The day began early with throngs of people lined up for the art showing at noon.  There were vendors of rare European Heraldic and Masonic jewelry, books on Hermeticism, art prints, and more.  By the time 2 PM rolled around, the Egyptian Temple Room was packed with people from all walks of life (many making the trek from England, Portugal, Spain, France, and from states as far away as Kentucky, Missouri and Maine.  Additional chairs had to be extracted from other floors in the building to accommodate the crowd.  Rose Circle President Piers A. Vaughan delivered his expert lecture & artistically crafted slide presentation on Alchemy from the perspective of its historic origins, its relationship with the early Christian Church, the builders of cathedrals, the Masonic Lodge and the practical application of the principles of transmutation within the spiritual arena.  David Lindez delivered his grounding historical lecture on the history of the SRICF, and R.A. Gilbert (noted for his highly critical and cynical take on things) delivered what was a ground breaking report of academic, technical research in climactic fashion, showing his hand for perhaps the first time in the public realm as a practicing esotericist himself.  Those who have only skimmed a few google results of his hundreds of books and journal  articles, have for years now referred to Gilbert as the primary critic of fantasists, unscholarly masonic research, the occult, Waite, and magical orders.  Near the end of this presentation, coupled with slides of never before seen images from Waite's own collection, Gilbert began to propose some of his own subjective approaches to understanding images and distinguishing between those which work effectively and come alive and those which fail.  All along, he was careful to assert certain guidelines, providing heaps of evidence and pointing to documents such as the Fama in citing that once one moves away from the Trinitarian Christian approach to this ascent up the Tree of Life, it ceases to be Rosicrucian.  The dialogue and discourse to be had in the Q&A session was at times heated with the intensity of great zeal, but it was tempered by our Moderator, Mr. Robert Morton, a retired US Marine and CEO of Mortonbooks Publishers.  Afterwards, R.A. Gilbert was presented with his Certificate as a Fellow of the Rose Circle Research Society.

I was never much of a writer until I embarked on the path of Wisdom.  That is not to say I've gotten very far along that Path, in fact very often I think I walk in the wrong direction, but I have found that writing things out helps me digest what I have learned (and what I did not learn that perhaps I should have).  I would like to thank all of the members of the Rose Circle for allowing me this space in which to explore the roadmarks and stumbling blocks along my own personal journey.  As a teacher, I realize - perhaps more than anyone - my shortcomings as I am challenged every moment with providing knowledge and insight to those who follow me and the Teachings I hold so dear.   Many printed versions of the sutras begin with a blessing and a wish that by reading even the title or the first line of prose the reader might remember the wisdom which is his birthright and instantly attain to the perfection of his True Self, leaving behind this world of material suffering.  While I am no master, and certainly no Awakened One able to expound upon the meanings of the Universe,  I hope that what I write here in future posts will perhaps help others reach the enlightenment for which I myself strive by allowing them to recognize my small accomplishments and huge mistakes in their own daily work.  Remember that whether we walk the Middle Way or the Middle Pillar, whether we stand in the East or the West, the Path grows ever narrower with each step forward.  The further along we go, the easier it is to stray.  Be dilligent, step mindfully, and walk in the knowledge that Truth is at the heart of your work.

Respectfully,

Mike

Christopher McIntosh

Christopher McIntosh was born in England in 1943 and grew up in Edinburgh, Scotland. He studied philosophy, politics and economics at Oxford and German at London University, later returning to Oxford to take a doctorate in history with a dissertation on the Rosicrucian revival in the context of the German Enlightenment and Counter-Enlightenment. After working in London in journalism and publishing he spent four years in New York as an information officer with the United Nations Development Programme, then moved to Germany to work for UNESCO. In parallel he has pursued a career as a writer and researcher specialising in the esoteric traditions. His books include The Astrologers and their Creed (1969); Eliphas Lévi and the French Occult Revival (1972); The Rosicrucians (latest edition 1997); The Rose Cross and the Age of Reason (1992), based on his D.Phil. dissertation; The Swan King: Ludwig II of Bavaria (latest edition 2003); and Gardens of the Gods (2005). His fictional work includes the occult novel Return of the Tetrad published in Czech as Navrat Tetradi (1998). He also has a long-standing interest in nature-oriented belief systems. He has lectured widely and is on the faculty of the distance M.A. programme in Western Esotericism at the University of Exeter, England. His home is in Bremen, North Germany. Mr McIntosh is a long-standing member of the Pilgrim Lodge No. 238, London. This is a very unusual lodge in that it was founded in 1779 by Germans living in London and still conducts its rituals in German. It also uses an unusual German working different from the regular English Emulation working.

