Satanic Temple cites religious beliefs as immunity from Supreme Court abortion ruling on fetal remains

The Satanic Temple said it would challenge a Supreme Court ruling from Tuesday that upheld part of an Indiana law requiring the burial or cremation of fetal remains.

The group is citing religious freedom in declaring immunity from the law, according to the Arkansas Times.

“One of The Satanic Temple’s fundamental tenets is the inviolability of one’s body,” the international organization said in a statement.

The Satanic Temple (TST) said “non-viable fetal tissue is part of the woman who carries it,” according to its statement to the news outlet.

“State impositions of ceremonial requirements dictating its disposal, barring any plausible medical or sanitary concerns, is a violation of TST’s Free Exercise allowing Satanists to contextualize the termination of a pregnancy on their own terms, with deference to their own religious beliefs,” the group added.

The organization, which does not worship or believe in the Satan from the Bible, is known for its vocal advocacy for separation between church and state.

“To be clear, members of The Satanic Temple will not be made to pay for these punitive, superfluous, and insulting burials. We claim exemption on religious liberty grounds, and we will almost certainly prevail in the courts if we are forced to fight," the group's spokesperson Lucien Greaves told the Arkansas Times.

A member of the Satanic Temple also challenged, on the grounds of religious freedom, a Missouri law that says women must wait three days when seeking an abortion, according to The Associated Press.