An entheogenic Christian church, in its own words
The Church of the Only Begotten Son is an entheogenic church — a plant medicine church in the Four Corners of Colorado that holds sacred plants and holy herbs to be gifts of God for religious use. The clearest statement of that belief is the church’s own:
“We believe in the use of sacred holy herbs and substances by sacrament (modeled after the eucharist removed from modern day christianity) in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding of one’s personal humanitarian life purpose, mental, health, physical health, and a greater understanding of what it means to be an eternal being in order to encourage a closer, more complete relationship with Jesus Christ.”
The church’s Official Lawful Notice describes how broadly it understands that sacrament, and the limits it sets on it:2
“If it fractals it is our sacramental or medicinal substance, given to us, by almighty God; made by him, to be used with judgement, not to excess and neither by extortion, commerce or usury”
The same notice states that sacramental substances are used “under the guidance, recommendation, administration and/or instruction of an OBS Church Certified Religious Leader for Members ONLY!” The sacrament is a matter of membership and ministry, not something offered to the public.
What “entheogen” means
The word entheogen was proposed in 1979 by the classicist Carl A. P. Ruck, the mycologist R. Gordon Wasson and colleagues, who wanted a term for plants used in religious ceremony that did not carry the connotations of “hallucinogen” or “psychedelic”.4 Built from Greek roots, it means roughly “becoming divine within”. An entheobotanical sacrament is a plant sacrament in that sense. Scripture is often cited in the same conversation; Genesis 1:29 reads: “Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth.”5
The sacred plants
Each page below sets out what historians, anthropologists and scientists have documented about a plant in religious life, marks claims that remain contested, and links its sources.
Psilocybin and sacred mushrooms
Mushroom imagery in Christian art, the Good Friday experiment and modern research on mystical experience.
Amanita muscaria
The red-and-white fly agaric, Siberian ritual, the Soma theory and the Plaincourault fresco.
Cannabis and anointing oil
The altar at Tel Arad, the kaneh bosm debate, terpenes and cannabis scripture study.
Peyote and San Pedro
Mescaline cacti of the Americas, the Native American Church and the cactus named for St. Peter.
Ayahuasca and DMT
The Amazonian vine, the Brazilian churches and the Supreme Court’s O Centro decision.
Ancient sacraments
Kykeon and ergot at Eleusis, Soma and haoma, Syrian rue, blue lotus, iboga and manna.
Sacrament and Eucharist
The church places its sacrament inside Christianity: “modeled after the eucharist removed from modern day christianity.” It recognizes Dr. Jerry B. Brown’s The Psychedelic Gospel “as scripture and historic evidence of scripture,”3 a reference to the 2016 book by Jerry B. Brown and Julie M. Brown, The Psychedelic Gospels.7 The wider story — the Plaincourault fresco, the wedding at Cana and the debate over psychedelic Christianity — is told on the Psychedelic Christianity page.
The Science Behind The Religion
On its home page the church describes itself as offering “a scientific explaination” so that believers know “that God is real, alive today and loves us all unconditionally,” and its faith and science page sets out that view. In clinical research, a 2006 Johns Hopkins study by Roland Griffiths and colleagues found that psilocybin given in a supportive setting could occasion mystical-type experiences that volunteers rated among the most personally meaningful and spiritually significant of their lives.6 Research of this kind is still developing, and it is described here as history and context, not as advice.
To learn more about the church itself, read Declarations and Beliefs, the Historical Foundations and the religious freedom page.
Questions and answers
What is an entheogen?
The word was coined in 1979 by a group of scholars including R. Gordon Wasson and Carl A. P. Ruck, from Greek roots meaning “becoming divine within”. It names plants and fungi used in a religious or ceremonial setting, as distinct from recreational use.
What does the church mean by an entheobotanical sacrament?
In its own words the church believes “in the use of sacred holy herbs and substances by sacrament (modeled after the eucharist removed from modern day christianity)” in order to encourage “a closer, more complete relationship with Jesus Christ.”
Who may take part in the sacrament?
The church states that its sacramental substances are used “under the guidance, recommendation, administration and/or instruction of an OBS Church Certified Religious Leader for Members ONLY!” See the membership page for how to ask about joining.
Does this website give advice about using any plant?
No. These pages cover history, theology and religious freedom. They do not give medical or legal advice, and they do not describe how to obtain, prepare or use any substance.
Sources
- Declarations and Beliefs, Part Two — The Church of the Only Begotten Son
- Official Lawful Notice — The Church of the Only Begotten Son
- Historical Foundations — The Church of the Only Begotten Son
- Ruck, Bigwood, Staples, Ott & Wasson, “Entheogens”, Journal of Psychedelic Drugs 11:1–2 (1979) 145–146 — the paper that coined the word “entheogen”
- Genesis 1:29 (KJV) — Bible Gateway
- Griffiths et al., “Psilocybin can occasion mystical-type experiences having substantial and sustained personal meaning and spiritual significance”, Psychopharmacology 187 (2006) 268–283
- Brown & Brown, The Psychedelic Gospels (Park Street Press, 2016)
Scholarly claims about sacred plants in history are summarized with their sources, and contested claims are marked as contested. The church’s own beliefs are quoted exactly and linked to the page where they appear.