Raising the Devil: Satanism, New Religions, and the Media. - book review

By Bill Ellis. Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky, 2000. 352 pp. $27.50 (hbk). ISBN 0-8131-2170-1

There can be few allegations that have caused greater controversy, and greater suffering, in America and Britain in recent years than the assertions that secret devil-worshipping cults are widespread, that children are being sexually abused and/or murdered as part of their rituals, and that the "recovered memories" of such events elicited by self-appointed therapists are valid. The disruption to families, and the pain and injustice to individuals, has been horrendous; the cliche of the "witch-hunt" has often been all too accurate. Scarcely less damaging is the conviction in some Christian circles that demonic possession is a commonplace affair, which can be triggered by any number of activities that society as a whole considers harmless (wearing a Halloween mask, for example), and should be countered by exorcism. This is one of the situations (racism is another) where a scholar has the moral obligation not to adopt a stance of detached impartiality; the beliefs he/she is observing are not only factually erroneous, but socially destructive, and this needs to be said.

Professor Bill Ellis is exceptionally qualified to explore the causes and consequences of these disturbing trends. He is a folklorist working in the field of contemporary legend and rumour studies, fully aware of the social processes that initiate and fuel them, and of their historical precedents and sources. He is also an active member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, who can show a sympathetic understanding of the doctrines held by certain Christian groups, even while deploring the excesses to which they have led. His critique of the anti-cult crusaders, severe though it sometimes is, does not spring from a priori prejudice.

The Satanism scare was, and still is, a powerful force among fundamentalists in the USA; much of Ellis' study tracks its origins in the Pentecostal movement there, the growth of the "deliverance ministry," and the influence of certain specific religious writers and preachers. Right-wing conspiracy theory also played a part, as did, inevitably, media sensationalism. Other chapters deal with various outbursts of rumour and legend ostension on American campuses; the way certain traditional behaviour patterns of adolescence, such as nocturnal visits to "scary" sites, are misinterpreted as Satanic activities by anxious religious adults; and the Great Plains cattle mutilations of the 1970s, variously blamed upon Satanists or extra-terrestrials. Britain has two chapters: one describes how information on ritual magic spread from a handful of occultists into popular novels and horror films, how Wicca arrived, and how the media (and the occasional policeman) have reacted to it; the other is about the Highgate Cemetery Vampire Hunt of 1970. Throughout, Ellis is concerned to disentangle facts from hearsay; while never denying that occultists do exist and that their personal and group activities can be harmful, he proves that in a large majority of cases allegations are based on rumours that melt away under scrutiny. He shows how older folklore is misunderstood by the campaigners or, worse, is appropriated by them to serve their own agenda.

This book is a fascinating study. It also has a message that, if heeded, will remove a potent source of grief and fear.

Jacqueline Simpson, Folklore Society

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