Introduction to Druidry (Celtic Neo-Paganism)

[Pages:30]Introduction to Druidry (Celtic Neo-Paganism) The Neo-Pagan movement is a wide spread, diverse form of contemporary spirituality. It

encompasses spiritual revival or reconstruction movements that draw upon the pre-Christian spiritual traditions of Eastern and Western Europe, the British Isles, as well as traditions from Africa, Asia, and North America. In a more specific sense, however, the term "neo-paganism" has come to refer almost entirely to pre-Christian revival or reconstruction movements based in the traditions of Europe and the UK. Wicca, or contemporary Witchcraft, is probably the most popular and widespread of these neo-pagan movements. A second popular version of contemporary neo-paganism is Celtic Neo-Paganism, or Druidism. As we will see, many of the elements of contemporary Witchcraft are also to be found in Celtic Druidry, for Witchcraft has borrowed heavily from celtic sources. There are also considerable differences between Celtic neo-paganism and contemporary Witchcraft, however, and you should watch for those as you are reading the material. Although there is considerable overlap in beliefs and membership, contemporary Celtic Druidry is a separate religious system within the broader Neo-pagan movement from its sister tradition of Witchcraft. Historical Influences and Precursors

As with contemporary Witchcraft, in order to understand contemporary Celtic NeoPaganism it is necessary to explore some of the precursors to the modern religious movement. Celtic neo-paganism has three main sources of inspiration. Palaeo-Pagan Druidism

The first source of inspiration, referred by neo-pagan scholar and ADF Arch Druid Isaac Bonewits as "paleo-pagan Druidism," are the beliefs, philosophies, practices and culture of Celtic peoples in pre-Christian times. Celtic peoples were those peoples who lived in the British

Isles and in Europe in the Brittany region of France and the Galithia region of Spain. Some suggest that Celts also lived in other areas of Europe. Paleo-pagan Druids were, according the fragmentary records available, the priesthood of Celtic society. As Celtic Neo-pagan historian Christina Oakley puts it,

The written sources [available to us] say that the Druids were the priesthood of the Pagan Celts, and that they were the keepers of the wisdom and knowledge. They knew history, science, and poetry. They were judges, lawgivers, and advisors to kings. They were magicians and `shamans'. It was said that they knew the inner meanings of the landscape, could read the stars, and could commune with the spirit of the land.i How much of this image of paleo-pagan druids is true is unknown. Most of the records available are Christian records, others are Roman, none of them are Celtic - the history and culture of ancient pagan Celts was entirely oral - in fact, Bards, who were also Druids, were the lorekeepers, passing on the knowledge from generation to generation. As a result, there are only fragmentary accounts available. Some of these record what seem to be fairly impartial accounts, others record clearly biased accounts. Based on all of these accounts, and on some poetry and oral traditions that remain extant, this view of Celtic Druids seems warranted. They were associated with wisdom, scholarship, natural sciences, astronomy, magic, mysticism, law, history, and education. They were part of the larger social order, always working in conjunction with, rather than in opposition to, the social order. The Druid Revival The second historical source for contemporary Celtic Neo-Paganism is that of the eighteenth century Druidry Revival movement. According to a bibliography published in 1744 in Europe, over the period of 1514-1744, two hundred and sixty-one authors wrote works on Celtic Druidry. This persistent interest in Druidry by British and European scholars and intellectuals became especially manifest in 1717 with the founding of the philosophical organization An Druidh Uileach Braithreachas (A.D.U.B.), which translates as "The Druid Circle

of the Universal Bond." According to neo-pagan legend, this organization was formed of members of pre-existing Druid groups from all across the British Isles and Europe. These members were called to attend the first meeting by a man named John Toland, an Irish philosopher who, again according to legend, made the invitation according to Druidic practice on the autumn equinox (Sept. 21) of the previous year, by climbing Primrose Hill in London and calling for all Druids who heard the call to gather at the Apple Tree Tavern in London a year and a day later. This group later became known as the Ancient Druid Order, and the currently existing neo-pagan group known as the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (O.B.O.D) traces is lineage back to this eighteenth century group. How much of this story is fact, and how much is religious origin myth, is not certain.

