We Are an Actual Church: June Reflections from Psanctuary

Welcome to the very first installment of Soul Talks, a new written and video blog series offering reflections from within our Psanctuary community.

Each month, I’ll share an overview of our Sunday Service themes, behind-the-scenes insights from our gatherings and teachings, and a look ahead at what’s taking root. You can also watch the recorded Soul Talk companion video to this reflection.

Reclaiming the Sacred: What It Means to Be an Actual Church

Our June theme: We Are an Actual Church, was more than just a statement. It was an invocation. A remembering. A declaration of who we are and what we are building.

Pairing the words mushroom and church can be disorienting, and sometimes even triggering. These are two words that don’t naturally sit together in our cultural vocabulary. We are co-creating a new model of what sacred community with the mushroom can be.

We began the month with a book I chose: Soulcraft by Bill Plotkin, exploring the concept of “second adulthood”, a mature and meaningful chapter of life marked by purpose and initiation. As a society, we’ve lost many rites of passage that once marked this threshold. And so, we asked ourselves:

What rites of passage can we reclaim? What sacred thresholds are we ready to witness: for ourselves and for one another?

This inquiry naturally led into our conversation about Psacred Passage, our mushroom ministry supporting individuals with life-threatening diagnoses. It is a tender and powerful expression of our devotion as a church: a space where death is not feared, but honored, and the sacred mushroom becomes a bridge between this life and the next.

Exploring Immortality & the Eternal Self

Our next Sunday centered on Sacred Knowledge by Bill Richards, a discussion Kentucky based minister Eric led focusing on spiritual immortality. One line echoed in our hearts:

“Consciousness may change form or evolve, but it cannot cease to be.”

We asked: How would we live if we knew we were eternal?What would we say yes to? What might we finally release?

The stories that emerged, of near-death experiences, mushroom journeys, sacred endings, were vulnerable, wise, and deeply moving. We spoke not just of endings, but of the quality of our living.

Redefining Fathering Energy

On Father’s Day, Maine based Minister Alana led a circle inspired by Braiding Sweetgrass. Rather than speak only of father figures, she invited us to explore fathering as an archetypal force, the energy of protection, presence, and guidance. We asked:

• How do I give and receive care from others?

• Where am I being called to show up for someone else?

• How does Fathering energy live within me?
  

A reading on pecan trees grounded our conversation:

“The trees act not as individuals, but as a collective. What happens to one happens to us all. All flourishing is mutual.”

It was a powerful reminder that we are not alone and that even in our individuality, we are woven into the whole.

Summer Solstice & the Path Ahead

Today is Summer Solstice: the longest day of the year. A time of bright light, deep reflection, and renewed vision. As we honor this sacred turning of the wheel, we’re also preparing for a very special Sunday.

This weekend, we will gather to ordain a new cohort of mushroom ministers; individuals who have completed 8 to 16 + weeks of ministerial training in safely and sincerely building, maintaining and sharing their sacred mushroom practice. Their ordination is not only a celebration of their commitment, but a reflection of what it means to be a real, living, breathing church.

Our Sunday Service will include meditation, music, reflection, and joy. We’ll witness these ministers affirm their path, not as a service provider or retreat leader, but as a steward of the sacred in partnership with the mushroom.

What’s Still to Come in June

We’ll close out the month with a deep dive into heart coherence: the energetic field generated by the heart in unison with the body and mind, and its role in connection, prayer, and collective resonance.

“When you intentionally activate heart feelings, like love or compassion, you change the field, not just personally, but collectively.” —HeartMath Institute

We’ll ask: How can I feed the field of my home from my heart with care? How does prayer shift when I lead with my heart instead of my head?

This service will help us root the idea of church in the electromagnetic, emotional, and relational field we each co-create, every moment of every day.

Spreading Spores & Community Connection

Outside of Sunday services, June has been wildly alive.Psanctuary has been represented in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, and Maine, sharing our message at festivals, community circles, and within circles of ministers and members.

Folks in our community have hosted club meetups, Friends & Family ceremonies, and Kentucky based co-founder and minister, Athena Short, even returned to explore our beloved Litany of Gratitude in community circle. We've gathered in-person and online, minister-led and member-inspired. Together, we are weaving the fabric of this living, breathing church.

A Glimpse of July

Without giving too much away… let’s just say July will be a month to remember.

We’ll be honoring the 10-year anniversary of Eric and my arrest for possession of sacred mushrooms, a moment that, while devastating, set into motion the eventual founding of Psanctuary.

We’ll share our Origin Story through special services, podcast premieres, live webinars, and more. And we’ll be unveiling a brand-new membership structure and updates to our seminary offerings that will make spiritual education and sacred practice even more accessible.

Giveaways, surprises, and celebrations await.

Stay tuned.We’re just getting started, and we’re so glad you’re here! 

Courtney Rose  Co-Founder, Psanctuary