The so-called Satanic Temple on Thursday denied that it intends to use a consecrated host during a sacrilegious “black mass” event scheduled for this evening.

“The Satanic Temple Atlanta has not engaged in theft or illicit activity of any kind. Specifically, we have not stolen a consecrated host, nor do we promote illegal behavior,” the group said in an Oct. 24 Instagram post.

The group said its statement was made in direct response to Archbishop Gregory Hartmayer of Atlanta, who in an Oct. 8 memo urged all Catholics to counter the Satanic Temple’s “attack on the faith” through prayers of reparation and penance.

A direct mockery of the Catholic Mass, a so-called “black mass” has sometimes in the past involved the desecration of the Eucharist, stolen from a Catholic church. In 2014, a planned “black mass” at Harvard University sparked considerable outcry from Catholics, as did another one later that year in Oklahoma City.

The Satanic Temple is a political organization that openly and unequivocally denies belief in God, Satan, or the supernatural. The provocative Salem, Massachusetts-based group is known for protesting religious symbolism in public spaces and mocking Christianity by offering “unbaptism” and hosting “black masses.”

“The Satanic Temple does not believe in, nor advocate for a belief in, the supernatural, nor is it the place of another religious organization to define for us how our rituals must be conducted to conform with their assumptions,” the Atlanta Satanic Temple continued.

The group asserted that the so-called “black mass,” set to take place Friday evening at an event space in Atlanta, is “intended as a theatrical performance for entertainment, religious practice, and empowerment within our community” and is intended as a “personal declaration of independence from superstition.”

An Instagram user commented on the Satanic Temple’s post: “You say you didn’t steal [a consecrated host], but you’re not saying you won’t be using one. Can you clarify if you are using one?”

The Satanic Temple account replied: “We don’t have one and aren’t using one.”

Archbishop Hartmayer in his memo said Catholics should respond to “this attack to our faith through prayer, penance, and prayers of reparation.” He said he has asked each Atlanta parish to conduct a Eucharistic Holy Hour with Benediction to honor the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, ideally on or before Friday, Oct. 25, at 9 p.m. ET.

“This terrible sacrilege is a deliberate attack on the Catholic Mass as well as the foundational beliefs of all Christians. It mocks Our Lord Jesus Christ, whom we Catholics believe is truly present under the form of bread and wine in the Holy Eucharist when it has been consecrated by a validly ordained priest,” Hartmayer said. 

“We commend our efforts to the Lord through the loving intercession of Mary, the mother of God,” he concluded.

In recent years, the Satanic Temple has engaged in pro-abortion advocacy, losing the various lawsuits it filed against state pro-life laws in Missouri and Indiana. It also announced last year the creation of an “After School Satan Club” at a Connecticut elementary school.