Pagan Pride 2020 - Fort Collins Pagan Pride

As the Modern Pagan Community is still in a youthful state it is us who are building it for generations to come. As such this is a time when we can come together and show not only each other but the world what we can do when we come together with respect and support.

We asked our presenters, vendors, and community leaders and here is what they had to share about the Pagan Community

Educating the larger community through Pagan Pride Day has an important side effect: if more people have a basic understanding of faiths different than their own, less people will be ostracized for following a spiritual path that does not mirror that of their family. Too often when a person ventures away from a Judeo-Christain faith, they are shamed and shut out of their family unit. This exclusion can happen for many reasons but the root is usually based on inexperience, ignorance and misconceptions. Pagan Pride seeks to shine light on acceptance of another’s faith through conversation and exposure.

Walking the grounds at a Pagan Pride Day event, you can interact with Witches, Heathens, Druids, Wiccans, Shamanic practitioners, Celtic Reconstructionists and many other people who practice a Pagan faith. You could introduce yourself to drummers, healers, priestesses and storytellers who practice a Pagan faith. You could sit on a bench and watch how average most of the folks practicing a Pagan faith are in their interactions. Between the vendors with the eclectic occult wares and the informational booths honoring the circles, kindreds and groves in our area, you have the opportunity to witness a spectrum of people who practice a Pagan faith.

Fearing what we do not know may be a natural human reaction but so is curiosity and through events like Pagan Pride Day we can use that curiosity to foster acceptance, in our community and in our homes.

~Jean Loomis a Founder of FoCo Pagan Pride

As a group, we are the outliers to mainstream religions. Yet, I mean this in the most positive way, as it is often the outliers who always have the clearest view. We understand as a group the importance of being interconnected, as we are much stronger that way. Community in all cultures has meant a deep understanding of what each brings to life—we honor the sanctity of all life, the sacredness of children, the need for respect for elders, and the deep need to come together in a circle to mark the passages of the tides of the Moon and Sun. While we are capable of doing these things alone, we also know there is much power in being together.

~Soltahr Tiv-Amanda MA, LPC Therapist/Author/Social Justice Trainer/Spiritual Intuitive/Minister

Collaboration is how Paganism and witchcraft can grow. Open meaningful dialogue.

~ Aindreas Dounyng

Paganism is our families foundation, where our roots first started, in which we grew upon and started our business Enchanted Genie LLC in hopes of traveling and meeting a variety of like minded individuals along the same path to encourage, teach, as well as provide affordable services & magical items to those in need. The pagan community is very important to us and how we all seek to bring more respect to Mother Earth herself and all she has to offer us, and with our pure, nonjudgmental, loving hearts, and open minds, we are able to unite as one and enlighten those individuals who may think otherwise.

~Sacred Jewel with Enchanted Genie LLC

Growing up in a conservative small Wyoming town being openly pagan was not very popular. When I moved to Colorado to pursue my education I was given a chance to be super open about my faith and share that with others in the community for the first time. It has helped me to grow and share my path with others. Over last 15 years in this community I have been able to be part of welcoming others to do the same. It’s a wonderful gift and honor to be part of that.

~Stepheny Chapple Hygieia Wellness

Many Pagans say “community” when they mean a “network.” A network is made of people connected by a common interest. It might be Wicca. It might be mountain biking. Or whatever. Everyone is autonomous. You can be all you can be, or you can drop out without any serious consequences, with just a “My interests have changed! Bye-bye!”

A community, on the other hand, is a trickier thing. You cannot just drop in and out of a true, organic community. You are born into it, or you move into it long-term. You are embedded in it, with people older than you—and younger, people in political agreement with you—and opposed, people more competent than you—and less so, people poorer than you—and richer. In a Pagan community, we are all some kind of Pagan, but does that magnify our other, inevitable differences, or make it easier to live with them?

~Chas Clifton

The importance of Pagan Community is that it creates the bonds of respect that are the future and what we strengthen today lays the foundation for tomorrow. The crises we are in as a world is an opportunity for Pagans to rise and for those who don’t follow the societal mold to find new freedom and change society.

~Jeannette Kasemir Owner Panthers’ Gate Metaphysical School & Shop

The Pagan community is important because no one is an island. We all need each other and a sense of belonging. It’s important to be able to find people who practice at least somewhat similar religions to what you practice who are likely to accept you for who and what you are.

~Justice H leader with Frigga’s Wisdom

What Does Paganism mean to us?

Each person finds their Pagan Path and each path is as unique as the person. The beautiful thing about FoCo Pagan Pride is that it allows each individual to come together finding local support where acceptance, not tolerance, is the norm.

Paganism does not have one set definition and we wanted to share some of the unique perspectives from those in the Pagan Community. Paganism is often misunderstood. Paganism is an umbrella term over many different faiths that are nature based. We honor the natural elements around us, the cycle of seasons, the cycle of life, and the power within all of us to effect change in the world around us. Paganism is mistakenly portrayed as evil by some. It is our goal at Fort Collins Pagan Pride to help dispel this myth

Pagans come from all walks of life. We hold jobs, we raise and love our kids, we pay taxes, and in many ways we want the same things non-Pagans want. Good schools, safe neighborhoods, good neighbors, and a better world for all. So often the term Pagan is misunderstood and people think we are so different from everyone else, when in reality we are your co-workers, your doctors, your grocers, and so many others around you all the time. We are just like anyone else, we just want to be treated equally.

~Jordan A founder of FoCo Pagan Pride

As a priestess, my goal is to create safe, sacred space so that a person can find and follow their own spiritual journey. I know that we all do better when we stand on solid ground and in our community, we help make solid ground for each other.

