Yet most persons, even atheists, may find it hard to realize that in Christendom there are persons who openly worship Satan the Devil. Nonetheless, it is true.

The religion of Satanism has “churches” in Christendom, possesses a “bible” and has ministers and religious rites.

“The Satanic Bible,” written by the founder of the Church of Satan in San Francisco, is reported by the Miami Herald as saying: “Man is an animal that must serve himself. The so-called seven deadly sins are virtues because they lead to physical and mental gratification.”

“This is a religion of the flesh, not the spirit,” says one “high priest” of a Satanic sect.

Satan worship is patterned to a great extent on voodooism and similar forms of worship widely practiced in Africa and South America. These generally employ sorcery or witchcraft, involving Satan and also other spirits, demons. (1 Cor. 10:20) There are many differing “splinter sects” of Satanism. Nevertheless, all these sects hold to one thing in common: indulgence in fleshly desires.

Spiritistic Worship, a ‘Work of the Flesh’

It is easy to see, therefore, why some persons are attracted to Satanism, with its emphasis on fleshly gratification. But the question may arise: Since Satan the Devil and his demons are spirit persons, not flesh and blood, why are fleshly practices an outstanding feature of Satan worship?

It should be remembered that the demons were once righteous angels, ‘sons of God,’ who became perverted, and desired and engaged in fleshly connections. How?

Before the flood of Noah’s day, these angels left their heavenly locality and the position of service they had with Jehovah God. Materializing for themselves bodies in the form of men, they married good-looking human women. For spirit creatures, whom Jesus said do not marry, this was unnatural, a perversion. Though they dematerialized at the time of the Flood and returned to their spiritual abode, God debased them in disfavor, but let them live until his due time for their destruction. During Jesus Christ’s ministry on earth they were still expressing their perverted characteristics by possessing or inhabiting humans.​—Gen. 6:1, 2; Mark 1:32-34; Luke 8:26-34; Jude 6, 7; 2 Pet. 2:4.

How could angels, intelligent creatures, be thus perverted, degrading themselves? This is not so hard to understand when we observe intelligent humans, not only engaging in illicit sex relations, but pervertedly reveling in homosexuality and even bestiality.​—Lev. 18:22, 23.

Appropriately, the Bible calls the practice of spiritism a ‘work of the flesh.’ (Gal. 5:19, 20) It is no surprise, therefore, to read, in a report regarding one cult, that the celebration of their so-called “black mass” may be in the form of a “lust mass,” at which the priest may have sexual intercourse with the nude woman whose body serves as the altar. Then each male member of the congregation follows him in the act, after which the men and women of the congregation may participate in a sexual orgy.

Primarily Against God

Statements of Satanist leaders show the desire to do things as shocking as possible in order to make a mockery of the worship of God. This, of course, carries out the will of Satan and the demons. They certainly must delight in seeing God’s intelligent creatures thus degrade themselves. The “worshiper,” however, is certainly treading on perilous ground.

Satan worshipers not only engage in shocking violation of the commands of God’s Word the Bible. They also go contrary to their own human nature and conscience by their perversion. (Rom. 2:14, 15) And they violate the standards of decency of the society in which they live.

Here is how the Bible describes such persons, particularly those who previously claimed to serve God (as many Satanists did, having come from Christendom’s religions):

“Although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God nor did they thank him, but they became empty-headed in their reasonings and their unintelligent heart became darkened. Although asserting they were wise, they became foolish and turned the glory of the incorruptible God into something like the image of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed creatures and creeping things. Therefore God, in keeping with the desires of their hearts, gave them up to uncleanness, that their bodies might be dishonored among them, even those who exchanged the truth of God for the lie and venerated and rendered sacred service to the creation rather than the One who created, . . . That is why God gave them up to disgraceful sexual appetites, . . . working what is obscene and receiving in themselves the full recompense, which was due for their error. And just as they did not approve of holding God in accurate knowledge, God gave them up to a disapproved mental state, to do the things not fitting.”​—Rom. 1:21-28.

A Deadly Danger

It is unwise, yes, deadly dangerous, for anyone to get drawn into contact with such demonic influence, even through curiosity. A person is risking the danger of being ensnared in contaminating fleshly practices. But even worse, he is deliberately associating with those who blaspheme Jehovah the true God, the Creator and Universal Sovereign. The Bible specifically warns that God’s anger will blaze against one thus sharing in such works of darkness.​—Eph. 5:3-7.

