12. Friedrich Nietzsche was an important influence on the Church
Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) remains one of the most controversial philosophers to this day. It was he who uttered those immortal words, ‘God is dead‘, which were but one instance of his stringently anti-Christian stance. Naturally, LaVey was attracted to Nietzsche’s writings, and it was partly from the German philosopher that he got the concept of Christianity enslaving and inhibiting mankind. The inherent elitism of LaVeyan Satanism, which sees members of the Church as greater than others due to their supposed intellectual freedom and powerful selfishness, derives largely from Nietzsche’s characterization of those who embraced his philosophy as ubermensch (‘beyond-man’).
