Editing Satanism (section)

==Devil in society==

[[File:Mask Diabo of Portugal used on folk fest and rituals.jpg|thumb|upright|Devil mask from Portugal]]
Historical and anthropological research suggests that nearly all societies have developed the idea of a sinister and anti-human force that can hide itself within society.{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|pp=13–14}} This commonly involves a belief in [[witches]], a group of individuals who invert the norms of their society and seek to harm their community, for instance by engaging in [[incest]], [[murder]], and [[Human cannibalism|cannibalism]].{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=14}} Allegations of witchcraft may have different causes and serve different functions within a society.{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=16}} For instance, they may serve to uphold social norms,{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=15}} to heighten the tension in existing conflicts between individuals,{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=15}} or to scapegoat certain individuals for various social problems.{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=16}}

Another contributing factor to the idea of Satanism is the concept that there is an agent of misfortune and evil who operates on a cosmic scale,{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=19}} something usually associated with a strong form of ethical dualism that divides the world clearly into forces of good and forces of evil.{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=20}} The earliest such entity known is [[Angra Mainyu]], a figure that appears in the Persian religion of [[Zoroastrianism]].{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=19}}{{sfn|van Luijk|2016|p=18}} This concept was also embraced by Judaism and early Christianity, and although it was soon marginalized within Jewish thought, it gained increasing importance within early Christian understandings of the cosmos.{{sfn|Dyrendal|Lewis|Petersen|2016|p=21}}

The [[Native American religions|Native South American]] terrible god [[Tiw (god)|Tiw]] is traditionally honored with the syncretic dance and parade ''[[Diablada]]'' ('Dance of the Devils') that was opposed to the Catholic Church in origin.<ref>{{cite book |author=Gruszczyńska-Ziółkowska, Anna |title=El poder del sonido: el papel de las crónicas españolas en la etnomusicología andina |place=Ecuador |year=1995 |publisher=Ediciones Abya-Yala |language=es |isbn=9978-04-147-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rmq4bGIh9jgC |page=107}}</ref>