In response to an interview request, the nice people over at the Church of Satan were kind enough to direct B+B to their Halloween press release titled “Seasons Greetings from the Black House!”
Though joyous in their good will to all manner of Halloween celebrations, the Church of Satan wishes to remind the unenlightened, “mundane folk” that we are but “amateur explorers” of our own inner darkness. However much the popular celebrations may peeve them and strike them as nothing but infantile experimentation, the Church of Satan maintains, “We encourage their tenebrous fantasies, the candied indulgence, and the wide-ranging evocation of our aesthetics (while tolerating some of the chintzy versions), even if it is but once a year.”
The Church of Satan identifies with the “I-theist,” branch of Satanism. Rather than worshiping Satan as a deity, like some theistic forms of Satanism, CoS followers practice a form of atheistic self-worship. The CoS doesn’t function as a church in the traditional sense of the word — there are no dedicated places of worship, and the organization consists of a loose network of members that “are involved and advanced exactly as their own desires, abilities and accomplishments dictate,” according to the Church’s website.
Thanks for the holiday warmth guys. But B+B also wishes to congratulate the High Priest and High Priestess, Magus Peter H. Gilmore and Magistra Peggy Nadramia respectively, on their 32nd wedding anniversary! Both are long time residents of Hell’s Kitchen. The city is also home to the central administration office of the church if you feel like getting in touch.
photo credit: The Church of Satan