c&he Story of the rRosicrucians

S IR F R A N C IS B A CO N , K. R. C.
IM P ERA T O R OF THE RO SIC RU C IA N S

IN

THE SEVENTEENTH

CENTURY

It %vas nearly eleven o'clock and the guests had been pleasantly enter
tained after dinner w ith a program of music and song, and now lingered with
the hope that shortly the heavy rain would ccase and permit a more com
fortable departure for their homes.
The large fireplace w ith its cheery flames and w arm th attracted the
guests, some of w hom squatted close to the old screen that held back the
occasional sparks, while others lounged in chairs, or stood near by, in silent
concentration upon the burning logs.
One by one the brighter lights in the large d ining room of the W entw orth
home had been extinguished and only a soft color of orange and blue, from
shaded lamps and burning logs, lighted the countenances of the guests on
this tenth anniversary of the W entw orth marriage. Outside the wind and
rain added their mystic tones and notes to the enchantment of the scene
within.
"Com e, Roberts, and tell us the story that you promised at the table.
This is the time and place for any story that is really worth the telling. All
agreed w ith the invitation extended by Johnson, the new District Attorney,
and chairs were moved closer together while Roberts, the physician and
advisor to most of those present, assumed a position in front of them, to the
side of the fireplace.
If you have the time to listen to the whole story which w ill take some
time to tell, I w ill gladly keep my promise. Hut I must exact one promise
from all of you in return; it is that none of you w ill go forth into the world
and repeat this story w ithout m akng sure of your facts. The story is an old
one, but a much abused one; and in thirty years I have heard as many versions
each differing in such details as to make the story either of value or non
sensical. In fact it was becausc young Deem ing, breaking into reportorial
work for the E vening Journal, had expressed him self with some erroneous
ideas about the Rosicrucians that I promised to tell the real story some tim e.
I am sure we can all promise to remember the truth and nothing but
the truth of the story, responded Judge W entw orth, which brought a merry
chuckle from the wom en present.
W e ll, then, let me tell you that the Rosicrucians
W h y not tell us what Rosicrucians means, as an introduction, inter
rupted Mrs. Lashburn, the very precise teacher of the G irls Friendly G y m
nasium, a local social centre.

That is just what I was about to do. The Rosicrucians much prefer to
have their name and activities completely veiled if the unveiling cannot be
done expertly, or at least efficiently. I mean by this that they do not fancy
the unwarranted mystery that some writers and lecturers attach to them, but
it is more acceptable than the m isunderstanding that results from incorrect
statements found in some encyclopaedias.
I cannot tell you when the Rosicrucians as a body of men and women
using the term Rosicrucian, were first organized. O ne can find traces of them
as individuals, and as groups, far back into the dawn of civilization. But I can
start my story w ith the time when the whole of Europe was suddenly
awakened to the fact that the Rosicrucians were well established in the form
of an international brotherhood, and in possession of very valuable secrets
and principles of nature.
Is this a story of some secret cult? queried Miss Fletcher, the active
little missionary worker of the M ethodist Church.
Not at all; and that is one of the points I wish to make very plain. The
Rosicrucians and their groups throughout the w orld do not constitute a cult
nor a religious school, nor can I say that they form a secret society, since we
are here discussing them, and I am perm itted to tell you anything you wish to
know about them, and they are anxious to reveal anything any knowledge,
any inform ation, they possess. That is hardly the attitude of a secret society.
Y ou say you are perm itted to tell us the story. Does that mean that
you are a member of this organization? asked Deeming.
" I am. A n d a large number of persons in this city are members. M any
of you deal w ith them, meet w ith them, have pleasant contacts with them,
and do not know that they are members; not because they hide their identity,
but because you have never asked them about the m atter.
I am sure that I have never met one of these very unusual persons
before, exclaimed Miss Fletcher.
O h, yes you have, Miss Fletchcr, replied Roberts. Y ou have told us
this evening how greatly you and m any others in your Church admired the
excellent abilities of the O rganist who came to your Church last Fall, and
how he had volunteered to teach a class of the Sunday School teachers so as
to prepare them for the questions asked by the young folks. Y ou did not
know that this brilliant musician and well inform ed teacher was a Rosicrucian.
But this is all beside the story I wish to tell before the hour passes.
As I was saying, the whole of Europe, that it is the intellectual or
learned part of Europe, was suddenly mystified in the year 1610 by the wide
spread distribution of seven pamphlets, in several languages, em anating from
hundreds of sources, and announcing, in excellent style and conservative
statement, that the Fraternity of the R osy Cross was reborn in Cassel, Ger
many. The pamphlets contained an introduction addressed to the progressive
minds of the land, but the appeal was unnecessary, for they at once took to
themselves the message of the pamphlets and the foolish smiled and scoffed.
Never in the history of m an had a single message reached so many
persons and aroused so much comment. The art of printing was still young,
and it was the first time that this new art had been used to prove the power
of the press. By what means the pamphlets were so generally distributed
to scores of central points for logical dissemination, may never be known.
But w ithin ten days the message contained in the Fam a, as it is briefly
designated, was not only being discussed, condemned, ridiculed, praised,
admired and rejected, but dozens of other pamphlets attacking or supporting
it were keeping the few printing presses of Germany and other countries busy.
Clergymen of all denom inations used it as a basis for a sermon with
either satire or satisfaction. Physicians and chemists were called together
in general assemblies to determine the number of their own class that might
be found in agreement or disagreement w ith the message. The populace
recalled and retold fantastic Rosicrucian stories heard from grandparents.
Thousands wrote letters or sent messengers long distances inquiring for more
inform ation, and the agents of the government were advised to solve the
mystery of all the claims set forth in the Fama.
"T he original pam phlet was in German, and all others were translations
of it, according to their dates. N o name was given, as its author, but it was

issued as a message from C hristian Rosenkreuz. F or a time everyone who

did not know believed that this was the name of some person, and a hunt was
nationally instituted for Christian Rosenkreuz. Even some of the Germans
did not seem to realize that these two words could be translated into
C hristian and R osy Cross. Then it dawned upon them the unknow ing ones
that the sym bol of the fraternity referred to in the pamphlet was a Cross
with a Rose in its centre. R ealizing then that the name was only a pen-name
for the author, they sought for one of the most learned of the philosophers
of the day w ho could have sufficient knowledge to prepare the astounding
message. They finally selected one Valentine Andrea, a worker in behalf of
the Reform ation and a prom inent Lutheran clergyman. They were strength
ened in their selection by the fact that the fam ily coat of arms of Andrea
contained a cross. A lm ost over night he was acclaimed the Christian of the
Rosy Cross who had written the pamphlet.
The pam phlet itself was really remarkable in its appeal and offer of
universal reform in the lives of men and women.
It announced that the
ancient Fraternity of the Rosy Cross was about to begin its new cycle
in Germ any, and that before m any m onths had passed the hidden or preserved
knowledge of the ancients, as well as the foreknowledge of the most illum i
nated minds of many nations, w ould be at the disposal of those sincere seekers
for the philosophers stone, health, happiness, success in proper undertakings,
the transm utation of baser elements into the most refined, the secret of regen
eration, resurrection, and life eternal. It cited instances of the fraternity's
power through unusual knowledge, its glorious record in ages passed, its
high membership, and its exclusiveness. It stated no definite place where
inquirers could make contact with the organization, but im plied that the mere
expression of desire for membership w ould at once bring to the worthy one
the necessary inform ation.
"A s I have said, other pamphlets followed it, condem ning it as a hoax,
and m any praising or supporting it. A second, official pam phlet was issued
giving further inform ation, and in a few years the ideals and principles, the
activities and benevolence, of the Rosicrucians were as firmly established in
Germ any as they had been for ccnturies in other countries of Europe. The
only difference at this time was that it was now a popular subject; the organi
zation was publicly know n, while in other lands, in other years, the work and
even the name Rosy Cross were seemingly unknown.
I wish I had lived in those days and could remember now what occurred.
It w ould be a story of thrillin g adventure that I w ould tell. From the thou
sands of historical references now extant, one imagines that it was one joyous
session after another in Germ any, in small towns and hamlets, in cities large
and m ighty. W eek after week men and women, of careful selection, were
initiated into the Fraternity, in groups of fives, sevens or twelves. The his
torical references show that m en of every walk of life, and women of every
degree of mental culture, tried to secure admission. M any of them succeeded.
There were eminent physicians, whose names some of you w ould recognize
as im portant contributors to the art of medicine, as it was called. There were
chemists and biologists, scientists and their advanced students. M any of their
names you w ill find in lists of famous workers in m an s behalf. There were
Priests and M onks yes, M onks like Friar Roger Bacon, and even a Pope of
the R om an Church was a m em ber at one time. There were astronomers,
authors, and educators, such as Sir Francis Bacon, who had considerable to
do w ith the establishment of the new cycle in Germany. Truly, a host of
the m ost learned, informed, and progressive of all lands eventually became
publicly identified w ith this rapidly grow ing m ovement.
"W a s there som ething new about its knowledge, or its system of instruc
tion and help, that it offered to m ankind? queried Deeming.
Yes, and that was one of its tem pting features. Y o u see, the Fraternity
of the Rosy Cross, or Fraters Rosae Crucis, as the term is in L atin, had
existed for m any centuries; but it had been inactive in Germany for about
one hundred and eight years, and secluded or restricted in other lands for
many years. This rebirth in Germany was the beginning of another ajid quite
different cycle. Every hundred and eight years the fraternity comes to public

life in some part of the w orld where it has been inactive. Then for one hun
dred and eight cars it assumes and m aintains a very prom inent place in the
mental and cultural development of the citizens. At the end of the period of
one hundred and eight years of public cxistcncc, it retires to seclusion or
seeming inactivity for another hundred and eight years. In other words the
birth of a new cycle is every two hundred and sixteen years for each country,
with a new cycle born in the meantime in some other land.
A t the time of the new cycle in Germany, in 1610, the fraternity in other
lands was quite active, though sccludcd, as is shown by the many books
found in later years. The F am a itself called attention to the previous cycle
in Germany in preceding centuries. The unique point about the revival in
1610, however, was its very wide and open announcement to all classes of per
sons, made possible through the use of the new art of printing, and made
necessary by the grow ing activities of the R eform ation that was taking place,
with the resulting demand for inform ation that w ould free all men and women
from the superstitions, false notions, and the unrevealed obstacles to health,
complete happiness, and worldly as well as spiritual power.
And so the message was welcome indeed. The knowledge offered by
the Rosicrucians was to them, what it is today to all men and women of this
advanced civilization of the twentieth century. It was the tearing away of
the veil that hides the Truth, and the revealing of the L ight of W isdom . It
offered that inform ation, that positive knowledge, which only the fortunate
few could obtain in the past by long years of research or contact with the
advanced schools of higher learning; and it offered to the m ultitude the
simple, simon pure, keys to the mysteries of life. Some of you may smile
and say that you suspected that the Rosicrucians were a school of magic or
mystery, but I want to assure you that I would have no more time for such
things than you have. But, can any one of you honestly say that never in any
hours of our daily life, in hours of test and trial, hours of relaxation or recre
ation, in hours of m editation or speculation, have you had the slightest wish
to know the answer to some of lifes mysterious problems? D o you ever
wonder why you arc here on earth? D o you ever speculate as to why you
were born, and where life w ill lead you? Have you ever been face to face
with one of the com mon, though ever mysterious, manifestations of natural
law, and wished that you could understand it? Have you ever been face to
face with death or transition? Have you ever seen the sick, the suffering, the
passing consciousness, pleading for help, and you could give no help, no ex
planation? Have you ever looked into the eyes of a new born babe and
wondered about the strangeness and the marvelousness of Divine prin
ciples? O h, I know how each of you would answer these questions, and the
answer w ould be the same today as it was a thousand years ago.
M an is constantly face to face with problems that call for action of the
mind, the application of laws and principles regarding which he understands
little. H e is totally at the mercy of casual understanding or misunderstanding.
He is ever confronted with tasks and trials that require the functioning of
powers w ithin himself which may be so underdeveloped, so inexperienced,
that in the m inute of most use, they fail him and he is lost. D o you think
that such experiences comc only to those who have an attraction to the wierd
and mystical things of life? N ot at all; for who am ong you can say right
now, which are the mystical things of life and which are the practical?
W e send our sons and daughters to college and the university to acquire
a broader and more comprehensive education than the public schools can give
them. W e want them to have a larger education than we have had. W e
want them to include Latin and other languages in their studies; we insist
that ancient as well as modern history be included; we encourage them to
study the arts and sciences in their fundamental principles; we approve of
such subjects as will make their hands and fingers nimble, their minds alert
in reasoning and com prehending; we wish them to make sure that their eyes
are well trained to see, their ears to hear, their other senses to apprehend.
This we believe is necessary in order that they may be able to master any
problem that arises, meet any question, solve any perplexing situation. W hy ?
In order that they may be successful in life, not only in a material sense, but

