Devil is in the details: The Satanic Temple congregates in Baltimore
Bridget Byrne - The Baltimore Sun (TNS) May 3, 2026
BALTIMORE — “Hail Satan!” Roughly 400 members of The Satanic Temple chanted in unison at the Satanic Revival in Mobtown Ballroom on Saturday.
Surprisingly, it turns out that The Satanic Temple does not believe Satan is real. Founded in 2012, the organization does not believe in the existence of the supernatural and instead embraces Satan as a symbol of rebellion against what it considers arbitrary authority.
Over the two-day event, attendees, mostly clad in a gothlike aesthetic, enjoyed live music and listened to speeches from temple leaders. A line stretched around the block before the doors opened Saturday.
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According to the temple’s official website, its core beliefs emphasize reason, empathy and a commitment to knowledge, encouraging people to act with compassion and respect. They stress bodily autonomy, aligning beliefs with scientific understanding and taking responsibility for mistakes.
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Still, The Satanic Temple regularly clashes with other religious groups. An online petition from The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, a group that opposes what it describes as attacks on traditional religious values, lobbied the venue to cancel the event. The petition had 23,110 signatures as of Saturday.
“No words can describe how evil this is. Satan has no place in the public square,” the petition states.
The petition’s organizers could not be reached for comment. There were some protesters on Friday, according to Costus, but on Saturday, there were no signs of any demonstrators.
“They were across the street and doing their thing, and that’s fine. We support people’s right to express themselves, even if it’s in opposition to us,” Costus said.