This site has recently been renovated. Queerstions, commients, consirns -> communications-circle@nomenus.org
“We are the survivors and the lovers and the lineage of those men who gathered to seek radical faggot liberation in the desert of Arizona in 1979…We are here in response to their call. Their intentions are alive in us. Our fabulous diversity is the flowering of spells they cast.”
—Nomenus Seeds of Unity
Nomenus is an all-volunteer organization with an operating budget of around $45K, sustained by over a hundred members up and down the West Coast, with concentrations in the Bay Area, Southern Oregon, and Portland.
We work together to accomplish the Work of the Sanctuary. This work takes place through organic self-organization into circles and committees. Participating in these circles is the primary way to get involved with our work.
We make decisions by consensus. Any member or friend may attend meetings and participate in discussion. We ask active members to learn about consensus before bringing proposals or participating in the test for consensus.
Our officers, elected annually, are President, Vice-President, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Secretary, and Corresponding Secretary. In alignment with our egalitarian values, these are positions of greater service and responsibility, not greater status or power-over. For descriptions of these roles, see Article V of the Bylaws.
Founded in 1987, Nomenus is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) religious organization (“church”) whose mission is to create, preserve and manage places of spiritual and cultural sanctuary for Radical Faeries and their friends to gather in harmony with nature for renewal, growth, and shared learning.
Nomenus serves a regional and national community by stewarding Wolf Creek Sanctuary in Southern Oregon as a sacred space dedicated to queer liberation and spiritual growth, honoring its founding intention as a sanctuary for Radical Faerie culture and gay male spirituality.
The work of Nomenus is sustained through the volunteer service and generosity of Sanctuary stewards, visitors, and a diverse regional community of active and supporting members.
Nomenus sponsors annual spiritual gatherings at Beltane and Samhain, as well as the Spiritual Gathering of Radical Faeries and the Pendulum Gathering. Wolf Creek also hosts allied events such as Sex Magick, and the Naraya.
Nomenus has provided fiscal sponsorship for projects and organizations such as Faerie Camp Destiny, Zuni Mountain Sanctuary, San Francisco’s Faerie Freedom Village, Black Leather Wings, Native Womenshare, and Sex Magick.
Nomenus is working towards the vision of a national network of self-governing, fiscally independent chapters, setting their own membership policies and united under a minimal common umbrella. We seek to share the privilege conferred by our legal status as an IRS-sanctioned church with other Radical Faerie circles, and to use it to fertilize, activate, and connect our communities around the country.
Because you love Wolf Creek Sanctuary, and the magical things that happen there, and this crazy beautiful community, and Radical Faerie culture in general.
Because you’re just so fucking grateful.
Because you want radical faggots and queers across the country and in future generations to have sanctuary spaces for liberation, healing, and magic.
Because you feel a call to serve this community.
Because you like to plerk (play+work+werk) with other fabulous beings like yourself.
Because you appreciate meetings and events that are heart-centered, effective and fun.
Because you resonate with the Seeds of Unity and the Interaction Agreements.
Because Nomenus needs the unique gifts and perspective that only you can bring.
*Your reasons may vary.
Any Radical Faerie or friend who supports Nomenus’ mission, values, and agreements and makes a donation of any amount can be a supporting member of Nomenus. In addition, active members make a self-defined service commitment and agree to learn about and practice consensus decision making.
In Summer 2011, the latest in a long series of painful organizational and interpersonal conflicts left Nomenus with no caretakers at the Sanctuary, a dwindling and divided membership, and a relationship of alienation with many of its elders, former members, and surrounding community.
Motivated by an urgent sense of the need to heal and evolve as a community, members and friends began working together to revitalize the organization and culture of Nomenus. Since then, we have been reconnecting with the founding intentions, rebuilding a strong collective container, re-visioning our future together, and reweaving a culture based on service, appreciation, accountability, and trust.
In September 2012, after a process of dialogue and discernment lasting more than a year, membership in Nomenus, formerly available only to gay men, was broadened by a consensus of original members to include Radical Faeries and friends of all genders.
Throughout this period of accelerated growth and transformation, the commitment to the mission of Nomenus has remained unbroken—and to the intention of a sanctuary for faggot-oriented and radical queer spirituality, now supported by an expanded circle of allies.
“We intend to learn from this painful history to treat each other better from now on. In present and future interactions between individuals and communities that make up the Church, we invoke the spirit of the spell of the Great Three-Way: ecstatic engagement, with mutual warmth, enjoyment, and respect.” — Seeds of Unity
Why did the membership process change?
It used to be that anyone who filled out a membership form instantly became a member of the Board of Directors, with full power to make or block decisions. Over the years, this resulted in recurrent patterns of conflict and frustration due to lack of alignment around values, vision, and interaction, and lack of shared understanding about how consensus decision making works.
Recent changes to the membership policy, as called for in the Great Three-Way, have these aims in mind:
Help align and educate new members
Support movement toward greater involvement and commitment
Minimize bureaucracy and administrative overhead
Incorporate Faerie traditions of egalitarianism, inclusion, and self-initiation
How do I find a mentor?
Ask an active member if they are willing to mentor you in consensus and plugging in. Any active member who is willing may serve as a mentor. If you don’t know someone to ask, email nomenus@nomenus.org and ask for a volunteer mentor.
What if I’m already a member?
You will receive email when it’s time to renew your membership. Active memberships last for about two years, rounded up to expire at the next Summer or Winter Solstice (June or December 21). Supporting memberships last for about five years (using the same rounding process).
What if I’m a former member?
If you joined or last renewed more than a year ago, use the process above to renew your membership. We especially welcome former members to re-engage with Nomenus—we value and need your experience, perspective, and wisdom.
What’s the difference between active and supporting members?
Nomenus appreciates and relies on contributions from supporting members, who may not be in a position to make a commitment of service but who support the work of the church via donations and good wishes.
Supporting members receive the monthly Nomenews newsletter, with news and gathering announcements, as well as the RadDish (currently inactive).
Supporting members may join circles/committees and participate in meeting discussions but not make proposals or participate in the test for consensus. You need to be an active member to serve as an officer, steward, or mentor, or to start a circle/committee.
What if I can’t afford to donate right now?
In the spirit of GAYAABAGS (Give As You Are Able But Always Give Something), we encourage you to support Nomenus with your donation in any amount, no matter how small or large. Recurring monthly donations of $5 or more are especially welcome, as are donations of needed equipment and supplies—see the Wish List and check with the stewards.
In the spirit of NOTAFLOF (No One Turned Away For Lack of Funds), membership does not depend on your ability to donate. However, we invite you to consider your donation as participation in a communal abundance spell. If a dollar is all you have, then kiss it with sparkly lipstick and stick it in an envelope!
May our generosity return to us three times three times three—and may all our needs be met, with plenty to share.