Reformed Druids - Serious and Not So Serious
Searles

Fri Aug 11 12:07:49 2000
Here's what a lively set of Reformed Druids has accomplished merely by maintaining a database of records over the years. I quote a fragment from one such record:*p*Part Zero: Introductory Information*p*Who are the Reformed Druids?*p*In a woefully inadequate thumbnail sketch; the Reformed Druids are a group of people from many religions and philosophies who are attempting to find answers to spiritual and philosophical questions. They officially began at Carleton College in 1963 as an attempt to circumvent a mandatory attendance requirement of religious services. Disliking the attitude behind forced attendance, they light-heartedly made up their own "religion" and attended it regularly to see if that was sufficient. After Carleton rescinded the requirement the Druids found that their activity had brought up many questions that weren't answered yet. They changed their goal from bucking the Require-ment into a quest for personal growth and spiritual exploration. Over the years, they established "missionary groves" to continue their work. One such missionary branch, in Berkeley California, would eventu-ally take itself a litle more seriously and become the first Neo-Pagan Druidic religion in America. From that grove, Ar nDraiocht Fein, The Henge of Keltria and a few other major Druid movements in America would come to trace their roots. Most Reformed Druids continue to disagree with eachother on all other details.*p*Four Helpful Study Guides*p*Books contain knowledge and knowledge is a tool. I have pre-sumptuously devised some instruction manuals for various people who may someday use this anthology. I have advice for four types of people who are using this book. Choose the type that works best for you or come up with your own system. 1. A "novice" seeker of Truth. 2. A religious scholar. 3. An experienced Neo-Pagan, Wiccan, New-Ager or Occultist. 4. An old-time, experienced Reformed Druid.*p*Type One: Advice for the "novice" seekers of the Truth.*p*You are looking for answers to difficult questions. So are we. We are not gurus and none of us will know all the answers. Reformed Druidism is an unending search. You might already be Reformed Druid and just may not know it. If so, congratulations! If you don't think so, that's fine too. My estimation of personal worth is not affected by how many people share my beliefs... or I like to think so. Let's face it, this is a big collection and it all looks very compli-cated. Druidism is very simple, perhaps so simple that you will pass by its message and keep looking for a more complex answer. Druid-ism is merely asking questions to yourself and to others and not stopping until you get honest answers. No kidding, it really is that simple! It's also that difficult. If you cannot accept that, then you should put this book down. Everything else in this collection is just an affirmative elaboration on this point. Remember that all one has to do to be a Reformed Druid (at least in the Spirit of the law) is to agree with the Basic Tenets as listed in verses 4-6 of the Book of Law which can be found in the Druid Chronicles (Reformed), and I quote:*p*1. The object of the search for religious truth, which is a universal and a never ending search, may be found through the Earth-Mother, which is Nature; but this is one way, yea, one way among many. 2. And great is the importance, which is of a spiritual importance, of Nature, which is the Earth-Mother; for it is one of the objects of Creation, and with it men do live, yea, even as they do struggle through life are they come face to face with it. Any Druid who claims any further requirement to be a Reformed Druid is not following the tradition of the Reform. Most people have already come to those two conclusions by their own brainpower and could well already be considered First Order Druids in the Body of the Reform, even if they haven not drunk the consecrated Waters of Life to thereby also become First Order Druids in Spirit of the Re-form (cf. Chapter One of the Customs of the Druids to be found in the Chronicles ). Therefore, having read only this far, I'm sure you are now fully capable of closing this book and continuing on your study of the Reformed Druidism through the active medium of your own life and the world that surrounds and permeates you, without ever having to read from this collection again! So why did I bother to construct a study program? Partly because it was fun for me. Partly, because a friend asked me to make one and because eventually somebody else would have again pestered me into making one. The better question is why do you need a study pro-gram? Perhaps