DISCLAIMER: Satan is People is not affiliated with any other Satanic groups or organizations. The views and opinions expressed on this website and blog are solely those of the authors and other contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Satan Is People, its staff or any/all authors and contributors to this site.

Bill is no ordinary Satanist. While most Satanists spend their free time partaking in rituals, invocations, heavy metal music and online chats, Bill – along with original co-founders Johnny Voorhees and Dennis Morningstar – is the force behind launching Satanic Study Hall, a global podcast that is rapidly making its mark on the growth and unification of the Satanic community, having reached over 22,000 downloads in less than a year by combining fun and fuckery with interviews of some of the most influential individuals in the Satanic movement today.

Bill, welcome to Satan Is People! Why don’t you start out by telling us a little bit about yourself.

Hello! Thank you for having me. It is definitely different being on the other side of the interview! I’ve existed for almost 39 years, hail from Central NY, and currently reside just outside of Philadelphia having been here for almost 20 years now. I’m a father of two pretty awesome crotch goblins who test me daily and keep me busy. When I’m not in Dad mode or Hailing some Satan, I enjoy being a nerd, photography, the occasional video game, and procuring knowledge. I am co-creator, producer, and co-host of Satanic Study Hall which takes up a good portion of my free time. Family is huge for me- my family extends well beyond blood! I’m beginning a personal wellness journey around health and weight loss- so I’ve got that to look forward to- fingers crossed I can stay consistent! Lastly, I just want to leave this rock we live on in a better condition than we found it, however we can make that happen. Also, before we get started, I should remind everyone reading that neither myself or Satanic Study Hall are officially affiliated with The Satanic Temple or any other podcast or Satanic organization. The views and opinions expressed by myself are mine and mine alone, and the views and opinions expressed on Satanic Study Hall belong to the person expressing them solely. 

What was your religious experience like growing up?

My parents made my sister and I go to Church with a few different neighbors over the course of about five years and for a brief period of time I drank the Kool Aid. Thankfully, that didn’t last long. There wasn’t much religion at all in our household outside of hearing my Mom pray and occasionally attend her Catholic Church on holidays. My Father was Episcopalian, whatever that means, but never practiced, read the Bible, or really spoke about religion at all. He went back and forth on his supernatural beliefs. I honestly think the only reason my parents carted me off to Church with the neighbors was so they could have a few hours without us driving them nuts. In comparison with many of the horror stories I have heard from all the new connections and friends I’ve made since becoming a Satanist, I had it incredibly easy when it came to religious upbringings. Wasn’t much of one at all. Overall I spent my teenage years through my mid 30’s identifying as an atheist. 

What was your journey to Satanism like? 

Progressive for sure. I started learning about Satanism in general after reading articles around The Satanic Temple and all the fuckery with Jason Rapert- I think it was late summer in 2018. I remember hearing on the news about the guy who drove his car into the Ten Commandment monument right after they were installed! (note: in no way was this person affiliated with TST) I gravitated towards this and wanted to know more. From there I just slowly started reading- starting with The Satanic Bible- learning the differences from LaVey’s Satanism verses The Satanic Temple. I then went on to some books from the TST suggested reading list. I still haven’t been able to finish Paradise Lost… 🤷‍♂️ Fast forward to December of 2019 and I finally learned about the existence of the Hail Satan? documentary. After watching the movie and really processing the Seven Tenets, I felt like I had been a Satanist for quite some time already. This was still a slow burn for me- learning little by little on my own until two months later when a TST friendly local Facebook group was formed. Holy shit! There were other like minded amazing people near me! There, I had the opportunity to make many invaluable connections and friendships, which manifested into Satanic Study Hall. My journey to and through Satanism will be never ending- I immersed myself into communal Satanism before really understanding what Satanism was to me as an individual- so I had to backtrack. I felt I didn’t really have much to offer a community if I didn’t completely understand and was able to embrace my solitary Satanism. Kinda like the whole- “you can’t love others until you love yourself” thing. Backtracking has paid major dividends! Slow and steady wins the race- and I’m learning more about myself and Satanism everyday. 

What does being a Satanist mean to you, both as an outward expression as well as one’s personal morals and values?

As an outward expression: Going into my journey as a Satanist, I really didn’t understand the outward expression piece. It seemed like unnecessary flare at times- shock value even. I don’t think I truly appreciated the artforms and ritualistic aspects of outward expression until I started following Shiva Honey and reading her book “The Devil’s Tome- A Modern Book Of Satanic Ritual.” Also, through the Goat Farm, I was immediately exposed to so many amazing artists and expressionists- from painters to designers to burlesque performers to writers to stage performers- and countless others! I’ve had the opportunity to truly take in and appreciate so many different forms of outward expression so far in my journey and I’m so thankful for that. 

