“Praise Offerings”
The term that is used in ADF Druid ritual to refer to the collective offerings of the group.
why we make Praise Offerings, how they are made, when they are made, and who they are made to
Why?
Praise offerings are an expressive Art meant to charm.
there should be sensitivities shown about respect, and a clear intent to avoid offending.
A Peace Making Promise.
A recognition, or honoring action, elevating, raising up
Praise is a particularly strong and ancient use of word magic.
It is clearly not cursing.
It is about good feeling.
Our collective ability to create and build upon that.
Our desire to want to share, to help and do good.
How?
Begin to own and understand the power to praise.
Maybe our most under-utilized magic ability.
It doesn't take a lot from us, yet it has a big effect.
Sincerity and truth are important aspects to consider .
It is offered, free to be accepted, or not!
When?
We are doing it all the time.
Not as much as we unconsciously complain.
We thoughtlessly curse as a social bonding mechanism. Our challenge is the development of special Time to exercise our ability to carefully Bless.
Who?
Everything,
Beginning with the things we take for granted.
There are echoes of Class Order in the traditions of praise.
Patrons and people.
If you show proper gratitude and respect things are good.
When we are cruel and overlooking our Help,
Inhospitable in our actions, we lie to our selves.
-from my response to Peter(with the little guitar) in NYC
I Believe in the ability to apply sincere appreciation and caring to change things, The effects of kind word and caring touch it is clearly related to growth and health in our living companions, but is true of our material things as well.
People and Pets and Places
What doesn’t benefit from special care and recognition?
There is power in praise, and special qualities of the delivery mechanism of the offering.
Praise Offerings in ADF ritual are not performances that are to be applauded by the assembled folk .
We are witnessing or participating in a expression of appreciation for another audience.
An appeal is made for them to accept these offerings as sacrifice,
Our Gift, Our sharing message. A language of caring.
The praise offering segment of an ADF grove ritual is close to being the potluck or open stage aspect of our group practice.
It is most often meant to be praise for that specific season or holiday.
Other ADF groves refer to the Deities of the Occasion as the chief recipients of the praise.
Meaning all praise should be addressed to them. To draw attention away from the honored guests at their own party is rude.
This is a problem when a group of people have been investing in the planning of a holiday ritual with an expectation of outcome. Often this is Their Opportunity to perform for Their Gods in Their way.
Sacred showing off is a big part of what “this” is all about.
It happens at Grove rituals, and in a long distance ramped up way at Festivals.
Some groups of folks have been looking forward for an opportunity to shine!
Contra-eclectic scape–goats are not to blame, it is in the nature of the gathered group to turn out different than imagined.
A ritual is a repeated thing, a habit, an exercise to stretch and build.
I have led over a hundred ADF rituals,
The spirits that come and attend these rituals have not necessarily Identified themselves as Druids or Pagans.
My holidays are attended by a few fairly regular folks, their family,and friends, It is common to have people new to group ,
I think of the people as Members of the Grove when I think they get it, when they got my back, and they step forward on the holidays..
The focus of ADF ritual practice often shifts away from Grove as holiday community celebration to study program stage time.
I don’t feel it is a necessary experience for many .
The contest, the audiences, the pride and faith on trying to deliver on the promises of Our Meritocracy as a brand religion.
A balance must be struck between the desires of seasonal ritual construction committees and the Old Fans who drop in to return for the same good stuff they’ve come to expect .
ADF offers people access to group worship.
We encourage people .
Trying our best to oversee sacrifice that is true and not wasted.
Hoping to moderate the offerings in a gentle way that does not offend.
Not afraid to play it safe and take our time.
It is strangely awkward to accept responsibility for our encouragement of another.
It is easy to seek the popular comfort of compliments and flattery.
Trapped by our inability to offer anything other than praise, the leader of an ADF ritual is in a socially awkward place between the worlds.
There is an Ancient tradition of praise poetry, that we are an outgrowth of.
Vocational specialists, praising Masters for taking care of them…..
The Satirist, as the flip side of the coin of the Praise Poet, was the Poet who used the power of words to put down and insult often involving shame and embarrassment. Both aspects of the Poet were popular among the common folk but both were employed by the lordly class.Their work is about a worldly patron, not a struggle with an otherworldly muse. Likewise the fool is out of place without a court to function in.
Nobility and Sovereignty are not necessarily associated with the prosperity of Place and People but often are clearly for sale. Today is an Age of Belittling, divide and conquer, an attempt to pick apart the fabric of society. The atomization of Humanity by words that make us feel less worth or valued, less related to one another.
Social Engineering built upon the put down.
There are few great Patrons taking care of our real Poets and limited cultural communities supporting our true work. Big money is lying to people about Everything-especially Life, Earth, and Humanity. It is hard to earn a living from simple and honest encouraging and praising.
It isn’t inspired mystic spontaneous magic from the ritual leader or clergy that is counted on as the power of the group ritual.
It is the power of belonging, feeling involved and engaged. It will be a more effective ritual if All are comfortable and feel safe with their level of participation.
We are encouraging Authentic individual spiritual expression and empowerment.
It is tricky, in a cynical age, to try to keep it real.
Often that real is the good enough of the special combination of people, places and events,
Offerings are released, let go of, to be accepted or rejected…… they must move on.
This point in ritual is a reflection of the offerings of the Gathered folk as facilitated by the Grove Holiday.
This is made explicit in the final prayer of sacrifice .
The Omens determine if and how the offerings bundled and turned sacrifice have been accepted.
Some times things are not accepted, it is not a failure in the ritual or our spiritual purpose, it may be a fact of the nature of Offering,
Valuing the ability to chose.
Free Will.
To say what you mean.
I don’t know that it is ever appropriate to comment on perceived events in sacred time without effecting things in weirder ways.We make a point of not applauding or cheering between praise. It is not good form to talk about ritual at the feasting after,
.It moves on in our forgotten memory somewhere else, to pop up again transformed, a reply, a response to wishes, prayers,and kind intentions.
We trust in that.
