan.
Which faith? Is there a faith dictionary or something I missed?

So, the satanists must be illegal.
Hopefully not. They are always good for a chuckle while reading the news. Go Satanists!

Within Christianity especially, Satan is seen as enjoying/bringing all things evil, such as murder, rape, theft, lies, adultery etc. OP probably has such a character in mind when defining 'Satanism'. So to OP 'Satanism' would be the allowance/worship of these evil things such as murder and rape, in which case it would be, yes, illegal.
But the majority of criminals are Christians, not non-Christians.

What a religion teaches =/= what religious people do.
OP doesn't seem to grasp that...

After going through the NT I can't see anything justifying Christians killing in the name of their Messiah.
Isn't the War Horseman specifically making people kill each other? :)

Christianity teaches one to 'Love thine enemy', not 'Kill thine enemy with sword and guns'. So violence in the name of Christianity is pretty nonsensical.
John 10:10: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Revelation 3:3: Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.

Sometimes I think Jesus has ADD. :)

The True God is defined as Love. The satan is defined as Hatred.
Verses? Dictionary?

Do you say, what it is O.K. to wear T-shirt with "I am murder, let us all murder babies" until you kill somebody?
What about a T-shirt that mentions:
All the babies killed by the Flood
All the babies killed by disease, general fighting, parents (remember, you must kill unruly children per the bible), etc
All the babies killed in whatever firestorm was in Sodom and Gomorrah (and remember that the latter wasn't even a part of the story, so everyone there were innocent)
All the babies killed in the apocalypse
Etc, etc?

The God is the Police. Is a police evil, when it kills criminals?
But the problem is that God just CLAIMS they are criminals so He can kill them, much like many cops do.

Cop (finds adult disabled guy playing with toy in street): BANG BANG! He was trying to kill me!
Everyone on the planet: It ... was ... a ... toy ... CAR.

 

YmirGF

Bodhisattva in Recovery
A little Knowledge from the Buddha also confirms Jesus' words above:
Dhammapada 1:1-6


1. Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought. If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts suffering follows him like the wheel that follows the foot of the ox.

2. Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought. If with a pure mind a person speaks or acts happiness follows him like his never-departing shadow.

3. "He abused me, he struck me, he overpowered me, he robbed me." Those who harbor such thoughts do not still their hatred.

4. "He abused me, he struck me, he overpowered me, he robbed me." Those who do not harbor such thoughts still their hatred.

5. Hatred is never appeased by hatred in this world. By non-hatred alone is hatred appeased. This is a law eternal.

6. There are those who do not realize that one day we all must die. But those who do realize this settle their quarrels.​

So, do you want to overcome Hatred instead of having your mind overcome by Hatred?
I wish I had a dollar for each time I've said, "Hate the sin; not the sinner!" still leaves the individual with hate in their heart. And this is good?
That is what the OP and others are implying, that we hate Satan, for being the merry trickster, for leading us away from the "good" sheep. Me? I'm hard pressed to think of a single thing that I hate. There are a lot of things I dislike, like caraway seeds (*gags*) and liver (*double gag*), but not outright hate.
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
I wish I had a dollar for each time I've said, "Hate the sin; not the sinner!" still leaves the individual with hate in their heart. And this is good?
That is what the OP and others are implying, that we hate Satan, for being the merry trickster, for leading us away from the "good" sheep. Me? I'm hard pressed to think of a single thing that I hate. There are a lot of things I dislike, like caraway seeds (*gags*) and liver (*double gag*), but not outright hate.

Not even me?
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
In the faith realm, the satan is the personalized evil. That is definition of satan.
So, the satanists must be illegal.

The satanism does not worship the God, so it is not the Religion.

Their made-up religion is just as valid as any other made-up religion. Personally I think its silly to recognize any of them, but if you're going to give one of them legitimacy, you have to give all of them legitimacy.
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
You guys I think you may be missing the OP's point/definition.

Within Christianity especially, Satan is seen as enjoying/bringing all things evil, such as murder, rape, theft, lies, adultery etc. OP probably has such a character in mind when defining 'Satanism'. So to OP 'Satanism' would be the allowance/worship of these evil things such as murder and rape, in which case it would be, yes, illegal.

Except that Christians don't get to define what a Satanist is for a Satanist.
 
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Corvus

Feathered eyeball connoisseur
There are a lot of things I dislike, like caraway seeds (*gags*) and liver (*double gag*), but not outright hate.
I think I feel hate for customers who start holding a friendly conversation with the cashier and stand there like asshats chatting away while my cells are dying and I am trying to suppress the urge to tell them both loudly that we all have lives to lead here in this queue and none of us are getting any younger, in England this is a terribly rude thing to do. Which can get annoying. I understand that centuries ago being rude or disrespectful to someone in England, especially someone on a horse, could result in death. This forced politeness can't be healthy though.
 

