I would like to say a few words about the nature of my relationship with the holy Prince of Darkness.

Each individual Satanist's relationship with the Dark Lord will somehow be different. Even Satanists who agree on practically everything they can think of will most likely find at least a few major points of disagreement. This is because it is every Satanist's Devil-given right to question and disagree with all fixed ideologies -- especially including those of other Satanists -- and to formulate an understanding of the divine based purely upon their own research and experience. This naturally causes each of us to be somehow fundamentally different from each other in terms of our personal belief systems; and yet this differentiation is precisely what unites us and keeps us together as a (somewhat dysfunctional) family of spiritually-related human beings.

When it comes to my own personal relationship with the Prince of Darkness, there is one thing that makes me significantly different from many other Satanists I know. This one thing is the fact that, aside from all other names and titles for His Infernal Majesty, I prefer to refer to the Devil as "Master." That's right. I call the Prince of Darkness my Master and I worship Him as such, and I will neither serve nor bow to any other as such (whether mortal or divine).

Some Satanists seem to dislike it when I call Him Master. The idea of Satanism is that it is a religion of subversity based upon rebellion against oppressive forces for the sake of developing, securing and evolving one's own personal liberty. Taken in this context, it might seem a contradiction in terms to refer to Azazel as Master. How can a god who encourages you to think and act for yourself apart from the wills of others be your Master? Does not the term "Master" suggest one that exercises domination and absolute control over others? How can I be a true Satanist if I accept Azazel as my Master?

The answer is quite simple. Azazel is the ultimate power of subversity in human spiritual experience; He inspires us to question dogma, to go through "paradigm shifts" and to thereby achieve higher levels of intellectual understanding. It is only natural that, by being Satanists, we are rebellious and upsetting to people who practice religions that thrive on conformity and stasis (e.g., Christianity and Islam). Satanism is often described as a religion of rebellion rather than a religion of submission, and I agree entirely with this; but at the same time, I believe that by being spiritually rebellious and subversive, I am IN FACT "submitting" myself to the very SPIRIT of rebellion and subversity against fixed dogma and blind faith. Azazel is not my Master in that He rules over my life with an iron fist and demands the complete subservience of my will. Rather, He is my Master in that by living according to my own will, I am being subservient to His subversity. Azazel does not tell me what I can or cannot do; instead, He inspires me to decide these things for myself, and by exercising my power to decide such things, I am SERVING Him. This paradox is one of the very many things that continually mystify me concerning the mighty Prince of Darkness.

When I invoke Him in my rituals, I unashamedly call Him the Master. And I do see myself as being subservient to Him; I refer to myself in my rituals as His "servant and friend." However, my subservience to the Dark Lord translates into spiritual subversity and personal liberty. Therefore, although this paradox may seem confusing to others, I see no inherent contradiction in referring to our Deity as the Master.

I might also mention that one reason why I seem to take such pleasure in calling the Prince of Darkness my Master is because calling Him such seems to be regarded as "taboo" by other Satanists, and wouldn't you know that ALL taboos are Azazel's Happy Meals, ESPECIALLY those that are entertained by His own followers. The Prince of Darkness will always make sure there is an exception to every rule, and just when you think you've got everything all nice and neatly sorted out theologically, He will more often than not throw a wrench into the works somewhere and cause you to have to re-think your entire paradigm all over again (He apparently loves to make us go through paradigm shifts). [1] Calling Him "Master" seems to be a blasphemy even among Satanists (as is calling oneself a "Devil Worshiper"), and this only entices me to break some more "Satanic taboos." Therefore I proudly and loudly proclaim myself to be a loyal servant of the Master, and to Hell with those who would accuse me of not being a "true" Satanist.

Notes by Diane Vera: