Henge Happenings

The Newsletter for Members of the Henge of Keltria.

The Henge of Keltria, 2350 Spring Road, PMB-140, Smyrna, GA 30080-2630

Beltaine 2000

Issue #46 Editor: Tony Taylor

Keltria-Office*

From the President

BEST LAID PLANS - THE SEQUEL

As announced elsewhere in this issue, the Gathering of the Keltrian Tribe will not be held in the Missouri area as previously planned. My thanks go out to Fitz and Juniper Grove for their efforts. The time already invested even though plans didn't pan out was significant and much appreciated.

The idea of a Gathering of the Keltrian Tribes including the annual meeting is one that has been slowly evolving over time. At first, the annual meeting was held at the Pagan Spirit Gathering (PSG) every year where we would have the most Keltrian Druids in one place. When PSG moved to Ohio and was too far for many of us to travel to at the time, the meeting was held in Minneapolis. Later it was held in Georgia and Kansas.

"So what about this year?" you ask. It appears we have an annual meeting and a Gathering that migrate every year to different parts of the country. Never has there been an annual meeting in the Northeast, so this year the folks will have a chance to attend one. Flexibility is a good thing, so, this year we will combine the annual meeting with a Keltrian House Warming. We'll make it a weekend-long affair with a few workshops and revels to give it that festival flavor and conduct the annual meeting on Saturday, June 10th, 2000. Granted we're only blocks away from beautiful downtown Quincy, MA, so we'll have to mind the neighbors. Nevertheless, it will be productive and fun. We will demonstrate that Keltrians are adaptable creatures who are capable of expressing "Druidness" in an urban setting.

Tony and I figure that our backyard and our indoor plumbing will accommodate three or four tents of people. These spaces will be assigned on a first claim basis. We'll also have to ask for a modest fee for food & incidentals, toilet paper, paper plates, etc. If you plan to attend, please send an SASE to receive a what to bring list, reserve a spot in the yard, or ceceive a list of local campgrounds and motels. Likewise, if you would like to do a workshop/presentation, let us know so we can plan a schedule of events. This will be considered your RSVP.

"So what about next year?" you ask. Well remaining flexible, the Board of Trustees will cheerfully entertain any and all proposals for next year's Gathering of the Keltrian Tribe. The sky is the limit. If you live in NYC and want to organize a hotel gathering, propose that. If you happen to have access to ocean front and want to host a Keltrian Beach Party and Annual Meeting, that would be fun too. Much can be said for a private campground in the Midwest as well. To my way of thinking, we can be as wild and wonderful or as classy and conservative as we choose. Nowhere is it written that we have to do the same thing every year, so let's have fun with it! The deadline for next year's proposals is September 21, 2000.

If you are unable to attend this year, please make your contribution by sending in your ballot. This year we have a trustee seat to fill and an amendment to the bylaws to vote on. You will be missed at the party, but perhaps it will come to an area near you sometime in the future.

Beltaine 2000

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Henge Happenings - Issue 46

Focus on Groves

Henge News

Available only to Members of the Henge

E-Mail?

If you have electronic mail, please make sure the Henge Office has your E-Mail address. Send you E-Mail address, membership name and membership number to Henge-Office* .

Correspondence Course

If you are interested in enrolling in the Keltrian Druid Correspondence Course.

You will be contacted when a class is formed.

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PASSAGES

From the Internet coordinator

Thank you

A very special thank you to Beth of Avalon on Camelot for her wonderful new graphics and layout work for the Henge website. The new graphics and layout our really great and add a very professional touch to our websie.

If you haven't seen them check them out at

http://www.keltria.org.

Elevations

Morganus was welcomed into the mysteries of the Ring of the Yew in a ceremony on February 26th, 2000 at Avalon on Camelot. Congratulations and welcome.

Dedications

Welcome to Conleuch, Fiach Bladhm, Liath Lugh and Sidheag who dedicated themselves to learn the Keltrian Druid path with Avalon on Camelot in February and March.

Stewart Farrar

Henge Addresses

The Official Address for all Henge Mail is:

The Henge of Keltria

2350 Spring Road, PMB-140

Smyrna, GA 30080-2630

The Minneapolis address should be used when listing the Henge as a resource in articles or in books. Whenever the Henge Office moves, we intend to maintain that address.
Mail sent to:

The Henge of Keltria
2350 Spring Road, PMB-140
Smyrna, GA 30080-2630.

will be processed by the Henge Office faster than mail sent to the Minneapolis address. Please use the Quincy address for any direct correspondence with the Henge Office.
Please remember, the Henge of Keltria is a volunteer organization; please allow four to six weeks for responses. When inquiring about past mail, please be kind.

(6/28/1916- 2/7/2000)

Stewart Farrar, a leading Wiccan author traveled to the Otherworld from his residence in Ireland.

