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The ultimate rite of blasphemy for ex-Christians:
Renunciation of the Trinity
by Diane Vera
Copyright © 2003, 2004 by Diane Vera. All rights reserved.
- Purpose and preparation
When I speak of the ritual on this page as the "ultimate" rite of blasphemy for ex-Christians, I mean "ultimate" in the sense of involving the one sin which the Christian Bible claims will damn you irrevocably, with no hope of forgiveness. It's far from "ultimate" in terms of sheer sensationalistic shock value, though. From a purely secular point of view, I must admit it's pretty tame compared to most metal lyrics these days. Yet, with only a few exceptions (such as the song "Blasphemy" by the Death Metal band Morbid Angel on their 1989 album Altars of Madness), even the blackest of black metal lyrics have usually steered clear of what Christians traditionally consider to be the ultimate sin -- "blasphemy against the Holy Spirit." (If you're a metal fan, please correct me if I'm mistaken on this point.)
The rite below will center around a solemn, formal ritual renunciation of all three persons of the Christian Trinity. Or, if you were brought up in a non-Trinitarian Christian sect (you heretic!!! -- just kidding), you can renounce each of the three persons (or whatever you believed they were) without thinking of them as a trinity.
Why is this such a big deal? According to the Christian Bible:
... Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. (Matthew 12:31-32)
and:
All the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin. (Mark 3:28-29)
Does this seem utterly silly to you? Yet, at the same time, does it also creep you out? Good! Therein lies the potential for a deep inner transformation -- at least if you happen to be an ex-Christian. (See The purpose of blasphemy in Satanism.) But, when you perform the rite, say your renunciation of the Trinity firmly -- do not waver!
One of the benefits of the renunciation rite is that, thereafter, you can overcome a lot of irrational inhibitions by telling your subconscious mind that you are going to hell anyway. (See Lord Egan's Pact with the Devil and my commentary in Pacts and self-initiation.) Hence the ritual should be performed in such a way that, if Christian theology were true, you really would be damned irrevocably, with no hope of escape.
To that end, your "blasphemy against the Holy Spirit" must be unquestionably deliberate and premeditated. (According to most Christian commentators, spontaneous or hasty unkind words about the Holy Spirit don't count as the unforgivable blasphemy, nor do unkind thoughts -- although some fundamentalists do live in mortal terror of committing this sin accidentally. Christian commentators have interpreted the "sin against the Holy Spirit" in a variety of different ways. Some define the sin so narrowly as to make it almost impossible to commit. Many would say that if you are still even capable of truly repenting of it, then you never really did commit it.) So, to make the ritual irrevocable, don't perform it on the spur of the moment. Put some thought into it. And I don't recommend it as the very first thing you do upon recognizing that you are drawn to Satanism. But you may indeed find it helpful at some poimt, if you're from a Christian background, especially if you're an ex-fundy.
IMPORTANT WARNING: I recommend performing this ritual only if you are sure, on an intellectual level, that you are doing the right thing, despite whatever qualms you may still have on an emotional level. If you perform a renunciation rite, or even a less extreme form of blasphemy, before you are prepared on an intellectual level, then it will not help you at all but will just scare you and de-stabilize you mentally. If, even on an intellectual level, you are still plagued by nagging worries that Christian theology might be true after all, please see the arguments against hardcore Christian beliefs on my Counter-Evangelism website. It would also be a good idea to participate in some inter-religion debate forums for a while, to make sure the Christians don't have any sufficiently good counter-arguments. (To give this a fair shake, look for a forum with intelligent, knowledgeable people on all sides.)
If you are currently a disgruntled Christian, do not use the renunciation rite as your means of deconverting from Christianity. Deconvert by educating yourself, not by doing a ritual. Use the renunciation rite or another blasphemy rite only after you have left Christianity and have become fully comfortable with that decision on an intellectual level. Again, if you do this ritual prematurely, it can be psychologically damaging rather than helpful.
The purpose of the renunciation rite is to help you banish any remaining purely irrational fears, after you have fully addressed your fears on a rational level by examining the arguments both for and against traditional Christian beliefs and making an informed decision against them.
