PANSOPHIC RITE

PANSOPHIC RITE

The "Ancient Universal Pansophic Masonic Rite" was a rite established at the end of the 19th century by John Yarker, to "synthesize" all esoteric European lineages. It is generally known that Yarker was a "collector" of Charters, and like Reuss and Papus after him, it was his dream to unite all the orders, rites etc. of the Western Mystery Tradition with each other. The Ill. Bro. Yarker, Jn.: 33º , 90º , 96º Grand Hierophant of A.P.R.M.M., Initiated and Installed James Heard as the first Vicarius Salomonis, Conservator of the Rite of the Ancient Universal Pan-Sophic Rite of Masonry, (which synthesized all esoteric European lineages in the late 19th century), who transmitted to Ill. Bro. Hugh G. de Willmott, who transmitted to H.S.H. Duc de Palatine. Pansophic Freemasonry can operate any and all of Yarker's rites, but only by individual warrant and charter of the Vicarius Salomonis.

Richard, Duc de Palatine, was a seminal figure in the development, transformation, and perpetuation of the Gnostic tradition. Palatine was born Ronald Powell of French and British noble parents in 1916. His mother descended from Captain John Hancock, first signer of the Declaration of Independence. He had been ennobled by H.I.H. Prince Alexander Licastro de la Chastre Grimaldi Lascaris of Deols, France, under the Seal of the Prefect of Rome, Italy, and taken the name Richard Jean Chretien Duc de Palatine. This was to confirm his attainment of Spiritual Nobility as a Prince of Light. Richard came to England and was eventually Consecrated as a Gnostic Bishop and claimed an unbroken line of succession from the College of Antioch, and linked twelve lines of Succession in his person. In 1953 he received a Charter from The Ancient Mystic Order of the Fratris Lucis, commonly called The Brotherhood of the Illuminati, to institute an ‘Outer Section to be called The Brotherhood of the Illuminati, to be dedicated to the object of restoring to the outer world the mystic teaching of our Lord Jesu Christi.’

In 1960 the name of the Brotherhood of the Illuminati was changed to the Brotherhood of the Pleroma and The Order of the Pleroma, and a Council of Three was appointed. Richard held high office in many orders and was Sovereign Grand Master of the United Rites of Memphis and Mizraim, Grand Hierophant of the Sovereign Imperium of the Mysteries, Sovereign Grand Master of the Ancient and Universal Pansophic Rites of Freemasonry, Senior Prelate and Great Prior of the Order of the True Rosy Cross, and Grand Master of the United Templar Rite.

In July, 1964, he incorporated these bodies into the Disciplina Arcani (Arcanum Arcanorum), an integral part of the Order of the Pleroma, in order to withdraw the Masonic influence and to cleanse the Order from all taint of being a political tool…Palatine had plumbed the depths of Freemasonry through the Scottish Rite and attained the 33º degree, then gone into the esoteric Ultra-Masonic and Egyptian Rites searching for spiritual enlightenment. Palatine preserved and perpetuated the Pansophic or Antient Rites of Freemasonry, that John Yarker had spent his career painstakingly collecting valid charters and warrants to preserve. Palatine deleted the Masonic requirement, synthesized authorities, warrants, and charters, used spiritual discernment as a basic canon for ordination and consecration rather than seminary training, and was willing to quickly advance people to higher degrees when appropriate. These and other such Rites are mere external group exercises or liturgies through which invisible Cabalistic and Hermetic forces are contacted to potentiate the interior unfoldment of lodge members. These rites are not the essential Gnosis of any school or tradition. They are merely ritual instruments that were appropriate in a medieval setting, and that are secondary to the essential transmission. The intent was not to revive those complex medieval European rites, but to make them available for study by Pansophic Freemasons. Also, one must ask, how many of those who work the Rites of Memphis and Mizraim still have the entire 99º degrees, and of those, how many actually do the “Internal Alchemy” work related to the material in the Quarantines of Cagliostro? Duc de Palatine transmitted to Bishop and Count George Boyer, Grand Archon, Brotherhood and Order of the Pleroma, Hermetic Brotherhood of Light, Sanctuary of the Gnosis (which have authority to transmit the following extant lineages), who warranted the Grailmaster, on behalf of the Temple of the Holy Grail, to carry forth the authorities embodied in the Pansophic Rite, including:

• ILLUMINIST (ULTRA-MASONIC):

1. Fratres Lucis (Brotherhood of the Illuminati)

2. Order of the Illuminati (Ordo Illuminatorum)

3. Order of the Martiniste

4. Brotherhood of Luxor

• TEMPLAR:

