Bible verse by verse

[_LeVay]

HAIL SATAN!

Anyone who pretends to be interested in magic for reasons other than gaining personal power is the worst kind of hypocrite. The Satanic Church respects Christianity at least for being consistent in its guilt‐ridden philosophy, but it can only feel contempt for people who attempt to appear emancipated from guilt by joining a witchcraft group and then practice the same basic philosophy as Christianity. White magic is supposedly only utilized for good or unselfish purposes; and black magic, we are told, is used only for selfish reasons. In the Satanic Church we draw no dividing line between white or black magic. Magic is magic, be it used to help or hinder. You the magician should have the ability to decide what is just and then apply the powers of magic to attain your goals.

The Satanic Church combines two very paradoxical words in its title. There is a definite reason for this. The word “church” is a respected and revered term. To combine the word “church” with the outrageousness of Satan is to employ one of the most important magical formulas—the utilization of nine parts acceptability to one part outrageousness. To be a true magician you must, in all outward appearances, be acceptable to the establishment—and then use outrageous methods to undermine a situation. This again involves the art of misdirection.

If you have an appearance of respectability and then present an unorthodox idea, it will be accepted much more readily than it would be if you present an appearance which does not conform to the average person’s image of respectability. For example, five thousand people marching down the street dressed in outlandish costumes and wearing the badges of antagonism will only succeed in alienating themselves more strongly from the forces they desire to change. If these marchers would appear in the guise of those whom they would change, then the needed identification could be established and inroads gained.

Human beings are very egotistical creatures. We will be much more receptive to a new idea if it is presented to us by someone who is for the most part like ourselves than we would be if it were presented by a person completely alien to us. Only by working side by side with the establishment can we create any sizable change in our society. Satanism is the only religion in which a person can “turn on” to the pleasures around him without “dropping out” of society. By “dropping out” we would only deprive ourselves of the enjoyable things that society has to offer. We would also limit the situations in which we could perform our magical workings.

Our Christianized society cannot deny the existence of Satan, for to do so would require it to deny the existence of God. For that matter any attempt on the part of any religion to deny the existence of Satan, by whatever name he is called, would be to deny the contents of its respective scriptures.

Letters From The Devil Column
Anton LaVey
The National Insider Vol. 14, No. 17
April 27, 1969

Last week I devoted my column to describing some of the most commonly accepted fallacies concerning the requirements of the successful witch or warlock. Now allow me to set out some of the requisites for the person who wishes to practice the true art of the magical manipulation of human beings, the practical nature of sorcery.

First of all, one should not enter into the study of practical witchcraft out of desperation. Far too many people expect to wave a proverbial magic wand, and thereby solve all of their problems. Everyone is looking for a shortcut, an easy way, a system. No one knows this better than Satan. Everybody wants to get something for nothing. The millions of contests, raffles, lotteries, bonus gifts, special offers, and free premiums, are proof of this. So are the myriad books, pamphlets, courses, study groups, etc. that purport to teach the “great secrets” or “revealed wisdom” of one master or another.

The true magician knows one thing for certain, and that is an adage so corny it hardly seems worth stating, but very brutally true:

“You get out of life exactly what you put into it!”

The man that comes to me after losing out In everything he has ever undertaken and expects the Devil to have pity on him just because, In desperation, he decided to sign his name on the dotted line, is sadly deluded.

One of the unanswered questions about the book and film “Rosemary’s Baby” is why the girl who was originally living with the elderly couple met her untimely death on the pavement outside the building—whether she fell, jumped, or was pushed.

To the Satanist, the reason is quite obvious. The girl in question had been established in the story as a “loser.” Satan, in selecting a suitable choice of woman to impregnate, would want no such woman to carry his own child, but would look for one with some enthusiasm for life.

No one had to push the girl out of the window. She was destined to lose, by her own actions.

Her own accident‐proneness caused her destruction, prompted by the very fear of the unknown which she evidenced.

