Membership

Visitors to the Grove

It’s pretty easy to meet with us as a visitor: tell us a little about yourself, including a few details about your interest in Druidry. Different organizations around the world promote different frameworks of Druidic study. We follow the model of OBOD, the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, and we’ll want to understand the nature of your interest in this tradition.

As a visitor, you’ll be eligible to attend any of our four solar rituals around the year (solstices and equinoxes), and meet us over pub fare or pot luck (or online) at one of our seven or eight grove meetings that we call “moots.” To plan on attending an upcoming event in person, we’ll ask for your email address and cell phone number so we can keep you updated about the event’s location and time, which on occasion must be changed. In turn, at least one of us will share our cell phone with you for the same reason, and to demonstrate a shared trust.

If you’re already studying the OBOD material, that streamlines this process, but isn’t required to be a visitor.

Membership in the Grove

You may eventually request to become a member of the grove. There are a few requirements to pass this threshold:

• Having met with us on three separate occasions, counting combinations of moots and public rituals (must participate in at least one ritual).
• Are currently enrolled in (or have already achieved) one of the OBOD grades: Bard, Ovate or Druid.
• The current members of the grove must approve your request for membership, which is done by a consensus process.

Yearly dues are $25/person, or $35/couple, payable at our Imbolc ceremony in February. If you can’t afford this, we’re willing to work with you to find an equitable approach.

Benefits of being a member

• Attend any/all eight ceremonies throughout the year, including the four fire festivals (Imbolc, Beltane, Lughnasadh and Samhuinn)
• Attend group practice events held by members.
• Access a “secret” Facebook group that all members share. We keep this group secret to maintain a space of safe discussion.
• Access all our ritual texts, songbooks, meditations and other material.
• Use our Lending Library which is a simple system for members to loan books to each other; many books directly support our studies.

Members take an active role in guiding and contributing to grove activities.

Which rituals are private, and why?

• We reserve Samhuinn and Bealteinne for members only, to increase our ability to raise energy at these powerful fire-rites. The sense of connection to dear anscestors at Samhuinn, and the depth of emotion around sensuality and sexuality at Bealteinne, are much better met within a circle of trusted friends.

To learn more, email us at flameandwellgrove@gmail.com

Membership in OBOD

OBOD considers people members who have ordered one of their mail-order courses to train as a Bard, Ovate or Druid. There’s no fee to join or maintain membership, just to order the course material.

The cost varies somewhat depending on which package you choose, and current exchange rate with the British Pound. The material is available in print or online or both together. Audio in the online version is very well produced and a lovely way to spend time with the material. With either format, you’re provided access to a mentor with whom you’ll communicate during your studies to ask questions and receive guidance and inspiration. Your mentor will review your progress when you’re done to inform the order that you’ve completed the material to a satisfactory degree.

The course is entirely self-paced, and you may do it as quickly or slowly as your time allows. You should expect to take at least a year to get through all of the lessons properly. The work load itself is not that great, but the expectation is that you should have a good week to absorb and reflect on each lesson. On the other hand, if it takes you five years because life gets in the way, that’s perfectly fine too.

You can also order an introductory module of two lessons for about $25, to see if you want to really take the plunge. This module may be returned for a full refund if you’re not happy with it.

Finally, you can pay all at once, or quarterly, or monthly. The monthly automated payment is easiest for most people, ranging from about $25 to $40 per month for 12 months. If you have a financial hardship that puts the cost of the course out of your reach, they encourage you to write to them explaining your circumstance.

More information: https://druidry.org/our-courses/train-in-druidry