Connections (Journal)

Connections is one of a small number of newsstand magazines serving the Neo-Pagan community. Founded in 1993 as an expression of Paganism in the Denver, Colorado, area, by the end of the decade it had gained national circulation and at the beginning of the new millennium it was adopted as the organ of the Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS). CUUPS traces its history to the emergence of Pagans within the very diverse interfaith fellowship of contemporary Unitarian Universalism (which also includes Buddhist, Humanist, and Christian contingents). A Pagan network was formed in 1986 and CUUPS formally accepted as an affiliate by the Unitarian Universalist Association. A quarterly newsletter was launched to keep CUUPS members informed. The legitimacy provided Pagans by its association with the Unitarian Universalists made CUUPS attractive to many, and it grew rapidly.

Robin Woodsong had an evangelical Christian background and in his late teens he attended a Bible college with the idea of becoming a pastor. However, he became disillusioned with Christianity and as a young adult turned to Paganism. Settling in Colorado, he became a leader in the relatively large Denver area community that through the 1980s supported a Wicca -Pagan-oriented bookstore. In 1989 he met his future wife, Summer, at a Pagan festival. Together they began Connections in 1993.

Connections is issued quarterly and each issue is built around a set of feature articles on topics of interest to Witches and Pagans. These range from interviews with leaders in the community to articles on magick, Witchcraft, Pagan ethics, and sexuality. There are few regular columns though space is given to an advice column and letters to the editors.

Connections was adopted by CUUPS at the end of the 1990s and the initial issue reflecting the new sponsorship of the magazine appeared in the spring of 2000. This change also occurred as CUUPS headquarters moved from Boston, Massachusetts, to Cincinnati, Ohio. Connections is now published at 8190A Beechmont Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45255-3154. It has an Internet site at http://www.connectionsjournal.com/.

Sources:

Connections. Cincinnati, Ohio, n.d.

Connections. http://www.connectionsjournal.com/. March 14, 2000.