Celtic reconstructionism

Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism (CR) is a polytheistic, animistic Neopagan religious movement. It is an effort to reconstruct, in a modern context, an ancient Celtic religious framework. Neopagan reconstructionists have been around since the 1970s but little of it has been specifically Celtic.

Many of the people who went on to establish CR were involved in Neopagan groups in the seventies and eighties. Often these groups contained many Celtic elements that eventually found their way into core CR practice. This period, and these groups, are often referred to as "Proto-CR". Later, with the establishment of the internet in the late eighties and early nineties, many of these Proto-CR groups and individuals came together online. This began a fruitful period of sharing of information and experiences, and led to a rapid growth of the movement.

CR does not make a claim to being a linear or direct descendant of any ancient Celtic polytheistic tradition. The polytheistic religions of the ancient Celts were lost or subsumed by Christianity. However, CRs believe there is much to be found in the living Celtic cultures, that many practices never completely died out, and all that is needed is a bit of dusting off and "back-engineering". CRs acknowledge that many elements of their religious practice are modern creations. However, their tradition is based in and inspired by early Celtic beliefs as found in early texts and the work of scholars and archaeologists. Any innovations or elaborations are based on sound historical precedents, and feedback from other experienced practitioners is sought before a new practice is accepted as part of the tradition. CRs believe it is important to lay aside elements of ancient Celtic culture which are clearly inappropriate practices for a modern society. Some of those early societies practiced human sacrifice, slavery, and strongly patriarchal elements. CRs attempt to find ethical ways of integrating their historical findings and research with their daily lives.

CR is not only about scholarly research. CR practitioners and elders believe that mystical, ecstatic practices are a necessary balance to scholarly research, and that this balance is a vital component in determining whether a tradition is CR.

Celtic Reconstructionists focus their efforts on a particular Celtic culture, such as the Gaelic, Welsh or Gaulish. While they believe it is helpful to study a wide variety of Celtic cultures as an aid to reconstruction, in religous and cultural practices these cultures are not lumped together.

Not all people who make use of Neopagan reconstructionist techniques are entirely comfortable with using "Celtic Reconstructionism" as a name for their religion, seeing the term as describing a methodology rather than a system of belief, or seeing the term as being incorrectly descriptive. Others feel comfortable with the term CR, but have decided to name their CR sub-traditions so as to distinguish their practices from other sub-groups and flavors of CR. Some other names that people involved in CR-style religion have chosen to use include:

• Amldduwiaeth ("Polytheism" in Welsh)
• Aurrad ("Member of the Tribe" in Irish Gaelic)
• Celtic Restorationism
• Ildiachas ("Polytheism" in Irish Gaelic)
• Ioma-Dhiadhachd ("Polytheism" in Scots Gaelic)
• Liesdoueadegezh ("Polytheism" in Breton))
• Neo-Celtism
• Pàganachd ("Paganism, Heathenism" in Scots Gaelic)
• Págánacht ("Paganism, Heathenism" in Irish Gaelic)
• Págántacht (alternate Irish spelling of Págánacht)
• Senistrognata ("Ancestral Customs" in reconstructed Old Celtic)
• Yljeeaghys ("Polytheism" in Manx Gaelic)

First Modern Appearance of the Term and Other Historical Data

An early, key event in laying the groundwork for much Proto-CR and CR practice was the Celtic workshops, discussions and rituals at the 1985 Pagan Spirit Gathering, in Wisconsin, USA. Participants at this gathering returned home and continued to develop the foundations of their CR sub-traditions, now incorporating some of the ideas they had shared in person. In later years some of them would re-meet online and once again collaborate.

The first appearance in print of the term "Celtic Reconstructionist", used to describe a specific religious movement and not just a style of Celtic studies, was by Kym Lambert ní Dhoireann in the Spring, 1992 issue of Harvest Magazine (Southboro, Massachusetts, USA). Ní Dhoireann credits Kathryn Price NicDhàna with originating the term “Celtic Reconstructionist”; however, NicDhàna credits her early use of the term to a simple extrapolation of Margot Adler's use of the term "Pagan Reconstructionists" in the original, 1979 edition of Drawing Down the Moon. Though Adler devotes space to a handful of Reconstructionist traditions, none of those mentioned are specifically Celtic. In the revised, 1987 edition, Isaac Bonewits uses the phrase "Eclectic Reconstructionist" which, by the time CR became a recognized tradition, had become an oxymoron.

