SatanCon 2022 Is Coming To Scottsdale This Weekend

SCOTTSDALE, AZ — More than 350 Satanists will be in Scottsdale this weekend for SatanCon 2022, The Satanic Temple's first annual convention.

The convention is set for Feb. 11-13 at the Saguaro Hotel, 4000 N. Drinkwater Boulevard in Scottsdale.

The conference portion of SatanCon will feature panels and presentations on things like Satanic philosophy, parenting as a Satanist and abortion as a religious right.

The core group of local members of The Satanic Temple's Arizona chapter who worked to put the conference together are excited to see it come to fruition, said Chalice Blythe, local minister of Satan and director of programming for SatanCon.

“We are essentially showing that we are wanting to establish community ties in Scottsdale,” she said. “So we’re making sure that the locals know what we’re about and most importantly, what we’re not about.”

While the conference portion of the convention sold out of its 350 tickets just days after they went on sale, those interested in seeing what Satanism is all about can still attend the convention marketplace full of vendors both local and from elsewhere. Tickets to get into the marketplace are $5 apiece and can be purchased at the door. Proof of vaccination and wearing of N95, KN95 or a disposable surgical mask are both required.

The marketplace is set to be open 1-7 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday.

Also part of the weekend plans is an Impurity Ball set for 7 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday at Pub Rock, 8005 E. Roosevelt Street in Scottsdale. The ball is meant to be sort of an inversion of the tradition of purity balls, which young girls typically attend with their fathers and pledge their virginity to their future husbands. The Impurity Ball promises to be a "display of bodily autonomy, personal growth, and the joys of sinning with abandon," according to its website.

Reactions to the convention coming to Scottsdale have been mixed, Blythe said, with local Satanists excited to meet others from the religion and vendors please to be showcased. But there are also some planned protests of the event.

"We understand that some people are not be happy about us being there and we respect their rights to express themselves," Blythe said. "We have no intention of engaging with protestors."

But Blythe said some of the protesters might not understand what Satanism is all about, since there are many misconceptions.

"We don’t worship a literal devil," she said.

The figure of Satan in Satanism sort of a representation of a community that seeks intelligence, defies arbitrary laws and values what makes its individuals different from the mainstream, she added.

"We're a valid religious community that have our own values and morals and don’t necessarily always conflict with other religions," Blythe said.

The mission of The Satanic Temple is, "to encourage benevolence and empathy among all people, reject tyrannical authority, advocate practical common sense, oppose injustice, and undertake noble pursuits," according to its website.

Some of the temple's campaigns will be highlighted during the convention, and some of them do conflict with the teachings of other religions.

These include efforts to protect the reproductive rights of its members, fighting against psychiatric abuse, protecting children from abuse in schools, promoting addiction recovery and building support for the temple's after-school club. The after school Satan Club is a response to after school clubs that Satanists say teach religious indoctrination. The Satan Club aims to teach things like empathy, reason and learning, Blythe said.

The Satanic Temple dedicated SatanCon to former Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane and former city council member Suzanne Klapp.

The Satanic Temple sued the city of Scottsdale in 2018 for refusing to allow it to deliver an invocation prior to its city council meetings. The city had not rejected requests to deliver an invocation from any other organization.

The temple said that Lane and Klapp, "took pride in depriving The Satanic Temple of their civil liberties by refusing to allow one TST member the opportunity to utter a brief, solemn message."

In May, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in the city's favor, saying that Scottsdale did not engage in unlawful discrimination.