Pagan Community Notes: Divine Spiraling Rainbow Tribe, Meaning of Pagan, July 4th and more!

SAN FRANCISCO — The Divine Spiraling Rainbow Tribe, a division of Come As You Are Coven (CAYA), joined Planned Parenthood, Good Vibrations, and others to help sponsor the 2016 San Francisco Trans March, held June 24. The group set up a booth and offered “blessings for good health, love, home, abundance, and tarot readings on the spot.” They also provided interested marchers with “protection charms, handmade and blessed by members.” Divine Spiraling Rainbow Tribe Dedicant Root Holden said, “People were curious and a bit shy in coming up to the booth, but once they saw that we were just part of the community, all of us are queer, non-binary, and/or trans, they were really interested in what we had to offer. This may the first time many of these folks have been in contact with priest/ess/exes from a tradition that fully embraces and celebrates them.”

Happy July 4th

“Neither Pagan nor Mahamedan nor Jew ought to be excluded from the civil rights of the Commonwealth because of his religion.” – Thomas Jefferson, quoting John Locke

“…the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion…” – Article 11, Treaty of Tripoli, 1796. (signed by John Adams)

In 2010, Jason Pitzl wrote:

Hail to the pen and muse of Thomas Jefferson, who wrote the Declaration of Independence! Hail to those who’ve honored the true spirit of our founding documents, who defended us with arms, who challenged us with nonviolence, and reminded us of our true nature through art and rebellion. The United States of America that we know today was built and shaped by an incredible diversity of lives, experiences, religions and cultures; every person that has walked on its soil and stood beneath its skies. Over this past year, we as a nation have faced difficult challenges, witnessed profound changes, and looked into the face of unthinkable violence. We are not a country of perfect.