NicDhàna and Ní Dhoireann have stated that they coined the term CR specifically to distinguish their practices from those of eclectic traditions like Wicca and the Neo-Druidry of the time. Erynn Rowan Laurie also began using the name "Celtic Reconstructionist" some time in the early '90s, though "NeoCeltic" was her initial term of choice. With Ní Dhoireann’s popularization of Celtic Reconstructionism in the Pagan press, and then the use of the term by these three individuals on the internet, “Celtic Reconstructionism” began to be adopted as the name for this developing spiritual tradition.

Initially only a few dozen people were involved on the Proto-CR and CR listserves. These included the PODSnet Celtic Echo on PODSnet (a FidoNet technology based network), the Celtic and Occult forums on networks like GEnie and CompuServe, and later Nemeton-L in 1994 (founded and initially moderated by Laurie). But over the 1990s many hundreds of individuals and groups gradually joined the discussions online and in print, and the movement became more of an umbrella group, with a number of recognized sub-traditions.

Celtic Reconstructionism and Neo-Druidry

Though there has certainly been quite a bit of cross-pollenization between Neo-Druidism and Celtic Reconstructionist groups, and there is a large crossover of membership between the two movements, the two have somewhat distinct methodologies and goals in their approach to Celtic religious forms. CR practioners tend to look to the whole cultural matrix in which the religious ideas were formed, while Neo-Druids tend to prefer to focus on the specifically druidic functions. Some Neo-Druidic groups claim to be non-religious in nature, which is not the case with most CR groups. There are some CR philosophies which downplay the role of the druidic office specifically in preference to a more general view of Indo-European priesthood (making the argument that the Druids may simply have been a very successful school of priestcraft, and possibly not even completely pan-Celtic), or to the successors of druids such as the filí and seanachies.

This is not to say that there is no connection between Neo-Druid groups and CR. Some Neo-Druid groups (notably, Ár nDraíocht Féin (ADF), the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD), and Keltria) have similar methodologies of reconstruction, or have taken up CR methodologies recently. The ADF, in particular, have long used CR-type techniques, but many CRs criticize them for their pan-Indo-European focus, resulting in such oddities as Vedic Druids and Roman Druids.

Other differences between CR groups and Neo-Druid groups can include such elements as differing ideas on hierarchical structures and acceptance of Enlightenment-era druidic revivals. Some philosophical differences exist as well, especially in terms of what "Druid" means. Some Neo-Druidic groups call anyone with an interest in Celtic Spirituality a Druid, and refer to the practice of Celtic spirituality as "Druidry", while CR groups tend to look at the older definition, seeing it as an office that requires decades of training and experience and is only attained by a small number of practitioners.

Despite these differences, there are generally good relations between Neo-Druid and CR groups, with, as noted previously, a great deal of sharing of ideas and even memberships.

References

• Adler, Margot (1979) Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America Today. Boston, Beacon Press ISBN 0807032379. Chapter 9: Religions from the Past--The Pagan Reconstructionists. Also, Revised Edition (1987) ISBN 0807032530, pp. 324,326, Bonewits on NRDNA as "Eclectic Reconstructionist".
• Theatana, Kathryn [K.P. NicDhàna] (1992) "More on Names", Harvest, Southboro, MA, Vol. 12, No. 3, Imbolc 1992, pp. 11-12. On need to reconstruct traditions of ancestral [Celtic] deities and avoid cultural appropriation.
• Lambert, Kym [K.L. ní Dhoireann] (1992) "Celtic God/Goddess Names", Harvest, Southboro, MA, Vol. 12, No. 4, Spring Equinox 1992, pp. 11-12. First use of "Celtic Reconstructionist" as tradition name.
• Lambert, Kym [K.L. ní Dhoireann] (1992) Book Reviews, Bio Blurbs, Harvest, Southboro, MA, Vol. 12, No. 5, Beltane 1992, pp. 6,8. Continued use of "Celtic Reconstructionist" and "Celtic Reconstructionism". Use of term continued in succeeding issues for full publication run of magazine.
• McColman, Carl (2003) Complete Idiot's Guide to Celtic Wisdom. Alpha Press ISBN 0028644174, pp. 12, 51, 52, 237-8. Basic overview and author's opinion of Celtic Reconstructionism, specifically in comparison to other Celtic spiritual movements.
• Telesco, Patricia [editor] (2005) Which Witch is Which? Franklin Lakes, NJ, New Page Books / The Career Press ISBN 1-56414-754-1, pp. 85-89. Introduction to Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism, mostly taken from the CR Essay, included in an unfortunately-titled book about many diverse Pagan traditions.

