The Druid Network
Encyclopedia
The Druid Network is a British
druid
ic (neo-pagan) organisation providing a source of information and inspiration about modern Druidic traditions, practices and their histories. It was founded in February 2003 by Emma Restall Orr
, a leading voice in British Druidry.
The Druid Network was created to act as an internet framework making tangible the spirit-web that is the global community of the Druid tradition and other natural philosophies and Paganisms. Like a sacred well, the Network aims to offer a blend of inspiration and information, yet not only from words presented as articles and ideas. In the spirit of the oral tradition of our ancestors and our heritage, the power of the Druid Network is in the encounters it enables between individuals, soul to soul, mind to mind : people walking together upon the same road.
A major project of The Druid Network is called Honouring the Ancient Dead
, a programme developed in cooperation with the Manchester Museum
(U.K.) for the proper and dignified treatment of human remains at ancient archaeological sites in the United Kingdom. The programme has been reported on in "British Archaeology" (Issue 77, July 2004) and "The New Statesman," (6 November 2006.)
The structure of the Network is based on Druidic and pagan tenets. It therefore claims no hierarchy, but for administrative purposes numerous categories of membership are constitutionally defined, as are lines of communication. The governing Committee consists of selected Staff Members, chosen by the previous Committee from all applicants.
The Network comprises working project areas on four continents as well as its British home: Europe, North America, South America, and Oceania. The Network does not, however, simply focus on members. They work for the wider Druid community and the world at large through teaching and programmes in areas of ethics, ecology, and spirituality. The website offers members and non-members alike a large variety of options for active engagement.
The heart of The Druid Network is the Druid Order of the Yew, a community of Druid Priests bound together by their pledges of Commitment to their Communities across the several continents of the Network.
Across the globe many Druid Groves and other Druidic organisations are affiliated with The Druid Network. The Druid Network Across North America is composed of sixteen Regions, most headed by Regional Coordinators. Its purpose is to assist Druid Groups and individuals in the practice of Druid spirituality, to seek to define what Druidry means in North America, and to identify and coordinate programs for social action and ethical awareness. Similar manifestations of the Network can be found in Spain, the Netherlands, France, Brazil, and Oceania.
The Druid Network organises the Lammas Games an annual bardic festival of sports, songs and storytelling. The Druid Network also has a collection of "expressions" of Druidry that contains services to aid its community with inspiration regarding current issues, environmental ideas, ethical living choices, a tradition named PaganDASH and a pagan prison minister service.
In September 2010, the Charity Commission for England and Wales agreed to register The Network as a charity. This was reacted to by right-wing tabloid columnist Melanie Phillips writing in the Daily Mail
as the decision being "a joke". In response a 4,000 strong petition was taken to the newspaper and the press complaints commission.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
druid
Druid
A druid was a member of the priestly class in Britain, Ireland, and Gaul, and possibly other parts of Celtic western Europe, during the Iron Age....
ic (neo-pagan) organisation providing a source of information and inspiration about modern Druidic traditions, practices and their histories. It was founded in February 2003 by Emma Restall Orr
Emma Restall Orr
Emma Restall Orr is a British neo-druid, animist, priest, poet and author . She worked for the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids in the early 1990s, becoming an Ovate tutor. In 1993 she became joint chief of the British Druid Order staying until 2002...
, a leading voice in British Druidry.
The Druid Network was created to act as an internet framework making tangible the spirit-web that is the global community of the Druid tradition and other natural philosophies and Paganisms. Like a sacred well, the Network aims to offer a blend of inspiration and information, yet not only from words presented as articles and ideas. In the spirit of the oral tradition of our ancestors and our heritage, the power of the Druid Network is in the encounters it enables between individuals, soul to soul, mind to mind : people walking together upon the same road.
A major project of The Druid Network is called Honouring the Ancient Dead
Honouring the Ancient Dead
Honouring the Ancient Dead is a British Neopagan advocacy group working within Britain for the dignified treatment of human remains of British pagan provenance. It explores the issues of excavation, storage, museum display, disposal, repatriation and reburial...
, a programme developed in cooperation with the Manchester Museum
Manchester Museum
The Manchester Museum is owned by the University of Manchester. Sited on Oxford Road at the heart of the university's group of neo-Gothic buildings, it provides access to about six million items from every continent and serves both as a resource for academic research and teaching and as a regional...
(U.K.) for the proper and dignified treatment of human remains at ancient archaeological sites in the United Kingdom. The programme has been reported on in "British Archaeology" (Issue 77, July 2004) and "The New Statesman," (6 November 2006.)
The structure of the Network is based on Druidic and pagan tenets. It therefore claims no hierarchy, but for administrative purposes numerous categories of membership are constitutionally defined, as are lines of communication. The governing Committee consists of selected Staff Members, chosen by the previous Committee from all applicants.
The Network comprises working project areas on four continents as well as its British home: Europe, North America, South America, and Oceania. The Network does not, however, simply focus on members. They work for the wider Druid community and the world at large through teaching and programmes in areas of ethics, ecology, and spirituality. The website offers members and non-members alike a large variety of options for active engagement.
The heart of The Druid Network is the Druid Order of the Yew, a community of Druid Priests bound together by their pledges of Commitment to their Communities across the several continents of the Network.
Across the globe many Druid Groves and other Druidic organisations are affiliated with The Druid Network. The Druid Network Across North America is composed of sixteen Regions, most headed by Regional Coordinators. Its purpose is to assist Druid Groups and individuals in the practice of Druid spirituality, to seek to define what Druidry means in North America, and to identify and coordinate programs for social action and ethical awareness. Similar manifestations of the Network can be found in Spain, the Netherlands, France, Brazil, and Oceania.
The Druid Network organises the Lammas Games an annual bardic festival of sports, songs and storytelling. The Druid Network also has a collection of "expressions" of Druidry that contains services to aid its community with inspiration regarding current issues, environmental ideas, ethical living choices, a tradition named PaganDASH and a pagan prison minister service.
In September 2010, the Charity Commission for England and Wales agreed to register The Network as a charity. This was reacted to by right-wing tabloid columnist Melanie Phillips writing in the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
as the decision being "a joke". In response a 4,000 strong petition was taken to the newspaper and the press complaints commission.
External links
- The Druid Network
- The Lammas Games
- Grateful dead, New StatesmanNew StatesmanNew Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
, 2006-11-06 - Brief mention in The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...