Church of the SubGenius

The Church of the SubGenius is a satirical pseudo-religious organization, originally based in Dallas, Texas, which gained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s subculture, with a large presence on the Internet.

Clenches

Church members living in the same geographic area are encouraged (though it is not mandatory) to form a group: a local club or "clench". These clenches are typically the ones who bind together in order to put on a Devival. Some of these clenches even position themselves as their own religion; this is encouraged by the Church, and is officially known as a "schism". Ivan Stang himself has been quoted as saying, "Quit the church and start your own damn religion!"

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Devivals

SubGenius gatherings, or Devivals, can be seen as a combination of religious preaching, stand-up comedy, and rock concerts. When the local members of the Church hold a Devival in their area, it typically occurs at a popular nightclub, and it features SubGenius preachers backed by rock bands with such names as the Swingin' Love Corpses, Doktors for "Bob", Saint N and Hellena Handbasket, Jehovah Hates Phred, Einstein's Secret Orchestra, and the Kings of Feedback. Attendees at Devivals are encouraged to bring money and spend it at the ever-present sales table. Some Devivals have been known to veer out of control. In 1999, officials of the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts pressured owners of the Middle East nightclub to cancel the booked devival because of a mistaken belief that the organizers were affiliated with the Trenchcoat Mafia (the organization claimed to have been responsible for the Columbine High School massacre).

Related Topics:
Rock concert - 1999 - Cambridge, Massachusetts - Trenchcoat Mafia - Columbine High School massacre

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X-Day

(See main article: X-Day)

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An important SubGenius event did not occur on July 5th, 1998: X-Day. The Church had been predicting that on this day the world would be destroyed by invading alien armies known as the X-ists. Only the members of the Church of the SubGenius were expected to be saved from this SubGenius version of the apocalypse, by being carried away in the spaceships of the Sex-Goddesses. Although that day and each subsequent July 5th has passed without evidence of an alien invasion, the faithful membership still gather for the "Rupture" at a campground in western New York state to herald this SubGenius holiday. Reverend Ivan Stang has given many excuses for the failure of the Rupture to happen, such as claiming that "Bob" betrayed all SubGenii, that the scriptures were accidentally read upside down (hence the year 8661), or that due to calendrical error or sabotage it is not yet 1998. Some would argue that it did happen, albeit in a metaphysical and/or allegorical manner requiring greater flexion of paradigm to truly understand. Others have suggested that the X-ists did visit Earth as predicted, but that the planet we know as Earth was either secretly switched with Mars sometime during or shortly after World War II, or that the X-sists left with the persuasion, that mankind will do the job as well, if not better.

Related Topics:
July 5 - World would be destroyed - Alien - Apocalypse - Alien invasion - Campground - Holiday - Ivan Stang - Metaphysical - Allegorical - Flexion - Paradigm - Mars - World War II

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