This Is Who We Are

Posted on January 3, 2026March 25, 2026

Giving compassionate support to individuals in crisis, leading small groups, holding rituals to mark the seasons of both nature and our lives, contributing to scholarship in religious studies, and even working in formal congregations – Cherry Hill Seminary students turn up in communities around the country and beyond.

There’s a reason for that. Our students and graduates love to learn and they are moved to serve others. They are the new face of Pagan and Nature-Based spiritualities, integrating with the communities where they live, weaving new tapestries of service and growth.

Cherry Hill Seminary is the leading higher education program for Pagan and Nature-Based spiritualities. In fact, Cherry Hill is the first Pagan seminary, with programs designed to meet the needs of working adults who live in a complex and demanding world.

At the core of Cherry Hill Seminary are our programs, courses, degrees, and certificates that are more than just the products of a business. As a religious educational organization, our students find our programs to be transformative, gifts that encourage a deeper understanding of both our inner reality and the external world. Ensuring the integrity of these programs is critical for our students — those Cherry Hill Seminary exists to serve.

Cherry Hill distinguishes itself from other seminaries by offering education focused on Pagan and Nature-based spiritualities. A mentoring approach in our classrooms prepares our students to provide compassionate and competent leadership in their spiritual communities.

Rather than indoctrinating students with rigid practice requirements of particular traditions, we lead them through a personal journey which includes the exploration of world theologies, best practices for ethical leadership and counseling, scholarship in Pagan studies, and pastoral skills.

Because Cherry Hill Seminary provides primarily a distance learning experience, students have more flexibility to work through and complete their course of study. Cherry Hill Seminary professors include some of the best Pagan scholars in the world. Our tuition is competitive with any other seminary program.

There really are no other seminaries that offer this blend of excellence, affordability, professionalism, and grounding in the context of Pagan and Nature-Based spiritualities. We are unique in that unlike other liberal seminaries, we do not require studies of particular sacred texts like the Christian Bible but offer courses which introduce a range of sacred texts from many world religions.

We continue to evolve to meet the needs of our students. As we grow from year to year, we develop new programs such as the Rewilding the Soul: Ecospirituality Certificate, the Certificate of Writing as a Spiritual Practice, and the Spiritual Direction Certificate. Our Community Ministry Certificate, Insights short courses, and master’s degrees in divinity continue to grow in popularity.

As an IRS 501-c-3 nonprofit organization we safeguard fiscal responsibility by striving to make our operation ever more robust and nimble. Continuous evaluation and improvement measures allow us to respond to the changing needs of our community.

Our vision of the future is to continue our work towards accreditation while providing the best possible education to those serving the spiritual needs of Pagans and other Nature-Based Spiritualities. We invite you to be part of that vision.— Holli S. Emore, MDiv, Executive Director

Celebrating Your Giving Spirit

Posted on December 12, 2025December 12, 2025

Because of our generous donors, Cherry Hill Seminary is starting the year strong and healthy!

This year 83 wonderful supporters helped us raise more than $20,000, or nearly 20% of our annual budget. Some of you are monthly recurring givers, others simply stepped up when asked and dug a little deeper. We love how the Votaries Alumni Circle harnessed the Giving Tuesday energy on December 2 to take us over the top! If your name is not in the list below let us know so we can blow your horn. And if you meant to do something before now, it’s never too late to press the button below.

You Are Not Alone

Posted on March 22, 2025January 3, 2026

First, you are not alone. When crisis strikes, grassroots organizations lead the way, like Cherry Hill Seminary. Driven by people who understand that in times of need, we rely on each other.

Second, we have something no one can take from you. Cherry Hill Seminary is deeply committed to providing transformative education so that you can provide competent and compassionate spiritual support and leadership to others. We value community care, mutual support, and partnerships.

Third, community care is about coming together to build something sustainable, healing, and empowering for everyone involved. Cherry Hill Seminary has been here for everyone for more than 20 years, and we are in it for the long haul.

Your financial contributions each year make up about twenty percent of our budget. Those gifts take root in fertile soil at CHS, where students learn to think theologically, work effectively in their communities, excel academically, and lead others in their spiritual journeys.

Will you do your part this spring? You can make an outright gift of any amount, or you can let us know of an amount you intend to give, and when (that’s what we call a pledge). We also have occasionally received gifts of stock, or inclusion in your estate planning. We welcome all of it, year-round. But our spring appeal helps us plan for all our programs for the year, so we ask you at this turn of the wheel.

We are only $1000 away from our goal of $20,000 for the year! Your gifts tell us that you want CHS to thrive, that we need to keep on being there for the entire Pagan and earth-focused community.

Click here to make a contribution, or here to make a pledge for a gift any time until the end of 2025.

Thank you for making it possible for Cherry Hill Seminary to support and inspire you to nurture others through spiritual care and leadership.

Shifting the Balance

Posted on September 22, 2021June 19, 2025

Help us shift the balance towards an ever-stronger, ever better Cherry Hill Seminary.

At the autumn equinox, Cherry Hill Seminary pauses to reflect on this year. Even in these uncertain times, we have flourished. For example, thanks to your investment in quality education we were able to:

Pioneer a Pagan SpiDir (Spiritual Direction Certificate) cohort, which began their two-year journey towards offering their own services as a spiritual director.
Launch Coming to the Center, an online interview series with thought leaders, scholars, & experts in Pagan spirituality.
Engage a consultant to review our entire curriculum, map learning outcomes, and develop a guide for ongoing management of our programs.
Initiate our search for a new academic dean as Dr. Candace Kant prepares for retirement.

Giving is a fundamental part of showing up for the CHS community and showing others that investing in quality education and transformative spiritual growth is essential to our future. By making a contribution, you become part of our students’ fearless learning.

By asking you to give, we hope to show you that we are serious about being a force for good, serving the spiritual needs of those around us, bringing healing where we may, and developing the next generation of Pagan leaders.

We are thankful for community members, just like you, who understand the value of quality education and how it can shape the future for the better. Two generous donors have offered to match every dollar raised between now and Samhain, up to $10,000 USD! That means that your gift will automatically be doubled.

Your gift will put us in a stronger position to add the academic dean’s new salary to our 2022 budget.
Your contribution, of any size, ensures that CHS is around to provide quality education for years to come.