If people can find other members in their area, they can contact them and arrange a ‘meet-up’. It should be understood though, that such informal meetings are completely the responsibility of the members involved in agreeing to meet each other. NOD cannot be held responsible in case of accidents or such. Therefore, adequate personal security measures should be taken by each person when arranging such meetings.(e.g. meeting in public places, informing relatives or friends of such meetings, appropriate transport arrangements, etc.) Members are strongly advised to research ‘Personal Safety Advice’ for their own countries or contact their local agencies for such advice.

If you did not find an answer to your question in our FAQ, please contact us through our helpdesk.

A group, E-Nemeton and Nemeton are all different things with different intentions.

1. A "group" is something that every NOD member can create on the website, in order to have a discussion group with people all interested in one particular subject. These groups are thus informal discussion groups.

2. An E-Nemeton can be an online (discussion) group or community, but which is actually external to NOD. The name "E-Nemeton" therefore actually relates to an online affiliation.

3. A Nemeton is a local group which extends its activities beyond only the internet, but also holds local meetings, rituals, etc... and is affiliated with NOD. A varation to this is the Vernemeton, a more loosely affiliated local group.

The word "Nemeton" is related to Nemetona, the Celtic goddess of sacred groves. In other words, a nemeton is a sacred place located at a grove in a forest. The word "Vernemeton" was derived from this, and is found in the same Roman name for Willoughby-on-the-Wolds in Nottinghamshire, UK. Because of its rich meaning, the New Order of Druids decided to apply this term to our "groves", or local Druid groups.

In essence, a Nemeton is a local group associated with NOD. The most prominent one is the so-called mothergrove in Belgium, called Nervii Nemeton. Local groups hold meetings and gatherings, as well as seasonal rituals or ceremonies to which members (and often also non-members) can attend.

The New Order of Druids makes an distinction between Nemetons and Vernemetons, in that Vernemetons are loosely affiliated groups and Nemetons are closely affiliated groups adhering to more strict requirements. In addition, there are also E-Nemetons, or groups that communicate primarily online in e.g. discussion groups or mailing lists.

A list of available nemetons can be found on our website at Nemetons.

The headquarters of the New Order of Druids is located in Antwerp, Belgium, which is also the location of our mothergrove "Nervii Nemeton". The mothergrove does provide private and personalized ceremonies for special occasions, such as the name giving of a child, the coming of age of a child or Celtic wedding ceremonies also called a "handfasting". These services are only offered within Belgium. For more information, please vsit the Nervii Nemeton's website at https://nervii.druidcircle.org/ or contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

We do not by default provide these services in other countries than Belgium. If you live in another country, you can check in our list of Nemetons (local NOD groups) if a group is active in your country or area. If so, you can contact them to ask if they provide these services as well.

The New Order of Druids has both an online and offline presence. This means that, other than our online activities on our website, we also organize local activities.

The main local activities take place in Antwerp, Belgium, as that is where the headquarters of NOD, and therefore also its mothergrove "Nervii Nemeton" is located. All these activities are open to the public, meaning that both members and non-members are welcome. In addition, the Nervii Nemeton also offers services such as personal rituals and ceremonies, e.g. for Celtic handfasting weddings. You can find more information about these activities on the website of the Nervii Nemeton at: https://nervii.druidcircle.org/ (only available in Dutch).

Other than the mothergrove, the New Order of Druids also offers our members the possibility to create their own "Nemeton" or "local grove" or group with which they can organize activities, rituals and ceremonies. The activities and services offered by these local groups, can vary depending on their organisation's structure. A list of NOD Nemetons can be found on our website at Nemetons.