By Cat Gina Cole
How did Pagans ever become a church? I thought Pagans were anti-church! Similar questions flood social media these days. The word church has become something of a swearword in our time. It’s often associated with control, abuse of power, corruption, and dictating how people should live and what they should believe—essentially an attitude of “our way or the highway.” There’s now widespread resistance to that idea, not just among Pagans but in society at large—and they are not wrong. Christian churches do have that history. However, this made me wonder about the origins of the word church and its original meaning.
The Earliest Historical Use of the Word “Church”
The earliest known use of the word comes from the Greek ekklesia. In ancient Athens, ekklesia was used in a political context, describing a gathering for political or state matters. This is significant because the meaning was still in use when New Testament writers adopted ekklesia to describe the Church of Jesus Christ.
Those writers clearly understood ekklesia as a political and judicial term, not merely a religious one. Anyone familiar with Greek in the first century—including Paul—would have understood its implications. It was deliberate that New Testament writers chose it to describe the Church and its role. Yet questions remain: was the word church meant to describe a place, or a gathering of people?
The Meaning Evolves
Originally, the word church referred to the physical building where Christians met to worship. The children’s rhyme captures this perfectly:
“This is the church, this is the steeple,
Open it up and see all the people.”
Over time, we began using the term to refer both to a place and to the congregation itself. Even biker groups use “church” to describe a meeting where members gather to conduct business. Biblical metaphors for the church—the family, the body, the temple, the flock, and the nation—all emphasize that church refers to God’s people, not a building.
By the fourth century, the church was also recognized as a place of sanctuary, where people could seek refuge. By the thirteenth century, a person could hide in a church for 40 days—and sometimes indefinitely. These sanctuary laws remained largely intact until the twentieth century, when the state began claiming authority to enter churches.
The Church as Sanctuary
Some American colonies ignored prohibitions on church asylum and supported fugitives. The Underground Railroad is one famous example where churches played a crucial role. Scholars now see the Underground Railroad as a forerunner to the labor, civil rights, anti-war, sanctuary, and women’s movements.
In the 1960s, the concept of church sanctuary re-emerged as protection for Americans resisting the Vietnam draft. William Sloane Coffin spoke of creating sanctuaries for conscientious objectors. Several churches publicly announced that they would offer shelter to draft resisters—an early precursor to the idea of sanctuary cities.
Yet in every New Testament appearance, “church” (ekklesia) designates people, not a building. Edmund Clowney writes:
“According to the Bible, the church is the people of God—the assembly, the family, the body, the temple, the flock, the congregation, and the nation—all serve to connect our understanding of ‘the church’ to people.”
Paganism and Legal Recognition
In 1962, during the civil rights movement, Oberon Zell-Ravenheart and R. Lance Christie formed the Church of All Worlds (CAW), inspired by the fictional church in Robert Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange Land. Its foundation ritual, “sharing water,” symbolized community and equality. Zell-Ravenheart coined the term Neo-Pagan to create an umbrella for all Pagan traditions.
The Church of All Worlds was formed to give legal status and protection to the broader Pagan community. Legal recognition was vital, as questions arose: Is Paganism a religion? To some, yes; to others, no. But legally defining it as a religion granted essential protections.
In the case of Dettmer v. Landon (1980s), the District Court of Virginia recognized witchcraft as a valid religion. A federal court upheld the ruling, affirming that people who practice witchcraft as a religion are entitled to the same constitutional protections as followers of other faiths—and therefore have the right to gather as a church.
Witchcraft had to be legally classified as a religion to secure the right to practice freely and without persecution. Whether it is a religion in the spiritual sense remains up to each practitioner.
Rights and Recognition
It may seem unthinkable today that someone in America would be denied the right to practice their chosen faith. Yet it took courageous, determined, and educated individuals in the 1960s to make that possible.
The Pagan movement paralleled the civil rights movement. The latter gave Pagan leaders a form of cover; with the right to gather as a church, they could access the courts and gain a legal voice. Because lawmakers were preoccupied with the violence and urgency of the civil rights struggle, Pagans—seen as “peace-loving hippies”—were largely ignored. That invisibility was, in its way, a strategic advantage.
The Pagan and Gay Rights movements, among others, owe much to the Civil Rights movement. Those activists fought for us all and paved the way for freedoms we now take for granted.
Carrying the Torch Forward
Yet once again, we find ourselves fighting to protect those rights. And once again, Oberon Zell has taken up the mantle, much as he did sixty years ago. A single letter sparked a wave of renewed organization—so much that Starhawk amplified it, leading to the creation of the Pagan Solidarity weekly organizing group. Tamara Forslun of Australia has created a similar group on Discord, and there are surely more worldwide.
The blessing is that the elders from the 1960s left us a roadmap. By studying their grassroots campaigns—organized protests, flyer distributions, letters to officials, and the use of churches for sanctuary and legitimacy—we can apply those same tools today. They fought, and continue to fight, for our right to practice freely. For that, they deserve our gratitude.
Rethinking “Church”
When I entered public Paganism in 2010, I shared the distaste many Pagans had for the word church. Since then, I’ve learned how useful and even empowering it can be.
Today, it only takes four people to form a federally recognized 501(c)(3) religious organization. You need a bank account and a tax number. While there’s paperwork and regulations, it’s quite manageable.
To form a state-recognized religion, it also takes just four people, a bank account, and a tax number—with even less paperwork than a federal nonprofit. Requirements vary by state, but the process is straightforward. And for a bit of humor and encouragement—the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is legally recognized! If they can do it, any sincere spiritual group can organize and be heard.
In Closing
When you see Pagans or other groups forming churches or charities, resist the urge to cringe at the word church as I once did. Instead, thank them for their hard work in protecting everyone’s right to believe and practice safely and legally.
Many blessings to all.