in a cultural, ethical, mental, and spiritual sense. W e want them to achieve

self-mastership and attain w orldly mastership. D o we feel that they can
successfully go through life w ithout ever requiring the principles of m athe
matics to serve them? D o we im agine that they can get along successfully
without a knowledge of the sciences or the arts? D o we feel that since we
do not expect them to be musicians we need not ask them to know anything
about the laws of music and harm ony? D o we assume that since they are
not going to be civil or electrical engineers, they need know nothing of the
principles of physics or m agnetism?
But, look at ourselves! W e seem to assume that since we are dealing
with business propositions all day long, we have no need for any knowledge
that does not pertain to our business. Y ou, Johnson, are our new District
Attorney. Y ou arc quite sure, I suppose, that your large knowledge of the
laws of m an is quite sufficient to make success certain for you in your lifes
work; but, can you say right now that you w ill never have need to know even
the simple fundam ental laws of G o d s kingdom on earth? Can you feel sure
at this m oment that tom orrow , or the next day, there w ill not arise in your
daily affairs, or in your home life, or in your own personal affairs, some
incident, m ild or serious, that will not bring a desire to know what law, what
principle, what force, or agency is at work, and which of the many laws of
G od and Nature you can apply quickly and efficiently to meet the situation?
Can any of you say that?
W h at makes one man more successful than another? His training in
just one line? Y ou know that is not true! Y ou cannot make a good business
man out of a youth who has been taught nothing more than buying and
selling. Y o u cannot make a good physician out of a man or wom en who
has been taught only the principles included in the restricted four years of
medical college. The fallacy of such preparation has been known for many
years. Is a successful m other of children and a happy housewife only a
woman who has ignorantly given birth to a child, mechanically cooks and
cleans her home, and is unfam iliar with any of the laws of nature, art, music,
science, and literature as they relate to her duties, obligations and aspirations'?
Success in life means mastership, and mastership means utilizing every
inner force and power of the being as well as every outer force. M an s
creative abilities do not rest in the muscular strength of his body, nor in his
fertile im agination. H e must be able to bring his mental im agining into
materal expression, daily, hourly; and to do this he must be able to use other
faculties than simple visualization of the im agination.
He must not place
all dependence on his or other hands to work out the concrete expression.
He must be able to re-create things in that w orld of form which exists
between the m ental and the m aterial the transitory stage where success is
assured in the plans or failure is inevitable.
It was this sort of knowledge that the Rosicrucians offered so generously
in the seventeenth century in Germany, and in other centuries before and
after that time. The success of their plans, in aiding men and wom en to
achieve their desires in life, brought them some fame, but more power.
Before the end of the seventeenth century they were ready to carry their
work to the New W o rld , to America, in accordance with plans made long
before Columbus ventured to explore the unknow n seas.
It was in 1693 that the leaders and eminent Rosicrucian workers of
Europe gathered together and selected from their volunteers those proficient
in the arts, sciences, trades, and professions, to go to America and establish
the Great W ork. That was one hundred and eight years after the new cycle
had started in E ngland, and two hundred and fourteen years after the new
cycle had started in France. In their own boat and w ith proper ceremony
they departed, and reached the shores of America in the early part of 1694.
D o you mean to say that the Rosicrucians have been in America all
these years? asked Johnson.
Yes, and they were really a part of Am erican history long before that.
A ccording to very dependable records a well know n Rosicrucian leader of
Europe sailed w ith an early expedition from Spain and landed w ith the
exploring party on the shores of California in 1602 or 1604, and there deposited

a Rosicrucian Stone. This means that he established some foundation,

some principle of the work, in the name of the Order. There are a number
of references to this fact in Rosicrucian writings.
However, in 1694 the
Rosicrucian colony arrived at what is now Philadelphia, and in Fairm ont
Park on Mystic Lane one can still see part of their first building. Their
colony increased, their work progressed, and in a few years they moved
further inland to a quiet valley, and built m any structures and established
many of the first Am erican institutions. Y o u may be surprised to know
what a valuable contribution they made to the founding of America. I do
not have my note books at hand, but I can tell you what I have read in a
book by Julius Sachse, the eminent H istorian of the Grand Lodge of Free
m asonry for Pennsylvania, and who was reputed to be a descendant of one
of the families closely connected w ith the colony. H e quotes the records in
the Pennsylvania H istorical Society, and books and records in possession of
former Governor Pennypacker of Pennsylvania and hundreds of other au
thorities. H e shows that these early Rosicrucians established a really m arv
elous system of widespread brotherhood activities for the advancement of
m ans inner and cultural development. To do this they utilized all the laws
of nature and taught those laws.
Here they created the first complete
printing plant in America, and made their own paper in the first American
paper mill. O u t of this shop came the largest books ever made in America
during those years, and books that had no other purpose than to reveal to
men and women the laws of nature which w ould lift them out of the ruts.
Not mystical books, not books of secret teachings, but unusual books. Even
the first American Bible was published here, and the first Sunday School
was established by them, sixteen years before one was established in
E ngland.
I thought you said they were not a religious school or cult? asked
Miss Fletcher, intent upon finding some support for her erroneous belief.
Publishing a Bible and establishing a Sunday School w ould not make
them a religious body. Rem ember that they found that most of the settlers
in Am erica came here for religious freedom. They catered to this, and kept
free from all sectarianism, just as the Rosicrucians have in all ages. So, these
first Rosicrucians in Am erica helped to establish and dedicate several
churches in Philadelphia, by furnishing the music for choirs and trained
teachers as clergymen; they helped churches of six different denominations,
and expressed no preferment. They even published the first Christian Testa
m ent produced in America, and the first religious magazine. A ll of this was
the work of Brother Sauer, the master printer of the colony w ho had been
selected abroad because of his knowledge.
H e also established the first
Am erican type foundry and finally produced the most beautiful books ever
made in America during the eighteenth century.
They also established mills for grinding corn, a factory for the m aking
of organs, and actually made the first organs ever m anufactured in America
for church use. T heir chemists and biologists worked w ith their botanist,
and the first botanical gardens were established for the purpose of preparing
herbs and medicines for the most advanced medical practices. They were
not mentalists to the extent that they placed a fanatical valuation on the
power of m ind, but gave rightful place to all the sciences, as do the R osi
crucians today.
Just to show you the hum anitarian activities of this colony, let me say
that they established free schools for children, free clinics for the sick, and
free systems for aiding everyone in im proving the existing standard of
living. A ll who wished to unite with the w ork were welcome to do so and
all shared alike in the benefits and obligations.
" I t was in the college rooms of this com m unity that the Declaration of
Independence was translated by a Rosicrucian into the several foreign lan
guages so that all colonists could read it; and the famous document now
preserved in W ashing to n was engrossed by a Rosicrucian in that colony.
I t was here also that the first propaganda for the freedom of the negro slaves
was started, as is shown by the early records.

I thought it was com m only believed that Thom as Jefferson wrote or

engrossed the Declaration of Independence? remarked Johnson.
It may be, since Jefferson was not only a member of the Rosicrucians
but one of the later officers of the colony. A ll that the records show, however,
is that it was engrossed in the editorial rooms of the com m unity college.
O ther famous documents were prepared there, for they were constantly pre
paring manuscripts for future generations, and many of them are in existence
today, show ing skilled penmanship, lettering, and colored engrossing like
those made by the M onks of ancient times.
"W h a t were these manuscripts about?" asked Mrs. Nathan, who had
been silent through all the story.
They were private manuscripts of instruction, intended for the students
of the Rosicrucian Order of that and future generations. I remember some
of the titles, for we still use some of them copies of course in some of our
lectures. There was one entitled The Mystery of Numbers. I t revealed
how the law of numbers, the law of averages, and the law of proportion,
affects things in our lives. Such ideas have been established am ong learned
men and women since then, but the m ultitude knows little about the subject.
A nother m anuscript was entitled Phisica, Mctaphisica, and H yperphisica, and
another deals w ith the Non-ego.
" I had no idea that the modern subject of Metaphysics had such an early
start in Am erica, remarked Johnson.
That is just it. Am erica today is being offered m any systems of New
Thought, Metaphysical, occult, and practical psychology courses of study, and
they are offered as som ething new, som ething surprising and astounding.
The Rosicrucians have been teachers and demonstrators of these things for
very m any centuries, and have the only dependable system of personal devel
opment that men and women can rely upon to awaken and make active their
inner, latent, faculties. But, the Rosicrucians have never sold this knowledge
in books and have never conducted paid classes. They w ill not commercialize
the knowledge which was given to them freely and which must be passed on
just as freely.
M any eminent characters in Am erican history became members of the
Rosicrucian colony. I could cite hundreds of names which all of you would
recognize. There was Brother Rittenhouse, for instance, who established
the Rosicrucian astronomical observatory at the colony. It was the first in
America and soon became w orld famous, for it was Rittenhouse w ith his
unusually large telescope, a Rosicrucian invention based upon principles laid
down by the Rosicrucian, Roger Bacon, who placed Am erica in the foreground
of astronomical research. Rittenhouse made the first measurements of the
distances between the planets the sun and the earth. W as that not scientific
achievement? Y o u could hardly call that the dreamy work of a mystical
philosopher and yet he was a philosopher, a Rosicrucian philosopher, which
means one who is very practical and has no time for idle speculations. Thomas
Jefferson, speaking of Rittenhouses wonderful discoveries of the distant sky
which brought the heavens nearer to m ans understanding, said: H e has
not indeed made a world, but he has approached nearer to its Maker than any
man w ho has lived from the time of the Creation to this day.' B enjam in
Franklin worked out his great library plan as an associate of the Rosicrucian
library, and he also worked in the experimental laboratories of the colony,
and became advanced in the principles of natural forces. Can anyone say
that such education given to Franklin and used by him for further experi
ments did not benefit m ankind as well as himself?
A n d so the years passed. The eighteenth century ended, and the com
m unity of Rosicrucians consisted of many hundreds of families, w ith hundreds
resting in their graves, in the grave yard which still exists, and hundreds away
in other states and cities becoming leaders and masters in the arts, industries
and trades. Every large city in America at the close of the eighteenth century
contained in its roster of eminent citizens and successful homes, m any R osi
crucians all happy men and women, prospering in their business affairs,
m astering in their life problems, leading others in education and development,
and m aintaining the high standard for American progress.
Then came the year 1801. It was just one hundred and eight years after
the new cycle of the Rosicrucians for America. The year had come for the

