Who this church is
The Church of the Only Begotten Son is a Free Entheobotanical Original Christian church in Cahone, Dolores County, Colorado, in the Four Corners. It describes itself as a Free Church with no 501(c)(3) contract of incorporation, and it has welcomed members of the Four Corners and the wider Christian community since December 12, 2018.3
“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.”
In everyday search language, that makes this church an entheogenic church, a psychedelic Christian church and a plant medicine church: a congregation whose sacrament is rooted in sacred plants, within an Original Christian frame. The Official Lawful Notice adds that sacramental substances are used “under the guidance, recommendation, administration and/or instruction of an OBS Church Certified Religious Leader for Members ONLY!”2
What “entheogen,” “psychedelic church” and “plant medicine” mean
The word entheogen was coined in 1979 by Carl A. P. Ruck, R. Gordon Wasson and colleagues for plants used in religious ceremony — roughly “becoming divine within.”4 People also say psychedelic church, sacred plant medicine church or plant medicine church. Those phrases often point to the same kinds of communities: congregations that treat certain plants or fungi as sacraments rather than as recreation or as a clinic product.
This website uses those words carefully. It covers history, theology and religious freedom. It does not describe how to obtain, grow, buy or use any substance, and it makes no medical or therapeutic cure claims. The sacrament, on the church’s own terms, belongs to membership and ministry — not to the public internet.
Psychedelic spirituality and mystical experience
Many seekers arrive at a psychedelic church after a mystical, religious or life-changing experience with a sacred plant, or after reading about such experiences. In clinical research, a 2006 Johns Hopkins study found that psilocybin in a supportive setting could occasion mystical-type experiences that volunteers ranked among the most personally meaningful and spiritually significant of their lives.6 That research is summarized here as context, not as advice.
This church locates that kind of encounter inside Christianity. It recognizes Jerry B. Brown’s The Psychedelic Gospels as scripture and historic evidence of scripture,87 and it teaches that sacred holy herbs by sacrament draw a person into a closer relationship with Jesus Christ. For the fuller theology, see Psychedelic Christianity; for each plant’s history, see Sacraments and sacred plants.
Religious freedom — and what this site does not claim
In the United States, sincere religious exercise involving sacred plants has been argued under the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). The Supreme Court’s 2006 decision in Gonzales v. O Centro protected a church’s sacramental ayahuasca under RFRA.5 The Church of the Only Begotten Son cites RFRA, RLUIPA, AIRFA and related authorities in its Official Lawful Notice.2
Important limits. This website does not claim that joining the church, holding a membership card, or reading these pages makes possession of any controlled substance legal. Colorado’s Natural Medicine Health Act is a separate state framework; how it applies to any person is a question for qualified counsel. See Religious freedom — and nothing on this site is legal advice.
Where to go next
Sacred plants A–Z
Find any plant or substance by common name, scientific name or alias.
Sacraments and sacred plants
The church’s sacrament in its own words, with pages on psilocybin, Amanita, cannabis, peyote, San Pedro, ayahuasca and more.
Sacred plants in Scripture
Manna, holy herbs, anointing oil and how the church reads sacred plants in the Bible and related scriptures.
Psychedelic Christianity
The Psychedelic Gospels, Plaincourault, Cana and the Eucharist debate.
Religious freedom
First Amendment, RFRA, AIRFA, O Centro, free-church status and Colorado’s Natural Medicine law.
Membership
How to ask about joining. Membership is not granted through this website.
Visit the Four Corners
Finding the church in Cahone, near Cortez, Durango and Monticello. Call before you travel.
Questions and answers
What is an entheogenic church?
A religious community that treats certain plants or fungi as sacraments for spiritual experience — often called a psychedelic church or plant medicine church. The word entheogen means “becoming divine within.” The Church of the Only Begotten Son is a Free Entheobotanical Original Christian church in Cahone, Colorado.
Is a psychedelic church the same as a clinic or retreat?
No. This church is a Christian congregation with beliefs, worship, ministries and membership. Its pages cover history, theology and religious freedom. They are not a clinic, and they do not sell, dose or prescribe any substance.
Does joining a psychedelic church make possession legal?
No. This website never claims that membership makes possession of any controlled substance legal. The church cites RFRA, AIRFA and related laws as the basis of its religious-freedom position; see Religious freedom. Nothing here is legal advice.
Where is this psychedelic Christian church?
The Church of the Only Begotten Son is at 51778 US-491, Cahone, CO 81320, in Dolores County in southwest Colorado’s Four Corners. See Visit the Four Corners and contact the church before travelling.
Sources
- Declarations and Beliefs, Part Two — The Church of the Only Begotten Son
- Official Lawful Notice — The Church of the Only Begotten Son
- Home — 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”
- Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal, 546 U.S. 418 (2006) — Justia
- Griffiths et al., Psychopharmacology 187 (2006) 268–283
- Brown & Brown, The Psychedelic Gospels (Park Street Press, 2016)
- Historical Foundations — The Church of the Only Begotten Son
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.