Joy of Satan Ministries, also referred to as Joy of Satan (JoS),
is a website and
western esoteric occult organization founded in 2002 by Andrea M. Dietrich
( Maxine Dietrich).
Joy of Satan Ministries advocates "Spiritual Satanism",
an ideology that presents a synthesis of
Theistic Satanism
Theistic Satanism, otherwise referred to as religious Satanism, spiritual Satanism, or traditional Satanism, is an umbrella term for religious groups that consider Satan, the Devil, or Lucifer to objectively exist as a deity, supernatural entit ...
,
Nazism
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...
,
Gnostic
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...
Paganism,
Western esotericism
Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas ...
,
UFO conspiracy theories
UFO conspiracy theories are a subset of conspiracy theories which argue that various governments and politicians globally, in particular the Government of the United States, are suppressing evidence that unidentified flying objects are controlle ...
and
extraterrestrial beliefs similar to those popularized by
Zecharia Sitchin
Zecharia Sitchin (July 11, 1920 – October 9, 2010) was an author of a number of books proposing an explanation for human origins involving ancient astronauts. Sitchin attributed the creation of the ancient Sumerian culture to the ''Anunnaki'', ...
and
David Icke
David Vaughan Icke (; born 29 April 1952) is an English conspiracy theorist and a former footballer and sports broadcaster. He has written over 20 books, self-published since the mid-1990s, and spoken in more than 25 countries.
In 1990, Icke ...
.
Members believe Satan to be "The true father and creator God of humanity", whose desire was for his creations, humanity, to elevate themselves through knowledge and understanding.
They have been the topic of significant controversy for their anti-Semitic beliefs and a connection to a former chairman of the
National Socialist Movement, an American
Neo-Nazi organization.
Definition
The orientation of the Joy of Satan Ministries – "Spiritual Satanism" – is generally acknowledged by some scholars as a form of
western esotericism
Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas ...
,
embracing an esoteric form of
LaVeyan Satanism
LaVeyan Satanism is a nontheistic religion founded in 1966 by the American occultist and author Anton Szandor LaVey. Scholars of religion have classified it as a new religious movement and a form of Western esotericism.
LaVey established his m ...
instead of the materialist and carnal inceptions idealized by
Anton LaVey.
Their relation between Satan is described by professor of religious studies,
Christopher Partridge
Christopher Hugh Partridge (born 1961) is an author, editor, professor at Lancaster University, and founding Co-director of the Centre for the Study of Religion and Popular Culture. According to Gordon Lynch, Partridge is a leading scholar of t ...
, as "the core of an esoteric project of transformation, based on a personal or mystical relationship".
History
In the early 2000s, Maxine Dietrich began the creation of Joy of Satan Ministries.
Maxine Dietrich established a Satanic ideology that would present itself as an esoteric form of
LaVeyan Satanism
LaVeyan Satanism is a nontheistic religion founded in 1966 by the American occultist and author Anton Szandor LaVey. Scholars of religion have classified it as a new religious movement and a form of Western esotericism.
LaVey established his m ...
, but would espouse a "traditional Satanism" by establishing its satanic fundamentals from ancient
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...
,
Far-Eastern and
Western teachings, and only acknowledging Judaic/Abrahamic concepts of Satan as a reaction.
From the research of
Zechariah Sitchin
Zecharia Sitchin (July 11, 1920 – October 9, 2010) was an author of a number of books proposing an explanation for human origins involving ancient astronauts. Sitchin attributed the creation of the ancient Sumerian culture to the ''Anunnaki'', ...
, Maxine Dietrich derived the theory of an ancient conflict between advanced extraterrestrial races (see
#Origins of humanity, below) and incorporated these theories into her ideology;
she concluded that Jews and the
Abrahamic religions
The Abrahamic religions are a group of religions centered around worship of the God of Abraham. Abraham, a Hebrew patriarch, is extensively mentioned throughout Abrahamic religious scriptures such as the Bible and the Quran.
Jewish tradition ...
were the products of a hostile alien race responsible for the deposition of pagan religions and their pagan gods (who the JoS identify as
demons).