~Jean Loomis

Paganism is what helped me find meaning to life when I felt lost and confused at a young age of 7. I live and breathe the importance of nature, animals, elemental spirits and dance in their loving energies. The paganism community allows so many of us to find and have the support we need, especially during the darkest of times, without fear or judgement of any kind, but the willingness & love of open armed like minded individuals along the same naturalistic path.

~Gavenia Divina with Gavenia’s Higher Realms Alchemy

What being Pagan means to me: Years ago, I was sitting by Boulder Creek near Naropa when I was working there. I always enjoyed meditating outdoors and on this particular occasion, something amazing happened to me that set within me a very clear understanding of why I had become Pagan.

I was sitting on a rock with my eyes closed, listening to the water going by. A warm breeze was lifting the edges of my skirt as I sat there. When I opened my eyes, it was as if I had been lifted into another world. The water had a shine to it, and everything green had a surrealistic quality to it. The birds were singing, and within myself I felt a kind of peace I’d not experienced before. I felt totally at home, and loved in a way I’d not thought was possible before, as if I fit in, as if I belonged, as if it didn’t matter the color of my skin, or what I looked like.

What I felt that day was what I’ve come to know as unconditional love or unconditional positive regard from nature. I could feel the pulse of life flowing around me, the warmth of the Sun, the gravitational holding from the Earth Herself. I knew in that moment that no matter what, or how I was treated by other humans, I was loved, and that was all that mattered. From there, I could easily love myself and others as well.

~Soltahr Tiv-Amanda MA, LPC Therapist/Author/Social Justice Trainer/Spiritual Intuitive/Minister

The term “Neopagan” came into use in the 1960’s by Oberzon Zell-Ravenhart, publisher of the pagan periodical The Green Egg. The Neopagans are practitioners whose practices are based on “new” (neo) ideas about old topics. Neopagans organizations in general look to the past for inspiration and translate those practices into our modern-day society. Examples of National/International Neopagan organizations include The Church of All Worlds, The Reformed Druids of North America, Ár nDraíocht Féin and its offshoots, such as the Henge of Keltria, and many others.

~ Mountain Ancestors

Pagan means natural freedom

~Jeannette Kasemir Owner Panthers’ Gate Metaphysical School & Shop

My pride in paganism is what makes The Cunning Folkery Shop (the online store of Mountain Hedgewitch LLC) what it is: A community of nature lovers whose aspirations drift back to times long before the modern world and to bring it into the present. The variety of hearts and minds is what brings this beautiful community together.

~Delaney Dillon Mountain Hedgewitch

When I write the word Pagan I always use a capital. It is the formal name of my faith and as such I feel it deserves the proper noun capital. Many people see Paganism differently and that is part of the beautify of this faith. The many energies of the Universe are experienced differently by different people. By sharing our Pagan paths and experiences with each other we can learn and grow both spiritually and as a person.

~Tara FoCo Pagan Pride Vendor Coordinator

While there is no single correct answer, I can safely say a few things about most Pagans. This is not meant to be an all inclusive list- I will miss something or somebody and I will add things/groups/ideas that you do not agree with. I welcome further conversation on anything you read here. Please do your own research and gather your own experience before judging or reciting anything you read here.

The Definition we use: A Pagan is a practitioner of an Earth-centered faith that has a celebratory cycle based on solar, lunar or agricultural occurrences.

That includes…
Witches. Druids. Folkish Asatru. Norse. Wiccans. Gardenarian. Dianic. Alexandrian. Stregharian. Discordians. Taoists. Shamans from any indigenous culture. Solitary practitioners of any of the before mentioned Faith Paths. Any one with the bumper sticker ‘Tree-hugging, Dirt-worshipping Hippie’. And that’s just off the top of my head…Never mind the many mixtures and Eclectics who, much like me, draw their own tradition from the many to form a Spiritual Way that makes sense to them.

~Northern Colorado Covenant of the River

Being Heathen means being able to connect to the divine in a way that feels like coming home; in a way that honors the history of what came before but in a way that has adapted to modern society and culture. It also means never being alone because there’s a deity for almost every situation, or your ancestors or landwights are there for you as well.

~Justice H leader with Frigga’s Wisdom

Being pagan for me is a mixture of things. It’s not only part of my spiritual journey but is part of the way I connect with myself and the universe. As an eclectic practitioner I embrace the heritage of my family while feeding my need to grown, and learn more about the world around me and how to better align myself with a path that is based within my own core values.

~Stepheny Chapple Hygieia Wellness

As for the me…

I joined the Pagan religion because I was a lost soul. I was suicidal and a downward spiral with my mind turned against me. Being admitted didn’t help much, they tried to teach me meditation but it didn’t stick. It wasn’t until I was desperate and looking for anything did I look into paganism. It wasn’t until giving myself to nature and letting it guide my daily life was I finally at peace and it saved my life.

~Shawna Don’t Have a Witch Fit

In mid-August, I lay back in a beach chair in my driveway, watching the Perseid meteor shower and the Milky Way in general. People often feel that looking at the stars makes them feel insignificant, and it is true what what you see is light arriving from hundreds or thousands of years ago, which is an awesome thought. But insignificant? No.

Being Pagan means realizing that you belong in this world. It is not just a sort of cosmic sports arena where you play your match and then are sent to the Good Place or the Bad Place after the whistle blows. You are part of the world, the seen and the unseen aspects of it, and it’s your task to connect with as much of it as you can.

~Chas Clifton