Editing Michael A. Aquino (section)

== Satanism ==
[[File:Michael A. Aquino costumed for a demonstration ritual.jpg|thumb|Aquino dressed for a demonstration Satanic ritual in 1973]]
In 1969, he joined the [[Church of Satan]], led by [[Anton LaVey]], and quickly rose through the ranks of the group. By 1971, Aquino had been appointed Magister Caverns of the IV degree within the church hierarchy, was the editor of the publication ''The Cloven Hoof'' and sat on the governing council of the nine.{{sfn|Gardell|2003|p=290}} His career in Satanism was paused when he went on to work in the military.<ref name=":0" />  He met LaVey at a screening of ''[[Rosemary's Baby (film)|Rosemary's Baby]]'', where LaVey gave him his business card.{{sfn|Introvigne|2016|pp=311, 314}} They grew to be very close.{{sfn|Gardell|2003|p=390}} However, conflicts arose over time between LaVey and Aquino regarding the direction of the group. The latter rejected LaVey's [[atheism]] and [[materialism]].{{sfn|Gardell|2003|p=290}}{{sfn|Introvigne|2016|p=314}}<ref name=":0" /> When he started selling positions in the Church of Satan for money, Aquino finally left the group in 1975.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Granholm |first=Kennet |title=Dark Enlightenment: The Historical, Sociological, and Discursive Contexts of Contemporary Esoteric Magic |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |year=2014 |isbn=978-90-04-27487-7 |location=Boston |language=en}}</ref>{{sfn|Medway|2001|p=203}} His history of the Church of Satan, entitled ''The Church of Satan'', has had several editions and has been an important source for academics, though how reliable Aquino is has been questioned.{{sfn|Introvigne|2016|pp=299, 314}} He has since extensively criticized LaVey and has, according to scholars, "gone out of his way to make public court documents that reflect negatively on LaVey’s personal life".{{sfn|Gardell|2003|p=390}}{{sfn|Introvigne|2016|pp=299, 314}}

After he left the Church of Satan, he started a ritual in which he asked [[Satan]] for advice on what to do next.{{sfn|Dyrendal|2012|p=}} According to him, Satan appeared to him in the summer of 1975 and revealed to him that he wanted to be called [[Set (deity)|Set]], a name that his worshippers in [[ancient Egypt]] are said to have used. Aquino produced a religious text, ''The Book of Coming Forth by Night'', which he claimed was revealed to him by Set in a process of [[automatic writing]]. The book proclaimed Aquino Magus of the new eon of Set, and heir to LaVey's “infernal mandate”. On this basis, he founded the Temple of Set, which is dedicated to the worship of Set. In contrast to LaVey's approach, this group has an [[occult]] and [[Hermeticism|hermetic]] orientation. Aquino's orientation was strongly influenced by the work of the British occultist [[Aleister Crowley]].{{sfn|Dyrendal|2012|p=387}}{{sfn|Introvigne|2016|p=314}} In 1975, the Temple of Set was registered as a non-profit church in California and received state and federal recognition and tax exemption that same year.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Harvey |first=Graham |author-link=Graham Harvey (religious studies scholar) |date=October 1995 |title=Satanism in Britain today |journal=[[Journal of Contemporary Religion]] |language=en |volume=10 |issue=3 |pages=283–296 |doi=10.1080/13537909508580747 |issn=1353-7903}}</ref>