For that matter, even if you already do feel sure of your rejection of Christianity, make sure your basis for rejecting it is indeed reasonably sound. Make sure you've carefully examined the arguments both for and against traditional Christian beliefs before you renounce the Christian god once and for all. If you've never taken the time to examine Christianity in-depth, do so now. Be fair and honest with yourself. You should also examine some other religions besides Christianity and Satanism, to gain perspective and theological sophistication.
Also, you should not rely solely on a blasphemy rite even to help you get over your leftover irrational fears. For example, it's also important to make some non-Christian friends, if you have not done so already. If all your friends are Christian, then sheer social pressure will make it very difficult for you to leave the Christian mindset behind. In addition, if you're experiencing really crippling fears, it might behoove you to see a (non-Christian) psychotherapist. Or you might find an ex-Christian support group helpful. (See Resources for ex-fundamentalists, ex-"cultists," and ex-Christians on my Counter-Evangelism site.)
Some may say, "This whole argument over whether Christian theology is true or not is irrelevant. I would rather suffer eternal torment than submit to a god like the Christian god. I will be loyal to Satan forever no matter what."
Well, that's a fine and noble thing to say. But you still owe it to yourself to examine the arguments against Christian theology. Your life could be a much happier one without the threat of eternal torment hanging over your head. If you're from a hardcore Christian background, you were probably brought up in a very closed-minded world. Don't assume that what you were taught is the truth. Furthermore, most theistic Satanists see Satan as a god who encourages us to take care of ourselves and to value our selves, not to make such an extreme sacrifice even for Satan, who does not need us to make such an extreme sacrifice on His behalf.
- The renunciation rite itself
Once you're ready to perform the rite, the exact words of your renunciation of the Trinity should be written by you, in your own words, as one more way for you to take full, deliberate responsibility for it in the sight of both "God" and Satan. Make it venomous, contemptuous, utterly demeaning toward the Christian "God," and customized to the particulars of your own religious upbringing. Include separate and distinct denunciations of each of the three persons of the Trinity. But keep it short enough and simple enough so that you can memorize it easily.
If you're an ex-Catholic, you may wish to renounce the Trinity in the context of a full-fledged Black Mass. If you're an ex-Protestant, or if you're an ex-Catholic without enough time or resources to perform a Black Mass, then the following much simpler rite will be more than adequate. If you're an ex-Catholic, then you may want to include blasphemy against Mary as well as the Trinity.
Do the ritual three nights in a row, in a room unlit except by a single black candle. Each night, as the centerpiece of the ritual, say your renunciation three times.
While saying the renunciation, you might find it helpful to drive the point home to your subconscious mind by performing a sacrilegious gesture against some symbol of Christianity. Whether this is necessary (or even helpful) will depend on the individual. For most people who perform this rite, blasphemous words alone will probably suffice. Others may need or want more than just words.
One traditional gesture is to put a Christian symbol on the floor and stomp on it. Alternatively, if you prefer, place the symbol in a dish and spit on it, or even, perhaps, urinate or defecate on it. For most people, the potential messiness and general yuckiness of those last two gestures would probably be too much of a distraction from the desired solemnity of the rite -- especially if you're female. However, it's up to you to decide.
The symbol you desecrate (if you choose to do so) can be a crucifix or, perhaps, a small pocket Bible. To obtain a Bible, you needn't buy one. Use one of those free Bibles that are distributed by some streetcorner evangelists. Alternatively, if you can't easily obtain a free Bible, just use printouts of some Bible passages from an online Bible. However, I would strongly advise against breaking the law by stealing Bibles from a church.
As I said, physical desecration of a Christian symbol is not essential to this rite -- it's just an option that some people may find helpful. What is essential is the blasphemy itself plus the premeditation. Would you find physical desecration to be helpful, in addition? Well, that's just one more decision for you to premeditate about....
When you perform the rite, the renunciation will probably bring up a lot of repressed emotions.
You might also feel sexually aroused, if your background was sexually repressive. If you're feeling turned on, feel free to masturbate. But don't force yourself to masturbate if you don't spontaneously feel turned on. Of course, if you do masturbate, doing so also gives you quite a few additional possible ways to desecrate a Christian symbol, if you have chosen to do so. I'll leave the details to your imagination.
(Important: If you happen to be a person who isn't just occasionally turned on by blasphemy but has a full-blown blasphemy fetish, then please see my article For blasphemy fetishists.)
