A ‘Satan Club’ at Your Kid’s School?

If the Satanic Temple has anything to say about it, a new after-school program meant to be based on “rationalism” and “science” may be coming to an educational institution near you.

Called “The After School Satan Club,” the program may even arrive at certain public elementary schools this fall, including one in Prince George’s County outside Washington, D.C., according to a report in The Washington Post.

“It’s important for kids to be able to see multiple points of view, to reason things through,” a group leader said.

What’s going on, and where did this come from?

“It’s critical that children understand that there are multiple perspectives on all issues, and that they have a choice in how they think,” the Satanic Temple’s co-founder, Doug Mesner, told The Post.

The program is meant to counter-balance fundamentalist Christian “Good News Clubs,” which this group sees as an effort to infiltrate public education and wipe away the constitutional separation of church and state, it says. The temple suggests its club will offer science and literature lessons, an art project, a puzzle, and a healthy snack for children once a month.

All students who participate will need a signed permission slip from a parent.

“We think it’s important for kids to be able to see multiple points of view, to reason things through, to have empathy and feelings of benevolence for their fellow human beings,” Chalice Blythe, the Satanic Temple’s Utah Chapter leader, told The Post.

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Despite all the cheery sounding comments, however, make no mistake: This effort is profoundly political.

The temple admits it is aiming to counter-balance Christian evangelism in public schools and that the program was founded expressly for this purpose.

The Satanic Temple is known for making political statements and doesn’t publicly profess actually worshiping the devil in any form. It doesn’t believe in supernaturalism, it says. Instead, the group rejects religion and focuses on rationalism and science.

Its mission is to take on issues such as the relationship between church and state — and it causes a ruckus whenever it deems something too religious for the public square.

The group claims it’s received scores of emails from volunteers in other states who want to help host these clubs.

Mesner told a gathering of Satanic Temple chapter heads in Salem, Massachusetts, recently: “So, ‘the Satanic Temple leverages religious freedom laws that put after-school clubs in elementary schools nationwide.’ That’s going to be the message.”

Mesner said his group has already reached out to school districts in nine states that are located near local Satanic Temple chapters, USA Today reported. All of the targeted schools had previously hosted or are currently hosting Good News Clubs, Mesner told the publication.

He also said that after the initial article in The Post was published, the group received scores of emails from volunteers in other states who want to help host after-school clubs, the article in USA Today noted.

“People will see that as an ironic statement that the message of Satanism is a positive message, but that’s true,” Mesner told USA Today. “When they see people … living normal, healthy, productive lives and being decent people, it makes them think more critically of the claims being put forth from evangelicals.”

Leaders of the Good News Clubs — which originated from an organization that was founded back in 1937 — have defended their group’s presence in public schools. The Good News Club’s website states that “each club includes a clear presentation of the Gospel and an opportunity for children to trust the Lord Jesus as Savior. Every club also includes strong discipleship training to build character and strengthen moral and spiritual growth,” The Post noted.