In Zionville, Indiana, a local chapter of the Satanic Temple are engaged in a highway clean-up campaign – and some local Christians are reportedly appalled.

The group had been given the green light to  remove trash through the Indiana Department of Transportation’s Adopt-A-Highway programme – and signs were put up along a section of the rural road acknowledging their care for the environment.

Trouble is, committed Christian Jill Konija, above, has a property close to the this stretch of road, very near one of the signs – and she ain’t happy.

We’re obviously believers in God. It’s like advertising a Satanic church in front of our home. We raised our sons here.

And Mary Rosswurm, who lives across the road, said she’s concerned that the sign will affect her property value.

There could maybe only be one other sign that’s worse that that to have up from your house. Which would be the KKK (Ku Klux Klan).

But Fritz Kolmerton, who lives next to the Konijas, has a more sanguine approach:

My reaction was if they wanna clean the highway, they’re more than welcome to. It doesn’t matter to me who’s doing it one way or the other.

Satanic Temple Indiana Chapter head insists that group members aren’t devil worshippers, merely atheists.

We’re not out here sacrificing babies.

The group’s Facebook page says its aim is to:

Inspire compassion and community within Indiana with Satanic insights. To challenge the arbitrary authority of Indiana’s monopoly on religion.

Blackmoor said the chapter has no physical temple or building. They meet for several events and are planning the Pagan Pride Field Trip and an event called Lunch with Lucifer.

(We are) very much wanting to pursue knowledge and free will, act with compassion and empathy towards all creatures within reason.

Blackmoor said they’d clean the highway even without the sign. They had  applied to adopt the highway earlier this year.

An INDOT spokersperson said the department respects freedom of speech and there are no restrictions on what types of groups can “adopt”. Andthe sign stays so long as temple members continue cleaning the highway, which they’ve done twice since joining the programme this year.