Meaning of "brat brigade"
treph posted a comment here, regarding my use of the term "brat brigade" to describe obnoxious teenage Satanists:
I'd appreciate it if you would respect the "Brat Brigade" a little more. Not all teenagers such as myself are uneducated in Satanism. Sure, you probably have your reasons for not liking teenagers and I do not blame you old curmudgeon iconoclasts but you should be a little more open minded. It is not easy being a teenage Satanist especially in these times and having people I look up to criticizing me for becoming a Satanist doesn't help either.
Let me clarify: I do not use the term "brat brigade" to refer to ALL teenage Satanists, but ONLY the ones for whom Satanism is primarily an excuse for being obnoxious, or in some cases an excuse for lawbreaking. A "brat," to me, is not just any kid, but an especially obnoxious kid. Unfortunately, Satanism does seem to attract more than its share of obnoxious kids, but not all young Satanists are in this category by any means.
I don't mean to "criticize" teenagers merely for becoming Satanists. I do encourage young people to wait with doing any dedication rites until they reach their mid-20's or so, simply because there's a strong probability that a young person's spirituality will change, for which reason I think they should refrain from making any long term promises regarding their spirituality.
But I see nothing wrong with teenagers exploring Satanism or even delving deeply into it. If one wants to start doing rituals, I would suggest my self-initiation rite as a first ritual. But I would also recommend wide-ranging study, of various religions and forms of occultism, before doing any rituals.
Another, unrelated issue: For legal reasons, I need to limit attendance at my groups to people who either are at least 18 years old, or, if under 18, have their parents' permission to attend.
Anyhow, you also wrote:
You probably don't give two shits about this message either but me writing it makes me feel a little more accomplished with the chance of you maybe reading this and changing your views on teenage Satanists.
You haven't convinced me to change anything, but I hope you understand my views better now.
I am planning on moving to NYC when I turn 18 and meeting with other Satanists, so I take the criticism a little harshly.
Since you'll be 18 when you move to NYC, there should be no problem, as long as you're law-abiding and reasonably well-mannered.
I'd appreciate it if you would respect the "Brat Brigade" a little more. Not all teenagers such as myself are uneducated in Satanism. Sure, you probably have your reasons for not liking teenagers and I do not blame you old curmudgeon iconoclasts but you should be a little more open minded. It is not easy being a teenage Satanist especially in these times and having people I look up to criticizing me for becoming a Satanist doesn't help either.
Let me clarify: I do not use the term "brat brigade" to refer to ALL teenage Satanists, but ONLY the ones for whom Satanism is primarily an excuse for being obnoxious, or in some cases an excuse for lawbreaking. A "brat," to me, is not just any kid, but an especially obnoxious kid. Unfortunately, Satanism does seem to attract more than its share of obnoxious kids, but not all young Satanists are in this category by any means.
I don't mean to "criticize" teenagers merely for becoming Satanists. I do encourage young people to wait with doing any dedication rites until they reach their mid-20's or so, simply because there's a strong probability that a young person's spirituality will change, for which reason I think they should refrain from making any long term promises regarding their spirituality.
But I see nothing wrong with teenagers exploring Satanism or even delving deeply into it. If one wants to start doing rituals, I would suggest my self-initiation rite as a first ritual. But I would also recommend wide-ranging study, of various religions and forms of occultism, before doing any rituals.
Another, unrelated issue: For legal reasons, I need to limit attendance at my groups to people who either are at least 18 years old, or, if under 18, have their parents' permission to attend.
Anyhow, you also wrote:
You probably don't give two shits about this message either but me writing it makes me feel a little more accomplished with the chance of you maybe reading this and changing your views on teenage Satanists.
You haven't convinced me to change anything, but I hope you understand my views better now.
I am planning on moving to NYC when I turn 18 and meeting with other Satanists, so I take the criticism a little harshly.
Since you'll be 18 when you move to NYC, there should be no problem, as long as you're law-abiding and reasonably well-mannered.