This story has been updated from its original version to correct some grammatical errors.
For many people in college, Halloween weekend is a time to dress up in revealing costumes and drink, but the holiday has greater significance for some Ball State students.
Some members of Ball State's Society of Earth-based Religions say Halloween is less about costumes and candy and more about starting over.
"It's a time to both take on everything you've been able to gain this past year, as well as reflecting on problems that have been bad and accepting them as a part of yourself and moving past it," Jay Davidson, SER's member advocate, said. "Typically, I think myself and a lot of other people [in SER] see it as a time of reflection and celebration."
Mariah White, SER vice president, said Halloween is an important holiday across the board for the group's members, but everyone's beliefs vary.
"The Society of Earth-based Religions is a discussion group, first and foremost," she said. "We're categorized as a religious organization, but we tend lean more toward the multi-cultural side."
LACK OF A DEFINITION
The group focuses on pagan discussions, but they try to keep conversations as broad as possible so everyone can participate. White said many of the organization's approximately 30 members are pagans, but that doesn't narrowly define its members' beliefs.
"Pagan is an umbrella term," she said. "There are people who fall under the category of pagans, but there are a lot of religious sects."
Earth-based religions believe Earth and nature are sacred. Wicca, Neo-druidism and Animism all fall under the pagan umbrella. They all have different beliefs, and the overlap is different from the Christianity umbrella, since different denominations believe in the same god, but have different practices.
"It's an overarching thing," White said. "You cannot say there's one, ‘This is what pagans believe,' because there are so many."
White said the group has never had more than five or six members who believe in the same thing, which is why a discussion format works so well for them.
The group sponsors a weekly general meeting and the occasional social night, but White said overall, SER doesn't sanction any religious practices. The group encourages members to practice together, but not as part of the organization.
"I've seen that other pagan groups tend to break down more quickly when practicing is involved because there are so many different beliefs," she said.
MISCONCEPTIONS
One common thread throughout different pagan religions is to honor nature and to connect with all other beings on the planet.
Not everyone understands that, though.
White said group members have to sign a confidentiality clause.
"Because there is a lot of stigma attached to being a pagan, we're very concerned with our members' privacy," she said. "It could really damage someone's future if it comes up they're affiliated with our organization."
"While there are nondiscrimination clauses in the workforce areas, it can still be very damaging to the public eye if you're seen as a pagan, and not just with jobs, but socially. There are people who lose friends because of it."
Davidson said the biggest misconception is that people tend to believe pagans are Satan worshipers. Many modern pagans don't believe in Satan, he said, since the devil is a Christian concept.
"In the modern world in general, there's a great deal of discrimination with the pagan community," he said. "Many people don't really understand the religions very much that are associated with it, there's a great deal of stereotyping involved and many people in general just don't accept anything beyond what their own world contains. And it partially is fear."
The majority of pagans in SER who have told friends and family about their different religious views have received backlash, Davidson said. Many of them have Christian backgrounds, and their families have a hard time accepting their new views, he said.
Davidson said it's his job as SER's member advocate to be there to help them face discrimination.
"It's unfortunate so many people have a negative view of paganism," he said, "but it's something we're fighting every day."
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The Society of Earth-based religions is a theological discussion group that focuses on various religions and religious topics.
To get involved, check out ser.iweb.bsu.edu, the S.E.R. Facebook group or send an email to ser@bsu.edu.
The group meets at 9 p.m. every Monday in Bracken Library room 311/312.
Tonight's discussion will be about reincarnation and the afterlife.
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