because, if you read this book straight through, from cover to cover, you will only get confused and may not enjoy it. I know of no one, including myself, who would ever want to follow that method! Would you read a French dictionary from cover to cover just to learn a definition of the word "terre-neuve"? The easiest way to begin to understand a new religion or culture is to listen to its favorite stories. Treat each of the articles in this anthology as a story, not as a textbook or cookbook. We're not going to quiz you and even I don't know all this stuff verbatim (nor would I ever care to!). If you don't like one of the articles, don't read it!!, and just skip around until something else catches your eye. However, some of you egg-heads may wish to learn more of the past, in an orderly structured fashion. For you, I have devised a study program.*p*Reasons not to Undertake the Twelve Step Study Program *p*You should have no doubts that tere is only one entirely optional entirely optional entirely optional entirely optional entirely optional possible schedule, yea one among many ways, for reading this book I jokingly refer to it as my "Druidic Twelve Step Program" and I made it up by myself in December 1995, so in all likelihood you'd be amongst the first to try it out. Please, don't expect anyone else to have ever heard of it or to be impressed that you worked on it. Also, I would indeed be saddened if you were studying Reformed Druidic texts in order to "quote scripture" at other Druids to get your own way. Your participation in such a program should only be because you you you you you want to explore the issues of Reformedly Druidical thought for your personal benefit. The Reform has not required any training program of its members. Let me explain: In the past, people would attend a few rituals to get the feeling for the RDNA before entering the First Order. Similarly, because people often entered the Second Order to act as Preceptor in a service, they would generally become familiar with the text of the average liturgy in use. Those intending to enter the Third Order would often study the liturgy a little more, because they might have to perform a service, and usually by that point they would probably have read (at least once) the five books in the Druid Chronicles (Reformed), and they probably meditated before making a life-long commitment to the Reform by entering the Third Order. Some people entered these Orders as a sort of spiritual maturation rite of passage and never.11 intend to perform a liturgy in their entire life! Indeed, some people have spent all of 30 minutes skimming the texts of the Reform be-fore feeling ready for the Third Order. I've even ordained someone who hadn't even read the Chronicles! So if you are seeking an even-tual path to ordination to the First Order or above, you DO NOT  have to participate in this program, just locate a friendly local Re-formed Druid and save yourself a lot of time and effort. Spending all that time amongst the past writings of Reformed Druidism may in fact hinder your own participation, when you should be more con-cerned with the more important present or future of your own Re-formed Druidism! Therefore proceed only if you desire questions, because that's all you will get from this study, but hopefully they'll be good questions that will take you to other fulfilling studies.*p*How to proceed in the Druid Twelve Step Study Program *p*The basic maxim of the study program is "slow and steady ploughs the farm". It may easily take over three months to fully finish this reading regimen that I have listed below. Inspiration often comes unexpectedly with the raw passage of time, so do not despair. Going slowly allows you the time to digest what you read. I have gone through several plateaus (sometimes lasting nine months) during my first five years in trying to understand Druidism, and I have had many excel-lent teachers and fellow Druids to talk with. Each step of a phase should take a few days, or perhaps even a week or two, but you may choose your own pace. I recommend that after finishing each step, meditate a bit, and re-read your favorite parts. Definitely, it may help to let a few days pass before proceeding to the next step. Go as far as you need. After placing the issues in a generic context, discuss them with a friend. Druidism is best absorbed with a cup of tea, a warm cat, and a pile of cookies. I have added a few questions and comments to think about before you begin on each step. If you'd like to (and have nothing better to do, like going outside to a park for a pleasant walk) you can write little mini-essays for yourself on the questions I have included in each step, or make up your own questions, or you can ignore the questions. Do not send the essays to me or expect anyone else to review them, but feel free to donate the better quality essays to the Druid Archival project for storage. I also welcome the submission of alternative study plans that you may come up with based on your first-hand experiences of studying Reformed Druidic scriptures with a clean slate of mind. Who knows, someday your recommendations just might get read by someone. The Beginning Phase: The RDNA from 1963-74 *p*Step 1. What was Reformed Druidism like in the very beginning?