Personal morals and values: It means more and more to me everyday. I truly believe in the Seven Tenets, and I can confidently say that incorporating them into my daily life has made a tremendous impact on my personal well being and mental health. My relationships with the ones I care about have improved dramatically, and I have learned so much in such a short period of time. As mentioned above, even though I hopped on the TST train late in the game it felt like I was already living most of the Tenets when I discovered them- it just felt right. 

How did Satanic Study Hall come about?

Oh boy. Satanic Study Hall was born out of an idea in a thread on that Facebook group I referred to earlier. The group was full of driven and intelligent people- mostly newly exposed to TST and Satanism. Many of us were also rather high on the fact that we were all so close to each other! A bunch of us got together and just ran through concept ideas, names, and all sorts of other ideas in a group chat for a few weeks. I fell in love with the idea, and knew that we had to strike while the iron was hot. Covid had just hit, all the craziness had begun to emerge, and it just felt like it was worth putting together. Fortunately, I was in a position to turn our idea into reality and felt it was well worth the risk. Things progressively fell into place and it began to feel more and more real with each step- ordering the equipment, choosing hosting services, putting together episode ideas, etc. I still look back on when Dennis, Johnny and I committed ourselves to creating Satanic Study Hall, barely knowing each other and with with crazy expectations. I’ll never forget clicking the upload button on our very first episode- it feels like forever ago but it hasn’t even been a year! We are still babies!  Our original panel of hosts only lasted for a few episodes, but Father Al and Veronica came to class and absolutely saved our ass and helped turn Study Hall into what it is today in a major way. So that’s how it came about, but what keeps us going are our listeners and Patrons!

Why make a school study hall the brand identity for your podcast?

Great question! It started with the name. We must have come up with like 20 possibilities- but Satanic Study Hall just sounded perfect. We would be presenting the information we learned almost immediately after researching it on an episode, and attempt to have fun, intelligent, and comedic discussions around a variety of topics. From there, all types of ideas were formed that we haven’t even touched yet, but what we did put all our focus on was suspending disbelief and working under the idea that we were in an actual study hall. Why not? It is different and fun- and provides a chill atmosphere where the goal is to make our listeners feel like they are learning right along side us. We are learning and researching the topics we present right before we present them, and always make sure we let everyone know we are no subject matter experts. Study Hall is literally all about learning, critically thinking, and having fun. We break in and out of that suspension of disbelief depending on what topics we are covering, but also ensure its done in a style that doesn’t kill the vibe. It works on so many levels. Some people think we are corny and the whole concept is silly- which is totally cool. I get it. However, a shit ton of others seem to dig it! The bell rings, we welcome everyone to class, and get to work! We have a Principal, a Disciplinarian, Foreign Exchange Students, various teachers, and an animate stuffed crocheted Baphomet name Belial!

Who has been your favorite Satanic Study Hall guest to date? What influence have they had on you both personally and as part of your Satanic identity?

This is such a hard question. I’ve found great value in all of the wonderful human beings we have had the privilege to interview, but two guests stick out the most for me. First, our very first VIP Patron and SSH OG Alex. Not only have I developed an amazing friendship with Alex since the first week the podcast launched, Alex has also been featured on the podcast twice. The amount of things and life experiences we found to have in common were mind-blowing, and we were both at a very similar stage in our Satanic journey as well. What Alex shared about his personal struggles both on the cast and personally with me have resonated with me so deeply. My developed friendship with Alex simultaneously had an influence on me personally and as part of my Satanic identity. The second would be Stu de Haan. I was rather star struck for this interview, and went into it more nervous than I was when we talked to Lucien Greaves! Stu de Haan had grabbed my attention immediately after watching Hail Satan?, and learning about how much he has contributed to The Satanic Temple across so many different fronts was beyond impressive- it was inspirational. So personally- it was fucking awesome! As part of my Satanic identity, Stu’s interview motivated me to look at a few things through a different lens, and I truly thank him for that. 

Can you give us a sneak peek us to what listeners should be expecting in future podcast episodes?