Rosicrucians to retire again into silence. O ne by one the buildings of the

com m unity were sold or abandoned, and the workers and leaders departed for
other cities. Sccret sessions were held twice yearly for m any years until all
the initiates then living had passed to the beyond, and their successors were
instructed how to preserve the work and carry on in silence and seclusion.
From time to time in im portant local or national criscs, one of the most
advanced of the silent workers would come forward and aid, in ways that
only the Rosicrucians understood. Manuscripts were prepared and issued in
secrecy, and hundreds of students of the work went to Europe to receive
initiation into the Order in one of the active Jurisdictions.
Then as the period of one hundred and eight years of silence came to
its close and the year 1909 approached, those who had been in preparation
for the birth of the new cycle of public activity made ready for the first steps.
Thus, in 1909 many Americans offered their services to foreign branches
of the Rosicrucian Order in establishing a new Am erican branch. Some went
to Europe, others sent communications.
Some were high officers in the
Freemasonic fraternity, others were leaders in various metaphysical and
scientific work based upon the Rosicrucian principles.
A m o ng those who went to Europe was Dr. H. Spencer Lewis, the
President of the New Y ork Institute for Psychical Research, and former
editor of several scientific and metaphysical magazines. He was duly exam
ined and tested for his seven years of preparation, and sent from Paris to
a city in the south of France where the ancient scat of Rosicrucian Councils
had been m aintained for several centuries. Here in a special conclave of
Supreme Masters, Heirophants, and Councilors of the Order for France and
other countries, he was selected and elected to be the American Legate, and
the proper instructions were given him to proceed to Am erica and announce
the new birth of the Order, just as it had been announced in Cassel, Germany,
in 1610.
That is all very interesting, Roberts, but there are two questions that
come to my m ind at once, remarked Johnson. First, why is it that so many
encyclopaedias say that Christian Rosenkreuz established the whole Rosicru
cian order in Germany in either the fourteenth or the seventeenth century,
and secondly, why do some small Rosicrucian fellowships or societies in
America claim that they have authority from the first Rosicrucian society
established by this fellow Rosenkreuz?
Those were the points that were bothering Deem ing tonight at the
table, were they not, Deeming? Y ou w ill remember that I told him he had
an erroneous impression. Hut I do not blame him. Just today I had in my
hands one of those popular books claim ing to explain the Rosicrucian myster
ies, offered by a conccrn that writes, prints, and sells books which seem to
have the Rosicrucian teachings in them. 1 have already stated that the real
organization has never issued its teachings in any public book and never will.
W hat would you think of a book entitled The rites and mysteries of the
Freemasons?" Y ou would know at oncc that it had none of the legitimate
rites, none of the real principles in it, or it would not be printed and sold.
Y ou would know at once that if the book was really a true Rosicrucian book
it could contain nothing more than a short talk or brief description of the
Order, such as I have been giving you tonight. There are many such books
which tell the story of the Rosicrucians much better than those which claim
to have the secret teachings. Such books are like the one by Lord Bulwer
Lytton, called Zanoni, or the books by Marie Corelli. But the organization
itself issues a book about its history and existence, and gives it away freely to
sincere seekers. The book which I examined today is found in m any book
stands and m any who buy it for several dollars believe that it is more than
just a roundabout story of the Rosicrucians. They think it contains the real
teachings and sold for profit. This particular book, like a dozen others I
have seen, is an example of the ignorance of those writers who know nothing
even of the history of the Rosicrucians. It distinctly stated that it traced the
Rosicrucian brotherhood, and traced its whole existence, to the foundation
established by Rosenkreuz in Germany. T hat is so ridiculous that I cannot
understand how anyone believes that story today. As I intim ated, there never

was a m an by the name of Rosenkreuz. O ne character, connected w ith the

Order, used that name a number of times in w riting some public pamphlets.
It was used long before the Order started in Germany, and long afterward
by persons representing the same character. The name sim ply meant that
the writer of the pamphlets was a Christian Brother of the R osy Cross, or
in the Germ an language, Christian Rosenkreuz. As for the Order starting
in Germ any, that appears strange at once when one reads any of the prin
ciples. O ne notices quickly that the Order had an E gyptian origin, that it
started in those mystery schools of E gypt where the w orlds knowledge was
preserved for centuries. W e find the Order in Germ any in the year 1115 with
headquarters in Cologne, where the old records are still in existence. The
K in g of Denm ark was the head of the branch in his land in 1484. In Richlicus memoires there is m ention of Gautier the Im perator of the Order in
France in 1410. W h y , a large convention of Rosicrucians was held in E ngland
several years before the Christian Rosenkreuz name was ever made public
in any pamphlet.
As for the existence of various societies, let me assure you that the
real Rosicrucian Order is well established in every civilized land today.
But, it is know n in its present cycle by the only title it ever made official.
T hat is the Rosicrucian Order, or in Latin, the Order Rosae Crucis. It
does not use such names as society, fellowship, or club. The w ord R osicru
cian is not patented, and cannot be patented. I t is an old word and has
been freely used in m any ways, just as has the words M asonry or Masonic.
But, there is only one organization in Am erica and other lands that can
rightfully call itself the Ancient, Free, and Accepted Masons. Others may
form a Masonic club, a Masonic Publishing Com pany, and print and sell
books relating to m any interesting subjects, but it w ould not be a part of
the Masonic international fraternity, and it w ould not claim that its books
contained Masonic teachings. A ll of you can see that point very plainly.
The same is true of the Rosicrucians. W e, here tonight, can legitimately form
ourselves into a Rosicrucian Club, a Rosicrucian Society of Students, or a
Rosicrucian Association. There is nothing to prevent it. W e can proceed
to solicit other members, and when we have discussed and talked all we can
about the Rosicrucians, we can issue a magazine or a few books containing
our discussions and our personal ideas of what we thin k Rosicrucianism really
is. But, we could not be a part of the Rosicrucian Order if we sold such
books, held such unsystematic sessions, and had no affiliation w ith other
Rosicrucian Orders in foreign lands. I am sure that you see m y point, now.
The new cycle of the Rosicrucian Order uses the complete name, Ancient
M ystical Order Rosae Crucis, the initials of which form the strange word
A M O R C . This word A M O R C is used by dozens of foreign branches, all
a part of the one new cycle of the Order in every land where the new cycle
has started. N o other name is used, and none other means the same.
"W h a t right, then, have these other organizations, to use the same
sym bol? asked Deeming.
They have no right to use the real symbol, and know ing that they
have no right, they do not use it. Y o u w ill notice that other organizations
using the w ord Rosicrucian use a symbol of the Rosy Cross that is slightly
different from the true one. They use a cross w ith several roses on it, or a
wreath of roses on it, or around it. The ancient and true symbol of the Rosey
Cross is a Cross with JU S T O N E R O S E in its centre no more and no less.
And, that sym bol, with the true name, A M O R C , is patented in the United
States Patent Office by the organization know n as A M O R C .
N o other
Rosicrucian organization in Am erica has such a patent. That should mean
som ething.
"A n d are we to look upon all these other Rosicrucian activities as abso
lutely worthless and shun them as what shall I say? queried our inquisitive
friend, Miss Fletcher.
"L o o k upon them as clandestine, as we say in the fraternity to which I
belong, replied Johnson.
N ot at a ll! answered Roberts.
That is a harsh and unkind word
which the Rosicrucians avoid using; for they do not under any circumstances
criticise or attack any movement that is trying to help m ankind in any way.

But, if one wants a complete, private, efficient Rosicrucian knowledge, one

should go to a regular Rosicrucian source for such knowledge, not to a pub
lishing company or group of students who are sim ply skim m ing over the
subject, and enjoying each other's difficulties in the search for such knowledge.
The Rosicrucians of today are practical; they deal with the mental and
material problems of life on the one hand, and u'ith the inner faculties and
powers of m an on the other. They show each student H O W to prove the
laws and principles in daily application with personal problems. They do not
waste your time telling you how the Masters of the Far East, the mystics
of the Orient, and the H indus of Ind ia did wonderful things in days gone by
things which if you could duplicate today w ould simply make you qualified
to be a magician on the vaudeville stage, or a first class medicine man peddling
medicine and giving trick performances along the highways of the country.
T hat w ill not do for men and wom en who are practical, who are not only
sane, but conscious of the fact that there are forces in the w orld today, at
m ans disposal, which w ill enable him to subdue conditions around him, arouse
dorm ant powers, and master the matters at hand. There are principles which
I use in my daily medical practice to help nature restore health and strength
to the sick, and at the same time prevent further complications or other ill
nesses. There are simple rules which make men conscious of other persons
thoughts and intentions, and m any successful business men have found them
their greatest asset. There are other principles which enable anyone to attract
the better things of life and change the course of living from m ediocrity to
noble achievement, from the com m on place to the extraordinary. These are
the things we wish to know, and I can say to you, that I have found them all
in the Rosicrucian teachings.
May anyone join the Rosicrucians? asked Miss Fletcher, w ith an evident
personal interest.
Yes, providing one is a good citizen, a sincere seeker for this personal
knowledge, and ready to use the principles to help others as well as himself.
Men and women of every walk of life, even the most humble, are freely
adm itted into the Order. They become members and are given the private
instructions, w ithout the purchase of any books or private lessons of any kind.
In our city we have a group of members, form ing a chartered branch, and in
it are eighty-nine of the citys finest wom en housewives, business women,
teachers, physicians, nurses, librarians and artists.
M any of them never
attempted any reading along this line before, but their lives have been changed
since they united w ith the Order and learned how to live. W e also have one
hundred and sixty men in that group men of all walks of life and each one
more successful today in his occupation than he was when he joined us.
There are thousands of such persons in America, in hundreds of cities and
towns everywhere. In some cities there are several groups. More and more
the Order is attracting to itself those who wish to rise higher in life. It is
the one true pathway to personal evolution.
It brings great happiness
through the peace and power that it creates; it brings success through the
mastership it gives in directing our affairs and our desires; it brings satis
faction, for it answers our problems, reveals the true w orkng of all of natures
laws, and points out the m eaning of life and transition in a new and astounding
light. W h a t more can one ask? Yet the Order docs not w ithhold its teach
ings, but offers them freely. It invites the seeker to come to its portals. It
extends this invitation to all. And, one may study at home in privacy!
And now the hour is late. The rain has stopped I believe, for 1 do 1101
hear it. Let us wend our way homeward, and think over the beautiful gifts
of God and nature, and the glorious privileges which are ours. If you now
feel an inner urge to accept the invitation of the Rosicrucians the way is
open.
(H o w to accept the Inv itatio n to share in the Rosicrucian privileges, is
explained on the last pages.)

fkrt Ctuo
S O M E IN T E R E S T IN G F A C T S A B O U T T H E O R D E R

THE FIRST ROSICRUCIANS

In the traditional history of the Rosicrucians we find one man standing
out boldly in the light of illum ination. H e was Am enhotep IV , Pharoah of
Egypt, and the w o rlds first great citizen," to quote the em inent historians
of E gyp ts period of re-birth. Descendant of a previous Pharaoh, who had es
tablished the first secret schools of advanced learning in Egypt, and who
was know n as the Heretic K in g because of his modern viewpoints, and
born of parents w ho looked forward to his com ing as the first great ruler
of a m ighty brotherhood of enlightened men and women.
A nd, A m enhotep IV , at an early age was made K in g as well as the
high potentate of a secret organization which in a few years changed the
whole religion of Egypt, cast aside its antiquated art, revised its language
and literature, ended its continuous warfare, rebuilt its falling Temples,
created new cities, and instructed the Tribes of Moses in the laws of God
and nature. O u t of the great L ig ht thus brought into alm ost blinding
effulgence in darkened Egypt, there passed to m any lands and to m any
nations of peoples a new standard of living, a new system of thinking, a
new process of cooperative action, which became the foundation for every
one of our present day methods of higher education and successful living.
Am enhotep changed his name along w ith thousands of other changes
he authorized and into the w o rlds history stepped Akhnaten IV , the man
of whom history has written that he was the w orlds first modernist.
In 1350 B. C. this m an left to posterity his well developed plan of con
ducting secret or private schools for the superior education and preparation
of men and wom en for the parts they must take in life to be the lights of
civilization, the pathfinders of new and untram m eled roads to health and
success, the leaders of advancing hum anity.
H is own descendants and the graduates of his secret schools in the
Palace on the banks of the N ile wended their way into other lands Jerusa
lem, Persia, In d ia and Greece, and in each of these lands the great work
continued, always under the same sym bol, w ith the same banner, the same
standard and the same cry: Per rosam ad crucem, per cruccm ad rosani!
By the Rose to the Cross; by the Cross to the Rose!

M EA N IN G O F THE N A M E A N D SYMBOL
The Order of the Rosy Cross (L a tin , Rosae Crucis), as the organ
ization has been officially know n for so m any centuries, derived its name
from the early secret symbol of the society. T hat symbol is no longer
either secret or mysterious. It served its purpose well in the early days
through being veiled; today it is seen and know n in too m any lands and
am ong too m any m illions of persons to be considered as a secret sign oi
any kind.
The symbol is composed of a Cross w ith a red rose upon its centre.
A great m any persons believe that the cross as a sym bol had its origin
in the early days of Christianity. T hat is a mistake. It can be found on
the walls of tombs and temples in Egypt, and m ay be seen on the two
obelisks that were sent from H eliopolis to L ondon and New Y o rk City.
The cross has always had several meanings, closely related. T o the mystics
of Egypt or the O rient who were the first to use it, it meant m ans body
in either a posture of salutation to the rising sun (w ith arms held out in
horizontal position) or m ans body being crucified by the labors, trials,

tests and sufferings of life. N o religious significance was attached to the

cross until years after the crucifixion of The Christ, when the cross was
adopted by the early church Fathers as a symbol of their new institution,
and that cross adopted by them had a crucified body upon it. The mere
fact that the Hebrews and other races had crucified their crim inals upon
crosses for years before The Christ was crucified, plainly shows that these
peoples associated no religious ideas w ith the cross.

