INTRODUCTION

The Satanic Temple (TST) (1) boasts that they do not believe in the supernatural and that, therefore, they are in a privileged and superior position to religions that believe in God. They claim that they are thus rational (“Satanists should actively work to hone critical thinking” (2)) and scientific (“Our beliefs must be malleable to the best current scientific understandings of the material world – never the reverse” (2)).

But, as we will show below, some of their rites can only be explained if the motivation behind them is a kind of faith in the supernatural.


DETAILS

We will focus on one of their rites and will show how it is connected with their hope in the supernatural, no matter that, by word, they deny this.

They admit that performing weddings for pets is consistent with The Satanic Temple’s values and Code of Conduct.

They encourage, by default, such “weddings”.

Quoting from a “Questions and Answers” page aimed at orienting their “ministers”: (3)
[our underlining]


It is very obvious, from the response referenced above, on their page of support for their “ministers” (euphemism for satanic priests), that, if only by default, they are supporting such rites.

Just as their charity (towards their own) leads them to warn a “minister” that the “weddings” for pets are not legally recognized by any country —without this being something the “minister” explicitly asked—, the same kind of empathy would no doubt lead them to point out to their “ministers” that the celebration of (satanic) pet “weddings” were against their principles, should this be the case. Especially on a page of help and support for their “ministers”. But they are not doing so.

Thus, instead of halting the enthusiasm, possible among some/many of their “ministers”, for celebrating such “weddings”, they let them know that the door is open to them. Therefore: By default, they are encouraging any “minister” of theirs who so desires, to celebrate (satanic) “weddings” for pets.

And even more: Their support is sealed in an official way when they say “Unfortunately, these weddings are not yet recognized legally in any country”. There is no doubt that the celebration of satanic “weddings” for pets is something they —as an organization— desire, or they would not say “unfortunately” in such a statement.

This implies a supernatural content in their rites.

For, let us see, what is their motivation behind performing “weddings” for pets?

They deny the existence of the supernatural as a matter of principle:



However...

Their practice, with official support, of satanic “weddings” for pets —that is, the impulse or need to celebrate such rites— can only be understood as a “compulsory attachment to untenable items of faith-based belief” (expressed in the same terms they use).

If we were talking about weddings between people, they could excuse themselves in that “the purpose of our rites is to produce a positive psychological and emotional effect on the celebrants”, which would be a “natural” effect, being supposedly concrete and observable. But that does not apply to pets, who have no real awareness of the ritual being performed on them. Why, then, do they feel the impulse to celebrate these rites?

The Satanic Temple “ministers” who perform satanic pet “weddings” no doubt believe that such rites have some effect on pets, or they would not perform them. But:


This means that the satanic priest (“minister”) and the celebrants of the satanic “wedding” for pets are implying, through their actions, and even if they do not expressly state it, the following statements:


Therefore, in conclusion:

If we use the correct language, it must be said that TST Satanists expect those rites to have a supernatural effect and to operate through a supernatural cause-effect pathway. By definition, something is supernatural when natural causes have been excluded.

As a corollary:

TST Satanists’ belief in the efficacy of such rites is an article of faith – a type of belief in the supernatural. And, thus, the celebration of such rites is a compulsive attachment to an article of faith – precisely something they accuse “other religions” of:


It does not matter that they do not list their articles of faith in a catechism or a decalogue. They are enacting them through the practice of their rituals.

And it is no excuse for them to claim that “The Satanic Temple does not have any required rituals” (2) because, in practice, they are recommending them by example and by officially expressed consent. In particular, as we have seen above, their official position regarding satanic “weddings” for pets is that they are “desirable”.


EPILOGUE

In the above logical reasoning we have been dealing with no theological hypothesis or theological knowledge on our part. Now, let us say some words based on our theological —Christian— knowledge and position.

The supernatural domain can also act on animals. This is not a fiction. In the Gospels we find a case guided by God in the story of the possessed man of Gerasa:


Supernatural is not synonymous with God. God allows, within certain limits, satan and his lackeys to act in the supernatural. Thus a satanic rite, through a supernatural cause-effect relationship, and by ways separate from God, can produce natural (physical or psychological) and supernatural effects (e.g. on the soul). The problem: Such effects, on the net balance, and even in the short term, will not be positive because God has been excluded.

In the case we have elaborated above, of “weddings” for pets, the main negative effect is not on the pets but on the celebrants.

As a parallel: A Christian Sacrament yields an invisible but indelible mark, imprinted by God and associated with benefits, because God honors the acts and words of the celebrants, even if the acts or words are imperfect, as long as they are sincere.

Similarly, but on the opposite terrain, an anti-Christian religious rite in which one of the key elements is the absence, renunciation, denial or opposition to God, sets in motion a spiritual mechanism that will leave a spiritual imprint and may have important but negative effects, left to the hand of Satan, regardless of the fact that the celebrants deny the existence of Satan – effects that only a return to God can undo.

This is so because in the spiritual realm there is no such thing as emptiness. The human being is like a vessel which, spiritually, is filled with one “substance” or another. If one expels God from his life, his space is automatically filled by “the opponent”.

How to pray for them?

When it comes to freedom, God is the champion Whom no one wins, and He allows, not without infinite sadness, that many of His creatures reject Him so outright and cause themselves a terrible harm by doing so. In harmony with this, we cannot ask God to grant another soul something that would violate that soul’s free will.

The only thing we can do for these souls is to pray to God that He will exert a supernatural attraction on them so that they will voluntarily return to Him. Without that necessary step, that is, as long as they are voluntarily preventing God’s entrance into their soul, we cannot ask God to grant them other benefits.












Published on May 10, 2023