The founder of the Rosicrucian Order, Christian Rosenkreutz, lived in Germany in the 14th-15th centuries. The order itself arose one and a half centuries later, but then sank into oblivion. His new "reincarnations" appeared later, including in the 20th century. And the new founders were sometimes clearly not devoid of a commercial streak, or even completely left the commercial community. Like Harvey Spencer Lewis (1883-1939) and his Ancient Mystical Order of the Rose and Cross (AMORC).
Prelude
The ancient Mystical Order of the Rose and Cross is considered the most successful of the American Rosicrucian orders. It was founded by Harvey Spencer Lewis, an advertising executive with an interest in the occult. Lewis always said that he borrowed the rituals of initiation from Europe, while the order itself originates from Ancient Egypt during the time of the heretic pharaoh Akhenaten. However, experts in the history of secret societies are aware that the true origin of the order is much more prosaic.
The AMORC story goes back to 1904, when Lewis created an organization called the New York Institute for Psychical Research. Despite its academic name, this small organization was engaged in the study of the occult sciences and was especially interested in the traditions of the Rosicrucians. In 1909, Lewis visited France and in Toulouse was initiated into one of the European Rosicrucian orders.
In the Old World, there were several of them, all of them told the neo phytes tales of their sometimes unthinkable antiquity, but in reality they arose in the 19th or, at best, in the 18th century. These orders were often at enmity among themselves, figuring out which of them is truly "authentic", but this was probably not so important.
In Curitiba (Brazil) there is a temple built in honor of the first members of the order
Promotional video:
In 1915, Lewis contacted Theodore Reuss, the founder and head of the Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO), from whom he received a charter for the North American lodge of the order. As a result, Harvey became involved in a fight between Reuss and Aleister Crowley, caused by the latter's attempts to turn the OTO into a vehicle for the propaganda of the Thelemic religion invented by him. Crowley, who was in the United States during the First World War, tried
win Lewis to his side, but did not succeed. However, Lewis's attempts to attract the attention of the overseas public to the branch of general relativity were also unsuccessful. In 1918, New York police broke into Lewis's office and detained him on fraud charges. Later, all charges were dropped, but the former advertising agent considered it best to move to the west coast of the United States, in San Francisco. In 1925, Lewis moved to Tampa, Florida, where, with the permission of local authorities, he established the secret occult society AMORC.
The official symbol is the rose on the cross
Apparently, even then the teachings of the order covered a variety of areas of knowledge, such as physics, metaphysics, biology, psychology, parapsychology, comparative religious studies, medicine, extrasensory perception, material and spiritual alchemy, meditation, sacred architecture. Lewis soon realized that correspondence courses in the occult were much more successful on the West Coast, and in 1927 he moved to San Jose. It was there that until 1990 the international headquarters of AMORC was located, and from there the North American branches of the order are still administered.
Thunder of competitors
Like most American occult orders, AMORC used correspondence courses for new members. Advertisements in popular magazines encouraged prospective members to enroll in correspondence courses. Those who graduated were allowed to join the local group, if there was one, or to help in its creation. To provide incentives for those wishing to join the organization to recruit neophytes from local residents, a system of ranks and privileges was used, awarded for success in "catching souls."
Lewis gained an edge over his competitors through his experience in an advertising agency. By the early 1930s, the Ancient Mystical Order of the Rose and Cross had not only become the largest occult order in the United States, but also penetrated abroad. He achieved particular success in France. Although AMORC's advancement into the Old World was carried out using the same methods as in the States, ties with European secret societies also played a role.
Lewis relied on his connections with the OTO lodges in Germany, led by Heinrich Tränker, and also advocated the creation of an international Rose-Kreutzer federation with the resounding French name Federation Universelle des Ordres et Societes Initiatiques (FUDOSI). Influenced by the French occultists, Lewis became close to the Martinists and soon established a Martinist organization, the Traditional Martinist Order, which accepted only AMORC members.
Aleister Crowley tried to turn OTO into a vehicle for the propaganda of the Thelemic religion invented by him
The rapid expansion of the sphere of influence of the Ancient Mystical Order of the Rose and Cross was the reason for the clearly hostile actions on the part of its main competitor in the American continent - the Rosicrucian Brotherhood (FPC), led by R. Swinburne Claymer. Beginning in 1928, Clymer, along with former AMORC members disgruntled with Lewis, circulated claims that the order founded by an advertising agent was only for making money.
He did not remain in debt. For many years, the pages of the American occult press published retaliatory, in many ways similar attacks by Lewis against the brotherhood and other rival orders.
From Shasta to Facebook
In the 1930s, the AMORC headquarters in San Jose already included a planetarium surrounded by a large park, a museum, and a College of Rosicrucian Studies, where they taught practical experimental alchemy. In his declining years, Lewis was still carried away by the topic of the sunken mainland of Lemuria and even, using a pseudonym, published a book about him.
At the same time, AMORC repeatedly organized expeditions to California's Mount Shasta in search of entrances to the hidden Lemurian cities. Shasta, I must say, and to this day attracts the close attention of all kinds of spiritual seekers from around the world. Angels, fairies and unicorns have been repeatedly seen in its vicinity, and recently a whole community of enthusiasts has appeared there, calling themselves Lemurians.
Following the death of Harvey Spencer Lewis in 1939, his son Ralph M. Lewis became the Great Emperor of AMORC. Under his leadership, the order continued to expand its spheres of influence around the world, translating correspondence course materials into dozens of languages and trading them wherever they could. Interestingly, AMORC experienced a particularly rapid growth during the Second World War. After its graduation, the order was able to provide support to many related European organizations, which later chose to go under his wing.
When Ralph Lewis died in 1987, the Ancient Mystical Order of the Rose and Cross had branches in more than 100 countries and held a firm place among American occult organizations.
After Lewis Jr., Gary L. Stewart became the Great Emperor. However, in 1990, after being accused of embezzlement, he was removed from his post by the AMORC board. He was succeeded by Christian Bernard, head of the French chapter of the order, who remains in this post to this day.
Collar of Napoleon
The tumultuous litigation surrounding the decision to remove the Great Emperor Gary Stuart from the post somewhat tarnished the reputation of AMORC, which led to some reduction in the number of the organization. Nevertheless, the order remains one of the most influential occult organizations in the world. It has a number of websites and online events on the Internet, including Facebook and Twitter. AMORC Park in San Jose was decorated with a rich rose garden, the museum and planetarium were renovated.
In the museum of the order, I must say, there are many interesting exhibits. There is even a Rosicrucian collar of Napoleon Bonaparte himself. True, serious historians in no way want to recognize its authenticity, but it can be stated that Ostap Bender has very serious competitors overseas.
Valdis PEYPINSH