Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica

Information about Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica

For other Gnostic churches, see .


Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica (EGC), or the Gnostic Catholic Church, is the ecclesiastical arm of Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO), an international fraternal initiatory organization devoted to promulgating the Law of Thelema. Thelema is a philosophy of life first described by François Rabelais and later revived and elaborated by Aleister Crowley, who took Thelema as the name of the philosophical, mystical and religious system which he developed based on The Book of the Law. The word Catholic denotes the universality of doctrine and not a Christian or Roman Catholic belief set.

The chief function of EGC is the public and private performance of the Gnostic Mass (Liber XV), a eucharistic ritual written by Crowley in 1913. According to William Bernard Crow, Crowley wrote the Gnostic Mass "under the influence of the Liturgy of St. Basil of the Russian Church."[1] Its structure is also influenced by the initiatory rituals of the Ordo Templi Orientis.[2] Its most notable separation from similar rites of other churches is a Priestess officiating with a Priest, Deacon, and two Children. In addition to the Eucharist, baptism, confirmation, marriage, and last rites are offered by EGC.

About the Gnostic Mass, Crowley wrote, "... the Ritual of the Gnostic Catholic Church ... I prepared for the use of the O.T.O., the central ceremony of its public and private celebration, corresponding to the Mass of the Roman Catholic Church."[1] It is the single most commonly performed ritual at OTO bodies, with many locations celebrating the Mass monthly or more frequently. Most OTO bodies make some or all of these celebrations open to interested members of the public, so the Mass is often an individual's first experience of the OTO.

EGC has a hierarchical structure of clergy, assisting officers, and laity which parallels the degree structure of the OTO initiatory system. Before 1997, the two systems were more loosely correlated, but since then there have been strict rules concerning minimum OTO degrees required to serve in particular EGC roles.

Membership

Membership in EGC is similar to the Roman Catholic Church, with some important differences. As currently constituted, E.G.C. includes both clergy and laity. Clergy must be initiate members of O.T.O., while laity may affiliate to E.G.C. through baptism and confirmation without undertaking any of the degree initiations of the Order.

Novice clergy are initiate members who participate in the administration of E.G.C. sacraments, although they have not yet taken orders (i.e., been through a ceremony of ordination).

The first ordination in E.G.C. is that of the diaconate. Second-Degree initiates of O.T.O. who have been confirmed in E.G.C. can be ordained as Deacons, whose principal duties are to assist the Priesthood.

The sacerdotal ordination admits members to the priesthood. Sacerdotal ordinands must hold at least the K.E.W. degree of O.T.O., a degree only available by invitation. The Priesthood is responsible for administering the sacraments through the Gnostic Mass and other ceremonies as authorized by their supervising Bishops.

The Priesthood is supervised and instructed by the Episcopate, or Bishops. Full initiation to the Seventh Degree of O.T.O. includes episcopal consecration in E.G.C. The Tenth-Degree Supreme and Holy King serves as the Primate or chief Bishop for any country in which O.T.O. has organized a Grand Lodge. The Frater (Soror) Superior of O.T.O. is also the Patriarch (Matriarch) of the Church, with ultimate authority over the clergy.

The similarity of the titles of the various E.G.C. offices and ranks reflects some common history with Christian churches. However, E.G.C. does not administer Christian sacraments, and has no Christian ecclesiastical standing.

Rituals

The principal ritual of the E.G.C. is the Gnostic Mass, a Eucharistic ceremony written by Aleister Crowley in 1913. Theodor Reuss produced and authorized a German translation in 1918.

The text of the Gnostic Mass makes reference to ceremonies of baptism, confirmation, and marriage. Crowley left some notes towards a baptism ritual, and his "Liber CVI" was written for use in a last rites circumstance. The Bishops of the contemporary Church have developed rituals for all of these purposes, as well as infant benedictions, exorcisms, consecration of holy oil, funerals, and home administration of the Eucharist to the sick.

Although some Gnostic Masses are held privately for initiates only, there is nothing secret about E.G.C. rituals as such, and they are commonly open to the public.

Saints of EGC

Main article: Saints of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica
EGC has a unique list of saints canonized by Aleister Crowley and his successors. It is read during the Collects of the Gnostic Mass.

History

The E.G.C. descended from a line of French Gnostic revival churches that developed in the 19th century. At that time, these Gnostic churches were essentially Christian in nature. In 1907, Gerard Encausse, Jean Bricaud, and Louis-Sophrone Fugairon founded their own, simply called the Gnostic Catholic Church. In 1908, they gave O.T.O. Grand Master Theodor Reuss episcopal consecration and primatial authority in their GCC. Later that year, Reuss incorporated the Gnostic Catholic Church into O.T.O. after the original founders renamed their own church to the Universal Gnostic Church.

