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Citation |
Introvigne M. Soc. Compass 2009; 56(4): 541-551. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 2009, Social Compass, Publisher SAGE Publishing) |
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DOI |
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PMID |
unavailable |
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Abstract |
The origins of modern Satanism in Italy date back to 19th-century rumours about the presence of Satanists in Turin, the Italian capital of Spiritualism, which led to the notoriety of Piedmont’s capital as "the city of Satan". The label is still occasionally applied today. Two "Churches of Satan" did exist in Turin between 1970 and 1990, but their size and importance have been grossly exaggerated. Among the groups of organized Satanism in Italy, only one—the Children of Satan in Bologna—achieved any significance, and it is still in existence today. More relevant than organized Satanism, however, is its "wild" form, often connected to a criminal subculture at the fringe of the "Gothic" milieu. Tragedies such as the "Beasts of Satan" murders in Varese (2004) confirm that these fringes may indeed become dangerous. |