The First Satanic Church is a Satanist organization founded by Karla LaVey on Halloween 1999 in San Francisco. The group is dedicated to the philosophy codified by Karla’s father, Anton LaVey, in his 1969 publication The Satanic Bible. Although the organization was established in 1999, its official documentation claims a founding date of 1966, presenting the 1999 creation of the First Satanic Church as a continuation or reconstitution of Anton LaVey’s original Church of Satan.
Following Anton LaVey’s death in 1997, a dispute emerged over the future leadership and assets of the Church of Satan. Karla LaVey and Anton LaVey’s partner, Blanche Barton, initially announced that they would jointly govern the organization as co-High Priestesses. The arrangement broke down, however, after Barton produced a handwritten will that assigned Anton LaVey’s estate, intellectual property, and corporate assets to a private trust under her control. Karla LaVey challenged the document in court, which subsequently ruled it invalid.
A legal settlement divided Anton LaVey’s personal effects and royalties among his three children, while Barton retained ownership of the Church of Satan corporation. Barton subsequently relocated the organization’s headquarters to New York City and appointed Peter H. Gilmore and Peggy Nadramia as High Priest and High Priestess. In response, Karla LaVey established the First Satanic Church in San Francisco to preserve what she regarded as her father’s original legacy and teachings.
Karla LaVey has maintained that the current leadership of the Church of Satan departed from Anton LaVey’s intended philosophy. She presents the First Satanic Church as the sole continuous representative of his philosophical outlook and the authentic expression of the principles set forth in The Satanic Bible.
The public activities of the First Satanic Church have remained relatively localized and centered on cultural and educational programming. Beginning in December 1998, the group hosted an Annual Black X-Mass Show and later organized additional public events, including a 2005 Walpurgisnacht Show and charitable benefit concerts supporting hurricane relief efforts.
The primary public representative of the organization has remained Karla LaVey. Through literature production, podcasts, and a weekly San Francisco radio broadcast that combines music programming with occult education, she has continued to promote and interpret the group’s philosophy for both members and the broader public.
Key Sources:
Lattin, D. (1999, January 25). Satan’s Den in Great Disrepair: Relatives of S.F. hellhound Anton LaVey battle over ‘Black House.’ The San Francisco Chronicle.
Lewis, J. R., & Petersen, J. A. (2005). Controversial new religions. Oxford University Press.
Sward, S. (1997, November 8). Satanist’s Daughter To Keep the ‘Faith.’ The San Francisco Chronicle.