Sioux City Suspect Accused of "Satanism"
Tuesday August 19, 2008
Larry Harris, the man who is accused of brutally murdering his two stepdaughters back in January, will be heading to court soon, and prosecutors are portraying him as a cold-blooded devil-worshipper who sacrificed the girls in a ritual slaying. Unfortunately, as often happens, the prosecution team has managed to take the evidence of a few books on the premises as evidence that this is what happened. Harris allegedly had copies of Anton LaVey's Satanic Bible, H.P Lovecraft's Necronomicon, and the book Pagan Ways.
First, can I just address the issue of the books? First of all, Gwydion O'Hara's book Pagan Ways is a very nature oriented, almost tree-hugging sort of book... there's not a darn thing in there about ritual sacrifice. The Necronomicon is FICTION, for crying out loud -- it's by Lovecraft, the guy who brought us Cthulu. And as to the LaVey title? I'm willing to bet the guys at the Church of Satan will quickly be disavowing any connection to Harris, particularly since the COS doesn't seem to actually worship Satan. The presence of these books does NOT mean it was a "Pagan killing", any more than the presence of a Bible in the home of any other killer makes a crime a "Christian killing."
(Note: I emailed the admin folks at COS to see if they had a response to this story. Be sure to read the Comments section to see what their representative has to say)<
Defense attorneys are concerned that the use of terms like "Satanism" and other religious imagery might influence the jury. You think? Just ask Damien Echols about how that works.
The fact is, if this man did indeed commit the heinous crime he's charged with, then he needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law... but don't drag religion into the case, when what he's practicing has nothing to do with modern Paganism, Wicca, or even Satanism. Whatever Larry Harris may think he's practicing, there is no form of contemporary Paganism that advocates the ritual slaughter of innocent children, and I hope the fundies out there don't use this as an excuse to target the rest of the Pagan community.
First, can I just address the issue of the books? First of all, Gwydion O'Hara's book Pagan Ways is a very nature oriented, almost tree-hugging sort of book... there's not a darn thing in there about ritual sacrifice. The Necronomicon is FICTION, for crying out loud -- it's by Lovecraft, the guy who brought us Cthulu. And as to the LaVey title? I'm willing to bet the guys at the Church of Satan will quickly be disavowing any connection to Harris, particularly since the COS doesn't seem to actually worship Satan. The presence of these books does NOT mean it was a "Pagan killing", any more than the presence of a Bible in the home of any other killer makes a crime a "Christian killing."
(Note: I emailed the admin folks at COS to see if they had a response to this story. Be sure to read the Comments section to see what their representative has to say)<
Defense attorneys are concerned that the use of terms like "Satanism" and other religious imagery might influence the jury. You think? Just ask Damien Echols about how that works.
The fact is, if this man did indeed commit the heinous crime he's charged with, then he needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law... but don't drag religion into the case, when what he's practicing has nothing to do with modern Paganism, Wicca, or even Satanism. Whatever Larry Harris may think he's practicing, there is no form of contemporary Paganism that advocates the ritual slaughter of innocent children, and I hope the fundies out there don't use this as an excuse to target the rest of the Pagan community.
Comments
I agree that this doesn’t bode well for the Pagan community at large. A pity the defence’s motion was denied.
Just as a side point, the Necronomicon isn’t a Lovecraft book. There are several “Necronomica,” but they are all by different authors, incorporating various elements of Lovecraft. I’m guessing Mr. Harris had the Simon Necronomicon, which isn’t particularly Lovecraftian at all.
How much do you want to bet that there was also a bible in the house? But, of course, that would not be mentioned.
Someone out there should tell the non-pagans that our unbreakable and only law says.
“An It Harm None, Do As You Wilt” = Do what you will as long as it harms no-one.
And about the Threefold Law
“What you hand out comes back to you threefold.”
Anyway Satan is a Christian invention.
Pagans know no such entity.
Merry Meet, Merry Part and Merry Meet Again.
