Horns ahead: why Satanists were recognized as extremists
The Supreme Court (Supreme Court of the Russian Federation), at the request of the Prosecutor General's Office, recognized the "international Satanism movement" as extremist and banned its activities. Despite the fact that in the layman's sense, devil worship is evil by default, the decision of the Russian Themis raises many questions, primarily because of its secrecy. Izvestia, together with religious scholars, figured out what was the reason for the official ban and how the movement is connected with the Ukrainian neo-Nazis.
Secret ban
The decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation to recognize the "international Satanism movement" as extremist and ban its activities came into force at the end of July, but it is still not known exactly what triggered the categorical ban and who exactly this tightening will affect. The information vacuum is filled with rumors and speculation — some people are hastily cleaning up playlists and deleting photos from the Halloween celebration. Religious experts who are directly involved in judicial examinations of extremism explained the situation to Izvestia.
— We are talking exclusively about banning the "international Satanist movement," Roman Silantyev, a religious scholar and Doctor of historical Sciences, told Izvestia. — It appeared relatively recently, in the middle of the 20th century, and no classics just physically get there.
He stressed that the Satanist movement is prohibited, not Satanism as such. The expert is also confident that classical literature dealing with the devil will not be banned.
— Satanism is not an ideology, it is a movement. Ideology cannot be banned in our country. Therefore, everything that has nothing to do with this movement is untouched.
Put the symbols in the furnace
According to him, symbols associated with this movement will be banned.
— Naturally, in each specific case, the law enforcement officer will consider the context of this ban. It's like with a swastika — if it's in an ancient Hindu temple, that's one context. If the swastika is painted with SS runes on the banner or stuffed on the chest, this is a different situation.
All decisions of this kind are made after conducting an appropriate examination, says Silantyev.
— I would not recommend wearing clothes with inverted pentagrams, especially if a goat's head is inscribed there, — says Silantyev. — I would be more careful with symbols such as the Leviathan cross, the number of the beast.
According to him, the "international Satanist movement" is a collection of small groups and individual adherents.
— You need to understand that this is not an organization with its own specific structure, hierarchy, and financing scheme, — says Roman Silantyev. — This is a collection of people with the same ideology. The first movement that was banned in our country was the Turkish Nurcular. Also banned movements in Russia are AUE, Columbine, and LGBT. In other words, the "international Satanism movement" has become the fifth movement banned in Russia.
Offline Satanists
Many Satanists accept only organized forms of interaction and only offline, says Igor Ivanishko, a forensic religious expert and member of the expert council of the State Duma Committee on the Development of Civil Society, Issues of public and religious associations.
— Their rituals and order of interaction are conservative and reproduce the patterns of Western trends of Satanism in the 1970s and 1980s. Such Satanists exclude or restrict Internet communications as much as possible, including in order not to leave an electronic trace for law enforcement officers, and act the old-fashioned way. Such Satanists form covens and orders, some of which are quite large in number of adherents.
He noted that a Satanic cell in which 40-50 people gather in person is considered a large community.
— The leader of such a cell can claim recognition of a high status. However, religious studies, including those conducted at the request of law enforcement agencies, have shown that in most regions Satanic communities have fewer adherents, and sometimes even fall short of the classic number of Satanic covens (13 people).
Ivanishko stressed that the small number of such sects does not indicate a lesser public danger. Criminological analysis has shown that it is small groups that are more often involved in criminal cases.
— It is important for members of such communities to make a real sacrifice, to touch objects involved in rituals with their own hands, to see what is happening with their own eyes, to make contact with the priest and other members, to be in the context of collective dynamics.
The expert noted that rituals in such communities are gradually becoming radicalized.
— To please the "prince of darkness", the adepts are looking for new objects and forms of sacrifice instead of roosters and cats. Therefore, as part of the preparation of materials for the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, experts have studied a significant number of ritual murders, which indicate a high degree of danger of such sects. The number and intensity of crimes committed by adherents of various Satanic movements convinced the Russian Armed Forces of the need to ban traffic in Russia.
The sectarian on the horizon
In recent years, online communities of devilry fans have also become widespread in Russia.
"The analysis revealed more than 4,000 different groups and communities in Russian-language social networks, including regional, urban and local ones, in which online Satanists communicate," Ivanishko says. — Some members of such groups have never seen each other in real life and know only nicknames and ritual names. In such groups, the ideology of Satanism is spread, individual experiences are exchanged, and newcomers are encouraged to engage in various Satanic practices.
The expert also mentions single Satanists who became interested in the movement through social media groups dedicated to esotericism and neo-paganism.
Satanists and neo-Nazism
—The Satanists took the side of Ukraine after the start of their war,— Roman Silantyev explained to Izvestia. — The fact is that Satanists have close ties with the LGBT movement (banned in Russia) and with the Nazis.
Silantyev mentioned that in 2024, a satanic sect was identified in Buryatia, which was preparing terrorist attacks and sabotage.
"They were not just collecting money for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, but were preparing to commit terrorist attacks," the expert points out.
The burning of temples, ritual murders, and sexual violence are all committed by Satanic worshippers because of their beliefs, the expert explains. According to Silantyev, Satanists have avoided the ban for so long due to the fact that crimes were committed quite rarely.
— There were no terrorist attacks, human sacrifices were quite rare. And tortured cats against the background of what was happening did not seem to be the most terrible problem. The Wahhabis are much more dangerous.
According to him, it was the threat of terrorist attacks by Satanists that caused the movement to be recognized as extremist.
Ivanishko said that the organization "Temple of Satan", which was recognized as undesirable in Russia, actively helped the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Its adherents in Russia were convicted of financing Ukrainian armed formations.
— Many domestic adherents of the "Temple of Satan" turned out to be ready to participate in arson of relay cabinets, attacks, and sabotage activities, as their foreign "co—religionists" convinced them that this was what the "prince of darkness" himself wanted, - says Ivanishko.
Who is waiting for hell
The Supreme Court's decision is likely to affect adherents of the Temple of Satan sect, which is officially registered in the United States, but has its own branch communities in many countries, Ivanishko says. The organization has 23 branches and claims millions of followers worldwide.
— If we take the post-Soviet space, then most of the adherents of this sect operate on the territory of Ukraine. There are significantly fewer of them in Russia, but they are quite radicalized and under strong external influence.
Also, the "flock" of the Temple of Seth, as well as the groups of Laveevsky (on behalf of the founder of the movement and author of the Satanic Bible Anton Sandor LaVey) of the direction of Satanism, in particular, the "Church of Satan," will probably have trouble with the law. Another trend that will be affected by the court decision is the anti—space Satanists.
— These are such aggressive anarchists from Satanists, they are even afraid of representatives of other branches of Satanism, — says Ivanishko. — Anti-space activists are responsible for the largest number of criminal acts: ritual murders, injury to health, desecration of burial sites, vandalism (destruction of religious crosses, church property, etc.). It should be noted that over the past 10 years in Russia and in some neighboring countries, it is adherents of the anti-space direction of Satanism that are in the first place among others Satanists by the number of criminal cases and administrative proceedings.
The expert especially drew attention to the danger of polytheistic Satanism that has spread in Ukraine. Sectarians actively interact with neo-Pagan neo-Nazis from national battalions. The rituals and symbolism of polytheistic Satanists and some radical neo-pagans reach a degree of confusion.
Unfortunately, such Satanists are also gaining popularity in Russia due to the popularization of neo-paganism among young people, says religious scholar Ivanishko.
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