*p*Begin by reading the five books of The Druid Chronicles (Reformed) in Part One. They will essentially provide you with a colorful history of what happened during the very first year of Reformed Druidism. The Chronicles are also handy collection of early customs, tentative rules and meditations which David Frangquist (the third Archdruid of Carleton) thought would be useful for incoming Druids to know about.*p*- What a group does in its first years can often tell you a lot about them. - The DC(R) were written at the conclusion of the year of found-ing, and may be Frangquist's attempt to prepare the foundations for his formative Archdruidcy. - With the possible exception of recruitment leaflets, DC(R) en-joys the honor of being the most widely read text within the Reform. - Footnotes help, but if you will read this twice, read it the first time without referring to the footnotes, trying to get a feeling for it as a whole work of literature. - Keep in mind, they often have their tongue firmly planted in their cheek. The language is awkward, because they thought it sounded funny and formal that way. - The message is far more important than the ceremonies, holi-days, or hierarchy. - How many biblical allusions can you spot? - My favorite part of the Chronicles is the book of Meditations. - The book of Meditations, incidentally, has nearly all of the passages from the entire Reformed literature that talks about the vague Be'al and Dalon Ap Landu. I suspect that most later Carleton Druids concentrated more on the perceptions of Dru-idism and did not really concern themselves with building a mythology. Curiously, even the NRDNA of Berkeley, which be-came heavily Neo-Pagan, did not elaborate much upon these name-archetypes.*p*Step 2. Views on the Reform by early Druids besides Frangquist. *p*Read just the first seven books of The Books of the Apocrypha from The Book of Faith up to and including Letter to My Brothers in Part Two. The Apocrypha are a collection of letters and sermons by Re-formed Druids that were written after the Druid Chronicles (Reformed) were written by Frangquist. Step 2 stops with the letters written in May 1974. We will pause in our reading of the Apocrypha, as these letters represent the quieter period of early Druidic expansion, be-fore the Isaac Affair stirred things up. We will continue the Apocry-phal readings in Step 6, when you'll have understood more about the thoughts of Reformed Druidism during the early years.*p*- Consider these letters as by-products of Druidism in action, not as dogma. - Note the individual styles. - These books are light in spirit and provoke friendly introspec-tion. - Don't move on to the remaining Apocryphal books, yet, as they are fiercer. - After reading a selection, read the matching historiography at the end of Part Two. How does this change your interpretation? Why should it?*p*Step 3. The eclectic interests of the Druid of the early Reform. *p*Browse through The Three Green Books in Part Six over a few days. An important part of a Druidic service was the reading of a short meditation and then followed by a period of silence. Many Druids considered this part of the service to be very special for their spiritual growth. The Green Books contain samples from the many religions of the world, considered to be Druidic in spirit by their collectors. You can tell a lot about a group by the kinds of stories they would tell. Although most Groves would come up with their own readings (or sit quietly), the Green Book was only really known at Carleton. Please note that volume 1 comes from Carleton's 1963-1976 period and volumes 2 and 3 are from the 1993-1996 period.