Dec. 9, 2024 Updated Mon., Dec. 9, 2024 at 7:27 p.m.
By Julia Marnin
Charlotte Observer
A dark, horned figure with a goat’s head stands in front of the New Hampshire State House.
It’s a holiday display installed by the Satanic Temple – near the city of Concord’s Nativity scene, according to the city’s Saturday Facebook post.
The nationwide group, which has congregations in dozens of states, is recognized as a church by the IRS and describes itself as “the primary religious Satanic organization in the world.”
To prevent potential legal repercussions, Concord has allowed the Satanic Temple to put the monument on Concord’s City Plaza, the city said in a statement.
“The Satanic Temple has been making requests to install its monuments at holiday displays as part (of) a show of unity and religious pluralism,” the statement said. “Throughout the country, The Satanic Temple has both threatened and brought lawsuits under the First Amendment when excluded.”
The Satanic Temple was issued a permit that allows it to keep its statue in front of the State House for the month of December, according to Concord. The statue is of Baphomet.
“Under the First Amendment and to avoid litigation, the City needed to choose whether to ban all holiday displays installed by other groups, or otherwise, to allow it,” Concord’s Facebook post said.
“After reviewing its legal options, the City ultimately decided to continue the policy of allowing unattended displays at City Plaza during this holiday season and to allow the statue,” the statement continued.
The Satanic Temple’s co-founder, Lucien Greaves, told McClatchy News in an emailed statement on Dec. 9 that the display “should be neither controversial nor mystifying to anybody who understands the basic principle of religious liberty.”
With glowing yellow eyes, The Satanic Temple’s statue of Baphomet is seen holding lilacs in one hand and an apple in the other, the Concord Monitor reported.
Baphomet is a pagan idol associated with the occult.
The statue symbolizes “a quest for knowledge, defiance in the face of arbitrary authority, and our commitment to self-determination,” Orpheus Gaur, a minister of the Satanic Temple’s New Hampshire and Vermont chapter, said when the statue was revealed Saturday evening , according to the newspaper.
While speaking at a news conference, standing next to the statue, Gaur said, “We’re here today united in celebration of the principles that define us, as satanists and as advocates for reason, compassion, empathy and justice.”
There are some mixed reactions about the monument below the city of Concord’s Facebook post.
“Freedom of religion includes all religions,” user Susan Jannene Sherrouse commented.
“This is out of the pit of hell,” another user, Debbie Magee, wrote.
Another user, Briana Therrien, commented that the “mission of the Satanic Temple is nothing but positive.”
On its website, the group says its mission is to “encourage benevolence and empathy among all people, reject tyrannical authority, advocate practical common sense, oppose injustice and undertake noble pursuits.”
It’s unclear if the statue will be allowed to return next year.
The Concord City Council is expected to decide whether to issue permits for unattended holiday displays next year, the city said on Facebook.
A dark, horned figure with a goat’s head stands in front of the New Hampshire State House.
It’s a holiday display installed by the Satanic Temple – near the city of Concord’s Nativity scene, according to the city’s Saturday Facebook post.
The nationwide group, which has congregations in dozens of states, is recognized as a church by the IRS and describes itself as “the primary religious Satanic organization in the world.”
To prevent potential legal repercussions, Concord has allowed the Satanic Temple to put the monument on Concord’s City Plaza, the city said in a statement.
“The Satanic Temple has been making requests to install its monuments at holiday displays as part (of) a show of unity and religious pluralism,” the statement said. “Throughout the country, The Satanic Temple has both threatened and brought lawsuits under the First Amendment when excluded.”
The Satanic Temple was issued a permit that allows it to keep its statue in front of the State House for the month of December, according to Concord. The statue is of Baphomet.
“Under the First Amendment and to avoid litigation, the City needed to choose whether to ban all holiday displays installed by other groups, or otherwise, to allow it,” Concord’s Facebook post said.
“After reviewing its legal options, the City ultimately decided to continue the policy of allowing unattended displays at City Plaza during this holiday season and to allow the statue,” the statement continued.
The Satanic Temple’s co-founder, Lucien Greaves, told McClatchy News in an emailed statement on Dec. 9 that the display “should be neither controversial nor mystifying to anybody who understands the basic principle of religious liberty.”
With glowing yellow eyes, The Satanic Temple’s statue of Baphomet is seen holding lilacs in one hand and an apple in the other, the Concord Monitor reported.
Baphomet is a pagan idol associated with the occult.
The statue symbolizes “a quest for knowledge, defiance in the face of arbitrary authority, and our commitment to self-determination,” Orpheus Gaur, a minister of the Satanic Temple’s New Hampshire and Vermont chapter, said when the statue was revealed Saturday evening , according to the newspaper.
While speaking at a news conference, standing next to the statue, Gaur said, “We’re here today united in celebration of the principles that define us, as satanists and as advocates for reason, compassion, empathy and justice.”
There are some mixed reactions about the monument below the city of Concord’s Facebook post.
“Freedom of religion includes all religions,” user Susan Jannene Sherrouse commented.
“This is out of the pit of hell,” another user, Debbie Magee, wrote.
Another user, Briana Therrien, commented that the “mission of the Satanic Temple is nothing but positive.”
On its website, the group says its mission is to “encourage benevolence and empathy among all people, reject tyrannical authority, advocate practical common sense, oppose injustice and undertake noble pursuits.”
It’s unclear if the statue will be allowed to return next year.
The Concord City Council is expected to decide whether to issue permits for unattended holiday displays next year, the city said on Facebook.
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