{"id":3977,"date":"2015-08-18T17:00:57","date_gmt":"2015-08-18T23:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/?p=3977"},"modified":"2015-08-16T18:52:10","modified_gmt":"2015-08-17T00:52:10","slug":"bi-druidical","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html","title":{"rendered":"Bi-druidical"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"ADF\u2019s<\/a>
ADF\u2019s Druid Sigil<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

As of August 5 I am officially bi-druidical \u2013 a member of two Druid orders.\u00a0 I finally joined \u00c1r nDra\u00edocht F\u00e9in<\/a>.<\/p>\n

ADF was my first introduction to modern Druidry.\u00a0 I had done some reading on the ancient Druids and I identified as a Druid, but when I was asked to lead a Druid ritual for the first time<\/a>, I didn\u2019t know where to begin.\u00a0 I found Isaac Bonewits\u2019 website<\/a> and from there I found the ADF site<\/a>.\u00a0 The ritual I led for Denton CUUPS\u2019 Summer Solstice 2003 was about 90% ADF and 10% things I added from our local traditions.\u00a0 It went very well.<\/p>\n

Isaac founded ADF to be a Pagan, polytheist church.\u00a0 I wish he had picked another term, but \u201cchurch\u201d makes his intentions clear:\u00a0 ADF is a public religious order, not an occult esoteric society.\u00a0 ADF places a strong emphasis on public ritual and I definitely agree with that.\u00a0 They emphasize good scholarship to understand our ancient ancestors and their ways, which in turn builds a good foundation for a meaningful Pagan practice here and now.\u00a0 \u00a0Their basic liturgy focuses on forming and strengthening relationships with the Gods, ancestors and land spirits.\u00a0 They don\u2019t tell you what to believe about the Gods, ancestors, and land spirits \u2013 just honor them.\u00a0\u00a0ADF\u2019s goals and methods align very closely with my own.<\/p>\n

When I went looking for Druid training in 2004, I had a difficult decision to make.\u00a0 There were no Druid groups in any order in North Texas \u2013 that meant I was going to be learning via correspondence.\u00a0 While I preferred ADF\u2019s approach and their costs were significantly lower, everyone I talked to said OBOD\u2019s training program was better.\u00a0 So I joined The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids<\/a> and the rest is history<\/a>.<\/p>\n

ADF\u2019s Dedicant Path has been substantially upgraded since 2004, they now have Guild Study and Initiate Training Programs, and ADF\u2019s costs are still substantially lower.\u00a0 I have no regrets about my choice and I often recommend OBOD to seekers, but if I was choosing a Druid order for initial training today I\u2019d have a much harder decision.<\/p>\n

Now there\u2019s also a local group.\u00a0 Blackland Prairie Protogrove<\/a> was founded in 2008.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been to a few of their events, but they meet in Arlington which is about 60 miles from where I live.\u00a0 That\u2019s not an impossible distance in North Texas, but it\u2019s hard to do on a regular basis.<\/p>\n

Of course, as of a week ago there\u2019s also an OBOD seed group in North Texas:\u00a0 River of Stars Druid Fellowship<\/a>.\u00a0 It\u2019s not close to me either, but it\u2019s close enough to participate occasionally.\u00a0 I\u2019ll have more to say about River of Stars in a couple weeks.<\/p>\n

If I had unlimited time I\u2019d love to work through the Dedicant Path, the Initiate Program, and the Clergy Training Program.\u00a0 Just looking at the outlines on the public ADF site shows there\u2019s a lot there to learn.\u00a0 But I don\u2019t have unlimited time, I have several initiations, and I\u2019m already ordained<\/a>.\u00a0 While I never want to stop learning, I have the training I need to do the work I\u2019m called to do here and now \u2013 I just need to do it.\u00a0 Pursuing another initiation and ordination would keep me from that work. \u00a0So\u00a0I won\u2019t be doing\u00a0the ADF training programs. \u00a0This also means I will not be seeking leadership positions within ADF.<\/p>\n

So why join ADF if I\u2019m not going to dive into the deep end of the pool?\u00a0 Because I believe in its mission.\u00a0 I support its goals and methods.\u00a0 I\u2019ve benefitted from its structures and its heritage.\u00a0 I\u2019ve participated in its events<\/a>.\u00a0 I have received from ADF, so by the principle of reciprocity it\u2019s time I gave back to ADF, even if all I can give is my annual membership fee and my name on their rolls.<\/p>\n

At Many Gods West I talked about building institutions for the polytheist future<\/a>.\u00a0 ADF has been doing this since 1983.\u00a0 In particular, they\u2019ve built a priesthood and they\u2019ve built a strong public presence.\u00a0 There is much that current and future polytheist groups can learn from their experience.\u00a0 This is an organization worth supporting.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve long advised aspiring Druids to look into ADF, OBOD, and other orders.\u00a0 Check out their websites, talk to people who are members, read some of the books they recommend, then decide which order best fits you and your situation.<\/p>\n

But I\u2019d like to add that if there\u2019s an organization doing good work, support them.\u00a0 Even if it\u2019s not exactly what you want, and even if you can\u2019t fully participate in\u00a0them, support them.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m happy to be a member of ADF.<\/p>\n

\"Ritual<\/a>
Ritual at the 2015 ADF Texas Imbolc Retreat<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Though I happily remain an OBOD Druid, I\u2019m now also a member of ADF.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":3983,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[293,947,71,124,4,5,8],"class_list":["post-3977","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-druidry","tag-adf","tag-druidry","tag-isaac-bonewits","tag-obod","tag-pagan","tag-paganism","tag-polytheism"],"yoast_head":"\nBi-druidical<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Though I happily remain an OBOD Druid, I\u2019m now also a member of ADF.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bi-druidical\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Though I happily remain an OBOD Druid, I\u2019m now also a member of ADF.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"John Beckett\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-08-18T23:00:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2015-08-17T00:52:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2015\/08\/ADF-Imbolc-2015-37-600x300.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"John Beckett\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"John Beckett\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html\",\"name\":\"Bi-druidical\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2015-08-18T23:00:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2015-08-17T00:52:10+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#\/schema\/person\/b4c8980dc36f971434424c304ca429ad\"},\"description\":\"Though I happily remain an OBOD Druid, I\u2019m now also a member of ADF.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2015\/08\/bi-druidical.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Bi-druidical\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/\",\"name\":\"John Beckett\",\"description\":\"Musings of a Druid, Pagan, and Unitarian Universalist.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#\/schema\/person\/b4c8980dc36f971434424c304ca429ad\",\"name\":\"John Beckett\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f50bfa2a79f70103847fe75540bb29c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f50bfa2a79f70103847fe75540bb29c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"John Beckett\"},\"description\":\"I grew up in Tennessee with the woods right outside my back door. 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