Bibliography

• Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism
• Briggs, Katherine (c1978) The vanishing people: Fairy lore and legends. New York, Pantheon
• Carmichael, Alexander (c1992) Carmina Gadelica: hymns and incantations,: with illustrative notes on wards, rites, and customs dying and obsolete/ orally collected in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland by Alexander Carmichael. Hudson, NY Lindisfarne
• Clark, Rosalind (c1991) The Great Queens: Irish Goddesses from the Morrigan to Cathleen ni Houlihan. Savage, MD Barnes and Noble Books
• Danaher, Kevin (c1972) The Year in Ireland. Dublin, Mercier
• Enright, Michael J. (c1996) Lady with a mead cup: ritual, prophecy, and lordship in the European warband from LaTene to the Viking Age. Dublin, Four Courts
• Epstein, Angelique Gulermovich (1998) War Goddess: the Morrígan and her Germano-Celtic counterparts. University of California, Los Angeles
• Evans-Wentz, WY (c1966, 1990) The Fairy Faith in Celtic countries. New York, Citadel
• Fairgrove, Rowan (1994) What We Don't Know About the Ancient Celts. Originally printed in The Pomegranate, 2. Now available online
• Gray, Elizabeth A (1982) Cath Maige Tuired: the 2nd Battle of Mag Tuired. Dublin, Irish Texts Society
• Green, Miranda J. (1992) Dictionary of Celtic myth and legend. New York, Thames and Hudson
• Kondratiev, Alexei (1998) The Apple Branch: A Path to Celtic Ritual . Collins, San Francisco. ISBN 189825642X [also reprinted without revision under the title Celtic Spirituality]
• Lincoln, Bruce (c1991) Death, war, and sacrifice: studies in ideology and practice. Chicago: University of Chicago Press
• Laurie, Erynn Rowan (1995) A Circle of Stones: Journeys and Meditations for Modern Celts. Chicago, Eschaton. ISBN 1-57353-106-5
• MacKillop, James (c1998) A dictionary of Celtic mythology. Oxford University Press
• Monaghan, Patricia (c2001) The Red-Haired Girl From the Bog: the landscape of Celtic myth and spirit. Novato, CA: New World Library
• Newton, Michael (c2000) A handbook of the Scottish Gaelic world. Dublin, Four Courts Press
• O'hOgain, Daithi (c1999) The sacred isle: belief and religion in pre-Christian Ireland Dublin, Collins Press
• Ó Tuathail, Sean (1993) Foclóir Draíochta – Dictionary of Druidism.
• Patterson, Nerys Thomas (c1994) Cattle lords and clansmen: the social structure of early Ireland Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press – 2nd edition
• Power, Patrick C. (c1976) Sex and marriage in ancient Ireland Dublin, Mercier
• Rees, Alwyn and Brinley (c1961) Celtic heritage: ancient tradition in Ireland and Wales New York, Thames and Hudson
• Sjoestedt, Marie-Louise (1982) Gods and heroes of the Celts Translated by Myles Dillon, Berkeley, CA, Turtle Island Foundation
• Smyth, Daragh (c1988, 1996) A guide to Irish mythology Dublin, Irish Academic Press

External links

• Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism: The consensus tradition statement, seen by many as the definitive introduction to CR.

• cr_r: The LiveJournal CR community.
• IMBAS: Articles and YahooGroup.
• Multicultural Polytheistic Hearth: Discussion board for reconstructionists, with a large CR presence.