FR O M EGYPT TO OTH ER LANDS

From out of Egypt and Palestine, as well as Greece, came the great
L I G H T which in m any lands was protected by the secret brotherhood.
Under various names but always w ith the same ideals and standards the
brotherhood operated.
W e find them referred to as the Therapeuti, the
Essenes, the Silent Brothers, and m any other names in the m iddle ages,
when secret or private schools of advanced learning were forbidden. Just
as the pagan priesthood of ancient E gypt finally cast into oblivion all that
Am enhotep IV and his brotherhood had accomplished in that land and
brought the great darkness over the nation again, so other priesthoods in
the m iddle ages succeeded in forcing the state to forbid the spread of the
aw akening consciousness in the peoples who sought The L ight. But ever did
the w ork continue, and the time came when in every part of Europe, as well
as in the O rient, the fraternity of the R osy Cross was a m ighty factor in the
social, political and economical development of nations.
In certain long established centres of learning, national and international
headquarters were maintained. Thus at Toulouse, in southern France, a seat
of advancement in all learning, the Rosicrucians m aintained one of the
oldest centres of their activities. T o this centre came the philosophers,
educators and leaders of hum an activity from all parts of the world, and
it was here that m any of the w orlds most im portant reforms and innovations
had their birth.

STRANGE STORY O F CHRISTIAN RO SENKREUZ

H owever, it was the mystics and sages of Am enhoteps schools in the

Palace that evolved the Rosicrucian symbol by adding the red rose to the
Cross. Perhaps it was A khnaten himself, for it was he who loved roses
and introduced the Persian rose into Egypt. The rose was made sym bol
ical of the inner consciousness, the spirit, the S O U L of man. The fact
that the rose gradually opened from a tightly closed bud into full bloom
and expression, and then slowly faded, drooped and passed out of sight,
made itself suggestive of the soul of m an which came into the youthful
body imprisoned, slowly evolved to m anifestation and beauty, and slowly
weakened in its expression until it seemed to be no more. The evolution
of the rose seemed to typify the evolution of m an s soul. Years of obser
vation convinccd these sages that the tests and trials of life, the experiences,
lessons learned and suffering endured, contributed to the evolution of the
soul; to them it seemed that the soul of m an was evolving through the
experiences of the body. Since the cross had ever been to them the symbol
of the body of man in its sufferings, they added the rose to the cross and
created the sym bol which has but one explanation. T hat is:
The Rose (soul) evolves and gains beauty and fragrance
while being crucified upon the Cross (the body).
From this symbol and the term Rosy Cross, we have the term R o si
crucian as the E nglish form of the name of the organization which now
exists in every civilized land. T hrough the experiences of life, m ans soul
and understanding evolves; through the united experiences of thousands of
members in one brotherhood the soul of the group of persons or even of a
nation, evolves and becomes more potent in the direction of personal and
national affairs.
T hat is the explanation of the symbol and the name. It is age-old,
honored, respected and glorified in every clime, and in its name has man
achieved and succeeded beyond his fondest dreams.

According to the erroneous story told in some popular encyclopaedias,

a group of scientists opened a tom b in Cassel, Germ any, in the 17th century
and there found the body of Christian Rosenkreuz, the founder of the R osi
crucian fraternity, along w ith papers and documents for the continuance of
the organization hundreds of years after his transition. The real facts are
that there was no one person know n as Christian Rosenkreuz (which words
mean, in Germ an, Christian Rosy Cross) and such a character was certainly
not the original organizer of the Rosicrucian Fraternity. However, there are
m any popular writers on the subject of Rosicrucianism today, and a small
group of Rosicrucian students form ed into "fellow ships and associations in
America w hich believe that the whole Rosicrucian order started in Germany
at the hands of "C hristian Rosenkreuz, and he (!) is named by these per
sons as their beloved "founder and originator of the form of Rosicrucian
teachings they present. The incongruity and inconsistency of these statements
do not seem to dawn upon those who adhere to this ancicnt absurdity.
A m an w ho never existed as the personality attributed to him could not
have founded or originated an organization that was in existence hundreds
of years before the time given as the date of his foundation work.
W h o , or what, was Christian Rosenkreuz? This is the question that was
asked several hundred years ago when a series of books or pamphlets
were issued in Germ any inform ing the learned of E urope that the R osi
crucian fraternity was again active in the lands of that continent. These
books am o ng them the renowned F am a Fraternitatiswere issued under
the fictitious name of Christian Rosenkreuz. or C. R C .
Investigations
revealed that the books were the w ork of Sir Francis Bacon, L ord Verulem.
Bacon had become the international chief of the Rosicrucian fraternity as
had other eminent characters in the past; and he proceeded to enlarge the
activities of the Order and bring it into conservative publicity through the
issuance of books credited to a fictitious name that told every student of the
Rosicrucian teachings that the real author was a C hristian Brother of the
R osy Cross.
The same name or the initials C. R C . had been used centuries before.
In the year 908 B. C. the name was used by Zoroaster while he was
Supreme M agus of the mystic fraternities of his time. In 1290 A. D. the same
name was used again in connection w ith an event sim ilar to that which
occurred in Cassel, Germ any, in 1604. A ll who are fam iliar w ith even the

superficial facts of the origin and historical activities of the Rosicrucian

fraternity or Order, know that a man, one m an, having a genuine name of
Christian Rosenkreuz, did not found or originate the Order in Germ any in
any century. Em phasis is put upon this fact w ith reiteration here because
of its extreme importance to American persons w ho are seeking the facts.

FRANCIS BACON'S LEADERSHIP

Lord Bacon is generally acknowledged to have done more for the
universal grow th of the Rosicrucian Order than any other man since the
middle ages. H e found the fraternity, and its m any branches in Europe and
the Orient, an excellent channel for the im portant changes which he wished
to bring about in the practical affairs of m ens lives.
N ot only did he revise the activities of the Order in Germany, where
he made Valentine Andreae his Deputy, but he sent his brother and other
associates to every part of Europe to lecture and propagate the work openly
am ong the learned and sincere. H e it was who lifted the obscure veil that
enshrouded the fraternity, and daring the criticisms of state, ensconced it
with the halo of glory to w hich L ord L ytton referred in his famous novel
about the Rosicrucians, called Zanoni. A t once the Order attracted to itself
the interest of nobility as well as the men and women of the average walks
of life, and like a tidal wave sweeping over some level land, the prestige and
good works of the Rosicrucians reached every land.

W O RLD W ID E O R G A N IZA T IO N
Prior to Bacons leadership as Im perator for Europe, or rather certain
parts of Europe, the Order Rosae Crucis was well established in m any lands
under the old cycles of existence.
N ot only was there a convention of Rosicrucians of m any lands held in
E ng land just prior to Bacon's elevation to the position of Im perator, but
sim ilar conventions or Congresses had been held in other countries for
several centuries.
A m o ng the m any picturesque incidents of the operation of the Order
in foreign lands in the fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth, seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries, we find, for instance, the record of the Initiations held
on the Island of M auritus in 1794; the operation of a Lodge of the Order
on the G old Coast of Africa in 1799; the selection of Cornelius Agrippa, the
eminent philosophical writer, as Im perator in the year 1507; the record of a
new cycle of one jurisdiction in E urcpe in 1410; the In itiatio n of the famous
character known in history as Paracelsus, in Basle, Switzerland, in 1530; the
operation of a large Lodge in Cologne in 1115; the public activities of the
Rosicrucians during the Crusades in the south of France between the years
1192 and 1227; and the development of the Order in H o llan d during the years
1483 to 1498. In Spain, Italy, and the O rient, the Order carried on extensively
in certain channels, while in Russia, China, and especially in Tibet, the Order
had many members w ho exerted a great power for progressiveness.
Hundreds of books and manuscripts have been listed in catalogs known
as Rosicrucian Bibliographies, and published in m any historical, mystical and
Freemasonic encyclopaedias. These show that many writers of m any lands
wrote historical essays, official Manifestoes, Instruction guides, and treatises
upon the subject of the O rder Rosae Crucis, the Brothers of the Rosy Cross,
the Fraters Rose Croix, the Rosenkreuzer, etc.
For m any centuries the organization held international Conventions or
Congresses in cities most convenient to the greatest number of delegates.
Most of these were held in Switzerland, usually in Basle, and later in Zurich
and Geneva; and in Toulouse, France; H alle, Germ any; Cologne, Germ any;
L ondon, E ng land ; and Lyon, France. A few were held for special purposes
in Cairo, E gyp t; and Calcutta, India.
Even to this day these Congresses are held every few years and delegates
from, or representing, thirteen lands or more are present along w ith many
officers of various ranks and departments.

PRESENT D A Y H E IRA RCH Y

In all lands where the new cycle of existence of the Order is established
(in accordance w ith the law of 108 years of secret activity and then a birth
into public activity for another 108 years) each branch of the new Order has
its own Jurisdiction, as heretofore, with its own Im perator for the Jurisdic
tion, and under him a Supreme G rand Master, a Group of Grand Masters, and
a score of Masters of local Lodges or groups.
The Im perators of the various Jurisdictions constitute a supreme council
of advisors to the W h ite Lodge, which is the superior body of the entire
Order in the world.
In each Jurisdiction the G rand Masters and executive officers constitute
the Supreme Council for the Jurisdiction, at the head of which is the
Im perator.
This form of national and international co-operation between all duly
chartered and empowered branches m aintains a system of united effort and
at the same time makes for solidarity. It means that, despite the division
into official jurisdictions, the Rosicrucian O R D E R is one body throughout
the world.

THE INTERNATIONAL N A M E
The Order of the new cycle uses the same old ancient name that is
found in the oldest records. T hat name, in its complete L atin form is:
A ntiquae Arcanae O rdinis Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis.
Translations and abbreviations of this name are used by the various
jurisdictions to meet the requirements of the local tongue. In America, and
some other E nglish speaking lands, the name is shortened to:
Ancient,
M ystical O rder Rosae Crucis. This form retains the ancient L atin words
Rosae Crucis which mean: of the R osy Cross. For the sake of veiling the
full name the initials of the short name are used, as: A. M. O. R. C. or
A M O R C . Even in some Latin countries we have the Spanish form of the
name thusly: A ntiqua y M istica Orden Rosae Crucis, giving us the initials
again of A M O R C . In some other lands the complete name is used or abbre
viated to: A. A. O rdinis Rosae R. A. Crucis, or A A O R R A C , or A. A.
O . or A. O . However, such abbreviations are used only when public
papers or other matters are to be veiled, but not in connection w ith official
documents. And, always the sym bol of the Order is a cross w ith one red
rose in its centre. The use of a num ber of roses on various crosses or around
a cross, does not make the official, ancient, emblem.
Such modifications
indicate that the person or group of persons using them are not connected
with the above OrderThe A M O R C .

THE FIRST A M E RIC A N BRANCH

Before his transition, and while Im perator of the O rder in Europe,
Bacon made plans for the spread of the w ork to America. This he did by
w riting a story called T he New A tlantis, or the H ouse of Solom on. This
was, presumably, a story of a newly discovered land in the A tlantic where
everything was done according to Rosicrucian standards. In the story was
contained the famous Bacon secret code which he also used in w riting the
Shakespearean plays and m any other books now found to be his work.
In the code used by Bacon, instructions were given for the establishment
of a national centre on the shores of America. For years the strange plans
in this book puzzled those who read it and knew not the ideas back of it.
Then in 1693 the plans began to materialize, and in _all parts of Europe
men and wom en came together in Rosicrucian _ sessions to select those
who were to carry out the Baconian plan. F inally in the fall of 1693 a group
of several hundred men w ith their families were decided upon and they
joined together in E ng land and H olland.

