Welcome to the Virtual Home of Ord Brighideach

Brighid - a poetess, daughter of the Dagda.  She is the female sage, woman of wisdom,
or Brighid the Goddess whom poets venerated because very great and famous for her protecting
care. She was therefore called 'Goddess of Poets'.  Her sisters were Brighid the female physician,
and Brighid the female smith; among all Irishmen, a goddess was called 'Brighid'.
Brighid is from 'breo-agit' or 'fiery arrow'.

Cormac's Glossary, believed to be the oldest writing about Brighid.
 
 

Have you heard Brighid's call?

Do you speak Her name?
Brighid, Brid, Bride, Brigit, Briga, Briginda, Brigdu, Brigittina, Brigantia,
Bridgid, Ffraud, Cailleach Bearra, Minerva, Maman Brigitt

We of Ord Brighideach have heard and have answered Her call.
 We are a Brighidine order of flame-keepers engaging in devotional work to Brighid.
We are committed to carrying out Her work in this world in the manner in
which we ave been called, or, if we have not yet been called,
in a manner in which we feel will serve Her.

If  She speaks to you - as poet, healer, smith, storyteller, musician, craftsperson,
midwife, mother, hearth keeper, land steward, tender of herds, seer, woman of fire,
lawgiver, deity of the home, lady of the sun, or simply as goddess or saint -
you are welcome to walk among us.

Each flame-keeper is assigned a time to tend Brighid's flame on a
20 day cycle - 19 shifts, plus one day upon which Brighid tends the flame herself.
Since the Celtic day runs from sundown to sundown, we tend from sundown to
sundown. The expectation is that you will tend the flame for as much of the day
as possible, taking safety into consideration.  If you can only manage a few minutes,
that is acceptable, although certainly tending the flame the entire day is optimal.
The longer you are able to tend, the more energy we will be able to generate:
an offering to this world and the otherworld, as well
as to Brighid - 'She Who Gives Energy.'

We ask that each Ord Brighideach flame-keeper swear an oath to Brighid the first
time they tend the flame as a member of the order.  Since each of us comes to Brighid's
service on our own path, each of us speaks our own oath.  The oath, however, should
include a statement of your dedication to Brighid, and to your commitment to tend
her flame faithfully.  Since only a minimum of tending is 'required,' you shouldn't
have any trouble finding a time during your day to tend Her flame.  If you find
that you are not faithfully tending the flame, you should resign from the
order and pass your shift  to another flame keeper.

Our practice of tending the flame is patterned after our sister order,
the Daughters of the Flame.  Each cell of 19 shifts is named after a sacred tree,
and we honor the same 20th day.

At this time, we have 4 cells:
Birch - Cill Beith, for both men and women.
Hazel - Cill Coll, for women only.
Mistletoe - Cill Drualus, for men only.
Rowan - Cill Caorthann, for women only (all shifts filled at this time).

Each member of the order must have an email address, and must complete and
return the membership form via email.  This eases the administration of the order.
Members are encouraged to be subscribers to the Brighid's Crossing
mailing list, but this is not required.

Our work includes sharing information about Brighid.  Recommendations and
contributions of poetry, stories, old writings, and songs about Brighid are most
welcome.  We have also discussed the possibility of having regional gatherings around
Imbolc.  One such gathering, to be held in the Pacific Northwest. is in the planning stages.