Rev. Eric Eldritch

Eric Eldritch is a community organizer and ordained Pagan minister with Circle Sanctuary (a Nature Spirituality church based near Madison, Wisconsin). He is a co-administrator and instructor within Circle Sanctuary’s Ministry Training Program. Eldritch designs ceremonies for the annual Pagan Spirit Gathering, and teaches in the Pagan Leadership Institute. Eldritch is also a founding member of The Stone Circle Tradition of Wicca (USA), an ecofeminist and Queer Spirituality-based religious community, fostering vocations of Wiccan priest/x/esshood in service to all in Earth’s household.

His spiritual journey encompasses experience in many communities including former membership in the Church of Christ, Washington Community Fellowship, Hyattsville Mennonite Church, and Metropolitan Community Church, DC. Today, Eldritch is a member of the Radical Faeries, Circle Sanctuary, the Paint Branch Unitarian Universalist Church, and a co-founder of The Stone Circle Tradition of Wicca (USA).

For the past 40 years, Eldritch has shared in nonprofit, federal and professional organization leadership. He specializes in event planning, project management and organizational development based on principles of social justice, group identity, sociolinguistics and cross-cultural relations. Eldritch continues to organize, energize and inspire a variety of effective Pagan interfaith programs and community events. Eldritch writes articles, music, liturgy and rituals that inspires individual spiritual growth and promotes community cohesion. See more at EldritchVentures.org

In 2013 Eldritch served on the planning team that coordinated “A Prayer for Love & Justice in Support of LGBTQ Marriage Equality.” At Sunrise on the morning the Supreme Court of the United States heard the case on Marriage Equality (March 26, 2013), drummers sounded a call and energized presenters and participants from myriad faiths publicly singing and praying together. An interfaith community choir sang “Something Inside So Strong!” and “Break Every Chain!” to focus attention for justice. Following the service, the drummers and faith leaders lead a procession to the steps of the Supreme Court for the Rally. See these links for the complete prayer bulletin and the liturgy and the video for this amazing interfaith service.

Eldritch created a banner, organized drummers and coordinated Pagan leaders for this service.

In 2023, Eldritch retired after working for thirty years at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. In his first decade, he managed ASL programs, in his second decade he managed ADA programs, and in his third decade, he managed diversity and internships programs within the congressional branch of federal service. He organized with Library employees to manifest the first LGBT Pride month keynote addresses in 2009 and 2010 and to establish an LGBTQ History webpage and Disability Awareness webpage and resource.

Eldritch has served as an interfaith organizer and consultant with a variety of organizations including Center Faith, providing LGBTQ Interfaith resources and referrals (a program of the DC Center for the LGBTQ Community) and the Creating Change Conference Faith Institute (a program of the National LGBTQ Task Force). For the past 20 years, he has co-coordinated the annual Washington, DC Pride Interfaith Service (now celebrating its 45th year of interfaith collaboration).

He has created community art installations that have been featured at Artomatic, Pagan Pride, the1000 Goddesses Gathering (which began in 2016) and the Red Dragon Drumming (a forty year spell working of Radical Faeries and Reclaiming Witchcraft raising energy and funds for cures for blood related diseases).  

Eldritch created Artomatic these installations “All My Life’s a Circle” and “1000 Goddesses Gathering”

He has specialized in designing interfaith worship, planning spiritual retreats and teaching classes supporting individual spiritual and professional growth. He is keen on Queering interfaith spaces.

For twenty years, Eldritch has co-led “A Maypole for All” as an LGBTQ friendly Maypole dance.

Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Eldritch has lived in the Washington, D.C. area for the past 40 years. Eldritch lives in College Park, Maryland with his husbands Twist and Arden.

(This biographical statement written by Eric Eldritch.)

Biography Date: October 2024

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