The Satanic Temple is a fairly notorious organization; it describes itself as non-theistic religion centered on the literary figure of Satan. This particular group of Satanists don't worship the actual devil—they don't believe in the devil, or any sort of supernatural being, for that matter—but they contend that "religion can, and should, be divorced from superstition." Since their founding in 2013, they've taken religious freedom laws to their logical extreme as a form of political protest, essentially arguing that any legal exemptions that apply to Christians should apply to Satanists as well. [...]
This assertion is antithetical to two of the central tenets of Satanism: that one's body is inviolable, subject to one's own will alone, and that one's beliefs should conform to the best scientific understanding of the world. "There is no medical or scientific purpose for mandating an abortion waiting period, nor is the idea that 'life begins at conception' a scientific fact," explains Jex Blackmore, a spokesperson for the Temple. For this reason, Mary Doe presented a letter of exemption to staff at the Planned Parenthood in St. Louis, which was the only abortion provider operating in the state at the time. [...]
The oral arguments in the federal appeal will take place on September 20, and Blackmore says the state-level hearing on Monday went well, though she's "not so confident in the impartiality of Missouri's legal system, which is largely conservative." If the Satanic Temple succeeds in their appeal, she believes the decision will set an important constitutional precedent. And, ideologically, it will send a message to those in power: If the moral convictions of " those who believe in a supernatural being that demands total servitude under the threat of eternal damnation," as Blackmore puts it, are worth protecting under law, then the moral convictions of Satanists are worth protecting, too.
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