Hoisted by His Own Patois – Anton Szandor LaVey

In 1975, Michael Aquino was a fourth degree member of the Church of Satan and the editor of The Cloven Hoof, the Church of Satan’s periodical newsletter. His personal beliefs had been moving towards an overt form of theism in opposition to the atheism of the Church of Satan. After a dispute regarding a Hoof article by Anton LaVey dealing with means for hierarchical elevation—which LaVey based on worldly, not spiritual, achievements—Aquino resigned, sending out a packet via postal mail to people on his mailing list stating his critique of LaVey and the Church of Satan. About 20 or so members who were in contact with Aquino and similarly inclined towards a belief in supernatural entities resigned as well. In his message Aquino claimed that “The Prince of Darkness” had removed an “Infernal Mandate” once given to LaVey, now bestowing it upon himself. This lead to the Temple of Set being later founded by Aquino and his followers. Setians hold to a belief that its Priesthood is in direct communication with a supernatural entity called Set by the ancient Egyptians, later named Satan in Hebrew and Christian mythologies.

Dr. LaVey wrote a response to this packet in the essay which we’ve reproduced verbatim here, “Hoisted By His Own Patois,” and it was sent out to those who had received Aquino’s letter. This piece is a clear example of LaVey reaffirming the fundamental carnal and materialist aspects of his philosophy at a time when some members’ needs were for some sort of supernatural, spiritualist theism. Those who did not embrace Satanism as codified in LaVey’s writings were invited to move on, but of course there would be consequences for this decision.

We who administer the Church of Satan today are proud to uphold the philosophy as crafted by our founder and we resist all who would try and inject aspects of supernaturalism and theism into what was intended from the start to be dedicated to rational self-interest, indulgence and the glorification of the material and carnal aspects of life.

—Magus Peter H. Gilmore

Order of the Trapezoid logo originally designed by Anton LaVey, re-rendered by Reverend Adam Campbell from original document scans.