Tomorrow begins year L, Anno Satanas.
As we enter into the 50th year of the existence of the Church of Satan, we have chosen to reflect on the vitality of our philosophy as it has been applied by our members towards the enhancement of their lives. We invite all of our members worldwide to contact us to let us know about themselves and how Satanism has played a role in the pursuit of their goals. In celebrating the continued growth of our organization, we have plans to honor this landmark, beginning on Walpurgisnacht of this year, 2015 c.e. and culminating on Walpurgisnacht of 2016 c.e., the night marking the 50th anniversary of our founding by Magus Anton Szandor LaVey.
Members should contact us via email ([email protected]) using the subject “Year 50” and their name. Please include a scan or photo of your red card identifying yourself as a member along with your current state or government-issued photo ID confirming your identity and current address so that we may update our files. Please include a summary of your accomplishments and plans for your future. Also, if you are interested, request to be informed regarding events and other undertakings which we have in the works in commemoration of this historic occasion. Please note that in addition to our news feed we employ Facebook to host an unofficial group that you may approach directly as well as an official group for members only that you can request to join once your membership and identity have been confirmed.
As the year XLIX A.S. comes to a close we have seen a resurgence of theism practicing its old ways. Radical followers of Islam have decided that their beliefs must be imposed on others who are ordered to convert or be executed. The Sunni extremists of the Islamic State are in armed conflict with those who do not accept their world view. They exterminate any who disagree, this ideology justifying the genocide of Yazidis who live in territories that have come under their dominion. Their ranks are being joined by people who live in Western nations, whose governments are now in a quandary as to how to deal with citizens who are self-identifying as terrorists via participation in that murderous organization. Boko Haram, another Sunni extremist group in Nigeria, has killed and abducted people in their campaign to establish the hegemony of their beliefs. In Somalia, Al-Shabaab has been pushing a similar course. In the U.S., we see Christians attempting, with some success, to leverage legislation that would allow them to discriminate against individuals who do not share their faith and its practices—a more polite form of conflict with a similar fundamental intolerance for differing beliefs.
In these early years of the 21st Century, despite near miraculous technology allowing for vast amounts of data to be readily accessed by many people, we see tribalist tendencies towards ideological identity coming to the fore rather than the global homogenization that cross-cultural trends might facilitate. Religion, as always, becomes the justification since most belief systems are fear-based and thus play on human insecurities and the resultant xenophobia leading to isolationism and intolerance of different cultures. Young people typically express dissatisfaction with the current state of the world, yet when compared with prior generations, today’s activists tend to be rather nebulous and inarticulate when it comes to delineating their specific concerns and how to practically address them.
The youth have found no unifying philosophy to offer a comprehensive theory explaining social problems and their solutions. The allegiance of the world’s disaffected is up for grabs. The have-nots of the globe are rising against the more prosperous, holding to spiritual ideals promising them more in an afterlife than they can attain while alive, if they remain loyal and punish unbelievers. This either/or simplicity gives solace to many who have not found satisfaction either emotionally or economically in the social tides of current human civilization. This is a common scenario from past history which is being replayed. That battle can be witnessed by anyone who follows global news—whether the struggle is fought by military means in the Middle East and on the African continent or in the court rooms of Western nations. Whether secularism will present rational solutions that can capture many people’s imagination and support, thus supplanting the emotional appeal of theist tribalism that is currently rising, has yet to be determined.
While the Satanic Panic, during which evangelical Christians promoted the myth of a global “satanic” conspiracy, has been long debunked, over the past year we have seen its embers stirred. A murderess and her partner together killed a man; she then claimed to have slaughtered many others as part of an international “satanic cult.” That case received a great deal of media attention, even though such claims were quickly shown to be false. But that demonstrated how easily the media can be lead into widespread sensationalistic reporting of lurid tales that then can then seep into the osmo-consciousness of the public. Fortunately, I clarified the situation to audiences of several wide-reaching radio and television programs as well as to those who follow us on the Internet. Yet when political activists using devilish imagery desecrate graves, they unwittingly abet those who’d promote that conspiracy anew. It is unlikely that Satanism will again be seen by the public at large as a looming threat to their pets and children as had been claimed on many talk shows in the 80s and 90s, but with the proliferation of theist bigotry on so many fronts, one must be wary not to offer the masses excuses for attempting to revive that bit of hysteria. Our acceptance by scholars, academics and law enforcement as an established and respected, if unusual, philosophical perspective has been attained through our literature and diligent spokespersons over the past five decades, but it could prove ephemeral should theocracy again become the dominant means for controlling the world’s population.
We thus move into a new year which presents a world wherein much is at stake which could direct the future of human civilization. Satanism has never been more relevant, and it stands as a beacon of reason, responsibility and freedom for those few who can resonate with its symbols, principles, and self-discipline. We are certain that any who have the intelligence and courage to be true iconoclasts will embrace our comprehensive philosophy towards enriching their lives.
As in the past, many new individuals have crossed The Black House’s threshold this year bringing their vitality. We’ve proudly watched as you’ve taken that vigor and moved the world with your achievements. So, from our lair in the Haunted Hudson Valley to all of yours, High Priestess Nadramia and I offer our blessings to those deserving individuals who continue to inspire our admiration!
As is our tradition, we raise our glasses to our kind, Satanists as well as fellow secularists and proponents of the best qualities of our species, in celebration of the advent of a New Year of continued growth and prosperity:
“Here’s to champagne for our real friends, and real pain for our sham friends!”
Joy to the flesh—forever!
Shemhamforash! Hail Satan!
—Magus Peter H. Gilmore