January 10, 2014

"Members of the Satanic Temple have unveiled their design for a 7-foot-tall statue of the devil they want to locate at the Capitol building in Oklahoma..."

"... right next to a monument of the Ten Commandments that has stood since 2012."


Here's the Supreme Court case that thwarts a claim that the Constitution requires that Oklahoma accept the monument, so don't hyperventilate. The question is whether Oklahoma should choose to add this work of art to its monument collection. Or, really, to me, the truly compelling question is whether this group deliberately designed an atrocious monument for the purpose of challenging and aggravating the people of Oklahoma. I assume they did, based on the daft expression on the young boy's face.

58 comments:

fivewheels said...

Also the devil clearly should be throwing up horns with his right hand.

David said...


Or they could put it at JFK to welcome visitors from small towns to New York.

Cliff said...

I've been wondering about precedent. Thanks so much for the court citation.

Jason said...

Meh.

Cthulhu or GTFO.

Gahrie said...

I believe the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster has also submitted a proposal for a monument.

The Godfather said...

If you're going to present Satan as benevolent (i.e., the smiling children gathered about him), then what's the point of being a Satanist? If you want to be a Satanist, you should be worshiping evil, destruction, pain, fear, and all that. If your Satan is a good guy, then he's God under another name.

SomeoneHasToSayIt said...


I bet most of the design time was spent figuring out how to offend Christianity, without at the same time offending Islam.

That's got to be a least a little tricky.

Anonymous said...

One nation under God, but whose God?

Gary Kirk said...

There's something striking about that boy's face. Or is it just me?

RecChief said...

isn';t the group from New York?

YoungHegelian said...

Man, if you think religions made up by shepherds & fishermen 2000 years ago are stupid, just wait 'til you see what gets made up by 20th century urbanites.

MathMom said...

Kirk,

Do you think he resembles a certain golf fanatic and eater of shaved ice?

Gary Kirk said...

Mathmom,

The devil's in the details.

Darrell said...

If Obama had a son, he could be that boy. Heck, he is already.

Revenant said...

Personally, I think the monument is hilarious. Probably because I'm sick of being all "our laws are based on the ten commandments, if you ignore the ones about God and adultery and coveting and stuff".

I'm hoping they make smaller copies so I can buy one. :)

I especially like the bit where they designed it so kids can sit in the devil's lap.

Sorun said...

The boy is The Joker from Batman, as a child.

Ambrose said...

This would embarrass the devil himself.

Revenant said...

If your Satan is a good guy, then he's God under another name.

The notion that the Christian God is by definition "good" is a Christian theological concept, not a universal truth accepted by all faiths.

mccullough said...

Looks like a young Obama and a young Hillary genuflecting to big government.

Archilochus said...

A depiction of child sacrifice would be more accurate.

Cf. Plutarch, De Superstitiones 171:

... but with full knowledge and understanding they themselves offered up their own children, and those who had no children would buy little ones from poor people and cut their throats as if they were so many lambs or young birds; meanwhile the mother stood by without a tear or moan; but should she utter a single moan or let fall a single tear, she had to forfeit the money, and her child was sacrificed nevertheless; and the whole area before the statue was filled with a loud noise of flutes and drums took the cries of wailing should not reach the ears of the people.

Revenant said...

Cf. Plutarch, De Superstitiones 171:

That is a description of the Phoenician god Moloch, not of Baphomet.

Gary Kirk said...

Well I guess Okies can be grateful that the Satanists didn't truly challenge and aggravate them by buying some real estate near the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Monument and putting this work of art there. I mean after all, a statue of Jesus weeping is across the street from the Memorial.

That must really piss 'em off;

William said...

It is rumored that you gain favor in God's eyes by doing good. Similarly, it is said that you gain favor in Satan's eyes by dong evil. One of the most spectacularly evil acts in man's extensive repertoire is the murder of a child. To reflect the beliefs of a true Satanist, one should depict him ripping the entrails out of one child while the other looks on in horror.

Revenant said...

Similarly, it is said that you gain favor in Satan's eyes by dong evil.

Said by whom, exactly? :)

Anonymous said...

The Devil Wears a Lap Snuggie.



I Thought as Much.

