Salem-based Satanic Temple now recognized by IRS as tax-exempted church
The Satanic Temple in Salem reveals it is now considered as a church by the Internal Revenue Service and that they can now apply for faith-based grants.
On Thursday the "non-theistic" Satanic organization based in Salem, Massachusetts, said that they were pleased to be exempted from tax after they have been advocating for churches to lose their tax exemption for years. The Satanic Temple was created to act against and withstand Christianity in public. They also claim that the temple does not worship the devil like how it is mentioned in the Bible but just advocated for the church and state to be separated.
Lucien Greaves, in a statement with the Associated Press, said, "Satanism is here to stay." Greaves is a spokesman for the Satanic Temple. He continued that the status should "lay to rest any suspicion that we don't meet the qualifications of a true religious organization."
Greaves also revealed that the Satanic Temple is now the only federally recognized international religious satanic organization. In a statement that was provided by the organization to the Associated Press, it used a code that classifies the organization as a "church or a convention or association of churches."
They also revealed that the designation will now help tackle religious discrimination in legal cases.
The Satanic Temple founded the "After School Satan" clubs opposing after-school programs conducted by Christians like the Good News Club. Last year, the Satanic Temple also placed a statue of the goat-headed idol Baphomet at the Arkansas State Capitol. It was a protest to remove the Ten Commandments monument that was placed there years ago.