Druidry is not drudgery, and there is an element of joy to all of the work that we do with and for others. We speak of Rev. Dangler's initiatory experience, where joy was gifted to him as a tool of his work. Rev. Avende speaks of joy in their flow experience of ritual. We speak of the difference between joyfulness and happiness, and our aim to use the flow and the joy to bring connectivity to the folk. Our next episode is Episode 100! What are we going to do? We don't quite know yet! See you next week, and find out with us! The Summerland Gathering is happening August 18-21, 2022 (accepti ..read more

Today we're talking about what Druidry is, and discuss the impacts of using the word "Druid" as ADF members. Spoiler alert: Rev. Avende hates it. We talk about the terms we could use instead, working both forward from our base practice, and backwards from the terms we have available. If you've ever been annoyed by the way ADF Druids use the word "Druid," this episode is for you. You may also want to check out our first season "Space Druidry" bonus episode. If you have a better word than anything we came up with (or if you like one of our words a lot), we'd love to hear from you. Drop us a line ..read more

How do you find nature to put in your nature religion? We look at both the mundane and the spiritual aspects everyone has access to, consider that ancient Pagans didn't find a deep issue with lack of access to the "natural world," and talk about how we bring a bit of nature into our practice in visible and useful ways. The Vegetarian Epicure [Amazon link] Rev. Dangler's office "passage tomb" [Facebook photo]  We know you're looking for festivals to attend, because why wouldn't you? The Summerland Gathering is happening August 18-21, 2022 (accepting registration shortly ..read more

Because of the way that ADF is structured as a pan-Indo-European organization, it's entirely possible to come to ritual at your local Grove and experience ritual in a culture you're unfamiliar with, or (if you're clergy or an initiate) be asked even to write a ritual for others. We'll talk a bit about how we research and write the rituals as ADF Priests first, and then talk a bit about how we, as attendees, approach a ritual where we are strangers to the spirits that are honored. For "Circles of Concentration" work, see Rev. Kirk Thomas' paper on the topic. The Summerland Gathering is hap ..read more

Have you ever felt that you were in over your head with this whole ritual-and-magic thing? Do you feel like an "imposter" about to be found out? We all have, but it can seem like it's a lonely place to be. You might be surprised that, even with all the experience and work under their belts, Revs. Avende and Dangler both deal with it on the regular, too. We talk a little bit about what our own notions of "being an imposter" looks like, the ways that we personally combat those feelings within ourselves, and how we can help others work through these feelings organizationally and together. Looking ..read more

On the way home from Wellspring, though they were not driving together, Rev. Avende and Rev. Dangler stopped at a rest stop and caught up to remember the event. Held each Memorial Day weekend in northeast Ohio, The Wellspring Gathering is also the ADF annual meeting and this year, site of our Archdruid reinstallation and an ADF Initiation. We got to meet new people and visit with old friends, and try out new camping gear.  The Bards of Three Cranes Grove, ADF, played quite a lot of music at the bardic night, and we even gave our own little workshop based on this podcast (with material for ..read more

Today we're chatting about the things we do with our hands and bodies during ritual, focusing on gesture and posture in particular, and how we've developed them for use in our personal and Grove-centered work. We'll also talk about how they connect with trance and prayer a bit. We're definitely back on the road (in fact, you are listening to this as you drive out to Wellspring with us, right? because that's where we're going today!). This year, we're going to be working hard to find more voices to bring onto the podcast to increase both our diversity, and our connections. We hope you'll join u ..read more

Today, we talk about how we've made group ritual work, including some tips about both online rituals and in-person rituals. We've had a lot of different strategies over the past 20 years here in Three Cranes Grove, ADF, and exploring what worked and what didn't as we've been planning, and what to do when things go wrong (on either a large scale, or a small one). We also talk about how to follow a lead in ritual, the benefits of trusting your fellow ritualists, building enthusiasm, and Rev. Avende's work that they call, "Performing the Bardic Lasso." 3CG Bookends Beltane 2020, honoring Gobnait ..read more

CW: This episode discusses pet loss and grief surrounding it. One of the strange things about owning pets is that they become an integral part of our lives, our practice, and the spaces we inhabit. And, with limited exceptions, we may be with them for their entire lives, but they are only with us for a part of ours. Both Rev. Avende and Rev. Dangler have lost pets, and both have had to find ways to work those pets into their own religious lives, and those of their families. We spend a lot of time chatting about that aspect of our work during this discussion, as well as memorial prayers Rev. D ..read more

Today we're chatting about our portable altars, and what we take with us when we head out on the road (or even when we're just out and about close to home). We discuss the physical things and the spiritual things we bring with us, how we use them, and how they help us. As the conversation evolves, we begin to speak about our prayer lives as well, and how being on the road impacts those things. Rev. Dangler's Altoid Tin Travel Altar (Image) The Shop Altar at The Magical Druid #PrayerADay Bonus Episode We hope you'll join us for as many of this coming year's festivals as possible, in person if ..read more