FullMoon said...

Their web traffic has gone from pretty much zero to about 40 million hits in the last few days.
They offer
1. A bumper sticker.
2.5 buttons.
3. A coffee cup.
They shoulda got famous before Christmas.
I woulda got that coffee cup for my brother in law.

themightypuck said...

The Nine Satanic Statements[change | edit source]
The Nine Satanic Statements outline what "Satan" represents in the Church of Satan.
Satan represents doing what you want, instead of stopping yourself doing it.
Satan represents truly living instead of spiritual fantasies.
Satan represents pure wisdom instead of lying to yourself and others.
Satan represents kindness to those who deserve it instead of love wasted on ungrateful people.
Satan represents revenge instead of loving your enemy, which Christians are told to do.
Satan represents having responsibility for responsible people, instead of concern for those who live off other people's work.
Satan represents man as just another animal.
Satan represents all of the things Christianity has called sins, as they all lead to pleasure of some kind.
Satan has been the best friend the Church has ever had, as he has kept it in business all these years.
The Nine Satanic Sins[change | edit source]
Stupidity
Pretentiousness
Solipsism
Self-deceit
Herd Conformity
Lack of Perspective
Forgetfulness of Past Orthodoxies
Counterproductive Pride
Lack of Aesthetics
The Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth[change | edit source]
Do not give opinions or advice unless you are asked
Do not tell your troubles to others unless you are sure they want to hear them
When in another’s lair, show him respect or else do not go there
If a guest in your lair annoys you, treat him cruelly and without mercy
Do not make sexual advances unless you are given the mating signal
Do not take that which does not belong to you unless it is a burden to the other person and he cries out to be relieved
Acknowledge the power of magic if you have employed it successfully to obtain your desires. If you deny the power of magic after having called upon it with success, you will lose all you have obtained
Do not complain about anything to which you need not subject yourself
Do not harm little children
Do not kill non-human animals unless you are attacked or for your food
When walking in open territory, bother no one. If someone bothers you, ask him to stop. If he does not stop, destroy him

themightypuck said...

My favorite is: Do not make sexual advances unless you are given the mating signal.

themightypuck said...

I also figure "Lair Etiquette" could be a big thing.

Steven said...

If you're going to present Satan as benevolent (i.e., the smiling children gathered about him), then what's the point of being a Satanist? If you want to be a Satanist, you should be worshiping evil, destruction, pain, fear, and all that. If your Satan is a good guy, then he's God under another name.

Hmm? No, the specific point of Satanism calling itself Satanism is that the God of the Bible is not a good guy, that the God of the Bible loves evil, destruction, pain, and fear. See, for example, the fate of Jericho at the hands of Joshua's army -- "They devoted the city to the Lord and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys." Joshua 6:21.

Now, when we consider that the Old Testament God is a deity that endorses genocide in his name, the New Testament Christ tells us "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind" (Matthew 22:37). And if you are faced with your own Joshua leading an army to exterminate you and your city, "do not resist an evil person" (Matthew 5:39), and "love your enemies" (Matthew 5:44).

Satanists, quite sensibly, see this as monstrous. If someone has an army slaughter women, children, infants, and animals, you shouldn't love that person, and you certainly should resist him. It doesn't matter if it's being done in the name of the "proletariat" or the "Volk" or the Creator of all that is seen and unseen"; evil is evil and it should be resisted, not loved.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Somehow I don't believe the people that designed the Satan statue were happy people with love in their hearts. But how can I possibly know that? Revenant would know, I bet. He knows everything about religion! He belongs to the "well, that's your opinion" school of philosophy!

Revenant said...

Somehow I don't believe the people that designed the Satan statue were happy people with love in their hearts. Revenant would know, I bet. He knows everything about religion!

For example, I know that's not a statue of Satan. :)

Of course, if you'd bothered to read the article, you'd know that too.

n.n said...

Of course, there is an obvious equivalence. The moral law and progressive dysfunction are of equal repute to many people. I suggest that Satan be featured under a Planned Parenthood banner while disemboweling little boys and girls into a far distant time. Let us worship Satan and join the Dodo Dynasty in exchange for "free" medical insurance and other poverty inducing schemes.

Alex said...

