The Satanist

Abstract

Perhaps the most spectacular manifestation of fin-de-siècle supernaturalism was the country-wide explosion of reports of the meetings of secret cults and the bloody rituals of Satanic societies. So deep was concern over the spread of devil worship that the Catholic Church published La Revue du Diable, whose mission was the exposure of clandestine Satanic practices. Among its targets, a prominent socialite, Lucie Claraz, was excommunicated in 1895 for engaging in Satanic activities. Another object of religious and legal sanction, a farmer, Bernard, from the Département of Allier, was convicted as “a sorcerer in scientific relations with the Devil,” and sentenced accordingly to six months’ imprisonment.¹