QuestioningMind

Well-Known Member
Oh no, feelings.

Just because people have been hurt, doesn't mean that the attacker's religion is to blame. It might be; it might promote violence. Or, it might not. If a Jain went on a shooting rampage, one couldn't blame Jainism because Jainism is totally against violence. The person must be blamed.

It's a simple concept but people are always too quick to go 'Ah! See? Religion is evil!' rather than 'Oh no, there goes human nature again.'

Christianity teaches one to 'Love thine enemy', not 'Kill thine enemy with sword and guns'. So violence in the name of Christianity is pretty nonsensical.

Unfortunately it is often human nature to use religion as a justification for doing horrible things. It's always easier to kill someone you don't like if you can convince yourself that God wants you to kill them.
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
Unfortunately it is often human nature to use religion as a justification for doing horrible things. It's always easier to kill someone you don't like if you can convince yourself that God wants you to kill them.
Unfortunate indeed.
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
Satanist have their own mythology. Just because Satan is mentioned in Christian mythology doesn't mean that Christians have a monopoly on the character.
No, but the character of Satan is heavily associated with Christianity. One could be forgiven for thinking that this is the Satan in Satanism. The poet Percy Shelley was probably what modern people would call a Luciferian, but he called himself a 'Promethean', which, imo, makes much more sense and takes away any allusion to Abrahamic religion.
 
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Liu

Well-Known Member
I've never heard of a Christian belief that Satan is a partner of God. It sounds like a complete misunderstanding.
I'll point you to a slightly offtopic post of mine this this very thread: Why the church of satan is not banned? Is satanism a religion?
Or in other words: It is a Christian belief already found in historic times that Satan does the dirty work for God, i.e. punishing sinners. That this means he's on God's side seems like not a farfetched interpretation and would actually be close to the Jewish belief.
It's not the only Christian concept of Satan, though, and even those who believe in it normally don't think it through to the point that they come to this conclusion.
 

Muslim-UK

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
I've never heard of a Christian belief that Satan is a partner of God. It sounds like a complete misunderstanding.
That's right, no Christian says that, but that is what it boils down to. You are giving power to Satan as the creator of Earthquakes, Tsunamis etc when Everything comes by the decree of GOD alone.
 

crossfire

LHP Mercuræn Feminist Heretic ☿
Premium Member
I'll point you to a slightly offtopic post of mine this this very thread: Why the church of satan is not banned? Is satanism a religion?
Or in other words: It is a Christian belief already found in historic times that Satan does the dirty work for God, i.e. punishing sinners. That this means he's on God's side seems like not a farfetched interpretation and would actually be close to the Jewish belief.
It's not the only Christian concept of Satan, though, and even those who believe in it normally don't think it through to the point that they come to this conclusion.
Revelation chapter 9 has Abaddon/Apollyon (Apollo) as the Destroyer of Evil, given power to kill those who did not have the seal of God in the foreheads....
Bible Gateway passage: Revelation 9 - Holman Christian Standard Bible
 

Jumi

Well-Known Member
That's right, no Christian says that, but that is what it boils down to. You are giving power to Satan as the creator of Earthquakes, Tsunamis etc when Everything comes by the decree of GOD alone.
I'm not giving power to any gods since I'm not a believer of any religion. Neither do most Christians agree with what you said about Satan where I live to be honest. I've never heard of any Christian in my country saying Satan can cause earthquakes or tsunamis. Rather Christians here believe Satan is the corruption in people and if they believe in Satan's existence/power at all it all sounds equated to human evil.

How is Satan viewed in Islam? Do they believe it has no effect anywhere and God is controlling it?
 

Muslim-UK

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
I'm not giving power to any gods since I'm not a believer of any religion. Neither do most Christians agree with what you said about Satan where I live to be honest. I've never heard of any Christian in my country saying Satan can cause earthquakes or tsunamis. Rather Christians here believe Satan is the corruption in people and if they believe in Satan's existence/power at all it all sounds equated to human evil.
"Christians will use all types of excuses to keep themselves out of today’s religious-moral-cultural battles. One of the most diabolical excuses is to claim that Satan is the rightful god of this world."

Is Satan The God of This World? - The American Vision

Where does evil come from? | Billy Graham Evangelistic Association - UK

How is Satan viewed in Islam? Do they believe it has no effect anywhere and God is controlling it?
In Islam Satan is not a Angel, rather he is a Jinn, a creation made from smokeless fire. He was the most righteous amongst his kind, but is not the ruler of his kind, rather there are many who have their own kingdoms and followers. Jinn have been given free will just like us.

 
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