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Satanists play devil’s advocate over religious instruction in court fight
Satanists are crying foul about their human rights being breached after being refused access into Queensland state schools to teach religious instruction classes.
The Noosa Temple of Satan has challenged a Queensland Education Department decision in the Supreme Court to stop its members teaching classes about the devil, seeking a ruling the group is a religious denomination.
Noosa Temple of Satan founder Robin Bristow aka Brother Samael Demo-Gorgon.
After parents at several schools officially asked for their children’s religion to be recorded as Satanism, Noosa Temple of Satan member Trevor Bell submitted forms in February to become a religious instructor at the Centenary and Sunshine Beach state high schools and Tewantin and Wilston state schools.
But in March, Education Department state schools deputy director-general Peter Kelly rejected the request, telling Noosa Temple of Satan founder Robin Bristow the Department had decided the Temple was not a religious denomination or society.
“From statements publicly attributed to you, the department understands that the Temple was established in response to the Australian government’s proposal for a religious discrimination bill and that most of the people who follow Satanism, do not believe that Satan exists,” Mr Kelly wrote.
“Accordingly, the department considers there is a real question whether the Temple’s true purpose is political as opposed to religious.
“There is also limited evidence to demonstrate that the Temple has sufficient membership in order to be regarded as a denomination or society.”
Mr Bristow, a former Sex Party (now Reason Party) candidate also known as Brother Samael Demo-Gorgon, replied to say many religions had strong political agendas among their genesis.
“We do not know the proportion of Satanists who believe in Satan and neither does the Department,” he wrote.
“There are no doubt millions of nominal ‘Christians’ who do not believe that Christ was the son of God.”
Mr Bristow said there was no legal requirement for religious groups to have a minimum number of members.
The Satanists claim the Education Department’s decision was incompatible with the human right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion and belief because it treated small religious groups differently to larger groups, and it made an error of law by adopting a numerical membership criteria.
In an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court, Mr Bristow said the Temple’s purpose was to promote the belief in Satan as a supernatural spirit, follow the example of Satan by rebelling against the Christian God’s authority and the use of symbols and rituals such as pentagrams, black cloaks, skulls, candles and phrases such as “Hail Satan”.
Noosa Temple of Satan member Trevor Bell has launched a Supreme Court case against Queensland’s Education Department.
Mr Bristow said the Temple challenged Christian authority by encouraging secular laws, practices disapproved of by many Christians including “gay and lesbian lifestyle” and taking advantage of special rights and privileges that are normally only accessed by Christian groups.
Mr Bell told Brisbane Times if Satanists could not teach religious instruction, then no religions should be allowed into state schools as the classes were a waste of valuable class time.
“Our preferred position is that no religion is allowed in state schools, that families do that in their private time,” he said.
“They’re not teaching religious education, they’re teaching a type of indoctrination that you would expect in a Sunday school class,” he said.
“While that’s happening the rest of the class have to stop and can’t learn anything substantive, so they have to do colouring in or some of them pick up paper in the yard.”
Mr Bell said if he won the case, the next step would be to pursue changes in New South Wales.
“The kids who do the Satanic instruction are going to know more about the Bible than any kid in a Christian class,” he said.
“They need an ability to apply critical thought and work it out for themselves whether it’s a good or bad idea – we’re not going to be conducting an indoctrination.”
Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace, who has previously called the move a “stunt”, said she stood by her earlier statements, but it would be inappropriate to comment further while the matter was before the court.
An Education Department spokesman also declined to comment.
The case is listed for trial on August 12.