Columbia Pagans discuss Samhain

[icymist]

Various groups hope to change conceptions of Pagans through education.

By Gregory Zajac
Published Oct. 27, 2009

With Halloween less than a week away, several Pagan organizations sponsored an event Sunday afternoon designed to better educate people about Paganism and how Pagans observe it.

"In the general public when I say the word, witch, they think of the media stereotype and the literature stereotype," said Rose Wise, high priestess of the Ozark Avalon Church of Nature. "The first one is the green faced old woman with warts, and who goes around doing evil, and is very scary. So we're definitely not that kind of a witch."

Mid-Missouri Pagan Pride coordinator Victoria Chance said a Pagan is generally referred to as a person who practices an earth-centered religion or a person who practices a religion that does not fall under Judaism, Christianity or Islam. But Chance said this definition doesn't necessarily include religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism.

Mid-Missouri Pagan Pride, a sponsor of the event, and other groups hope through education to promote understanding of their beliefs and to dispel popular stereotypes of Pagans.
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[Ilsa]

1. Thank you for the article and link! nt