{"id":411,"date":"2010-05-14T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2010-05-14T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid\/"},"modified":"2010-05-14T13:30:00","modified_gmt":"2010-05-14T13:30:00","slug":"druid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html","title":{"rendered":"Druid"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a>As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much on my own and even more from working with others in CUUPS, but I needed structure and guidance to help develop a deeper, more effective spiritual practice.<\/p>\n

By that point I knew that Druidry was my path. Unfortunately, there were no Druid groves in the DFW area at the time (an ADF Protogrove was started in Arlington in 2008; there are still no OBOD groves in Texas). I did some research into the correspondence courses of both \u00c1r nDra\u00edocht F\u00e9in<\/a> and the Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids<\/a>, and I ran into two people who had started both courses (but neither had finished either).<\/p>\n

OBOD looked somewhat more attractive to me, so in September 2004 I began their Bardic studies. It took 15 months for me to complete them. I began Ovate studies in January 2006 \u2013 that grade took over two years. I began the Druid grade in April 2008, and shortly after the Spring Equinox this year I completed the formal studies and the final review. Earlier this week I received this certificate proclaiming me \u201ca full member in the Druid grade.\u201d<\/p>\n

What does it mean? In a literal sense, not much. It carries no power, no special privileges, no fancy titles. I\u2019ve learned a few secrets I\u2019m honor-bound to keep, but nothing I couldn\u2019t have learned on my own had I been so inclined (psssstttt: there are no \u201coccult\u201d secrets\u2026 though there are ineffable mysteries).<\/p>\n

In another sense, though, it means more than I can say. It represents persistence and commitment to my spiritual path. The OBOD training is nominally a three year course, but I\u2019ve yet to meet anyone who\u2019s finished it that quickly \u2013 I was no exception. I promised myself at the beginning that I would give each lesson the time it needed and I wouldn\u2019t skim over anything. I kept that promise \u2013 even in the Bardic grade, where much of the material was not new to me \u2013 and I\u2019m glad I did. Much of the training I received was provided by Life, but OBOD helped me to better understand it, accept it, and keep it in a spiritual context.<\/p>\n

As I was getting ready to frame and hang my certificate, Cathy asked me \u201cwhat now?\u201d<\/p>\n

Now I practice.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much on my own and even more from working with others in CUUPS, but I needed structure and guidance to help develop a deeper, more effective spiritual […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nDruid<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much\" \/>\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\/2010\/05\/druid.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Druid\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"John Beckett\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-05-14T13:30:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/_cpRXT6ZSHTw\/S-2YAMvp2YI\/AAAAAAAAAdo\/kHgY_8VOaVY\/s400\/OBOD+Druid+Certificate+smaller.jpg\" \/>\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=\"2 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\/2010\/05\/druid.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html\",\"name\":\"Druid\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2010-05-14T13:30:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2010-05-14T13:30:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#\/schema\/person\/b4c8980dc36f971434424c304ca429ad\"},\"description\":\"As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Druid\"}]},{\"@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. Wandering through them gave me a sense of connection to Nature and to a certain Forest God. I\u2019m a Druid graduate of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, the Coordinating Officer of the Denton Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans and a former Vice President of CUUPS Continental. I\u2019ve been writing, speaking, teaching, and leading public rituals for the past eleven years. I live in the Dallas \u2013 Fort Worth area and I earn my keep as an engineer.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/author\/johnbeckett\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Druid","description":"As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Druid","og_description":"As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html","og_site_name":"John Beckett","article_published_time":"2010-05-14T13:30:00+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/_cpRXT6ZSHTw\/S-2YAMvp2YI\/AAAAAAAAAdo\/kHgY_8VOaVY\/s400\/OBOD+Druid+Certificate+smaller.jpg"}],"author":"John Beckett","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"John Beckett","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html","name":"Druid","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#website"},"datePublished":"2010-05-14T13:30:00+00:00","dateModified":"2010-05-14T13:30:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/#\/schema\/person\/b4c8980dc36f971434424c304ca429ad"},"description":"As I was completing my first term as an officer of Denton CUUPS, I came to the realization that I needed some formal training. I had already learned much","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2010\/05\/druid.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Druid"}]},{"@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. Wandering through them gave me a sense of connection to Nature and to a certain Forest God. I\u2019m a Druid graduate of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, the Coordinating Officer of the Denton Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans and a former Vice President of CUUPS Continental. I\u2019ve been writing, speaking, teaching, and leading public rituals for the past eleven years. I live in the Dallas \u2013 Fort Worth area and I earn my keep as an engineer.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/author\/johnbeckett"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1129"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=411"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}