POWER IN MAGIC

There is indeed, great power in magic, but one must be prepared to take advantage of this power. If a person is a perennial loser, they cannot be expected to know how to safeguard their success, if and when it should arrive. Even if you could learn to be a wizard overnight, you would need the proper personality to go along with it. Rule number one in the practice of real magic is: You must be able to conduct a smooth running life for yourself! Throughout the history of the world It has been established that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, or more bluntly—them that has—gets! If you haven’t a damn thing and want to get something, you must start out by at least pretending that you have something!

The old maid who looks under her bed every night for a man is never going to find him there, until she starts being seen with a man outside of her room. It will be said by some at this point that what I am saying is nothing more than applied psychology.

It’s amazing to me the amount of people that apparently know all about applied psychology, that never seem to be able to apply it. In order to be a competent witch one must be able to first learn and utilize the principles of applied psychology. All you dirty old men out there that think you’re going to get a sexy young girl just by saying a magical incantation or buying a do‐it‐your‐self voodoo kit have another thing coming!

All of you plain, dumpy, women that feel a handsome young man should love you for your “inner beauty” are deluded fools! If you are a loser and expect Satan to bless you after God has given you the boot, there IS a possibility that you have simply been playing on the wrong team, and a change in philosophy is in order. If, however, your change in theology produces no more success than you had before, don’t blame Satan and his earthly concept of life. Don’t blame the ineffectual past concept of “God” either for your failure. Blame yourself for wanting to lose!

[_huckelberry]

Erotic apologist, you read a couple of my comments as critical of you when any critical element was aimed elsewhere.

Thankyou for the link I have spent a little time reading it and links which refreshed my memory a bit.

// clipped from the first page///
How hysterical parents, incompetent therapists and malicious prosecutors
destroyed the lives of seven innocent North Carolinians – and
have yet to admit they were wrong

Beware the next generation of Indian captivity tales

Aug. 20, 2012

Endlessly fascinating – and baffling – is how some experts fell headlong for “Satanic ritual abuse,” while others managed to keep their wits. This is from an April 25, 1989, Associated Press story:

“David G. Bromley, a sociologist at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va., sees not an increase in Satanic crime, but a ‘cult scare’ that has more to do with urban legends and modern psychology than with criminology.

“‘I think it’s all a hoax,’ says Bromley, who investigated allegations of cult ‘brainwashing’ in the 1970s that were never proven.

“Bromley says rumors about rings of adults who start day care centers to find children to abuse in Satanic rituals are ‘sheer fantasy’ – but fantasy fed by reports of real child abuse and by today’s parents’ guilt and fears of entrusting their children to strangers.

“‘It is not coincidental that allegations of Satanic conspiracies are centered on day care centers,’ he says.”

April 25, 1989! Bob Kelly was attending his probable cause hearing. The first McMartin trial was still ongoing. Stephen Ceci and Maggie Bruck were six years from publishing their landmark “Jeopardy in the Courtroom: A Scientific Analysis of Children’s Testimony.” So how was David Bromley able to see through the fog?

“This kind of ‘subversion episode’ is not new,” he told me recently. “There has been one every few decades in American history. The focus has changed but not the phenomenon. Indian captivity tales, Salem witch trials, drug scares, communist scares, immigrant scares, UFO scares.

“There has always been some group or coalition that has found social insecurities a way of advancing its own status. In this case police and therapists made careers out of the episode.

“The story was only plausible for a limited period, and these kinds of events tend to implode eventually. But there are a lot of casualties in the meantime.

“It will happen again, I am sorry to say.”
/////

This is the sort of assessment I remember. There is likely involvement with Conservative Christians. There is clearly involvement with other things.

