Home > Blurbs > Satanic Ritual Abuse

Satanic Ritual Abuse and "Recovered Memory"

Statement

Satanic Pentagram In the U.S., Satanism consists of a few small, organized groups of people who are dedicated to Satan, an archetype representing (to Satanists) qualities such as self-interest, vengeance, indulgence, and even kindness and wisdom. These groups include the Church of Satan and the Temple of Set. Except for their radically anti-Christian stance, these organizations are very much like other religious organizations. They provide support for their members, encourage ethical behavior, and engage in no criminal acts.

Satanism is a problem only to fundamentalist Christians who believe that Satanism is caused by a supernatural being, Satan, who is trying to destroy Christianity through a worldwide conspiracy of Satanists who do his bidding. Social scientists call these people "anti-satanists." When believers in Satan find objects or symbols that seem unusual to them they are likely to conclude that the objects or symbols are evidence of the evil doings of Satan and his minions. Thus road kill dumped in the woods by a highway department has been mistaken for satanic human sacrifice.

People who believe in Satan believe that evidence of his evil work in the world is everywhere:

Young people who listen to rock and roll, play role playing games like Dungeons and Dragons, or visit graveyards or other spooky places. Anti-Satanists consider these young people to be under the control of Satan. Social scientists have concluded that these young people participate in activities that seem strange and offensive to their parents as part of the normal process of growing up and becoming independent adults.
Childhood memories of sexual abuse, torture, and human sacrifice during satanic rituals. Anti-satanists believe such memories are evidence of an international satanic conspiracy bent on destroying the world. Social scientists have found no concrete evidence that anyone has been tortured by Satanists during childhood. People who believe that they have been tortured as children appear to have fabricated the "memories" under the guidance of therapists who did not realize they were leading their patients to fabricate false memories.
When civil or religious authorities dismiss the claims of Satanism for lack of evidence, they are suspected by the anti-Satanists as being part of the cult. This sort of suspicion is common to conspiracy theories: when a person or group says the conspiracy doesn't exist, they are often considered part of the conspiracy.

Sources

James T. Richardson, Joel Best and David G. Bromley, (eds.) The Satanism Scare, (New York: Aldine de Gruyter, 1991)
Robert D. Hicks. "Police Pursuit of Satanic Crime." Skeptical Inquirer, v. 14, no. 3, Spring, 1990, pp. 276-286, and no. 4, Summer, 1990, pp. 378-389.
Hicks, Robert D., In Pursuit of Satan: The Police and the Occult, (Buffalo, New York: Prometheus, 1991)
Jeffrey S. Victor, Satanic Panic: Creation of a Contemporary Legend (Chicago: Open Court, 1993)
Jeffrey S. Victor, "The Spread of Satanic-Cult Rumors." Skeptical Inquirer, 14 (Spring 1990) pp. 287-291
Lawrence Wright, Remembering Satan (New York: Knopf, 1994)