International Grand Lodge of Druidism
The International Grand Lodge of Druidism ( IGLD ) is a worldwide federation of lodges that the in the age of Enlightenment , founded Ancient Order of Druids decline. Their aim is to promote humanity , tolerance , human rights and friendship among the members. The association has nothing to do with the cult and belief of the historical Celts and their intellectual leadership, the Druids . The founders wanted to symbolize science, art, wisdom and closeness to nature by giving the name.
distribution
IGLD lodges exist in English-speaking countries, in Scandinavia , Germany and Switzerland. In other countries, such as South Africa or Austria, there were lodges in the 20th century, but they went under over time.
The total number of members is unknown. It is on the order of 50,000 worldwide.
There are 62 lodges in Germany and 11 lodges in seven locations in Switzerland. (As of January 2017)
organization
The IGDL is structured in a similar way to other lodge systems . The local or regional lodges are grouped together in grand lodges.
The world association IGDL was founded in 1908 in the house of the Eichenhain eV association, Wurzerstraße in Munich, in which four druid lodges had their seat at that time, including the Bavaria lodge in the German Druid Order, which still exists today. It is chaired by a rotating president. Every four years a world congress takes place in a different country. A member of a local lodge can also join the International Grand Lodge as a member and thus take part in the World Congress. However, only the delegates of the individual countries are entitled to vote; they elect the board of the IGLD. The national grand lodges are autonomous and not bound by instructions from the IGLD.
Germany
The official name of the German Grand Lodge is Deutscher Druiden-Orden VAOD eV , where VAOD stands for "United Old Order of Druids". In Germany, almost all local lodges and the large lodges, which roughly correspond to the territory of the federal states, are registered associations . The chairmen and other elected delegates are members of the Order, which is the highest organ of the German Druid Order. The Presidium is elected by the Order for a term of four years. There are currently 62 boxes in Germany, three of which are women's boxes.
Switzerland
The Swiss branch has only one grand lodge. The Swiss Grand Lodge is called the Swiss Order of Druids SDO .
magazine
The joint official journal of the German Druid Order and the Swiss Druid Order is published four times a year Druids star .
membership
The lodges of the Druid Order accept either only men or only women as full members. However, the respective partners are involved in most activities that do not belong to the so-called inner box . This is reserved for members. The Druid Order promotes the establishment and work of women's lodges that are based on its principles.
Candidates should be at least 24 years old and live in an orderly manner. The admission of new members requires the consent of all members of a lodge. It takes place in a solemn ritual. There are three degrees of lodge: The degree of ovate symbolizes the pursuit of truth, the degree of bard is for art and the formation of the heart, and the degree of druid is the motto: responsibility and energy.
aims
The goals of the German Druid Order are according to paragraph 2 of the association's statutes of 2005:
“The German Druid Order has the motto unity, peace and harmony. Its members call themselves brothers. You stand up for humanism, active charity, brotherhood, tolerance and the protection of human rights. The Order expects its members to be actively involved and to lead a life in accordance with its values. He does not deal with political or religious tasks. "
The Swiss Order of Druids has the following goals in particular:
"Create and deepen friendships, deal with the spiritual values of mankind, which carry the knowledge gained into everyday life, help oppressed or helpless people, promote mutual understanding together, understand and respect the convictions and confessions of people who think differently, the neighbor uninfluenced by level of education, Respect rank and origin. "
There is no religious bond; even an outspoken atheist can become or be a member. There have never been any conflicts with the major religions. Religion and politics can be discussed within the lodges; Confessional or party political disputes are frowned upon. Members are expected to keep all internal conversations and expressions of opinion confidential.
All members enjoy the right to visit both domestic and foreign lodges.
The lodges pursue the goal of active charity by promoting local activities. In Germany there is also the Druidenhilfe e. V., a non-profit association with the task of collecting donations nationwide and using it for charitable purposes according to strict criteria.
The most important symbol of the International Grand Lodge of Druidism is the seven-pointed druid star, which serves as a guiding star to keep the goals in view.
history
In 1781 the "Ancient Order of Druids (AOD)" was founded by a group of friends around Henry Hurle in the restaurant "The King's Arms" in London's Poland Street. In his ideals and thus in the naming he referred to the old Druids of the Celts. The epoch at that time was shaped by the ideas of the Enlightenment on the one hand, and partly violent, politically or religiously motivated conflicts on the other. A number of civil associations were founded with the aim of promoting humanity, tolerance and mutual help.