The name "Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica" was not applied to the church until Crowley wrote the Gnostic Mass in 1913, which Reuss proclaimed to be the church's official rite. This marked the first time an established church was to accept the Law of Thelema as its central doctrine. Reuss then announced a new title for himself: the "Sovereign Patriarch and Primate of the Gnostic Catholic Church."

In 1979, Hymenaeus Alpha X° (Grady McMurtry) separated the E.G.C. from Ordo Templi Orientis, and made it into an independent organization, with himself at the head of both. However, in 1985, his successor, Hymenaeus Beta, dissolved the separate Gnostic Catholic Church corporation and folded the church back into O.T.O. In 1991, he formally tied the initiatory and ecclesiastical together by making certain degrees a requirement for various duties within the church (Dionysos Thriambos, 2005).

The Gnostic Creed

A creed is a statement of belief—usually religious belief—or faith. The word derives from the Latin credo for "I believe". The creed of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica—also known as the Gnostic Creed—is recited in the Gnostic Mass, during the Ceremony of the Introit.

The text of the Creed is as follows:

:I believe in one secret and ineffable LORD; and in one Star in the Company of Stars of whose fire we are created, and to which we shall return; and in one Father of Life, Mystery of Mystery, in His name CHAOS, the sole viceregent of the Sun upon the Earth; and in one Air the nourisher of all that breathes.


:And I believe in one Earth, the Mother of us all, and in one Womb wherein all men are begotten, and wherein they shall rest, Mystery of Mystery, in Her name BABALON.


:And I believe in the Serpent and the Lion, Mystery of Mystery, in His name BAPHOMET.


:And I believe in one Gnostic and Catholic Church of Light, Life, Love and Liberty, the Word of whose Law is THELEMA.


:And I believe in the communion of Saints.


:And, forasmuch as meat and drink are transmuted in us daily into spiritual substance, I believe in the Miracle of the Mass.


:And I confess one Baptism of Wisdom whereby we accomplish the Miracle of Incarnation.


:And I confess my life one, individual, and eternal that was, and is, and is to come.


:AUMGN. AUMGN. AUMGN.

Explication of the Creed

The first six articles profess several beliefs by the congregants. The remaining two are confessions. The Creed ends with the Thelemic form of the Pranava, equivalent to the sacred Vedic syllable "Aum" or to the “Amen” of the Judaeo-Christian tradition. On the basic form of the Creed, Tau Apiryon and Helena (1998) write:

The first 4 clauses are attributed to the four letters of Tetragrammaton YHVH: the Father (Chaos); the Mother (Babalon); the Union of Father and Mother in the Son (Baphomet); and the Daughter, the Bride of the Son (the Church). The two following clauses describe the essential products of the Mass from the perspective of the congregation. The final two clauses are in the form of confession rather than belief and describe parallels between the occurrences in the Mass and the life of the individual.


The six articles of belief in the Creed can also be seen as corresponding with certain elements in the Gnostic Mass:
  • The Lord: The Priest
  • One Star: the Deacon
  • Chaos: the Lance (of the Priest)
  • Air: the Sword (of the Priestess)
  • One Earth: the Paten
  • One Womb: the Cup
  • Babalon: the Priestess
  • Baphomet: the Eucharist
  • The Church: the Congregation
  • The Miracle: the consumption and ingestion of the Eucharist

See also

Notes

1. ^ W. B. Crow quoted in T. Apiryon, Introduction to the Gnostic Mass.
2. ^ King, Francis (1973). Secret Rituals of the O.T.O. New York: Samuel Weiser. ISBN 0-87728-144-0

References

External links

Thelema is the English transliteration of the Ancient Greek noun θέλημα: "will", from the verb θέλω: to will, wish, purpose.
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The Book of the Law is the central sacred text of Thelema, written (or received) by Aleister Crowley in Cairo, Egypt in the year 1904. It contains three chapters, each of which was written down in one hour, beginning at noon, on April 8, April 9, and April 10.
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Aleister Crowley, born Edward Alexander Crowley, (12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947; the surname is pronounced /'krəʊ.li/ i.e.
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True Will is a term found within the mystical system of Thelema—established in 1904 with Aleister Crowley's writing of The Book of the Law—and is defined at times as a person's grand destiny in life and at other times as a moment to moment path of
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The number 93 is of great significance in the philosophy/religion of Thelema, originated by Aleister Crowley in 1904 with the writing of The Book of the Law. The central philosophy of Thelema is in the two phrases from Liber AL: "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the
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Magick, in the broadest sense, is any act designed to cause intentional change.[1] The spelling with the terminal "k" was repopularized in the first half of the 20th century by Aleister Crowley when he introduced it as a core component of Thelema.
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Thelemic mysticism is a complex mystical path designed to do two interrelated things: to learn one's unique True Will and to achieve union with the All. The set of techniques for doing so falls under Crowley's term Magick, which draws upon various existing disciplines and mystical
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Magnum Opus
(1995) Inspiration
(1996)

Magnum Opus is an album released in 1995 by Yngwie J. Malmsteen.