The A.D.U.B. was not the only eighteenth century neo-druidic group to form. In 1781, another group, called the Ancient Order of Druids (A.O.D), was founded by a man named Henry Hurle. This group differed from the first in three main ways: first, it seemed to appeal to a more working class audience, whereas the A.D.U.B. appealed to a smaller, intellectualist group. Second, it incorporated explicitly Christian elements into its beliefs and practice. It is largely due to the influence of this group that the celtic Christian version of Druidry was created. Third, it focused more on practice than on scholarship, including a stress on social services for families of members. One Druid scholar claims that modern British health care and even automobile insurance stems from the social networks originally devised by the A.O.D.

A great many Druid Revival groups split off from these original groups, most maintaining an emphasis on community work and Christian syncretism. A third influential group was founded in 1792 by a man named Edward Williams, or better known by his Welsh name Iolo Morganwg. Morganwg, following in the footsteps of John Toland, chose Primrose

Hill in London as the site of his first Druid meeting, on mid-summer's day (June 21). He called his Welsh Druidic order the Gorsedd. He established guidelines for Druidic belief and ritual for the Gorsedd, and then integrated his movement with a pre-existing Welsh Bardic competition known as Eisteddfodau - a public speaking competition in which people recited poetry and speeches and participated in public debate. This practice, which probably dates back to preChristian times itself, became closely linked to Druidism as a result, although again with strong Christian syncretic overtones. Druid author Isaac Bonewits calls the Revivalist Druidic groups above meso-pagan druidism. According to Bonewits, this type of Druidism allowed people interested in pre-Christian religions, philosophies and practices to explore those interests without having to publicly or even personally declare themselves non-Christian. The Reformed Druids of North America

The third precursor to contemporary Celtic neo-paganism is much more recent than the previous two mentioned above. This third precursor is a group called the Reformed Druids of North America (R.D.N.A.), founded in 1963 on the campus of Carleton College by a man named David Fisher. According to wiccan author Margot Adler, this group began as a humorous protest against the college's requirement that all students attend a minimum number of religious services. Although the majority of students were expected to attend Christian worship services, the by-law of the college did leave open the possibility of attending services of other faiths as well. The founding members of the R.D.N.A. were largely Christians, Jews, and agnostics and/or atheists, and the founding of the R.D.N.A. was simply intended to protest the school rule, which was abolished under challenge the following year. However, after the rule was abolished the R.D.N.A. continued - much to the surprise, and according to Margot Adler, the horror, of the original founders. Apparently, the beliefs and practices of a movement originally founded in

humorous protest were engaging and attractive enough that certain members were unwilling to abandon them, and these members of the order kept their new faith even after they left college and moved throughout the United States.

The basic beliefs of this group are summarized in a document titled The Book of the Law, written in mock biblical style, as follows:

The object of the search for religious truth, which is a universal and a neverending search, may be found through the Earth-Mother; which is Nature; but this in one way, yea, one way among many. And great is the importance, which is of spiritual importance, of Nature, which is the Earth-Mother; for it is one of the objects of Creation, and with it do people live, yea, even as they do struggle through life are they come face-to-face with it.ii According to Isaac Bonewits, this was later shortened to the following statements: "1. Nature is good! and the second is like unto the first: 2. Nature is good!".iii The theology of this group is primarily bi-theistic: Nature, known as the Earth Mother, represents all that is natural and physical. Spirit, known as B?al, a Sky God, represents the nonmaterial essence of the universe. Female and nature, male and spirit, are understood as the two equal polarities of existence. The object of human search is believed to be the search for unity with B?al, universal spirit, which can in turn only be attained through attaining unity with the Earth Mother. Several other deities, including a God of the forests, are also worshipped. As a result, Reformed Druids are encouraged to develop themselves both physically and mentally, artistically and emotionally, etc., for it is only in attaining physical, mental, emotional and spiritual balance that the Reformed Druid can reach her goal.

It is to this group that most of the current Celtic neo-pagan groups can trace their existence, either directly or indirectly. According to Adler, there are R.D.N.A groups in at least seven states, although Isaac Bonewits suggests that no successful National organization ever emerged. Those who still trace their groups lineage directly back to the R.D.N.A. but include more of a pagan rather than Christian/Zen emphasis now refer to themselves as the "New Reformed Druids of North America," to distinguish themselves from their founders yet still identify with the original group. Other groups have splintered off completely from the R.D.N.A. Isaac Bonewits, ordained in 1969 as a Druid priest by an R.D.N.A. member and Carleton graduate named Robert Larson, has founded the most influential of these. The Myth of Druidism

All of these sources have been extremely influential in contemporary Celtic neopaganism. Drawing primarily upon these sources, contemporary Druidry has an "origin myth" that parallels that of Wicca. Like the "myth of Wicca," this story is no longer accepted as literally true by most contemporary Celtic neo-pagans. However, like the "myth of Wicca," it continues to resonate with the worldview and beliefs of contemporary Celtic neo-pagans. The "myth" of Druidism focuses around the link between Christianity and Celtic paganism. Given the fact that most of the surviving texts which speak about ancient Celtic ways were recorded by Christian monks, and given the emphasis in some of the Druidic Revival groups on Christian syncretism, and given the primarily Christian religious affiliation of most of the original members of the Reformed Druids of North America, this emphasis is not surprising.

