The Satanic Temple (TST) is once again making headlines, claiming pro-life laws violate their religious freedom, as they hold abortion as a religious ritual.
Earlier this year, Utah legislators passed a law that will ban all abortions, with exceptions only if the mother’s life is in danger or in cases of incest, only in the event that Roe v. Wade is overturned. Despite this stipulation, the Satanic Temple is speaking out against it as a violation of their religious freedom. The Daily Wire reports:
According to the announcement on their website, which bears the slogan “Thyself Is Thy Master,” TST claims abortion can be a religious rite for some Satanists because “the Satanic abortion ritual provides spiritual comfort and affirms bodily autonomy, self-worth, and freedom from coercive forces with the affirmation of TST’s Seven Tenets.”
“TST bases its assertions of abortion mandate exemptions on the protections provided by State Religious Freedom Restoration Acts or RFRA, which generally prohibits the government from substantially interfering with a person’s free exercise of religion,” the Temple said in an announcement, adding, “State laws governing abortions commonly serve no medical purpose and do not result in better health outcomes. Therefore, they unlawfully hinder access to the Satanic abortion ritual.”
Jane Essex, a reproductive rights spokesperson for TST, claimed that abortion is a ritual for members of the Satanic temple. Comparing killing a child in abortion to partaking in Communion, Essex stated, “Many states have laws that interfere with our members’ ability to practice their religious beliefs. No Christian would accept a mandatory waiting period before they can partake in Communion,” she said. “No Christian would tolerate a law that insists state counseling is necessary before someone can be baptized. Our members are justly entitled to religious liberty in order to practice our rituals as well.”
READ: Satanic Temple lawsuit to overturn Missouri abortion laws is dismissed
Essex continued by saying that abortion itself is satanic. “Given that many people fanatically insist that all abortions are satanic, the states’ argument will be very unpopular,” she said. “Not only will those who deny Satanists their religious freedom be denounced by defenders of liberty, but they will also be detested by those who demonize abortion. Hopefully, states will do the right thing and respect our legal rights.”
The Satanic Temple website even contains instructions on how to properly practice a first trimester abortion according to the tenets of Satanism, with a guide available for download.
Screenshot from Satanic Temple website
The Satanic Temple has for years attempted to use “religious freedom” as a reason for abortion in an attempt to skirt mandatory waiting periods, or in failed lawsuits to overturn pro-life laws. While their reasoning is that Satanists believe in controlling their own bodies, a preborn child is not part of his mother’s body.
It is a scientific fact that each human life begins at fertilization, not a religious one. Each child has his or her own DNA, distinct and unique from his or her mother’s or father’s. This has nothing to do with dogma or religion.
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