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ADF Constitution

Ár nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc., also known as "ADF," is the legal structure for a Neopagan Druidic religion based on the beliefs and practices of the ancient Indo-Europeans, adapted to the needs and sensibilities of modern people. We are a nonprofit religious, scientific, educational, artistic, and charitable corporation, organized to practice the full spectrum of legal activities practiced by any religious organization. As we define it, Neopagan Druidism is a polytheistic, non-dualist, non-sexist, non-racist, scientific, holistic, and ecologically oriented faith. We are dedicated to the preservation of our Holy Mother Earth, the full achievement of human potential, the revival of the worship of the Old Gods in a modern context, and the creation of a world of peace, love, freedom, health, and prosperity for all intelligent beings.

Article 1: Purposes

To accomplish the goals outlined above, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, many sciences, arts, and disciplines, both mainstream and alternative, within a non-dogmatic, pluralistic context, in order to change ourselves, each other, and the world around us.
Since one of the primary duties of the ancient Druids was to lead their tribes in magical and religious activities, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, open, inclusionary, and public ceremonies to worship the Earth Mother and the Old Gods and Goddesses, rites of passage to mark the cycles of our lives, and magical rituals to accomplish our other goals in an honest and ethical manner.
Since the ancient Druids were the intellectuals of their tribes, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, scientific and scholarly research and debate about the ancient Druids, the Indo-Europeans, comparative religion, folklore, ethnomusicology, and every other relevant field of human knowledge.
In keeping with our reverence for and worship of the Earth Mother, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, ecological and environmental research, education, and active stewardship.
Since the ancient Druids were the artists of their tribes, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, a wide variety of auditory, graphic, movement, dramatic, liturgical, and other arts and crafts.
Since the ancient Druids included many healers in their ranks, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, the investigation, dissemination, and performance of a wide variety of healing arts and technologies, both mainstream and alternative, including herbal, nutritional, mental, magical, and spiritual methods, among others; advising all parties concerned as to the presence or absence of appropriate credentials as required by civil law.
Since the ancient Druids included diviners in their ranks, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, the use of the divinatory arts and sciences as tools for spiritual counseling and liturgical guidance; advising all parties concerned as to the presence or absence of appropriate credentials as required by civil law.
Since the ancient Druids included counselors, mediators, and judges in their ranks, ADF advocates and practices, as an integral part of our faith, the investigation, dissemination, and performance of a wide variety of counseling arts and methods, both mainstream and alternative, as well as techniques of mediating disputes and judging conflicts between organizations and/or individuals in the Neopagan community; advising all parties concerned as to the presence or absence of appropriate credentials as required by civil law.

Article 2: Offices

The principal office of the Corporation shall be located in the City of Newark, County of New Castle, in the State of Delaware, USA. The Corporation may have other such offices, either within or without the State of Delaware, as the Directors may designate or the business of the Corporation may require from time to time.

Article 3: Governing Documents

The supreme governing document of Ár nDraíocht Féin is this Constitution. In the event of a contradiction between any other documents and this Constitution, the Constitution will take precedence.

Article 4: Calendar

The High Days of the ADF calendar are the eight Neopagan High Days which are the solstices, equinoxes, and points equally between them. For legal purposes, these High Days occur on:

Cross-Quarter = November 1st
Solstice = December 21st
Cross-Quarter = February 1st
Equinox = March 21st
Cross-Quarter = May 1st
Solstice = June 21st
Cross-Quarter = August 1st
Equinox = September 21st

For ceremonial purposes, local congregations shall celebrate each of the eight High Days within one week prior to or after the aforementioned dates, or at some other time determined by Board-established policy.
The ceremonial year of ADF shall begin on the first day of November and end on the thirty-first day of October in each civil year.

Article 5: Discrimination

Membership and rank in ADF, attendance at public or semipublic ADF activities, and participation in any Druidic Study Program, shall not be denied to any person on the basis of race, ancestry, color, physical disability (except as mentioned elsewhere in this article), age, gender, or affectional orientation, but may be denied to individuals practicing creeds inimical to Neopagan Druidism.
Membership within the Board of Directors, the Clergy, and other such positions of responsibility and trust as the Board of Directors may determine, shall be granted only to practicing Neopagans who are not simultaneously practicing a creed inimical to Neopagan Druidism.
As used herein, "inimical creeds" shall include varieties of conservative monotheism, atheism, demonism, racialism, or other such faiths, as shall be determined by the Board of Directors.
Proven communication or behavior of a virulently racist, sexist, homophobic, heterophobic, anti-Semitic, or otherwise bigoted manner, shall be grounds for expulsion from ADF. This does not include strong verbal statements about the theology, history, or psychological characteristics of other religions.
All organizers of public and semipublic ADF activities shall make strenuous efforts to facilitate the participation of differently-abled individuals. Nonetheless, all aspirants to any given rank or position must be able to meet all the relevant qualifications previously determined for said rank or position, unless the Board of Directors shall rule otherwise in a particular instance.

Article 6: Amendment of Constitution

This initial Constitution shall be approved by a 3/4 vote of the Board of Directors.
This Constitution shall only be amended by a referendum of the full membership of ADF.

Amendments must be approved by at least three-quarters of the total votes cast.

Related Pages: ADF Bylaws

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