Abortion: A Satanic Religious Right...

[seer]

Well at least they are being honest....

Satanic Temple sues Indiana over abortion law, claiming it violates religious rights

The Satanic Temple is suing the state of Indiana on claims the state’s near-total abortion ban violates the rights of its Hoosier members who want abortions after their birth control failed.

A lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana by the Massachusetts-based religious association says it brought the lawsuit on behalf of anonymous women from Indiana who say they became pregnant by accident despite using contraceptives.

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/...s/69521905007/

[seanD]

The Satanic Temple has more than 11,300 members in Indiana, according to its lawsuit. The group "venerates, but does not worship" the allegorical Satan

They don't worship him, but venerate him?

[seer]

They don't worship him, but venerate him?

I'm sure they will enjoy his company for eternity...

[Hypatia_Alexandria]

From TST site:

The Mission Of The Satanic Temple Is To Encourage Benevolence And Empathy, Reject Tyrannical Authority, Advocate Practical Common Sense, Oppose Injustice, And Undertake Noble Pursuits.

We have publicly confronted hate groups, fought for the abolition of corporal punishment in public schools, applied for equal representation when religious installations are placed on public property, provided religious exemption and legal protection against laws that unscientifically restrict people's reproductive autonomy, exposed harmful pseudo-scientific practitioners in mental health care, organized clubs alongside other religious after-school clubs in schools besieged by proselytizing organizations, and engaged in other advocacy in accordance with our tenets.

All of which reads as remarkably liberal and tolerant.

I can fully understand why some here do not like TST.

[seer]

From TST site:

All of which reads as remarkably liberal and tolerant.

Shock! HA sides with the Devil....

[Mountain Man]

They don't worship him, but venerate him?

In George Orwell's 1984, that's known as "doublethink", where people are expected to sincerely believe contradictory ideas.

[Mountain Man]

From TST site:

The Mission Of The Satanic Temple Is To Encourage Benevolence And Empathy, Reject Tyrannical Authority, Advocate Practical Common Sense, Oppose Injustice, And Undertake Noble Pursuits.

We have publicly confronted hate groups, fought for the abolition of corporal punishment in public schools, applied for equal representation when religious installations are placed on public property, provided religious exemption and legal protection against laws that unscientifically restrict people's reproductive autonomy, exposed harmful pseudo-scientific practitioners in mental health care, organized clubs alongside other religious after-school clubs in schools besieged by proselytizing organizations, and engaged in other advocacy in accordance with our tenets.

All of which reads as remarkably liberal and tolerant.

I can fully understand why some here do not like TST.

Perhaps you are familiar with another one of Satan's many names: The Father of Lies.

[seer]

Perhaps you are familiar with another one of Satan's many names: The Father of Lies.

But he is remarkably liberal and tolerant!

[Mountain Man]

But he is remarkably liberal and tolerant!

Except when it comes to "schools besieged by proselytizing". For some reason, I doubt that's referring to Islam.

[Terraceth]

They don't worship him, but venerate him?

Here is their position on their site's FAQ:

Do you worship Satan?

No, nor do we believe in the existence of Satan or the supernatural. The Satanic Temple believes that religion can, and should, be divorced from superstition. As such, we do not promote a belief in a personal Satan. To embrace the name Satan is to embrace rational inquiry removed from supernaturalism and archaic tradition-based superstitions. Satanists should actively work to hone critical thinking and exercise reasonable agnosticism in all things. Our beliefs must be malleable to the best current scientific understandings of the material world — never the reverse.

The Satanic Temple is just a bunch of nonreligious people of a libertarian bent who named themselves The Satanic Temple to try to get shock value. Their main method is to, whenever they see what they view as wrongful religious intrusion into government, is to insist "hey, if you're going to let those religions do this, you need to let us do it too!" So, for example, they launched an after school club called "After School Satan" to protest religious-themed after school clubs, and try to insist on putting up a statue of Baphomet in any government building that displays the Ten Commandments.

Which brings us to this topic's discussion. To try to defy abortion bans, they claim that bans of such run afoul of their own religious liberty to perform abortions. Again it's a case of protesting against any government involvement in religion (in this case religious exemptions) by trying to turn it on its head by saying "okay, if you're going to give these guys religious exemptions, then here's our religious exemptions we demand."

