On Occultism

[Rev. Rye]

I toyed with becoming a Satanist in high school. It didn't work out. The magick made it all seem too far-fetched, and I couldn't afford the $200 fee to join the CoS even if they didn't have a strict policy of not allowing under-18s to become members.

Satanism doesn't actually promote the idea of "magic" as you might think of it. In Satanism they divide magick into two categories: Greater Magick is defined as ritual, which is used for a sort of self-therapy; they use it to expel unwanted emotions or express certain desires. If you watch, Satanis: The Devil's Mass, it seems to be more about the theatrics of it than actually believing they're affecting some change in the world or in other individuals. Lesser Magick is the manipulation of other individuals through earthly means; they look at this in a sort of Machiavellian sense, i.e. if you can manipulate someone to get what you want out of them, you should, so long as you're not harming them or forcing them to do something "against their will."

You will find some fringe members of the CoS saying they do real magic and this and that but that is not what the Church's official stance is, so I take it with a grain of salt. Regardless, I think if you agree with the philosophies found within The Satanic Bible and The Satanic Scriptures, you're a Satanist; if you choose to adopt the moniker of course. Paying the fee for the metal membership card seems like a bit of an after-thought. Just my two cents though.

To be fair, I did come to that conclusion after reading the Books of Belial and Leviathan, the third and fourth books of The Satanic Bible. Then again, I suspect my reading of those books may have been coloured by sour grapes because I knew they wouldn't accept a 16-year-old as a member. That and as a cheap sumbitch who did not actually have a job at that point, I couldn't afford the $200 membership fee (which has since risen to $225.)