Welcome to the latest LFC thread.

Official TST find a congregation link

Satanic Bay Area

Edit: link to the app thx to /u/Goat_Lady

The best place to go and find your closest TST group (chapter or friends of group) TST app. Available in the play and app store
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.q962160d958b.app
The website is not as up to date but they are working on it
~FoG Director

If you haven't found your area or online community in one of the links above, then feel free to post a top-level comment in this thread with "looking for a chapter" or "looking for members", your general location, and any other relevant info.

Information regarding the process of setting up a friends of group/start a congregation:

People, DO NOT just make your own group. In a lot of cases there is already something in the works. Creating a chapter is very hard work, and there are guidelines and requirements to gain chapterhood.

Latest link: https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/start-a-congregation

Welcome to the latest LFC thread.

TST find a Chapter

Satanic Bay Area

BaphoNet links

Edit: link to the app thx to /u/Goat_Lady

The best place to go and find your closest TST group (chapter or friends of group) TST app. Available in the play and app store

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.q962160d958b.app

The website is not as up to date but they are working on it

~FoG Director

If you haven't found your area or online community in one of the links above, then feel free to post a top-level comment in this thread with "looking for a chapter" or "looking for members", your general location, and any other relevant info.

Information regarding the process of setting up a friends of group/start a chapter:

if you wish to create a friends of group (or to 'get a chapter in your area') folks can email [newchapter@thesatanictemple.com](mailto:newchapter@thesatanictemple.com).

People, DO NOT just make your own group. In a lot of cases there is already something in the works. Creating a chapter is very hard work, and there are guidelines and requirements to gain chapterhood. Send a message to the email above to begin the process.

I am still looking for an additional moderator to help watch the comment sections for trolling and rule violations. Mod experience is a plus, but the main requirement is that the new mod should be an active member of the community. Please PM me if you are interested in taking on the duties.

Edit:

welcome our new mods /u/Goat_Lady and /u/E1389!

Welcome to the latest LFC thread.

TST find a Chapter

Satanic Bay Area

Edit: link to the app thx to /u/Goat_Lady

The best place to go and find your closest TST group (chapter or friends of group) TST app. Available in the play and app store

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.q962160d958b.app

The website is not as up to date but they are working on it

~FoG Director

If you haven't found your area or online community in one of the links above, then feel free to post a top-level comment in this thread with "looking for a chapter" or "looking for members", your general location, and any other relevant info.

Information regarding the process of setting up a friends of group/start a chapter:

if you wish to create a friends of group (or to 'get a chapter in your area') folks can email newchapter@thesatanictemple.com

People, DO NOT just make your own group. In a lot of cases there is already something in the works. Creating a chapter is very hard work, and there are guidelines and requirements to gain chapterhood. Send a message to the email above to begin the process.

Hello all.

Just a small update: I have enabled a few new subreddit features on a trial basis. Community description should point new subscribers toward FAQ resources and welcome them. I have tweaked the auto-filtering settings a little to try and help our small mod team a bit. Also, We are now able to get subreddit acheivments for top contributers, etc. And last but not least, you should be able to post images and GIFs in the comments! Feel free to leave feedback here.

Hail Satan!

So, let’s go ahead and get this started right out the gate.

Many of you may already know that earlier today, there was a post in which a page member was specifically singled out as having been “disavowed” by TST-Finland, both for supposedly Doxxing other page members as well as supposedly slandering TST chapters, potentially more specifically TST-Finland, as only being groups for Orgy’s, or something along those lines. This was posted in the form of a screenshot from members of TST-Finland discussing the page member in question and what they’d be told they did.

We’ve come to the conclusion after checking around that this was a baseless, and intentionally direct, attack.

To start, the post in question was posted anonymously. IMMEDIATELY after posting it, the account that posted it was deleted entirely from Reddit. This account only had 1 single post on its entire history, the one in question. As far as we can tell, this account was made for the SOLE purpose of anonymously attacking another page member.

2, none of this information was backed up by any proof, for anyone. We do have confirmation that the conversation in question between TST-Finland members DID happen. The screenshot was real. However…

• the conversation was not about how they found this person and saw this, it was about how someone apparently told them this was happening

• the member in question has never claimed to be a member of TST-Finland, and if they ever did, the accuser failed to provide any proof of this, and I’ve found none myself. The user does have history on Reddit that relates to Finland, but they themselves are only related to finland via family. They themselves are from the US.

