Black Mass Appeal: Modern Satanism for the Masses

Julie Jelinek from the International Vampire Film & Arts Festival joins to unravel the succubus myth. They explore succubi in folklore, mythology, and their representation in pop culture. The episode delves into the conference in Cardiff, lost episodes, Lilith, and the intersection of mythology with modern culture.

Steve Hill is a Satanist, a comedian, a veteran, an atheist, an appraiser, and if he has his way, a Congressman, and he’s here to talk about his Satan 4 Congress campaign.   SHOW LINKS Buzzfeed: These Women Say An Essential Oil MLM Has Been Taken Over By Satan. Yes, Really. Steve Hill's website, Satan 4 Congress Steve Hill's Twitter and Facebook LAist: Meet Steve Hill, The Satanist Running For California Senate (2016) Steve Hill on the Dope Dealers podcast Steve Hill on The Devil You Don't Know podcast   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third Tuesday of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

Welcome (back) to FaustFest! The devil has all the best tunes, so we're borrowing some more of them for our second annual, all-virtual Satanic music festival. You can watch the video, immediately on YouTube at the links below, you can download the audio podcast version of the show in your regular podcast feed, or you can join us on Tuesday evening to watch and chat with everyone on our YouTube livestream!  Watch on YouTube anytime Watch FaustFest on the Black Mass Appeal YouTube channel whenever you want! Listen in your podcast feed An audio version of FaustFest will be available on all podcast platforms. Livestream together with us Watch the show on YouTube and with the Black Mass Appeal hosts and audience! Tuesday, February 23 Starts at 7 PM Pacific / 10 PM Eastern CLICK HERE to join the livestream   PERFORMER LINKS SidneySin Instagram Link Tree Venmo: @Sidney_Sin Ezurate Instagram FFM Facebook YouTube SoundCloud Lust 4 Blood BandCamp SoundCloud Los Chacales Tiernos de Satanas Facebook Instagram Lix Tetrix YouTube Soundcloud PayPal: lixtetrixmusic @gmail.com Red Hoof Instagram SoundCloud Satan Club Instagram Venmo: @botulism_sauce Accidents At Sundown Spotify YouTube LinkTree   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third Thursday of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

We’re taking a trip down memory lane – and getting a little turned around on the way. Childhood is tough for everyone, but it’s even worse when you do the director’s cut. In 1980, Canadian psychiatrist Lawrence Pazder’s controversial best-seller Michelle Remembers set the world on fire with fears of Satanic Ritual Abuse. Today, we’re going to contact some dark spirits of our own with our freeform Michelle Remembers drinking game – lest we forget. Also, Satanic Bay Area will soon be green with something other than envy, and in the news, rumors of Satanism are damning one of Europe’s best musical minds. CONTENT WARNING: Alcohol consumption, references to (fake) abuse of children.   SHOW LINKS Help Black Mass Appeal by writing a "Love Letter" for PodCash's sponsorship program! New York Times: "A ‘High Priestess of Satanic Art’? This Organist Can Only Laugh" Michelle Remembers by Michelle Smith and Lawrence Pazder   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third Thursday of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

Everyone knows Baphomet, the lovable, inspiring, gender-encompassing mascot of Modern Satanism. But where did we get this goat? We goat for broke with our comprehensive history of the world’s most popular but mysterious Satanic icon.   SHOW LINKS Help Black Mass Appeal by writing a "Love Letter" for PodCash's sponsorship program! Local Memphis: Damien Echols says police chief's resignation is related to evidence controversy in West Memphis Three case Violet Azimuth: Etsy, Twitter, and Instagram Dee Mendes: RedBubble, Twitter, and Instagram De Re Militari: The First Crusade, a Short Narrative (2013) Europe's Inner Demons: The Demonization of Christians in Medieval Christendom, by Norman Cohn (2001) Accusations Made To The Templars, by Friedrich Nicolai (1782; in German) Historical Monuments, by Francois Raynouard (1813; in French) Mysterium Baphometis Revelatum, by Joseph Von Hammer-Purgstall (1818) Pornographic Archaeology: Medicine, Medievalism, and the Invention of the French Nation, by Zrinka Stahuljak (2012) Transcendental Magic, Eliphas Levi (1855) Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library Blog: Taxil & Baphomet (2009) Contemporary Esotericism: The Strange Case of Ben Kadosh, by Egil Asprem, Kennet Granholm (2014) The Lost Caverns of Tsojconth, by Gary Gygax (1982) The Extraordinary Catalog of Peculiar Inventions   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third Thursday of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

