Community Spotlight: Marlton
Witches Coalition
interviewed by Morte
Portney
A few months ago, we at Pagan Moon came into contact
with another group local to us, the Marlton Witch's
Coalition of Marlton, NJ. They responded to an
email sent out by our parent organization to local
religious groups. The founder of this group, Chris
and I began an email dialogue that soon saw him and
Linda, another member attending one of our meetings.
When we had the idea to "spotlight" community groups,
the MWC immediately came to mind. I set up a time
to sit in on one of their meetings and informally
interview the group. I had a vague idea of the group's
purpose and knew about a community project they were
embarking on but that was about it. After the meeting
I realized a traditional interview format wouldn't
do justice to the group, so here's my account of my
meeting with the MWC.
I got to the café the meeting was held at a few minutes
early. As we settled in members trickled in. People
of all ages gathered together as Chris called the
meeting to order. A friendly group of approximately
11 was present and I was told that not all members
were attending. Chris introduced me and I began to
find out about the MWC.
Questions about the founding of the group lead to
the telling of a story with which I was already familiar.
Chris started the group last summer, in various bookstores
he noticed that certain books on various Pagan and
Wiccan subjects would be on the shelf for some time
and then disappear. He started to wonder who was buying
them since he wasn't aware of many other Pagans in
the area. So the legendary flyers were born. Chris
made up flyers with an email address to contact him
and placed them inside various books at several local
bookstores. Soon he started getting emails. Chris
doesn't see himself as a leader figure, just someone
that saw a need (a desire for connection within the
Pagan community) and tried to fill it. He prefers
to call the MWC "our group" as opposed to "his group."
Chris' purpose was to form a "social" group, one
without hierarchy where people could come for fellowship,
talk and laughter not for a structured religious ceremony.
The MWC doesn't have formal rituals as a group. Occasionally
group members will perform a ritual together but it's
a gathering of friends coming together to worship
not an official MWC event. Over and over during the
meeting when discussing the MWC and what it means
to it's members I heard the word "friends" used the
most. One member, Dawn, even said that this group
consisted of the best friends she'd ever had.
But the MWC isn't just a coffee klatch; they have
group presentations where a member or other speaker
presents information on various subjects in which
the group has expressed an interest. Member Samaitha
commented on how it always seemed that someone else
in the group seems to have the answer to a question
or know of a useful resource.
With the varied membership it's not surprising that
there is such a wealth of knowledge, running the gamut
from a member who is studying for the Episcopalian
Priesthood to Wiccans, the membership is anything
but limited. A healthy variety of religious sects
and beliefs are represented, ranging from those with
a background in Eastern Beliefs to those with an interest
in Chaos Magick. MWC member Galen spoke about the
encouragement available in such a group for the solitary
practitioner and Samaitha furthered this with a comparison,
saying that it was like a mother who is home with
the kids all day and just yearns for adult conversation.
Although members vary in how "out" they are about
their religion even those who are completely "out
of the broom closet" with family and friends feel
the need to discuss their beliefs with people who
truly understand their point of view.
Sandy, another member, is running a perpetual food
drive to benefit a local Women's Shelter. She's collecting
non-perishable goods every meeting and donating them
to the shelter. Sadly most people don't realize that
shelters accept and indeed need donations year-round,
not just during the holiday season. With Sandy leading
the charge, the MWC is doing what they can to help
alleviate this need.
The MWC is also beginning a book donation campaign.
They're planning on donating books on alternative
faiths and their practices to local libraries. Most
public libraries have a very limited selection of
books representing faiths other than Christianity,
Judaism and Islam. When they do have books on faiths
such as Wicca they often miscatalog them, filing them
under "Demons" or other inappropriate subjects. The
MWC hopes to make these books more accessible for
the general public as well as raise awareness among
librarians.
I truly enjoyed learning about the MWC and meeting
its members. I heard stories about every facet of
life during the meeting; Sandy and Glenn's love story,
an intolerant article that inspired members including
Dawn and Glenn to write the editor of the major paper
it was published in, Linda's recent life changes and
resulting happiness, Galen's studies as he searched
for his path and many more. I met artists, poets,
writers, office workers and more. I met people who
are reaching out to each other and their community
in a way I find inspiring. I gathered more information
and material than I could ever include in one article.
Most of all I enjoyed the company, just as Chris intended.
The Marlton Witches Coalition can be contacted
at marltonwitchescoalition@yahoo.com
Check the Calendar
of Events for MWC meeting information.
