Luciferianism is a belief system that venerates the essential characteristics that are affixed to

Lucifer The most common meaning for Lucifer in English is as a name for the Devil in Christian theology. He appeared in the King James Version of the Bible in Isaiah and before that in the Vulgate (the late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bib ...

, the name of various mythological and religious figures associated with the planet

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

. The tradition usually reveres Lucifer not as

the Devil Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or 'e ...

, but as a destroyer, a guardian, liberator, light bringer or guiding spirit to darkness, or even the true God. According to Ethan Doyle White in ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

'', among those who "called themselves

Satanists Satanism refers to a group of Religion, religious, Ideology, ideological, or Philosophy, philosophical beliefs based on Satan—particularly his worship or veneration. Because of the ties to the historical Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic reli ...

or Luciferians", some insist that Lucifer is an entity separate from Satan, while others maintain "the two names as synonyms for the same being".

Etymology

The word ''Lucifer'' is taken from the

Latin Vulgate The Vulgate () is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. It is largely the work of Saint Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels used by the Roman Church. Later, of his own initia ...

, which translates as ''lucifer''. The

Biblical Hebrew Biblical Hebrew ( or ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite languages, Canaanitic branch of the Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Isra ...

word , which occurs only once in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' has been transliterated as ''hêlêl'', or ''heylel''. The

Septuagint The Septuagint ( ), sometimes referred to as the Greek Old Testament or The Translation of the Seventy (), and abbreviated as LXX, is the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from the original Biblical Hebrew. The full Greek ...

renders in

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

as (''heōsphoros''), (see:

Pseudepigrapha A pseudepigraph (also :wikt:anglicized, anglicized as "pseudepigraphon") is a false attribution, falsely attributed work, a text whose claimed author is not the true author, or a work whose real author attributed it to a figure of the past. Th ...

). a name—literally "bringer of dawn"—for the so-called

morning star Morning Star, morning star, or Morningstar may refer to: Astronomy * Morning star, most commonly used as a name for the planet Venus when it appears in the east before sunrise ** See also Venus in culture * Morning star, a name for the star Siri ...

. In Christian and Jewish exegesis of

Isaiah 14 Isaiah 14 is the fourteenth chapter of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. This book contains the prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah, and is one of the Books of the Prophets. Text The o ...

Nebuchadnezzar II Nebuchadnezzar II, also Nebuchadrezzar II, meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir", was the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, ruling from the death of his father Nabopolassar in 605 BC to his own death in 562 BC. Often titled Nebuchadnezzar ...

, who conquered Jerusalem in 587 BCE, is condemned in a

prophecy In religion, mythology, and fiction, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain di ...

by the

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "Yahweh is salvation"; also known as Isaias or Esaias from ) was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. The text of the Book of Isaiah refers to Isaiah as "the prophet" ...

and called the "Morning Star" (i.e., the planet Venus). The

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

text in this chapter says, . ''Helel ben Shahar'' may refer to the

Morning Star Morning Star, morning star, or Morningstar may refer to: Astronomy * Morning star, most commonly used as a name for the planet Venus when it appears in the east before sunrise ** See also Venus in culture * Morning star, a name for the star Siri ...

, but the text of Isaiah 14 gives no indication that ''Helel'' was a star or planet. Later

Christian tradition Christian tradition is a collection of traditions consisting of practices or beliefs associated with Christianity. Many churches have traditional practices, such as particular patterns of worship or rites, that developed over time. Deviations from ...

came to use the Latin word for "morning star", ''lucifer'', as a proper name ("Lucifer") for the

Devil A devil is the mythical personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conce ...

—as he was before his fall. As a result, ''Lucifer'' has become a by-word for

Satan Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or ' ...

or "the

" in Christianity and popular Western literature, as in

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...

's '' Inferno'',

Joost van den Vondel Joost van den Vondel (; 17 November 1587 – 5 February 1679) was a Dutch playwright, poet, literary translator and writer. He is generally regarded as the greatest writer in the Dutch language as well as an important figure in the history of Wes ...

's ''Lucifer'', and

John Milton John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, and civil servant. His 1667 epic poem ''Paradise Lost'' was written in blank verse and included 12 books, written in a time of immense religious flux and politic ...

's 1667 ''

Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an Epic poetry, epic poem in blank verse by the English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The poem concerns the Bible, biblical story of the fall of man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their ex ...

''. However, the Latin word never came to be used exclusively, as in English, in this way. It was also applied to others, including

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

. The image of a morning star fallen from the sky is generally believed among

bible scholar Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible, with ''Bible'' referring to the books of the canonical Hebrew Bible in mainstream Jewish usage and the Christian Bible including the canon ...

to have a parallel in

Canaanite mythology Canaanite religion or Syro-Canaanite religions refers to the myths, cults and ritual practices of people in the Levant during roughly the first three millennia BC. Canaanite religions were polytheistic and in some cases monolatristic. They we ...

