The Church of Satan was established by Anton Szandor LaVey on Walpurgisnacht — a Christian feast day linked to the warding off of evil spirits that has roots in pre-Christian pagan practices — in 1966. It is considered the first modern organized church devoted to the figure of Satan and describes itself as the “oldest Continue reading

Children of the Waning Star emerged as a digital phenomenon in July 2025, originating on the social media platform TikTok. The movement was initiated by creator Gigi Jarvis, a sociology graduate and professional actress, who uploaded a video titled “Starting a cult day one.” She later explained that her intent was to create a kind Continue reading

The Chicago Rippers, also known as the Ripper Crew, was an organized crime group of serial killers, rapists, cannibals, and necrophiles who operated in Illinois between 1981 and 1982. The group consisted of ringleader Robin Gecht and his three associates: brothers Andrew and Thomas Kokoraleis, and Edward Spreitzer. They were suspected of murdering up to Continue reading

The Builders of the Adytum (B.O.T.A.) was founded in 1922 in Los Angeles by occultist Paul Foster Case. “Adytum” is Latin for “Inner Shrine” or “Holy of Holies,” and “Builders” refers to the metaphor of building a spiritual temple without hands, as Jesus is believed to have done. Case, born in 1884, was a prominent Continue reading

Maria de Naglowska was a Russian occultist, mystic, author, and journalist who gained notoriety in Paris during the 1930s. She was the founder of the Brotherhood of the Golden Arrow, a short-lived esoteric society known for its focus on sexual magic and its unique theological perspectives. Born on August 15, 1883, in St. Petersburg, Naglowska Continue reading

Brother Carson’s Solar Temple was a short-lived religious movement that arose in the first years of the Great Depression in Vancouver, Canada. The group operated out of an office that it called its “Headquarters for the Americas” and was led by Peter Carson. The group’s activities came under scrutiny following the disappearance of Edna Blumberger, Continue reading

Blood Over Intent (BOI) is a YouTube-based occult movement that emerged around 2013, with Mark Braun, a Florida plumber and electrician, as its most prominent figure. Braun, who goes by the name “QuasiLuminous” online, claims to be the earthly incarnation of Satan. The central practice of BOI is a form of occult magick involving the Continue reading

Colin Batley was the head of a small and secretive Satanic sect known to its members as “The Church.” Born in London, he claimed to have been sexually abused by his father as a child and worked a series of odd jobs including a stint as a night security guard at a grocery store before Continue reading

Rogelio Straughn was born in Panama in 1944 and was exposed to the arts and philosophy early in life. He began studying piano and music theory at age six, and read regularly to his grandfather, a surgeon who had gone blind in old age. This introduced Straughn to Plato and other great thinkers. In adolescence, Continue reading

The A∴A∴ is an initiatory occult organization founded by British esotericist Aleister Crowley in November 1907, three years after Crowley said that he had received The Book of the Law (Liber AL vel Legis) from a voice called Aiwass over three days in Cairo in April 1904. Before his experience in Cairo, Crowley had been Continue reading