We the Reformed Druids living upon the Planet Gaia, Seventh planet in the Solar System of Lugh, in the Milky Way Galaxy, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure Tranquility, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Be’al to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the Reformed Druids of Gaia.
ARTICLE ONE
The name of this organization shall be The Reformed Druids of Gaia and it shall be an autonomous collective of the Reformed Druid movement.
ARTICLE TWO
The Basic Tenets of North American Druidism, as set forth in The Book of Law, are these: 1) The object of the search for religious truth, which is a universal and a never-ending search, may be found through the Earth-Mother; which is Nature; but this is one way, yea, one way among many. 2) And great is the importance, which is of a spiritual importance, of Nature, which is the Earth-Mother; for it is one of the objects of Creation, and with it do people live, yea, even as they do struggle through life are they come face-to-face with it.
ARTICLE THREE
Mission Statement: The mission of the Reformed Druids of Gaia is to invoke a web of knowledge, mythos and experience that provides a framework for reconnecting with the Earth Mother, and re-gathering her progeny through tribal collectives consecrated to responsible conservatorship and progressive cognizance within the ever evolving tradition of Neo- Pagan Druidism.
ARTICLE FOUR
1) Any person, regardless of race, gender, color, culture, age or sexual preferences may become a member of this organization upon presenting a petition, which may be oral, stating that she or he believes in the Basic Tenets of North American Druidism, as set forth in The Book of Law in The Druid Chronicles, and that she or he further believes in and agrees with the self-definition of this Branch of the Reform.
2) A member of the Reformed Druids of Gaia shall be defined as one who has affirmed that they are in agreement with the two basic tents of Reformed Druidism.
3) The word “Druid” shell be construed to mean a member of either gender and the word “Priest” shall likewise be construed to mean a member of either gender, both genders being equal under this document in all ways.
4) There are three classifications of members:
A) A Solitaire is a Druid who is otherwise not affiliated with any other body within the Reformed Druids of Gaia and is a sole practitioner of Druidism.
B) A Grove is an autonomous collective of Druids within a specified locality.
1) A Proto-Grove is a beginning, or pupae form of a Grove wherein a minimum of three Druids have decided to form a local autonomous collective.
2) A Proto-Grove becomes a Chartered Grove, and receives a Charter from the Mother Grove when these three conditions are met: a) The group has existed continuously for one year and one day; b) One member of the group has been ordained to the 3rd Order; and c) Two additional members have been initiated to the 2nd Order. C) A Special Order is an extra-local autonomous collective of Druids who may also be Solitaires or members of Groves or Proto-Groves. At the time of the enacting of this Constitution, there is one Order:
1) The Order of the Mithril Star is the educational Order of the Reformed Druids of Gaia, and is charged with authoring all study materials and guides as needed and as called for. Membership in the Order of the Mithril Star is open to all members of the RDG, regardless of classification. Leadership of the Order of the Mithril Star is invested in a Patriarch or Matriarch, who serves a lifetime term (or until they see fit to retire) and is appointed by the Senior Archdruid of the Redwood Coast.
2) Other Special Orders may be established as needed or desired for purposes of edification, folly or whimsy by any three 3rd Order Druids who feel so called to constitute such, by petitioning the Senior Archdruid of the Redwood Coast who will appoint a Patriarch or Matriarch to lead the new Special Order.
ARTICLE FIVE
Executive Branch: 1) The Executive power shall be invested in a regular Grove of the Reform located in the Redwood growing region of Northern California, and referred to as the Mother Grove of the Reformed Druids of Gaia. The spokesperson and executive officer shall be the Archdruid of the Mother Grove, referred to as the Senior Archdruid of the Redwood Coast. 2) The Mother Grove is charged with the execution of the day to day business of the Reform, including the either the signing or veto of motions considered by the Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu.
ARTICLE SIX
Legislative Branch: 1) The Legislative power shall be invested in an extra-Grove body called the Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu, or NoDaL. The membership of NoDaL consists of all those Druid members of the Reformed Druids of Gaia who have been ordained to the 3rd Order (Priesthood) of the Reform. 2) The business of the NoDaL shall be conducted using the usual protocols of Parliamentary Procedure and decisions shall be made by consensus vote of members present in meeting.
ARTICLE SEVEN
Judicial Branch: The Judicial Branch shall be invested in an extra-Grove body called the Provisional Council of Archdruids, or PCoA. The membership of PCoA consists of all those Druids who have been elected to serve as Archdruid of a local Grove, or who are administering a Proto-Grove.
ARTICLE EIGHT
This Constitution may be amended by a consensus vote of the members of a Convention or Yearly Gathering of the Mother Grove, Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu, and Provisional Council of Archdruids and in two consecutive meetings, a quorum being present of members of each body being present. A quorum for this and all purposes shall be taken to be two-thirds of the members of the Convention.
ADOPTED this 54th day of Fogharnhar, in the Year of the Reform 44, being the date of 23 September, 2006 in the Common Era, by
[SIGNATURES]
“SO SAY WE ALL!!???
