Catholic leader in Kansas sues satanic church, arguing it stole holy items for upcoming ritual

KANSAS CITY, Kansas — Catholic Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas, is suing the Satanist organizers behind next week’s planned Black Mass ritual at the state Capitol, alleging that they unlawfully obtained a consecrated host and wine.

The lawsuit, filed in Leavenworth District Court last Friday, names Michael Stewart, Travis Roberts and their Satanic Grotto church as defendants. It calls for the immediate return of holy items to the archbishop.

In Catholic tradition, hosts and wine that have been blessed by a priest become “Consecrated Hosts and Wine are in fact the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ,” Naumann’s filing states.

He alleges that the Eucharist could only have been obtained through illicit means — “theft, fraud, deception, wrongful taking, or other form of misappropriation.”

Stewart, the Satanic Grotto’s founder, told The Star that the host “came from Pope Amazon.” In other words, he says he ordered the unleavened wafer online and plans to perform the consecration himself.

“You’re going to see a book get torn, a cross get broken, a cracker get crunched, and wine get drunk, and that is the scariest bit of what we were planning to do,” Stewart said.

The archbishop’s 44-page complaint asserts that Stewart’s real goal is “to intentionally cause harm to Archbishop Naumann, the Catholic Church, and countless Catholics in Kansas and around the world” through “Desecration of the Eucharist” and “Corruption of the Blood.”

Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat, has issued a directive that the Black Mass must be held outside, scuttling plans for a rotunda ritual and stating that there are “more constructive ways to protest and express disagreements without insulting or denigrating sacred religious symbols.”

“However, as governor, I also have a duty to protect protesters’ constitutional rights to freedom of speech and expression, regardless of how offensive or distasteful I might find the content to be,” Kelly said last week.

Incensed Catholics have obtained a permit to protest the Black Mass on the southern steps of the Capitol during the Satanic Grotto’s planned ritual.

Rule changes and criminal accusations

In a Tuesday meeting, Republican and Democratic legislative leaders unanimously changed rules for assembly in communal areas inside the Topeka Statehouse and on its grounds. Moving forward, tightened restrictions will apply not just to satanic worshippers but to anyone else planning an event or impromptu demonstration at the Capitol.

The archbishop’s lawsuit prompted Attorney General Kris Kobach to write the Legislative Coordinating Council a letter summing up his legal opinion on the planned ritual, which Stewart has described as “therapeutic blasphemy.”

“Because there is that sworn testimonial evidence that a theft has occurred and because the statements of this organization that intends to hold a so-called ‘Black Mass’ indicate that they intend to destroy the stolen property, that would involve yet another crime being committed,” Kobach told lawmakers Tuesday.

“We believe that, although of course there are free speech concerns, and of course the Capitol has been a public forum, there are also limits, and you cannot use the cloak of the First Amendment to commit crimes.”

The policy changes approved by the coordinating council say that no group can gather if one of its members “has stated explicitly that the meeting or gathering will involve a violation of law” or if state law enforcement confirms that a demonstrator has made a threat “against the governor, a member of the Legislature or other public official,” as verified by state law enforcement.

The policy now prohibits groups from demonstrating if “participation is limited or restricted on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, handicap, cultural heritage or national origin or ancestry.”

Will Satanic ritual be allowed?

Stewart said he discussed plans for his ritual at length with Kansas Capitol Police Lieutenant Greydin Walker and volunteered to share his proof of purchase with the force, a division of the Kansas Highway Patrol.

“When it came to whether or not we had a consecrated ritual, I explained to them it came from Pope Amazon the entire time and that the Catholics are often far more scared about what is about to happen than the thing that is actually about to happen,” Stewart said.

KHP did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the substance of conversations between Satanic organizers and Capitol Police about the scheduled ritual.

But even if a judge doesn’t intervene to prevent the Satanic Grotto event, lawmakers laid the groundwork for barring Stewart from Capitol grounds, submitting a request that the Kansas Bureau of Investigation evaluate an alleged threat made by Stewart and directed towards an unnamed state lawmaker.

“We can confirm a threat was received by a legislator, but that information is not ours to release. I’d refer you to the KBI for more information,” said Mike Pirner, a spokesperson for Senate President Ty Masterson.

The KBI and Kobach, who the agency answers to, responded to a request for comment by sharing a copy of the legal opinion the attorney general penned for lawmakers.

“We do believe the Grotto’s advertisement of the Black Mass qualifies as a crime,” Masterson, an Andover Republican, said during the coordinating council meeting. “The threats have been sent over to KBI for review, so I would say we call upon (Gov. Kelly) to empower the Highway Patrol to not allow the mass to happen next week.”

Stewart said he’s fully prepared to get arrested on March 28. “I’m wearing clean underwear and everything. We’re all in on this,” he said

Chuck Weber, executive director of the Kansas Catholic Conference, said he’s unconvinced that the host Satanists’ plan to defile was not obtained unlawfully after being consecrated by a Catholic priest.

“Michael Stewart called me on March 8 and told me that he had a Consecrated Eucharist. He also claimed to have one in social media postings,” Weber said. “He is a follower of the father of lies. We cannot take chances on a matter this serious and we will continue pursuing legal options.”