With this reinterpretation, the Joy of Satan recreated Anton LaVey's
Sigil of Baphomet
The Sigil of Baphomet is the official insignia of the Church of Satan. It first appeared on the cover of '' The Satanic Mass LP'' in 1968 and later on the cover of ''The Satanic Bible'' in 1969. The sigil has been called a "material pentagram" r ...
, a
Sigil
A sigil () is a type of symbol used in magic. The term has usually referred to a pictorial signature of a deity or spirit. In modern usage, especially in the context of chaos magic, sigil refers to a symbolic representation of the practitioner ...
that would incorporate
Cuneiform
Cuneiform is a logo-syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedge-sh ...
script instead of
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
letters (which spells out "
Satan" in cuneiform instead of "
Leviathan
Leviathan (; he, לִוְיָתָן, ) is a sea serpent noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, the Book of Amos, and, according to some ...
" in Hebrew). These incorporated theories, in addition to its contempt of
Jewish mysticism, became the spark of significant controversy for the religious organization.
When the adoption of
anti-Judaic sentiment had completely established itself within the JoS ideology, further anti-Semitic theories would later be incorporated. In 2004, it was also revealed that Clifford Herrington, chairman of the National Socialist Movement, was the husband of the high priestess of the organization.
This revelation exposed the split in the NSM's religious orientation and lead to a major debate and conflict within the NSM and JoS.
Despite the events, Joy of Satan continued to persist and maintain popularity and significance while being acknowledged as one of the most controversial Satanic sects in the currents of theistic Satanism.
Beliefs
Extraterrestrials
Joy of Satan presents various extraterrestrial theories, some of which they derive from author of
ancient astronauts,
Zecharia Sitchin
Zecharia Sitchin (July 11, 1920 – October 9, 2010) was an author of a number of books proposing an explanation for human origins involving ancient astronauts. Sitchin attributed the creation of the ancient Sumerian culture to the ''Anunnaki'', ...
. JoS believe that Satan and the Demons of the
Goetia
''The Lesser Key of Solomon'', also known as ''Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis'' or simply ''Lemegeton'', is an anonymous grimoire on demonology. It was compiled in the mid-17th century, mostly from materials a couple of centuries older.''Lemegeto ...
are sentient and powerful extraterrestrial beings responsible for the creation of humanity,
and whose origins pre-date
Abrahamic religions
The Abrahamic religions are a group of religions centered around worship of the God of Abraham. Abraham, a Hebrew patriarch, is extensively mentioned throughout Abrahamic religious scriptures such as the Bible and the Quran.
Jewish tradition ...
.
They're also identified as
Nephilim from the Hebrew bible.
According to
sociologist of religion Massimo Introvigne, "Maxine Dietrich derived from these theories the ideas of a mortal struggle between enlightened aliens and a monstrous extra-terrestrial race, the
Reptilians."
Origins of humanity
Joy of Satan Ministries believe that one of the benign aliens,
Enki, which they consider to be Satan himself, created with his collaborators on Earth human beings through their advanced technology of
genetic engineering.
It's considered by Joy of Satan that most salient of his creations were the
Nordic-
Aryan race.
They declare that the Reptilians have, in turn, created their own kind by combining their own DNA with the DNA of semi-animal humanoids with the result identified as the
Jewish race.
Joy of Satan Ministries theorize that after the benevolent extraterrestrials left Earth 10,000 years ago, the agents of the Reptilians created their own religions, the
Abrahamic religions
The Abrahamic religions are a group of religions centered around worship of the God of Abraham. Abraham, a Hebrew patriarch, is extensively mentioned throughout Abrahamic religious scriptures such as the Bible and the Quran.
Jewish tradition ...
,
which subsequently began the deposition and defamation of Pagan deities.
They claim these religions maligned the benign extraterrestrials by labeling them as "devils", and through their doctrines, created a climate of terror within humanity (e.g. condemning sexuality), in order to better program and control humans.