AMENDMENT ONE
Whereas the dawn of the Reformed Druids of Gaia represents the beginning of a new age of Reformed Druidry, the calendar of the Reform shall be reset beginning the forthcoming Samhain, on which will begin the First Day of Year One of the Gaian Reform (YGR), being also the 1st Day of the Second Age of Reformed Druidism
AMENDMENT TWO
Elections for the officers of all Groves shall be held during the season of Foghamhar. New officers shall be ordained in a ritual of the Groves choosing at the Samhain meeting of the Grove.
AMENDMENT THREE
From this day, July 17 2011, and going forward, new members of the RDG who have been ordained to the 3rd Order will henceforth be required to participate in the activities of the Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu, in so far as they are expected to vote on any and all motions that come before the NoDaL. Members ordained to 3rd prior to July 17 2011 are not bound by this Amendment.
AMENDMENT FOUR
Any motion brought before the NoDaL must be seconded by another member. Once seconded, the Clerk will set up a poll with the following choices: Yes, No, Abstain, and Discuss. Each motion will have two weeks during which it may be voted on, except in the case of a single vote of Discuss, when a third week will be added. A motion passes if these conditions are met: 1) 50% plus 1 of the membership has registered a vote, and 2) All votes are “Yes??? votes, except for Abstain and Discuss. If a motion has a single ‘No??? vote it does not pass. If all votes are ‘Yes??? votes, but the motion fails to garner 50% plus one total votes, it is sent to the Mother Grove for a decision. If a motion meets those two requirements, (that is, if 50% plus 1 members have voted, and there are only ‘Yes’ votes, and no ‘No??? votes, then the motion is sent to the Mother Grove which may either enact it, or veto it.
AMENDMENT FIVE
Changes to the Executive Branch:
1) The Executive power shall be invested in an Extra-Grove body of the Reform, referred to as the Mother Grove of the Reformed Druids of Gaia, or simply The Mother Grove (MG).
I) The spokesperson and executive officer shall be the Archdruid of the Mother Grove, referred to as the Senior Archdruid of The Reformed Druids of Gaia, or Senior ArchDruid (SA). The Nominee(s) for SA shall be made by the NoDaL. Any 3rd Order RDG Druid, who has been a member for 3 or more years, may be nominated. A nomination must be proposed and seconded by two different members of the NoDaL, and no one may nominate themselves. The SA is then elected by NoDaL. 50% +1 of the vote is needed to win. The SA term of office is 2 years with no term limit.
II) The Secretary for the MG will be known as the Senior Clerk of the RDG, or Senior Clerk (SC). They are responsible for all record keeping and act as the Treasurer/ Purse Warden. Any 2nd order or higher who has been a member of the RDG for at least two years may be appointed to this position. They will be appointed by the SA and approved by the NoDaL’s regular voting procedures. The SC serves for two years, at which point they must be reappointed by the SA, reappointment does not need approval by the NoDaL, or a a new SC must be appointed and approved.
III) The Assistant Executive Officer of the MG is known as the Senior Server of the RDG, or senior server (SrS). They assist the SA in their duties and perform tasks such as a treasurer or secretary as directed by the SA. They also act as an ombudsman and members advocate. They are the major voice of the non-clergy in the MG. The SrS is appointed in the same manner as the SC and may be any member of the RDG who has been a member for two or more years and has not obtained the 3rd order.
IV) Four Non-Officer members are on the Mother Grove, Referred to as Senior Druids of the Reformed Druids of Gaia, or Senior Druids (SD). These are voting members of the MG, elected in the same fashion as the SA. They must be of at least the second order and been members of the RDG for at least one year. The term of office is two years, with an election of two SDs every year.
VI) All elections and appointments within this article will be held in the season of Foghamhar. Emergency Appointments and Elections can be held as needed with approval by the NoDaL. A call for nominations and applicants will be made at least 2 weeks prior to an election. All nominations and appointment applications will be sent to the acting SC, who will act as the election officer.
2) The Mother Grove is charged with the execution of the day to day business of the Reform, including the either the signing or veto of motions considered by the Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu.
3) The Mother Grove is tasked with keeping in reasonably continuous contact through some private online forum. Participation in this forum is mandatory for members of the Mother Grove
4) Any Mother Grove Member, found wanting by the membership for any reason, not protected by law, may be removed from office at any time with a2/3rds vote of the GCA. Before the GCA votes, there must be a motion for impeachment filed and seconded in the NoDaL. If the NoDaL votes to impeach the MG member, they will then be voted on by the GCA.
AMMENDMENT SIX
Due to a general lack of interest on the part of the members of the Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu, Amendment Five is repealed. By declaration of the Senior Archdruid, 1 November 2020 / 1 Geimredh YGR 11.
AMMENDMENT SEVEN
Due to a general lack of interest on the part of the members of the Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu, Amendment Three is repealed. Further, the Nemeton of Dalon ap Landu is declared to be in abeyance. By declaration of the Senior Archdruid, 1 November 2020 / 1 Geimredh YGR 11.