History

Medieval

The Luciferian label—in the sense of Lucifer-worshipper—was first used in the ''

Gesta Treverorum The ''Gesta Treverorum'' (''Deeds of the Trevians'') is a collection of histories, legends, wars, records of the Archbishops of Trier (Trèves), writings of the Popes, and other records that were collected by the monks of the St. Matthias' Abbey ...

'' in 1231 for a religious circle led by a woman named Lucardis (Luckhardis). It was said that in private she lamented the fall of Lucifer (Satan) and yearned for his restoration to heavenly rule. The sect was exposed by the

Papal Inquisition The Medieval Inquisition was a series of Inquisitions (Catholic Church bodies charged with suppressing heresy) from around 1184, including the Episcopal Inquisition (1184–1230s) and later the Papal Inquisition (1230s). The Medieval Inquisition ...

. In 1234,

Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX (; born Ugolino di Conti; 1145 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and the ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decretales'' and instituting the Pa ...

issued the

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not Castration, castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e. cows proper), bulls have long been an important symbol cattle in r ...

'' Vox in Rama'' calling for a crusade against the Stedinger, who were accused of Luciferianism. The bull contains a detailed description of supposed rites and beliefs. This description was repeated and occasionally expanded in the following centuries, but "modern historiography agrees on their entirely fictitious nature".Ruben van Luijk, ''Children of Lucifer: The Origins of Modern Religious Satanism'' (Oxford University Press, 2016), pp. 29–31. The actual identity of the heretics accused of Luciferianism is often difficult to ascertain. Those of the 13th-century

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

appear to have been

Cathars Catharism ( ; from the , "the pure ones") was a Christian quasi- dualist and pseudo-Gnostic movement which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France, between the 12th and 14th centuries. Denounced as a he ...

(Alexander Patschovsky) or a distinct off-shoot of the Cathars (Piotr Czarnecki). In the 14th century, the term Luciferians was applied to what appear to have been

Waldensians The Waldensians, also known as Waldenses (), Vallenses, Valdesi, or Vaudois, are adherents of a church tradition that began as an ascetic movement within Western Christianity before the Reformation. Originally known as the Poor of Lyon in the l ...

. They were persecuted under the Luciferian label in Schweidnitz in 1315 and in

Angermünde Angermünde () is a town in the district of Uckermark in the state of Brandenburg, in north-eastern Germany. It is about northeast of Berlin, the capital of Germany. The population is about 14,000, but has been declining since its traditional i ...

in 1336. In 1392–1394, when some four hundred Luciferians from

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

and

Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...

were brought before the inquisitor Peter Zwicker, he exonerated them of devil-worship and correctly identified them as Waldensians. At the same time, the inquisitor Antonio di Settimo in

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

believed the local Waldensians to be Luciferians. Kathrin Utz Tremp
"Heresy"
in Richard M. Golden, ed., ''Encyclopedia of Witchcraft: The Western Tradition'' (ABC-CLIO, 2006), p. 486.

Early modern

Lucifer the Lightbearer Moses Harman (October 12, 1830January 30, 1910) was an American schoolteacher and publisher notable for his staunch support for women's rights. He was prosecuted under the Comstock Law for content published in his anarchist periodical ''Lucifer ...

'' was an

individualist anarchist Individualist anarchism or anarcho-individualism is a collection of anarchist currents that generally emphasize the individual and their will over external determinants such as groups, society, traditions, and ideological systems. Individuali ...

journal published in the United States by Moses Harman in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It has been reported that "the title was selected, stated Harman, because it expressed the paper's mission. Lucifer, the name given to the morning star by the people of the ancient world, served as the symbol of the publication and represented the ushering in of a new day. He declared that freethinkers had sought to redeem and glorify the name Lucifer while theologians cursed him as the prince of the fallen angels. Harman suggested that Lucifer would take on the role of an educator. 'The God of the Bible doomed mankind to perpetual ignorance,' wrote Harman, 'and eoplewould never have known Good from Evil if Lucifer had not told them how to become as wise as the gods themselves. ''

'' was a publication edited by the influential occultist

Helena Blavatsky Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian-born Mysticism, mystic and writer who emigrated to the United States where she co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875. She gained an internat ...

. The journal was first published by Blavatsky. From 1889 until Blavatsky's death in May 1891,

Annie Besant Annie Besant (; Wood; 1 October 1847 – 20 September 1933) was an English socialist, Theosophy (Blavatskian), theosophist, freemason, women's rights and Home Rule activist, educationist and campaigner for Indian nationalism. She was an arden ...

was a co-editor.

Rudolf Steiner Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (; 27 or 25 February 1861 – 30 March 1925) was an Austrian occultist, social reformer, architect, esotericist, and claimed clairvoyant. Steiner gained initial recognition at the end of the nineteenth century ...

