Part 2 - AMORC
Part 2 - AMORC Part 2 - AMORC
The crimes committed in the name of God were many…of Safety), an ancient place of worship. A templededicated to a form of solar worship was saidto have existed there several centuries before theChristian era, and in the Middle Ages the castlebecame the stronghold where the Cathars foughttheir last battle.Raimon de Perelha, Lord of Montségur,already as far back as 1209, sheltered refugeesin his castle even before the worst phases of thecrusade reached his doors. In 1232 he received thereGuilabert de Castres, Cathar Bishop of Toulouseand one of the greatest Cathar minds, togetherwith several other Cathar leaders. From thenon, Montségur became the centre of the CatharChurch, and towards the end of the crusade, wastheir last stronghold when Raimon VII who hadsucceeded his father as Count of Toulouse, underduress from the French king in 1243, was forcedto help fight the last of the Cathars and to destroytheir final refuge.On the 2 nd March 1244, Montségursurrendered. There was a two week truce. Theterms seemed lenient: everyone could go freeif they allowed themselves to be questioned byand swore loyalty to the Church of Rome. Forthe Perfects, the choice was simpler, renounceCatharism or burn at the stake. The Perfectswould however not lie or take an oath, so theirfate was sealed. They spent the fortnight caringfor their charges and arranging their affairs. Thensomething extraordinary happened. Twentyoneordinary Believers asked to be given theConsolamentum during the final two weeks, someon the very day before the final battle, therebybecoming Perfects, and knowing full well whatthe result would be. This act was a great testamentto the appeal and power of Catharism and itspowerful message.Following the truce to think the terms over,the knights and their families went free while205 Cathars were burned alive on the morningof 16 th March 1244. There were too many to tie toindividual stakes, so a palisade was built arounda pyre. The Cathars were shut inside and the fireswere lit. A stele commemorates the spot where 205beautiful souls passed into transition.The AftermathAfter Montségur fell, a number of Cathar outpostsmanaged to survive, at least until 1258. PopeInnocent IV promulgated the bull Ad Extirpanda,which allowed the torture of suspects, orderingthe civil magistrates to extort from all hereticsby torture a confession of their own guilt and abetrayal of all their accomplices. This gave thechurch another weapon. Throughout the secondhalf of the 13 th century, the Cathars becameincreasingly isolated, and by the early years of the14 th century, there were very few Perfects left whocould administer the Consolamentum.The horrors of the Inquisition however,which had become a recognised institution ofRome under the name of the “Holy Office” in aboutthe year 1223, were such that in many places thepeople of the South rebelled against the fanaticaldomination of the Roman Catholic Church. TheInquisitors confiscated houses and land fromCathars and encouraged others to pretend to beBelievers while betraying their friends and family.Such were the tactics of the Gestapo in other partsof France many centuries later.For a few years towards the end of the 13 thcentury, some Cathars, under the leadership ofthe Autier brothers, continued worshipping and18The Rosicrucian Beacon -- June 2008
practicing their faith…, until in 1309, when PèireAutier was arrested and burned at the stake.Their last known Perfect, Guilhèm Belibaste, wasalso betrayed and burnt at the stake in 1321,after which the Believers fled, hiding in the wildregion of Sabarthez until they all seemed to havedisappeared, either because they had been killed,or because they had fled abroad to Spain andLombardy.As for the County of Toulouse, after CountRaimon VII died in 1250, his daughter was marriedto the brother of the king of France, and after theirdeaths in 1271, the county was absorbed into theFrench royal possessions and the entire Languedocfinally came under royal control.MartyrsWe can honestly say that the faith of the Cathars wasof such a high quality that it can only be comparedto that of the early martyrs of Christianity. Theirdoctrine was truly inspired by the pure spirit of thepristine Christian ideal, before misrepresentationand deformation through the sectarianism of theclergy of later times.Many suffered dreadful deaths through firewith the high courage of the early martyrs duringthe Roman persecutions. And yet, their doctrinewas so deformed by the Inquisitors that theywere accused of holding the belief that suicidewas a lawful act. In some cases, they submittedthemselves to what they called the Endura, eitherbefore the sacrament of Consolamentum or afterthey had been imprisoned. In the former case, theThe sincere efforts of Cathars strove forinner liberation and shone with the lightof pure spirituality.Endura was only a very severe fast, not practisedwith the idea of committing suicide, but as ameans of liberating themselves from the sway ofthe senses. In the latter case, when they wereimprisoned, it was undertaken to try to escape thetortures of the Inquisition or death by fire, andthey would therefore allow themselves to starveto death.All epochs have had their contrast of Lightand Darkness. In the darkness of the medieval ages,in a deeply humble manner, the sincere efforts ofCathars strove for inner liberation and shonewith the light of pure spirituality. This affirmedthat however insurmountable the obstacles mayappear, the process of evolution continues itsirrevocable motion throughout eternity. Evilmay triumph temporarily, but for goodness andsanctity, final victory is always assured, even ifthat takes centuries to come.Every action has its reaction, and the powerof the Popes was thereafter greatly weakened. Themassacres and acts of savagery that the pope hadunleashed greatly diminished the authority of thechurch. For a long time the “Vicars of Christ” (thepopes) had lost their spiritual authority over thecountries of Europe. Their violent and fanaticalsuppression of all forms of dissent and differenceof opinion through the actions of the Inquisitionleft a