Ariadne’s Tribe (also “the Tribe” and “Tribe”) is a voluntary association of autonomous, self-governing local chapters and solitary practitioners who have freely chosen to pursue common goals together. These goals include connecting with the Minoan family of deities in the context of modern Pagan spiritual practice as well as connecting with other Pagans for fellowship and ritual.
Ariadne’s Tribe is a non-dogmatic tradition, focusing on orthopraxy (spiritual practice) rather than orthodoxy (belief). Members share a connection with the Tribe family of deities and a set of common practices. Our basis of common belief is that Ariadne’s Tribe is a polytheist, animist tradition. How any member views the deities—as individual beings, psychological constructs, etc.—is entirely up to them.
Ariadne’s Tribe is a non-initiatory tradition. There are no degrees to be earned. Ariadne’s Tribe does not use titles such as Lord, Lady, High Priestess, or High Priest. A person who runs a ritual may be called the presiding Priest, Priestess, Officiant, or other term appropriate to the event. Members may use Craft names in ritual and online but must provide their legal name to the Board upon joining.
The Official Policies may be supplemented, clarified, and/or amended as needed by the Board. Any changes will be announced on the official public forum.
Mission/Vision Statement
Ariadne’s Tribe seeks to create reverent connections between modern Pagans and the deities of Minoan Crete as viewed through the lens of modern Pagan spiritual practice. The tradition is committed to fostering an environment in which all members of our community are safe, secure, and free from harassment in any form. We expect that all interpersonal relationships and interactions—especially those of an intimate nature—will be based on mutual respect, open communication, and clear consent. The tradition also seeks to build accepting, welcoming community among modern Pagans around the world.
Position Statement
Ariadne’s Tribe prohibits discrimination and harassment on the basis of sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender, or parental status, as well as on racial, religious, ethnic, socioeconomic status, ability/disability or other bases. These kinds of behaviors, beliefs, and values are at odds with the values we hold dear in the Tribe. When learning of conduct or behavior that may not meet these standards, members and leaders are expected to take an active role in upholding this policy and promoting the dignity of all individuals involved.
Who may join?
Ariadne’s Tribe is a welcoming path, open to all people over the age of 18, of any race, ethnicity, caste, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, ability level, disability, geographic location, language, education, or socio-economic status.
Anyone who feels a connection with the Tribe family of deities, and wishes to develop a spiritual practice in relationship with them, is welcome.
Both solitary practitioners and members of local chapters must accept the Official Policies of Ariadne’s Tribe and agree to abide by them in order to join. The Official Policies include the organization of the tradition and its rules for joining and leaving as well as the Mission/Vision Statement, Position Statement, Sexual Misconduct Policy, and all other policies described in this document.
Ariadne’s Tribe is not an exclusive tradition. Members are welcome to participate in other traditions and spiritual paths at the same time as they practice Tribe spirituality, as long as those other traditions do not prohibit them from doing so.
Solitary Practitioners
Any individual over the age of 18 may join the tradition by accepting the Official Policies and developing a personal spiritual practice in relationship with the Tribe family of deities. To formally join as a solitary practitioner, an individual must send notice to the Record Keeper (listed under the Board of Directors below) that they accept these policies. In addition, they must provide their legal name and at least one reliable method of contact (e-mail address, for instance) to the Record Keeper. Members’ names and contact information will be kept confidential until and unless we are legally required to provide them in cooperation with law enforcement.
Chapters
A chapter consists of at least two, and up to four, leaders who, to their knowledge, are not related at the time they take the office, and who are from separate households, plus at least four regular members. To be an active chapter, groups must hold at least four meetings per rolling year, that is, 12 months from the date of formation. The use of a rolling year keeps the requirement fair for groups who start up later in the calendar year. A regular member is defined as attending at least two of those meetings.
A chapter comes into existence by declaring its affiliation and listing its leaders on the public forum, and providing full contact information for its leaders to the Record Keeper on the Board. As with solitary members, all chapter members must provide the Board with their legal name and at least one reliable method of contact. The chapter leaders may provide this information to the Board in lieu of chapter members doing it individually. Members’ information will be kept confidential as noted above; chapter leaders must allow the name of their choice and one form of contact (social media account is acceptable) to be made public.
Chapters are run by democratic vote and consensus.
No chapter may be run for profit. All monies received must be used solely for chapter events, to the benefit of the members and the greater community. Chapters may choose to charge dues, ask for donations, or collect money for individual events and activities such as rituals and celebrations. If any money changes hands, an accounting must be kept and presented publicly to the chapter, either monthly (in the case of dues or regular donations) or immediately after the event for which the money was collected.
Termination of membership
Voluntary termination of membership
- Members may leave the organization at any time, for any reason. We request the courtesy of being notified; such notification should be made to the member’s Chapter, if applicable, and if the member is not affiliated with a Chapter, notification should be made to the Record Keeper on the Board.
- Chapter leaders may leave the organization voluntarily by notifying the Board of both their departure and their replacement’s name and full contact information. No chapter may, at any time, have fewer than two unrelated leaders from separate households. Any chapter that has fewer than two leaders is automatically put on probationary status until a sufficient number of new leaders have taken office.
- Should a chapter wish to dissolve, the leaders must notify the Board of their intent. They must also include a complete list of leaders and members, including whether or not each person wishes to continue within the tradition as a solitary practitioner. Members who wish to continue within the tradition as solitary practitioners are welcome to do so.
Involuntary termination of membership
- Members and/or chapters who espouse prejudicial beliefs, including but not limited to white identity / nationalism / supremacy, racism, homophobia, and transphobia will be expelled.
- Members who commit acts of sexual misconduct will be expelled.
- Membership, participation in, or support of any known hate group is grounds for expulsion.