*p*- Skip the ones that look boring, perhaps coming back to them later. - Pause for a few minutes after reading each selection, and medi-tate quietly. - You may meditate on how these selections fit into their "home" religions, but also consider whether they illuminate an already existing aspect of your own faith. You'd be amazed at what lee-way exist in the corners of many religions. - It is interesting that many of these selections become more inter-esting with the passage of time between readings. - If you enjoy one particular area of readings, perhaps the Chris-tian or Bahai selections, then go to a library or bookstore and do.12 some further exploration. - Ask friends for their favorite collections of religious stories. If you find a good collection send some of your favorite short sto-ries, quotes or lessons into the Archives or to other Groves. Perhaps you might wish to start your own little Green Book collection and eventually publish it. The trick is that they must understandable to someone with little background knowledge. - Occasionally return to Part Six and see if something then looks interesting.*p*Step 4. Learning to look up all those strange terms, rules and  Trivia*p*Casually skim through the Traditions, Customs and Other Irrel-evant Trivia in Part Four. This section explains the pesky terms that are peculiar to Reformed Druidism. The value of acquainting your-self with the location of these sections, and their general contents, may help you when you try to understand the debates in Steps 6, 7 and 8.*p*- Acquaint yourself with the location of the selections, but do not memorize them. - Skip areas that don't look useful now, like calendars. You can always return. - This area is a reference tool, only to be studied when necessary. - This is a heavily fossilized area, so beware of falling dinosaurs. - At this point, you have now read more about Reformed Druid-ism than 95% of all the Druids in the Reform. Are your opin-ions better informed than their real-life experiences?*p*Step 5. So what did the Druids do at services*p*Leisurely examine The Liturgy of the Druids in Part Three. I've delayed this part of ARDA, because many Reformed Druids have seen ritual as a perennial distraction from Druidism and occasion-ally as a potential cause for fierce debate. This collection represents almost 90% of all the written liturgies that I've been able to get my hands upon. I suspect they represent less than 5% of all the actual scripts ever performed by Reformed Druids. Some of the time, Dru-ids used either the original Black book scripts at Carleton upto 1980, or the DC(E) versions amongst the NRDNA, with a great deal of improvising by both groups. The rest of the time they just winged it.*p*- You may wish to review the calendars and holidays of the vari-ous branches of the Reform found in Part Four, so that you can understand why the liturgies have different themes and activities depending on the time of the year. - What types of opinion exist within the Reform about the role of liturgy both within the Reform itself and in the context of man-kind as a whole? - Understand the liturgical and secular roles of the three officers of a Grove. These roles differed occasionaly between groves and after 1976 it gets more complicated amongst the New RDNA of the West Coast and the SDNA. - What is the role and purpose of ritual, routine or liturgy in your life? - Notice certain common contents between liturgies. Why are they popular? - Notice flagrant deviations from the standard model. Are certain parts less useful or possibly distasteful to certain Druids? - How do the Reform's various liturgies and orders compare to those found in religions that you are familiar with? - If you are interested in the mechanics and theory of writing ceremony, pay attention to Robert Larson's and Isaac's materi-als. Isaac's epistles in the Apocrypha, and his book "Real Magic", describe his own attitude towards magical liturgies, and his groups in Ar nDraiocht Fein have done further work with his ideas and those of other Neopagan Druids. Do not assume that everyone in Berkeley agreed with Isaac as the Oral History tapes and com-ments from the Dead Sea Scrolls of Part Nine and the publica-tions of Part Twelve will amply demonstrate. - Try composing a Reformed liturgical rite for yourself. What would a Druidic "baptism" or funeral service be like? Which elements would you keep and what innovations do you feel are appropri-ate? Send in a copy for the Archives with an essay about your ideas.