Former Republican Mississippi House Candidate Destroys Satanic Temple Display at Iowa Capital
A publicity stunt, or on a radicalized mission from God?
I was in Des Moines on Thursday for meetings and decided to stop by the Capitol and see what was up with the Satanic Temple display that has caused all the controversy. I had seen media reports and photos of what the display looked like, and I was puzzled because what I was seeing was different. This goat head was the focal point of the display, not the mirrored statue that I expected.
The display was put up by the Iowa Atheists and Freethinkers. The guy above was reading and praying in English and Latin, much to the annoyance of people trying to take photographs. I wanted to tell him his shoes were untied but didn’t want to interrupt.
I went over to a couple of state troopers and asked them what had happened. They told me that someone had decapitated it and that they had found the head in the trash. The troopers didn’t know if someone had been charged with vandalism. One showed me a photo of the original on his phone, and I took a picture of it to use here.
I got home and started writing this up because there is still enough of an old news person in me that I thought I might have breaking news, but then I saw that Ty Rushing with the Iowa Starting Line had beat me to it, as had KCCI-TV and maybe some other outlets—I quit looking.
Instead of writing, I had a drink, watched a TV cop show, and went to bed, dear reader. Sorry about that.
But, I’m glad I did, or I would be revising the piece.
Turns out the person who destroyed the altar was a losing former Republican candidate for the Mississippi House named Michael Cassidy. He was charged with 4th-degree mischief and was released. Cassidy is a 35-year-old Navy Reserve instructor pilot and self-styled "America First Conservative."
And surprise, surprise! He is fundraising for his “legal defense,” for 4th-degree mischief.
And of course, Ron DeSantis is stirring the pot/contributing. Now think about that—a prominent Republican endorsing violence in a capitol building? Where have we heard that before? At least no one was injured or killed in this incident by a violent mob.
And Twitter/X is going crazy.
My immediate reaction is that Cassidy driving here and destroying the display was a publicity stunt. He became an overnight sensation, and a right-wing icon faster than you can say Kyle Rittenhouse or Ashli Babbitt.
The Des Moines Register reports on what Cassidy said his motivations were.
A former congressional candidate from Mississippi charged with vandalizing the Satanic Temple of Iowa's display depicting the pagan idol Baphomet at the Iowa State Capitol says he “saw this blasphemous statue and was outraged.”
“My conscience is held captive to the word of God, not to bureaucratic decree," Michael Cassidy of Lauderdale, Mississippi, told conservative website The Sentinel. "And so I acted.”
His stated motive seems sincere, which of course doesn’t justify his vandalism.
Cassidy has been radicalized, as have millions of more Americans. They have been radicalized by the forces behind the MAGA movement, the right-wing media, and by right-wing “Christian” clergy.
While much of the radicalization by the MAGA movement and the right-wing media is clear to anyone who samples a variety of media, the role of right-wing “Christian” clergy is largely unseen.
I listen to right-wing “Christian” radio. I’ve heard the sermons in person, and I stream them from small rural churches. To them Satan is real. These pastors tell their congregations that Democrats are satanic—pure evil. Groomers, and whatnot. Pastors preach that the battle is more than spiritual—it’s a battle to be fought in the real world, here and now. As a kid, growing up singing Onward Christian Soldiers in church, I thought the song was historical, and a contemporary metaphor.
To them it’s not, and Michael Cassidy is a contemporary “Christian” soldier. I suspect Cassidy and his destruction of the display will be the topic of a thousand sermons in these types of churches tomorrow morning.
Also insidious is how right-wing “Christian” radio “news” portrays world events. Authoritarians around the world aren’t called authoritarians or dictators. They are instead called “conservatives.” Their opponents are always called socialists or communists.
Every day they pave the way for an authoritarian Trump, and the end of democracy.
So who is the Satanic Temple of Iowa? Their Facebook page tells us.
We are a congregation and religious organization with a goal to facilitate the communication and mobilization of politically aware Satanists, secularists, and advocates for true religious freedom. We are a nontheistic religion and do not believe in a literal Satan; rather to us he is a potent symbol of rebellion against religious tyranny.
THE SEVEN FUNDAMENTAL TENETS OF THE SATANIC TEMPLE
1. One should strive to act with compassion and empathy towards all creatures in accordance with reason.
2. The struggle for justice is an ongoing and necessary pursuit that should prevail over laws and institutions.
3. One’s body is inviolable, subject to one’s own will alone.
4. The freedoms of others should be respected, including the freedom to offend. To willfully and unjustly encroach upon the freedoms of another is to forgo your own.
5. Beliefs should conform to our best scientific understanding of the world. We should take care never to distort scientific facts to fit our beliefs.
6. People are fallible. If we make a mistake, we should do our best to rectify it and resolve any harm that may have been caused.
7. Every tenet is a guiding principle designed to inspire nobility in action and thought. The spirit of compassion, wisdom, and justice should always prevail over the written or spoken word.
Religious freedom, justice, compassion, empathy, forgiveness and more. That’s much of what I remember from Sunday School. That and loving thy neighbor, feeding the hungry, healing the sick.
None of which is part of the lawless MAGA movement.
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As a lifelong Christian who deeply believes my faith has shaped who I am, I'll start with Robert Leonard is a GOAT! I don't claim to know the will of God, but I believe in a deity that interacts with me, challenges me, invites me, inspires me, and does the same for every other human past, present, and future. I also believe in religious freedom and liberty. I believe in our nation's constitution and the wisdom of making the language in the First Amendment, the very first amendment. And while the tension around "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" is very real and the challenge of living this as a nation is great, you either believe it or you don't. If your idea is that your religion is the only religion that qualifies under the First Amendment, you don't really believe in the constitution. That is what's at stake. Thank you Dr. Bob for drawing out that distinction and for pointing out that the alter at the Iowa Capitol isn't about Satan, it truly is about testing whether we lean into the First Amendment or we tear it down.
I am puzzled. I assumed many Iowa Republican legislators are Satanists. After all, many have been heard to proclaim a "God given" right to own a firearm. The only God who would extend a universal right to a gun is, of course, Satan. Then I read the principles of Satanic Temple you quoted. Every one is an anthema to these same Republicans. That Satan would want no part of them. That Satan wouldn't bargain for their souls. So what are the Iowa Republican legislators? Who would want them?