Men for the plan were selected according to their professions and
trades. A ll men had to be able to contribute to the knowledge and experience
required, and in the winter of 1693 the group of Rosicrucians set sail for
Am crica in their own chartered boat, the Sara Maria.
No more fascinating story of pilgrim age is told in history than this.
They travelled under the auspices of Bacons former Lodge in London,
the Rosicrucian Lodge known by the Greek word, Philadelphia, and they
carried with them rare manuscripts, records, scientific devices and equipment
such as had not been brought to Am erica before.
The work of the first Rosicrucians spread rapidly throughout the colonies
in the first hundred years and laid a foundation for it from coast to coast.
Some uninformed writers of early Am erican history state that the first
Rosicrucian foundation in Am crica was laid by a Dr. P. B. R andolph who
lectured considerably on psychological and Rosicrucian subjects during the
latter part of the eighteenth century.
H e claimed Initiatio n in a foreign
branch of the Rosicrucian Order, but it has been found that he was sim ply
a member of a small Hermetic organization of Rosicrucian students of either
Paris or London, and had no authority to establish permanent Lodges any
where in America. Aside from the fact that his lectures here were many
years after the Order had come to Amcrica, and therefore could not have
been the first efforts to bring the work to this land, his groups of students
in a few cities did not carry on any systematic organization work after his
transition, and there was no affiliation between his student groups and the
Order in other lands.

THE PRESENT A M ERIC A N O R G A N IZA T IO N

The year 1909 was a very im portant year in the activities of m any R osi
crucian Jurisdictions, and in the history of many metaphysical, alchemical,
and Herm etic organizations. To the Rosicrucians it was the year of new
birth, the year of the new cycle, in those lands which had completed the 108
year of silence. Chief am ong these was America, where the Rosicrucian
activities consisted of a great fire of power and knowledge burning in quiet
preparation for the sudden fanning into brilliant flames. W ith other organi
zations the year was an im portant one in its relation to the periodicity of the
Aquarian cycle. A ll in all, 1909 proved to be the quickening and aw akening
year for all lands ready for the new dispensation of L ig h t, L ife and Love.
For several years prior to 1909 m any men, and several women, of pro
found metaphysical and occult training and preparation journeyed to Europe,
and, in either France or E ngland, received Initiatio n into the Rosicrucian
Order to enable them to assist in the newer activities for America.
Two characters stand out in the history of the present American organi
zation. One of these is Mrs. Col. M ay Banks-Stacey, a descendant of the
D'Arcys of France, and through blood relationship w ith the nobility of E n g
land, a high Initiate of the oldest Rosicrucian organization of L ondon and
Paris. She was also an Initiate of the Order in India, and was appointed an
American Legate of the Ind ian Jurisdiction.
The other is Dr. H. Spencer Lewis, form erly President for m any years
of the New Y o rk Institute for Psychical Research, editor of several m eta
physical magazines, and a co-worker w ith Elbert (F ra) H ubbard of Roycroft
fame, and Mrs. E lla W heeler W ilco x , both of whom were desirous of helping
in the Rosicrucian work and rendered unusual services.
Dr. Lewis went to France in the sum mer of 1909 and after consultation
w ith the Supreme Master of the French Jurisdiction was placed under the
direction of the European Supreme Council whose sessions finally agreed to
the plans of the new cycle for America, and authorized the French Jurisdic
tion to sponsor them.
Dr. Lewis returned from Europe and began at once his official activities.
In the winter of 1909 he held conferences w ith a number of those who
had been initiated abroad, and w ho were fam iliar w ith the rules and
regulations of the foreign jurisdictions and acquainted w ith the Supreme
Officers.

H . S P E N C E R L E W IS , F. R. C., Ph. D
IM P E R A T O R OF T H E AMORC OF N O RT H A M ER IC A
M EM BER OF T HE SU PREM E CO U NCIL OF THE W O R L D
LE G A T E O F T H E O R D E R O F F R A N C E

The task of translating into E nglish the many documents and papers of
authority, required m onths of labor, and the form ation of a foundation
committee necessitated m any interviews and private council meetings.
Twelve men and women had been placed on the foundation committee by
Dr. Lewis before the end of 1909, and thereafter m any m onths were
spent by these persons assisting in the preparation of literature, a new and
typically Am erican constitution for the Order, and the development of many
new features that had not been introduced in America. A ll this had to be
done in great secrecy until a ccrtain stage of the work was reached.
W h e n this point was attained there came to Dr. Lewis the first of the
m any messengers of the Order in Europe. This first representative was
Dr. M ay Banks-Stacey. A w om an of wide travel and m any affiliations, she
came as a special Legate of the Order in India. She brought to Dr. Lewis
and the foundation Com m ittee the final papers of preparation for the great
work, and the Jewel of A uthority, a rare official emblem, and valuable treas
ures from the archives of the O riental headquarters. D u rin g her stay in
New Y o rk she acted as the first Matre of the Order.

THE GREAT NATIONAL C O N V EN T IO N

In the summ er of 1916 the w ork of the new Order had spread so rapidly
in Am erica and so many new branches were in operation, that a national
convention of all officers and delegates was held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvaniwa,
for one week. A t this convention the principal officers of every American
branch and the delegates from every state were present. Sessions were held
during the day and evenings w ith lectures, demonstrations and discussions.
It was at this great convention that a committee composed of leading
characters in m any other fraternal organizations, devoted their time to a
study of the national constitution of the new Order as it had been worked out
by the supreme officers in the years preceding. O n the last day of the
Convention the Com mittee read the proposed constitution and it was
adopted, paragraph by paragraph by the delegates assembled. O ther matters
of great importance to the Order were definitely settled at this convention,
and at the one held in New Y o rk in the sum mer of 1918.

THE AM ERIC A N A M O R C
Thus was established for the new cycle in America, the Rosicrucian
Order now know n in every state of the U nited States, every Province of
Canada, and every im portant section of Mexico. Manifestoes were issued
presenting the official headquarters of the Am erican A M O R C , its list of
selected and elected officers, its affiliation w ith bodies of similar name in
other lands, and its high purposes.
The Am erican A M O R C also announced: that it had no connection with
any other metaphysical, occult, or fraternal bodies except those which were
Rosicrucian; that it w ould adhere to the ancient landm arks and traditions,
and w ould present the enlarged and evolved Rosicrucian teachings of the
past and present, with such slight changes as were necessary to make the
work of benefit to those of this progressive continent in the twentieth
century.
Legates and high Officers of the Order in other lands visited the
American headquarters, official com munication was established with the lead
ing foreign Jurisdictions, and the Am erican Im pcrator was officially appointed
by other Jurisdictions as their H onorary representative in America, in letters
and documents now preserved in the A M O R C archives.
In all recent international conventions or Council sessions held in foreign
lands, the A M O R C of Am erica has been invited to participate with the other
A M O R C Jurisdictions, and the American A M O R C is the only Rosicrucian
organization in America ever invited to have a part in these sessions.
Today the A M O R C in m any lands is operating in a new cycle and in
close affiliation and co-operation, and the Am erican branch is an inseparable
part of this unique body of Rosicrucian workers.

IDart Efirec
T H E P R IN C IP L E S O F R O S IC R U C IA N IS M

THE ARCHIVES O F KNO W LEDGE

W hether we inquire into the true and tested principles of psychology,
the established and dependable laws of health and long life, the funda
mentals of religion and philosophy, or the attainm ent of mastership in lifes
problems, we find that constant reference, quotations and recommendations
by thousands of eminent writers in all ages bring us eventually to the
reserved teachings of the Rosicrucian schools. There probably never was
any other single source and fountain of arcanc, universal knowledge equal to
the systems of this organization.
In all ages there have been the few the specially learned and wise, the
master philosophers, the initiates who have had access to the arcane,
secret and vital principles of all knowledge, and these persons have care
fully concealed such knowledge from the unw orthy, the evil-minded and the
selfish. Such persons have constituted the school of advanced wisdom and
their organization has been know n by m any names, but always under the
direction of one Great Brotherhood. Now we find this knowledge pres
erved and taught through the channels of the Rosicrucian Order, one of
the original conservators of such knowledge.

W H A T D ID THE ROSICRUCIANS TEACH?

It is the general belief of the casual investigators of the Rosicrucian
teachings that the members of the fraternity were experts and masters in the
subjects of the transm utation of base metals into pure gold, the prolonging
of life, the im m ediate cure of disease, the performance of seeming miracles,
the control of natures forces, the mastership of lifes problems, and directors
of future events. A nd they have always been credited w ith possessing the
correct knowledge of God, life, transition and im m ortality.
M any books and papers refer to the Rosicrucians as Alchem ists and
H erm etic Physicians. The truth of the m atter is that the Rosicrucians of
all ages not only devoted their time in laboratories to transm uting metals,
but a greater part of their time was spent in transm uting the baser elements
of hum an nature into the pure gold of health, happiness and prosperity.
I his was their higher form of alchemy. T heir general teachings and activ
ities were devoted to overcom ing the obstacles in life which kept progressive
men and women from attaining individual heights. Therefore their ancient
teachings included the secret facts of nature about health, the source and
nature of the vital force of life, how it could be retained and increased, and
how disease of all kinds m ight be prevented or cured. They taught also the
nature of m any of the strange universal forces which surrounded m an and
which few even today suspect as existing.

M ENTAL P O W E R S OF THE ROSICRUCIANS

However, one needs to read only a few books about the Rosicrucians,
such as L ord L y tto n s Z an on i" and Marie C orrellis Life Everlasting,"
to see that the greatest power developed by the Rosicrucians was the m en
tal power they were able to use.
The Rosicrucians taught esoterically that every th in g in the world,
from the smallest cell in a living or non-living body to the rocks in distant
m ountains, could be affected by an unsuspected mental power which can
be developed by their formulas. They pointed out how they could make
their thoughts become concrete realities; how they could transm it thoughts
from one place to a more distant place; they demonstrated their ability

to make people think and act in accordance w ith law, and to have natures
forces obey their wills. A ll the seeming miracles of ancient Babylon, Persia,
In d ia and the Orient generally they reduced to simple processes. They
sought to become m ighty in the power to foresee, to hold back the progress
of undesirable conditions, or set into m otion newer and more favorable
conditions.
A ll this they taught each selected student to do for himself. They did
not perform miracles for one another, for they taught that each person
possesses a power and a faculty to direct his own affairs more efficiently
than anyone else could do it for him.

THE TESTS O F H U N D RED S OF YEARS

As the ages passed, the teachings of the Rosicrucians were tested by
newer knowledge at the hands of later Master teachers and workers. From
century to century the Rosicrucian teachings were amended, strengthened,
im proved and widened in their scope until they now embrace knowledge in
every metaphysical and psychological field, in every arcane art, and every
practical, mental system for the development of m ans greater powers.

W H O THEY ARE TODAY

The Rosicrucians of today are practical men and women, occupying
high positions in every walk of life, from the humble workers and happy
housewives to leaders in all forms of education, in schools, cojleges and
universities. They include persons of every denom ination, physicians and
scientists, lawyers, judges, bankers, musicians, artists, inventors and heads of
big corporations; newspaper editors and owners; men and women w ho are
more successful and prosperous, happy and masterful than the average person.
N o one is ever denied admission because of lack of college or academic
education. M oral character and sincerity of desire are the only qualifica
tions considered.
A ll agree in their enthusiastic comment upon this one point: The kno w l
edge given to them in their studies and through their connection w ith the
fraternity has enabled them to round out their own lives, and more efficiently
carry on their life work, in a manner almost impossible without the benefits
derived from the S P E C I A L I Z E D instructions given to them by A M O R C .

THE GREAT W O R K TODAY

Not only is the Great W o rk of the A M O R C . still carried on in F.urope
and other lands, with periodic International and National congresses to unify
the work throughout the world, but in America the organization is especially
systematized and well founded.
The N orth American continent constitutes the largest of all the jurisdic
tions of the Rosicrucians which operate throughout the world under the name
of A M O R C . In the U nited States, Canada, Mexico and the dependencies of
the U nited States, there are College, University, and Lodge Branches, as well
as study groups in every im portant city and town, with m any reading rooms
and study halls always open to those who are associated with the work.
National conventions have been held in the United States and hundreds
of newspaper and magazine articles have appeared in the public press, within
the last twenty years, referring to the unusual features offered by the
Rosicrucian system of education and evolution.
In some cities as m any as a thousand persons meet weekly at one session
to hear the Rosicrucian teachings expounded, and in m any of the branches
there are three to five sessions of students a week.

