Rosicrucian Beacon Magazine - 2013-06 - AMORC

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y Bill AndersonFollowing a presentation about The Catharsat the Mystical Weekend in Derbyshire inApril 2013, I thought it would be a goodidea to expand on one of the key concepts inmedieval Occitània.ravELLERS TO the south of France, toCathar country, a part of which is situatedin the Languedoc-Roussillon region,may visit the village of Minerve in theDepartment of Hérault, (in the Occitan language: lodepartament Erau en la region Lengadòc-Rosselhon, enOccitània).Minerve itself is perhaps better known as thecapital of the Minervois wine region. Perched on top ofthe gorge of the River Cesse, it is in a naturally strongdefensive position and survived the massacre inflictedon it by Simon de Montfort during the crusades againstthe Cathars. As you wander through the village you willcome across a famous memorial stone inscribed AlsCatars (To The Cathars), with a dove rising up to heaven,representing the souls of the dead Cathars.There is another memorial plaque as well,commemorating the 800 th anniversary of the massacreof 140 Cathars by French Catholic crusaders on 22 July1210. The inhabitants of Minerve installed a memorial2The Rosicrucian Beacon -- June 2013© Supreme Grand Lodge of AMORC
to their ancestors which states, in Occitan: Menèrbase soven PARATGE which translates as “Minerveremembers Paratge!”What is this word Paratge, which the moderncitizens of Minerve felt was so important that they hadto commemorate it? The answer may well surprise you, asthe Occitan word Paratge (pronounced like Pará-tchay)has essentially the same meaning as the ancient Egyptianword Ma’at and the ancient Persian concept of Asha; inother words “cosmic order”.ConvivénciaLanguedoc-Roussillon region, inset shows location in the South of France.What is this word Paratge, which the moderncitizens of Minerve felt was so important that theyhad to commemorate it?conditions favoured this intellectual upsurge. Intriguingly,the ‘Medieval Warm Period’ was in full flow. Climacticallyit was a time of warm conditions in the North Atlanticwhich may have been related to other climatic eventsaround the world during the period lasting from around950 to 1250 CE. This climatic event coincidedwith bumper crops; it encouraged the growth oftowns and especially in Occitània, the nascentMiddle Class, anxious to share in the good thingsof life, previously the realm only of the nobility.In addition there was an increasing influxof knowledge from three main Muslim sources. TheReconquista in Spain, where the Christian kingdomsin the north of the peninsula started the re-conquestfrom the Moors, and they, in turn, became open to ideasThink of Renaissance, and your mind will turn to14 th - 17 th Century Italy. To us, this is the Renaissancepar excellence. But there was another earlier EuropeanRenaissance during the 12 th Century. It was a time ofgreat social, political and economic transformation andintellectual revitalisation.But why did this 12 th Century Renaissance occurat this particular time, and why has it been eclipsed by thebetter known Italian one? There were many reasons whySimon de Montfort© Supreme Grand Lodge of AMORC The Rosicrucian Beacon -- June 20133
Page 3: CONTENTSJune 2013, Vol 22, No. 3Par
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Rosicrucian Beacon Magazine - 2013-06 - AMORC

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