--- description: The planned re-enactment of a satanic ritual intended to mock the traditional Catholic mass had been widely denounced by school administrators and Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley title: Video: Harvard Black Mass Canceled at Last Minute image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1646aff0d4ae3748/69868f31adae44263e5430f4/harvard-1280x720.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 'Black Mass' at Harvard Canceled Amid Outcry by [TIME Video](/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 13, 2014 8:35 PM CUT  by [TIME Video](/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 13, 2014 8:35 PM CUT Harvard’s reputation for elite students and world class education generally doesn’t include satanic worship. Harvard Extension School’s Cultural Studies Club wanted to perform a black mass reenactment on the school’s campus until an uproar forced it to change plans. The club’s planned re-enactment of a satanic ritual [was canceled](http://time.com/96785/black-mass-harvard-campus-cancelled/ "undefined"), amid backlash from students, alumni and the [Archdiocese of Boston](http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/05/12/cardinal-sean-malley-expresses-disappointment-harvard-decision-allow-black-mass-campus/tUjYx2817C65LAHousRIeP/story.html "undefined"). However, a scaled-down version of the event was apparently held at the last minute late Monday by members of the New York-based Satanic Temple off campus at a local lounge, [according to the Boston _Globe_.](http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/05/12/cardinal-sean-malley-expresses-disappointment-harvard-decision-allow-black-mass-campus/tUjYx2817C65LAHousRIeP/story.html "undefined") That event was not sponsored by the Harvard club. Watch the video above for more on the ritual that was historically performed to mock the Roman Catholic Church. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/98193/harvard-black-mass-cancellation/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/98193/harvard-black-mass-cancellation/"},"headline":"'Black Mass' at Harvard Canceled Amid Outcry","datePublished":"2014-05-13T20:35:14.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:49:01.025Z","description":"The planned re-enactment of a satanic ritual intended to mock the traditional Catholic mass had been widely denounced by school administrators and Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley","url":"https://time.com/98193/harvard-black-mass-cancellation/","keywords":["Religion","Harvard","Catholic Church","faith"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1646aff0d4ae3748/69868f31adae44263e5430f4/harvard-1280x720.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Video","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-video/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1646aff0d4ae3748/69868f31adae44263e5430f4/harvard-1280x720.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Harvard 1280X720","caption":"","creditText":"","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/98193/harvard-black-mass-cancellation/","name":"'Black Mass' at Harvard Canceled Amid Outcry"}}]}] ```