's writings, which formed the basis for

anthroposophy Anthroposophy is a spiritual new religious movementSources for 'new religious movement': which was founded in the early 20th century by the esotericist Rudolf Steiner that postulates the existence of an objective, intellectually comprehensibl ...

, characterised Lucifer as a spiritual opposite to

Ahriman Angra Mainyu (; ) is the Avestan name of Zoroastrianism's hypostasis of the "destructive/evil spirit" and the main adversary in Zoroastrianism either of the Spenta Mainyu, the "holy/creative spirits/mentality", or directly of Ahura Mazda, th ...

, with

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

between the two forces, mediating a balanced path for humanity. Lucifer represents an intellectual, imaginative and otherworldly force which might be associated with visions, subjectivity, psychosis and fantasy. He associated Lucifer with the religious and philosophical cultures of Egypt, Rome, and Greece. Steiner believed that Lucifer, as a supersensible Being, had incarnated in China about 3000 years before the birth of Christ. In what is known as the

Taxil hoax The Taxil hoax was an 1890s hoax of exposure by Léo Taxil, intended to mock not only Freemasonry but also the Catholic Church's opposition to it. Taxil, the author of an anti-papal tract, pretended to convert to Catholicism (circa 1884) and w ...

Léo Taxil Marie Joseph Gabriel Antoine Jogand-Pagès, better known by the pen name Léo Taxil (; March 21, 1854 – March 31, 1907), was a French writer and journalist who became known for his strong anti-Catholic and anti-clerical views. He is also k ...

(1854–1907) claimed that

Freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

is associated with worshipping Lucifer. He alleged that leading Freemason

Albert Pike Albert Pike (December 29, 1809April 2, 1891) was an American author, poet, orator, editor, lawyer, jurist and Confederate States Army general who served as an List of justices of the Arkansas Supreme Court, associate justice of the Arkansas Supr ...

had addressed " e 23 Supreme Confederated Councils of the world" (an invention of Taxil), instructing them that Lucifer was God, and was in opposition to the evil god

Adonai Judaism has different names given to God in Judaism, God, which are considered sacred: (), (''Adonai'' ), (''El (deity), El'' ), ( ), (''El Shaddai, Shaddai'' ), and ( ); some also include I Am that I Am.This is the formulation of Josep ...

. Supporters of Freemasonry contend that, when Albert Pike and other Masonic scholars spoke about the "Luciferian path" or the "energies of Lucifer", they were referring to the Morning Star, the light bearer, the search for light, the very antithesis of dark, Satanic evil. Taxil promoted a book by Diana Vaughan (actually written by himself, as he later confessed publicly) that purported to reveal a highly secret ruling body called the

Palladium Palladium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pd and atomic number 46. It is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal discovered in 1802 by the English chemist William Hyde Wollaston. He named it after the asteroid Pallas (formally 2 Pallas), ...

, which controlled the organization and had a Satanic agenda. As described by ''Freemasonry Disclosed'' in 1897: Taxil's work and Pike's address continue to be quoted by anti-Masonic groups. In ''Devil-Worship in France'',

Arthur Edward Waite Arthur Edward Waite (2 October 1857 – 19 May 1942) was a British poet and scholarly Mysticism, mystic who wrote extensively on occult and Western esotericism, esoteric matters, and was the co-creator of the Rider–Waite Tarot (also called th ...

compared Taxil's work to what today would be called a tabloid story, replete with logical and factual inconsistencies. Madeline Montalban was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

astrologer Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that propose that information about human affairs and terrestrial events may be discerned by studying the apparent positions ...

and

witch Witchcraft is the use of magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meaning. According to ''Enc ...

. She co-founded the

esoteric Western esotericism, also known as the Western mystery tradition, is a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas and currents are united since they are largely distinct both from orthod ...

organisation known as the Order of the Morning Star (OMS), through which she propagated her own form of Luciferianism. In 1952, she met Nicholas Heron, with whom she entered into a relationship. An engraver, photographer, and former journalist for the ''

Brighton Argus ''The Argus'' is a local newspaper based in Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England, with editions serving the city of Brighton and Hove and the other parts of both East Sussex and West Sussex. The newspaper covers local news, politics and ...

'', he shared her interest in the occult and together they developed a magical system based upon Luciferianism, the veneration of the deity

, or Lumiel, whom they considered to be a benevolent

angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

ic deity. In 1956, they founded the Order of the Morning Star, or ''Ordo Stella Matutina'' (OSM), propagating it through a

correspondence course Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance; today, it usually involves online ...

. The couple sent out lessons to those who paid the necessary fees over a series of weeks, eventually leading to the twelfth lesson, which contained ''The Book of Lumiel'', a short work written by Montalban that documented her understanding of Lumiel, or Lucifer, and his involvement with humankind. The couple initially lived together in Torrington Place,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, from where they ran the course; but in 1961 moved to the coastal town of

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea began as a f ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, where there was greater room for Heron's engraving equipment.

