Druidry and Wicca: Syncretized

This Witchvox article discusses the growing practice of blending the religion of Wicca with the spirituality of Druidry. Early on in my path, I did this myself. As anyone who has read this blog knows, I no longer consider myself Wiccan, but have returned to Christianity, most heavily influenced by Gnosticism. Although my actual spiritual practice has diminished lately - something I'm trying to work on - I do still consider myself a Druid. And, like Druidic Wiccans, my Druidry does have elements of Witchcraft still in it.

To me, Druidry seems more solar, more masculine. It has a wealth of rites and rituals. The Ancient Order of Druids of America, the organization I plan on joining once I finish grad school and therefore have time to focus more on such things, has grades/levels and corresponding curriculum for enhancing your spiritual practice. Each Degree has required readings or practices to choose from, ranging from divination to herbalism, learning about local nature, etc. There is a large focus on interacting with nature and growing in knowledge and philosophy.

Wicca, and subsequently Witchcraft, however, seems more lunar/feminine to me. The focus is more on the energies that surround us, lunar practices, and spellwork. Druidcraft, as mentioned in the article, is the blending of the two. In my case, I do practice spellwork on occasion - although it has been awhile, as I've been too busy and haven't felt the need. What I have done has seemed to work pretty well, and what hasn't, I attribute more to my own lack of focus or mindset. I suppose spellwork is just like any spiritual practice - like the theme of the movie Skeleton Key, if you believe in it, it works, if not, it won't. Sometimes I feel like I may need one to help out in a situation, but the words/methods won't properly formulate in my mind, a kind of spiritual writer's block. I've found that if that happens, even after looking for inspiration in a reference material such as The Element Encyclopedia of 1000 Spells, it's not meant to be, at least not yet. When I need a spell the most, the words seem to come naturally. And it's been those times that they have worked the best. I do wonder sometimes though if my current lack of use is not only because I haven't needed it, but also because I've become spiritually unfocused over the last month and a half since school resumed. I am finding myself slowly coming back to spirituality, one step at a time. I'm now going to church consistently, even attending Religious Education - my church's version of "Sunday School". And I'm starting to get back into my daily spiritual readings. Maybe that's been the problem with my spiritual practice - maybe I've been trying to force myself to do too much too quick, instead of easing back into it gradually. I didn't exactly learn spiritual discipline growing up. My family went to church and was very involved superficially, but there was no real depth. That kind of mindset and habit doesn't go away completely, I believe. It takes hard work, and maybe gradually resuming more practices is the best thing for me.

Not to mention needing to work on time management skills in general.

Lughnasadh

August 1 marked the holiday of Lughnasadh in the Pagan/earth-centered holiday calendar. It is the halfway point between summer and autumn. The first harvest.

There is a ritual outlined in one of my Druidry books that I adapted for the holiday, but I didn't do it this year, due to fatigue and packing for a much needed vacation, which is coming up on Tuesday. But I've tried to focus on the meaning of the holiday in modern times, in any case - for me, a non-agrarian-yet-naturecentric-spiritual person, it's about looking at what you've accomplished this year, and how that is coming to fruition. And in spite of two months of bronchitis, a reaction to the accompanying antibiotics, a bad stomach virus, and pretty much exhaustion, I have accomplished quite a bit. I worked two jobs the first half of the year, in addition to school. This took a toll on my academics, so I ended up on academic probation. I quit one job and re-took a class, bringing up my GPA back to a 3.0. I'm really going to have to bust my ass off to keep it though, and I'm still not sure how I'm going to juggle it all. I'm now part-time at the current workplace, so that I can basically make my own schedule. I still have to work enough to pay the bills, though, and I'll have Saturday classes and my first internship to balance as well. I'm nervous, but today's(well, technically yesterday) holiday serves to remind me that it's all going somewhere in the end.