Editing Satanism (section)

{{Short description|Religious, ideological, or philosophical beliefs based on Satan}}
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{{Redirect|Satanist|other uses|Satanism (disambiguation)|and|Satanist (disambiguation)}}
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[[File:Pentagram4.svg|thumb|The inverted [[pentagram]] is a widespread symbol of Satanism.{{Sfn|Petersen|2004|pp=444–446}}]]

'''Satanism''' refers to a group of [[Religion|religious]], [[Ideology|ideological]], or [[Philosophy|philosophical]] beliefs based on [[Satan]]—particularly his worship or veneration.<ref name="Britannica-White"/> Because of the ties to the historical [[Abrahamic religions|Abrahamic religious]] figure, Satanism—as well as other religious, ideological, or philosophical beliefs that align with Satanism—is considered a [[Counterculture|countercultural]] Abrahamic religion.

Satan is associated with the [[Devil in Christianity]], a [[fallen angel]] regarded as chief of the [[demon]]s who tempt humans into [[sin]].<ref name="Britannica-White">{{Britannica URL|topic/Satanism|Satanism|author=White, Ethan Doyle |access-date=1 January 2024}}</ref>{{#tag:ref|Satan in Judaism and Islam. 
* While most Jews do not believe in the existence of a supernatural omnimalevolent figure,{{sfn|Glustrom|1989|pages=22–24}} it is "sometimes understood" in Judaism (according to the Britannica), that Satan is a figure whose role as adversary is not "antithetical" to God but acting as a sort of "divine prosecutor" for the Supreme Being, as in the case of Job.<ref name="Britannica-White"/> 
*In Islam ''shayāṭīn'' (with consonantal roots similar to Satan) is the collective term for devils, while it is ''[[Iblis]]'' who is the leader of the devils. Like Satan in Christianity ''[[Iblis]]'' was cast down from heaven for his pride and disobedience, unlike Satan, (at least in some versions) ''Iblis'' is a ''[[jinn]]'' not an [[Angels in Islam|angel]].<ref name="Awn1983-1">{{cite book |author-last=Awn |author-first=Peter J. |year=1983 |chapter=Mythic Biography |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jt-mDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA18 |title=Satan's Tragedy and Redemption: Iblīs in Sufi Psychology |location=[[Leiden]] and [[Boston]] |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |series=Numen Book Series |volume=44 |pages=18–56 |doi=10.1163/9789004378636_003 |isbn=978-90-04-37863-6 }}</ref><ref name=Mahmoud1995>{{cite journal |last1=Mahmoud |first1=Muhammad |title=The Creation Story in 'Sūrat al-Baqara', with Special Reference to al-Ṭabarī's Material: An Analysis |journal=Journal of Arabic Literature |date=1995 |volume=26 |issue=1/2 |pages=201–214 |doi=10.1163/157006495X00175 |jstor=4183374  |issn=0085-2376 }}</ref> |group=Note}} Satan is also associated with the [[Devil in Islam]], a [[jinn]] who has rebelled against [[God in Abrahamic religions|God]], the leader of the [[Shayatin|devils]] (''shayāṭīn''), made of fire who was cast out of Heaven because he refused to bow before the newly created [[Adam in Islam|Adam]] and incites humans to sin. The phenomenon of Satanism shares "historical connections and family resemblances" with the [[Left Hand Path]] milieu of other [[occult]] figures such as [[Asmodeus]], [[Beelzebub]], [[Mephistopheles]], [[Samael]], [[Lilith]], [[Lucifer]], [[Hecate]], and [[Set (deity)|Set]].<ref name="Britannica-White" /> Self-identified Satanism is a relatively modern phenomenon, largely attributed to the 1966 founding of the [[Church of Satan]] by [[Anton LaVey]] in the United States—an atheistic group that does not believe in a supernatural Satan.<ref name="JPLS2023:sect.1">[[#JPLS2023|Laycock, ''Satanism'', 2023]]: section 1. What Is Satan?</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=LaVey |first1=Anton|title=The Devil's Notebook |date=2000 |publisher=Feral House |isbn=9780922915118 |page=85 |quote=As Satanists..it has never been enough for us to be atheistic...}}</ref>

Accusations of groups engaged in "devil worship" have echoed throughout much of Christian history. During the [[Middle Ages]], the [[Inquisition]] led by the [[Catholic Church]] alleged that various [[heretical Christian]] sects and groups, such as the [[Knights Templar]] and the [[Cathars]], performed secret Satanic rituals. In the subsequent [[Early Modern period]], belief in a widespread Satanic conspiracy of witches resulted in [[Witch trials in the early modern period|the trials and  executions of tens of  thousands of alleged witches]] across Europe and the North American colonies, peaking between 1560 and 1630.<ref name="Thurston 2001 Page 79">[[#Thu01|Thurston 2001]]. p. 79.</ref><ref name="Levack-2006">{{Cite book |last=Levack |first=Brian P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C8yqDKcSgSUC |title=The Witch-hunt in Early Modern Europe |date=2006 |publisher=Pearson Longman |isbn=978-0-582-41901-8 |language=en |chapter=Chapter 7}}</ref> The terms ''Satanist'' and ''Satanism'' emerged during the [[Reformation]] and [[Counter-Reformation]] (1517–1700),{{sfnm|1a1=Medway|1y=2001|1p=257 |2a1=van Luijk|2y=2016|2p=2}} as both Catholics and Protestants accused each other of intentionally being in league with Satan.{{sfn|van Luijk|2016|p=35}}

Since the 19th century various small religious groups have emerged that identify as Satanist or use Satanic iconography. While the groups that appeared after the 1960s differed greatly, they can be broadly divided into [[#Atheistic Satanism|atheistic Satanism]] and [[theistic Satanism]].<ref name="Satanism-Introduction">{{cite web |author-last=Abrams |author-first=Joe |editor-last=Wyman |editor-first=Kelly |date=Spring 2006 |title=The Religious Movements Homepage Project – Satanism: An Introduction |url=http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/satanism/intro.html#atheistic/theistic |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060829152745/http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/satanism/intro.html#atheistic/theistic |archive-date=29 August 2006 |website=virginia.edu |publisher=[[University of Virginia]] |access-date=1 January 2021}}</ref> Those venerating Satan as a supernatural [[deity]] are unlikely to ascribe [[omnipotence]], instead relating to Satan as a [[patriarch]]. Atheistic Satanists regard Satan as a symbol of certain human traits, a useful metaphor without ontological reality.<ref name="Point of Inquiry Interview">{{cite web|last=Gilmore|first=Peter|title=Science and Satanism|work=Point of Inquiry Interview |date=10 August 2007 |url=http://www.pointofinquiry.org/peter_h_gilmore_science_and_satanism/|access-date=9 December 2013}}</ref> Contemporary religious Satanism is predominantly an American phenomenon, although the rise of globalization and the Internet have seen these ideas spread to other parts of the world.{{sfn|Petersen|2009a}}