History

History
During the Inquisitions, the term satanic was applicable to anyone accused of witchcraft, though historical investigation reveals no evidence that any group of actual devil worshippers or witches as described by inquisitors ever existed.
On Walpurgisnacht of 1966, Anton Szandor LaVey began the Church of Satan. Beforehand, he had given lectures from his home, the infamous Black House, charging two dollars for admittance. He formed a "Magic Circle" with his closest associates, experimenting with ceremonial magic. It was suggested to LaVey that he had enough material to start an organized religion.
The Church of Satan is an organization for those who practice self-preservation as articulated in The Satanic Bible, written in 1969 by Anton Szandor LaVey.
It is described by its high priest as being a religion of anti-Christian atheists who do not actually believe in God, Satan, or an afterlife. Therefore, people should enjoy their current life and live it to the fullest.




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Satanism: An interview with Church of Satan High Priest Peter Gilmore
The Church of Satan was established in San Francisco, California, on April 30, 1966 by Anton Szandor LaVey, who was the Church's High Priest until his death in 1997.
The Church of Satan attracted a lot of publicity. Its use of nude women as altars and performances of a Satanic wedding and funeral service brought it a lot of attention. Anton LaVey shaved his head and wore a white clerical collar, sometimes even wearing horns to complete the image of the Devil incarnate. His flamboyant personality attracted many followers and admirers.
In the 1950s, Anton LaVey, formed a group called the Order of the Trapezoid, which later evolved into the governing body of the Church of Satan. Those involved, or who attended LaVey’s activities included: “The Baroness” Carin de Plessen (who grew up in a Royal Palace in Denmark), Dr. Cecil Nixon (magician, eccentric, and maker of automatons), underground filmmaker Kenneth Anger, City Assessor Russell Wolden, Donald Werby (one of San Francisco’s most influential property owners), anthropologist Michael Harner, and writer Shana Alexander. Other LaVey associates from this time period include noted Science Fiction and Horror writers Anthony Boucher, August Derleth, Robert Barbour Johnson, Reginald Bretnor, Emil Petaja, Stuart Palmer, Clark Ashton Smith, Forrest J. Ackerman, and Fritz Leiber Jr.
In the first year of its foundation, Anton LaVey and the Church of Satan attracted considerable media attention by publicly performing a Satanic marriage of Judith Case and radical journalist John Raymond. The ceremony was photographed by Joe Rosenthal, who took the famous photograph Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima during World War II. Another event was the public funeral of Church of Satan member and Naval Officer Edward Olson, at the request of his wife.
The Church of Satan was mentioned in many books and was the subject of multiple magazine and newspaper articles during the 1960s and 1970s. It was also the subject of a full-length documentary, Satanis (1970). LaVey also appeared in Kenneth Anger’s film Invocation of my Demon Brother, acted as technical adviser on The Devil's Rain, which starred Ernest Borgnine, William Shatner, and introduced John Travolta. The Church of Satan was also featured in a segment of Luigi Scatini’s film Angeli Blanca, Angeli Negra, released in the United States as "Witchcraft ‘70".

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"Satanism begins with atheism. We begin with the universe and say, 'It’s indifferent. There’s no God, there’s no Devil. No one cares!'
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—High Priest Peter H. Gilmore,


In 1975, LaVey created controversy within the Church of Satan by phasing out the Church’s “Grotto” system and eliminating people he thought were using the Church as a substitute for accomplishment in the outside world. Thereafter, conventional achievement in society would be the criterion for advancement within the Church of Satan. At the same time, LaVey became more selective in granting interviews. This shift to “closed door” activities resulted in some rumors of the Church’s demise, and even rumors of LaVey’s death.
In the 1980s, voices including Christians, therapists specializing in recovered memories, and the media renewed concerns of criminal conspiracies relating to the Church of Satan. Members of the Church of Satan, such as Peter H. Gilmore, Peggy Nadramia, Boyd Rice, Adam Parfrey, Diabolos Rex, and musician King Diamond, were active in media appearances to refute allegations of criminal activity. The FBI would later issue an official report refuting the criminal conspiracy theories of this time. This phenomenon became known as “The Satanic Panic.”
In the 1980s and '90s, the Church of Satan and its members were very active in producing movies, music, films, and magazines devoted to Satanism. Most notably Adam Parfrey’s Feral House publishing, the music of Boyd Rice, and the films of Nick Bougas, including his documentary Speak of the Devil: The Canon of Anton LaVey. The Church of Satan and Anton LaVey were also the subject of numerous magazine and news articles during this time.
After Anton Szandor LaVey's death, his position as head of the Church of Satan passed on to his common law wife, Blanche Barton. To this day, Barton remains involved in the Church; however, in 2001 she ceded her position to long-time members Peter H. Gilmore and Peggy Nadramia, the current High Priest and High Priestess and publishers of The Black Flame, the official magazine of The Church of Satan. The Central Office of the Church of Satan has also moved from San Francisco to New York City's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, where the couple resides. The Church of Satan does not recognize any other organizations as holding legitimate claim to Satanism and its practice, though it does recognize that one need not be a member of the Church of Satan to be a Satanist.
Many famous figures have at one time or another been publicly associated with the Church of Satan, including Kenneth Anger, King Diamond, Teresa Hidy, David Vincent, Marilyn Manson,Aaron Joehlin, Boyd Rice, Marc Almond, Alkaline Trio guitarist and singer Matt Skiba and drummer Derek Grant, professional wrestler Balls Mahoney, professional wrestler Sterling James Keenan, journalist Michael Moynihan, Death Metal Lead Guitarist Matthew McRaith, Sammy Davis Jr.. and the artist Coop. As the Church of Satan does not publicly release membership information, it is not known how many members belong to the Church.
On June 6, 2006, The Church of Satan held the first public ritual Satanic Mass in 40 years at the Steve Allen Theater in the Center for Inquiry in Los Angeles. The ritual, based on the rites outlined in The Satanic Bible and The Satanic Rituals, was conducted by Reverend Bryan Moore and Priestess Heather Saenz.
In December of 2007, the Associated Press reported on a story concerning the Church of Satan, in which a teenager had sent an e-mail to the administration stating he wanted to "kill in the name of our unholy lord Satan." Further re-affirming their pro law standpoint, the Church reported the message to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which then informed local police who arrested the teenager.