Both before and after the renunciation, I recommend saying a brief prayer to Satan (or whatever else you do instead of "prayer," if you don't like the word "prayer" for whatever reason). The exact nature of the prayer is up to you, and may depend on both your current beliefs and the reasons why you decided to do this ritual in the first place. As default options, I would suggest the following:
- Before the renunciation: (1) your favorite general invocation (such as, perhaps, this invocation to Satan, if you like it), followed by (2) asking Satan (or Lucifer, or Lilith) to help you free yourself from any lingering power of the Christian "God" over your life
- After the renunciation: a very brief prayer of praise to Satan/Lucifer/Lilith as liberator.
I recommend that the renunciation be said facing east, the direction traditionally associated with Christ. (Catholic churches traditionally face east.) The direction east is also traditionally associated with Lucifer, so you may wish to face east for at least some of the prayers also. Or you may prefer to face another direction for the prayers, depending on which aspect of Satan seems most relevant to the overcoming of your fears. (See my article on Infernal names, directional correspondences, etc..) The preliminary invocation to Satan should probably be said facing either west or north, the directions traditionally associated with the Devil by Christians. I would suggest west, associated with the element of Water, as the direction most suitable for matters pertaining to the psyche and self-initiation.
If you already practice ritual magick of some kind, you may wish to cast a circle first, or some other standard opening. (See my own recommended standard ritual format, for example.) Do whatever feels most natural to you in this regard.
However, I don't recommend bothering with a standard ritual format if the renunciation rite is your very first foray into ritual magick of any kind. In that case, just keep the rite simple and to the point.
Whatever you do, don't make the ritual so complicated or so unfamiliar that the details become a distraction.
However, if you've decided to include a form of desecration involving bodily wastes, then put some thought into how you will still show respect for Satan. (For example, you might consider doing the renunciation proper in your bathroom, but using a different room for other parts of the rits such as the prayers. Alternatively, don't use your bathroom, but place the symbol in a container that can be closed tightly after the renunciation, after which you can then deodorize the room by lighting a match. In either case, you might consider using ripped-out pages of a pocket Bible as toilet paper.) If the logistics are too distracting, do a physically less extreme version of the rite.
After the concluding prayer, end the ritual in whatever way is standard for you. If you're not yet experienced enough in ritual to have a standard closing, just say "So mote it be! HAIL, SATAN!" and blow out the candle.
If you're a member of a group that performs "Satanic Baptisms," I recomend that the above rite be performed immediately before adult baptism, just as the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches traditionally perform an exorcism and renunciation of Satan (traditionally involving "spitting on Satan" by spitting towards the west, in older versions of the rite) immediately before every baptism. Turnabout is fair play.
- Non-Satanist variants of the rite
Satanists aren't the only people who practice rites of blasphemy, nor are Satanists the only people who can benefit from such a rite. For example, some Tantrik Hindu sects have an initiation ritual involving violation of orthodox Hindu taboos. And, of course, in many parts of the world, new converts to Christianity are asked to perform a rite of blasphemy against their old religion, destroying their old "idols," etc.
The vast majority of modern Western Pagans and occultists do not practice rites of blasphemy. However, the idea is by no means completely unheard of. In one of the classics of the modern Witchcraft revival, Mastering Witchcraft, published in 1970 C.E., author Paul Huson recommended saying the Lord's Prayer backwards as a self-initiation rite.
If you're from a hardcore Christian background and still struggling with irrational fears and inhibitions left over from that background, despite years of study of the arguments both for and against Christian beliefs, then you too might benefit from performing some variant of the renunciation rite, even if you're not a Satanist.
For example, an atheist group called the Rational Response Squad has organized a Blasphemy Challenge.
If you're a Pagan or occultist, you can renounce the Christian Trinity in the context of a ritual appropriate to your own belief system. Instead of calling on Satan or Lucifer, call on whatever god in your own pantheon is most inclined to inspire courage and help people get over irrational fears. (Perhaps a war god?) Structure the ritual in whatever way is most familiar to you.
Whatever god you do or do not call upon, may you be blessed with true inner freedom.
If you perform this ritual, feel free to email me with feedback on how it has affected your life afterwards.
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