The Satanic Temple
Statue of the Satanic Temple in Detroit
The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office has declared the activities of the Satanic Temple, an international organization registered in the US, “undesirable”.
The Satanic Temple, a non-theistic organization and new religious movement founded in 2013 and based in Salem, Massachusetts, has been declared “undesirable” by the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office.
In a published on its website, the Prosecutor’s Office states that members of the organization “promote occult ideologies” and “use satanic symbols to discredit traditional spiritual and moral values.”
According to , the Russian prosecutor’s office also claims that the Satanic Temple, with the support of the US government, “defends destructive pseudo-theological ideas and justifies violence against people.”
The group is also accused of “actively supporting members of movements extremists and terrorists“, of speak “negatively” about the warto “call for the overthrow of Russia’s constitutional order” and to publish information about donations to the Armed Forces of Ukraine on its website.
Founded by graduates of Harvard University, the Satanic Temple describes in its seven fundamental principles according to which it is governed, which emphasize compassion, justice and respect for the freedoms of others.
The group describes its mission as “encourage benevolence and empathy, reject tyrannical authority, uphold practical common sense, oppose injustice, and undertake noble goals“.
The organization, which according to Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office has more than 10 million followers worldwidehas sections in the United States, Australia, Germany, Canada and Finland.
The organization has distinguished itself in recent years for its uncompromising defense of the reproductive rights of women and the LGBT+ community. As a recognized religious institution, can protect civil liberties of followers in ways that an activist group could not, journalist Tim Brinkhof,.
In 2015, the organization sued the state of Missouri, arguing that its strict abortion laws violated religious convictions of its members. Since then, similar cases have been brought to courts in Texas, Idaho, and Indiana, among others.
In the same year, the Satanic Temple announced its intention to install a 2.7 meter bronze statue of a winged hermaphrodite being, known as Baphomet, in front of the Ten Commandments monument, outside the Capitol building. in Oklahoma City.
The name Baphomet dates back to the Inquisition and the Knights Templarwho in the 12th century were tortured for allegedly confessing to worshiping a pagan idol called Baphomet.
Some historians believe that “Baphomet” was simply a derivation of the name “Muhammad”, the founding prophet of Islam.