They state that Satan, however, did not abandon humanity, believing he has revealed himself in
The Black Book of Satan (not to be confused with the
ONA
Ona or ONA may refer to:
Anthropology
* Ona people, an indigenous people of southern Argentina and Chile
** Ona language, a language once spoken in Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego
* Ona, a pre-Aksumite culture in Sembel, Eritrea
Geography
* On ...
's scripture of the same name).
Theology
Adherents of Joy of Satan Ministries are generally polytheists, viewing demons of the Goetia to have a literal existence and Satan to be their cardinal ruler.
Satan and some demons are also viewed as one of many
deities and are equated with many gods from ancient cultures,
such as Satan having known to be the
Sumerian god
Enki and the
Yazidi angel Melek Taus.
While Satan is considered a deity within JoS, the deities themselves are understood to be highly evolved, un-aging, sentient and powerful humanoid extraterrestrial beings.
While the Joy of Satan Ministries adopts the Satanic fundamentals of LaVey's Satanic bible, Introvigne describes LaVeyan Satanism as more "rationalist" in comparison.
In Asbjorn Dyrendal's account, he acknowledges "a different spiritual atmosphere from LaVeyan Satanism."
Asbjorn states that "LaVey was able to suggest the reality of mysterious, 'occult' forces' while simultaneously appealing to an atheist viewpoint that, he asserted, was supported by modern science."
He further adds that "The Joy of Satan tends to present with more simple, spiritualized language."
Satan is seen as an important deity by the Joy of Satan, although not as an omnipotent and omnipresent god.
They also hold the belief of Satan to be a representative of the notions of strength, power, justice, and freedom.
Lillith is another deity of significance to the group, who is recognized as "the patron of strong women and a Goddess of women's rights",
as well as abortion rights and birth control.
Practices
Joy of Satan promotes a wide variety of occult practices, such as methods for
evocation
Evocation is the act of evoking, calling upon, or summoning a spirit, demon, deity or other supernatural agents, in the Western mystery tradition. Comparable practices exist in many religions and magical traditions and may employ the use of mi ...
of
demonic entities and guidelines for making pacts with them.
JoS consider that Satanism, in practice, is the true nature of humanity that precedes Christianity.
Occultism
Practitioners of the Joy of Satan Ministries may share similar practices of other groups under the theistic Satanist sect and those categorized in the esoteric ideology.
According to Christian author and biblical researcher, Josh Peck, "theistic Satanism engages in every New age practice under the sun in their dedications to Satan and Satanic philosophy."
Referring the spiritual ministry as an example, he notes their divination methods in
astrology
Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Di ...
,
magic
Magic or Magick most commonly refers to:
* Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces
* Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic
* Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...
,
pendulums
A pendulum is a weight suspended from a pivot so that it can swing freely. When a pendulum is displaced sideways from its resting, equilibrium position, it is subject to a restoring force due to gravity that will accelerate it back toward the ...
,
runes
Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were used to write various Germanic languages (with some exceptions) before they adopted the Latin alphabet, and for specialised ...
,
clairvoyance
Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...
,
past lives
Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is ...
, the
pineal gland and
third eye
The third eye (also called the mind's eye or inner eye) is a mystical invisible eye, usually depicted as located on the forehead, which provides perception beyond ordinary sight. In Hinduism, the third eye refers to the ajna (or brow) chakra. In ...
, the
chakras,
bioelectric technology, the
astral plane, spells, the
kundalini serpent,
trance
Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...
, as well as methods in
self-hypnosis
Self-hypnosis or auto-hypnosis (as distinct from hetero-hypnosis) is a form, a process, or the result of a self-induced hypnotic state.
Frequently, self-hypnosis is used as a vehicle to enhance the efficacy of self-suggestion; and, in such case ...
,
incense
Incense is aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also b ...
,
telekinesis
Psychokinesis (from grc, ψυχή, , soul and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), or telekinesis (from grc, τηλε, , far off and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), is a hypothetical psychic ability allowing a person ...
