VA allows use of Wiccan pentacle

MADISON, Wis. -- The Wiccan pentacle has been added to the list of emblems allowed in national cemeteries and on government-issued headstones of fallen soldiers, according to a settlement announced Monday.

The settlement between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Wiccans adds the pentacle -- a five-pointed star inside a circle -- to the list of "emblems of belief" allowed on VA grave markers.

Eleven families nationwide are waiting for grave markers with the pentacle, said Selena Fox, a Wiccan high priestess with Circle Sanctuary in Barneveld, Wis., a plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The settlement calls for the pentacle, whose five points represent earth, air, fire, water and spirit, to be placed on grave markers within 14 days for those who have pending requests with the VA.

"I am glad this has ended in success in time to get markers for Memorial Day," Fox said.

The VA sought the settlement in the interest of the families involved and to save taxpayers the expense of further litigation, VA spokesman Matt Burns said.

The agency also agreed to pay $225,000 in attorneys' fees and costs.

The pentacle has been added to 38 symbols the VA already permits on gravestones. They include commonly recognized symbols for Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Judaism, as well as those for smaller religions such as Sufism Reoriented, Eckiankar and the Japanese faith Seicho-No-Ie -- and an atomic symbol for atheism.

Wicca, a nature-based religion based on respect for the Earth, nature and the cycle of the seasons, is one of the fastest-growing religions in the country.

"This settlement has forced the Bush administration into acknowledging that there are no second-class religions in America, including among our nation's veterans," said the Rev. Barry Lynn, director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

Material from The Washington Post is included in this report