Druidry

Humbled by the Darkness of Winter

December 15, 2011 By Teo Bishop

I started out this December with a nose dive into Christmas cheer. Then, I spent some time exploring what parts of the Christian holiday were still resonant with me, and what I'd happily left behind. Now, the introspection of the Dark Days has set in. It hit me unexpectedly. One moment I was working my craft, focussing on the task at hand, and the next I was on the verge of tears. Something someone said or some passing action spurred a memory of a younger me, and in that moment I was given … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Christianity, Druidry, Paganism Tagged With: Christmas, Darkness, Druidry, Introspection, Paganism, Yule

Holy Crap… I think I may be a Wiccan

November 9, 2011 By Teo Bishop

So I'm talking with one my best girlfriends this morning, pacing around her kitchen as she cooks up some kale, and I'm telling her the story of me being told by a women that, "Women, by nature, understand the Goddess better than men," or that, "There's just something about women that makes it easier for us to understand human emotions," or some other such gender-stereotypical malarky. I told her how there was going to be this paradigm shift from God-centered spirituality to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Divinity, Druidry, Gender, Paganism Tagged With: ADF, Druidry, Gender, GOD, Goddess, OBOD, Paganism, Theology, Wicca

What To Do On Samhain When You’re Dead

October 21, 2011 By Teo Bishop

Earlier this week the air took a turn toward December, becoming wet and visible, and the moisture that fell in cold, slow-motion stuck quickly to the cars, the streets, and the sidewalks. On the morning after the storm a massacre of tree branches covered the earth around my house, proving both the strength of water and the fragility of wood. What I like about the snow, and the timing of this particular storm being so close to Samhain, is the way in which it provides tactile evidence that the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Druidry, Paganism, Samhain Tagged With: Ancestors, Druidry, Halloween, High Day, Holiday, Paganism, Samhain, Snow, The Dead, Witches

A Druid in Los Angeles on the Autumn Equinox

September 23, 2011 By Teo Bishop

The weather in this town is a betrayal of my religious sensibilities. It’s all bright and warm and sunny without ceasing. This is the Land of Perpetual Summer. This town resists death at all costs; be that the death of youth, the death of popularity, the death of green. Death is frowned upon in Los Angeles. This town is in denial of Autumn. Autumn is my favorite season. It's just cold enough for two shirts, but not so cold that you can't enjoy an evening walk through the neighborhood, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Druidry, High Days Tagged With: Autumn Equinox, Druidism, Druidry, Dying, Harvest Home, Los Angeles, Mabon, Paganism

An Early Autumn Chill

September 9, 2011 By Teo Bishop

Our realtors walked through our bedroom and pointed out that my jewelry (a.k.a. Pagan Bling) would need to go, as would our book shelf of Buffy DVD's and the half-dozen, brown, wooden elephant figurines left over from our big, gay wedding. They were pleased with the size of the closet, though, if not a little concerned with the clutter. People like to see space, they told us. How metaphysical, I thought. They surveyed our kitchen next, which is lined with glass-doored cabinets, and they … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Domesticity, Paganism Tagged With: Autumn, Druidry, Fall, Home, Housing Market, Letting Go, Mabon, Paganism, Realty, Transformation

The Christo-Pagan Conflict

August 12, 2011 By Teo Bishop

Last night, after our Full Moon ritual, I wound up in a conversation with a Wiccan Priest about Christo-Pagans. "Those two things are mutually exclusive," he said adamantly. Something about his tone drew me in. I'm not a conflict junkie, but I felt like this was territory I should explore. The ritual, which he had partly officiated, was focussed on the idea of being "in balance" or "out of balance," with an emphasis placed on communication. This opportunity to explore how some people … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Christianity, Community, Paganism Tagged With: Christianity, Christo-Pagan, Community, Conflict, Druidry, Paganism, Politics, Society

Stock The Pantry and Tend The Dirt

August 9, 2011 By Teo Bishop

I don't can. My mom has in the past, but she never taught me how. I borrowed a big book on canning from her once, and it sat in my kitchen for an entire Autumn, unopened. I don't pickle. My grandma did, on my father's side. She was from the South, a land of pickling strange things. I didn't ask her much about pickling before her mind went, and she passed away a few years back. She took that knowledge with her. I don't harvest, in any literal sense. We have the frames for raised beds in our … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Paganism, Walking the Talk Tagged With: Druidry, Ecology, Environmentalism, Food, John Michael Greer, Paganism, Relevance, Resources, Ritual, Star Foster, Survivalism

The Fire Of A Solitary Druid

July 20, 2011 By Teo Bishop

We are all solitary. Even those of us who practice with a group, or who gather at festivals to dance around fires, or stand in circles under full moons. We are all solitary, still. There are politics in Groves and Covens, just as in Churches and Temples. There are people who seek to shape things in their image, and to bend the will of the universe to their liking. And, there are people who just long to be loved, and respected, and made to feel important, regardless of the size of their … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Community, Druidry Tagged With: ADF, Community, Druidry, Fire, Imbas, Ministry, Paganism, priest, Priestess

How I Arrived At Pagan

May 27, 2011 By Teo Bishop

Over the past few days I've taken great pleasure in reading and re-reading the posts of the Rogue Priest, Mr. Drew Jacob, who describes himself as, Priest of many gods. Freelance author, nonprofit professional, and full-time adventurer. I like Drew. He's intellectually rigorous, but not snobby. He's thoughtful and respectful of his readership, and he challenges us to think broader and deeper. I think I'd end up a regular at his Temple if it weren't 900 miles away. Drew doesn't identify as a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Christianity, Druidry, Paganism Tagged With: ADF, Christianity, Community, Drew Jacob, Druidism, Druidry, Episcopal Church, Liturgy, OBOD, Pagan, Paganism, Practice, Rogue Priest, worship

Show and Tell: My Bookshelf

May 24, 2011 By Teo Bishop

My friend and fellow Dedicant in the ADF Druidry Training Course, Kristin of Grey Wren's Flight, had a mighty fine idea on Monday. She decided that in response to the disconnect we often feel between our experiences of real-life, physically manifest, grit'n'grime spiritual practice and the text-based, idea-centered, socially networked way we communicate online, she would share a photo of her spiritual work space. It is, in effect, a reminder that she does exist somewhere in the world...not just … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Druidry, Show and Tell Tagged With: ADF, Bookshelf, Community, Druidism, Druidry, grey wrens flight, Kristin, Photo, Solitary Druid, Tools, Work Space