SALEM, Mass. — The Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS) celebrated its 40th anniversary this weekend with a Convocation at the historic First Church in Salem, gathering members from across the United States for three days of worship, workshops, music, fellowship, and reflection on four decades of Earth-centered ministry within Unitarian Universalism.
Formed in 1985 and officially chartered by the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) in 1987, CUUPS serves as a spiritual home for Pagan-identified Unitarian Universalists while promoting education about Paganism, interfaith dialogue, and Earth-centered religious practice. Its advocacy played a significant role in the UUA’s adoption of the denomination’s “Sixth Source,” recognizing “spiritual teachings of Earth-centered traditions.”
The First Church of Salem – UU [Photo Credit: S. Ciotti]
Today, CUUPS supports more than 100 local chapters throughout the United States, providing worship, seasonal celebrations, educational programming, and community for Pagans within UU congregations while serving as a bridge between Unitarian Universalism and the broader Pagan movement.
The anniversary Convocation was held at First Church in Salem, founded by Puritans in August 1629. One of North America’s oldest Protestant congregations, the church gradually evolved toward liberal Christianity, embracing Unitarianism in the early nineteenth century before becoming part of today’s Unitarian Universalist tradition. The gathering also coincided with Salem’s 400th anniversary as a city and the congregation’s 397th year.
Rev. Jerrie Kishpaugh Hildebrand welcomed chapter members who traveled from across the country, including participants from Seattle, San Antonio, and South Florida. Joining the celebration were Selena Fox, founder and senior minister of Circle Sanctuary, and Manny Tejeda y Moreno¹, National First Officer of the Covenant of the Goddess, who offered messages recognizing CUUPS’s contributions to the modern Pagan movement, interfaith cooperation, and religious liberty.
CUUPScakes! [Photo Credit: S. Ciotti]
Opening the Convocation on Friday evening, Kishpaugh Hildebrand expressed gratitude for the volunteers and community members whose dedication made the anniversary gathering possible while reflecting on the organization’s remarkable journey over four decades.
Saturday featured a full day of workshops, storytelling sessions, music, and discussion led by Pagan and Earth-centered teachers from across North America. Fox and Tejeda y Moreno both spoke about CUUPS’s longstanding role in advancing interfaith dialogue, defending religious liberty, and promoting the separation of church and state.
Invoking the Roman goddess Libertas, Fox led attendees in a chant celebrating religious freedom before recalling CUUPS’s role in the successful Pentacle Quest, the decade-long effort that secured approval for the pentacle as an official religious emblem on veterans’ government-issued headstones. Kishpaugh Hildebrand reflected on designing artwork used during that campaign, while Tejeda y Moreno emphasized the unique role local CUUPS chapters continue to play by providing welcoming, church-affiliated spaces where Pagans can worship openly, build community, and introduce newcomers to Earth-centered spirituality.
Saturday concluded with a community feast, a basket and goods auction, and a traditional Bardic Circle featuring music, poetry, storytelling, and fellowship.
Opening Ritual on Friday as Participants began arriving at the CUUPS Convocation celebrating their 40th Anniversary. [MJTM]
Sunday morning began with a roundtable discussion between the CUUPS Board and Convocation participants before members joined the First Church congregation for a special worship service celebrating both the organization’s 40th anniversary and the challenges ahead, but most importantly the longstanding relationship between Unitarian Universalism and Earth-centered spirituality. The weekend concluded with a closing community ritual in the church garden before attendees departed Salem or continued exploring the historic city.
Rev. Jerrie Kishpaugh Hildebrand’s homily, “From Witch Trials to Celebrating Our Place at the Table,” reflected on both the symbolism of gathering in Salem and the remarkable evolution of Pagan participation within Unitarian Universalism over the past four decades. Calling First Church “a living testament of resilience,” she thanked the congregation for hosting the anniversary Convocation in a place whose history spans the Salem witch trials, the rise of Unitarianism, and today’s embrace of religious diversity.
Addressing attendees who had traveled from across the country, Hildebrand observed that “CUUPS is alive across this land, carried by loving, vital, inspired UUs who walk the Pagan, Earth-centered, and Nature-centered paths. You are the pulse of this movement.” Reflecting on the weekend’s workshops and conversations, she described the gathering as “a kaleidoscope of sacred learning,” where participants explored history, healing, justice, and community while honoring those “wrongfully named witches” in Salem’s past.
Looking back over CUUPS’s four decades, Hildebrand credited the organization’s founders with creating space for Earth-centered spirituality within the Unitarian Universalist Association.
“Our founders did not wait for permission. They pulled up a chair, said hello, and began building.”
She noted that those efforts helped secure recognition of the Sixth Source, inspired Pagan hymns and readings within UU worship, expanded workshops and rituals at General Assembly, and contributed to more than 120 chapters throughout North America.
“In just four decades, we moved from being a curiosity to being embraced. And we learned to build inclusion not as a dream, but as a practice.”
The sermon also challenged participants to consider the responsibilities that accompany that progress. Drawing parallels between the congregation’s Puritan origins and contemporary concerns over religious freedom, Hildebrand asked, “Who will we choose to be in the face of oppression?” and challenged UU Pagans to consider how they might “bridge misunderstanding and still live our values rooted in love.” She encouraged attendees to nurture the relationships strengthened during the weekend, concluding that “our kinship — our shared reverence for earth, spirit, and one another — may be the very thing that carries us through the chaos of our times.”
Throughout the weekend, conversations frequently returned to themes of religious liberty, community resilience, and the importance of cultivating the next generation of Pagan leadership. That those discussions took place within one of New England’s oldest churches—only steps away from the history that has come to symbolize religious intolerance in America — gave the anniversary gathering a resonance that extended well beyond celebrating an organizational milestone.
Forty years after its founding, the Convocation demonstrated not only how far CUUPS has come in establishing Earth-centered spirituality within Unitarian Universalism, but also its continuing role as one of the modern Pagan movement’s longest-standing institutions for worship, education, interfaith engagement, and community building. As participants departed Salem following a weekend of workshops, ritual, music, and shared reflection, many left with renewed friendships, strengthened partnerships, and a shared commitment to ensuring that the next forty years continue the work begun by the organization’s founders.
1. Disclosure: Tejeda y Moreno is the editor-in-chief of The Wild Hunt. His comments on behalf of CoG do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of TWH and are reviewed by an independent editor.↩
The Wild Hunt is not responsible for links to external content.
To join a conversation on this post:
Visit our The Wild Hunt subreddit! Point your favorite browser to https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Wild_Hunt_News/, then click “JOIN”. Make sure to click the bell, too, to be notified of new articles posted to our subreddit.