Satanic Ritual Abuse

Satanic Ritual Abuse can be defined as the psychological, sexual, and/or physical assault forced on an unwilling human victim, and committed by one or more Satanists according to a prescribed ritual, the primary aim of which is to fulfill their need to worship the Christian devil, Satan (http://www.religioustolerance.org).
In many occasions the term Satanic Ritual Abuse is used, incorrectly, as a all-encompassing for related issues, such as alleged or documented child abuse, including incest, molestation, mutilation, or other physical and/or psychological abuse, all with no connection to Satanism. In contrast, skeptics claim that ritual abuse, especially so-called satanic cult abuse, either does not exist at all or occurs very infrequently,
Religion-related abuse includes such acts as "beating the devil out of a child," abusive "exorcism" and "deliverance" ceremonies, sexual abuse by priesthood, and religiously motivated medical neglect.] The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, then answers the question of What child abuse professionals believe about ritual abuse?:
[Professionals are divided over whether or not "ritual abuse" occurs. Much of the controversy in the professional community would likely disappear with the introduction of a coherent, widely accepted definition of "ritual abuse."
No reliable data are available on the prevalence of different beliefs about "ritual abuse" among professionals. However, in a nationwide study of thousands of interdisciplinary professionals, 11% of mental health professionals reported having encountered one or more allegations of child abuse that included ritual elements, as defined by the researchers. A very small group of clinicians, each alleged to have treated scores of cases, accounted for most of the reports of ritualistic child abuse (Bottoms, Shaver, & Goodman,
There is no verifiable evidence for claims about a satanic cult ritual abuse conspiracy. However, there is abundant evidence that an increasing number of moral crusaders are creating a form of deviant behavior, which exists only in their preconceptions. The victims of this rush to judgment include children who are traumatized by the emotional over-reaction and repeated interrogations by well-meaning child protection workers. The victims include children who are taken away from parents who have been falsely accused of ritual sex abuse. Victims also include the parents who are imprisoned and often held with exorbitantly high bail for months before going to