Religious Freedom Gets Psychedelic in Utah

In a state where religious liberty is part of the cultural DNA, a new legal case is stirring up some unexpected conversations. A Utah-based religious group, called Singularism, is suing for the right to use psychedelic mushrooms as part of its worship—citing the very religious freedom laws that many Latter-day Saints have long cherished and even considered divinely inspired (Deseret News).

According to the report, the group argues that under the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act and Utah’s own version of the law, it should be allowed to use psilocybin mushrooms in religious ceremonies. The case is now before a federal judge and is putting Utah’s religious freedom legislation to the test.

It began in 2024 when Provo police raided Singularism’s place of worship, seizing both psychedelic mushrooms and the group’s sacred texts. Founder Bridger Lee Jensen was charged with multiple felonies. In August 2025, however, U.S. District Judge Jill Parrish intervened. Citing the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, she blocked the prosecution and ruled that the charges were brought in “bad faith” with the intent to “harass” the group’s religious practices (Deseret News).

This is no small moment in legal or cultural terms. The case forces Utahns—especially those who are religiously conservative—to grapple with a thorny question: What happens when a law meant to protect your beliefs ends up protecting someone else’s beliefs that seem, well, kind of off the rails?

According to Jensen, Singularism is a “nondogmatic, spirituality-based religion,” offering psilocybin tea ceremonies as a path to spiritual insight. He has stated that the group didn’t set out to challenge Utah’s religious freedom laws—they simply sought to create a spiritual community that includes the use of natural psychedelics.

This isn’t the first time psychedelic exemptions have appeared in U.S. courts. Most famously, the Supreme Court’s 2006 ruling in Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal allowed a Brazilian church in New Mexico to use ayahuasca in its ceremonies. But that case involved a centuries-old tradition. Singularism is newly formed, yet as Deseret News reports, Judge Parrish has already ruled in the group’s favor—at least preliminarily—affirming that its beliefs and practices are worthy of protection under existing religious freedom laws.

This development is particularly relevant for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, given that Utah’s religious freedom laws were passed in large part through efforts in a state where Church members hold significant political and cultural influence. When Utah passed its state-level Religious Freedom Restoration Act in early 2024, bill sponsor Rep. Jordan Teuscher described it as a reaffirmation of “Utah’s long-established commitment to religious freedom” (Deseret News).

The irony hasn’t gone unnoticed. One reader of KSL’s coverage commented, “The religion MAKES it legal. That’s the point.” Another added, “Religious freedom can’t be absolute. If there is no legal way of having the mushrooms, then religion is not an excuse. Imagine if a religion involved cannibalism or murder.”

Some raised concerns about the broader consequences of criminalizing psychedelics. Others approached the topic from a more personal, spiritual perspective. “Mushrooms are fantastic. Very spiritual, every bit as spiritual as any religious experience I have ever had. And I’ve experienced every ceremony from the predominant local religion,” said one commenter.

Another wrote, “Plant Medicines are a huge part of my spiritual journey and no one has the right to stop me as a responsible adult from practicing my religion. We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege…”

And then came the line that cut to the heart of the debate: “This isn’t about religion. It’s about people trying to legalize drug use and hide behind the First Amendment.”

The range of reactions makes it clear: there are no easy answers here. The case is about much more than mushrooms—it’s about the consequences, intended or not, of laws designed to protect belief. And how those laws might be interpreted in ways that surprise the very communities that supported them.

For Latter-day Saints, this hits close to home. The Church’s origin story is deeply tied to the principle of religious freedom. Church leaders have taught that the U.S. Constitution was inspired in part to allow the Restoration of the gospel to take place. It’s why early Saints clung so tightly to the Constitution, even as they faced persecution for practicing beliefs that much of American society considered unacceptable.

That same history has shaped the Church’s modern stance on religious liberty—across all faiths, not just its own. In a 2015, then-Elder Jeffrey R. Holland emphasized that “Every citizen’s rights are best guarded when each person and group guards for others those rights they wish guarded for themselves” (Church News). And in a 2022 devotional, Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles stated, “Religious liberty protects not just believers but everyone. It is the taproot that sustains and nourishes many other fundamental freedoms, values and social goods” (Church Newsroom).

Of course, not everyone imagined those deepest beliefs would involve mushrooms. But perhaps that’s part of the broader challenge in a pluralistic society. If we want to preserve freedom for our own sacred practices, we may have to accept the protection of others’ unconventional ones.

And that makes this case more than just a legal dispute—it’s a cultural reckoning. In a state like Utah, where the dominant culture has long championed religious values, the outcome may test how far we’re willing to extend those protections when the beliefs in question push us outside our comfort zone.

What do you think?

• Is this a misuse of religious freedom—or an example of it working as intended?
• Does this expand the conversation, or does it stretch the concept too far?
• Should religious liberty have limits, or does it mean defending beliefs we don’t share?

Leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Holly Wallace

Holly Wallace is a writer and storyteller drawn to meaningful questions and overlooked details. Her work explores Latter-day Saint life and culture through faithful inquiry, inviting readers to pause, consider, and engage more deeply with what matters most.