W H Y THE FRATERNITY G R O W S
A n illustration of the importance of the new cycles of the Order may be
seen in the comment of thousands who have pursued the present-day teachings

of the A M O R C , which comment m ay be sum m arized in the words of a former

high officer of another school of philosophy and metaphysics in Am erica:
"M an has evolved in the past several hundred years through definite cycles and
stages of m ental and spiritual aw akening and comprehension, just as he has
advanced in scientific achievement and attainm ent. Those thoughts, those
principles, and those ideals which were vital and guiding to him five hundred
or even one hundred years ago are obsolete now, some even impracticable.
O the r schools of thought, systems of instruction, courses of practice in life
w hich have not evolved and advanced step by step w ith m ans evolution are
passe today. A M O R C is notable for its advancement and its foresight in
keeping m any steps ahead of m ans present stage in civilization, so that
today the Rosicrucian teachings and benefits offered by the A M O R C con
stitute a goal to approach, an ideal to hold before us a true leadership
to follow .

N OT THE TEACHINGS OF O N E PERSON

There are systems of philosophical and higher-thought instruction in the
w orld today which were outlined or prepared by one or more founders,
discoverers or leaders systems which were prophetic and ultra-modern in
their day but because the founders of such systems made no provision for
the advancement of the teachings, or the gradual growth and evolution of
the system, they stand today as m onum ents of good in the past but in
adequate and inefficient today.
The child of today is taught in school, in high school, and in special
courses, those subjects which were select and advanced subjects for the
evolved adult of a hundred years ago. To adhere to the philosophic or
scientific teachings of the ancients, no m atter how remarkable they may
have been in their day, w ould be equivalent to teaching and prom ulgating
dead languages as a vital factor in our modern life.

M OST A D V A N C ED O F ALL TEACHINGS

The A M O R C of today preserves and presents in the most impressive
and helpful m anner every law and principle that was know n to and used by
the ancient Rosicrucians and which made them famous as the forerunners of
all scientific, occult, metaphysical and practical schools m ak in g for m ans
greater grow th and development. Each year of the past five hundred years
or more has seen additions made to those fundam ental teachings. Each
m onth of the past hundred years has seen the ancient system of instruction
and cooperative benefits improved, m odernized and advanced.
D u rin g the past twenty years, the evolutionary grow th of the plan of
A M O R C has been phenomenal. In every field of endeavor, in every art,
science, and dom ain of thought, A M O R C has taken great steps forward until
today its knowledge of certain laws of nature, activities of the hum an m ind,
powers of personal forces, manifestations of principles and possibilities of
unsuspected agencics, is far in advance of m an s general evolution and
greatly in the lead of all other schools or movements.

A GLORIOUS A C H IEV EM EN T
In other words, A M O R C , typifying the Rosicrucian spirit throughout the
world, represents today the very soul of the Rosicrucian activities of all ages
the most advanced and practical guide or movement in m ans behalf. This
has been no simple achievement. N o organization but that which lives w ith
the spirit of true Rosicrucianism fearless, dauntless, and m ighty in its own
powers could have survived in the past decades the m any obstacles to growth
and the insistent attacks of its natural enemies the enemies of all progress.
N one but the present Im perator of the A M O R C , H arve Spencer Lewis,
F. R. C., Ph. D., could have accomplished the tremendous task set for him
when he accepted the obligation and duties of his office for the purpose of
establishing the new cycle of A M O R C as Bacon was commissioned to do in
the, seventeenth century in Europe, and others before him.

ADMINISTRATION AND RADIO BROADCASTING BUILDING

At the National Headquarters, Rosicrucian Park. San Jose, California

S O M E R O S IC R U C IA N S Y M B O L S

THE EGYPTIAN
CARTOUCHE

T H E R. C.
TRIANGLE

THE
ROSY CRO SS

SEAL O f THE
S U PR EM E COUNCIL

$ a rt Jfour
c3ow eTYCembers <rReceive Instructions
H O M E INSTRUCTION BY C ORRESPONDEN CE
The N orth Am erican Jurisdiction of the Order offers some special features
to seekers not found in all the foreign Jurisdictions.
As will be understood from the statements on preceding pages, the
work of the organization in various parts of the country is carried on in
Lodges under the supervision of G rand Lodges. In such Lodges the
accepted members were adm itted into the Order by an elaborate Initiatio n
Ceremony, generally referred to as Crossing the Threshold.

A N E W PLAN FOR AM ERICA

A t one of the national conventions of the Order held in this country
the Grand Master of New Y o rk presented a plan to the delegates for the
establishment of a N ational Lodge which would invite correspondence m em
bers from any scction of the N orth American Jurisdiction who could not find
it possible to attend the sessions of a local Lodge.
The
proposal was discussed and voted upon and finally adopted. It
permitted the Supreme Lodge of the Order for N orth Am erica to establish
w hat m ight be called an extension course of personal, private instruction in
the teachings of the Order upon a distinctly unique basis. The plan required
several years to evolve, and today this plan is being adopted in m any foreign
jurisdictions.

PRIVATE CORRESPON DEN CE INSTRUCTION

This plan of private instruction at home is so unique and so new to
this country that it must be explained so that it w ill not be compared with
the so-called correspondence courses issued by correspondence schools in
America, or to the issuance of pamphlet lessons.
First of all it was recognized at once that such lessons as were to be
sent to nation-wide students C O U L D N O T B E IN P R I N T E D F O R M ,
for two excellent reasons: first, the time-honored injunction against any of
the lessons of the Order in any land being printed or issued in book form ;
secondly, the continued changes, improvements, amendments and modern
adaptions of the teachings, w ould prevent their preparation in text-book or
printed form of any permanent nature.
It is com m on for a correspondence school to send its students a set of
text-books accompanied by m onthly printed reading lessons analyzing the
various chapters of the text-books. Y ear after year the same instructions,
the same books and pamphlets, are sent to the thousands of students. This
is possible in presenting such subjects as Law, English, M athematics, H is
tory, or some of the sciences. It would ro t do, could not do, in presenting
the teachings of the Rosicrucians; for such teachings are continually im
proving in subject matter, application to hum an affairs, and relation to recent
discoveries by the Masters of the Order.

H O W THE LESSONS ARE PREPARED

So the first principle insisted upon by the Im perator of the Order was
that the lessons to be sent to the home study members must be specially
made and prepared from m onth to m onth to keep them up to the minute
with the findings, discoveries and elaborate experiments on the part of the
highest workers in the Order in this country and in other lands. That meant
tremendous work, great cost and a staff of master teachers continually
w orking upon the lessons.
It is because the Order is able to keep its members educated in advance
of the public m ind, and give its members knowledge which outsiders cannot
obtain, that it enables its Brothers and Sisters to overcome obstacles, meet
oncom ing conditions and prepare for future circumstances. I he world outside
of the Order is just now trying to discover and evolve certain principles
regarding health, disease and the prolonging of life which Rosicrucians have
known and practiced for centuries.
1 he same can be said regarding ne^w
"discoveries in the various methods of using the m ind to attain success in life.

H O W THE LESSONS ARE ISSUED

Therefore the Im perator appointed a staff to prepare and issue the
private lessons for those members who w ould be adm itted in the National
Lodge.
Such members were to be IN V I1 E D to join by sending them, upon
recommendation, an application blank. After the answers in this form were
examined and an investigation made of the applicant s sincerity, he or she
was to be notified to prepare for the preliminary demonstrations of some
fundamental lessons. A plan was finally adopted, based upon an old Egyptian
system used by the early Rosicrucians, whereby such members arranged to
set aside one part of some room usually a sleeping room or den as their
"study corner or private "Lodge corner. By the use of private instructions
in typewritten, personal form, the member prepared for the first surprising
lessons. The first lesson is in the form of a very interesting "In itia tio n
ritual, read and performed by the member alone.
1 he many thousands in
\merica today who have used these instructions men and women of all
walks of life from the highest positions in the country to humble workers in
the home have found this home initiation one of the most fascinating mamfestations of the arcane knowledge possessed by tlie Order.
1 housands of
letters on file prove that this initiation is precisely what each applicant seeks
and what the Rosicrucians always taught was possible.

NATURE O F THE LESSONS

Such lessons are not mere speculative statements or points of philosophy,
but carefully written and edited explanations of laws, beginning w ith the
fundam ental and simple ones, worded in language which any can understand,
and illustrated by analogies, examples, com m on references and everyday
experiences. Then several experiments are given to be practiced at conven
ient times throughout the week. In this way, week after week, m onth after
m onth, special lessons, always being revised and amended, are sent to each
member covering the whole system of private Rosicrucian teachings, devel
oping faculties and powers the members never realized he or she possessed.

A RRANGED IN EASY STEPS

The lessons are arranged in Grades or Degrees, like unto classes or
grades in a school. Each grade starts with a symbolical ceremony to be per
formed in the home by the member, alone, w ithout any difficulty. These
Initiation Ceremonies" are for the purpose of illustrating some of the laws
to be revealed in the lectures of that Grade. Such ceremonies conform to the

beautiful ceremonies held in our Temples and arc based upon the rituals used
in the olden days to teach and illustrate certain principles. After the cere
m onial night there follows a series of weekly lectures and experiments, con
stituting a course of study for that grade. The ceremonies can be performed
very Quietly and privately.
At the close of each series of the first three grades of lectures there is
a self-examination to be sent to the Master of vour class so that lie can see
wherein you have succeeded or failed to grasp a clear understanding of each
point and may send you additional inform ation.
These examinations are
easily passed if the lectures have been properly read not laboriously studied.
The first three Grades constitute the fundamental ones in which the
foundation for the whole work of the O rder is laid, and give the member
the basis for starting a new and greater career in life.

SUBJECTS TREATED IN THE LESSONS

It would be impossible to give an index to the subjects contained in the
hundreds of lessons. Such an index would make a very large book and the
reading of it would be of little value. However, we may briefly state that
the follow ing im portant subjects are covered in the various graded lessons
sent to all correspondence members:
Explanation of Consciousness in man in its three phases objective, sub
jective, and Cosmic.
1 he functioning of the brain and mind.
The little
known laws and principles of the functioning of m ind in man and matter.
1 he laws of the triangle. The m eaning of numbers. The relation of the
soul to other forces and powers of the universe.
Mental vibrations. The
nature and com position of matter. Various forces that affect matter. Experi
ments for proving mental effect upon matter. Man's relation to the Cosmic.
I he nervous system in man and its relation to higher forces. The dem onstra
tion of these principles. Experiments for proving the principles. The value
of concentration.
Demonstrations with concentration.
Functioning of the
m ind during sleep.
Mental experiments.
The development of intuition.
(. osmic attunement.
Breathing exercises for the development of special
centers in the body. The principles of health, and how to prevent disease.
Experiments for increasing the health.
1rinciples for preventing disease.
Experiments in the relief of pain. Mystical currents of life force in the body.
Establishing harm ony in the body and around the body. Man's duality of
existence. The use of the m ind in affecting conditions. Mental attunement
with other minds. The alchemy of mental creation. Creating mental images
and bringing them into material expression. The secret processes of the
inner self.
The control of natural forces.
Experiments for proving the
development of these powers. The development of dorm ant faculties of the
mind. 1 he development of personal magnetism. Exercises for strengthening
mental power. Exercises for sensing the thoughts of others. Methods for
creating thoughts in the minds of others. A ttracting the principles of success
and happiness.
The Oriental methods for attaining unusual inform ation.
The development of magnetic radiations from the bodv. The im portant meta
physical laws. The application of these laws to business and social affairs.
Exercises for proving these principles.
The Rosicrucian methods for attain
ing success through mental powers. Exercises for proving each step. The
relation of music and color to harm ony and disease. The relation of other
forces and principles to our daily affairs.
Exercises for controlling these
conditions.
Bear in m ind that these subjects stated above arc but a few of the hun
dreds, and each subject is treated in detail in many different lessons, from
many different angles, and always with a practical application to our daily
life and its problems. Nearly all of the subjects mentioned above, and many
more like them, are treated as completely as though a separate book on the
subject was included in the studies. The subjects of the various lessons
review and include everything that was taught by the ancients, or is taught
today in any and all of the other schools of mctaphvsical or occult thought
so that the student of these lessons does not n eed 'any additional books or

courses from any school or system in order to be completely acquainted with

every known process and m ethod of personal development, and personal
evolution.