permanent scar from which the RomanCatholic Church has taken centuries to recover.In conclusion it may be said that althoughCatharism seems to have entirely disappeared,some traces of their descendants still remain, andtheir doctrine and teachings were preserved and infact may have been precursors of the teachings ofthe Rosicrucians of later centuries. If we comparetheir traditions and teachings with those of modernRosicrucians, one can’t help but see that they arebased upon the same ancient fundamental truthsderiving from the innate human sense of universaljustice and the ardent aspiration for spiritualenfoldment.EpilogueOne of the greatest achievements of mankindis religion; yet paradoxically, it is also one ofmankind’s greatest enemies. When organisedreligion becomes the bedfellow of secularpower, it is a recipe for disaster. Each religionthinks it is better than all others …, it is humannature!I often wonder if the great avatars andteachers of the past would be horrified to seewhat had become of their teachings. The CatholicChurch eventually reformed itself, so the Churchin this story no longer reflects the Church of today.At the end of the crusades, a whole way of lifehad been destroyed, along with the prosperityof one of the richest regions of France. But youcan’t entirely destroy an idea, and the story of theCathars has survived despite all attempts to eraseit from living memory. In the next article we shallsee what it meant to be a Cathar and how theirexample still influences us today.Al cap dels sèt cent ans, verdejara lo laurèl.The laurel will flourish again in 700 yearsThe Rosicrucian Beacon -- June 200819
- Page 2 and 3: www.amorc.org.ukne can’t help not
- Page 4 and 5: y Christian Bernard, FRCImperator o
- Page 6 and 7: with its Judeo-Christian and Greco-
- Page 8: he rose is linked by A chainof asso
- Page 12 and 13: y Marcus Aurelius(Roman Emperor 121
- Page 14 and 15: The Languedoc regionthe east to the
- Page 16 and 17: means of redemption and at thesame
- Page 18 and 19: Pope Innocent III (1198-1216)Cathar
- Page 22 and 23: y Edgar Wirt, FRChe “Master Withi
- Page 24 and 25: t is really amazing how manymisconc
- Page 26 and 27: y Samuel Avital, FRCThe guest resid
- Page 28 and 29: y Paul Goodall, FRCThe alchemical M
- Page 30 and 31: effect which culminates in a harmon
- Page 32 and 33: y Doris Knollbrook SPARKS the imagi
- Page 34 and 35: of us when we must take stock, and
- Page 36 and 37: y Valerie Peterst is important to b
- Page 38 and 39: y Mary Jones , SRCThe philosophers
- Page 40 and 41: Pythagoras learned much on his many
- Page 42 and 43: own homes, and came to the school d
- Page 44 and 45: The Nobel Laureates Professor Alber
- Page 46 and 47: EINSTEIN: Is it not polyphonic?TAGO
- Page 48: Knowledge of the Soulis the only un
The crimes committed in the name of God were many…of Safety), an ancient place of worship. A templededicated to a form of solar worship was saidto have existed there several centuries before theChristian era, and in the Middle Ages the castlebecame the stronghold where the Cathars foughttheir last battle.Raimon de Perelha, Lord of Montségur,already as far back as 1209, sheltered refugeesin his castle even before the worst phases of thecrusade reached his doors. In 1232 he received thereGuilabert de Castres, Cathar Bishop of Toulouseand one of the greatest Cathar minds, togetherwith several other Cathar leaders. From thenon, Montségur became the centre of the CatharChurch, and towards the end of the crusade, wastheir last stronghold when Raimon VII who hadsucceeded his father as Count of Toulouse, underduress from the French king in 1243, was forcedto help fight the last of the Cathars and to destroytheir final refuge.On the 2 nd March 1244, Montségursurrendered. There was a two week truce. Theterms seemed lenient: everyone could go freeif they allowed themselves to be questioned byand swore loyalty to the Church of Rome. Forthe Perfects, the choice was simpler, renounceCatharism or burn at the stake. The Perfectswould however not lie or take an oath, so theirfate was sealed. They spent the fortnight caringfor their charges and arranging their affairs. Thensomething extraordinary happened. Twentyoneordinary Believers asked to be given theConsolamentum during the final two weeks, someon the very day before the final battle, therebybecoming Perfects, and knowing full well whatthe result would be. This act was a great testamentto the appeal and power of Catharism and itspowerful message.Following the truce to think the terms over,the knights and their families went free while205 Cathars were burned alive on the morningof 16 th March 1244. There were too many to tie toindividual stakes, so a palisade was built arounda pyre. The Cathars were shut inside and the fireswere lit. A stele commemorates the spot where 205beautiful souls passed into transition.The AftermathAfter Montségur fell, a number of Cathar outpostsmanaged to survive, at least until 1258. PopeInnocent IV promulgated the bull Ad Extirpanda,which allowed the torture of suspects, orderingthe civil magistrates to extort from all hereticsby torture a confession of their own guilt and abetrayal of all their accomplices. This gave thechurch another weapon. Throughout the secondhalf of the 13 th century, the Cathars becameincreasingly isolated, and by the early years of the14 th century, there were very few Perfects left whocould administer the Consolamentum.The horrors of the Inquisition however,which had become a recognised institution ofRome under the name of the “Holy Office” in aboutthe year 1223, were such that in many places thepeople of the South rebelled against the fanaticaldomination of the Roman Catholic Church. TheInquisitors confiscated houses and land fromCathars and encouraged others to pretend to beBelievers while betraying their friends and family.Such were the tactics of the Gestapo in other partsof France many centuries later.For a few years towards the end of the 13 thcentury, some Cathars, under the leadership ofthe Autier brothers, continued worshipping and18The Rosicrucian Beacon -- June 2008
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