Does any one have knowledge of the various forms of occultism? I was raised in the Church of Christ, A Fundamentalist Church, and always got the message that any one who dabbled in the Occult was a pawn of Satan. I realize that most Wiccans, New Agers, etc., do not actually believe in the Bible’s version of the Devil, however. I do know that there is a Church of Satan, founded by (I think) a man named LaVay (probably spelled that wrong!). I also remember the name Crowley (can’t think of the first name) who lived earlier than the LaVay guy. I have a feeling that actual Satanists are just a small subset of Occultism at large, but I don’t know for sure. I would really appreciate any info on the subject. If somebody could give me a list of books on the general history of the Occult or Satanism, that would be great!
occultism has many forms:
tarot cards, astrology, seances, etc.
It involves tryig to get i touch with the “spirit world” a lot of which is populated by evil spirits.
I will go search for some good books on this.
Meanwhile, someone will come in here denying all I’ve said.
But read both sides before you realize. 
LeVay doesn’t worship Satan, he just dismisses living by church imposed morality. Wicca and New Agers also do not worship Satan or evil, just things different than Catholic or X-ian standards. If anybody tells you something is evil or a cult, first question why they are labeling something as such.
If I rememeber correctly, LeVay has written several books, I’m sure one or two might be of interest.
If you’re working from a Christian perspective, you can lump all other beliefs under the category ‘not proper’. Since Satan is the Christian god of rebellion, from a Christian perspective, he would enjoy promoting any non-proper observance or belief. What the practitioners of those observances believed would have no relevance.
If you’re working outside of the Christian pantheon (please don’t hijack into an arguement about angles and demons and thrones and all not being gods - if you found them in another religion, you’d call them gods: call them players if you like), then Satan has no relevance and you’ll be dealing with occult spirituality from a completely different perspective, leaving Satan for Christians to deal with.
If you’re working from an agnostic or atheist perspective, then Christianity IS an occult practice.
If you’re looking for books, you might consider starting with Ancient Greek and Roman mythology, just to get accustomed to a worldview that does not include Jehovah/Jesus/Lucifer. There are lots of books on the subject, and few people get bent about researching it. Or try Drawing Down the Moon, to get a neopagan perspective.
Luck on your search.
Here’s a link to some introductory material on the ReligiousTolerance.org site.
I believe there is not just one Christian perspective. There are many Christians who hold to non-judgment of another person’s beliefs. I am a Christian. I no longer believe in Satan. But even when I did believe, I never considered “him” a god.
I’ve also never thought of “New Age” beliefs as being particularly part of the"occult" which has more sinister connotations for me. But I suspect “New Age” is so broad a term that it means different things to different people.
Are there any groups that actually worship Satan? Most groups like the “Church of Satan” don’t believe in God or Satan, they are just atheists who have developed a set of rituals and beliefs. However, are there any groups that basically take the perspective “yea we believe in God and Satan, and choose the side of darkness.”?
The Crowley guy you’re thinking of is Aleister Crowley, a British “magickian” and, by his own proud admission, “The Wickedest Man Alive” (at least, before 1948, when he died). Like many so-called practitioners of the occult, however, I think he was just in it for the sex and drugs. Sort of like a lot of heavy metal musicians nowadays 
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Do some poking around on ReligiousTolerance–there’s a couple of essays that discuss this issue.