Druidism Now Recognised Religion in UK

The Druids were a Celtic pagan faith that came to power in Europe thousands of years ago. Now Britain has recognised Druidry as an official religion for the first time and they share the same status as the Church of England.

A druid was a member of the priestly, elitist class in Gaul (present day France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Switzerland, Northern Italy, Holland and Germany and possibly other parts of Celtic Europe during the Iron Age). When the Romans invaded and conquered Gaul, the Druids were suppressed. Very little is known about them because they didn't leave any written records - the little we do know came from Greek and Roman authors. Not one single artefact or image has ever been found that can be connected with certainty to the Druids. In Ireland, they were portrayed as sorcerers from the dark side who opposed Christianity. They were known to perform human sacrifice and believe in a form of reincarnation.

Druidism is now a recognised religion in Britain. Best known for their gatherings at Stonehenge every summer solstice, the commission said it accepted that druidry was an "ancient pagan religion" in its own right involving the worship of nature, particularly the sun and the earth. That means they are classed as a charity and won't pay tax. Scientology is another "church" that doesn't pay tax in many Western countries, including Australia -a cynic would say such a classification is a licence to print money.

There are now about 10,000 Druid practitioners in Britain. The Druid Network fought for nearly five years to be recognised under the semi-government Charity Commission which requires proof of serious belief in a supreme entity and a moral framework. After initially rejecting the Druid Network's application, last week they changed their mind. "There is sufficient believe in a supreme being or entity to constitute a religion for the purposes of charity law" they said.

I'd like to know what their policy is on human sacrifice.