,
brain waves
Neural oscillations, or brainwaves, are rhythmic or repetitive patterns of neural activity in the central nervous system. Neural tissue can generate oscillation, oscillatory activity in many ways, driven either by mechanisms within individual ne ...
, and
chanting
A chant (from French ', from Latin ', "to sing") is the iterative speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two main pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of n ...
.
Jesper Petersen states that practitioners experimenting with the meditation practices of the JoS can find them useful.
Their numerous uses of magic also run from simple to the complex. These include sorcery, spells, and various types of
witchcraft
Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have ...
, all of which require the practitioner to imaginatively apply specialized knowledge and technique to the object of the
spell,
hypnotism,
healing
With physical trauma or disease suffered by an organism, healing involves the repairing of damaged tissue(s), organs and the biological system as a whole and resumption of (normal) functioning. Medicine includes the process by which the cells ...
and other kind of magic or
divination.
They also offer a range of occult techniques in
black magic
Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 14 ...
.
Rituals
According to Jesper Petersen, "The rituals proposed by the Joy of Satan are very simple and not particularly advanced, with most consisting of mainly visualization exercises rather than actual rituals known in mainstream satanic culture. Despite what's commonly believed, the process of their rituals is not a negotiation or 'exercises of evil, but rather 'telepathic communication' with
anthropomorphic beings, with an almost jovial tone throughout various rituals".
The JoS also state Satan recognizes a lack of funds and does not expect his adherents to have expensive items for ritual in comparison to the ideals of a modern Christian Church.
A similar formulation is also used when discussing the scarcity of black candles.
Initiates begin a "formal commitment" that is signed in blood and burned in order to participate fully in Satan's work upon humanity, to imply a growth in spiritual knowledge and personal power.
In standard devotional rituals, their orientation is described as a shift from control to attachment and self-development, in which their rituals are not intended to forcibly summon demons but instead enable mystical experiences and empowerment more in tune with their expressive concerns.
The central part of their "Standard Ritual to Satan" consists in reading prayers to and "communicating with father Satan one to one", which is considered by Jesper Petersen "a surprising break with the more traditional ceremonial activities known in mainstream satanic culture."
The structure of the ritual is also considered fairly standard, after which suitable preparations (bathing, lighting candles and so on), the ritual begins with ringing the bell and invoking "The four princes of hell."
In the main part, the
Invocation
An invocation (from the Latin verb ''invocare'' "to call on, invoke, to give") may take the form of:
*Supplication, prayer or spell.
*A form of possession.
*Command or conjuration.
* Self-identification with certain spirits.
These forms ...
to Satan is recited, establishing a link suitable for prayer and communication. The practitioner, after concluding his endeavors, will then end the ritual with a close.
Prominent theistic Satanist, Diane Vera, commends the owner of the Joy of Satan site, Maxine Dietrich, stating her pioneering efforts is a vast improvement over the old, disrespectful
grimoire
A grimoire ( ) (also known as a "book of spells" or a "spellbook") is a textbook of magic, typically including instructions on how to create magical objects like talismans and amulets, how to perform magical spells, charms and divination, and ...
methods.
Rev. Jeff Rhoades also states their endeavors with demons are "with much more respect than most version of the Goetia and other Christian grimoires."
Adherents of the Joy of Satan may also partake in rituals against those believed to be "enemies of Satan", a notion advocated as
spiritual warfare
Spiritual warfare is the Christian concept of fighting against the work of preternatural evil forces. It is based on the biblical belief in evil spirits, or demons, that are said to intervene in human affairs in various ways. Although spir ...
.
Reception
Joy of Satan Ministries became the topic of significant criticism for its close connections to a high-ranking leader of the
National Socialist Movement, as well as for its
anti-Judaic,
anti-Christian
Anti-Christian sentiment or Christophobia constitutes opposition or objections to Christians, the Christian religion, and/or its practices. Anti-Christian sentiment is sometimes referred to as Christophobia or Christianophobia, although these terms ...
, and
anti-Semitic beliefs.
While spiritual Satanists have adopted their ideas as a model, they have since distanced themselves from the group's controversial beliefs
and "very explicit connection with Nazism."