THE TRUTH UNVEILED TO THE MEMBERS

W ith o u t avoiding the facts that should be revealed, w ithout veiling the
truths so that none can comprehend, and w ithout flowery words or elegant
oratory which leave the student unacquainted w ith the fundamentals, the
private, typewritten, specially prepared lessons of the A M O R C are given to
its members, its students, in a manner beyond description or realization
unless one has lived wth them for a few weeks and found the great changes,
the wonderful powers that manifest in every affair of our earthly activities.
Remember, A M O R C offers its carefully selected members not only the
m ethod and the plan of developing privately and effectively, but it offers
its members all the advantages of association with those master minds
of the laws of nature, who have held the reputation of being the most highly
trained teachers, philosophers, scientists and workers in the uplift of the
race of m an the Members of the Order Rosae Crucis the Brethren of the
Rosy Cross.

N O COLLEGE ED U CATIO N NECESSARY

These interesting lessons begin w ith the very fundamentals of nature's
laws as they relate to man and the universe, and explain and make plain all
m ans secret powers, possibilities and potential activities. The lessons are
carefully graded. No college, academic or even high school education is
necessary to understand the lessons, for they have been prepared by some
of the best educators in various lands for the purpose of meeting the
general mind.

N O M E M O R IZ IN G REQU IRED
Various educational boards have said that the system employed by
A M O R C in teaching and instructing is the ideal system, for it does not
require m em orizing, and through the examples, illustrations and experiments
used the student comprehends and remembers w ithout the least effort. Mere
concentration upon words being read and a few moments m editation upon
each principle or law makes them stand out in the m ind and consciousness
for all time.

M ASTERY AT EACH STEP

There never was and never w ill be a more systematic, a^ more detailed
and complete course of pcrsonal-development study than this. W h ile it is
true that it generally takes a few years to complete the whole course of
three fundam ental and the m any succeeding higher grades, the student
becomes a master of certain laws and principles each week and before the
first few m onths have passed he no longer desires to hurry and go on more
rapidly than the system provides. It is not like a course of study which
must be entirely finished before it may be put into practical operation.
Most of our members discover the true value and efficiency of the work
after the first m onth of reading and experiment, and derive help from the
very first lessons.

SIMPLICITY. SYSTEM. PRIVA CY

The graded lessons are mailed in sealed envelopes complete w ith every
aid, plan, suggestion or illustration neccssary. Lessons are mailed each week
w ith a system and regularity that is pleasing and dependable. Others nee^
not know what you are studying or what you are associated with unless you
desire to interest them.

A LOD GE N IG H T AT H O M E
Members are asked to reserve a part of one night of the week to be their
Lodge n ig h t at home. W hether it be every W ednesday night, every
Thursday night or every Friday night, thousands of other members w ill be
studying, practicing and experim enting in attunem ent w ith you. W e prefer
that each member select an early or late part of Thursday evening for his or
her Lodge night at home; for this is the Rosicrucian N ight throughout the
w orld and it means greater power through the m ultitudes who are thusly
attuned.
But any other evening w ill do in case you find it necessary on
certain occasions to change your selected weekly Lodge night at home, or
in the privacy of a room elsewhere.

TIME REQ U IRED FO R STUDY

As stated above, we recommend that each member select one evening
of the week for a definite study evening. O n that evening, one hour to one
hour and thirty minutes is sufficient tim e for the reading of the new lesson,
the testing of the new principles and a complete understanding of the work
for the week. Then throughout the follow ing week in spare moments while
resting, w alking, riding or even during the busy hours of work, the member
can test the new principles in connection w ith the many incidents of daily
life. In this way the old principles of the previous weeks, and the new ones,
are constantly applied and used and made more familiar. Such testing and
application of the principles and laws do not interfer w ith any of your daily
affairs but actually help you to make the day more successful and profitable
in whatever you are trying to accomplish.
W hethe r you are traveling or always at home, the one study period for
a careful reading of the new lesson each week is easily arranged.
M any
thousands of students have proved this to be so during the past twenty years.
It is the most valuable hour or two they spend in each week, as they them
selves voluntarily write us.
Y ou do not have to carry your lesson around w ith you, for just reading
it once, carefully, w ill fill your m ind w ith the fascinating facts, and dozens
of times each day certain incidents of your activities, at home or in the business
world, w ill rem ind you of some law or principle which you can use at once
to excellent and surprising advantage.

ST U D EN T S PROGRESS G IV E N PERSONAL ATTENTION

Soon after passing through the prelim inary and foundation lessons
which enable the m em ber to perform m any remarkable demonstrations in
his daily affairs, his standing is passed upon by several special instructors
in consultation w ith the Master who has been directing his studies. I f the
member is m aking the proper progress he is assigned to a special high teacher
for personal guidance thereafter.
From that tim e onward the lessons sent to the member each week have
a personal touch. The member not only receives special personal letters
from his teacher, but the correspondence between them on points of special
knowledge, problems in his life and helps required by the member, constitute
a personal help equalled only by membership in a Lodge where the member
meets his Master weekly.
Letters and telegrams come daily to headquarters from students to
their teachers here asking for immediate and special help in illness, business
problems, help for others, and guidance in times of perplexity. Such personal
help sent at once is one of the remarkable points of service rendered by the
O rder to its members, and w ithout any fees for such service.
In this way the National Lodge permits men and women in all walks
of life, and w ith just ordinary school education, to have the full advantage
of Rosicrucian m em bership regardless of where they live.

ATTAINING HEALTH. PROSPERITY. HAPPINESS

These three elements are God's privileges to m an as a gift. But man
knows not how to accept that which is offered. God and nature provide for
man being well born when the parents live as nature seeks to instruct
and from the m om ent of birth H E A L T H , not disease, is m ans most natural
endowment from all the forces and elements of the universe.
P R O S P E R IT Y , too, is a natural acquisition, conform ing to all the
ethical, spiritual and beneficient laws of the universe. God made man in His
own image, with the same faculties for perception, retention and reconstruc
tion which vitalize the creative powers ot the universe. A ll nature prospers
and enjoys the abundance of all that exists, because nature is in harmony
with the creative principle. M an alone, the highest creation of all, falls short
of his rightful and privileged possessions because lie does not always know
how to live in harm ony with all that creates, masters, controls, attracts and
retains.
Prosperity is the result of attraction, poverty is the perfect manifestation
of repulsion and negation. Not only is it true that man is as he thinks, but
he enjoys and possesses that which he attracts. Laboring to earn that
which one desires is not the only application of the law of demand, com
mand, and supply; it is merely substituting man's crude method of exchang
ing labor for life's essentials. To deserve, either through labor, worthiness,
sincerity of purpose, goodness of motive or altruism of intention, is but
the first step. The next step is to attract to ones self that which is de
sired, and such attraction on the part of man is only possible when the
inner self is perm itted to function, to manifest and direct the forces of the
outer self.
Just as the flower bends its body toward the sun, that it may more
efficiently attract the sunlight, just as the multi-colored pansy lifts its head
from the leaves of green lo attract the adm iration and attention of the
passerby, so must the inner man, the m ind within the soul, the heart within
the self, lift itself above and beyond the comnion-place of life and attract,
demand, and draw unto itself the abundance of this life, the riches of exist
ence and the wealth of the universe.
Prosperity in material things are happiness, health, power to direct, power
to control, power to w ill and become; assuring success of venture, attain
ment of ambitions, and the b lo tting out of all unhappiness, ill-health and
misfortune. This prosperity is m ans rightful, divine privilege, and naught but
m ans ignorance of laws and principles and misguided belief in the falsities
of lim iting creeds and dogmas keep him from being P R O S P F .R O L S in
every sense of the word.

THE ROSICRUCIAN W A Y
K now the laws and principles! Study nature's secret teachings! Master
fates decrees which operate only with the unprepared, the undeveloped and
the unknow ing. Attune yourself with those who are successful and happy.
Co-operate w ith nature's laws and revel in the power that comes into your
being w ith the dawn of each day and abides like an unseen guest in your
home, office, placcs of pleasure and m editation!
The successful man dominates the situations as they arise, directs with
dynamic m ind the course of his life in home, business and social affairs
through know ing the Jaws that make possible a release of his inner powers
and metaphysical abilities.
The brilliant wom an is the wom an who knows her possibilities, her
dorm ant faculties and magnetic, mental strength, and uses every personal,
subconscious, potent factor of her existence to raise herself to the supreme
mastership of w orldly matters.
S ittin g in ones home, carefully exam ining the simple, P R IV A T E lessons
and testing the simple laws, one by or.c, is the process offered by the
A M O R C to those who seek this unusual m ethod more efficient than the

reading of books which dare not tell the real facts, which never contain
natures secret laws, and which are not sold for any price you are w illing
to pay.
W ith lessons graded for each mastership, arranged in weeklv subjects
and experiences, made practical with principles and laws to use every day
and in every way this is the system the A M O R C uses to help those who
would make their home a sanctum of attunem ent, a home of private instruc
tion, a place of uplift, development and mastership.

NON-SECTARIAN A N D TOLERANT
The A M O R C is absolutely non-sectarian in its teachings and practices,
and free from sex and race lim itations. It recognizes the universality of the
brotherhood of m ankind. It takes cognizance of the fact that we are N O T
all created alike except in soul essence and Divine Consciousness; but this
very exception is the keynote of its broad, tolerant, and sympathetic opera
tions.
W ith a universal brotherhood which has its devout students and workers
also in China, Japan, India, Persia and other O riental countries; with sin
cere and enthusiastic men and women in countries of every creed and race,
and w ith every form of creed or religious belief, sectarian teachings would
be impossible. A ny system of metaphysical, occult or mystical teaching
based upon sectarian principles cannot be universal and cannot, therefore,
be Rosicrucian in spirit.
A firm conviction of the existence of a Supreme Being, Great Architect,
Divine M ind or O m nipotent intelligence, is absolutely necessary, however,
on the part of any applicant for membership in the A M O R C .

W H O M A Y UNITE W IT H A M O R C BY IN V IT A T IO N
The Portals of A M O R C are open to any man or woman over eighteen
years of age, of any race or any religious belief, being free from allegiance
to any semi-political despot or any organization which limits the freedom of
man's m ind and inner development. Those who know that there is a Divine
M ind ruling the universe, who arc- clean in th in k in g and living, having never
been guilty of treason in any country, nor engaged in any unlawful occupation,
and anxious to become citizens of the Invincible Em pire of advanced workers
and successful beings in this world, are eligible to full membership in the
A M O R C by invitation.

W H O M A Y N OT UNITE W IT H A M O R C
The Portals of A M O R C are closed to infidels, atheists, agnostics, fanatics
of any kind, drones, political conspirators, objectors to law and order, bigots,
the insincere, the frivolous, doubters, idle investigators, promoters or en
dorsers of questionable sex theories under the guise of "oriental instruction,
conscientious (?) objectors to defending their country or flag in times of
emergency or Governm ent call, those seeking to buy power or influence
w ith money, or those whose moral code is weak or negligible. A ll these,
or any of them, cannot unite with the A M O R C regardless of recom menda
tions or inducements of any kind.

W H A T THE A M O R C DOES N OT D EM A N D
The A M O R C is not a body of fanatics or extremists of any kind or
class. I t has in its ranks men and women of every school of therapeutics, for
instance, including professors and international authorities in all the subjects
of medicines, chemistry, botany, physiology, physics, and allied sciences.
It has members in every art, profession, trade, business, hobby and avocation.
No demand is made upon its members that they adopt any change in
religion, business or social matters, except those which each member finds
are best for his or her individual advancement.

