Church of Satan Sigil of Baphomet

SATANISM VS. DEVIL WORSHIP IN THE WASHINGTON POST

If you click on the above image you may read a fine article by Abby Ohlheiser published today by The Washington Post regarding a statement Magus Gilmore made yesterday on our news feed.

In his response to Ms. Ohlheiser’s questions, Magus Gilmore pointed out that he holds the media accountable for misrepresenting devil worshippers as Satanists, which leads to their audience being misinformed, and that journalists should take care to make such issues clear to their readers because of the consequences that can result from such misunderstandings. We thank Ms. Ohlheiser for presenting our position on this and other issues, but we think it important to allow our readers to note that important point not covered in her piece. We are delighted that Ms. Ohlheiser has done research and congratulate her on being part of a solution to the problem of media obfuscation. Perhaps responsible journalism isn’t dead?

His full response is reproduced here:

When the media reports on the acts of criminals who worship some demonic figure and mislabels them as Satanists, then the audiences they reach are likely to accept such a misnomer rather than seeking out accurate information from sources like our web page (www.churchofsatan.com). This can have a cumulative effect, spreading misunderstanding amongst the general populace and law enforcement officials who have not been trained to note differences in belief systems which might inspire criminal actions. I have been a consultant for law enforcement on local, state and federal levels for years, interpreting data to determine if some form of belief they generally term as “occultism” is present and how it might figure as a motivation for the crimes. However, many police departments have not trained their officers to evaluate such instances and unless they contact experts, they could misinterpret the data and be less likely to succeed in prosecuting the perpetrators.
Our hate mail remains steady, mostly from Christians who feel they must force their beliefs on others and who condemn us to damnation if we do not accept their fantasies, proving that the tenets of their religion speaking of forgiveness and tolerance are ignored in favor of other passages which call for the destruction of those who do not share their beliefs. Ultimately, when the media promotes devil worshipping criminals as Satanists, then the many productive people who are our members—or those who have aligned themselves with our philosophy without joining—must work harder to rectify such misrepresentation and the consequent prejudice and bigotry they face when they “out” themselves as Satanists to their family, friends, and co-workers. Many decide not to be open about their affiliation, except to a few people who might be open to taking the time to learn the truth about Satanism’s life enhancing, atheist philosophy.
—Magus Peter H. Gilmore