When the fact that Maxine was the wife of a well-known American neo-Nazi leader became public knowledge, it created serious problems within Joy of Satan itself.
This controversy exposed the split in the NSM between the Christian Identity and the
Odinists and Satanists.
According to Introvigne (2016), "Several local groups abandoned Dietrich and started minuscule splinter organizations. Some of these insisted that they were not Satanist, just pagan".
Introvigne adds that "most are by now defunct, while Joy of Satan continues its existence, although with a reduced number of members".
Despite the events, Introvigne states that "Its ideas on extraterrestrials, meditation, and telepathic contacts with demons became, however, popular in a larger milieu of non-LaVeyan "spiritual" or theistic" Satanism".
Followed by a series of backlash, Clifford and Andrea Herrington were also accused of sexual misconduct with many other allegations against them, however, Introvigne claims the allegations "are difficult to evaluate".
Maxine's Satanic affiliations, however, were enough to result in Clifford Herrington's departure from the National Socialist Movement.
Clifford Herrington would then form the "National Socialist Freedom Movement" after leaving the NSM in 2006.
Like the
Order of Nine Angles
The Order of Nine Angles (ONA or O9A) is a Satanic and left-hand path occultist group which is based in the United Kingdom, and associated groups are based in other parts of the world. Claiming to have been established in the 1960s, it rose to ...
, the Joy of Satan shares similar anti-Semitic beliefs and National Socialist sympathy and is considered to be in the same ideological category, appearing to be similar ideologies with some dissent to each other.
James R. Lewis noted in his "Satan census"(2009) a surprising number of respondents to the Joy of Satan. According to the scholar of
Religious studies and
researcher of New religious movements Jesper Aagaard Petersen's survey (2014) on the Satanic ''milieus proliferation on the internet (2014) noted a surprising prominence among theistic Satanist websites on the internet, he states "the only sites with some popularity are the
Church of Satan
The Church of Satan is a religious organization dedicated to the religion of LaVeyan Satanism as codified in '' The Satanic Bible''. The Church of Satan was established at the Black House in San Francisco, California, on Walpurgisnacht, A ...
and (somewhat paradoxically) Joy of Satan's page base on the
angelfire
Angelfire is an Internet service that offers website services. It is owned by Lycos, which also owns Tripod.com. Angelfire operates separately from Tripod.com and includes features such as blog building and a photo gallery builder. Free webpage ...
network, and they are still very far from
Scientology
Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It has been variously defined as a cult, a Scientology as a business, business, or a new religious movement. The most recent ...
or YouTube. Most of these sites are decidedly fringe."
See also
*
Ancient Egyptian religion
*
Ancient Mesopotamian religion
Mesopotamian religion refers to the religious beliefs and practices of the civilizations of ancient Mesopotamia, particularly Sumer, Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia between circa 6000 BC and 400 AD, after which they largely gave way to Syria ...
*
Demonology
Demonology is the study of demons within religious belief and myth. Depending on context, it can refer to studies within theology, religious doctrine, or pseudoscience. In many faiths, it concerns the study of a hierarchy of demons. Demons may ...
*
Esoteric Nazism
*
Extraterrestrial hypothesis
The extraterrestrial hypothesis (ETH) proposes that some unidentified flying objects (UFOs) are best explained as being physical spacecraft occupied by extraterrestrial life or non-human aliens, or non-occupied alien probes from other planets vi ...
*
Far-right politics
Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...
*
Meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...
*
Modern Paganism
*
Occultism in Nazism
The association of Nazism with occultism occurs in a wide range of theories, speculation, and research into the origins of Nazism and into Nazism's possible relationship with various occult traditions. Such ideas have flourished as a part of popu ...
*
Religions of the ancient Near East
*
Spirituality
References
Bibliography
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Further reading
*
*
*
External links
* {{official, https://www.joyofsatan.org
Internet properties established in 2002
Left-Hand Path
Magical organizations
New religious movements
Religious organizations established in 2002
Satanism and Nazism
Satanism
UFO religions