The Religious Freedom Of The Satanic Temple

     If you’re like me, you’ve been reading about The Satanic Temple. Wait, hold on! It’s not what you think.

     For starters, The Satanic Temple is a distinct organization from the Church of Satan which may be more in line with the images the name evokes. TST doesn’t worship a deity. They describe themselves as a “nontheistic religious group,” so put thoughts of Satan worship out of your mind. It’s a little more punk rock than that.

     According to founder, Lucien Greaves, the group chose Satan as a metaphorical symbol of rebellion against tyranny. Opposing tyranny is one of the founding principles of the group. Agree or disagree with their choice of name and iconography, it was an intentional choice partly for the publicity. It has immediate shock value and guarantees that their causes and initiatives will get attention. What are those causes and initiatives? I’m glad you asked.

     The Satanic Temple, in the interests of opposing tyranny, hate groups, and other forms of social oppression, often takes up secularist initiatives. All that means is that the Temple is a staunch advocate for the separation of church and state. In fact, TST has a formidable legal presence that regularly fights to ensure religious organizations (like TST itself,) and government organizations don’t interfere with each other.

     Now that we have some clarity on the organization and what it’s about, let’s talk specifics. I want to introduce two of the seven tenets of TST. Tenet #5 is that “Beliefs should conform to one's best scientific understanding of the world. One should take care never to distort scientific facts to fit one's beliefs.” The group holds scientific standards and reason as the keystone of belief, not the other way around.

Tenet #3 is “One’s body is inviolable, subject to one’s own will alone.” To this end, the group established abortion as a right and ritual of its followers. The ritual takes place with physicians in attendance and standard medical practices are followed. (Again, science is a foundation.) The only difference is it’s called a ritual instead of a procedure.

     TST is currently going through the process of setting up its own family planning and counseling centers so that it wouldn’t have to rely on state mandated counseling. The group is even petitioning the FDA for access to drugs used in this ritual. Greaves claims that if the organization is successful, any woman who wants access to an abortion need only become a member which is an easy process. TST has open doors.

     TST has gone so far as to sue the state of Texas for refusing a member a religious exemption to the state’s abortion restrictions. Remember, TST holds the separation of church and state dearly. They don’t want government telling them how to practice their faith.

     Matthew Kezhaya, an attorney for TST, compared it to wine used in other religious ceremonies. If wine were banned, it would impede the ability of other faiths to practice. TST views regulating the context and ability of abortion in the same light. It would be a case of the state impeding a religious practice.

     And if this all seems silly, think about the various vaccine mandates. One of the first things certain groups did was to ask for a religious exemption. Never mind that their decision threatened everyone around them, and their faith had rarely chimed in on vaccinations before, they claimed a religious belief to avoid following government rules. Why would it matter which religion it is?

     If government is going to infringe on personal liberties, the people are going to start treating those liberties religiously.