[seanD]

Here is their position on their site's FAQ:

Do you worship Satan?

No, nor do we believe in the existence of Satan or the supernatural. The Satanic Temple believes that religion can, and should, be divorced from superstition. As such, we do not promote a belief in a personal Satan. To embrace the name Satan is to embrace rational inquiry removed from supernaturalism and archaic tradition-based superstitions. Satanists should actively work to hone critical thinking and exercise reasonable agnosticism in all things. Our beliefs must be malleable to the best current scientific understandings of the material world — never the reverse.

The Satanic Temple is just a bunch of nonreligious people of a libertarian bent who named themselves The Satanic Temple to try to get shock value. Their main method is to, whenever they see what they view as wrongful religious intrusion into government, is to insist "hey, if you're going to let those religions do this, you need to let us do it too!" So, for example, they launched an after school club called "After School Satan" to protest religious-themed after school clubs, and try to insist on putting up a statue of Baphomet in any government building that displays the Ten Commandments.

Which brings us to this topic's discussion. To try to defy abortion bans, they claim that bans of such run afoul of their own religious liberty to perform abortions. Again it's a case of protesting against any government involvement in religion (in this case religious exemptions) by trying to turn it on its head by saying "okay, if you're going to give these guys religious exemptions, then here's our religious exemptions we demand."

From a theological position, I'd say they unquestionably worship Satan, whether they deny it or not. Jesus accused the Jews of his day as being children of the devil just for lying about him. I would say based on what these folks are doing, it's a slam dunk that they worship Satan, even if they think it's unwittingly.

From a purely non-theological position it's still pretty shaky. If there was a group of people running a church, claiming that they venerate Jesus but then saying that they don't really worship Jesus, countering everything this group of Satanists do with Christian activity and symbolism, I highly doubt these Satanists would consider that some sort of political gag only with no religious intent behind it.

[mossrose]

But he is remarkably liberal and tolerant!

And he doesn't do mean tweets!

[mossrose]

From a theological position, I'd say they unquestionably worship Satan, whether they deny it or not. Jesus accused the Jews of his day as being children of the devil just for lying about him. I would say based on what these folks are doing, it's a slam dunk that they worship Satan, even if they think it's unwittingly.

From a purely non-theological position it's still pretty shaky. If there was a group of people running a church, claiming that they venerate Jesus but then saying that they don't really worship Jesus, countering everything this group of Satanists do with Christian activity and symbolism, I highly doubt these Satanists would consider that some sort of political gag only with no religious intent behind it.

There is only one choice. Either Jesus Christ or not. Everything else is worshipping Satan.

[Hypatia_Alexandria]

Shock! HA sides with the Devil....

The Satanic Temple is a progressive group that utilises the USA's first amendment right to religious freedom, clearly to the annoyance of many Christians who consider that only their god is the right one. As the following clearly demonstrates

There is only one choice. Either Jesus Christ or not. Everything else is worshipping Satan.

From the favourite reference site of rogue06 [Wiki]:

The Satanic Temple does not believe in a supernatural Satan; instead it employs the literary Satan as a metaphor to promote pragmatic skepticism, rational reciprocity, personal autonomy, and curiosity.^[8] Satan is thus used as a symbol representing "the eternal rebel" against arbitrary authority and social norms. [...] The organization's participation in public affairs includes political actions as well as lobbying efforts,^[19][20] with a focus on exposing Christian privilege when it interferes with personal religious freedom. It considers marriage a religious sacrament that should be governed under the First Amendment's protection of religious liberty which should prevail over state laws.^[21] Because the group regards inviolability of the body as a key doctrine, it also views all restrictions on abortion, including mandatory waiting periods, as an infringement on the rights of Satanists to practice their religion.

[Hypatia_Alexandria]

In George Orwell's 1984, that's known as "doublethink", where people are expected to sincerely believe contradictory ideas.

You show little understanding of some groups within your own faith.

Saints have their own feast days, while icons and/or figures of various saints often have their own chapel or sections of a church, votive candles are lit to them, they are prayed to requesting their intercession on various issues and are venerated . However, they are not [at least so those branches of Christianity maintain] worshipped as the one God is worshipped.

Although to an impartial observer seeing a supplicant praying at the shrine of St X or praying to the deity, it would be difficult to notice any observable differences.