1. Knights of the Holy Ghost

2. Knights of St. John

3. Knights of Malta

4. Knights of the Holy Sepulchre

5. Knights of the Temple

• ROSICRUCIAN:

1. Order of the True Rosy Cross

2. Golden and Rosy Cross

3. Order of the Rose Croix of Hiredom

• GNOSTIC ECCLESIAE:

1. Order of the Ecclesiae Rosicrucianae Catholicae (Catholic)

2. Hidden Church of the Holy Grail (Protestant, Edgar Waite)

3. Ecclesia Gnostica Ortodoxa

• ULTRA-MASONIC and MASONIC:

1. Ancient and Primitive Rite

2. Rite of Memphis

3. Rite of Mizraim

4. Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite

5. Swedenborgian Rite

6. Order of the Rose-Croix of Hiredom

7. Order of the Holy Royal Arch of Enoch

To these Bishop George Boyer has added and made available through T:.H:.G:.:

• +OMR+, the Teaching, Healing, and Chivalric Order of St. Michael and St. Raphael, through a most ancient and esoteric chivalric authority revived by Grand Master Emperor Frederick II Von Hohenstaufen in the 13th century as the Pactio Secreta—a secret alliance of Christian and Islamic Chivarlric Grand Masters to resist the imperial forces of the Pope of Rome. It has its roots in the original twelve-member Knighthood instituted by Numa Pamphilus as inner guard of the Roman Senate and carried forward into history by the Magister Comacenes.

• The hitherto unknown hidden Apostolic lineage of the Knights Templar that was recovered through the research of Bishop Bertil Persson and his St. Ephrem’s Institute I have added and transmit through T:.H:.G:. and Pansophic Freemasonry the following:

• T:.H:.G:., the Temple of the Holy Grail, First and Second Orders.

• +MOT+ or Martinist Order of the Temple, which offers all three of the traditional Martinist Philosphical Degrees through S::I::III and potential advancement into S::I::IV or Free Initiator. Operational Elus Cohen theurgical training with unaffiliated initiation through Master Elus Cohen is offered through the T:.H:.G:. Liturgist Empowerment. Our M.E.C. degree is unaffiliated with any existing Lodges because surviving Elus Cohen traditions have not preserved the skill of producing the essential phenomena of La Chose, and therefore are in my judgment not legitimate successors of the school of the Master Martinez de Pasqualies, known to some as the successor of Paracelsus’ anticipated Elias Artiste.

The Pansophic Masons operate in three modalities: VIRTUAL OPEN LODGE FORUM, LOCAL CONVENTICLE, and CONVENTIONAL LODGE. These allow for women and men in locations too distant for physical meetings to participate and make progress in Pansophic Freemasonry.

VIRTUAL OPEN LODGE FORUM: Occasional scheduled online internet phone-whiteboard conferences or chat rooms hosted by a Presenter, who e-mails a copy of a texts, rituals, or other documents under consideration to Lodge members or members of other Pansophic Lodges requesting visitation. The Forum is open to Masons and non-Masons, follows specific rules of presentation and discussion, and the Presenter is able to exclude hecklers. The transcript is saved and archived for all Pansophic Freemasons at the Grand Lodge E-Library along with a copy of the texts under consideration, from which they can be obtained by any member. Non-Masons are welcome to attend Virtual Lodge forums, but they do not have the benefit of the actual texts, many of which are rare Ultra-Masonic, Hermetic, Alchemical, Magical, or Theurgical documents in the Pansophic archives. Only members are e-mailed the actual texts.

LOCAL CONVENTICLE: Chaired by one or more Masters of Grand Lodge; private study, initiation, and advancement. Leads to establishment of Lodge when seven Masters have been raised.

CONVENTIONAL LODGE: When feasible, scheduled at least least twice annually near the Equinoxes. Physical meeting at a geographically convenient location for Masonic initiation and advancement. All Pansophic Lodges are opened in the Entered Apprentice Degree, and members occupy the offices of each Lodge in a queue order, moving up one office on each Equinox. The offices are Sephirotic positions on a Kabbalistic floor. It is necessary for every member to experience and qualify each of these energies as part of Blue Lodge operation.

LODGE OFFICERS AND STRUCTURE

Offices:

The Lodge Offices reflect the cosmic and spiritual energies of the Kabbalistic Sephiroth as follows:

Venerable Master

Past Venerable Master

Kether

Senior Warden Junior Warden

Hokmah Binah

Grand Orator Grand Expert

Hesed Geburah

Ceremonial Master

Tiphareth

Secretary Treasurer

Netzach Hod

Tyler

Yesod

General Members and Appointed Offices (Musician, etc.)

