Hospitals, Prisons and the Military

In a hospital, a prison, or a military unit, other people control your surroundings and your schedule. Your right to practice your religion continues, within limits set by safety, security, and the mission of the institution.

Hospitals, Hospice, and Long-Term Care

Healthcare facilities generally recognize that patients have a right to spiritual care that respects their own beliefs, and most have written policies saying so. Public hospitals are also bound by the Constitution.

What You Can Do

• State your religion at admission. Ask that it be recorded as you describe it, for example Pagan, Wiccan, Druid, or Heathen. You may decline to state a religion if you prefer.
• Ask for the chaplain. Professional chaplains are trained to serve patients of every faith and can arrange a visit from your own clergy or a member of your community.
• Ask about religious items. A pendant, a small image, a stone, or a battery-operated candle can usually be kept at the bedside. Open flame and incense are not permitted where oxygen is in use.
• Ask for quiet time. A short period without interruption for prayer or ritual can often be arranged with the nursing staff.
• Put your wishes in writing. An advance directive, and the appointment of a healthcare agent who knows your beliefs, are the surest way to have your religious wishes honored if you cannot speak for yourself, including your wishes for the time of death and for the care of your body.

If you believe that you or a family member were refused care, pressured to accept another religion, or denied a visit from clergy because of religion, ask to speak with the patient advocate, and write down what happened.

Care teams will find detailed guidance in A Guide for Healthcare Staff and Chaplains.

Prisons and Jails

People in custody keep the right to practice their religion. Under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, an institution that receives federal funds may not place a substantial burden on a confined person's religious exercise unless the burden serves a compelling interest, such as security, and is the least restrictive way of serving it. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act applies a similar test to federal facilities.

What This Usually Means in Practice

• A person may register a religious preference, and may change it under the facility's procedure.
• Pagan religions must be treated on the same terms as other religions with respect to worship time, space, and access to volunteers.
• Reasonable requests for religious items, such as a religious medallion, a book, or cards used in devotion, must be considered individually and not refused simply because the religion is unfamiliar.
• Group worship may be permitted where there are enough participants and an approved volunteer or staff sponsor, subject to security.
• Items that pose a real security risk, such as blades and open flame, may be restricted. Substitutes are normally accepted by Pagan practitioners.

If a Request Is Denied

1. Make the request in writing to the chaplain or the designated religious services staff, and keep a copy.
2. If it is denied, ask for the reason in writing.
3. Use the facility's grievance procedure completely and on time, including every level of appeal. Courts generally will not hear a claim until this has been done.
4. A family member or the person in custody may write to the Rights Desk. We can send educational material to the chaplain's office and explain how similar requests have been handled elsewhere.

Pagan EdNet does not correspond about criminal cases, sentences, or conditions unrelated to religious practice.

Military Service

Pagans serve in every branch of the armed forces. Military policy provides for the accommodation of religious practice unless it would harm readiness, unit cohesion, good order, discipline, health, or safety.

• Religious preference. Service members may record their religious preference in their personnel record and on identification tags. Pagan, Wiccan, Druid, and Heathen preferences, among others, are available.
• Chaplains. Military chaplains are responsible for supporting the free exercise of religion by all members of the unit, whatever the chaplain's own faith. A chaplain can help with a request for accommodation.
• Lay leaders. Where no chaplain of a faith is available, a qualified service member may be appointed to lead services for that faith group with the approval of the command.
• Accommodation requests. Requests concerning worship, holy days, dress, or grooming are made through the chain of command in writing, and a written decision should be given.

A service member who believes a request was wrongly denied may ask the chaplain for assistance, appeal through the chain of command, or consult the inspector general or a military legal assistance office.

Veterans

The government furnishes a headstone or marker for the grave of an eligible veteran, inscribed on request with an emblem of belief. The pentacle has been an approved emblem since 2007. The Hammer of Thor was added in 2013 and the Awen in 2017. Families may also request that a new emblem be considered.

Veterans receiving care in veterans' medical facilities may ask for chaplain services that respect their religion, on the same terms described above for other hospitals.

The Chaplaincy and Institutional Access Project

Since 2014 this project of Pagan EdNet has offered free briefings and written guidance to institutions that care for or confine Pagans. To date we have briefed staff at more than 140 hospitals, hospices, long-term care homes, and correctional facilities.

The project offers:

• a one-hour staff briefing, in person or online, given by a trained speaker with experience in the setting;
• review of a religious practice policy or an approved-items list, on request;
• help in finding a suitable Pagan volunteer or clergy visitor;
• answers to individual questions from chaplains, usually within two business days.

Chaplains and administrators may write to interfaith@paganednet.org. Individuals with a problem should contact the Rights Desk.

Reviewed by the Legal Advisory Panel in September 2026.