What about rather than wine at a church service for religious metaphors, it was a microdose of psilocybin mushrooms being offered for mental health reasons?
Setas Seminary, which calls itself Nevada’s first psychedelic church, will launch March 23rd with a Spring Equinox Celebration at the Ranch House near the arboretum at Rancho San Rafael Regional Park.
There will be two sessions: 1-3 p.m. and 3-5 p.m., with each including not mushrooms initially but a series of experiential “tasters,” from meditation, to stretching, breath work, sleep hygiene and massages.
“We embrace naturopathic and Indigenous practices proven to optimize and integrate body, mind, soul, and the universal spirit – the birthright of every living being,” Pam Conboy (pictured above with partner Leah Linder, who also works in the natural health solutions sector) wrote to us in an email. “Ultimately, we seek to catalyze the conscious integration of physical and psychological wellness by facilitating unification with the universal spiritual intelligence, aided by natural healing sacraments.”
Even though mushrooms will not be on offer at the Rancho event, Conboy wrote to us “guests will be able to request membership at that time which allows access to our ‘sacraments.’ We do have to screen membership requests though as we will do a basic check on them and ensure they are adults.”
The psilo they eventually want to provide will be rigorously tested. “We actually strongly prefer naturally (outdoor) grown, but do get all our mushrooms tested at a third party analytical laboratory to test for potency and toxins (heavy metals, etc),” wrote Conboy, whose LinkedIn bio describes herself as a Strategy Architect | Creative Collaborator | Storyteller.
Conboy and Linder hope to offer therapeutic doses based on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. As long as they follow the rules of a formally established church they believe their practitioners will be protected from prosecution under the Controlled Substances Act—which still lists psilocybin mushrooms under Schedule I, meaning according to the DEA “that it has a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision.”
In the last legislative session, Senate Bill 242 initially seeking to decriminalize the use, cultivation and possession of small amounts of psilocybin mushrooms, was watered down to instead of legalization form a working group to study medicinal use in Nevada.
For the March 23rd introductory sessions at Rancho, the two founders ask that guests arrive 30 minutes or so ahead of their preferred session to check in and get acquainted.
They also recommend those interested “wear comfy layered clothing and slip on shoes as that will maximize your enjoyment of the experiences.”
Their website indicates their doctrine “borrows from traditional spirituality and natural healing modalities from Indigenous, Shamanistic, Ayurvedic, and Curanderismo practices.”
“We will be offering sacramental "pairings" dependent on the goal of the members (e.g., addressing mood, enhancing focus/productivity, deeper introspection),” Conboy wrote in our exchanges as to their future plans in offering mushrooms. “Sacrament is then paired with a non-psilo botanical formulation to help support the journey. This approach, along with the nutritional and lifestyle recommendations we offer (meditation, movement, massage, breath work, sleep), as well as an open and welcoming community, provide a sturdy foundation for supporting whole wellness and ultimately, spiritual integration.”