Celtic Neopaganism
Encyclopedia
Celtic polytheism
Celtic polytheism, commonly known as Celtic paganism, refers to the religious beliefs and practices adhered to by the Iron Age peoples of Western Europe now known as the Celts, roughly between 500 BCE and 500 CE, spanning the La Tène period and the Roman era, and in the case of the Insular Celts...
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Types of Celtic Neopaganism
- Neo-druidismNeo-DruidismNeo-Druidism or Neo-Druidry, commonly referred to as Druidism or Druidry by its adherents, is a form of modern spirituality or religion that generally promotes harmony and worship of nature, and respect for all beings, including the environment...
, grew out of the Celtic revivalCeltic RevivalCeltic Revival covers a variety of movements and trends, mostly in the 19th and 20th centuries, which drew on the traditions of Celtic literature and Celtic art, or in fact more often what art historians call Insular art...
in 18th century RomanticismRomanticismRomanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
. - Gorsedd Beirdd Ynys PrydainGorseddA gorsedd plural gorseddau, is a community or coming together of modern-day bards. The word is of Welsh origin, meaning "throne". It is occasionally spelled gorsedh , or goursez in Brittany....
(1792), based on Druidic ritual but also containing Christian elements. - The Druid OrderThe Druid Orderthumb|upright|alt=Druids at Tower Hill|Druids at Tower HillThe Druid Order is a neo-druidic group in the United Kingdom. It is also called An Druidh Uileach Braithreachas or, in English, The Druid Circle of the Universal Bond. Members are called companions....
(c. 1910, but claiming origins as early as 1717). - Order of Bards, Ovates and DruidsOrder of Bards, Ovates and DruidsThe Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids or OBOD is a Neo-Druidic organisation based in England, but based in part on the Welsh Gorsedd of Bards...
(OBOD, 1964). - Ár nDraíocht FéinÁr nDraíocht FéinÁr nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc. is a non-profit religious organization dedicated to the study and further development of modern, Neo-druidism practice....
(ADF, 1983). - Celtic WiccaCeltic WiccaCeltic Wicca is a modern tradition of Wicca that incorporates some elements of Celtic mythology. It employs the same basic theology, rituals and beliefs as most other forms of Wicca...
, loose syncretismSyncretismSyncretism is the combining of different beliefs, often while melding practices of various schools of thought. The term means "combining", but see below for the origin of the word...
of WiccaWiccaWicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
with aspects of Celtic mythologyCeltic mythologyCeltic mythology is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, apparently the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure...
; the mainstream Wiccan "Wheel of the YearWheel of the YearThe Wheel of the Year is a Neopagan term for the annual cycle of the Earth's seasons. It consists of eight festivals, spaced at approximately even intervals throughout the year. These festivals are referred to as Sabbats...
" syncretizes Celtic and Germanic festivals and Wicca itself syncretizes aspects of many different religions and cultures. - Church of the Universal BondChurch of the Universal BondThe Church of the Universal Bond was a religious group founded in Britain in the early twentieth century by George Watson MacGregor Reid, promoting socialist revolution, anti-imperialism and sun worship....
. - Reformed Druids of North AmericaReformed Druids of North AmericaThe Reformed Druids of North America is an American Neo-Druidic organization. It was formed in 1963 at Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota as a humorous protest against the college's required attendance of religious services. This original congregation is called the Carleton Grove, sometimes...
. - "Celtic NeoshamanismNeoshamanismNeoshamanism is a term signaling a "new" form or a revival of an old form of "shamanism", a system that comprises a range of beliefs and practices concerned with communication with the spiritual world....
", based on Michael HarnerMichael HarnerMichael Harner is the founder of the and the formulator of "core shamanism." Harner is known for bringing shamanism and shamanic healing to the contemporary Western world...
's controversial "Core ShamanismCore ShamanismCore Shamanism is a system of shamanic beliefs and practices synthesized by Michael Harner. Core shamanism does not hold a fixed belief system, but instead focuses on the practice of shamanic journeying and may on an individual basis integrate indigenous shamanism, the teachings of Carlos...
", focused on particular ideas of the "OtherworldOther WorldThe Otherworld is a concept in Celtic mythology, referring to a realm of the dead, the home of the deities or spirits....
