The Satanic Temple will have another chance to end public prayer when they get to argue their case against the City of Scottsdale on Tuesday. The Temple filed a federal suit against Scottsdale, alleging its First Amendment rights were violated when the City Council refused to allow one of its members to give the invocation at the 2016 meeting.
Critics says that while the Satanists claim they want to offer prayers at government meetings, the group’s goal is to end prayer.
The Satanic Temple’s Arizona Chapter, based in Tucson, requested an opportunity to offer an invocation at a Scottsdale City Council meeting. They were denied the opportunity and sued in February 2018.
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Scottsdale officials denied that the Temple’s request was rejected on religious grounds. Scottsdale argued that it prevented the Temple from delivering an invocation based on the fact that the Temple had no presence in the city.
According to the official Church of Satan’s website, the Satanic Temple is an atheistic organization “dedicated to the acceptance of Man’s true nature—that of a carnal beast, living in a cosmos that is indifferent to our existence.” Satanists believe that the individual is the one true god and should devote his life to pleasing himself. They condone such activities as indulgence, vengeance and sin, as these activities lead to instant gratification. [Related article: Satanic Temple Denied By TUSD]
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