Why All the Nitpicking in the Rosicrucian Reviews?

Recently someone asked in regard to my Reviews of the Rosicrucian Orders “Are we going to nitpick every Orders leaders’ fault?” The person is someone I respect quite a lot, so I’ll address this here.

Firstly, yes, I do point out the many faults of not only the Order being reviewed, but also of its founder. If they did any kind of stage trickery, faked documents granting Rosicrucian authority, swindled students, paid other Rosicrucian fraternities to join under their banner etc. then YES I will point this out in my Reviews of the Rosicrucian Orders. But why?

Why all the fuss? Am I out to simply defame other groups?

Something very important happened at the turn of the 20th century.

Something terrible happened at the turn of the 20th century…

The Rosicrucian Tradition got broken up into little pieces.

A flurry Rosicrucian-leaders arose, each one starting their own “brand” of the movement.

But what they actually did was separated and broke apart that which was once one current. They tore us apart. The Hermetica describes the separation of “the One to the Many.”

The leaders and the guilty were:

• Harvey Spencer Lewis
• Clymer
• Paul Foster Case
• Plummer
• Mathers and Westcott
• Rudolf Steiner
• Max Heindel
• Papus
• Robert Ambelain
• Arthur Waite

The list goes on. These are just the main characters.

Each of these figures founded their own Rosicrucian Order, from the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s. In doing so they also put their own spin on how they perceived the Rosicrucian Order should be.

One wanted more ideas from Blavatsky, others wanted more esoteric-Christianity, another thought it a good idea to plug in New Thought movement notions on the “Law of Attraction” etc.

All of them claimed to be in contact with some sort of Unknown Superiors.

Fast forwards to today, the Orders are divided. Their students have become loyal banner waving fans. Their students argue, believe that their own Order has it right and in many cases their founder was some sort of god-sent visionary thrust upon earth with a divine mission

But, they tore us apart. Our beautiful tradition.

The Fama Fraternitatis says that in the College of the Holy Spirit, the brothers R.C would go forth to other countries, discover new things and report what they have found to the other Rosicrucians. Thus, an exchange of ideas was meant to happen, a cross pollination.

It was all about learning for ALL.

But memberships are interesting. They become a part of your identity.

Instead of seeing a world-wide Rosicrucian fraternity, as it should be, you see differences. You see Orders saying “You can’t join that other Order if you wish to study with us” or “we are the most authentic” etc. Now in my reviews, I will continue to point out the faults of the leaders, especially when they lied, until YOU GET IT. Your Order and its founder is not perfect!

In fact, it is entirely liberating to see your founders as imperfect human beings.

But, at the same time, people need to stop lying. Stop lying to themselves and stop lying to new members. The fanciful claims are a huge barrier to seeing the greater Rosicrucian tradition.

With those high and mighty claims, you’ll see your Order as more special than others.

You are, after all, studying with the “Chosen One.”

But,

Only at the moment you dethrone the gods, can you start to become divine yourself.

Today if one person points out the fault of an Order or its founder, people are quick to rally behind the flag and defend their Order. It is such a large part of their identity and all the “claims and miracles” the leaders embodied must surely mean “I am in the right Order.”

Suddenly people are members of brands instead of just being Rosicrucians.

Here is a new thought, one that I hope lives on from my work.

Try just being a Rosicrucian, of the greater tradition.

Not a member of AMORC, not a member of BOTA, nor of the Golden Dawn etc.

We are all just Rosicrucians. That is all you need to be.

When this happens, for all of us, then we are of the right track.

At Pansophers we are not advocating the abandonment of your Order. We are advocating that your Order is a section of something far greater and it’s time to dissolve the barriers between us.

Rosicrucian students claim to want to know truth and aim to be liberated by truth. At the same time there is a trend to uphold their-own chosen Order of study as “holier than thou.”

These two principles are totally contrary to each other.

The only way forwards is to ensure that the Reviews of the Rosicrucian Orders show not only the good qualities of the leaders and their Orders, but also the sludge.

The moment you get past the illusion of perfect founders, is the moment we can all start stitching back together the mirror of the Universal Rosicrucian Order that was split apart into many factions.

That is what it’s all about.

So, starting today, ask yourself; are you a member of an organization, or are you a Rosicrucian?

Just be a Rosicrucian.

Comments enabled below.

Samuel Robinson,
Founder of Pansophers