06 December 2018 - Illinois State Capitol Displays Festive Satanic Statue Alongside Nativity Scene
Festive Satanic statue added to Illinois statehouse
(BBC News, 05/12/2018)
A satanic group has added its own statue to a series of displays in the government building of the US state of Illinois to mark the festive season.
Placed between a Christmas tree and a menorah, the four-foot sculpture depicts a snake coiled around an outstretched arm holding an apple.
It's the first display sponsored by the Chicago chapter of the Temple of Satan.
The Illinois Capitol is ringing in the holidays with a Satanic statue
Madeline Holcombe (CNN, 06/12/2018)
The Illinois State Capitol is decking the halls with holly, a menorah, and a Satanic statue.
This holiday season, the Satanic Temple of Chicago has been granted permission to place their statue in the lobby of the state Capitol building in Springfield, Illinois, a spokesman for the Secretary of State's office told CNN.
The statue is approximately four and a half feet tall and about 18 inches long, spokesman Dave Druker said, and it depicts a snake wrapped around an arm holding an apple with the inscription "knowledge is the greatest gift."
Illinois state capitol forced to display satanic statue alongside Nativity scene
Tom Embury-Dennis (The Independent, 05/12/2018)
A US state capitol has been forced to display a satanic statue alongside a scene of the Nativity to mark the festive season.
A local chapter of The Satanic Temple placed the 4ft statue, called "Knowledge is the Greatest Gift", in the Illinois capitol in Springfield this week after the group's application was accepted.
The sculpture depicts a snake coiled around a woman's forearm, the hand of which is holding an apple.
Satanists Place Statue Between Christmas Tree and Menorah at Illinois Capitol
Daniel Moritz-Rabson (Newsweek, 06/12/2018)
A statue from The Satanic Temple-Chicago was added to the holiday decorations at the Illinois statehouse, The State Journal-Register reported.
Positioned between a Christmas tree and a menorah, the sculpture depicts a forearm holding an apple, with a snake coiled around arm, according to BBC News.
The statue, which is four-and-a-half feet tall, is titled "Knowledge Is The Greatest Gift." Lex Manticore, a spokesman from the temple, said that the arm alludes to the arm of Eve from the Biblical tale of the Garden of Eden.