- Speech and behavior, including visual displays such as tattoos and social media images, that espouses prejudicial beliefs, including but not limited to white identity / nationalism / supremacy, racism, misogyny, homophobia, and transphobia is grounds for expulsion.
- Harassment or discrimination against Tribe members or others on the basis of their race, ethnicity, caste, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, ability level, disability, geographic location, language, education, or socio-economic status is grounds for expulsion.
- Behavior in violation of the Official Policies, including the Sexual Misconduct Policy, is grounds for expulsion.
The Board will investigate all claims of such behavior; their decision in these matters is final.
Sexual Misconduct Policy
Sexual misconduct violates the dignity of individuals; that which takes place in a spiritual environment can be especially damaging. Ariadne’s Tribe encourages good faith reports of sexual misconduct and prohibits retaliation, directly or through another person or persons, against any person who reports sexual misconduct and/or who participates in an investigation or resultant disciplinary process. Anyone found guilty of sexual misconduct will be expelled from the organization and not allowed to return.
Sexual misconduct is defined as including but not limited to sexual assault, sexual exploitation, stalking, dating violence or domestic violence, and sexual harassment (including misogynistic and/or transphobic language and behavior) either on Tribe forums or in person. These standards apply to all members, leaders, and volunteers, and apply equally to all regardless of the sex, gender, or sexual orientation of any of the individuals involved.
There is no “gray area.” It is an act of sexual misconduct to be a party to any sexual act without the full and knowing consent of both parties. For the purposes of this policy, consent is present when clearly understandable words or actions manifest a knowing, active, voluntary, present and ongoing agreement to engage in specific sexual or intimate contact. Consent may not be inferred from silence, passivity, or a lack of objection. Consent cannot be given by those compromised by injury, trauma, disease, or intoxicants, or across the power differential existing between a group leader and members, or with any subordinate. Persons under the statutory age of consent under the laws of the location in which an incident occurs cannot by definition give consent.
Any existing court orders, including restraining orders or child custody orders, may be shared with the leadership (event organizers and/or chapter leaders) if a concern exists that someone attending an event could have their security compromised by existing domestic disputes. The leadership will see that the event hosts are aware of any individual concerns to make sure the event is safeguarded from identified issues and any requirements regarding safety perimeters and access are respected.
Reportage Policies
- Reports of sexual misconduct will never be taken lightly or disregarded.
- Reports should be made to a chapter’s leader(s) if they are not involved, otherwise directly to the Board.
- Leaders must always notify the Board of any such reports and the steps they are taking to address the matter. Board email addresses are listed below.
- If criminal acts are involved, reports should also be made directly to law enforcement, and the leader(s) and Board should be notified that law enforcement has been contacted.
- Confidentiality rules apply to both accused and accuser until such time as investigation by law enforcement (if required) or leadership/the Board (if appropriate and possible) are complete. The Board retains the power to ask any leader or member to temporarily step down from their duties until such time as investigations are complete.
Online Presence and Activities
Ariadne’s Tribe has an online presence via the official website, the Facebook group Ariadne’s Tribe, and a Discord server, also called Ariadne’s Tribe. Participation on either social media platform (Facebook or Discord) does not automatically make a person a member of the Tribe. When it is desired, formal membership should be sought following the guidelines in the previous sections of these Official Policies.
The Facebook group Ariadne’s Tribe is the official public forum of Ariadne’s Tribe. Local chapters may set up their own Facebook groups or other online forums as they feel the need to do so. The Board must have full access to any online forum created by any chapter. The Board must also have full access to any online forum set up by any individual member if that forum focuses on Tribe topics.
The Facebook group is open to anyone who has an interest in Ariadne’s Tribe, regardless of their level of experience or practice. The Discord server is reserved for those who are dedicated practitioners of Tribe spirituality, alone or in addition to other spiritual paths.
On all platforms, participants must abide by the rules set down in these Official Policies as well as the rules of the social media platforms themselves. In addition to any rules listed elsewhere, in the Facebook group, discussion of drug use is limited to discussion of ancient world use (what the Minoans and other Bronze Age cultures might have done) or discussion of non-regulated substances such as mugwort and amanita mushrooms. Discussion of regulated or illegal substances is forbidden. On the Discord server, discussion of drug use is limited to ancient world use, non-regulated substances, and substances that are legal for use in the participant’s own state or country of residence.
The use of art, graphics, or text material generated by AI is prohibited on the website, all social media platforms, and any other public outlets used by the Tribe. This is due to the fact that AIs are trained on human-produced, copyrighted material that is taken by the AIs without the knowledge or consent of the creators and without acknowledgment or compensation to the creators. Please note that this prohibition does not include what is called “passive AI,” which includes things like spellcheck, autocorrect, Grammarly, automated audio and video settings on platforms like Zoom and Skype, video upscaling, noise suppression on audio, automatic subtitling and transcription, and automated backgrounds on platforms like Zoom and Skype.
Failure to abide by any of these rules is grounds for removal from the social media platforms at the discretion of the admins on each platform.
Board of Directors
The Board consists of three or more people who, to their knowledge, are unrelated at the time they take office (unrelated as defined by the laws of their country of residence) from separate households. If there are five or more members, the total must be an odd number (five, seven, nine, etc.) in order to avoid tie votes. New Board members may volunteer or may be nominated by any member in good standing of the tradition. To begin with, new Board members must be voted in by a unanimous vote of the current Board.
Once the membership reaches ten chapters, the Board must expand to include five members. At that point, new Board members will be voted in by a simple majority of the total membership (chapter members and solitary members) via an online voting mechanism to be announced in the tradition’s public forum.
The Board meets once a year and as needed to address any issues that come up in the intervening time.
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