Satanism demands excellence. There is no doubt about it, and this is not something that can be negotiated.

How many wastrels make hollow arguments that amount to saying, "Although I do everything poorly, I am still a Satanist and you should accept me for that."

These people are in the wrong religion. Maybe their Christian "brothers" will embrace their pathetic mediocrity, maybe that sort of lazy shit slides with whatever high school subculture they identify with, but it won't cut it here.

Neither will weak arguments that "excellence is subjective" serve as a blanket excuse for mediocrity. No, I cannot argue that the standards of excellence are written in stone, nor can I say that my personal ideas of what is good are the final standard. Nevertheless, High Priest Gilmore said the following:

Each individual must choose for himself his own aesthetic standards, but we think that there are certain elements of achievement that are undeniable, even if they are not satisfying to everyone. For example, one cannot deny the superior accomplishment inherent in a Beethoven symphony, a Michelangelo sculpture, a daVinci painting, or a Shakespeare play.

There is an undeniable difference between a quality article and a cheap knockoff!

Whining that nobody can define excellence for you, therefore your laziness will suffice, will not get you anywhere with genuine Satanists.

Therein lies the story. Satanism is unique among religions in that we do not seek mass conversion. Unlike all other religions in the world, we have unwavering requirements for what it takes to truly be one of us. A Christian can be as stupid as he likes, as physically worthless as he can get away with, as much of a crook, parasite, and loser as those around him will let him be before they run him out of town, and still he will not be disputed on his claim to being a Christian. The same is not true of Satanism; if you are a fuck-up, if you are undesirable, we will not tolerate you sullying the name of Satanism with your foolishness.

If you're under the impression that Satanists will offer you camaraderie merely because you like to call yourself a Satanist, think again. We test everything, nothing moreso than those who would place themselves as our peers. If its too much to ask for you to be among the best, if its too difficult for you to be worthy rather than worthless, expect to learn by the way of hard knocks that we have better ways to spend our time than passing out group hugs.

Yes, Satanists can be exceedingly friendly. I know from personal experience that there are no better friends to be found than those I have within the Church of Satan. What I've written is not indicative that we prefer adversarialism to friendship; on the contrary, we prefer not to squander time on unproductive arguments. What I have said is summed up in the Fourth Satanic Statement:

Satan represents kindness to those who deserve it instead of love wasted on ingrates!

Something said by both Nietzsche and Musashi, "to be truly excellent one must be prepared to go to extraordinary lengths to which others will not".

I like this, and live it.

As a new Satanist here who finds it difficult at times not to slip back into the old Xian mindsets, I would just like to say:

Yes!
Most welcome!
Most refreshing!
Most stirring!


HAIL SATAN!

Brilliant essay Warlock!

This should be published on the CoS website!

Brilliant way with words. Intelligence to me should be shown more often in High School conversations. When two individuals come together and converse about a certain topic with intelligence worth conversing about, it brings a pleasant atmosphere to the whole area. In addition to this, arguments should be conversed with more intelligence besides showing everyone in the room you can use four letter words and very loudly for that matter. For one, speaking intelligently is far more intimidating that spewing curse words and hoping a teacher nearby will not pick them up. And two, utilizing your intelligence just goes to show that you, as a person and individualist are living up to the Satanic Philosophy and utilizing it's demanding excellence.

That was very well written. Thank you.

Thank you for sharing this, Warlock. This essay should be put before anyone who thinks themselves worthy of the title of "Satanist", to which they can either agree or disagree. A sort of Satanic litmus test, if you will.

Excellent essay, sir! I agree with your statements and agree with DemiGod, this should be on the CoS Website, or sticked here.

It baffles me when someone tries to make excuses for their own lacking, rather than try to improve. The Victim Cult still reigns in the wanna-bes.

This may well deserve a pin at the top of the forum. Excellent!

Well thought, well said, and timely. You never cease to amaze.

Quote:

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We test everything, nothing moreso than those who would place themselves as our peers.

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Very true, and an easy thing for the non-Satanist to miss.

Those words are so inspiring, THANK YOU!

A hearty nod o' the horns to you Warlock. I'll not parrot what's already been rightfully said about this post of yours but will acknowledge and compliment a fine intellect and example of pure Satanic thought, rendered by a pure Satanist. Excellent work.

Thanks for all the kind words. It might be slightly presumptuous for me to "sticky" my own post, I'll leave that to Magister Ventrue if he wants it done. Nevertheless, the sentiment is appreciated.

>>There is an undeniable difference between a quality
>>article and a cheap knockoff!

Some people are completely myopic and solipsistic, which I don't find to be Satanic at all. But at the other extreme, yes, you have the hard-core relativists. I think the 9th Satanic Sin covers a lot of those cases. To throw in another HP Gilmore quote (paraphrased), "Taste is one thing, but if we're going to compare Beethoven to a grunge band, I think we can apply some objective standards. You know, Taj Mahal and a mud hut? There's a difference."