IT is a popular misconception that the Satanist does not believe in God. The concept of
"God", as interpreted by man, has been so varied throughout the ages, that the Satanist
simply accepts the definition which suits him best. Man has always created his gods,
rather than his gods creating him. God is, to some, benign - to others, terrifying. To the
Satanist "God" - by whatever name he is called, or by no name at all - is seen as the
balancing factor in nature, and not as being concerned with suffering. This powerful
force which permeates and balances the universe is far too impersonal to care about the
happiness or misery of flesh-and-blood creatures on this ball of dirt upon which we
live.
Anyone who thinks of Satan as evil should consider all the men, women, children, and
animals who have died because it was "God's will". Certainly a person grieving the untimely
loss of a loved one whould much rather have their loved one with them than in God's hands!
Instead, they are unctuously consoled by their clergyman who says, "It was God's will, my
dear"; or "He is in God's hands now, my son." Such phrases have been a convenient way for
religionists to condone or excuse the mercilessness of God. But if God is in complete control
and as benign as he is supposed to be, why does He allow these things to happen? Too long
have religionists been falling back on their bibles and rulebooks to prove or disprove, justify,
condemn, or interpret.
The Satanist realizes that man, and the action and reaction of the universe, is responsible for
everything, and doesn't mislead himself into thinking that someone cares. No longer will we
sit back and accept "fate" without doing anything about it, just because it says so in Chapter
such and such, Psalm so and so - and that's that! The Satanist knows that praying does
absolutely no good - in fact, it actually lessens the chance of success, for the devoutly
religious too often sit back complacently and pray for a situation which, if they were to do
something about it on their own, could be accomplished much quicker!
The Satanist shuns terms such as "hope" and "prayer" as they are indicative of apprehension.
If we hope and pray for something to come about, we will not act in a positive way which will
make it happen. The Satanist, realizing that anything he gets is of his own doing, takes
command of the situation instead of praying to God for it to happen. Positive thinking and
positive action add up to results.
Just as the Satanist does not pray to God for assistance, he does not pray for forgiveness for
his wrong doings. In other religions, when one commits a wrong he either prays to God for
forgiveness, or confesses to an intermediary and asks him to pray to God for forgiveness for
his sins. The Satanist knows that praying does no good, confessing to another human being,
like himself, accomplishes even less - and is, furthermore, degrading.
