(OPINION) The state Capitol rotunda will have a satanic display alongside other religious art for a third year. The Satanic Temple is returning with an art installation to celebrate the “satanic holiday” of Sol Invictus according to a report from SJR
The group conducts advocacy for reproductive rights and the separation of church and state as a tax-exempt religious organization. This year’s display will feature the “satanic deity” Baphomet, depicted as a swaddling babe. It was designed by Albuquerque-based horror artist Chris P. Andres.
The exhibition will be installed at 1 p.m. Monday in the Capitol rotunda, overseen by The Satanic Temple’s Illinois congregation. “This year’s tradition marks a greater urgency in the Baphomet’s message of harmony and reconciliation,” noted The Satanic Temple’s Director of Campaign Operations Erin Helian in a press release.
This news comes on the heels of the Satanic Temple recently making headlines for seeking a court declaration to allow abortions for their Texas members, claiming that the laws violate their “religious freedom” to perform “abortion rituals.”
In a press release about the Baphomet statue, the group said that it is in celebration of the Satanic holiday Sol Invictus, which, like Christmas, takes place on the 25th of December.
The Gateway Pundit pointed out that according to their website, the day is a “celebration of being unconquered by superstition and consistent in the pursuit and sharing of knowledge.”
“The new display, created by artist Chris P. Andres, depicts the Satanic deity Baphomet as a swaddling babe,” the Satanic Temple said in their statement.