The history of Satanism is bedeviled by misinformation, and in the age of social media, a lie can travel to Hell and back to avoid correction. As hopefully savvy digital consumers, how can we better train ourselves to separate fact from affliction?   SHOW LINKS FaustFest Sign-Ups TST MN: Warmer Than Hell Filter Magazing: Court-Ordered Into AA? You Could Use Sober Faction   Misinformation vs disinformation Misinformation is bad information spread by mistake Disinformation is bad information spread on purpose Bad actors need more people to amplify their message -- they may try to persuade an influencer to spread their disinformation as-is -- or as a “debunking.” Simply repeating a rumor can perpetuate it, add fuel to the fire, and even legitimize it. Imposter content: Using the names, logos of well-known, reputable outlets to steal credibility Weaponized content Content can be used out of context Old content is reshared as new, with new context Why do people fall for disinformation? Because they want to. People like things that confirm what they already believe, and reject information that challenges them.   Critical reading of the news Basic credulity – if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. This goes double for anything to do with money or products you see online. (Do not buy shit from Facebook ads!) Is it realistic? Would someone really say or do what the article is saying? Would you do that thing yourself? Would any reasonable person? Understand how headlines are written – usually by someone else, not the article writer, and therefore doesn't always encapsulate what the article actually says. It's meant to grab your attention – whether for good or bad. Opinion vs news – sometimes editorials look a lot like reporting. Slow down! Articles (and certainly their headlines) are meant to provoke emotion and a knee-jerk response. Ask yourself, why am I being made to feel this way? What reaction does the writer want me to have? What reaction do I actually have, once I have more time to process the information? Who owns what? Consider who really owns the website or publication you’re reading. Who wrote the article? Have you heard of them before (do they even exist?), or read their other work? What do their previous stories tell you about them and their point of view? When was it written? This is one of the easiest to miss, especially on social media. Make sure the article isn’t out of date – and if there’s no date at all, be suspicious.  Who is the target audience? Was this written to appeal to a certain kind of person? Verify with other independent sources. Does the information fit with what you already know, or what you’ve read elsewhere? If you can only find one article that says something, that’s a red flag. (And it doesn’t count if all the other sources you find lead back to only the first article!) Read the original. This is especially important when it comes to science writing. News articles try to summarize super-long scientific studies in just a paragraph or two – they could be cherry-picking what the study says, or miss the point entirely. When you can, click through to the original study and check it out – and again, if there are no links to sources… that’s a bad sign. What isn’t being said? Not citing sources is the big one. But you have to ask questions of what you’re reading. Most mainstream news sites at least try to offer a different perspective / counterpoint to the main narrative of their piece. For example, if a politician really said something inflammatory, there would be a reaction from an opposing party.    The wild west of unsourced shit on social media Social media is great for communicating with people you actually know – but be wary of accounts from people you’ve never heard of. If someone has shared what looks to be original content (i.e., not a link to an article on another publication), check their account to see if they seem legitimate. Who’s doing the sharing? Is it a reporter? A politician? Some random person? A celebrity? Just because it’s a big account or a famous person doesn’t mean they’re legit. There are lots of famous dummies out there. When was the account made? Brand-new accounts with no profile / cover pictures or friends / followers might be bots or sock puppet accounts.  What’s their location? Are they geographically located close enough to what’s said in the post / shown in the photo? There is a private group on Facebook for Satanic Bay Area that is for locals only (for privacy and planning reasons). People will request to join the group, and answer the question of whether they’re local as “yes” – but their location on Facebook says otherwise. Or they don’t have a location at all. That’s when I go to their accounts and look at things like their place of work (maybe it has a location), the Pages they follow (if they like a lot of restaurants in Chicago, maybe that’s where they’re actually located), and even their photos (if they say they’re from San Jose but they’re posting pics of snow in their backyard… they ain’t in San Jose). Is the photo altered? Even a skillful cropping can change the meaning of an image. Look for signs of Photoshopping. Use Google reverse image search / TinEye to find the pictures elsewhere on the web. Deepfake videos Cross-reference Google Maps / Instagram location tags for visual clues Check things like street signs, their colors, their fonts, etc. Does it match up with what you know of the city’s street signs? Look for seasonal cues. Are the leaves the right color for that part of the year? What does the terrain, plants look like for a particular area? Image degradation: if you suspect the photo’s not the original, see if there’s blurriness, pixelation that indicates it was screenshotted and reshared.   Stop the cycle Don’t share a story that might be untrue (duh). If you accidentally do, go ahead and delete it. If you want, maybe make a post discussing how you were fooled – but best not to leave the bad article up. If you see someone else sharing a story you know to be untrue, speak up (but don’t be a dick). It is extreeeeeeeeemely difficult to dissuade someone from believing something.  When someone has internalized a belief and made it part of their identity, attacking that belief feels to them like you’re attacking them personally. They become defensive and work even harder to justify that belief to themselves. The debunker becomes the bad guy, and any facts you present are written off as coming from biased sources. Instead, try asking questions. Where did you hear this information? Do you know the person who shared it? How did it make you feel when you read it or saw it? Have you ever heard of that happening before? Why do you think it’s interesting or believable? Don’t publicly humiliate them. Send them a private message or better yet, speak in person. Consider what else is going on in their life. Is there trouble at home or at work? These may be sources of anxiety they’re unknowingly trying to soothe with conspiracies as a distraction. If you need to go low- or no-contact with someone, do what is best for yourself. But also consider that conspiracy believers are often socially isolated, and their conspiracy groups give them a sense of community. Perhaps engage on neutral topics – go ahead and comment on Aunt Shirley’s cat pictures, but do not engage when she starts talking about the Flat Earth. Encourage them to spend less time online. Just taking a break from social media can loosen the grip it has over them. Spend time with them in person, away from triggers like television. Remind them of the hobbies and pastimes they used to enjoy before becoming entrenched in conspiracy. Set a good example. Sharing real, verifiable news – and mentioning why you know it’s true – on social media can expose people to another point of view. But don’t target your posts at anyone, or engage in arguments in the comments.  People who like to say they do “research” are more likely to believe an article they find themselves, as opposed to something sent to them. It’s a kind of gamification of conspiracy theory. Sources:  The News Literacy Project: Understanding Misinformation and How to Talk to People Who Believe It Business Insider: Misinformation vs. disinformation: What to know about each form of false information, and how to spot them online New York Times: How to Talk to Friends and Family Who Share Conspiracy Theories Slate: How to Talk to QAnon Loved Ones This Thanksgiving  Rolling Stone: It’s Not Q. It’s You NPR: Illinois Is The First State To Have High Schools Teach News Literacy American Psychological Association: Controlling the spread of misinformation First Draft News Google News Initiative   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third Thursday of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

