Vol 1

Vol 1 #6 - Spiritual Chivalry

Crow...are you "cawing" so I may know the secrets of balance within my soul? Or are you sending your "caw"
just to remind me of universal laws? (1)

For one who grew up with a deep and abiding attraction to the principles of peace, brotherhood, and kindness one to another, the concept of Spiritual Chivalry holds great interest. In fact, Spiritual Chivalry is the very nucleus around which the potent idea of brotherhood revolves, especially as it applies to the many branches of the human family. Thus the essence of all religions and the core esoteric practices of all authentic traditions is Spiritual Chivalry.

But for most people, a "high‑sounding phrase" like Spiritual Chivalry automatically conjures up images of the remotely unattainable, images of beings who are so far removed from the ordinary experiences of human existence that one can only dimly hope that one day, if one is somehow "good", one such being would see fit to touch one's life and then one would be truly blessed. But the truth of the matter is that Spiritual Chivalry is not, and need not be, remote ‑ far removed from the everyday life of ordinary human beings. For has it not been said that the notion of "the Sacred" denotes nothing more than bringing the "ordinary and everyday" into a more reverential light? This is precisely what our lead article entitled Spiritual Chivalry attempts to do.

It is a curious fact that the two most remarkable movements of Spiritual Chivalry in the history of Western Europe – the Cathars and the Templars – were systematically and ruthlessly crushed by the official Church, which felt (and continues to feel?) threatened by any movement which did not subscribe to its chosen dogmas. The article entitled History and Beliefs of the Cathars by Dr Patricia Reynaud, gives a brief overview of Cathar Spirituality, while A Brief, Unauthorized History of the Order of the Temple by Basile LeChevalier, in addition to raising some historically provocative questions, gives a brief but insightful outline of the author's understanding of Templar Spirituality.

In his article, Basile LeChevalier suggests, among other things, that certain aspects of Templar Spirituality – the more socially applicable aspects – became largely concentrated in the activities of the Masons. And although the article by Dr Norman Pearson entitled Chivalric Masonry: The Preceptory (Knight Templar), neither confirms nor refutes this suggestion, it does show a relationship between the Masons and the Templars – at least as the author understands it. In this regard, the article by Regulus (Pierre Messner) entitled Life and Death of the Order of the Temple in the Light of Astrology raises more questions than it actually answers, and leaves us to wonder what astrological connections might exist between Templarism and Masonry, the "official" histories of these two movements being separated (linked?) by an interval of some four hundred years.

In any event, it would appear that even after their ruthless suppression in France in 1314, the Templars never really left! Thus, today there is a number of organizations which lay claim to Templar lineage, if not to the Templar lineage. One Templar organization of note is that which was founded in 1988, according to a 1992 interview conducted by Theodore J. Nottingham with its founder, Raymond Bernard. This interview appears in its entirety in our feature entitled Esoteric Streams: Schools of Thought.

In keeping with our theme of Spiritual Chivalry, METAPHYSIOLOGY^® focuses on The Role of the Sacred in Healing while Entering the Sanctuary deals with The Art of Being Receptive especially as it relates to Grail symbolism, so intimately tied to the principle of Spiritual Chivalry. In this connection, the mystery of the Grail is more fully explored in The Mystique of the Troubadours by Professor René Nelli. For its part, MUSTIKUMA touches upon what it euphemistically calls Inflammation of the Ego and proposes a prescription - ANYWAY - for its cure.

Finally, in Web Talk, in addition to letters to the Editor, there is one from the Editor announcing a change in the publication schedule of ARIADNE'S WEB™. I invite you to read it.

Yours OHW

(1) Quote taken from MEDICINE CARDS by Jamie Sams and David Carson

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