Who Is Merely Called a Satanist and Who Is Really a Satanist?

We should be very careful when we talk about Satanism and we should avoid explicitly calling anyone a Satanist. We should follow the precept “innocent until proven guilty.” Unless a person says that he is Satanist or decisive proof is brought forward, sorting people into various categories and regarding some young people as Satanists may lead to uneasiness and reaction in society. To put it more simply, any wrong move or action made by officials may cause those who are not Satanists to join them. As mentioned before, Satanism is a reactionary movement. One needs to be very careful.

These issues were discussed in September-October of 1999, when Satanism was high on the agenda and some reactions were voiced, such as, “People should not be categorized according to the music they listen to, the color of their clothes, the style of their hair, or the earrings they wear, and they should not be regarded as Satanist according to such.” Indeed, not everyone who listens to rock, metal, or heavy metal music is a Satanist. Similarly, not everyone who wears black T-shirts and jeans is a Satanist. People should be able to decide what clothes they wear for themselves. On the other hand, it should be kept in mind that young people who claim to be Satanists listen to rock and metal music, and prefer black because it represents the dark powers.