This page should have enough information to get you started. If you want to have more detailed recommendations, how to improve your grove's place and relation with the RDNA messy dis-organization, advice on ordination and how to better run the grove (once you started without planning well), click the link on the right for a 90 page protogrove primer. If you have any questions, email me at mikerdna@hotmail.com.

Click Image to Open Welcome Pamphlet

1. Collect 3 or more members, sentient or otherwise.
2. Choose roles, length of office, a few basic tenets,and responsibility (if any), which are officially stated:

   A. The object of the search for religious truth, which is a universal and a neverending search, may be found through the Earth Mother, which is Nature; but this is one way, yea, one way among many. B. And great is the importance, which is of a spiritual importance, of Nature, which is the Earth Mother; for is is one of the objects of Creation, and with it we do live, yea, even as we do struggle through life are we come face to face with it.

   Some groves have democratically elected a fish, or inanimate objects as Arch-Druid, since they tend to cause less trouble and have smaller egos; but it's usually advisable to get a few humans. If it's written agreement it's called a "constitution", if it's orally agreed upon it's call an "oral-thingy".

3. Go and do your thing.
4. Keep it simple stupid (KISS).
5. When the grove is not needed, break up and tell us.

1. Write a constitution (see a sample below), send a copy to "The Archdruid, Carleton College, Northfield, MN 55057" and another copy to mikerdna@hotmail.com in case that copy gets lost.
2. Contact other groves. It could be the start of a beautiful friendship.
3. If you want to be listed on this site or initiated, contact mikerdna@hotmail.com Tell me your grove's name, general location (city), rough membership estimate, contact address (internet is best), any homepages you've built; and a few paragraphs to describe your grove. Send a short blurb every few months to poppinjay@earthlink.net for the Druid Missal-Any newsletter's "News of the Groves".
4. Download a copy of "A Reformed Druid Anthology", but don't read it too much; it's dull in many parts. It's OK to disagree with most of it.
5. Arrange a Vigil with a Priest. Perhaps one of your members would like to do the vigil for the Third Order (or again, perhaps no one wants to yet, but you can still be a protogrove.) Contact the closest Third Order Druid to personally assist you. Afterwards, tell Mike, and he'll record it in the Record of the Council of Dalon ap Landu.
6. Occasionally tune in to the news, dull as it is, at A Druid Missal-any news desk and just tell us how you're doing.

Note: All that, and $3.50, will buy you a cup of coffee at Starbucks!

P.S. Your grove can be cross-registered with other Druid/Pagan/whatever Groups; like being an ADF Grove and RDNA at the same time. It doesn't bother us.

Feel free to modernize language and make it applicable to your situation.

We, the Reformed Druids of North America at the University of South Dakota, in order to make our existence more fruitful, do hereby enact this, our Constitution.

ARTICLE I
The name of this organization shall be the Reformed Druids of North America at the University of South Dakota.

ARTICLE II
Any student at the University of South Dakota, or any resident of Vermillion, South Dakota, may become a member of this organization upon presentation of a petition, whichy may be oral, stating that he believes in the basic tenets of North American Reformed Druidism as set forth in this Constitution.

ARTICLE III
The basic tenets of North American Reformed Druidism are these:
1) North American Reformed Druids believe that one of the many ways in which the object of man's search for religious truth can be found is through Nature, the Earth-Mother.
2) North American Reformed Druids believe that Nature, being one of the primary concerns in man's life and struggle, and being one of the objects of creation, is important to man's spiritual quests.

ARTICLE IV
There shall be three officers of this Drynemetum of the Reformed Druids of North America:
1) The Arch-Druid must be at least a third-order North American Reformed priest. He shall preside over all services and meetings of the Drynemetum.
2) The Preceptor must be at least a second-order North American Reformed Druid, shall assist in services, and shall be the principle officer in the secular arm of the Reformed Druids of North America at the University of South Dakota.
3) The Server must be at least a first-order North American Reformed Druid, and shall assist in services.

ARTICLE V
Elections for the posts of Arch-Druid, Preceptor, and Server shall be held annually, in September. Unless a member objects, the posts will be filled by a voice vote, with nominations being accepted from the floor of the meeting.
Only those qualified to hold the posts may be nominated for any post.
The Arch-Druid shall have the right to appoint any qualified member to fill an unexpired term, and may appoint any qualified member to serve in his place as Arch-Druid pro tem.

ARTICLE VI
This Constitution may be attended by a majority vote in two consecutive meetings of the University of South Dakota Drynemetum. A quorum, which shall be one-eighth of those known to the officers to be current members, must be present at both meetings.

Approved this 23rd day of April, 1966, in the third year of the worship of the Earth-Mother, by the Drynemetum of the University of South Dakota.

Norman E. Nelson, 5P, Arch-Druid.