*p*The Intermediate Phase: The Great Debates of the Isaac Affair *p*Step 6. The opening groundwork of the debates*p*Read from the first part of The Book of Changes up to and includ-ing the Epistle of Norman as found in The Books of the Apocrypha in Part Two. This collection of letters show the initial reactions to a revolutionary letter sent by Isaac to the entire Council of Dalon Ap Landu, the legislative body of the Reform. Step 6 through Step 8 are some of the most confusing sections of the study program because most of the Druids involved in the debate didn't know much about eachother and the concept of Neo-Paganism had only really been invented in 1973, about a year earlier*p*- Go slow, and use your reference skills from Step 4 to look up more information on the difficult terms and topics being ban-died about. - It is vital to remember that these are personal opinions not doc-trinal statements. - If you feel rising emotions of anger or partisanship, examine them. - Up to now, you haven't seen Reformed Druids argue. Don't choose sides, but observe the arguments? What are the most interesting statements, in your opinion? - After each selection, read the corresponding historiography, and then review your opinion. Has your opinion or understanding changed? Why? - You may have to refer to Part Four for clarifications on terminol-ogy. - Notice the attempt to respectfully discuss their deeply personal opinions.*p*Step 7. The branching of the Reform into three groups*p*Read from the second part of The Book of Changes upto and the Second Epistle of Isaac as found in The Books of the Apocrypha in Part Two. Isaac's vote was taken and a sort of stalemate was reached. The Reform developed three branches at this point, essentially an status quo group retaining the name RDNA, a radical experimental ver-sion known as the Schismatics Druids of North America, and a moderate party known as the New RDNA. The turn of debates is turning more towards issues of imporving communication to pre-vent future flare ups . The Druid Chronicles (Evolved) collection is put together during this period.*p*- Follow the same steps as in Step 6. - When is a faction a mob-mentality and not a coalition of indi-viduals? - It is intriguing how even the most individualistic Druids will sometimes rely on local custom rather than personal understand-ing or experimentation. - What's are the pros and cons of the proposed hierarchy upon Reformed Druidism?*p*Step 8. The Conclusion to the Great Debates of the Isaac Affair. *p*Conclude your Apocryphal studies with readings from the third part of A Book of Changes upto the final entry, Some Final Thoughts, in The Books of the Apocrypha. Basically this collection is a winding down of the debate. Isaac stopped writing letters about change, and simply started printing a magazine known as The Druid Chronicler, in which Druids could hold discussion on various topics. Those.13 articles are to be found in Part Twelve of ARDA.*p*- Again, follow the same steps as in Steps 6 and 7. - Notice where opinions have changed or where differences are acknowledged. - Summarize the important debates of the Isaac Affair. - What is your current inclination on these issues? Note them now, and refer back to them in a few years to investigate how much your opinions change over time. - Consider studying these generic issues through other non-Dru-idic books.*p*The Advanced Phase: Overviews and Grove Specific materials *p*Step 9. A overview of the general history of the Reform Step 9. A overview of the general history of the Reform Step 9. A overview of the general history of the Reform Step 9. A overview of the general history of the Reform Step 9. A overview of the general history of the Reform. Review your previous notes and then read from the front page upto and including Chapter Seven of A General History of Reformed Druidism in America in Part Eight. You have now read enough pri-mary sources (i.e. first hand accounts by eye-witnesses) that you have developed some well-grounded opinions of your own about the Re-form. Now here's my overview of the history of the Reform, but I don't expect you to agree with me. Perhaps it'll fill in some chinks, provide intriguing trivia, put things into perspective and perhaps help you to understand me a little bit.*p*- This is a very large reading. Break it down into separate read-ings, as you see fit. - Remember that this is just a long epistle laden with my own personal opinions. - Notice the resources used; documents, oral interviews, and wild conjecture. - How could Scharding's Carleton & Zen-Christian inclinations bias my history? - Compare or contrast the underlying messages of A General His-tory with Scharding's shorter epistle "The Book of Lacunae" found in the Apocrypha. - What would be different if this history were written by Bonewits, Larson or Carruth? You'll find published books by Bonewits in Appendix C of Part Eight and amongst Ar nDraoicht Fein. All three Berkeleyite authors have letters in the Apocrypha, in the NRDNA publications of Part Twelve, and on the Oral History tapes and miscellaneous letters which are available from the Carleton Archives. - What a historian does not talk about is very revealing. Is some-thing missing?*p*Step 10. Where did Isaac go?  