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Differences from Early Missionary Grove
minister to those who ask for help,190 irregardless of their religion,
imagine how frustrating it would be to have to dodge specific theo-
Activity
Activity
Activity
Activity
Activity
logical questions and answer vaguely to label-seeking novitiates!
The early groves of Vermilion & Rapid City S.D., Ma-Ka-Ja-Wan
Indeed, there was a significant difference in age and religious atti-
in Wisconsin and New York #1 that had been founded by the
tudes among the members that generally entered the Berkeley Grove
Founders (+Frangquist) before 1968 were located at schools and had
(and later-founded Groves). The Founders of the RDNA had origi-
promptly folded when that Founder left the grove.181 The members
nally intended Druidism to be such a bizarre and jolting concept that
of those groves tended to be a lot like those of Carleton, mostly
it would shake previous conceptions about religions down to their
disgruntled and rebellious young people of various religious back-
rudimentary bases among rebellious college students and thus lead
grounds without much knowledge in the Occult or mystical religions.
them to new introspections. Since most of the Berkeley (and later
Besides, the RDNA was young and new members were expected to
groves) Druids were older than the average Carleton College student
be students who would continue their own faith or find a new one
and had entered the RDNA with a Neo-Pagan or Occult background,
after their experience with Druidism. However, in the groves which
the validity of drawing valid religious experiences from a variety of
were founded after 1967 by Carleton students (which included Purdue,
ritualistic forms did not seem too unusual or jolting. They quickly
Berkeley, Stanford, Chicago, Ann-Arbor, New York #2 and Princeton)
grasped that religious experiences could only be judged by oneself,
most of the Druids seeking to enter the RDNA were either not cur-
but now they wanted to emphasize the RDNA s activities to bring
rently students and/or possessed an Occult or a strong Counter- 353
individuals of all religious backgrounds into a group to celebrate/ participating in the voting. Therefore, it appears that a sturdy tradi-
worship/study Nature, a group that was non-dogmatic and unpre- tion of unanimity is required for a proposal to be approved by the
tentious. An excellent way to worship Nature, they thought, would Council and it having been voted upon by at least half the members.
be to follow the customs and stories of a true Nature-worshipping Following the unanimous passage of the proposal giving female
religion (e.g. ancient Celtic Druids) because they would be more priests unequivocal equal treatment and ranking as their male coun-
finely tuned by centuries of practice.191 To them, the idea of studying terparts in 1971, the Council records show a 2 year gap (June 1972
Asian religions through the label Druidism might have seemed a bit to July 1974) in Council activity and proposals. The ensuing silence
bizarre, seeing as how there were already active religious groups prac- during the reigns of the three succeeding busy Carleton ArchDruids
ticing Asian religions in the Bay Area that could teach them Asian gave the Carleton Grove (and it s Chair of the Council) the under-
faiths in a much more professional way. standable appearance of having died off,198 which (according to
Berkeley s knowledge) would have only left Larson s Berkeley grove
and Isaac s Twin Cities grove. The truth was that the Carleton gradu-
Events leading up to the Isaac Affair192
Events leading up to the Isaac Affair
Events leading up to the Isaac Affair
Events leading up to the Isaac Affair
Events leading up to the Isaac Affair
ates just couldn t think of another proposal that wouldn t prove divi-
Isaac Bonewits enters the RDNA records in 1972 as a powerfully
sive and there had never been much Council-wide correspondence
energetic and intellectual person engrossed in the Bay-Area activi-
before, just friendly letters between individual friends. Or as McDavid
ties.193 Isaac has many enemies of whom the researcher must be leery
put it in 1972:
of listening to without some cross-checking of their tales with other
testimonies. Dan Pierson once described Isaac as having Negative
I do not see any issues concerning the Council as a whole,
Charisma which meant that you couldn t help liking him in per-
and apparently no one else does. 199
son, despite contrary messages from your gut instincts. Isaac was
energized by the Neo-Pagan renaissance of 1972 where previously
But importantly from Isaac s goals of forming a stable Druid or-
uncommitted Occult or Neo-Christian groups redefined themselves
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