"The moment the Truth seeker discovers the fact about himself, and the universe of Illusion, which he had previously created and sustained, it dissolves. The formula is: Change Self and all else changes".

Manly P. Hall on the Teachings of the Buddha

Looking into a Mirror is something both common and magical. Although we do it every morning when we get up and shave or apply make-up we forget how useful a tool it is in reflecting back to us our appearance.  When we look into a Mirror we see ourself. Every morning when I get up and look into the Mirror it does not lie to me or try to spin the Truth. If I look red eyed, ragged and bushy haired then that is the image the mirror shows me. I then proceed to work on myself by shaving, showering and combing my hair so that I can become the person I want to be.

A Mirror can also help you do the very same thing but on a spiritual and psychological level. It has been a useful tool as part of my meditations and work in achieving a level of Individuation. The term "individuation" coined by the Swiss psychologist Carl Jung implies achieving a level of psychological maturity and Self Awareness. On occasion I will stand in a dimly lit room facing a mirror and will ask my Self a question such as "Who am I?" I do this on occasion to remind myself who I am and to better understand what is important to me. Too often I forget who I am because I get caught up in the "rat race" of society. I am bombarded by images, messages and people who are all trying to convince me why they are right and I am wrong. Television commercials strive to convince me to buy their product or to change my opinion regarding a competitor. If I am not careful the perceptions of "society" will become my reality.

Give it a try...find a quiet place and stand in front of a Mirror and ask your Self the important questions about Life, Love, Divinity and their relation to you personally. As silly as it may sound if done sincerely the effects are almost immediate. In this excercise you are effectively having a direct conversation with your self (i.e. subconscious, etc.). As easy as it may be to lie to yourself and others during the daily grind of the day, it is quite another story when you are alone staring at your Self in the mirror.

What does this all mean? Until we reach a level of individuation we remain at the mercy of our Ego and the mass group mind of Society and its preconceptions. Society frowns on the unconventional. Conformity is often the goal of society which as a whole, prefers regularity and compliance. Until we break away from the comfort of simply accepting society's morals and start to think for ourselves we remain easy prey for the media, advertising and the image makers who seek to inflate the insatiable human Ego.

What is the person in the mirror saying to you?

Just the ramblings of a humble unknown philosopher...Unus Multorum.

Dr. Raphael Ortiz was the founder and first director of the El Museo Del Barrio on 5th Avenue & 93rd St. in New York in 1969. His sculptures are included in many museum collections, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art, where he has twice been included in the Whitney Biennial.  Ortiz is famous for his exploding piano of his "Destructivism" movement as displayed on the Johnny Carson show, and his art "Happenings" later picked up by Yoko Ono and others in the 1970's.  Born to Nuyorican, Rosicrucian & Masonic Parents in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, (later coming of age in LES & East Harlem) Raphael's parent's esoteric leanings later would influence his work in both holistic healing & kabbalistic art.   He has created mixed-media ritual performances and installations for museums and galleries in Europe and Canada and throughout the United States. His computer- laser-video works are in numerous museum collections, including the Ludwai Museum in Cologne, Germany, and the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, France. His video, Dance Number 22, won the Gran Prix at the 1993 Locarno International Video Festival of Switzerland.  Raphael's first showing for the Rose Circle was at the premiere Rose Circle Conference in Bayonne, NJ in April of 2006 when the Salon de la Rose Croix was adorned with large scale kabbalistic paintings and vinyl posters from Ortiz, adding heavily to the environmental ambiance.  

Traditionally the Saturday of the Seventh Week marks the morning of a procession to the Chruch of Lazarus in Bethany.  This is the sight of the raising of Lazarus.  Along the way, there is a momentary stop at the spot where Jesus met Mary, the sister of Lazarus.  Once the procession reaches the Lazarium (see:  www.sacred-destinations.com/israel/jerusalem-bethany.htm ) there commences a reading of John 11:45 and various hymns written about Lazarus.  The next morning, the eucharist is administered, followed by batizands reciting the Cyril creed from memory.  They are told that they are still only "hearers".  It is not until they are baptized that the knowledge transforms to understanding of the "higher mystery".  This is the "misteri altioris".  

