Satanists are poised to volunteer in Florida schools in response to Governor Ron DeSantis’ efforts to incorporate more religion into the state’s public school system under a Volunteer School Chaplain Program that went into effect last week.
Members of The Satanic Temple (TST) say they are prepared to serve as “volunteer chaplains” under a new Florida law that went into effect July 1. The law allows volunteer school chaplains to “provide support, services and programs to students.” The Guardian reported..
Lucien Greaves, co-founder and spokesperson for TST, told Fox News Digital that if a Florida school district were to seize the opportunity to bring a chaplaincy training program to its schools, TST would be “happy to participate.”
Lucien Greaves, co-founder and spokesman for the Satanic Temple, told Fox News Digital that the group started the after-school program as an alternative to other religious groups that were “proselytizing” kids. (Josh Reynolds for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
“Florida’s culture war obsessed, incompetent and bombastic Governor Ron DeSantis blatantly lied to the public when he said Satan worshipping chaplains are not allowed when he passed the school chaplain bill,” he told Fox News Digital. “He is so ignorant that he does not understand a basic and fundamental truism of the Constitution: the government should not dictate that one religion has certain rights over another.”
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After Governor DeSantis signed the law in April, Greaves challenged him to a debate on religious freedom, as the governor said Satanists specifically would not be allowed to participate under the law because he believes they are “not a religion.” However, the group argues that it is a religion because it is recognized as a church by the IRS.
“Some people say that having a school chaplaincy program somehow leads to Satanists roaming the schools. We don’t play that game in Florida.” DeSantis assured The crowd said, “That’s not a religion. You don’t deserve to be a part of this. So, use common sense on this. There’s no need to worry.”
In response, Greaves told Fox News Digital that the comments show DeSantis is “speaking from a place of complete ignorance and/or incompetence.”
“We are recognized as a 501(c)3 tax-exempt church and our religious status has been reaffirmed. Affirmed “It was a ruling handed down by a federal judge in 2020,” he said, “when Mr. DeSantis declared that we are not a religion, it simply gave school districts the false information that if they took his words to heart and tried to infringe on our religious freedom, they would risk costly legal consequences.”
“I don’t think DeSantis cared what he said from the podium, as long as it sounded good at the time, and I’m betting people will forget about it a week later. It’s our job to remind people when Satan-worshipping preachers are in our schools,” he added.
HB931 The law requires school district boards and charter school governing bodies to assign specific duties to volunteer school chaplains and provide support services and programs to students, Fox News Digital previously reported.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has said Satanists cannot participate in a new state chaplaincy training program offered to schools, and now Satanic Temple co-founder Lucien Greaves is challenging the governor in a debate on religious freedom. (Getty Images)
Principals of schools that have volunteer school chaplains would be required to inform parents about religious services and would be required to post a list of chaplains on their websites. In addition, school districts would require volunteer school chaplains to pass certain background checks and obtain written parental consent before students can attend or receive religious services.
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But the bill leaves it largely up to schools and school districts to decide how to implement their chaplain programs and only requires schools to list the religion of their volunteers, “if any.” Governor DeSantis has said the bill’s goal is to incorporate Christian doctrine into public education.
“You’re basically saying there’s no place for God. [on campus]”That’s wrong,” DeSantis said of signing the bill in April.
When news of TST’s intentions first broke in February, DeSantis spokesman Brian Griffins responded, “Absolutely not.”
But critics of the bill say it violates the principle of separation of church and state, and TST has threatened to sue the state of Florida if its members are barred from serving as pastors in the program.
A statue of Baphomet at the Satanic Temple meeting house in Salem, Massachusetts, with the group’s spokesman, Lucien Greaves. (Getty Images)
Greaves previously told Fox News Digital that the governor has made multiple comments about the group without any knowledge of who its members are or what they believe. He said the bill shows DeSantis doesn’t know how the law works, and that the bill he signed into law “actually allows for the acceptance of Satanic ministers in our schools.”
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Despite its name, the group does not believe in demons or the supernatural, according to its website. The group is atheist, and a frequently asked questions section on its website makes it clear that it does not worship the devil.
“The Satanic Temple believes that religion can and should be separated from superstition, and therefore we do not advocate the existence of a personal Satan,” the website states. “Satan represents the eternal rebel against arbitrary authority, forever defending personal sovereignty in the face of insurmountable odds.”
“Satanists should actively strive to hone their critical thinking and practice rational agnosticism in all things,” the site states. “Our beliefs must accommodate our best current scientific understanding of the material world, never the other way around.”
TST’s “After School Satan Clubs” have been held in schools across the U.S. in recent years, including in states such as Tennessee, Virginia, Pennsylvania and California. Greaves describes the after-school programs as a self-directed learning process that includes games, puzzles and activities, but the programs have met with widespread opposition from parents.
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Fox News has reached out to Governor DeSantis’ office for comment.
Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
