Hegedűs 12
prodigy. He dropped out of highs school and joined vaudeville shows and circuses (Hatfield).
Later, he worked as an organist in various bars and nightclubs. His experiences in the
underground culture increased his skepticism and cynical attitude toward the Judeo-Christian
moralities. LaVey exploited his musical appreciation to boost the audience of his Friday night
lectures on occult rituals he held regularly. This series of lectures eventually lead to the
establishment of the Church of Satan in 1966, for which event he shaved his head. The leader
of the church occasionally wore horns to illustrate the Satanic image. Since the inception of
the organization, LaVey authored five books and numerous Satanist-themed essays.
LaVey married three times. Blanche Barton, his third spouse, served as High Priestess
of the Church between 1997 and 2002. After LaVey's death in 1997, their son named Satan
Xerxes Carnacki LaVey replaced him as the head of the organization. However, the son has
resigned from the position since, and handed it to Peter Gilmore, the church's current leader
(Lewis 145).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Church of Satan is more than what the popular conceptualization of
Satanism suggests. In the LaVeyan sense, Satanism is an intellectual movement that facilitates
the interrogation of a number of societal conventions, including mainstream Judeo-Christian
traditions. Anton LaVey, the charismatic leader of the church, documented the mentality
Satan represents in The Satanic Bible and its accompanying manifestos. Based on the
fundamental principle of individualism, Satanism refuses to acknowledge any deity, thus
leaving only the individual accountable for his or her actions and decisions. Despite its strict
reward-punishment system that allows no second chances, Satanism is more liberal than most
mainstream religious tenets because it emphasizes individual rights for spiritual and physical