Stewart Farrar worked as a journalist, playwright and author before forming his first coven with his

wife, Janet in 1971.

Gavin Bone joined them 1993 and together the three of them have published over 10 books and have several videos to their credit.

Charter Application.

To receive an application for Charter, E-Mail the Henge Office at Keltria-Office* or send a SASE to the Henge Office.

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Henge Happenings - Issue 46

A Druid Alone

A Column for Solitary Keltrians

by The Topaz Owl

How does Keltria handle its solitary membership? How does one get initiated when one is far away from established groves?

A large percentage of the membership of the Henge of Keltria is Solitary, so it only makes sense that we have recently implemented a support group for Solitary Keltrians. We have just introduced this Solitary SIG into the Henge structure and are still working out the details as to how it is implemented. Helpful suggestions are always welcome.

At the moment, the Solitary SIG provides individual support as requested, and some networking between Solitary members that are near each other (also upon request). Also, we have an e-mail discussion list (Keltria-L) for members of the Henge that can be very helpful and sometimes quite lively, and I would recommend that all Solitary Keltrians subscribe to Keltria-L if possible. We also have a Keltrian chat room, which is a book study group online through The Summerlands, Inc. just for Keltrians, wherein we read and discuss books that are listed on the Keltrian Recommended Reading List. The chat logs are posted to Keltria-L as well, for those who are unable to attend but would still like to gain from our discussion. Questions about Keltrian ritual and/or beliefs are always welcomed in both of these forums. And, as the Solitary SIG Advisor, I am available to assist you in private correspondence if you prefer, either by USPS or by e-mail. (Please be patient and allow a reasonable amount of time for me to reply.) We also provide "Henge Happenings" to all members in good standing, which is a quarterly newsletter filled with interesting announcements, articles, poetry, stories, book reviews, and advice from other members of the Henge.

To answer the second part of your question which asks about Initiation for Solitary members, I will take some things directly from the Bylaws of the organization, specifically Article XVIII - Levels of Achievement :

In reference to paragraph 18.1.3 above as it pertains to Solitary Keltrians, it has always been the consideration of the Henge that a student's enrollment in the Correspondence Course establishes a Dedicant/Mentor relationship; in other words, the requirements for Initiation into the Keltrian Path have begun through the Correspondence Course for those who are

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and the candidate must also have a Sponsor who is an Initiate and the Sponsor must have the approval of a member of the Ring of the Oak.

The Correspondence Course and learning from an established Grove are not the only ways to gain a Sponsor who will recommend you for Initiation, however. Initiation can be requested based upon a demonstration of understanding of the Keltrian material as presented in the several Henge publications (such as the Book of Ritual), dedication to the Path, and a history of service to the Henge. A Solitary Keltrian who can demonstrate those things to me as the Solitary SIG Advisor, for instance, can be recommended for consideration.

So, you see, there are several ways for a Member to eventually become a Keltrian Initiate, whether they are Solitary or not.
I look forward to more questions and comments from our Solitary members.
Walk with Wisdom,

TopazOwl

Topaz Owl can be contacted by e-mail at topazowl* or through the US Mail at the Henge Address in care of "TopazOwl - SolSIG."

a reasonable distance from a Keltrian Grove. For those who are within 50 miles of a Grove, we prefer that the student learn from that Grove, establishing the Dedicant/Mentor relationship and attaining Initiation finally through that Grove, unless of course there are extenuating circumstances which are explained to the Board of Trustees.

The following is also from the Bylaws, specifically from the section concerning Initiation:

Paragraphs 18.2 and 19.9.2 should make it very clear that Initiation into the Keltrian Path does not automatically follow once you finish the preliminary training. Initiation must be requested by the candidate

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The Bard's Path

Available only to Members of the Henge

Beltaine 2000

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"Snowfall"

Available only to Members of the Henge

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Henge Happenings - Issue 46

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Visit the Henge of Keltria Web Site

http://www.keltria.org/

Frequently asked questions, reading list, mailing list, membership information and more!

Submission Information

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Henge Happenings

Henge Happenings will now accept advertising. For a copy of our advertising guidelines, please send a SASE to The Henge of Keltria. Attn.: Advertising Guidelines, 2350 Spring Road, PMB-140, Smyrna, GA 30080-2630..

All submissions to Henge Happenings become property of The Henge of Keltria, Inc., a nonprofit religious corporation. Categories for submissions are based upon who they are from: Officers, Elders, Coordinators, Groves, Members and the Henge Office. Members submissions are further divided based upon subject matter, Bardic, Seer, Druid, or Solitaire Special Interest Groups.

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Henge Happenings - Issue 46

Available only to Members of the Henge

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Henge Happenings - Issue 46