Florida Governor Ron Desantis represents himself as a man of morals, country, and God. This image aligns perfectly with his conservative background in politics, as DeSantis encourages keeping religion in school systems with his newly signed bill. This bill allows school systems in Florida to opt into a chaplain program that would allow religious services for students by clergymen of all religions, all except for one. Satanism.
In front of the press and an audience, DeSantis doubled down against claims that proceeding with this new bill could allow Satanic clergymen to be a part of a school’s chaplain program as well. “We’re not playing those games in Florida, that is not a religion” was the promise DeSantis made to his crowd. Following this, DeSantis claimed that this new program was optional for students and parents. The Florida governor assured that the program would be completely regulated with quality background checks and proof of consent from parents of students before enrollment.
The Satanic Temple itself spoke its own opinion regarding the matter, with co-founder Lucien Greaves threatening to sue the state, as well as even challenging Governor DeSantis to a debate against the legality of the situation. Greaves claims that the new bill is a religious persecution against the Temple, backing his theory that even the IRS recognizes TST as a church for tax exemption purposes. The co-founder of TST assured that the bill would not make it past a courtroom if taken there.
Greaves then spoke on how the Florida Governor is unaware of how his law works, stating that the law does include Satanic clergymen to be a part of school chaplain programs. Along with DeSantis signing the new bill, Greaves felt disrespected by the Governor’s comments regarding the matter.
With this, Lucien Greaves has spoken against Desantis, claiming a debate between the two would provide a positive platform to discuss the true meaning of religious freedom in America.
