Three roundtable speakers and dozens of audience members were entrenched in a conversation about psilocybin potency testing when Pastor Dave Hodges’ phone went off.
“That is my alarm telling me I need to start handing out Easter eggs,” said Hodges, who founded the Church of Ambrosia, an inter-denominational psilocybin church based in the Bay Area.
The hundreds of stoners and psychedelic enthusiasts who gathered in Oakland Sunday for a celebration of both 4/20 and Easter would soon turn into willing participants in an adult easter egg hunt.
These eggs held not chocolate but vouchers for drugs such as DMT, and all together they were worth a total of $30,000, according to event organizers. Church of Ambrosia members donning bunny ears or full rabbit headgear passed them out in the parking lot of the Kaiser Convention Center premises before heading out to the adjacent Lake Merritt.
Stoners abounded.
“[Weed] is a tool to be able to look within yourself,” said Dani Black, a 34-year-old who characterized herself as “just a human being” when asked about her profession.
“[Weed] is always bringing friends together,” added Rob Razo, 31, who works for a magic mushroom farm. “You share stories, and you are there for one another.”
Plenty of weed lovers were happy to note the connection between cannabis and religion.
“Easter is all about rebirth and opening up your hearts and minds,” preached Donna Hale, a 65-year-old psychotherapist who notes that many of her clients have found more compassion and self-acceptance through the use of psychedelic drugs. “How appropriate then is it to celebrate today with people who are open to consciousness rising.”
Bob Leff, a 67-year-old electrician said that with the surge of artificial intelligence, it is more important now than ever to connect with humanity.
“We have a different set of standards for us to feel good,” he said, standing next to Hale, both with a joint in hand. “We have control over time.”
Back inside the convention center, vendors showcased an array of products and services, including sound baths, tea ceremonies, medicinal mushrooms, and sex therapy. A rotation of academics, scientists, and rappers spoke on spirituality and the power of drugs.
“There can be no such thing as an atheist, because we all worship something,” Mistah F.A.B., a rapper and community organizer, at one point told an enchanted audience.
Many of the attendees were passionate about spreading the gospel about psychedelics and cannabis bringing about a great awakening.
“I want to find out who I am,” said Ihar Zhytniou, a Belarusian who took a 14-gram dose of mushrooms in the woods with Hodges earlier this month. “I took off all my clothes. You don’t feel anything except that you’re part of the Earth.”
While using drugs is often characterized as a distraction in traditional churches, Hodges believes the opposite is true.
“Anybody that’s used cannabis or mushrooms knows that these stigmas are not necessarily the truth,” Hodges said. “I smoke an insane amount of cannabis, and that doesn’t stop me from doing anything that I do.”
Hodges was quick to note that the next 4/20 and Easter crossover won’t be for another 62 years, when we will “all be dead.”
‘Twas all the more reason to celebrate.
“Peace, love, happiness,” said Mario Montgomery, a 30-year-old carpenter who was smoking a spliff by Lake Merritt when bunnies arrived with the drug-filled eggs. “4/20-type shit.”
Montgomery was looking forward to a more innocent Easter egg hunt with his 2-year-old later in the day. While he and others didn’t know too much about Easter, they were happy to celebrate both holidays regardless.
“[Easter] has something to do with the Lord,” said Mitchell Scurlock, a 70-year-old retiree who donned crosses on his earrings and necklace. “I’m high. I’m on cloud nine. You can be whatever you want to be on cloud nine.”
Another park patron was a 22-year-old who went by the name “40.” When asked for a potential parallel between Easter and 4/20, he was blunt.
“The weed,” he said, “is the candy for the adults.”