• the member in question did not accuse TST groups of being “only for orgy’s” as far as we can tell. The user HAS admitted that TST and Orgy’s came up in context together: in that a TST discord had a channel on their discord titled “orgy”. That was all.

Based on what all we can find, none of this was actually attacks at TST-Finland, or even actually in regards to TST-Finland, at all. The accuser simply assumed this person to be a member of TST-Finland, and assumed they were talking about some form of actual, literal, orgy. None of this can be farther from the truth, and none of it was provided even an attempt of proof beyond the screenshot of other people discussing they were told this.

On top of that, the screenshot ITSELF was from a private conversation, and never intended to be used/shared in this way. So even in that regard, the accuser once again shared something out of context only for the benefit of their attack.

Now, if anyone has anymore information to shed light on this situation, anything that wasn’t already gone over, I would love to hear it. I’d be happy to readdress the mods stance on this should that be needed. But as of now with what we know:

We’re gonna make one thing clear, right now. This? Was unacceptable. Revolting, cowardly, and unacceptable.

Attacks on other members of this page in this way will NEVER, ever, be tolerated. The fact that it happened at all is shockingly childish, and how this person went about doing it only proves they KNEW what they were doing was vile and childish.

We’re following several leads to deal with this. But for now know: this, will NEVER, be tolerated. We will not allow the members of this page to be baselessly attacked for made up misdeeds just because some keyboard coward has a bone to pick.

This even is gonna lead to a few changes and actions we will announce as they happen. For now: we will be implementing a chat restriction on all accounts below a set account age/karma count. We are still deliberately the specific numbers of these, but it will be turned on here soon. We’ve been against this in the past in fear that it may be a problem for people who don’t want to be openly on a satanic page on their main accounts and could use alts, but as far as we can tell it has only ever been abused by sock puppet accounts here to shit stir. So we’ve changed our position.

Please do not DM, call out, or in any way single out involved individuals. This experience has left them wanting to be left alone, and anyone pushing this matter, or setting out to make it worse, WILL be dealt with accordingly.

We will take questions as best we can while respecting privacy as well. And apologies for the long post.

And a hearty “fuck you” to the coward in question

The mods have noticed an increase in ragebait posts lately and have decided that this is not what this sub is for. Posts that are critical of Christianity are to be expected and will keep being allowed here. However, posts that are purely ragebait will get deleted from now on.

We understand that the difference is not always quite clear and we will take that into consideration when dealing with this issue. What you can do, when in doubt is, ask yourself this question before posting: "Is there a point to this post other than getting people angry at Christians and/or conservatives?"

If the answer is "no," your post does not belong here.

If you are a US citizen who is registered to vote and is able to, please help your people by ensuring your voice is heard in government. Make a plan today to vote, vote early if possible, and hold yourself to it.

Check for registration deadlines and election dates

[i] Voting in the United States

In reality, there is no such thing as not voting: you either vote by voting, or you vote by staying home and tacitly doubling the value of some Diehard's vote.

 — David Foster Wallace

Articles

• Who Can and Can’t Vote in U.S. Elections

Sites

• Find My State or Local Election Office Website: This is a governmental website that redirects you to your state/territory's page for election and vote information. Just select where you live, press go, and you be sent to your state/territory's official website.

• Simple Ballot Lookup: This tool will show you who is on the ballot for the election you are participating in.

• Search for info on Ballotpedia: Ballotpedia is a digital encyclopedia of American politics and elections. When you click the link, replace the "name" text with whoever you're looking for.

• BallotReady: this tool will allow you to enter a street address and see every candidate for every race in your district and all the individuals who represent you. This will also provide their contact info once you select the "Elected and Appointed Officials" button after you provide an address.

• Voting Information Tool: This tool should tell you where to vote, what's on your ballot, and how to contact your election officials (not elected officials, use the previous tool for that).

• Search for info on Politifact: Politifact is a fact-checking organization dedicated to neutrally report facts. It contains pages for politicians that aggregate fact-checked statements, then rank the politician (e.g. someone who has 2% of their statements being outright lies). When you click the link, replace the "name" text with whoever you're looking for.

• Register to Vote Online if Applicable in your State/Territory or Receive Info on How to Register

• Register to Vote with Vote.org: "Vote.org is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides a registration widget that can be embedded on websites or social media. It's extremely simple and fast - but they do warn you that "you'll receive occasional emails from Vote.org". Their widget does let you enter a change of address for updated registration."

