Interfaith Representative Training is a ten-week online course for Pagans who serve, or hope to serve, on interfaith councils, panels, and chaplaincy committees. It is taught twice a year and is free of charge.
- 2013 year the course was first offered
- 212 graduates through spring 2026
- 70+ local interfaith bodies with a graduate serving
- 24 places in each cohort
Why Training Matters
A seat at the interfaith table is easily lost. A representative who lectures, who cannot describe traditions other than their own, or who stops attending after three meetings makes it harder for the next Pagan to be invited. A representative who is prepared, courteous, and reliable opens doors for everyone who follows. This course exists to produce the second kind.
Who Should Apply
The course is open to adults of any Pagan or Earth-centered tradition, including solitary practitioners. Applicants should:
- have practiced their tradition for at least two years;
- be able to attend all ten weekly sessions and complete about two hours of reading each week;
- be willing to be known as a Pagan in at least one public setting;
- supply the name of one person in their community who can speak to their character;
- accept the Pagan EdNet Code of Conduct and Statement on Diversity and Inclusion.
You do not need to be clergy, and you do not need to belong to a group.
What the Course Covers
| Week | Topic |
|---|---|
| 1 | What interfaith work is, and what it is not |
| 2 | Describing your own tradition in three minutes, in plain words |
| 3 | The breadth of contemporary Paganism: speaking fairly about traditions that are not yours |
| 4 | An introduction to the religions you will meet at the table, taught by guests from those religions |
| 5 | The ten Guidelines for Interfaith Dialogue in practice |
| 6 | Hard questions: answering fear, hostility, and misinformation without heat |
| 7 | Public words: invocations, blessings, and remarks for mixed gatherings |
| 8 | Committees, bylaws, and budgets: how councils actually work |
| 9 | Chaplaincy settings: hospitals, hospice, campuses, and corrections |
| 10 | Privacy, the press, and staying the course; presentation of final projects |
How It Is Taught
- Format: live online sessions of ninety minutes, once a week, with small-group practice in every session.
- Instructor: Rev. Tobias Underhill, Director of Interfaith Outreach, with guest teachers from other religious communities and experienced graduates.
- Practice: each participant delivers a three-minute introduction to their tradition, an invocation for a public meeting, and answers to difficult questions, and receives written feedback.
- Final project: a visit to a local interfaith meeting or a service of another religion, followed by a short reflection.
- Completion: participants who attend at least nine sessions and finish the project receive a letter of completion and are added, with their consent, to our referral list of trained representatives.
- Access: sessions are live-captioned, and all readings are provided in accessible digital form.
Dates and Applications
| Cohort | Sessions | Applications close |
|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | Tuesdays, September 15 to November 17, 2026 | Closed |
| Winter 2027 | Tuesdays, February 9 to April 13, 2027 | January 22, 2027 |
All sessions meet from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM Eastern time.
How to Apply
Send an email to interfaith@paganednet.org with the subject line "Representative Training" and include:
- your name and the state where you live;
- your tradition and how long you have practiced it;
- a paragraph on why you want to do interfaith work, and where;
- the name and email address of one community reference;
- anything we should know to make the course accessible to you.
Applicants are notified within two weeks of the closing date. When a cohort is full, remaining applicants are offered the first places in the next one.
The Carrow Fellowship
Each year the Carrow Fellowship, named for our co-founder Rev. Desmond Carrow, helps two graduates of the course travel to a regional interfaith gathering. Graduates of the previous two years may apply. Fellows report back to the following cohort on what they learned.
After the Course
Graduates join a private discussion list where representatives share invocations, compare experiences, and ask one another for advice. They are also invited to assist with future cohorts and with the quarterly Seat at the Table roundtables.