R. Lang

Church of Satan Magister. I am the Canadian contact for www.churchofsatan.com .I am also an artists / sculptor, painter, writer etc... My complete profile is still under construction. Thanks for your interest. In the meantime here are some frequently asked questions. Many of these questions are answered from my personal perspective but all are answered within the context of a Satanic perspective.FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS By: Magister LangWhen did you turn to Satanism & why? I did not turn to Satanism, it was a realization that I had been one all along. Upon reading the Satanic Bible by Anton Szandor LaVey I felt as if I was looking into a mirror which defined exactly how I felt about the world. Beforehand there was no way of describing it but now for the first time there was. I soon found out that I was not the only one who felt this way. I joined the Church of Satan, as many of our members do, after reading the Satanic Bible.I am a Satanist because I resonate with the Satanic principles put forward by Anton LaVey and the Church of Satan. This is not something I just decided to follow. I always had been this. I enjoy that label as it is most fitting to “ME”.Our 11 Satanic rules of the earth and our Satanic sins our simply things we would like to avoid as we naturally see them as being detrimental to advancement. They are not threats! These are simply natural laws that have very real consequences if broken regarding social interaction with other human animals.How many members are there in The Church of Satan? Membership is constantly growing especially since Dr. LaVey's death and the new millennium. Official membership numbers are never released to the public. Why? That would only serve the public's need to pigeonhole us and perhaps perceive us as some kind of threat. For example, since we never give out membership numbers the media always writes that our numbers are negligible even though they have no idea. By doing so the media plays right into our hands. Nobody can perceive us as any kind of a threat and that helps protect us from those who might otherwise attempt to cause trouble for us.Is Satanism a religion or philosophy? Satanism is both a religion and a philosophy based upon natural law. We recognize that ritual is important to man. Satanism provides the necessary metaphors and symbols and trappings of religion and combines them with a realistic philosophy based upon responsible indulgence and sinful pride; not self-denial.Where are your Churches? Satanists ritualize in our own homes. We have ritual chambers, which are total environments designed to enhance emotions during the practice of our magic. Aside from our headquarters New York City the church has Grottos (groups of Satanists) which are scattered worldwide.Is Satanism just the opposite of Christianity? NO, Satanism exists completely separate from Christianity. We don't need them, but certainly it is the nature of Christianity to need a scapegoat (Satan). If we lived in ancient Egypt perhaps we would use one of the Satanic symbols of that age. Sometimes we do. The Devil archetype has existed throughout history independent of Christianity in one form or another. Our Satan exists in much more mythology and fiction aside from the Christian Bible.What is Satan? To us Satan is an archetype, a symbol representative as the opposition to all religions and movements who have attempted to stifle mans carnal instincts. Satan is what is best in man. He represents the creative and destructive force in nature. The one who questions all things; the original rebel. "Satan represents man as just another animal, sometimes better more often worse than those that walk on all fours".Why does the public perceive Satanism as a threat? The public has no excuse for it's bigotry, hate-mongering and lies. Dr. LaVey's books have been available for over thirty years. We have been doing media interviews for just as long. It is the publics sheep like mentality to accept blindly what they are told is fact that makes them ignorant of the truth. If they are going to hate us then at least do so for what we really are instead of what there Church's are saying. But, that I'm afraid would require picking up a book, something most don't do anymore.What is Satanic magic? Satanic magic is the projection of ones will through the use of symbols. The symbols magnify and focus that force of will towards a desired outcome. Or rituals are psychodramas designed to enhance ones emotions and sharpen our senses and to act as a cathartic. While other religions actually believe in a spiritual force outside of themselves doing the magic, Satanists believe that the only true power of magic comes from within, a force of will. Satanists refer to this power as The Black Flame. There is no spiritual realm in Satanism.Is the Baphomet the only symbol used in Satanism? The symbol of Baphomet is not the only official copyrighted symbol of the Church of Satan. Another symbol we use is The Order of the Trapezoid symbol. A Pythagorean star (what some refer to mistakenly as an inverted pentacle) within a trapezoid . What do you think of so called traditional Satanism? The Church of Satan is the first group of people in history to define Satanism. We alone define it and we recognize no other group with a differing definition. They are pseudo Satanic. They have as much to do with Satanism as David Koresh has in common with Christianity.Are all Satanists misanthropes? For the most part, Satanists are not overtly enthusiastic about humanity and many are misanthropes. We use seclusion as a form of creative alienation so as not to be distracted in our various endeavors. However, it is important to note that not all Satanists are recluses and misanthropes.Why is Satanism so popular? Satanism is a religion of the individualist, the artist, the creatively inclined and not a religion of the masses. Therein lies it's popularity. We alone decide our fate. By our very nature we do not need the security blanket of a "community" or gatherings in a church to re-enforce our value system and support our ideas. All we need are those whom we love and value in our lives. We have no desire to support or coddle complete strangers who mean nothing to us.Does The Church of Satan feel responsible for criminals taking The Satanic Bible out of context? How many murders and criminals had a bible in their homes and claim to be Christians? How come nobody ever asks that? Because it's absurd! We do not feel the least bit responsible for those who would commit crimes and call themselves Satanists. These people could read Humpty Dumpty and find an excuse for attacking someone. We think these people are vermin and should be dealt with to the fullest extent of the law. It's about time people started placing responsibility on the criminal rather than on the book he or she read or the music he or she listened to or the upbringing they had. Satanism stands for "responsibility to the responsible."What are some of your ecological beliefs? Satanists believe in the law of nature. We wish to return to those laws. The strong dominate the weak, the clever dominate the strong. "Everyone must be allowed to rise or fall without interference from apologists" Let the earth’s population quell itself naturally.What is good & evil? There are no objective forces of good or evil in the universe. Good and evil are purely subjective human terms. Good is what we like and evil is what we don't like.Are you not just Humanist then? We are not Humanists. Humanists are those who profess to believe in humanity but are tainted by Christian morality.What kind of people do you want in The Church of Satan? In nature there exists a natural law of inequality, which must be recognized. As Satanists we promote those of talent and ability and do not waste our time on those without. These are the kinds of people we want in our organization. We do no proselytize for membership.What is the ultimate achievement for our members?To be successful in our chosen fields of interest and to live (enjoy) life to the absolute fullest.embed allowScriptAccess="never" allowNetworking="internal" enableJSURL="false" src='' enableJavascript="false" allowScriptAccess="never" allowNetworking="internal" allowScriptAccess="never" style='display:none' AUTOSTART='True' LOOP='1'