About a month back, I reported on a small New Age store in Clarksville, Tennessee that became to a Christian book store after the owner converted to Christianity. The news article the profiled the change hinted that all sorts of maladies and misfortunes that were visited upon the owner were due to her tolerance of non-Christian materials and views.

“Clark got sadder and sicker…Since opening the store, Clark went completely deaf, with little explanation…Jeff Stark, associate pastor of Clarksville First Church of the Nazarene, says the God he worships is a loving, protective God. While he doesn’t believe God caused Clark’s illness, he does believe God communicates through people’s lives. “There’s a way God speaks through our circumstances and makes us think, ‘Where was I going?’” he says…Clark hoped her shop would be a place of hope and healing for herself and others who were grieving. “It didn’t turn out that way,” Clark says. “I had some people on staff that were completely Wiccan. Then there was what the customers wanted. My whole vision of what I wanted to do went out the window.” Despite being profitable, the store was dragging Clark deeper and deeper into a pit of blackness.”

At the end of my original post I wondered what local customers of the store thought of the change, and if they were upset that Clark isn’t honoring the memory of the original owner who sold the store due to a terminal illness. Some former patrons did post their thoughts, including a former employee who assisted in the changeover. Now Andie Cunningham, the daughter of the original owner, has sent me a letter about the change that she has asked to be publicly posted.

“My Mother would tell me to send love and light in Susie’s direction, and to be happy for her that she’s happy. Think: forgiveness, to each his own, “everything happens for a reason”, etc. But I can’t help feeling kind of upset that something that my Mother put her heart, soul, and ultimately – her life, into….has now been erased. The truth and trust of that community has been disgraced and broken. And I feel a little sorry for Susie, because she experienced such a profound loss and feels lost (because I understand that part). But she completely missed the whole point of what that store was – a place for everyone to be welcome; where you could find a painting of Jesus on the wall across from a giant angel statue, next to a pile of political bumper stickers, down the aisle from the jewelry boxes and incense, and around the corner from a Native American book on animal totems…..all leading back to the room where anyone could hold a meeting if they wanted to, and stay later for belly dancing and reiki…all being watched over by a much, much higher power that took one of its angels home before anyone was ready.”

You can read the entire letter, here.

I think it is easy for those of us who live in the more tolerant and Pagan-friendly areas of our country to underestimate how important these tiny New Age book-shops are to Pagans and occultists living in Christian-dominated cities and towns. They often become a “safe” place to meet, find community, and discover new resources. I certainly benefited from New Age stores in my early Pagan days. If it wasn’t for that small “Goddess Religion” shelf tucked away amongst the angels and channeled ancient masters, I may never have encountered Margot Adler, Starhawk, and other authors who helped cement my conviction that I was on the right path. So my blessings to women like the late Annette Cunningham who bravely provided resources to those looking for something outside the accepted mainstream of religious life.

Tags: Christianity, New Age, Wicca