Mourning Star

Mourning Star is an independent Satanist magazine that first appeared in 1997 and superseded A Taste from the Cauldron, the magazine of the First Occult Church. Mourning Star, like its predecessor, is edited by William "Starets" Gidney (1972-). In the early 1990s Gidney and his wife, Lady Ygraine, operated the First Occult Church, which included in its membership a range of occult perspectives from Wicca to voudou that were in fellowship with the Satanism of the leaders. In the mid-1970s, the First Occult Church was closed and both Gidney and Lady Ygraine affiliated with the Church of Satan. Lady Ygraine, who had previously operated two occult shops, The Cauldron and The Dragon's Lair, also founded a new store dedicated to the left-hand path, Pandora's Box, in Port St. Lucie, Florida. In 1999, in the wake of the Church of Satan's reestablishment of grottos as local church centers, Gidney led in the founding of the Nepotism Grotto and now serves as the grotto master.

Mourning Star is designed as the expression of a maturing Satanic philosophy in the tradition of Anton Sandor LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan. Each issue contains articles, poems, reviews, and additional varied material. All articles must at the least show the author's familiarity with the principles and idea of The Satanic Bible, the basic text of the Church of Satan.

While representative of opinions within the Church of Satan, Mourning Star is not an official church publication. It is issued irregularly and while each issue is numbered, it is undated. Mourning Star is published at Pandora's Box, 321 SE Port Saint Lucie Blvd., Port Saint Lucie, FL 34984.

Sources:

Mourning Star. Port Lucie, Fla., n.d.