The first official meeting of the After School Satan Club in the United States took place Wednesday at Sacramento Elementary School in Portland, drawing national members of the Satanic Temple and Catholic protesters from a group based out of Pennsylvania.

"The club is here to contrast the presence of the evangelical Good News Clubs, which are here specifically to proselytize to children," said Lucien Greaves, the Satanic Temple's national co-founder, who was on hand for the first official meeting of the club, an open house for parents, students and staff. Members of the press were not allowed to attend.

The club at Sacramento Elementary School is the first in the nation, but the Satanic Temple currently has applications out to several other schools across the country.

The Satanic Temple is a national organization based in Salem, Massachusetts. Its mission, according its website, "is to encourage benevolence and empathy among all people, reject tyrannical authority, advocate practical common sense and justice, and be directed by the human conscience to undertake noble pursuits guided by the individual will."

The organization is non-theistic and does "not promote a belief in a personal Satan."

The Good News Club is an evangelical after-school club, which, according its website, is a Bible-based program "whose purpose is to evangelize boys and girls with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and to establish (disciple) them in the Word of God and in a local church for Christian living."

Ron Imig, the assistant director of Child Evangelism Fellowship in Portland, which runs the Good News Clubs, said over the phone Wednesday of the After School Satan Club's first meeting, "They have that right even though we don't agree with what they're doing."

"They're operating under the Equal Access law," he added, the same rule the Good News Club operates under.

Imig said there are five Good News Clubs in Portland elementary schools but declined to say which schools they take place in.

On Tuesday night, the Satanic Temple put on a presentation at Parkrose Middle School. Though the press release from the Portland Chapter of the Satanic Temple said the Tuesday night event would be open to the community and members of the press, Fox 12 reported they were not allowed inside.

Wednesday's open house was the first official meeting of the after-school Satan club in its first location. Staff members of Sacramento Elementary School declined to speak to the press about the club but did confirm that Wednesday was an early release day, which is why the meeting of the "after-school club" happened at 11:45 a.m. Some parents said school was let out earlier than usual, giving parents time to get their children before protests.

After School Satan Club 9 Gallery: After School Satan Club

Four members of a Catholic group called

part of

, traveled to Portland to protest the club. They were joined by members of the community and a priest who happened to be in the area from Ohio.

Peter Miller, a member of America Needs Fatima and the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property, said they are an "anti blasphemy" group. He explained Fatima is "an apparition of Our Lady."

The group has previously protested things like "the Jerry Springer play" and "The Testament of Mary," another play, according to Miller.

"Satanism, they're not a religion," said Jack Burnham, who was protesting with America Needs Fatima.

"People are demurring that they're some kind of religion," he added. "They're not."

When asked what defines a religion, Burnham said, "Worship of God, the one true God. That's my definition."

A member of the group, Charles Sulzen, said the goal of the protest is "stopping the worship of Satan in public areas."

"We're here to defend the rights of God against his archenemy," Burnham added.

Jex Blackmore, the Satanic Temple Detroit chapter head, who also traveled to Portland for the event said, "I think it's absurd to protest."

"We're just trying to have an open house," she added.

Finn Rezz, the co-head of the Portland chapter of the Satanic Temple, said that members of the Satanic Temple are exercising their rights.

"Every one of us standing here is American," he continued, "and these are our values."

Some parents were less than thrilled about the club and protests.

A father of a Sacramento student, Jose Delgato, said he was concerned about the Satan club.

"Everybody knows there's nothing good about a Satanic group," Delgato said. "The Devil's obviously an evil thing."

"They're trying to make it like, oh it's a positive thing but how can you feel safe or feel OK with your kids coming to school knowing that there's a Satanic group here when we all know what they're really about," he added.

David Linn, a parent of a second grader at the school, said he thinks both groups are a problem.

"I think they should all be ashamed of themselves," Linn said.

"I think this Christian group and the Satan group should not be in this elementary school," he said. "It's inappropriate."

-- Lizzy Acker

503-221-8052

lacker@oregonian.com, @lizzzyacker