A house without Satan is never a home; but once Satan arrives, where are you putting him up? We're discussing the curious conventions of modern Satanic altars with testimonials from our listeners.   SHOW LINKS News: The Guardian, Boy Who Inspired "The Exorcist" Named Online Etymology Online: Altar "Practicing Religion In Private: The Home Altar,” Peter Jan Margry Read all our listener letters -- and see photos and videos! -- about their Satanic altars Don't forget to be on the lookout for our coming Kickstarter for our "Hot Satan" (aka "Le génie du mal" by Guillaume Geefs, 1848) statuette -- launching this spring! Also, our applications for FaustFest 2022 will open on Tuesday, January 11. Check out last year's FaustFest here!   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third Thursday of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

Everyone knows Satan is a fallen angel, but how many of us know what that really means or where the idea comes from? In this season when you might see an angel on every corner, we’re joined by some of the Alchemical Actors of the podcast Occult Confessions to help us raise some of our own holiday spirits.   SHOW LINKS News: The State Journal-Register, "Bishop Paprocki: Satanic displays 'should have no place in this Capitol'" Occult Confessions website Jewish Encyclopedia (1906), "Angelology" Genesis 6 The Origin of Satan (1999), by Elaine Pagels The Satan: How God's Executioner Became the Enemy (2006), by Ryan E. Stokes The Book of Watchers (Third Century BCE) The Second Apology of St. Justin Martyr (Second Century CE) Early Christian Doctrines (1958), by J. N. D. Kelly The Life of Adam & Eve (aka The Apocalypse of Moses) (Third Century CE-ish) City of God (426 CE), by Augustine of Hippo   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third Thursday of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

Is The Exorcist a Christmas movie? Well, not quite: Director William Friedkin’s possession thriller opened the day AFTER Christmas, December 26, 1973, and has been turning heads ever since. Rachel from the horror podcast Zombie Grrlz joins us again to help muck out the one major seasonal Satanic classic film we’ve never talked about before.   SHOW LINKS Zombie Grrlz Podcast Washington Post: Boy Freed Of Possession IGN: Interview With Blatty Roman Observer:Interview With Friedkin New York Times: They Wait Hours To Be Shocked Roger Ebert:The Exorcist review   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third TUESDAY of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!

In 1891, French popular author JK Huysmans scandalized the public with his novel La-Bas, a sultry and sleazy story surveying sex, shame, and Satanism. What inspired him to delve into such outrageous material -- and why did so many people take him seriously?   SHOW LINKS Satanists convince Delaware County, Pennsylvania school district to alter dress code La-Bas, by Joris K. Huysmans JSTOR Daily: Satanism and Magic in the Age of the Moulin Rouge The New Yorker: What Houellebecq Learned from Huysmans The Paris Review: Divine Ordure Lure of the Sinister: The Unnatural History of Satanism, by Gareth Medway Children of Lucifer: The Origins of Modern Religious Satanism, by Ruben van Luijk Satanic Feminism: Lucifer as the Liberator of Woman in Nineteenth-Century Culture, by Per Faxneld   GET IN TOUCH WITH BLACK MASS APPEAL Facebook Twitter Instagram Patreon Tabitha Slander’s Instagram Discord server   SATANIC BAY AREA Website Facebook Twitter (as @SatanicSF) Instagram Sign up for Satanic Bay Area’s newsletter On TikTok as DailyBaphirmations Coffee Hour is the third TUESDAY of every month from 6 – 8 pm at Wicked Grounds in San Francisco!