Track listing

  1. "Vengeance" – 4:49 (words: Michael Vescera, Malmsteen)

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The term Holy Guardian Angel was possibly coined either by Abraham of Würzburg, a French Cabalist who wrote a book on ceremonial magick during the 15th century or Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers, the founder of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, who later translated this
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Aleister Crowley wrote The Gnostic Mass — technically called Liber XV or "Book 15" — in 1913 while travelling in Moscow. In many ways it is similar in structure to the Mass of the Roman Catholic Church.
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Libri (lit. "books"), which are usually short documents consisting of core teachings, methodologies, practices, or Thelemic scripture. All the libri are given a number in the Greek numbering system, and those that are part of the A.'.A.'.
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Volume I
  • Liber LXI vel Causæ—Explains the actual history and origin of the present movement. This text, being in Class D, is not technically a Holy Book
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    • Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.) (Order of the Temple of the East, or the Order of Oriental Templars) is an international fraternal and religious organization founded at the beginning of the 20th century.
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter.
    Please help [ improve the introduction] to meet Wikipedia's layout standards.

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    Hadit (sometimes Had) refers to the Thelemic version of an Egyptian god. Hadit is the principal speaker of the second chapter of The Book of the Law (written by Aleister Crowley in 1904).
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    Heru-ra-ha is a composite deity within Thelema—a religion established in 1904 with the writing of The Book of the Law by Aleister Crowley—composed of Ra-Hoor-Khuit and Hoor-par-kraat.
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    Babalon—also known as The Scarlet Woman, The Great Mother, or the Mother of Abominations—is a goddess found in the mystical system of Thelema, which was established in 1904 with Aleister Crowley's writing of The Book of the Law.
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    CHAOS can be acronym or proper name for:
    • C.H.A.O.S., "Create Havoc Around Our System", used by the Association of Flight Attendants for intermittent work stoppages or strikes
    • CHAOS (Linux distribution), a Linux distribution designed for ad-hoc computer clustering

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    Baphomet is a name of mixed provenance. It first appeared in trial transcripts during the Inquisition of the Knights Templar in the 1300s. Most modern scholars agree that the name was an Old French corruption and misspelling of the name Mahomet (Muhammad).
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    Choronzon (also known as 'Coronzon' or '333') is a demon or devil that originated in writing with the 16th century occultists Edward Kelley and John Dee within the latter's occult system of Enochian magic.
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    Ankh-af-na-khonsu (lit. "He Lives in Khonsu"), or Ankh-ef-en-Khons, lived in Thebes during the 25th and 26th dynasty (apx. 725 B.C.). He served as a priest of the Egyptian god Mentu,[1]
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    Aiwass is the name of the being whom adherents of Thelema believe dictated The Book of the Law—the central sacred text of Thelema—to Aleister Crowley on April 8th, 9th, and 10th in 1904.
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    Ma'at, to have been pronounced as *Muʔʕat (Muh-aht),[1] was the Ancient Egyptian concept of order—law, morality, and justice[2] which was deified as a goddess.
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    Stèle of Revealing refers to an ancient Egyptian funerary artifact of Ankh-af-na-khonsu or Ankh-ef-en-Khons[1] which played a role in the creations of the system known as Thelema.

    Origins

    The stele comes from Thebes, around the time of Dynasty XXVI.
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    Abrahadabra is a word that first publicly appeared in The Book of the Law, the central sacred text of Thelema. Its scribe, Aleister Crowley, described it as the "the Word of the Aeon, which signifieth The Great Work accomplished.
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    The unicursal hexagram is a hexagram or six pointed star that can be traced or drawn unicursally, in one continuous line rather than two overlaid triangles. This is significant as the triangles are often used to represent opposites such as fire and water or male and female.
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    Abramelin oil, also called Oil of Abramelin, is a ceremonial magical oil blended from aromatic plant materials. Its name came about due to its having been described in a medieval grimoire called The Book of Abramelin written by Abraham of Worms.
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    Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.) (Order of the Temple of the East, or the Order of Oriental Templars) is an international fraternal and religious organization founded at the beginning of the 20th century.
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    Thelema is the English transliteration of the Ancient Greek noun θέλημα: "will", from the verb θέλω: to will, wish, purpose.
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    François Rabelais (c. 1494 - April 9, 1553) was a major French Renaissance writer, doctor and humanist. He is regarded as an avant-garde writer of fantasy, satire, the grotesque, dirty jokes and bawdy songs.
    ..... Click the link for more information.

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