God cleared out the Canaanites from the Promised Land because of these very same detestable practices, and he told Israel: “You must not walk after other gods, . . . (for Jehovah your God in your midst is a God exacting exclusive devotion,) for fear the anger of Jehovah your God may blaze against you and he must annihilate you from off the surface of the ground.” (Deut. 6:14, 15; Lev. 18:24, 25) Why should anyone want to put himself in such a position with the Almighty God?​—1 Cor. 10:22.

If we turn to the Bible we can readily see the danger of doing so. The Bible says: “The whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one,” and, “The god of this system of things has blinded the minds of the unbelievers.” (1 John 5:19; 2 Cor. 4:4) It also tells us that one of Satan’s chief weapons is deception.​—1 Tim. 2:14; Rev. 12:9.

Since Satan is described in the Bible as “the god of this system of things,” it logically follows that he exercises an overriding power in the political, commercial and social affairs of this world. In attempting to fight against God, then, his control must take in some men of influence, otherwise he could never maintain an organized opposition to the truth and the enlightenment of people to God’s purpose.

Would it then be in Satan’s interests to have everyone he controls wholly degraded to the animal level by debauchery, or insane with demon possession? Obviously not. After all, many persons are not inclined to such extremes. Neither would it fit Satan’s purpose for all such to admit, or even to know, that they worship the Devil. Being deceptive, he would certainly prefer to have many intelligent and capable men who, while having his selfish spirit, appear, at least, to be respectable, principled persons. Why so? Because such persons may more readily influence and sway others associated with them.

How does a person, although thinking he may be serving God, come under Satan’s control and actually render worship to Satan?

The Spirit of Independence

A person may be religious. At the same time that person may consider the Bible to be “out of date” or even ignore it. He may reject the Bible’s standards and set up his own standards as to what is good and what is bad.

An illustration of this attitude is found in the argument by a “homosexual militant,” writing in the New York Times. He said: “‘Moral’ and ‘immoral’ are judgmental terms relative to time, place, and the needs of the majority. For example, various societies and eras have defined anti-semitism and anti-black programs as moral while others have not.”

Granted, even a murderer might call himself moral. But this “homosexual militant’s” argument simply expresses the spirit of self-determination described earlier. He rejects God’s law against homosexuality. (1 Cor. 6:9, 10; Lev. 18:22) Instead of proving that such course of self-determination is right, this argument actually illustrates why individuals or even entire societies really are not qualified to determine the standards by which men shall live.

Who, then, can determine this? Only God, who fully knows man’s makeup and needs. He alone is qualified to tell his creatures how they must comport themselves.

The spirit of self-determination abounds today, with factions and individuals demanding unrestricted independence. They may not know it, but this was the very basis on which Adam and Eve rebelled against God. This spirit caused their rebellion and alienation from God and brought death upon the human race. The sin they committed in eating the fruit forbidden by God may seem like so small an act. Small in itself, yes, but enormous in its significance and consequences.

In this connection, note what The Jerusalem Bible, in its footnote on Genesis 2:17, comments concerning the tree of knowledge of good and evil, whose fruit the human pair were not to eat:

“This knowledge is a privilege which God reserves to himself and which man, by sinning, is to lay hands on, 3:5, 22. Hence it does not mean omniscience, which fallen man does not possess; nor is it moral discrimination, for unfallen man already had it and God could not refuse it to a rational being. It is the power of deciding for himself what is good and what is evil and of acting accordingly, a claim to complete moral independence by which man refuses to recognise his status as a created being. The first sin was an attack on God’s sovereignty, a sin of pride. . . .”

By the action they took in attacking God’s sovereignty, whom were Adam and Eve following and serving? To whom were they, in fact, looking as wise and more worthy of obeying than God, and, therefore, worshiping? Was it not Satan the Devil, who deceptively seduced Eve into her bad course?​—John 8:44; 2 Cor. 11:3.

In reality, a person who strikes out for complete independence, setting up his own standards, is refusing to recognize that he is a created being, a creature of the Creator. And yet, he can never escape the fact that he is subject to many things, including both physical and moral laws. If he tries to ignore these laws, he soon comes into a clash with natural forces, resulting in sickness or calamity. Or he encroaches upon the rights of others, and meets with trouble.

Man-made Wisdom Exalted

It is a mistake, then, to think that the small groups who carry on wild, licentious rites in the name of Satan are the only ones worshiping Satan. The Satan worshipers say that their religion is a ‘religion of the flesh.’ Others may not engage in such fleshly debauchery. But such persons may be focusing on their own will, exalting their own mentality. Or they may look to the wisdom of other men and follow it without consideration of God’s will and standards as set forth in the Bible. Anyone doing this makes himself, or man’s wisdom, a sort of god. Perhaps without realizing it, he actually denies God’s sovereignty over him and may prove a more useful tool of the Devil than the outright ‘Satan worshiper.’

