Florida Satanists are volunteering to fill school counselor roles after Gov. Ron DeSantis ® signed a law allowing religious chaplains into public schools amid staffing shortages.

“Nothing in the text of the bill serves to exclude us, and no credible interpretation of the First Amendment could. Should a school district now choose to have chaplains, they should expect Satanists to participate as well,” Lucien Greaves, cofounder and spokesperson for The Satanic Temple, said in a statement to The Hill on Monday.

Back when DeSantis signed the bill in April, he described Satanism as “not a religion” and said its members would not be allowed to participate in the program.

The Florida move allowing chaplains to serve as public school counselors comes as more states are aiming to inject Christianity into public school environments, including by mandating that the Bible or Ten Commandments be taught in classrooms.

The Satanic Temple has increasingly leaned into the fight over freedom of religion in public schools, including through the establishment of After School Satan clubs.

The temple, founded in 2014, says its mission is to “encourage benevolence and empathy, [and] reject tyrannical authority.”

  • lorgo_numputz@beehaw.org
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    4 months ago

    My last response was unacceptably juvenile so I’ve retracted it - with my apologies.

    I’ll stick to the actually important part.

    We may differ on matters ecclesiastical but this is all I really care about: If you are a Christian are you the type that actually follows the word of Jesus?

    Not churchgoing, I don’t care about that. Instead, being someone who forgives others, is charitable and helps those in need, as commanded by Jesus?

    If so then you and I have no problems. I like you already - which means it makes even less sense to make enemies with you over the internet.

    Enjoy your Friday.

    • Flax
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      4 months ago

      Just can claim things are wrong about anything, doesn’t make them true.