The Satanic Temple in Detroit has more than 200 registered members and the "largest public satanic ceremony in history" took place last Saturday.
The city has the largest and oldest chapter of a national Satanist organization and the group unveiled a nearly 9-foot tall bronze statue of a goat-headed Baphomet in a private ceremony attended by 600 ticket holders.
Lucien Graves, co-founder of the national Satanic Temple organization in Boston, who spoke on the temple and the devoted members said, "They are so active and well-organized. There's probably been another wave of interest since this event."
The Detroit chapter is the first of the national organization, Graves said. He credits the Detroit chapter's founder Jex Blackmore with the growth of the chapter since it was established there in August 2014.
"It's more or less because of her. She was just a very confident person who started working with us," Graves said further. The pair met in Boston and then she moved to Detroit and set up a chapter there.
Blackmore said it is their largest chapter.
"I think the Temple appeals to the radical, politically-charged spirit of the city and many are drawn to us as a force of positive, effective change in this community," Blackmore said.
According to its mission statement, the national organization, The Satanic Temple, "facilitates the communication and mobilization of politically aware Satanists, secularists, and advocates for individual liberty." Among the causes it supports are gay marriage, reproductive rights and eliminating corporal punishment in schools. The national organization does "not promote a belief in a personal Satan."
"To embrace the name Satan is to embrace rational inquiry removed from supernaturalism and archaic tradition-based superstitions," the FAQ of TheSatanicTemple.com indicates.