As Romans 6:16 plainly states: “Do you not know that if you keep presenting yourselves to anyone as slaves to obey him, you are slaves of him because you obey him, either of sin with death in view or of obedience with righteousness in view?” Licentious or not, a person who disregards God’s Word is doing the will of God’s adversary the Devil.

What are some of the snares that can entrap one trusting in human wisdom? Well, a person, ignoring what the Bible says about the kingdom of God as the remedy for injustice, may be induced to become involved in some “equality” group, political conflict, or like product of man-made thinking. Or, rejecting as impractical the Bible counsel to love one’s neighbor, he might adopt the attitude that ‘it’s every man for himself’ and follow a completely selfish, materialistic way of life.

Becoming involved in such things leads a person away from God and from acceptance of the good news of God’s kingdom.​—Jas. 4:4.

Then there is the theory of evolution. It is another human philosophy that finds no support in the Bible, A person adopting such philosophy may be sincere. But he should ask himself, To what may it lead me? The theory denies an intelligent Creator and as a consequence denies responsibility to his righteous standards. Such a belief puts one at odds with God.

Where Christendom’s Religions Stand

In view of the above evidence, it can be seen that a person may be a member of one of Christendom’s many religious sects, claiming to be a worshiper of God and a follower of Jesus Christ, and yet unwittingly be giving his actual devotion and worship to the Devil. This fact was noted in an article by the religious editor of the Miami Herald of July 11, 1970, who reported:

“Some readers who responded to the story [published earlier] on the Church of Satan were shocked at the view on sexual activity and the expression of those views. Yet in the last three months such ‘orthodox’ Christian denominations as the United Presbyterian Church, the Lutheran Church in America, and the United Church of Christ have published reports giving varying degrees of approval to intercourse outside of marriage and homosexual activity.

“Two of these denominations are joint publishers of a magazine for church youth workers in which in a recent issue a graphic account of a ‘petting party’ is given and the action approved as a healthy attitude toward teen-aged sexual development.”

“. . . Nearly all denominations have begun to put more stress on giving all men enough food, clothing, shelter and health to enjoy life [thereby slighting spirituality and the education of the people in God’s Word].

“Some people view this as the inroads of Satan worship since, according to the Satanic Bible, ‘Man, the animal, is the godhead to the Satanist’ and the aim of religion is to make man happy through gratifying all his physical desires.”

With these facts in view, the writer concludes: “We all may be more pagan than we like to think!”

Real Freedom Found in Service of God

If we truly want to serve God, we must believe what he says about the way that peace, health and enjoyment of life will come about. We need to realize, too, that what the wise writer of Ecclesiastes said is true of this present system of things in which we live, namely, “that which is made crooked cannot be made straight.” (Eccl. 1:15) Yes, this system of things is too shot through with selfishness to be reformed or redeemed. As evidence, consider the ever-increasing problems of crime, poverty, pollution and drugs.

Therefore, those who accept the truth from God’s Word recognize that only the wisdom from God can guide mankind in the right way, not the wisdom that is “earthly, animal,” and guided by the demons, therefore “demonic.” (Jas. 3:15, 16)

Beware of Being Overreached

THOSE who become true Christians are said to have been ‘delivered from the authority of the darkness.’ (Col. 1:13) The ruler over this darkness is identified by the Bible’s words at Ephesians 2:2. There the apostle Paul says that, before becoming Christians, the members of the Ephesian congregation had “walked according to the system of things of this world, according to the ruler of the authority of the air, the spirit that now operates in the sons of disobedience.”

The apostle specifically named this powerful ruler when counseling these Christians to “put on the complete suit of armor from God that you may be able to stand firm against the machinations of the Devil.”​—Eph. 6:11, 12.

The Christian, therefore, needs to exercise the greatest watchfulness and caution. He may be carrying out God’s requirements in many respects. Yet, if he relaxes his vigilance, he, too, may suddenly and inadvertently be brought into doing Satan’s will. The apostle Peter admonished: “Keep your senses, be watchful. Your adversary, the Devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking to devour someone.”​—1 Pet. 5:8.