There was a link to an article "When Psychiatry Battled the Devil" It was an interesting read. If there was a religious connection to the event the article ignored it. It is possible ignore is the correct word. A concern for psychiatric involvement was of first concern. There were references to ideas which went well beyond that. "A hidden holocaust perpetuated by Satan worshipers" or "famiily organized like communist cells, transgenerational for 2000 years." these sound religious, or maybe not. They could be any sort of conspiriacy theory
////

So far I am sticking with the value of seeking good judgement based upon real evidence for religious people secularist and cranks.

[_huckelberry]

HMM, indulge in a little cut and past and ones post starts to run a little long.

[_The Erotic Apologist]

Erotic apologist, you read a couple of my comments as critical of you when any critical element was aimed elsewhere.

I didn't take any of your comments as critical of me. Sorry if I came off a bit brusque.

[_Bazooka]

Nipper, at what age do individuals become capable of committing sin?

Psalm 51:5 King James Version (KJV)
5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Thanks for posting the opinion of an anonymous person from somewhere in the middle east thousands of years ago.
Now, back to the question I asked you.....

[_LittleNipper]

Psalm 51:5 King James Version (KJV)
5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Thanks for posting the opinion of an anonymous person from somewhere in the middle east thousands of years ago.
Now, back to the question I asked you.....

I hold the very same opinion.

[_LeVay]

I think this'll look nice right about here...

[_Gunnar]

Psalm 51:5 King James Version (KJV)
5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Thanks for posting the opinion of an anonymous person from somewhere in the middle east thousands of years ago.
Now, back to the question I asked you.....

I hold the very same opinion.

Are you saying or implying that the sex act, without which the human race would rapidly become extinct, is always inherently sinful, and merely conceiving and bearing children is consequently incontrovertible proof of sin?

What is even more uncharitable and unjust is the idea that babies are automatically sinners merely by dint of being born. There is no way that I will ever believe in, much less worship a god so wickedly uncharitable as that! This horrid dogma has no other rationale than the greed and lust for unrighteous dominion possessed by the charlatans who invented it trying to take advantage of the insecurities and fears of their most gullible fellow humans.

I can think of nothing more wicked and irrational than the idea that all men are automatically deserving of condemnation and punishment because of something one of their ancestors did, and that the only way mankind can avoid that punishment is by some totally innocent being horribly tortured to death to atone for the real or imagined sins of everyone else.

[_huckelberry]

I can think of nothing more wicked and irrational than the idea that all men are automatically deserving of condemnation and punishment because of something one of their ancestors did, and that the only way mankind can avoid that punishment is by some totally innocent being horribly tortured to death to atone for the real or imagined sins of everyone else.

To many people the understanding that people inherit moral defects suggests that a caring God would provide healing for this problem.Christians believe that God is providing that healing and his action have as their foundation the atonement which God did for us.

If you have reason to believe that God arbitrariily punishes people because they were born in sin then I could share your anger. It would be like kicking a person when they are down. a I see no reason to think God is doing anything remotely like that.

[_Gunnar]

I can think of nothing more wicked and irrational than the idea that all men are automatically deserving of condemnation and punishment because of something one of their ancestors did, and that the only way mankind can avoid that punishment is by some totally innocent being horribly tortured to death to atone for the real or imagined sins of everyone else.

To many people the understanding that people inherit moral defects suggests that a caring God would provide healing for this problem.Christians believe that God is providing that healing and his action have as their foundation the atonement which God did for us.

If you have reason to believe that God arbitrariily punishes people because they were born in sin then I could share your anger. It would be like kicking a person when they are down. a I see no reason to think God is doing anything remotely like that.

There is nothing the slightest bit caring about a God who would create us with inherited moral defects if he could have avoided doing so. If he could not avoid doing so, then he is simply incompetent.

There isn't the slightest justification for concluding that the whole concept of the atonement is anything other than an invention by religious charlatans hoping to somehow profit by persuading the gullible that without said atonement and the mediation of said charlatans and their prescribed religious rituals associated with it, they would be doomed to intolerable punishment in the hereafter.