Modern

In Anton LaVey's ''

The Satanic Bible ''The Satanic Bible'' is a collection of essays, observations, and rituals published by Anton LaVey in 1969. It is the central religious text of LaVeyan Satanism, and is considered the foundation of its philosophy and dogma. It has been descr ...

'', Lucifer is one of the four crown princes of hell, particularly that of the East, the "lord of the

air An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosph ...

", and is described as the bringer of light, the morning star, intellectualism, and enlightenment. The title "lord of the air" is based upon

Ephesians The Epistle to the Ephesians is the tenth book of the New Testament. Traditionally believed to have been written by the Apostle Paul around AD 62 during his imprisonment in Rome, the Epistle to the Ephesians closely resembles Colossians ...

2:2, which uses the phrase "prince of the power of the air'" to refer to Satan. In ''

Rules for Radicals ''Rules for Radicals: A Pragmatic Primer for Realistic Radicals'' is a 1971 book by American community activist and writer Saul Alinsky about how to successfully run a movement for change. It was the last book written by Alinsky, and it was publ ...

'' (his final work, published in 1971 one year before his death), the prominent American community organizer and writer

Saul Alinsky Saul David Alinsky (January 30, 1909 – June 12, 1972) was an American community activist and political theorist. His work through the Chicago-based Industrial Areas Foundation helping poor communities organize to press demands upon landlord ...

wrote at the end of his personal acknowledgements: Author Michael W. Ford has written on Lucifer as a "mask" of the adversary, a motivator and illuminating force of the mind and subconscious.

Notable organizations

Fraternitas Saturni

Fraternitas Saturni Fraternitas Saturni (lat.: "Brotherhood of Saturn") is a German magical order, founded in 1926 by Eugen Grosche a.k.a. Gregor A. Gregorius and four others. It is one of the oldest continuously running magical groups in Germany. The lodge is, a ...

(lat.: "Brotherhood of Saturn") is a German magical order, founded in 1926 by Eugen Grosche a.k.a. Gregor A. Gregorius and four others. It is one of the oldest continuously running magical groups in Germany. The lodge is, as Gregorius states, "concerned with the study of esotericism, mysticism, and magic in the cosmic sense". The emphasis of the FS lies more on

astrological Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that propose that information about human affairs and terrestrial events may be discerned by studying the apparent positions of celesti ...

and Luciferian teachings, rather than on

Qabalah Hermetic Qabalah () is a Western esotericism, Western esoteric tradition involving mysticism and the occult. It is the underlying philosophy and framework for magical societies such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, has inspired esoter ...

and

Tarot Tarot (, first known as ''trionfi (cards), trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a set of playing cards used in tarot games and in fortune-telling or divination. From at least the mid-15th century, the tarot was used to play t ...

compared to other Western magical orders founded in the early 20th century. Because of its unique approach to modern occultism, the FS is considered by many modern authors to be the most influential German magical order. According to

Stephen Flowers Stephen Edred Flowers, commonly known as Stephen E. Flowers or his pen name Edred Thorsson, is an American runologist, university lecturer, and proponent of occultism, especially of Neo-Germanic paganism and Odinism. He helped establish the Ge ...

, Fraternitas Saturni (FS) "is (or was) the most unabashedly Luciferian organization in the modern Western occult revival".

Greater Church of Lucifer

In 2014, Luciferians founded a worldwide organization for Luciferians from

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, known as the Greater Church of Lucifer (GCOL) under the leadership of church founder Jacob McKelvy, co-presidents Michael W. Ford and Jeremy Crow, founder of the Luciferian Research Society. In 2017 McKelvy converted to Christianity. Michael W. Ford and his wife have described their religion as "Luciferian witchcraft". In 2015, the GCOL opened the

Greater Church of Lucifer The Assembly of Light Bearers (ALB), formerly known as the Greater Church of Lucifer (GCoL), is a Luciferianism, Luciferian organization founded by Michael W. Ford in 2013. According to sociologist Massimo Introvigne, on October 30, 2015, Ford in ...

, a brick and mortar church located in Old Town Spring, Texas, with several dozen members. Over a hundred local residents, mainly Catholic, protested the opening of the church. The town of Old Town Spring suffered from a boycott in response to the church, The church itself had windows smashed and its roof damaged after someone sawed off the branch of a 200-year-old pecan tree hanging over the church in the middle of the night. Ford stated that The Greater Church of Lucifer was forced to shut down one year later because their landlord refused to renew their lease after receiving death threats.

Etymology

History

Medieval

Early modern

Modern

Notable organizations

Fraternitas Saturni

Greater Church of Lucifer

See also

References

Works cited

External links