There are references to an association founded in London in 1717 called "The Druid Circle of the Universal Bond" (founder: John Toland), from which the AOD is said to have emerged later.
The rapid expansion of the order in England led to a great split in 1833, in which some of the English druids founded their own grand lodge under the name "UAOD (United Ancient Order of Druids)". As a Friendly Society ( mutual insurance ), it was particularly dedicated to helping its members and their relatives in the event of unemployment, illness or death. This association, in German "United Old Order of the Druids (VAOD)", spread worldwide, especially in English-speaking countries. The first lodges were established in Canada in 1824 , the George Washington Grove # 1 in New York in 1839, and the UAOD in Australia in 1861.
In 1872 the Dodona Lodge was founded in Berlin with support from the USA. This first German druid lodge still exists today.
In 1908 the International Grand Lodge (IGLD) was brought into being at a conference in Munich. Since 1913, the World Congress in London has reunited all the various branches of the Order of the world, including the AOD, which still exists in England.
From 1933, the National Socialists exposed the German Druid Order, which at that time comprised 264 lodges with around ten thousand members, to increasing reprisals, for example through open or covert calls for boycotts against its members, arbitrary confiscation of lodge assets, etc. On May 19, 1935, the governing body decided on the Self-dissolution. In 1947, former members who had maintained contact with each other during the Nazi era re-founded the association.
In Switzerland, the Druid Order first gained a foothold in 1912 with the establishment of the Arnold Winkelried Lodge in Zurich. Since this was subordinate to the German grand lodge, it dissolved again, like the German lodges, during the Nazi regime. Based on contacts with the southern German grand lodge, some men founded the Jacob Burckhardt lodge in Basel in 1962. From there, the order spread throughout Switzerland.
With the emergence of the social security systems that are customary today , the importance of the VAOD as a mutual insurance company declined sharply and no longer plays a role in Germany (although help for members and their relatives is still seen as a moral obligation). The Australian life insurance company NobleOak still refers in its self-portrayal to its predecessor organization, a Friendly Society founded by the Australian AOD.
literature
- Biedermann, Edwin A: Lodges, clubs and brotherhoods. Düsseldorf, Droste, 2nd act. and exp. Edition 2007, ISBN 3-7700-1184-8
- Bütow, Wolf J: In good company. Düsseldorf, Econ 1981, ISBN 3-430-11598-1
- German Druid Order VAOD eV: Statute, VR8655 at the Munich District Court
- Frey, Herbert: The history of the Druid order, especially the German. Branch of the order until 1935. Stuttgart, Eugen Heinz publishing and printing 2002
- Green, Miranda J: The World of the Druids. London, Thames & Hudson Ltd. 1997, ISBN 978-0-500-28571-8
- Lennhoff, Eugen, Oskar Posner a. Dieter A. Binder: International Freemason Lexicon. Munich, Herbig 2000, ISBN 3-7766-2161-3
- May, Klaus-Rüdiger: Secret societies. Myth, Power and Reality. Bergisch Gladbach, Lübbe, 2nd edition 2009, ISBN 978-3-404-60605-4
- Patzer, Stefanie (2009) Modern Celtic Reception: Order of Druids. Diploma thesis, University of Vienna. Faculty of Philological and Cultural Studies. Supervisor: Birkhan, Helmut
- Mistake, Stefanie: Druids. Your image change from early modern times to modern times. Printed with funding from the Federal Ministry for Science and Research in Vienna. Vienna, Praesens Verlag 2010, ISBN 978-3-7069-0587-9
Individual evidence
- ↑ http://www.druiden-orden.de/international_igld.html
- ↑ http://www.druiden-orden.de/113.html
- ↑ http://www.druiden-orden.de/140.html
- ↑ http://www.druiden-orden.de/fragen__rechte.html , accessed on April 7, 2013
- ↑ http://www.druiden-orden.de/140.html
- ↑ https://www.nobleoak.com.au/about-us/nobleoak-vision