According to this myth, the Celtic peoples of Great Britain and Northern France were great lovers of knowledge, of Nature, of music, of poetry, of Magic, and of Gods. They had elaborate codes of moral conduct, a legal system based on social obligation, and a hierarchy

based on merit and training. Druids were wizards, and scholars, and natural scientists, who worshipped in groves of oak trees, and underwent mystical transformations into the forms of animals. Bards were also wizards, wizards with magical power to remember, and recite, the histories of the lands, and to compose poetry in reverence of nature that still makes people pause in silence. The Celtic people lived in peace and harmony, and in respect for nature, and Druids worked closely with the Monarchy and the State to ensure the well-being of society.

Then, the myth of Druidism continues, Christianity arrived on the shores of Ireland and other Celtic places. In Ireland, it was brought by St. Patrick. Despite being also known as the saint who chased all the snakes (i.e. pagans) out of Ireland, the myth of Druidism suggests that when Patrick arrived on the shores of Ireland, the Druids were ready to greet him with open arms. One of the eighteenth century Revivalist Druids, a man named William Stukeley, suggested that Druids were in fact "of Abraham's religion [i.e. Judaism] and their religion was so extremely like Christianity, that in effect it differ'd from it only in this; they believed in a Messiah who was to come, as we believe in him that is come."iv Another suggested that the Druids worshipped a figure named Esus, or Hesus, who was pictured as a man-in-a-tree, which prefigured the image of Christ on the Cross. Although these are somewhat more radical versions of this aspect of the myth, the idea that paleo-celtic peoples had a faith compatible with Christianity is a central component of the myth of druidism.

The story told most often to account for the perceived compatibility between Celts and Christians is the story of Joseph of Arimathea and Glastonbury. According to this story, shortly after the death of Jesus his first disciples, including Mary Magdalene and Joseph of Arimathea, Jesus' uncle, travelled throughout the world spreading Christianity. They reached not only Rome, but all parts of the Roman empire, including Gaul (Germany and France) and England.

Mary Magdalene is said to have stopped her travels a druid site in France that eventually became a pilgrimage site, and Joseph continued on to England, where he eventually came to Glastonbury, site of a Druidic college and temple. It was Joseph of Arimathea, the story goes, who introduced Christian teachings to the Celts, and prepared them for the later arrival of St. Patrick and other Christian missionaries. They in turn helped him build Glastonbury Cathedral.

The other story told in connection to the link between Druidry and Christianity is the story of King Arthur and Merlin. One of the famous stories of King Arthur, of course, is story of Arthur's search for the Holy Grail, the cup from which Jesus drank at the last supper, and which was later used to catch the blood that fell from his side after his crucifixion. Two elements often get stressed here. The first is the symbol of the cup itself, which was also a strong Celtic symbol for eternal life, known as the Cauldron of Ceridwen. Arthur's quest can therefore be seen in Celtic as well as Christian terms, and the idea that Arthur was searching for a Celtic symbol, rather than a Christian one, is reinforced by the figure of the Lady of the Lake, who gives Arthur his famous sword Excalibur, and later takes Arthur to the magical island of Avalon. The Lady of the Lake, and Avalon, are both figures from Celtic mythology rather than Christian mythology, and so the story of Arthur is seen as Celtic and Christian both. The other symbol in the Arthur story that is seen as a tie to Druidism in particular is the figure of Merlin. Merlin, the wizard, is a Druidic figure, who leads the young Arthur to the throne after teaching him the secrets of nature. The fact that Merlin, the Druid, is chief advisor to Arthur, the Christian King, becomes yet another symbol of the unity between Celtic belief and later Christian faith.

Based on stories like these, the origin myth of neo-pagan druidism then continues with the assertion that the Druids and the other Celts were open to the idea of Christianity, and that they in fact underwent mass conversion to Christianity as soon as the beliefs were explained to

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