There are in operation today a number of Grand Priories of Military & Hospitaller Orders of St Lazarus.  They come under various protections of Primates & Sovereigns, some aligned to specific churches and others ecumenical in nature.  Some have a knighting ceremony similar in nature to the Knights of Malta, while still at least one in existence preserves the misteri altioris.

Here is the tomb of St Lazarus and the courtyard of the castle reserved for the Order of Lazarus in Malta...

"Nature and the Scriptures should be compared. The priests misread the Scriptures, the philosophers misconstrue Nature. Hence they are always at war, and never compare their differences"

I recently had an interesting conversation with a bright young man regarding the role of the Western Mystery Traditions in a world dominated by Theology and Empirical Science.

As an initiate he was still trying to reconcile where the symbols and teachings of the Western Mysteries might fit between the powerful influences of Religion and Science. That is a good question for all of us on the Spiritual Path to ask ourselves every once in a while.

In my opinion the Mysteries (or any other Spiritual Tradition) can act as a reconciller or equilibriating element between Theology and Science. As an example I recently had a conversation with a friend who had just graduated from a Seminary and had written his Master's Thesis on the concept of "Certainty of Conscience". If you are not aware of the term it relates to the idea that if an individual believes his actions are serving the "Will of God", even if those actions are harmful or considered evil by others, he is in fact innocent or pure in the eyes of God. I agreed with him on that point for the following reason. I believe that God ("Divinity") is perfect. Thus if Divinity is Perfect than it is not subject to the negative forces which corrupt Humanity with greed, intolerance or hated. Thus Divinity is Love. So with that God loves us no matter what, for all our faults and imperfections regardless of what we do. In my opinion it is up to us to simply open our heart and allow ourselves to receive "God's Love and Grace".

However where we disagreed was in the fact that his paper did not address the responsibility of the individual to try to "check themselves" to determine if their actions and the resulting consequences were in line with Divinity. Yes...God loves us and forgives us. Yes...It is also my opinion if one truly feels they are serving God's will, then they are innocent regarding their "intent" in the eyes of Divinity. However it is truly the "Enlightened" individual that realizes that the Absolute Truth of Divinity can be "tainted" by the limitations of human perception. Like the morning light that shines through a "rose colored" window the Light itself then becomes tainted by the color of the window glass. It is the Enlightened individual who works to purify him or herself so that the Absolute Truth of Divinity comes to them untainted.

Thus we have the wisdom of ancient "Enlightened" Brethren that has been preserved in the "initiatic rites" of Order's such as the Western Mysteries that are meant to provide us with the "working tools" to help us test our actions. For the Enlightened individual knows that "God's Grace" or the "Light of Divinity" is manifest in the physical mundane world only through the ideas, will and actions of Humanity. Thus if we chose to manifest God's Grace or the Divine Light into this world we must recognize we have a responsibility to insure that our actions are driven by these Absolute Truths (i.e. Light) and not from the false shadows (i.e. animal passions) reflected by the "ego".
 

The Western Mysteries point to several "tools" that we can use to reconcile our actions such as Reason, Morality and Justice. Many of the Spiritual Traditions force us to look introspectively and ponder how these Ideals compare to our own conscience. Rather than opine on what is Morality, Reason and Wisdom let me quote some interesting lines from Manly P. Hall’s book “Freemasonry of the Ancient Egyptians” which I just finished reading relating to Plato's initiation into the Egyptian mysteries.

1st Priest: What dost thou seek Plato?
Plato: Wisdom.
1st Priest: It is impossible without much science, for man to interpret the grand hieroglyphics of the universe. What is Science?
Plato: The comprehension of causes and their effects, when the spirit of God descends into the bosom of man.
1st Priest: What is Wisdom?
Plato: The knowledge of good and evil, justice and injustice, it is the love of the one and the hatred of the other.
1st Priest: In order to reach it, know thyself.

Later in the Initiation

3rd Patriarch: What is Morality?
Plato: It is the rule of right, and the duties which the conscience imposes, and which cannot violate without shame and disgrace.
3rd Patriarch: And Justice?
Plato: It is the practical application of the law of rendering to all that which is due.
3rd Patriarch: Where doth justice and morality take their source?
Plato: In the very conscious of humanity.
3rd Patriarch: How doth thou distinguish good and evil?
Plato: All that wounds the dignity or restrains the rights of man is evil; all which is favorable to them is good.