I don't see any reason why not to allow it.

tim in vermont said...

I can't decide if this is motivated by Oikophobia or Okeephobia.

tim in vermont said...

Maybe not Alex, but I can't see any reason to allow it either.

Ron said...

C'mon, admit it... You want a toilet like that!

jdallen said...

Put it in. I have $100 that says it won't last three months in OK City.

traditionalguy said...

Satan preaches, "Do what thou wilt."He is the Lawless One who comes only to steal, kill and destroy.

Ergo: that is a statue of a Progressive Democrat without its disguise in place.

dbp said...

Oklahoma should accept this gift. It is doubtful that the group has the resources to produce the full-sized piece in carved stone and so accepting the proposal will not lead to the statue ever "gracing" any public space in Oklahoma.

It is win-win: 1. The state appears open to any proposal. 2. When the monument never shows up, the group that proposed it can be teased cruelly and without mercy.

tim in vermont said...

Do you notice both the Satan figure and the young boy seem to resemble different sides of Obama?

The evil, win at any cost, punish your enemies, reward your friends, Obama, and the boy represents the "I didn't know there weren't any shovel ready jobs" Obama.

Anonymous said...

Oklahoma? I Was Led to believe the Devil Went Down to Georgia.

Anonymous said...

AA: Or, really, to me, the truly compelling question is whether this group deliberately designed an atrocious monument for the purpose of trolling the people of Oklahoma.

(ftfy). But I say, sure, put it up, why the hell not? It's not like this nation could get any sillier.

David @1/10/14, 8:31 PM - good one.

Paco Wové said...

T.M.Puck – those "Statements" and "Rules" are great. I think we have at last found the religion of The Simpsons's Comic Book Guy.

Hagar said...

Just find something that is deeply offensive to as many people as possible, and if you can trump it through, that proves what a devilishly smart and clever fellow you are - not.

Anonymous said...

I Thought Satan Would Look Like Harry Dean Stanton.

KCFleming said...

Satan's erection is not terribly impressive.

Wince said...

The secret is to Google Image "Obama Grin" instead of "Obama Smile".

There you get the pre-selected Google subcategories at the top of the page "Evil Grin", "Smirk" and "Smile".

Illuninati said...

Anglelyne said...

"(ftfy). But I say, sure, put it up, why the hell not? It's not like this nation could get any sillier."

Good point.

Anonymous said...

Dead right, Pogo!

Known Unknown said...

Just seven feet tall? Pikers.

Theranter said...

Maybe they should redesign it so it is more culturally appropriate -- depicting an empowered FEMALE, it's PC then, and ol' scratch is still in the design!
See
http://familyprayerline.blogspot.com/2010/08/prayer-to-defeat-satan.html?m=1

Unknown said...

i hope they go through with this. that would be the coolest monument in the world!

Smilin' Jack said...

The question is whether Oklahoma should choose to add this work of art to its monument collection.

Absolutely. It looks so much cooler than that disgusting corpse-on-a-cross Jesus you see everywhere. No kid should have to see that.

Mitch H. said...

For example, I know that's not a statue of Satan. :)

Of course, if you'd bothered to read the article, you'd know that too.


Or maybe he can actually read and understand basic newspaper English:

The Associated Press reported an artist’s depiction shows Satan as the goat-headed and horned figure of Baphomet, complete with wings and a long beard.

Or do you not understand the basic concept of the avatar or "person"? Perhaps you should just stay the hell out of religious conversations, your naive scientism leaves you utterly ill-equipped to discuss the matter without making a total fool of yourself.

(And any self-professing Satanist who claims to believe that the God of the Bible is wicked and therefor there's a good and holy Devil who is the actual spirit of good in the world, ought to give over her bullshit Hollywood Atheism and just go do the research to become a proper Manichean gnostic, and stop wasting everybody's time acting out against Sky Daddy.)

Revenant said...

Or do you not understand the basic concept of the avatar or "person"?

Baphomet is not Satan, in the Church of Satan.

Krumhorn said...

Satan looks like he has a chubby. I hope it's not because of the kids......but then, he IS Satan

- Krumhorn

Alex said...

They should play "Her Satanic Majesties Request" as the soundtrack to the unveiling.