Blessed Be
Luke - Lovecraft first mentioned the Necronomicon in his story “The Hound,” which appeared around 1920-ish. He attributed the fictional work to an author named Abdul Alhazred, who is also a product of Lovecraft’s imagination. Random couplets associated with the Necronomicon appear in a various Lovecraft stories, including “Call of Cthulu.”
At any rate, the idea became such an ingrained part of pop culture that many publishers and writers have released books entitled “Necronomicon”, claiming that it’s some mystical, magical book of the dead — and I’m a big fan of the Army of Darkness movies, so I know how popular it is
At any rate, Lovecraft insisted throughout his life that the book was a work of fiction, but there are legions of people who don’t believe that, and say Lovecraft is just lying about the book’s creation, simply because if it were *real* the world couldn’t handle That Much Eebil or something.
For those of you who really enjoy Lovecraft’s writing, I recommend “Tales of the Plush Cthulu.”
patti
First of all may I say How refreshing it is for a Pagan to truthfully and without scapegoating mention the fact that Satanists do not worship Satan. Not long ago the Wiccan party line was to blame all that was blamed on them on Satanists….understandable, but both incorrect and simply begging for negative three fold karma.
This case has us Satanists in an uncomfortable and horrifying position. Those who we wish to condemn want our help (the Defense,) and those we wish to assist (the prosecution) want to utterly slander and degrade our religion. I have been mentioned by name in legal documents, and our administration is doing all they can to clarify the position of the Church of Satan to the court.
The bottom line is that the accused is piece of human excrement who deserves nothing short of death. We take a harsh stance on those who violate our dogma, but even that isn’t relevant as Harris was never a member of the Church of Satan.
Regardless, The Satanic Bible specifically prohibits the harming of children under any cicrumstances, and obviously there is no spell or ritual that involves the heinous slaying of little girls!
This case isn’t our first Catch-22, but we sincerely hope it will be the last!
Thank you for your intelligent response to this issue.
MagistraY
MagistraY, thanks for stopping by and stating the COS position. It’s unfortunate that the prosecution is using the Satanism angle in this case, and I hope the sensationalism doesn’t overshadow the true issue at hand here, which is that this man is believed to have murdered two innocent children. Again, I appreciate you responding so quickly.
To our other readers - after posting this blog entry yesterday, I emailed COS’s administration, inviting them to send a representative to respond to this case. MagistraY is here as a recognized spokesperson for COS.
patti
I’m curious,MagistraY. What exactly do members of the CoS believe?
Hi Ross,
Thanks for asking. First check out www.churchofsatan.com, specifically the Theory & Practice link–if you want to know our beliefs and rules. The Satanic Bible is our founding work and it is easily obtainable.
Satanism is atheism that understands the human need for religion, ritual, and dogma. We utilize Jungian concepts of archetypes in ritual, much like Pagans do, but from there we are very different. I spent nearly 20 years in the neo-Pagan/Wiccan movement prior to accepting and embracing my Satanic nature. What separates us has more to do with what I call the 3 facets of religion: Deity, Retribution, and Afterlife. Satanists are atheists who bow before no gods, they don’t believe in literal karma beyond cause and effect, and as far as a Satanist knows there is no afterlife so it is important to live this life to the fullest.
Additionally we are a bit more hardcore than our Pagan friends. We don’t do forgiveness, we accept the world as it is and adapt to it rather than idealize it for what it “should be,” we are pro law and order, and while most Pagans consider themselves non-Christians we are proudly (albeit quietly–after all, we need someone to mow our lawns and serve our fries) anti-Christian.
Feel free to read my blog, the site I’ve mentioned, and again, thanks so much to the host for allowing us to clarify this matter.
To MagistraY: That’s rather interesting. I was born and raised a Christian, and I used to be of the opinion that anything with the name Satan involved was inherently evil. Obviously this isn’t the case. For instance, I had no idea that members of the CoS were atheists.
As a practitioner, could you please explain why the CoS doesn’t do forgiveness? I certainly forgive people, I just never forget, lol.
Thanks for taking your time to answer my questions.
