WHAT IS ADF?
by Isaac Bonewits
The Irish words, pronounced "arn ree-ocht fane", mean "Our Own Druidism", and that's just what ADF is - a completely independent tradition of Neopagan Druidism. Like our sisters and brothers in the other Neopagan movements, we're polytheistic Nature worshipers, attempting to revive the best aspects of the Paleopagan faiths of our ancestors within a modern scientific, artistic, ecological, and wholistic context. Like our predecessors and namesakes the Druids, we're people who believe in excellence - physically, intellectually, artistically, and spiritually.
We're researching and expanding sound modern scholarship about the ancient Celts and other Indo-European peoples, in order to reconstruct what the Old Religions of Europe really were. We're working on the development of genuine artistic skills in composition and presentation. We're designing and performing competent magical and religious ceremonies to change ourselves and the world we live in. We're adapting the polytheologies and customs of both the Indo-European Paleopagans and the Neopagan traditions that have been created over the last fifty years. We're creating a nonsexist, nonracist, organic, and open religion to practice as a way of life and to hand on to our grandchildren. We're integrating ecological awareness, alternative healing arts, and psychic development into our daily activities. Together, we're sparking the next major phase in the evolution of Neopaganism and planting seeds for generations to come.
ADF was started by P.E.I. (Isaac) Bonewits, known in the Neopagan community as an author (Real Magic, Rites of Worship,Witchcraft: A Concise Guide, Authentic Thaumaturgy), editor, teacher, polytheologian, activist, priest and bard. He has been a Neopagan Druid for nearly twenty years and has dedicated his life to reviving Druidism as a modern, healthy, "Third Wave" religion capable of protecting and preserving Mother Nature and all Her children.
More than 4500 people have joined ADF in the past, and our current active membership is over 1100, making us the largest Neopagan Druid organization in the world. We have legal status as a Nonprofit Religious Association, and donations are tax deductible. Groves and protogroves are being organized all over the world. Songbooks, informational pamphlets, a polytheological dictionary, and other Druidic publications are in the works. Regional gatherings are held throughout the year, especially during the summer. In short, although our long range approach is "as fast as an oak tree", we're growing more rapidly than any of us expected.
