Pagan Miracles Occur at the 1993 Parliament of the World's Religions! A Report from the Archdruid Thanks to the outstanding generosity of one of our members (who insists on remaining anonymous), I was able to represent Neopagan Druidism at the 1993 Parliament of the World's Religion, held in Chicago from August 28th through September 4th. This event celebrated the 100th anniversary of the first such Parliament. In 1883, many Eastern religions made their first major appearance to the American public. This year's gathering may prove to have been as important for the Earth Religions as 1883 was for Vedanta, Buddhism, Jainism, Zen and Bahai. Some 7,000 people attended over the course of eight days: mystics and others from the liberal wings of Judaism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and Islam, official Representatives of those same faiths (mostly arch-conservatives), leaders from various liberal mainstream religions (mostly Unitarian Universalists and mainline Protestants), representatives of various Eastern religions (such as Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Shintoists, etc.), delegates from more obscure minority belief systems (such as Theosophists, Rosicrucians, Urantians, etc.), Native American religious leaders (some 60 or so!), and us -- the Neopagans. Oh, yes, there were also a few hundred reporters from both secular and religious media, most of whom were far more interested in the "unusual" religions than in the mainstream ones. While at the Parliament, I witnessed events of a (more-or-less) miraculous nature: Representatives of most of the world's different religions showed up and were civil to each other. Well, most of the time. The Eastern Orthodox Catholics dropped out of the Parliament early, ostensibly because of the presence of "unreal" religions such as ourselves, but actually following an old pattern of walking out of ecumenical events. A few delegates from India got into a fight during a speech about political/religious persecutions there. Some of the Jewish groups left because an Islamic preacher known for anti-Semitic comments appeared (the only Big Name who brought armed bodyguards). Everybody else seemed to get along remarkably well, and it was quite an experience to see all these people in their ceremonial clothing talking peacefully with one another. Even more astonishing, leaders of several different Neopagan organizations actively cooperated to put our best collective face forward! Representatives of the Covenant of the Goddess (COG), the Fellowship of Isis (FOI), the EarthSpirit Community (ESC), Circle Sanctuary, the Church of All Worlds (CAW), Panthea/CUUPs, and our own ADF (three other members showed up -- as parts of other groups) worked together to educate other religious leaders and the assembled press. Special honors should go to Don Frew and Phyllis Curot of COG, Lady Olivia Robert of FOI, Andras & Deirdre Corban Arthan of ESC, and the many others who worked with them. By the time we counted all the Neopagans at the Parliament, there were more than 150 of us, from dozens of different traditions! We directed people to each other's events, we handed out each other's literature, we referred reporters to each other's experts. We all showed enormous solidarity and pluralistic toleration. Selena Fox and I even kissed and made up -- in front of witnesses! COG, FOI, and the Lyceum of Venus of Healing (LVH -- a school and healing center within FOI) had hospitality suites throughout the event, hosting press conferences, parties and "off-program" workshops by Neopagan teachers (FOI, for example, graciously loaned me the use of their suite to present "Druidism 101"). ESC and COG had very professional looking press kits and publicity packets to explain Neopaganism simply and clearly. A generic Wiccan ritual was performed in a nearby park (after sicing the ACLU on the Chicago Parks Dept.), which was attended by 200 delegates and filmed by documentary makers and TV stations. ESC's Pagan chorale, Mothertongue, gave a magnificent concert, complete with dancers and stage magic by Jeff McBride. The FOI performed a complex ritual drama based on Egyptian mythology. No honest person who attended any of these events could ever again believe the lies that Christian fundamentalists tell about us. The week included literally hundreds of different presentations from scores of different faiths. Usually there were eight to twelve events happening simultaneously. Amid the pleasant chaos, Pagan after Pagan presented workshops and lectures about Goddess Worship, Neopaganism, Wicca, Earth Religions old and new, the Gaia Hypothesis, and more. Perhaps just as important were the many presentations made by members of the mainstream religions about goddesses, Sophia, Shekinah, and other manifestations of the Divine Feminine Spirit(s). Most of these