PEORIA MAGAZINE October 2023

S P O T L I G H T

THE PAGAN PATH Local pagans take all comers while retiring myths about their beliefs and looking to create a sense of community

BY LAURIE PILLMAN PHOTO BY RON JOHNSON

M erriam-Webster’s Dictio nary defines “paganism” as the spiritual beliefs and practices of ancient, poly theistic religions. The term “pagan” was first used around the fall of the Roman Empire to describe those who held beliefs outside of the three major religions of Christianity, Judaism, or Islam. Today, a pagan is someone who follows a contemporary religion based on ancient practices.

Pagans don’t have a standard liturgy or dogma. They may worship several different gods, goddesses, or non-gen dered deities, but most recognize na ture as divine and follow some concept of “harm none.” The Pagan Federation says that modern pagans may have a reverence for supernatural elements or focus on home-based practices more than public worship. Tony Huerta from the Great Grove chapter of the Covenant Unitarian Uni

versalist Pagans (CUUPS) said that the Peoria area certainly has its share of pagans. “There’s a lot more of us around here than you would think,” he said. “There’s nurses and there’s school bus drivers, and there’s factory workers and there’s high-ranking members of the military that are pagan. So anytime you go into any kind of pagan gathering, it could be like walking into anywhere as far as who you should expect to meet.”

90 OCTOBER 2023 PEORIA MAGAZINE