The Brotherhood of the Phoenix was founded in the summer of 2004 by seven gay men from diverse traditions such as ceremonial magick, shamanism, and pre-Gardenarian witchcraft in order to create an ecumenical neo-pagan tradition which serves the community of men who love men. The mandate of the Brotherhood is to help gay, bisexual, and transgender men overcome the burden of societal labels. The Brotherhood rejects the limiting beliefs and prejudices of modern culture and religions that preach intolerance and hate. Instead of didactic teaching, they stress a simple neo-pagan principle: "Find the Divine within your own experience." To impart this principle, they hold public rituals near the eight common holidays of neo-pagan tradition where we celebrate the embodiment of the gay male divine through the life-cycle of human experience. The Brotherhood is committed to the principles of Activism, Outreach, and Education to build positive relationships which benefit our community and our world. The Order sponsors workshops, lectures, social events, and activist campaigns to achieve these aims.