COLUMBIA, SC — Cherry Hill Seminary today announced new vision and missions statements for the organization. The statements reflect several months’ work by a special committee which consisted of board members, students, staff, volunteers, and faculty, and followed a special survey in the spring of all who are on the broader Seminary email list. Here are the new foundational texts:

Vision 2023: Cherry Hill Seminary envisions a world where people of Pagan and Nature based spiritualities can receive competent and compassionate spiritual support.

Mission 2023: Cherry Hill Seminary serves Pagan and Nature-based communities by providing transformative education and empowering students to advance academically and lead spiritually.

Board chair Jeffrey Keefer noted, “We are proud of our work, and as we look into the future, we want to invite those intrigued and feel called to share in our vision to join us as we seek to make the world a better place. Know that our efforts are guided through the lens of our Mission, one we continue to live every day.”

The committee was chaired by Laurel Holmstrom-Keyes, who said, “The impetus for reviewing the Vision and Mission came from our pursuit of [future] accreditation. It was important to the Board that our Vision and Mission were strongly reflective of the work of Cherry Hill Seminary.”

A promotional tag line, “Seek-Explore-Empower,” was also suggested by the committee. A process for rollout and implementation of the new vision and mission include suggestions for faculty, board and staff use, posting in strategic locations on the web site and in classroom platforms, new social media graphics and the video here.

COLUMBIA, SC — Cherry Hill Seminary today announced the graduation of Cynthia D. Cebuhar, awarding her the Master of Divinity in Ministry, Advocacy & Leadership.  Cebuhar is the seventh student to complete her master’s degree at Cherry Hill Seminary.

During the March 4 virtual ceremony, Academic Dean Margo Wolfe explained the importance of Cebuhar’s accomplishment, saying, “Cherry Hill Seminary is honored to confer this Master of Divinity degree to Cynthia. As the only provider of Pagan and Nature-based master programs, we see the need now more than ever in our growing international Pagan population.” In her opening remarks Seminary director Holli Emore said, “Cynthia embodies the very mission of Cherry Hill Seminary, to empower and lead others as they seek their own spiritual meaning.”

“We are proud of the accomplishments Cynthia Cebuhar has made as she studied toward her Master of Divinity degree,” Seminary board chair Jeffrey Keefer shared, “And we are even more thrilled knowing the potential she has for taking her success and using it to help transform the world. Cynthia is an example of one who comes for their studies while leaving a new person with the knowledge, passion, and commitment to make the world a more inclusive, healthier, and inspired place.”

The Master of Divinity degree is a terminal degree, requiring significantly more credit hours and practical experience than a master’s degree. Cherry Hill Seminary is the leading provider of education and practical training in leadership, ministry, and personal growth in Pagan and Nature-Based spiritualities, empowering spiritual leadership, scholarship, and ethics through theological and pastoral education to nurture interfaith engagement in a diverse society. For more information, visit www.cherryhillseminary.org or contact us here.

Columbia, S.C. — Cherry Hill Seminary announces the release of “Paganism and Its Discontents: Enduring Problems of Racialized Identity”, a volume containing papers presented at a 2019 symposium by the same name, plus a preface by sociologist Helen S. Berger. The symposium was a joint effort of Cherry Hill Seminary and the University of South Carolina Institute of Anthropology and Archaeology (SCIAA). The symposium was the first academic conference to address the specific issue of racialized identity theology in some contemporary Pagan religious traditions.

Proponents of racist interpretations of pre-Christian Norse-Germanic spiritualities have claimed to be preserving “heritage”, while others belonging to the contemporary Heathen movements have moved to distance themselves from “volkish” thinking. Long-simmering just beneath the surface of American Paganism, racialized Heathenry was on full display in 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. Tragically and ironically, news of the Christchurch, New Zealand shooting reached symposium attendees as they arrived for the opening session.

“Paganism and Its Discontents” is edited by Holli S. Emore and Jonathan M. Leader. Contributors include Michael F. Strmiska (keynote address for symposium); Jefferson F. Calico; Ben Waggoner; Diana L. Paxson (guest speaker for the symposium); Gus diZerega; Tahni J. Nikitins; Holli S. Emore; and Stephan Grundy.

“Symposium papers are presented not just for the purpose of scholarship, although they will add considerably in that regard,” states Seminary director Holli Emore. “But they are also shared in the hope that better knowledge of the ideas underlying white supremacy presenting as a religion will begin to turn back the ugly tide of rising hate and violence.” Co-editor Jonathan Leader, SCIAA director and S.C. State Archaeologist, noted that, “The book is the direct result of individuals who were engaged with the communities of concern. The information they provide is not simply from an academic standpoint but represents the communities themselves.”

Currently available in hardback from Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

For more information, contact Tracie Mooneyham, Marketing Coordinator at tmooneyham@cherryhillseminary.org.