by CHRIS BARRY

Whoever said being a Pagan in this town was easy? Certainly not Karen Rice-Leroux, spokesperson for the Montreal Pagan Community, a 267-member-strong organization that will, along with the Concordia University Pagan Society, be sponsoring the annual Montreal Pagan Community Yule Fair this Saturday, Dec. 3.

Even though Pagans—or neo-Pagans, to be more precise—are a deeply spiritual lot working with only the most positive of energies, Rice-Leroux says people far too often tend to confuse her belief system with Satanism.

“For example, not so long ago,” recalls the good witch of the West (Island, that is), “a few members of our group took part in an outdoor fair for charity. One of the objects we were selling had a pentacle as decoration. Anyway, this one woman walked up to our table, noticed the pent, looked at us and all of a sudden started frantically crossing herself [à la Hail Mary], practically breaking her leg trying to get away from us. I just find this type of thing to be so very, very rude.”

Rice-Leroux says witnessing her children being ostracized and taunted as devil-worshippers while attending school was no easy burden to bear either. “Fortunately these misconceptions are changing,” says Rice-Leroux. “Far more people have a basic understanding of what defines neo-Paganism now. Actually, we don’t even believe in the concept of a Satan. You’ll find many neo-Pagans of the opinion that the devil, as commonly accepted, is simply an excuse upon which to heap blame for human failings. We don’t allow ourselves to have scapegoats. If we screw up, there’s no one to blame but ourselves. There’s no such thing as, ‘The Devil made me do it.’”

Season of the witch

It’s all about what we do in the here and now. “Truth is,” says Rice-Leroux, “we don’t believe that any particular tradition or path is the ‘right’ belief/religion. All paths should lead to the same destination—spiritual understanding and growth.”

Okay then, so if it’s all about the love and spiritual understanding, and neo-Pagans don’t really dance nude around midnight bonfires on Mount Royal, or drink bat blood, or sacrifice kittens from the SPCA, what the hell do they do? And why should any God-fearing non-Pagan be bothered to attend this weekend’s activities?

“Yule is the Winter Solstice, one of the Sabbats [holidays] celebrated by many in the Pagan community,” says Rice-Leroux. “Paganism celebrates life’s cycles in all its manifestations, and one of those manifestations is the Winter Solstice. It is a reminder of the cycle of the year, the cycle of life. The days are, once more, getting longer and a brand new year is beginning. Every tradition has their own way of celebrating Yule Sabbat. But the Yule Fair will offer a glimpse into how we celebrate our beliefs. Oh, and following the Fair, there will be a public ritual.”

A public ritual! Aha, I knew it! Surely something of this nature must involve a little good ol’ fashioned killing of the innocent, or at least a few free-spirited college chicks dancing naked around a witches’ circle, right?

Well, no, apparently not. “Our rituals are joyous events, celebrations!” says Rice-Leroux patiently. “Generally speaking, a pagan coven will hold their ritual where the concepts of Deity are welcomed, honoured and thanked for all that we have and all that is to come. A Yule ritual is as simple or as complex as are the people involved.”

Believing in their products

So you see, infidels are just normal folk like the rest of us. And outside of the fact that all monies gathered will be going to good causes—last year these same heathens collected $700 for the Montreal Children’s Hospital’s autism department—Rice-Leroux says the Yule Fair will be brimming with Tarot readers, diviners, info kiosks and “many, many interesting people with whom to chat.” Not to mention an opportunity to score plenty of craft-type stuff from local Pagan artisans.

“Pagan artisans infuse their crafts with a certain special magic,” claims Rice-Leroux. “You can see it in the jewellery designs—they’re breathtaking. In the clothing—each piece is one of a kind. The art is fantastic, and the body care products? Handmade incense, soaps, body oils, bath salts—all of them created with our beliefs foremost. There’s no way a commercially-prepared concoction can match what the neo-Pagan artisans can create.”

The Yule fair takes place Saturday, Dec. 3 at Concordia (1455 de Maisonneuve W.), 10 a.m.–7 p.m., free.