Malkuth

Esoteric Degree Work

All Pansophic Entered Apprentices must choose at least TWO PATHS of esoteric study to advance to Fellow Craft and Master. The following esoteric studies are required as part of the Blue Lodge studies. E.A.'s are encouraged to work in more than two lineages. Contacts and Guides for the studies are accessed through Masters of the Grand Lodge who themselves are Grand Masters of these lineages.

APPRENTICE Undertakes:

First Two Degrees of Martiniste +OMCC+

First Two Degrees of Elus Cohen

First Degree of Memphis-Mizraim

Rosicrucian R+C Studies A (adapted from FRA and Ordo Fratres Lucis materials)

Probationary Studies for T:.H:.G:. Leading to Wesak Initiation into T:.H:.G:. First Order and Completion of Exorcist, and Long Life Empowerments

Core Studies A for Great Western Brotherhood

FELLOWCRAFT Undertakes:

Master Degree studies for +OMCC+ qualifying for SI::III

Master Degree studies Elus Cohen qualifying for M:.E:.C:.

Master Degree studies Memphis-Mizraim qualifying for Raising as a Master

Second Year of Rosicrucian FRA and/or OFL Studies

T:.H:.G:. First Order Empowerments Leading to Completion of the Antahkarana Building or Fifth Empowerment

Core Studies B for Great Western Brotherhood

MASTER:

Successful Candidates will be Raised and Dubbed as Knight Master or Dame Master, and will be advanced into the appropriate degree of their Paths of Study:

Third Degree of Martiniste SI::III Superior Inconnu; may pursue advanced studies.

Master Elus Cohen M:.E:.C:.

Third (Master) Degree of Memphis-Mizraim

Rosicrucian R+C Master

T:.H:.G:. May pursue advanced studies. To complete T:.H:.G:. First Order (not required for Raising as a Pansophic Master Mason), Initiates must be Ordained in the Home Temple or other valid Apostolic Priesthood for the Theurgical work of the Grail Priesthood, which includes the Liturgist Empowerment . This qualifies them for advancement through Portal studies into the Second Order Christ-Melchizedek Tantra.

Completion of Great Western Brotherhood Core Studies and recognition as a GWB Initiate. May pursue advanced studies.

HOLY ROYAL ARCH:

Grand Masters, Lodge Masters, and Past Masters qualify for the Royal Arch Degree, which will be conferred upon them during or after Installation.

HIGHER DEGREES

The Masonic and Ultra-Masonic degrees requiring Master Mason status may be developed and offered, or may be made available through mutual agreements with organizations that already offer them.

MASONIC: Ancient and Primitive Rite; Rite of Memphis, Rite of Mizraim ; Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis and Mizraim (Egyptian Rite); Scottish Rite, Ancient and Accepted Rite; Swedenborgian Rite; the United Templar Lodge.

ULTRA-MASONIC: Order of the Illuminati (Fratres Lucis); Order of the Martiniste; Order of the Rose Croix of Hiredom; Order of the True Rosy Cross; Order of the Ecclesiae Rosicrucianae Catholicae; Order of the Holy Royal Arch of Enoch; The Hidden Church of the Holy Grail, Ecclesia Gnostica Ortodoxa.

VICARIUS SALOMONIS

In the broadest sense Vicarius is a representative, anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a Superior. In Church a Vicar is the representative of any ecclesiastic entity.

The symbolism of the Temple of Solomon is central in Masonry, so much so that, in some Grand Lodges, the Great Master bears the title of Vicarius Salomonis (Vicar of Solomon). Formerly the Vicarius Salomonis was regarded as the Grand Master of the Order of the Temple which had secretly survived under the disguise of the Freemasons. Vicarius Salomonis was the temporal Head of the Templar Order. It would be comparable in this case to the last and highest Grade of the Masonic Rite, being that of Vicarius Salomonis, held by one person only. At least until the end of the 19th century this was the official doctrine, not just a legend.

The Vicarius Salomonis masonic degree, (however, really title of honor) dates from about 1780. It is asserted that all princes are born Freemasons. The King, as Vicar of Solomon, is really a Protestant Pope, and it was so intended. This is the governing class of the Order and the Vicar of Solomon, who is always the King of country (Royal Blood), is the head of it. In Freemasonry the Vicar has charge of the ritualistic work, while the Grand Master has charge of business affairs. These two offices may, or may not be, centered in one and the same person. The Grand Lodge of The Swedish Rite of Freemasonry is headed by the Grand Master and next to the G.M. is Vicarius Salomonis. In the Antient and Primitive Rite of Memphis Mizraim this title corresponds to the title of Grand Master/Grand Hierophant.

© 2009 Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis Misraim, Sovereign Sanctuary for Bulgaria