A Wiccan blessing for lawmakers

Corrected to reflect that Maynard will be giving an invocation in the House only

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So a Wiccan priestess walks into the Iowa Legislature.

It's no joke. But she is nervous.

'I have one minute or less to try and say a blessing. And if you've ever tried to speak in one minute's time, it's not easy,” said Deborah Maynard of Cedar Rapids, who has been writing and rewriting.

'It will not be like a witches' blessing as much as it will be as inclusive as I possibly can be,” she said.

Maynard will give the morning invocation Thursday in the Iowa House. She's a Wiccan priestess, leader of the Cedar Rapids covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans and a member of People's Church here in town. She was invited to be the House's 'pastor of the day” by Rep. Liz Bennett, D-Cedar Rapids.

It's been done in Wisconsin and Oregon, but this is a first in Iowa.

'It's certainly generated a lot of discussion,” Bennett told me Monday morning on her way to Des Moines.

News of the invitation broke last week, with media coverage spilling over the state's borders. A few stories quoted Chuck Hurley, vice president of the conservative Christian Family Leader organization, suggesting that some lawmakers are uncomfortable with a Wiccan invocation and might skip it. After all, morning prayers are not a mandatory event.

Usually, these prayers are conducted by Christian clergy invited by lawmakers. Occasionally, a rabbi or an imam does the job. In a pinch, lawmakers themselves step up. Prayer leaders steer clear of political statements, although thinly veiled lobbying has been known to sneak through. Most prayers are broad, friendly and inclusive.

Maynard said that's what she's planning.

'My point of being there is to show inclusion,” Maynard said. 'And that's what I hope to say in my message. I hope to show that I am inclusive of all faiths and that I don't look at any one faith as being more important than another.”

Maynard said that she's receiving a lot of support from her family, workplace and church. She's heard there may be some protesters at the Capitol, which she says is understandable. 'What we don't understand, we fear,” Maynard said.

Bennett said she's been answering some questions from colleagues, but other than a couple of negative responses, most of the reaction to her invitation has been positive.

'Some people of other faiths have written me to say they feel left out quite a bit. So they felt like it was a breath of fresh air,” Bennett said, citing a letter from one young woman relatively new to the state.

'She actually feels a lot better about living here in Iowa, feels a lot more included having heard this news,” said Bennett, who also has invited a rabbi and a couple of pastors to lead legislative prayers.

I hope lawmakers don't skip out to make some sort of tired political point. If we can't listen to other perspectives for a whole minute without having our sensibilities offended, that's a sad commentary on the state of things. I'm convinced after talking with Maynard that she's not going to make anyone uncomfortable. And kudos to Bennett for giving a constituent a voice and a chance to make a little history.

l Comments: (319) 398-8452; todd.dorman@thegazette.com