Hegedűs 5
In 1969, LaVey documented Satanic beliefs and practices in The Satanic Bible.
Contrary to popular conceptions, Satanism does not involve any form of “devil worshipping.”
In fact, the atheistic philosophy of Satanism rejects the existence of any deity. As Peter
Gilmore, the church's current leader puts it, “there's no God, there's no Devil. No one cares”.
As the iconic representation of the cult, Satan was chosen to impersonate the church's denial
of the conservative, mainstream religious movements, most of which traditions allude to the
Satanic figure as the antithesis of what they stand for. Therefore, Satan in the church's
terminology refers to the term's literal Hebrew sense, meaning “one who opposes,” or, in a
looser understanding, “one who questions.” However, the Church of Satan is more than a
nihilistic negation of mainstream religious values; Satanism offers alternative answers based
on intellectual grounds.
The 9 Satanic Sins and Statements
In order to delineate what Satan represents, LaVey anchors “The Nine Satanic
Statements” in The Satanic Bible (13). This set of declarations defines Satan not as an entity,
but as a model for behavior. Despite announcing “The Nine Satanic Sins” only two decades
after the “Bible,” LaVey declares the statements in the light of
these
offenses.
“The
Nine
Satanic
Sins”
are
stupidity,
pretentiousness, solipsism, self-deceit, herd conformity, lack of
persp