Various other overviews of the RDNA*p*Skim the appendices of A General History. These are relatively incidental to the overall view of Reformed history. The first appen-dix on ADF shows how Ar nDraiocht Fein clarifies and possibly fulfills Isaac's goals and dreams for the eventual evolution of the SDNA and NRDNA. Now that you know how I view the history of the Reform, perhaps you'll understand why I'm not satisfied with the skimpy flat versions portrayed by the encylcopaedias.*p*- Feel free to explore Ar nDraiocht Fein's materials in the ar-chives or to join ADF for a while to see how the group really operates. - Note Scharding's critiques of other published interpretations of Reformed Druidic history. What biases does Scharding have and how far are they from the original message of the Reform?*p*Step 11. Various readings that are Grove-specific in interest. *p*Read The Great Druish Books of Part Five and The Druid Miscel-lany in Part Seven. Then read whatever else you find interesting, as you see fit. Do not feel compelled to read any of further selections. There may be more important things to do in your Druidical life. Each of the following selections are oriented towards special interest areas within the Reform.*p*- At this point the remaining parts of ARDA become more spe-cialized and are usually only of specific interest to the Grove that wrote them, if even that. - The Great Druish Books were written by, about, and for the Hasidic Drues of the Arch Grove of St. Louis. Notice the attempt to blend some of the perceptions gained from the Neo-Pagan vari-ety of Reformed Druidism into Jewish tradition. - An intriguing aspect of The Great Druish Books, despite their incredibly dogmatic appearance is their leniency. - The Druid Miscellany is mostly of interest to the Berkeley Grove and those pursuing a Celtic Neo-Pagan variety of Reformed Dru-idism. - The Books of the Latter Day Druids in Part Nine is an eccentric collection of books written by Reformed Druids since 1992 dur-ing the Clinton Renaissance. - The Dead Lake Scrolls within Part Nine are from Carleton, mostly by Michael Scharding with advice by other Druids. They're rather goofy, but they indicate the earlier phase of his Druidic (mis)understanding. - The Dead Sea Scrolls within Part Nine are from the Hazelnut Grove in California and show how they survived the tumultuous conclusion of the Isaac Affairs, and still kept their sense of hu-mor and tolerance. The Dead Sea Scrolls, along with the oral history tapes and some of the later works of Part Twelve are good balancing opinions of the internal diversity of the Berkeleyites. - The Book of the African Jedi Knight within Part Nine was Scharding's attempt to provide some African materials and also compared Bantu beliefs with some of the religious element of the Star Wars Saga. Indeed, science fiction often explores religious and cultural possibilities that have not yet been attempted. - The Book of Ultimate Answers within Part Nine is a joke on the self-help genre and pokes funs at the divination practitioners. - The Books of Song and Poetry within Part Nine are various poems in use during the Scharding Archdruidcy at Carleton. - The Oral Histories of Part Ten and The Regular Druid Publica-tions of Part Twelve provide more insight into the history and developments within the various varieties of Reformed Druid-ism at Carleton and elsewhere.*p*The Super Advanced Phase: A review *p*Step 12. Final thoughts and a time for reflection. Step 12. Final thoughts and a time for reflection. Step 12. Final thoughts and a time for reflection. Step 12. Final thoughts and a time for reflection. Step 12. Final thoughts and a time for reflection. Slowly review all your questions, notes and insights from the first eleven steps of the beginner's study guide program. At the end of every project there should be a time to pause and assess the outcome and progress that has been attained.*p*- Ask yourself, "What lessons have I learned?". Meditate for a while. - Ask yourself, "Which could I apply to my life?". Meditate again. - Participation in this study program did not require dropping your religion and become a Druid. It hopefully required you to think. - You have studied a great deal of written texts by Reformed Dru-ids. Now realize, as I explained in The Book of Lacunae, that all of these Druids received THEIR inspiration from Nature and not from books. - A Druid is a Druid because they are a Druid. - Most Druids find that the insights of Druidism (whatever they may be) will make their studies and practice of religion more useful and challenging. - Ask yourself, "What more is there to learn?" Go and learn it. *p**br*




http://www.student.carleton.edu/orgs/Druids/ARDA/ARDA-00.pdf
A Link to the RDNA Anthology (PDF formatted)