Student Group to Perform Black Mass at Harvard University

The Satanic Temple and Harvard University Join Forces to Celebrate a Black Mass

In May of 2014, the Harvard Extension Cultural Studies Club and The Satanic Temple announced that they would perform a “Black Mass” at Harvard University as one part in an ongoing series of diverse religious rituals, with the intention of exploring the range of religious practice.  [1] The “black mass” would have taken place at a pub on the school’s Cambridge campus. The club called it a “re-enactment” that was intended solely for educational purposes. Unfortunately, in the eyes of most people, this kind of ritual was historically performed to mock the Roman Catholic Church. [2]  “We are hosting a reenactment of a historical event known as a Black Mass. The performance is designed to be educational and is preceded by a lecture that provides the history, context, and origin of the Black Mass,” the club said in a statement. [3]  “Our purpose is not to denigrate any religion or faith, which would be repugnant to our educational purposes,” the Harvard student group had said in a statement, “but instead to learn and experience the history of different cultural practices.”  While the Harvard Extension Cultural Studies Club has said that it had no intention to denigrate faith, as CNN notes, black Masses have an odd history and Catholics believe that the events are intended to make fun of communion, among other sacraments. [4] The entire event is seen by many believers as an attempt to poke fun at the Christian faith. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a black mass as, “a travesty of the Christian Mass ascribed to worshipers of Satan.”

It is important to note, though, that the Satanic Temple does not believe in a real devil and instead “advocates for religious tolerance and pluralism,” according to CNN.  [5]  “This is not a supernatural ritual,” Satanic Temple spokesperson Lucien Greaves told the Daily News. “We don’t believe in the supernatural. And I don’t think belief in the supernatural should give you any privilege, since any deeply held belief should be protected.” [6]  About Satan, Greaves said, “There’s no stronger cultural symbol for the revolt against the general idea of arbitrary authority and revolt against ultimate tyranny. There’s no better a construct that can act as a narrative for our works and goals.” [7]  The Satanic Temple is the same group fighting to place a monument outside the Oklahoma state capitol grounds.  As soon as the plan became wildly known, loud demands for censorship of the ceremony came from powerful religious leaders.  Cardinal Sean O’Malley of the Roman Catholic Church had this to say about the coming event:

I was disappointed. I was hoping Harvard would see how offensive and evil this was, and please ask them not to do it on their property. [8]

People all over the world joined in the condemnation of the Black Mass. It seemed self-evident to a very large number of people that a Satanic ritual on Campus would be unacceptable, and ought to be stopped. The historical reality behind the ceremony, however, didn’t turn out to be so morally simple.  Drew Faust, President of Harvard University, lectured:

The ‘black mass’ had its historical origins as a means of denigrating the Catholic Church; it mocks a deeply sacred event in Catholicism, and is highly offensive to many in the Church and beyond. The decision by a student club to sponsor an enactment of this ritual is abhorrent; it represents a fundamental affront to the values of inclusion, belonging and mutual respect that must define our community. It is deeply regrettable that the organizers of this event, well aware of the offense they are causing so many others, have chosen to proceed with a form of expression that is so flagrantly disrespectful and inflammatory. [9]

The cultural club doesn’t see the black mass as sacrilegeous but consider it just as one form of religious expression among many others.  The Club said it also plans to host a Shinto tea ceremony, a Shaker exhibit and a presentation on Buddhist meditation.  But Harvard University President Drew Faust called the plans to reenact a black Mass “abhorrent.”  “It is deeply regrettable that the organizers of this event, well aware of the offense they are causing so many others, have chosen to proceed with a form of expression that is so flagrantly disrespectful and inflammatory,” Faust continued.  [10] People all over the world joined in the condemnation of the Black Mass. It seemed self-evident that a Satanic ritual would be unacceptable, and ought to be stopped. The historical reality behind the ceremony, however, didn’t turn out to be so morally simple. A petition to stop the black Mass had garnered 60,000 signatures, according to Aurora Griffin, president of the Harvard Student Catholic Association.

[new_royalslider id=”17″]

The Black Mass is Cancelled

 About an hour before the ritual would have been held, the dean of student affairs at Harvard’s Extension School said in a statement that the black mass had been moved to an off-campus location. “The Harvard Extension School is grateful the student group has recognized the strong concerns expressed by members of the Harvard community and beyond,” Robert Neugeboren, dean of students and alumni affairs at the extension school, said after the decision was ade to find a new location. [11]  “The Satanic Temple has informed us that they will stage their own black mass ceremony at an undisclosed private location to ‘reaffirm their respect for the Satanic faith and to demonstrate that the most powerful response to offensive speech is to shame those who marginalize others by letting their own words and actions speak for themselves,’ ” the studies club said. [12]

Fox Boston later reported that the group then canceled the event because it was unable to secure a new location.  The Harvard Extension Cultural Studies Club announced it would no longer hold the event because negotiations broke down between the group and the bar where it was scheduled to be held. The club was unable to find another location to hold the mass. [13]  Dean Robert Neugeboren said he was glad that the students finally decided to cancel, given religious leaders’ and other students’ firmly expressed reservations about the event. [14]   The group was also drawing fire from the Archdiocese of Boston and condemnation from the president of the Ivy League school.  Lucien Greaves, a spokesman for the New York-based Satanic Temple, told the Boston Globe late Monday that the event was called off because no venue was available. This is what Greaves told the newspaper:

Everyone involved, outside of the Satanic Temple, got really scared. And I don’t necessarily blame them, because I understand that they were getting a lot of vitriolic hate mail, and I don’t think they expected it. [15]

The Satanist’s Manifestation

Infowars Reporter Dan Bidondi traveled to Harvard University to the site of the ill fated Satanic Black Mass set to take place on campus. Christians went on the offensive and protested this event which was eventually cancelled. Satanists and Christians then had no choice but to engage in a theological showdown in the streets of Boston.
[new_royalslider id=”18″]