Goddess-oriented presentations drew large crowds. It got to the point where speaker after speaker began to say, "or Her" every time the Supreme Being was referred to as "Him." A few even added, "or It or They!" The omnipresence of Divine Females at the Parliament inspired me to make a three-foot wide paper banner saying, "The Goddess: You will never be able to ignore Her again." By accidentally joining the end of a procession of peace- and ecology-oriented banners ("The Ribbon Project"), I was able to carry this Goddess banner throughout the huge crowd gathering for a closing speech by the Dalai Lama. It was heartwarming to see nearly a third of the delegates applauding loudly whenever they saw the banner. It was even better to see the large number of women from Catholic, Islamic, Sikh, and other patriarchal faiths who stood up to cheer, even though their male leaders were frowning fiercely. So the Parliament was a grand experience for Neopaganism in general. We networked with other polytheistic groups present, including Native Americans, Hindus, and Shintoists. We were able to explain ourselves to a large number of sympathetic and interested reporters, as well as liberals from the religious mainstream and other minority belief systems. We even managed to get three Neopagan representatives (Lady Olivia of FOI, Lady Cara-Marguerite of LVH, and Deborah Ann Light of COG, FOI, ESC, ADF, and several other groups) into the elite(ist) subset of 200 "spiritual leaders" who met during the last three days of the Parliament to approve an official statement on global ethics. As for ADF's benefits from my attendence, they were not as high as they might have been, had we had financing to attend further in advance. FOI, COG, Circle and ESC were able to join as "Co-Sponsors" of the Parliament early, giving them slots in the programming and time to get press kits and such together. Of course, co-sponsorship, press kits, and renting hospitality suites probably cost each of these sibling organizations a few thousand dollars each (not to mention airfare, food, and lodging expenses). Their investments paid off in increased access to both delegates and the media. I brought along a few hundred ADF brochures, which I passed out along with cards listing our new 800 number (1-800-DRUIDRY). These have resulted in at least one "follow-up" interview about Neopagan Druidism, which should appear soon in the Atlanta Journal & Constitution. If we had had a professional looking press kit, and an information booth or hospitality suite in which to hand it out, we might have been able to generate more press interest. If we had been able to send several of our Senior Druids, we would have been able to share our liturgical and artistic excellence with the world. As things were, operating on our usual shoestring budget, I was able to do some useful networking with leaders from other religions -- including a Chinese Taoist master who is 1/4 Irish and very interested in ADF! I was also able to meet many delightful Chicago-area Pagans, do a couple of lectures at local metaphysical shops (Light of the Moon and The Occult Shop), and it looks as if we will be having several new members and a new Grove there soon! On a personal level, I met and/or was inspired by wonderful people from many other Pagan and non-Pagan faiths. I found the common thread was one of simple human decency being valued more than doctrine. Perhaps the world's problems aren't all caused by monotheism per se, as I have tended to believe, but by what Sam Webster calls "mono- thesis-ism", dualism, fundamentalism and fanaticism. We have more allies in the world's other religions than we may have believed. I am also beginning to get a clearer idea of Neopaganism's role in the history of America and the world. I'll discuss this at length in the Samhain issue of DP (#11). In the meantime, my deepest thanks go to the anonymous ADF member who made this adventure possible. May the Earth Mother cast many blessings upon your generous head! ********************************************* A PS for those of you who were concerned about expenses: Our anonymous donor provided $350 for registration and $250 for airfare. I spent another $150 of my own money for meals and local transportation. I wrote two Archdruidical checks, for $50 and $20, to the people from FOI and LVH to help with their room expenses (since I used their rooms quite a bit). I distributed a few hundred ADF booklets (perhaps $20 worth of printing?). I made several long distance calls to my home, using the phone card connected to the ADF line (which I have taken to using for all official ADF business, instead of our personal line, which should simplify bookkeeping for Beket). All in all, I'd guess that participation in this event cost ADF about $100, our donar $600, and me $150 cash plus another $300+ in lost wages.