This is such a sad case. Those poor girls lost their lives and most likely the end focus will be the fact that he had satanic books in his home. I certainly hope justice will come to be served for these children.
Also, thanks for keeping things clear and educating us about the CoS.
I also want to thank MagistraY for clarifying the Church of Satan for us. I took a look at the CoS site after Patti’s article came out. I found it to be interesting and enlightening. The only thing I wondered about was why put the name Satan in if it is not worshipped?
Just as a secondary. While I do not practice it, and would invite any that do to correct me, my understanding is that the only group who actually do use and worship the Christian version of the “Satan” entity are the Luciferians. (Even that is caveated, nobody signs up with the losing team.)
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luciferianism)
i have read the Satanic Bible and know that if this guy believed any part of the book he would have never commoted this hideous crime.The Satanic Bible states quite plainly that they do not harm children animals in any way because they are natural born satanist.they also state that they do not force anyone into doing anything that is against their will.
I have never met a member of the COS,that i know of, but if i ever did i would have no problem calling them friend.
It is really sad and horrible that these little girls sufferred so at their father’s hand.
I am glad that the COS gave us some insight to their beliefs. I was raised Mormon (and YES they ARE christians!) but found my true path in the pagan, asatru, oto paths.
Karma will out in this cause and I would hate to be in his shoes when it does.
Kattja McDermott:
Not all Pagans follow the Wiccan rede. And technically, the rede isn’t even a law. Rede means advice.
Sooo . . .CoS are basically Buddhists only with more of a crunchy self-centered grumpy theatrical center? Mmm . . .sounds tasty.=P
the whole satanist crap is getting old, I was one all through high school, then found my true calling in College. Satanism and Paganism have a lot of the same concepts, and nowhere in the leveyan bible does it propose sacrifices, or even blood of any sort. You find creeps like that in any religeon, so quit prosecuting an entire religeon because of one bad egg!
MagistraY, I would like to add my thanks to those above. I can’t tell you how many times I have tried to explain to people (Pagan and Christian alike) that Satanists don’t believe in Satan and they basically look at me like I have 2 heads. It’s actually pretty comical. Fortunatly I met 2 Satanists about 6 years ago and was introduced to the REAL satanism and they remain very good friends to this day. While I am a Pagan and a Witch, and may not agree with everything you believe in I have the utmost respect for you and your fellow Satanists. There seems to be no fallacy in you and that is something that you don’t come across very often in ANY “religion” or “path”.
I am appalled at once again having to read ignorance in the disguise of “enlightenment”. When will the world learn that there is no such thing as Satan and they MUST be held accountable for their actions and can no longer blame it on some non-existant “all-powerful, evil” deity?????
Blessings all
Athena Ravenmoon
Thank you, MagistraY for clarifying what the COS believes for us. The only thing that I knew was that you didn’t worship Satan before, had no idea it was about atheism.
The media has got to stop making scapegoats of the minor religions. I own lesbian novels, so if something happened in my house, would it be a “lesbian offense”? I also have Gothic magazines, would the whole Gothic subculture be hunted down for it? I have a cat, would all cat-owners be persecuted? It can only get more ridiculous from there. Lawyers are supposed to be doing the research, its pretty obvious that they haven’t bothered themselves to do it.
Thank you for explaining the COS and giving us the chance to read for ourselves what your beliefs are, I was really amazed…I was raised Methodist (now Wiccan for 2 years)and that is not how it was pictured…
There are a lot of stupid people out there with their heads up their…you know…laying blame where-ever they can, as long as it’s not them.
Thank you again for your time.
Kaia
It amazes me what prosecutors will try to use to get a conviction. My old landlord was a ministers daughter who was very devout in her faith and when we were talking one night she happened to mention to me that she had read Anton LaVey’s Satanic Bible and that it was quite interesting and was nothing like alot of people would assume. To be truthful I’ve never cared to read it and find out, but I have no reason to disbelieve what she said. I think they are relying on people hearing the name of the book and jumping to conclusions and not bothering to find out what the book is about.