Absolutely! I feel there NEEDS to be more of a focus in our community on Satanism and activism and groups across the globe, so you can expect Satanic Study Hall to feature some of the awesome things going on outside of The United States! We have made so many deep rooted connections over the last year with people all around the world and there are so many amazing things happening we can’t wait to help shine a light on. We are also adding a brand new segment to Study Hall in June called “Home Necronomics,” where guest teachers stop by class to teach us about essential life skills like cooking, arts and crafts, sex ed, and even auto mechanics! As long as we keep our grades up, the future looks bright at Satanic Study Hall!

I’m sure that not only being a Satanist but also founding one of the leading podcasts for our religion has been a major change for you personally. What are some of the positive experiences you’ve had and the challenges you’ve faced during this journey?

Producing the podcast has proven to be one of the most challenging and fulfilling things I’ve experienced in quite some time, but something I willingly took on nonetheless. Hands down, the most positive experience and aspect has been the community of listeners and supporters we have put together on our Goat Farm. It’s the late night messages and emails we get telling us how a topic or an episode or a perspective someone offered helped someone get through something, or one of the countless uplifting and thought provoking conversations we have on our Discord. In regards to challenges- finding the balance so this doesn’t feel like a job is a big one. Study Hall takes a lot of work- so spacing things out and finding that balance is a continuing path I’ve been on, and I’m getting better at it with every episode! Another challenge would be doing better at incorporating more patience across the board- whether it comes to depending on others or mapping out episodes. There are so many moving parts to Study Hall and I couldn’t do it without the awesome team we have!

What do you think that will be necessary for Satanism to become accepted by the mainstream of society?

Hahaha- I don’t think Satanism will ever be accepted by the mainstream of society, nor do I think that’s something I would even want. I did just read an article from The Washington Post that said Church membership has fallen below the majority for the first time since 1937! So while Satanism may never be “mainstream,” it appears that it is a likely possibility that this decline in Church membership will continue. That also presents it’s own set of challenges as outlined in the Washington Post article. Check it out, it’s a quick read. While I get that much of the decline in membership does not necessarily indicate a decline in theism overall, I believe its a good start to getting millions of people on a critical thinking path as opposed to one outlined in a Holy Comic Book. Overall my ask to society is simple- pull your finger outta your ass and figure it out. 

In line with your Satanic values, what issues in our society are you most passionate about working to improve?

This is a tough one, as there are way too many fucked up things happening across the globe that I would love to improve. To build off of the previous question, The decline in Church membership and activity directly results in a decline in food banks, elderly care, and associated charities that are in place to help the needy. Filling in that gap is everyone’s responsibility, and I think that is a great place for myself and others to get started to make an immediate impact. I recently saw a TST drive by either a Chapter or a Friends of Group where they partnered with a Church to build up a food pantry inventory. That was a beautiful thing to read, and something I would love to strive for. We can work together, and I would be honored to start working towards that locally/regionally with my fellow Satanists. 

Despite its extraordinary growth, the rapid growth of Satanism has led to a multitude of splinter groups and organizations over the past few years. What do you think is necessary to unite these various factions towards the betterment of the Satanic movement and Satanism in general?

As far as Satanism in general- I feel the majority of splinter groups and break off orgs are already basically united whether they realize it or not. Specific to TST, as I research various group’s Tenets, Pillars, Statements, Ethos, ect- at their core, its all pretty much the same stuff. Unfortunately, this will always be a thing. In the beginning things are fresh and fun- then someone introduces some type of change, that change causes resistance, resistance turns into conflict, and then BAM- we’ve got a splinter group. I think as long as these break off groups stay true to their mission statements/beliefs, and stay off the aggressive “I’m gonna show them” path, at the very least they provide yet another outlet for an individual to find community and develop themselves as a Satanist. Balancing ego as a Satanist when in a group setting can be a bitch. 

What do you see as the future of Satanism? In other words, where do you see this rapidly expanding global religion and movement going in the next 10 to 20 years?

Honestly, I have absolutely no idea. Church of Satan has been around since 1969- The Satanic Temple just since 2013. The only thing I can say from a prediction standpoint is that I don’t see exposure and membership slowing down anytime soon, and that in itself is awesome and fucking scary! I truly hope Modern Satanism can whether the storms ahead, including the one’s within. 

What advice would you give to anyone who wants to become a Satanist or who is new to Satanism?

I’ll keep this one short and sweet- Read. Take your time. Don’t conform to group think in any way unless it feels right for you. While you can find solace and comfort in communal Satanism, I highly suggest fine tuning and nurturing your individual Satanism before flattering Community. Take it seriously- read some more- then read even more. Oh- listen to Satanic Study Hall. 🤘