LANSING, Mich. — Members of Lansing Area Pagans say that in smaller communities like Lansing, which has a population of just under 120,000 people, revealing oneself as pagan often comes with social stigma.
The stigma is to the point where telling people you are pagan is known as, "coming out of the broom closet."
"My partner couldn't be here today because he can't be on camera and can’t answer questions because he is directly involved in local community and Boy Scouts and other community affairs. So if he was seen or noticed it could actually negatively impact him," Kira, a member of the Lansing Area Pagans, said.
Stephano Andreotti, the ceremonial high priest of Coven Harmonia Daimonikos said he has experienced the stigma firsthand.
"Have I had people say things like, ‘You're going to hell' or stuff like that to me? Oh, yes, numerous times," Andreotti said. "I've been accused of some terrible things, and from people that I don't even know."
The leaders of this mid-Michigan coven are Andreotti and Courtney Pepino, they go by their Daimonikos names, Aondreiel and Dikastiria.
Daimonikos is the tradition of Paganism that they say they practice and teach monthly at the Lansing Area Pagans meetings at Valhalla Park in Holt.
"We believe there's something to learn from just about everything, and it connects everywhere," said Pepino. "For me specifically, and I think for many people, we just want to feel connected. We want to feel connected to people, ourselves, we want to know who we are, who other people are, what the Earth is."
The craving for deeper connection is key for each member of this coven, whether it be connection to their community, Earth or gods and goddesses.
"I just felt that there was something more to life than just my nine-to-five job," said a member named Samantha. "There's something more to connect to."
Pagan is a broad term with many branches within the religion.
Most members in the group have different beliefs. For leader Andreotti, the calling is strong.
"I ended up learning things that I shouldn't know, you know? You read people's minds you, you come up with ideas, things that no one has ever spoken about. All of a sudden, you start speaking language, and you start automatic writing things that you've never thought of before. You know, the human mind is amazing," Andreotti said.
By definition, a pagan is an individual who does not practice Christianity, Judaism or Islam.
However, the group says the name pagan comes with the assumption by many that they worship the devil.
"I think there is a really bad stigma on this," said Kira. "Just 'it's witches, and they worship the devil and they, they do spells on people.' And it's nothing. It's not like that. It's all superstition and fear."
Members of this spiritual community say the root of the stereotypes comes from a lack of information dating back to the middle ages, when Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire around the 4th century.
Then, it was looked down upon to continue worshiping the Roman gods.
People believed, and some still believe, that talking to gods, including Hades, is satanic.
"Hades is the god of the underworld," said Pepino. "He was the god of wealth. Hades is the god of the underworld and death in the sense of once you're dead. And so that's fear, people are afraid of dying. So if you're worshiping him, or you're working with him, some people see that as a negative thing. Whereas when I work with him, it's more because I connect with that energy, and I understand the reflection that he is to Zeus."
"It's taking things very literally, and not well versing themselves on all the things that went into understanding what these things are," Andreotti said.
Research shows modern Paganism is one of America's fastest growing religions with an estimated 1 million followers of various pagan beliefs in the United States.
"We really just want people to be themselves and feel comfortable coming to these pagan meet ups," said Pepino. "Because it's often very hard to find a place where you can feel comfortable being yourself, especially if your spirituality differs from mainstream."
"As long as you make an effort to study everything as thoroughly as possible, leave no stone unturned," Andreotti said. "You will find no evil, that is an absolutely necessary."
Data from thePew Research Center shows that younger generations are looking for more freedom in their spirituality and are contributing to the revitalization of Paganism.
The growing numbers of this spiritual community is an indication of that, and they say all are welcome.
"It feels really comforting and really is just kind of warm, welcoming feeling," said a group member named Alex.
"Coming from a Christian background, I know what is said, and I know the judgment that can come with that," Samantha said. "But I feel like that in this day and age, people should be open to all religions and finding what makes them comfortable."
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