The Druid path requires a different kind of faith that what I’ve known before. This new faith is a faith in the power and relevance of my own actions.
One must believe that the Kindred are conscious and aware – that could be a leap of faith for many of us. But, outside of that, one must believe strongly that the actions one takes, either in ritual, or prayer, or through some other form of worship, are sufficient in order for them to be effective. I’m not certain how one receives the definitive word from the Kindred that said actions are insufficient – I think that is the reason that divination is used in ADF ritual. But, before any evidence is given one way or the other, the Druid must approach the Kindred with sincerity. This, I’m starting to see.
Sincerity, as my husband told me yesterday morning, can be the best offering one makes to the Divine.
When I was a part of the Christian church, I was called to have faith in my beliefs. That faith was offered up as a bit of sustenance to get me through spiritual drought. I’m reminded of that drought now, but what I’m experiencing these days is less an absence of spirit and more an absence of community.
I wish there was a Druid gathering every week. I wish we celebrated every Moon cycle, and met regularly to better our liturgical skills and our knowledge of the Old Ways. I wish there was a Druid Center in every neighborhood. I wish that we didn’t meet in basements, but instead we gathered in bright places filled with beautiful representations of our Cosmos.
I wish we had an ADF Church.
I find myself drifting between the High Days, longing for something more consistent, more continuous. Eight days out of every three-sixty-five? That isn’t enough for me.
This, I suppose, is where my new understanding of faith must step in. If I long for continuity in my spiritual life, I must create continuity in my spiritual life. Faith, in this case, is the act of doing my daily, spiritual work.
It’s a different kind of sustenance, needed to get me through a different kind of drought.
Comments
2 responses to “Sincerity in the Face of Drought”
Hello, Resa!
Thank you for your comment. I agree – daily devotionals are a wonderful thing. In the past three or four days I've begun to work with a daily ritual format that I found in Skip Ellison's "Solitary Druid". With each day I find myself more and more comfortable with it, and I find that starting my morning with a devotion changes my entire day.
I hope that you continue boldly on in your studies, and become the champion of ADF rituals in your area. It could be that you're being called to become the initiator of a Druid group where you live!
Blessings!
Teo
Greetings!
I started the Dedicant Path in August. There are no other ADF members within reasonable driving distance to me, though my family members are participating a bit. If there are going to be ADF ceremonies here, it's pretty much up to me to make them happen. One thing I do that helps me bridge the gap between holidays is daily devotionals. At the moment I'm doing Roman household devotionals, since I'm interested in Celts and Romans. There are lots of other options for devotionals though, including constructing something personally meaningful.
Meditation is great, but I've been meditating since I was in my teens, so I needed something different for the mental discipline requirement anyhow. Daily devotionals keep me focused on my ADF work as well as enriching my spiritual life. I heartily suggest giving devotionals a try.
Resa