There are about eight thousand Satanic sects in Italy, with more than six hundred thousand followers. Thousands of new cults and religions connected to charismatic figures can be added to this number. There are many ways of joining – through Internet, in Gothic music shops or at meetings disguised as parties – but it is not so easy to get out. It is an underground world that now and again comes to the surface when reports of tragic accidents are heard on the news. The groups are always very small because in this way they are able to meet together more easily and it is difficult to identify them. But in Italy there is a form of Satan worship that is spreading, and it goes far beyond the usual sects. And a great number of people are involved. There is serious concern about minors. According to information received from Telefono Arcobaleno (a help-line in Italy), 33 out of 100 children are attracted to Satanism, witchcraft and the occult and are readers of publications and Internet sites on this subject, or even worse have been victims of abuse. Three per cent are between the ages of 6 and 10, nine per cent between 11 and 14, and twenty-one percent between 15 and 17.  (More) ...