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Satanism Today - An Encyclopedia of Religion, Folklore and Popular ...

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Mather, Cotton 167<br />

A close up <strong>of</strong> the contents <strong>of</strong> one <strong>of</strong> the nagangas discovered at the scene in Mexico (Brad Doherty)<br />

Guyana, a member <strong>of</strong> the Disciples <strong>of</strong> Christ, a<br />

mainline Christian denomination. <strong>An</strong>d while<br />

Manson occasionally referred to himself as Satan<br />

(he also called himself God), the Manson family<br />

were not Satanists in any meaningful sense <strong>of</strong> the<br />

term. Furthermore, their murderous acts were<br />

not ritualistic sacrifices. Thus, while the<br />

Matamoros group did not actually worship the<br />

Devil, it contained more components than any<br />

previous group that could be interpreted to fit the<br />

Satanic cult stereotype—hence its immediate<br />

adoption as a primary example by believers in<br />

Satanic ritual abuse.<br />

See also Crime; Vodoun<br />

For Further Reading:<br />

Associated Press. “Cult Leader Slain In Gunbattle.”<br />

May 8, 1989.<br />

Cartwright, Gary. “The Word <strong>of</strong> the Devil.” Texas<br />

Monthly. June 1989.<br />

DeQuine, Jeanne. “A Perverse Twist on <strong>An</strong>cient<br />

Rites.” USA <strong>Today</strong>. April 13, 1989.<br />

Green, Thomas A. “Accusations <strong>of</strong> <strong>Satanism</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />

Racial Tensions in the Matamoros Cult<br />

Murders.” In The <strong>Satanism</strong> Scare. James T.<br />

Richardson, Joel Best, <strong>and</strong> David G. Bromley,<br />

eds. New York: Aldine De Gruyter, 1991.<br />

Hancock, Lee. “Use <strong>of</strong> Body Parts Common in<br />

Cuban Occult <strong>Religion</strong>.” Dallas Morning News.<br />

April 13, 1989.<br />

Hicks, Robert D. In Pursuit <strong>of</strong> Satan: The Police <strong>and</strong> the<br />

Occult. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 1991.<br />

O’Sullivan, Gerry. “The <strong>Satanism</strong> Scare.”<br />

Postmodern Culture 1, no. 2 (January 1991).<br />

Mather, Cotton<br />

As historians have <strong>of</strong>ten pointed out, American<br />

culture has been decisively influenced—for better<br />

or for worse—by New Engl<strong>and</strong> Puritanism. One<br />

<strong>of</strong> the less positive aspects <strong>of</strong> this heritage is its<br />

contribution to the American tendency to view all<br />

opponents as evil. The Puritans, <strong>of</strong> course,<br />

believed in a literal Satan. <strong>An</strong>d because they also<br />

viewed their very existence as a powerful threat to<br />

the infernal kingdom, they believed that the<br />

Prince <strong>of</strong> Darkness was the ultimate source <strong>of</strong> all<br />

attacks on their colony.<br />

During the later part <strong>of</strong> the seventeenth<br />

century, Puritan New Engl<strong>and</strong> encountered a

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