"; proponents include John and Caitlin Matthews. - Celtic Reconstructionist PaganismCeltic Reconstructionist PaganismCeltic Reconstructionist Paganism is a polytheistic, animistic, religious and cultural movement...
(CR), Celtic Polytheistic reconstructionismPolytheistic reconstructionismPolytheistic reconstructionism is an approach to Neopaganism first emerging in the late 1960s to early 1970s, and gathering momentum in the 1990s to 2000s...
, who claim to form a more historically accurate and authentic tradition, claim to originate in the 1990s.
Celtic Shamanism
An assumption that the ancient religious practices of the peoples of the British IslesBritish Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
mirror those of contemporary Native peoples of America and Australia underlies the popularity of Celtic Shamanism, with its related books, training courses and Druidic Sweat Lodges.
An underlying assumption found amongst both scholars and neopagans is that shamanism is the most ancient and universal form of religious behaviour. This subsequently leads to the identification of shamanistic elements in early Irish tales such as Buile Suibhne and the stories Finn MacCool. Thus myth and legend are interpreted as evidence that contemporary Celtic shamanism is revitalising an ancient spiritual discipline, rather than historical or archeological evidece.
Organizations
- The Druid NetworkThe Druid Network-External links:***, New Statesman, 2006-11-06* in The Independent...
is a British Druidic Order and the first pagan practice to be given official recognition as a religion in the UK.
Literature
- Adler, MargotMargot AdlerMargot Adler is an author, journalist, lecturer, Wiccan priestess and radio journalist and correspondent for National Public Radio .- Early life :Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, Adler grew up mostly in New York City...
(1979) Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America TodayDrawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America TodayDrawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America Today is a sociological study of contemporary Paganism in the United States written by the American sociologist, Wiccan and journalist Margot Adler...
. - Bonewits, IsaacIsaac BonewitsPhillip Emmons Isaac Bonewits was an influential American Druid who published a number of books on the subject of Neopaganism and magic. He was also a liturgist, singer and songwriter, and founded the Druidic organisation Ár nDraíocht Féin, as well as the Neopagan civil rights group, the Aquarian...
(2006) Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism. New York, Kensington Publishing Group ISBN 0-8065-2710-2 Chapter 9: "Celtic Reconstructionists and other Nondruidic Druids". - Kondratiev, AlexeiAlexei KondratievAlexei Kondratiev was an author, linguist, and teacher of Celtic languages, Celtic folklore and Celtic culture. He taught the Irish language and Celtic history at the Irish Arts Center in Manhattan, New York from 1985 until his death on May 28, 2010. Nine editions of his book, The Apple Branch,...
(1998) The Apple Branch: A Path to Celtic Ritual. San Francisco, Collins. ISBN 1-898256-42-X (1st edition), ISBN 0-806-52502-9 (2nd edition) [also reprinted without revision under the title Celtic Rituals]. - Laurie, Erynn Rowan (1995) A Circle of Stones: Journeys and Meditations for Modern Celts. Chicago, Eschaton. ISBN 1-57353-106-5.
- NicDhàna, Kathryn Price; Erynn Rowan Laurie, C. Lee Vermeers, Kym Lambert ní Dhoireann, et al. (2007) The CR FAQ - An Introduction to Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism. River House Publishing. ISBN 978-0-6151-5800-6.
See also
- List of Neopagan movements
- Stonehenge Free FestivalStonehenge Free FestivalThe Stonehenge Free Festival was a British free festival from 1972 to 1984 held at Stonehenge in England during the month of June, and culminating on the summer solstice on June 21. The festival was a celebration of various alternative cultures...
- Neopaganism in the United KingdomNeopaganism in the United KingdomAn estimated 40,000 to 250,000 people make up the Neo-pagan movement in the United Kingdom, which includes a variety of paths and traditions such as Neo-Druidism, Germanic Neopaganism, and Wicca, accounting for roughly a quarter of Neo-pagans worldwide...
- Neopaganism in the United StatesNeopaganism in the United StatesNeopaganism in the United States is represented by widely different movements and organizations. The largest Neopagan religion is Wicca, followed by Neodruidism. Both of these religions were introduced during the 1950s from Great Britain. Germanic Neopaganism and Kemetism appeared in the US in...