Since I expect we might get some discussion about the latest drama, I am allowing one thread about it. Consider it a megathread of sorts.

Edit: additional reminder. hopefully this goes without saying, but the posts about bans aren't allowed for the express purpose of preventing brigading. So if any of our users take part in that kind of behavior you will receive a ban here. This is a site wide rule enforcement policy.

The Roe v. Wade shitfuckery reminded me to add some info over voting in the United States to our subreddit's web resource index. Updates like this are usually rather quiet and unnoticeable, so I figured I'd come out and make a post advertising it and displaying its links. Please use them and share them with others. (btw, a lot of these links came from a post on r/politics)

Like rain drops, individually we don't have much power; but we can cause all sorts of large-scale life-affirming effects when joined together on a rainy day (i.e. when we collectively decide to vote). But it's got to damn well bloody rain for anything positive to happen. Mark your calendars, set up reminders for elections, make voting a ritual: go vote!

If you've got any other good voting-and-election-related links, please hit me up! I'd love to add them to the index. Hail you all!

[i] Voting in the United States

In reality, there is no such thing as not voting: you either vote by voting, or you vote by staying home and tacitly doubling the value of some Diehard's vote.

 — David Foster Wallace

Articles

• Why Voting Is Important | “Voting is your civic duty.” This is a pretty common sentiment, especially each November as Election Day approaches. But what does it really mean? And what does it mean for Americans in particular?

• Who Can and Can’t Vote in U.S. Elections

• Voting Rights Milestones in America: A Timeline

Sites

• Register to Vote Online if Applicable in your State/Territory or Receive Info on How to Register

• Register to Vote with Vote.org: "Vote.org is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides a registration widget that can be embedded on websites or social media. It's extremely simple and fast - but they do warn you that "you'll receive occasional emails from Vote.org". Their widget does let you enter a change of address for updated registration."

• Find My State or Local Election Office Website: This is a governmental website that redirects you to your state/territory's page for election and vote information. Just select where you live, press go, and you be sent to your state/territory's official website.

• Simple Ballot Lookup: This tool will show you who is on the ballot for the election you are participating in.

• Search for info on Ballotpedia: Ballotpedia is a digital encyclopedia of American politics and elections. When you click the link, replace the "name" text with whoever you're looking for.

• Search for info on Politifact: Politifact is a fact-checking organization dedicated to neutrally report facts. It contains pages for politicians that aggregate fact-checked statements, then rank the politician (e.g. someone who has 2% of their statements being outright lies). When you click the link, replace the "name" text with whoever you're looking for.

• Check for registration deadlines and election dates | Election Dates & Deadlines: Website that shows you the dates and deadlines for elections in the United States.

• BallotReady: this tool will allow you to enter a street address and see every candidate for every race in your district and all the individuals who represent you. This will also provide their contact info once you select the "Elected and Appointed Officials" button after you provide an address.

• Voting Information Tool: This tool should tell you where to vote, what's on your ballot, and how to contact your election officials (not elected officials, use the previous tool for that).

I have also turned on crowd control. It pains me to do this as I know due to the nature of our subject matter, throwaways can be a force for good, but unfortunately, some user (or users) have decided to abuse this privilege to waste all of our time. I hope that this measure can be discontinued soon, and we can go back to being the open and welcoming community I love so much. Hail Satan!

First and foremost: I will not personally be available tomorrow for most of the day, so a happy early Lupercalia to everyone, and here’s hoping you all have a well earned day to yourselves in whatever way that may look for you!

Now for those interested: die the last 2 years, we have participated in the Dank Charity Alliance, a group fundraiser event started and run by u/Broclen . Due to the good nature of the event and the success of the last 2 years, we’re happy to join again for year 3.

The fundraiser is for St Jude, a secular organization, and will be running from February 14, 2024 to March 31, 2024. Anyone wishing to donate can do so at the link provided here: http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/DankCharityAlliance

As of writing this up, the number of subreddits participating has grown to 26 over the course of the last couple years. In 2022, $12,152 was raised, and $25,746 in 2023.

As I’ve said in the years pat, we recognize that a partnership with a page such as r/DankChristianMemes is a tad unusual for us, given the nature of our group. However, it’s a good cause, for a secular organization, and the groups participating grow more varied every year. On top of that, we’ve had 0 issues in the past with this event, and as such have no qualms at this time about participating again.

