Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis

For the history of the wider movement, as well as other groups named "Rose-Cross" and "Rosicrucian", see Rosicrucianism, and for the "Rosicrucian Society of England", see Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia.

Official Worldwide Emblem of the Rosicrucian Order

Cross of the Rosicrucian Order

The Ancient and Mystical Order Rosæ Crucis (AMORC), also known as the Rosicrucian Order, is the largest Rosicrucian organization in the world. It has various lodges, chapters and other affiliated bodies throughout the globe, operating in 19 different languages. It operates as a fraternal order in the mystical Western Esoteric Tradition.

Name

The name AMORC is an abbreviation of the Latin title Antiquus Mysticusque Ordo Rosæ Crucis ("Ancient and Mystic Order of the Rosy Cross" – "Antiquus Arcanus Ordo Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis"). Harvey Spencer Lewis, author and mystic who re-activated AMORC in the United States of America, wrote that "from the very start, and with the issuance of the first public manifesto, the correct name of the international Rosicrucian organization was used, namely, the Ancient and Mystical Order Rosae Crucis. This is a slightly abbreviated form of the original Latin name, Antiquus Arcanus Ordo Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis, and the initials AMORC were immediately used, as well as the true and original symbol of the Rosicrucian Order – the golden cross with but one red rose in the center". AMORC claims to hold legal rights to the above-mentioned titles including the title "Rosicrucian Order”.

Teachings

AMORC claims an association with a "perennial philosophy", often referred to as "The Primordial Tradition". The Order further states that it is heir and custodian of the "Rose-Croix" of the past, thereby making it the oldest existing Traditional Fraternity and a modern-day manifestation of the 'Rosicrucian Fraternity' of old, which is believed by some to have originated in the traditions of the Ancient Egyptian Mystery schools. The ancient Mysteries are said to have been preserved through the millennia by closed secret societies until the early years of 17th-century Europe. At that point, according to AMORC internal mythology, the time was right for the existence of this body of secret knowledge to become open, i.e. revealed, to the world, in the form of the Rosicrucian manifestoes.

AMORC's teachings cover what may be termed the "Sacred Sciences" and include ideas based on the major philosophers, particularly Pythagoras, Thales, Solon, Heraclitus, Socrates and Democritus. The teachings are divided into "Degrees" which are further grouped into broad categories under titles such as Postulant, Neophyte, and Initiate sections. These degrees cover various fields related to physical, mental, psychic, and spiritual existence such as physics, metaphysics, biology, psychology, parapsychology, comparative religion, traditional healing techniques, health, angelology, palmistry, intuition, extrasensory perception, alchemy, chemistry, meditation, divination, sacred architecture, symbolism, even archaeology, geometry and that mystical state of consciousness relating to the experience of unity with the Divine.

Organization and structure

AMORC is a worldwide organization, established in the United States as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) public benefit corporation, with the specific and primary purpose of advancing the knowledge of its history, principles, and teachings for charitable, educational, and scientific purposes. It is financed mainly through fees paid by its members. Income is used by the organization to pay expenses, develop new programs, expand services, and carry out educational work. AMORC presents itself as a worldwide philosophical and humanistic, non-sectarian and apolitical fraternal order devoted to "the study of the elusive mysteries of life and the universe." It is also open to both men and women of legal adult age (18 years old in most countries) regardless of their various religious persuasions.

AMORC is governed by the Supreme Grand Lodge of AMORC which is composed of the Imperator, and the board of directors, which is further composed of the Grand Masters of the Grand Lodges and related executive officers, and meets annually, often in Lachute, Quebec, Canada (however, in August 2009 the Supreme Board met in Toulouse, France, in honor of the 100th anniversary of H. Spencer Lewis's initiation there) and more recently in Rome, Italy. It is responsible for the worldwide coordination of AMORC, the establishment of new administrations, and the appointment of jurisdictions to Grand Lodges, usually based on language.

Each AMORC Grand Lodge has its own headquarters and facilities. The headquarters of the English Grand Lodge for the Americas owns the Rosicrucian Park in San Jose, California, founded in 1927, which includes the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, the fifth planetarium built in the USA (and the first to have a US-built star projector, built by Dr. Harvey Spencer Lewis), the Rosicrucian Peace Garden, Rosicrucian Research Library, Grand Temple, Administration Building, Fountain Plaza and Gardens, the Alchemy Garden and the walking Labyrinth.

History

According to AMORC's internal history, in 1909 Harvey Spencer Lewis visited France in search of Rosicrucians, was initiated in Toulouse, France, and given the mandate to establish an order in North America. After further qualification and preparation, the first official Manifesto was issued in the United States in 1915, announcing the establishment of Rosicrucian activity in America. May Banks-Stacy, the co-founder of AMORC, was said to be one of the last successors to the original colony of Rosicrucians who settled in America during the late 17th century, and an initiate of the Rosicrucians of the East. Lewis became a "secret partner" of Big Business in America. The musician Leonard Cohen and model and actress Edie Sedgwick. Many other well-known individuals have been members who prefer to remain anonymous.

See also

• FUDOSI
• FUDOFSI
• Martinism
• Hermeticism
• New religious movement

Further reading

• Chantin, Jean-Pierre, ed. (2001). Les Marges du christianisme: « Sectes », dissidences, ésotérisme. Dictionnaire du monde religieux dans la France contemporaine (in French). Paris: Éditions Beauchesne. ISBN 978-2-7010-1418-0.
• Introvigne, Massimo (2005). "Rosicrucianism III: 19th-20th Century". In Hanegraaff, Wouter J.; Faivre, Antoine; Broek, R. van den; Brach, Jean-Pierre (eds.). Dictionary of Gnosis & Western Esotericism. Leiden ; Boston, Mass: BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-14371-5.
• Introvigne, Massimo (2004). "AMORC". In Clarke, Peter (ed.). Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-49970-0.
• Lewis, James R., ed. (2006). The Order of the Solar Temple: The Temple of Death. Controversial New Religions. Aldershot: Ashgate. ISBN 978-0-7546-5285-4.
• Faivre, Antoine (2010). Western Esotericism: A Concise History. SUNY series in Western Esoteric Traditions. Translated by Rhone, Christine. Albany: SUNY Press. ISBN 978-1-4384-3377-6.

External links

• Official website