Our Mission
Pagan EdNet advances public understanding of contemporary Pagan, Wiccan, and Earth-centered religions, defends the equal civil rights of the people who practice them, and builds honest relationships between Pagan communities and neighbors of other faiths and of none.
Our Vision
We work toward a society in which a person's Pagan religion is treated as an ordinary fact about that person: worthy of the same respect, the same legal protection, and the same place in public life as any other religion. In that society a Pagan child can wear a religious symbol to school without comment, a Pagan employee can ask for a holy day off without fear, a Pagan patient can ask for a chaplain who understands, and a Pagan neighbor is simply a neighbor.
Statement of Purpose
The following statement was adopted by the first board of directors in 2002 and has been reaffirmed at every annual meeting since.
We hold that accurate information is the best answer to fear, that equal treatment under the law belongs to everyone, and that neighbors who talk with one another are hard to turn against one another. We therefore commit ourselves to educate without preaching, to advocate without hostility, and to enter dialogue without pretense.
Pagan EdNet statement of purpose, 2002
Our Values
Accuracy
We publish only what we can support. We distinguish between what is true of most Pagans, what is true of some, and what is true of a particular tradition. We correct our errors openly and we date our materials so that readers know how current they are.
Respect for Diversity Among Pagans
Contemporary Paganism is not one religion. It is a family of religions with different deities, different rites, and different ideas about almost everything. We describe that variety fairly and we do not rank traditions as more or less authentic. People who practice alone are as much a part of our community as members of established groups.
Equal Rights, Not Special Rights
We ask for nothing that is not already promised to every religion. Where the law protects religious exercise, it protects Pagan religious exercise. Where government must remain neutral among religions, it must remain neutral toward ours. We defend the same freedoms for people of other faiths and for people of no faith.
Calm, Lawful Advocacy
We prefer conversation to confrontation and documentation to accusation. We assume good faith until we have reason not to. When a matter does require a formal complaint or a lawyer, we help people find one, and we say plainly that we are not a law firm.
Honest Dialogue
We do not hide our differences from other religions in order to be liked, and we do not exaggerate them in order to be noticed. We do not proselytize, and we ask the same restraint of our dialogue partners.
Care for the Earth
For most Pagans the natural world is sacred. We try to conduct our own work in a way that honors that conviction, and we gladly join neighbors of other faiths in caring for the land, water, and living communities we share.
Privacy and Safety
Many Pagans keep their religion private, and they have the right to. We never disclose a person's religious identity without permission, we protect the confidentiality of everyone who contacts the Rights Desk, and we will not put a person at risk for the sake of a story or a cause.
Service Without Charge
Our fact sheets, guides, presentations, and individual assistance are free. No one is asked to join anything or to pay anything in order to be helped.
What We Do Not Do
- We do not teach religious practice, perform rituals, or ordain clergy.
- We do not endorse candidates for public office or political parties.
- We do not provide legal advice or represent anyone in court.
- We do not claim to speak for all Pagans or for any tradition as a whole.
- We do not speak for Indigenous religions or African diasporic religions, which are distinct from contemporary Paganism and have their own voices.
For the standards that apply to our volunteers, staff, and board, see Governance and Accountability.