The Satanic Temple says its members should be exempted from the law and offers legal abortion for women, the LADbible reports.
A new Texas law bans abortions after around six weeks into pregnancy, but it is facing new legal action from Satanists.
The Satanic Temple is a nontheistic religious and human rights group based in the United States, with additional chapters in Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom.
The group uses Satanic imagery to promote egalitarianism, social justice, and the separation of church and state, supporting their mission “to encourage benevolence and empathy among all people”.
The organization’s participation in public affairs includes political actions as well as lobbying efforts, with a focus on revealing Christian privilege when it intrudes with personal religious freedom.
The controversial Texas abortion law introduced on September 1 says that women can’t get an abortion after the baby has reached six weeks, even if the pregnancy was the result of rape or incest.
People have also been offered $10,000 rewards to report anyone who “aids or abets” a woman trying to terminate her baby after six weeks. The only time it’s legally available is if there is a threat to the mother’s life.
The Massachusetts-based Satanic Temple has filed a letter with the Food and Drug Administration ostensibly in the name of religious freedom, arguing abortion is a faith-based right of its members.
They have argued that the Misoprostol and Mifepristone pills can be taken in accordance with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act during an abortion ceremony.
The letter also addresses another Texas law awaiting Governor Greg Abbott’s signature that will limit women’s access to abortion pills against FDA guidelines.
It added that because of this, the access to the drugs would fall under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which allows Native Americans to use the hallucinogen peyote for traditional rituals, according to Texas media outlet KVUE.
Lucien Greaves, co-founder, and spokesman of the temple said in a statement:
“I am sure Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — who famously spends a good deal of his time composing press releases about Religious Liberty issues in other states — will be proud to see that Texas’s robust Religious Liberty laws, which he so vociferously champions, will prevent future Abortion Rituals from being interrupted by superfluous government restrictions meant only to shame and harass those seeking an abortion.”
“The battle for abortion rights is largely a battle of competing for religious viewpoints, and our viewpoint that the nonviable fetus is part of the impregnated host is fortunately protected under Religious Liberty laws,” he added.
The Temple, which is based in Salem, Massachusetts, says its members hold bodily autonomy sacred. Additionally, Lucien said “abortion rituals” are an important facet of its beliefs.
The Temple has frequently advocated for equality among religions, previously temporarily installing a statue of the winged goat-headed creature Baphomet at the Arkansas State Capitol alongside a monument of the Ten Commandments.
Last year, the Supreme Court declined to hear a case brought by the Temple to overturn Missouri abortion laws. The organization is an IRS-recognized atheist church with 300,000 members.
The Texas 6-week abortion ban came into effect last Wednesday at midnight after the US Supreme Court failed to block it based on a technicality.
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