Some Christians in the congregation at Ephesus evidently had not been watchful. They were being deflected from the truth. Paul wrote Timothy to instruct and help such ones, that “they may come back to their proper senses out from the snare of the Devil.” (2 Tim. 2:24-26) Now, a snare is not something that its victim walks into with open eyes. It is well hidden. Suddenly, without warning, the trap is sprung, and the unsuspecting victim is then too far into it to escape without help. So with Satan’s snare, the individual is caught unawares. More seriously, however, he may actually be caught in the snare and still not be aware of it. He may even unwittingly serve Satan’s purposes, being deceived into thinking he is doing right.

Some of Satan’s Snares

A case in point is an incident involving the apostle Peter. Jesus had told his disciples that he was going to suffer at the hands of the Jewish religious leaders and be put to death. This was the course his Father had set out for him. Jesus knew that for him even to entertain a thought of avoiding this sacrificial death would be a sin. But Peter, doubtless with good intent, drew Jesus aside, saying: “Be kind to yourself, Lord; you will not have this destiny at all.” Turning his back on Peter, Jesus replied: “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, because you think, not God’s thoughts, but those of men.”​—Matt. 16:21-23.

Here Peter fell into the snare of Satan, and was unwittingly himself a “satan” or “resister” of Jesus. His case emphasizes our need to listen to what God’s Word says, to have accurate knowledge of it, following it, not human sentimentality, emotion or reasoning.

Again, the Bible gives warning when it counsels married couples about giving each other the marriage due: “Do not be depriving each other of it, except by mutual consent for an. appointed time, that you may devote time to prayer and may come together again, that Satan may not keep tempting you for your lack of self-regulation.” (1 Cor. 7:5) Balance, good sense, must be observed, even when devoting time to some special service of God. Otherwise, as in the case of a married couple, their abstinence from giving the sexual due could give the Devil an opportunity to tempt one or both parties, through passion, to wrong thoughts or actions toward someone of the opposite sex.​—Matt. 5:28; 1 Cor. 6:9, 18.

Snares for the Congregation

That an entire congregation, and particularly those responsible for its oversight, must guard against being overreached by Satan is illustrated in the case of the early Christian congregation in Corinth. One of its members had fallen into gross immorality. Instead of clearing out this wickedness, the congregation was falling into Satan’s snare, being puffed up rather than feeling sad about the case. The apostle Paul instructed the congregation to expel the wicked man.​—1 Cor. 5:1-5, 13.

Later, the man repented and changed his course, after a period of being disfellowshiped. Now Paul wrote the congregation, exhorting them to forgive the man and receive him back, in order that, as he said, “we may not be overreached by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his designs.” Yes, Christians must not forget what Satan’s designs are. In the first instance, the congregation had been lax, not careful to maintain cleanness in the congregation. But now there was danger of swinging to the other extreme​—becoming hard, harsh and unforgiving to the truly repentant one. This would have suited the Devil’s purpose equally well and cost them God’s favor.​—2 Cor. 2:5-11; Matt. 6:14, 15; Jas. 2:13.

Wrong Desire and Pride

Wrong desire can be an insidious snare of Satan. Judas Iscariot is an example. When first chosen as an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, he manifested the qualifications for the office. But Judas became covetous, greedy. He began to steal from the fund that Christ and his apostles used for expenses. With this start, Satan was able to lead him farther and farther into the development of a wicked heart, until finally he betrayed the Lord. He lost everything, becoming “the son of destruction.”​—John 12:3-6; 13:18-27; 17:12; 18:2-5.

Pride is also one of Satan’s most powerful instruments. It can ensnare even the righteous man into stumbling, and worse, can bring trouble upon others. Because he recognized pride as one of Satan’s devices, the apostle Paul specifically ruled out the appointment of a newly converted man to the position of overseer in a congregation, “for fear that he might get puffed up with pride [at being so suddenly elevated to an office of prominence and responsibility] and fall into the judgment passed upon the Devil.”​—1 Tim. 3:2, 6.

The Devil’s unrelenting determination is to defame God’s name. Because the conduct of any man appointed to oversight in a congregation reflects on the entire congregation and upon Jehovah God himself, he is required to be a man having “a fine testimony from people on the outside.” He should be one who really lives up to the name of a Christian in morals, in business dealings, in family, in neighborliness, in hospitality and in loving-kindness. Otherwise, if appointed to office, he might “fall into reproach and a snare of the Devil.”​—1 Tim. 3:7.

Yes, if a man open to accusation of unrighteous practices by persons outside the congregation should be placed prominently in the Christian congregation as a shepherd and teacher, what an opportunity this would give opposers to revile! (Compare 1 Timothy 5:14, 15.) Satan would delight in seeing such a snare succeed, to Jehovah’s reproach.