An Organizational Analysis of the Schismatic Church of Satan

Datos Bibliográficos

ID4908190
AutoresSteven Foertsch (0000-0002-1957-1300, Baylor University, autor de correspondencia)
Año2022
Volumen64
Número1
Páginas55-76
Fecha de publicación2022-03-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaReview of Religious Research (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 2211-4866 • E-ISSN: 0034-673X
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s13644-021-00468-9
OpenAlexW3193471072
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas3
Referencias citadas27

Background The Church of Satan, the seminal example of organizational Satanism, was founded in 1966. During the 1970s, the Church of Satan was wracked by a history of numerous schisms. Despite the notoriety of Satanism in popular culture, few scholars have analyzed the Church of Satan as a religious organization. Furthermore, not many scholars have directly discussed the schisms that it has undergone. Purpose The purpose of this research is to analyze the Church of Satan, an understudied case in American religious organizational history, and its schisms. A theoretical framework based on religious economies and organizational ecology is introduced to account for schism in Satanism, which hitherto has been dominated by European cultural milieu arguments. Methods A historical case study is performed on the case of the Church of Satan, using primary and secondary documentation, in order to address four theoretical propositions. Results Findings demonstrate costliness, authority, doctrine, and niche/environment were all potential causes for the schisms that impacted the Church of Satan. Conclusions and Implications The Church of Satan conforms to religious economies and organizational ecology theory expectations of schism. Further research is needed to understand organizational aspects of Satanism and other avant garde religious groups

Church History · Doctrine · Political science · Religious organization · Schism · Sociology · Law · Philosophy · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Religious studies · Religious Studies and Spiritual Practices