$ a r t J f ibe

How You M ay Become a Member

REA D VERY CAREFULLY

W H A T M EM BERSHIP M EANS
Membership in the A M O R C means all that is included in most other
fraternities, plus m any features not offered by any other.
Fraternal membership has so m any values that it has been popular tor
ages. Both men and women of the present day are rapidly filling the ranks
of hundreds of associations solely because of the personal, direct and indirect,
benefits to be derived. Perhaps this desire for alliance and association with
others of like m ind is born of the hum an tendency tow ard the form ation of
clans, which tendency is responsible for the building of hamlets, towns, cities,
countries and nations.
Membership in the A M O R C means that each member is affiliated with a
large and increasing body of progressive men and women whose sole purpose
in life ccntres around the desires to advance, succeed and become unusually
contented with the building of a better life and the enjoym ent of the rich
blessings of life.
Each member is part of the great work. That work is to master the
obstacles in life and make the w orld better for the individual. Each member,
therefore, is kept in contact w ith all the progressive methods for bringing
about such results.
In other words, each member is kept inform ed through his or her Lodge,
of all the inform ation, advice and help that the Order possesses which will
help them in their personal affairs. T hrough correspondence, through the
m onthly magazine, T he M ystic Triangle, and through contact w ith other
members, unusual help is offered by those who have had all kinds of experi
ences in life and are ready to heh> others to master sim ilar ones.
In travelling from city to city, in planning large or small affairs of life,
in seeking to improve ones business or improve the home life, and in thou
sands of other affairs, the association w ith the organization offers aid and
advice.

THE FREE INSTRUCTIONS A N D LESSONS

In addition to all the other benefits, the A M O R C offers to its members
a special help. This is its graded course of instruction.
The A M O R C
is not a correspondence school. Its lessons and private instructions are not
for sale on any basis. They are given freely to those who desire them. Not
all our members are pursuing the courses of instruction; for m any of them
have been through the grades, have long since completed the regular courses
of study and are not on the student lists at all. They retain their active
membership in A M O R C because of the very m any benefits to be derived from
the association and intim ate contact with the Order. In foreign jands there
are thousands of members who have not had any of the instruction lessons
for m any years; their membership in the Order is m aintained solely for the
regular membership benefits.

DUAL FO R M O F M EM BERSHIP
Therefore it must be quite evident to anyone that membership in the
A M O R C is of a dual nature. 1. Active association w ith the Order, with the
benefits of intim ate contact w ith members, officers and those who can be of

assistance in advising and helping in hundreds of ways, w ith the m onthly

magazine as a connecting link between all members and the general activi
ties of the Order, plus the services offered by special letters regarding
personal problems. This is the regular membership which existed before the
personal instructions by correspondence was added as a separate feature in
America. 2. The private courses of instruction by correspondence, without
any fees of any kind, gladly given to all who are in good standing in the
Order. This second feature is unique w ith the Am erican Jurisdiction and is
now being tried by a few of the foreign Jurisdictions.

IN V IT A T IO N TO BECOM E A M EM BER
Those to w hom this book is sent receive a letter usually inviting them
to become a Member of the Order. None are invited to become mere students
of a course of instruction. As a member of the Order you are entitled to
every benefit of any kind that the Order has to offer and which it may add
in the future.
By filling out the enclosed application form which should accompany
this bookyou accept our invitation to unite with us. T hat application will
be examined by a Committee and passed upon. If for any reason you cannot
be accepted, you w ill be notified. Otherwise, you w ill be accepted and a
formal notice sent.

B ECOM ING A STUDENT

Y o ur accepted application for membership will be turned over to the
instructors of the various grades and you will be placed upon the student list
w ithout further obligations than those of regular membership.
Secondly, the m em ber then receives the Secret Docum ent N um ber One,
in which he is told how to conduct a simple but most illu m in atin g ceremony
in the quiet of some room at home on a night selected for the purpose.
This ceremony reveals in one hour more startling facts of the laws of nature
than could be placed in several printed books, and the member learns at
once the true relation he has with the Rosicrucian Order. This ceremony has
been performed by a hundred thousand persons in America and other lands
and all pronounce it the most wonderful peace and strength-giving ceremony,
as well as the most im portant revelation of natures laws, they have ever
experienced.
T hirdly, after a brief report of this ceremony, the member is considered
a duly prepared student of the secret laws and principles, and as such
possesses a Student Membership identification Card, number and Pass W ord.
Fourthly, from that m om ent he receives weekly the specially prepared
secret instructions, lectures, and lessons, with daily and weekly experiments
and exercises which enable him to master each step easily and properly.
The lecture and lesson each week require a part of one evening of the week
for study or reading (there being nothing to m emorize everything remains
in the m ind through the unique m ethod used by the Rosicrucians to teach
its laws), and the exercises and experiments require only a few minutes each
night, m orning or noontime, at the members convenience. These exercises
and experiments develop certain faculties from the very first lessons.
Fifthly, the lessons relate to lifes immediate problems as wc(l as the
future needs of the member. They help ihe members to master the obstacles
and overcome conditions from the very start. N o vague theories, no specu
lations about conditions in the ethereal realms" that have no bearing upon
our present life, but laws and principles that men and wom en must use
here and now in very practical ways.
Sixth, the m onthly private magazine called the Mystic Triangle is sent to
each member each m onth w ithout additional fee. It contains special instruc
tions and lessons on general life problems, and the questions and answers
relating to new principles as well as reports from other members and articles
by leading persons in the country on what the Rosicrucian Order is doinc
for them.

Seventh, each member, regardless of the study course, is entitled to the

many departmental services of the Order, which includes help by correspond
ence and through our own methods, as well as additional inform ation by mail
on points in the lectures, aids in health or related matters, w ithout any
additional fees.
E ighth, the privilege of meeting w ith other members in the same locality
as soon as a certain stage of the work is reached where the members can
come together once a week in our own Temple in various cities, or in
special meeting places for m utual discussion and help.
The graded, systematic lessons, lectures and experiments continue week
after week with special helps to make each member proficient, until the
member completes the first grade. Then the member starts on the Second
Grade, and finally on the Third. A t the end of the T hird Grade the member
has the privilege of deciding what furthei steps he wishes to take to attain
the higher teachings.
From this point onw ard the member may proceed with the higher
lessons grade after grade through all the grades of the W ork. Thus the
course of study is as complete as any offered by the largest universities so
far as length of time and devotion to development arc concerned.

Fees and Dues

The Order is strictly a brotherhood, operating as do all other frater
nities in the world. Membership in the Rosicrucian Order carries with it
the many benefits distinct to all fraternities and m any others quite unique.
Like unto all fraternities there are membership dues, payable m onthly.
And, there is a nom inal "registration fee. This fee and the m onthly dues
of a small am ount are the contributions on the part of members to the general
operating funds of the Order, and take care of its propaganda expenses, its
building funds, national and international hum anitarian activities, and its dona
tions to many scientific expeditions and methods of research and investigation.
Such fee and dues have nothing to do with the free courses of instructions
offered to members.
In addition to the general activities of the Order, the Rosicrucians
conduct the courses as outlined on previous pages. These cours-es of study
are given freely and w ithout charge or fees of any kind to members of the
Order. N'ot all members who are active in the Order in America are taking
up the courscs of study; not all of our students are members of the Order in
America, for some are members of foreign jurisdictions and pay their dues
to foreign lands, but receive their teachings from our branch w ithout fees of
any kind. Therefore we wish to have you keep in m ind that the study and
instruction work is a separate and distinct feature of the Order, not found in
any other fraternal organization, and for which our members do not pay.
The Supreme Council has purposely made the Registration F ee' very
nominal. It is Five Dollars, payable w ith the application.
The m onthly
dues are Two Dollars, payable on the first of each month. These fees include
all the benefits of the Order's activities. There arc no other fees or assess
ments, no books which must be purchased in order to study, no catalog solici
tations, and no lim itations to the degree of advancement the Members may
make in their studies. The m onthly magazine, The Mystic T riangle, is
also given free to all members who are taking the free courses of study of
correspondence from the Supreme Lodge.

FIN AL IN STRU CTIO N S

V E R Y IM PORTANT

**r<" several ways in which this book m ay have come into vour
hands. The book is intended to be a private one, carefully and discreetly
distributed to only those who seem to be worthy of admission into the Order.
It may have been handed to you by someone who wishes you to realize
that there is som ething in life that may answer your desires and end your
quest. It may have^ been passed along to you by a friend or acquaintance
who feels that it w ill arouse an inquiry in your mind. Therefore there may
be no Application Blank or letter of invitation w ith the book, and in that
case if you feel interested you should write at once to the Supreme Secretary
and ask for an application form. If your inquiry appears to be sincere the
Secretary will invite you to tile an application with him.
O n the other hand you may have written to headquarters for this book
and it may come to you by mail, or otherwise, accompanied by a letter and
an A pplication Blank. In such a case the letter w ill invite you to become a
member. It is a direct invitation issued after your request has been properly
considered.
Also, some member of the fraternity may hand you this book and an
Application Blank and invite you to join with the Order.

H O W TO PROCEED
F 'rsl:

I ill out the Application lilank very carefully.

Bear in m ind that

1 O L 1 A R K B E IN G IN\ I 1 E D and not solicited in the ordinary way as with

schools or some oilier movements.

Therefore, D O N O T L A Y T H IS IN V I T A T I O N A S I D E w ithout w riting

a letter to the Supreme Secretary and telling him just what you expect to
do. The safest way is to send your Application, Blank at once and make sure
of your membership before the privilege is autom atically withdrawn.
Second: H av in g answered all the questions in the Application Blank,
sign it properly and enclose w ith it the Registration Fee of Five Dollars.
If for any reason you cannot enclose the Registration Fee at once, be sure
to send the Application Blank and state why you do not enclose the Fee.
Y o u r application in such a case will be oasscd upon and you will be notified
of y f u r admission or rejection. The pre-payment of the Fee W I L L S A V E
i O L M U C H I I M E in starting with the studios, and I am sure you desire
these.
T hird: M ail your Application Blank and Registration Fee prom ptly to
the Supreme Secretary. Register your letter if it contains cash, and if you
send check or money order make it payable to A M O R C F U N D S .
Acknowledgem ent should reach you w ithin ten days or less. If you do
not hear from the Secretary in that time, write him in detail. If your
application is rejected for any reason whatsoever your Registration Fee
will be returned to you w ith a frank explanation.

A D D R E S S A L L M A I L TO

AMORC
R O S IC R U C IA N P A R K , S A N JOSE, C A L IF O R N IA

The monthly dues are to be paid by members only so long as they desire to
retain active membership in the Order.

L on g D ista n ce T elephones: B A L L A R D 8 2 9 5 , 8 2 9 6
In te rn a tio n a l C a b le A dd ressi " A M O R C O "

R a d io S ta tio n 6 K Z

r
i

A M O R C D IRECT O RY
The following national and international branches of the Rosi
crucian Order throughout the world are affiliated with the Interna
tional Fraternity known from antiquity as A N T IQ U A E A R C A N A E
O R D IN S IS R O S A E R U B E A E E T A U R E A E C R U C IS . The organ
ization is not affiliated or connected in any way with any other
society or with any cult or movement.
T H E N O R T H A M E R IC A N J U R IS D IC T IO N
(Including the United States, Dominion of Canada, Alaska, Mexico,
Guatamala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Republic of Panama,
the W est Indies, Lower California and all land under the protection
of the United States of America.)
Dr. H. Spencer Lewis, F. R. C...................... ...............................
.................. Dean of the University and Imperator of the Order
Ralph M. Lewis, K. R. C........................... Supreme Grand Secretary
Divisional Secretaries with Grand Lodges of the Order are
located in: New York City; Boston, Massachusetts; Waterbury,
Connecticut; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Tampa, Florida; San Antonio, Texas;
Chicago, Illinois; San Francisco, Calif.; Los Angeles, Calif.; V an
couver, Canada; Montreal, Canada; St. Louis, M o.; Washington,
D. C., and other cities.
Spanish-American Section, conducting the work of the Order in
English and Spanish, includes the Latin-American countries of North
and South America, with headquarters in Puerto Rico, and Grand
Lodges in Mexico and other countries.
Chartered Branches exist in nearly every large city of the
United States.
F O R E IG N J U R IS D IC T IO N S
Grand Lodges and their branches are in active operation in all
civilized lands, the most important Grand Lodges being located in
England, Denmark, Holland, France, Germany, Austria, Russia,
China, Japan, East Indies, Australia, Switzerland and India.
The College of the Order in the Orient is located in India.
Public Lectures and Free Reading Rooms
are to be found in many of the larger cities of the East and West in
the United States. Addresses will be given upon application.
To reach the Administration Halls and Supreme Lodge of the
Order in North America, address all mail as follows:
A M O R C , Rosicrucian Park, San Jose, California