cover image LURE OF THE SINISTER: The Unnatural History of Satanism

LURE OF THE SINISTER: The Unnatural History of Satanism

Gareth J. Medway, . . New York Univ., $32.95 (465pp) ISBN 978-0-8147-5645-4

Although the furor over allegations of Satanic ritual abuse appears finally to have abated, wild claims inevitably persist. This book aims to put them to rest. Although packaged as a cultural history of Satanism, it is better seen as an apologetic work that seeks to debunk the outlandish accusations leveled against Pagan practices by irresponsible journalists, overzealous evangelists and outright liars. Medway, a freelance writer and a priest of Themis in the Fellowship of Isis, reveals the mundane truths behind "satanic panics" both medieval and modern. On so-called satanic crime, he sensibly points out that it is as foolish to blame occultism for the acts of isolated criminals as it is to blame the depredations of religious maniacs on the Bible. Unfortunately, this book suffers from poor organization (not to mention a terribly clunky title) and reads as a collection of anecdotes rather than as a sustained argument. Medway's discussion of historical incidents—such as the elaborate hoax the freethinker Léo Taxil perpetrated in the 1880s and 1890s on a gullible French public—are the best parts of the book. His amply documented criticism of contemporary anti-Satanists is convincing, but the accumulation of detail on so many unrelated episodes bludgeons the point. This book may serve as a useful reference tool for Pagans on the defensive, but it does not make for compelling bedside reading. (Oct.)