Unlike all other creatures Humanity was blessed with the capacity for Reason and a Conscience. We are also blessed with the ability to manifest "God's Grace" (i.e. Divine Light/Truth) into this world. Those gifts come with a profound responsibility. As seekers of the Light we are charged to ever check our actions to insure that we are in fact in line with Divine Will.

Offered in Humility

Unus Multorum...a humble unknown philosopher

"Great progress in truth is difficult in the midst of the world and under the favor of fortune; duplicity and double seeming are needed in dealing with the one and anxiety for preserving the other. Our rest is not therefore in God."

Initiation...it is a deeply misunderstood word in today's western, ego centric society. For many the word brings visions of College fraternity hazing and youthful hedonistic partying. Yet this word in ancient times symbolized a deeply personal and spiritual process though which one separated themselves from the mundane world and worked towards a deeper understanding of the Self. Remember the words of the Greek Oracle at Delphi.."Know Thyself, and thou shall know all the mysteries of the Gods and the Universe." But where does initiation enter into the equation? Life itself is a process of constant struggles and initiations. We are initiated into adulthood through rites of passage and celebrations. Is not the Bah Mitzvah or sweet sixteen coming out party a form of initiation. Are we not initiated into a new level of Self when we graduate from grammer school into high school or even college. Each of life's little struggles or initiations brings with it some personal insights. Thus if I am constantly gaining personal insights from life's little initiations why do I need to join an Order that requires a "formal" initiation.

For me it is a matter of intent and pace. Rather than let life randomly and haphazardly initiate you, by taking on some spiritual work or order you are taking responsibility for your level of growth and development. What matters to me is not the Order or organization you choose to join but that you approach the initiatic path with an open mind. The often dramatic rituals and ceremonies are meant to take you outside of your everyday mundane ego centic self. Once you get past that part of yourself that reacts to the outside world and is a reflection of the material world around you, that is when you find the first steps towards the center of your being...your true self.

That to me is the true meaning of the Initiatic Path. Is it a waste of time..that is up to the individual and the amount of effort they put into the process.

Just the humble opinion of this unknown philosopher...Unus Multorum

The 2008 Annual California Masonic Symposium "Freemasonry and Women" was held on August 22nd-23rd at the Brotherhood Masonic Center in San Francisco, and according to Past Master Adam G. Kendall, the Curator of Collections, things went quite well.  The speaker line up included the likes of Dr. John L. Cooper III, Grand Secretary and noted Masonic scholar; Janet Wintermute, Master Mason of the Eastern Order of International Co-Masonry; Ill. Robert G. Davis, author of Understanding Manhood in America: Freemasonry’s Enduring Path to the Mature Masculine.  Those privileged to have been present at the Council of Nine Muses earlier this year in Alexandria, VA will no doubt recall his paper on the role of Masonry and male archetypes in the lives of young men as it brought several hundred people to their feet in standing ovation.  

In speaking to Adam Kendall, he told me that

"The crowd was pretty mellow and all seemed to enjoy themselves. It was engaging.  Bob did a great job on the subject for the keynote speech which brought forth a better honed dimension to the original theme as far as getting the attendees to contemplate Freemasonry’s place in the lives of its initiates, along with highlighting its masculine origins.  We had some members of the Grand Lodge Feminine in attendance.  I was exhausted—having slept on the floor of the meeting room the night before.  Unless I’m actually doing a presentation, me and large crowds do not mix and I tend to hang out in the background.  The crowd that attended the Friday night reception seemed to appreciate the museum and library, along with some of the new displays that went up just that week."

I can vouch for Adam's work ethic as for the last few months, every time I spoke to him after hours...he was still at work preparing for this symposium.  Our hats are off to him and the speakers that day.  It would have been ideal to make it out there to see Janet Wintermute and Bob Davis addressing the same topic from differing angles.  Adam tells me that Jay Kinney (of Gnosis Magazine fame) was also in attendance. We'll have to make sure to get out to the Coil Masonic Museum and check out some of Adam's work.  I've heard nothing but praise for the exhibits.

 I was asked to give an impromptu explanation the other day on the esoteric meanings behind the Royal Arch seal of an upright triple tau encased in a delta within a circle.  I was reminded of the infinite cipher of female knowledge that completes and complements the finite square of male knowledge.  The completion of these two form everything from the Past Master's compass to the Egyptian Ankh, the Celtic Cross and the letter G.