The Second Coming: Satanism in America (1970) by Arthur Lyons is a groundbreaking investigative work that explores the rise of modern Satanic movements in late 1960s America, blending journalism, cultural critique, and occult history. Lyons, a crime writer and skeptic, delves into the theatrical rituals of Anton LaVey’s Church of Satan, the hysteria surrounding “Satanic Panic” (decades before it peaked), and the darker fringes of occult subcultures, from Process Church devotees to serial killers invoking demonic imagery.
Lyons’ approach is sharp and unsensational, debunking myths while exposing real dangers—criminal exploitation of Satanic tropes, manipulative cult leaders, and media-fueled paranoia. He contrasts LaVey’s atheistic “rational Satanism” with genuine sociopathic violence, questioning why society projects its fears onto a symbolic devil.
A prescient, gritty snapshot of counterculture’s shadow side, this book is essential reading for understanding Satanism’s cultural impact—and the moral panics it ignited.
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