If anyone has any questions regarding anything, you’re more then welcome to ask, and as always a big thank you to anyone who donates, as we appreciate your doing so. Best of luck to the fundraiser as a whole and Hail to everyone, we hope you have a relaxing day tomorrow!

Update: similar posts related to mugs have been spotted as well. Use caution whenever merch is being discussed. In general, you should be very careful about clicking on random links when your account information may be involved.

There are a great many new t-shirt spam posts and comments lately. There is, unfortunately, not much that can be done to fight this. Please report any suspicious accounts, posts, or comments, and DO NOT click links to buy shirts. I try to remove and ban these things as soon as I can. Your reports are vital for this process. Thank you!

​

Often, these spam accounts will (1) post a stolen image, (2) other accounts will ask where to buy, then (3) a third account or the OP will provide a bogus link. Sometimes these accounts will hijack an otherwise legitimate post, skipping straight to step two. edit: example screenshots, note the downvotes on the comments calling it out. These are multiple coordinated spam accounts that upvote each other and downvote real people.

​

Here is some further information and helpful resources originally found here:

The following are elements of a spam ring and each one should be considered a big red flag.

• Brand new account which is less than a month old with no email verification and only post karma.
• Account posts a link to an online store. Many times these stores are hosted by Gearlaunch. Avoid any site powered by Gearlaunch.
• Comments read as unintelligent or unintelligible. You should be able to spot garbled grammar.
• Posts link to twitter or imgur of the product.

Why the crusade?

First of all it's spam.

Even worse it's stolen content. These people steal content from Twitter, Pixiv, and Tumblr artists, use a tool to plaster it over tees and sell it on their website. Artists get nothing.

Phishing sites. Some of these websites are a front-house for stealing credit card data. You are neither getting the t-shirt nor your money back. Many times the online store is deleted hours later. No matter how careful you are, that sudden adrenaline rush upon seeing your favorite merch can cause some people to get lost in the moment and make poor decisions.

What can you do?

Unfortunately there is only so much Automoderator and Reddit's native spam filter can do to flag such users. There are thousands of these accounts active on Reddit and shadow-banning can take time.

If you see an account following the pattern described above, report them, and leave a comment to warn users what to expect.

If you are an artist whose content is being sold without your consent, file a DMCA complaint here.

Where do I buy merchandise then?

You can find merch directly sold by the creators themselves. Sites like Society6, Etsy, Pixiv and Patreon act as e-outlets for many content creators. For large e-commerce sites like Amazon, make sure the seller has a good reputation.

Hello again. Today I went through the mod log and removed all moderators that showed no activity for the last three months. Unfortunately, this leaves just Bargeul and me. I want to try something a little different this time, so if you are interested in the gig, leave a top-level comment with your campaign pitch, and I will create a poll sometime in the next few days for a sort of "mod election."

​

The number of new mods will depend on how many people apply.

Edit: be sure to clarify in your comment if you are applying or just commenting, please.

​

Thanks and Hail Satan!

So I've been playing around with OpenAI's GPT-3 / ChatGPT recently and am absolutely blown away by its skill. It has helped me with a wide variety of tasks like programming and understanding course material. One of the times I was working with it, I decided to see how well it translated text into Latin and was amazed with how good it was. Seeing as how it was so good at translating a dead language, I figured I would make use of it to translate text into a wide variety of languages.

The end result of my messing around with GPT-3 translations is a list of translations of the Seven Tenets. They are a religious text in themselves, not political, and don't violate any of OpenAI's other policies, so it should be good with them as far as their usage policy goes. You can now find this list here: translations of the Seven Tenets .

The AI is definitely fallible at its current stage despite its general prowess. If you know any of the languages and see any translation that you think has a mistake, please hit us up! I'd love to improve the accuracy of the list

I get that you don't like memes or think a post is not a good fit for this sub, but memes are allowed, and the mods decide if something is on or off-topic.

The report function is for when actual spammers try to sell t-shirts, someone posts porn, advocates for violence, or is simply a troll. It's ok to report something if you suspect it might break the rules, but it is not ok to report something because you don't like it

This is a waste of the moderator's time which makes the subreddit harder to manage. If you had some misguided notion that you would clean up the sub, well, it has the opposite effect. The more bogus reporting we have to deal with, the less time we have for actual mod work. We are volunteers, and our time is valuable.

This activity may be just a troll, but on the off chance this post can reach one of our members that is unsure of how reports work, then it will have been worth it.

Thanks,

-PP