Freemasonry is a secular fraternal association that has evolved worldwide, particularly over the last two or three centuries. In England and Wales, entry and progression by a series of three degrees is now via Lodges that are grouped into Provinces and administered by the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE), which is also responsible for certain Districts and Lodges overseas. Its precepts promote moral values and self-knowledge, and are embodied in allegorical rituals, typically related to the ancient craft of stonemasonry and its tools.
As the craft degrees have evolved, so too have independent Orders of Freemasonry and rituals peculiar to them. Prominent among them in England and Wales is the Ancient and Accepted Rite, whose Chapters are grouped into Districts and administered by a Supreme Council, which is also responsible for certain Districts and Chapters overseas. It chooses to accept the three craft degrees of UGLE as a qualification for entry into a Chapter, rather than administering entry degrees of its own. Progression to further degrees is then within Chapters, and in ceremonies generally conducted by the Supreme Council itself. The Rite is frequently referred to as the ‘Rose Croix’, although this is only one of its degrees.
The History of the Rose Croix and its antecedents is complex. Any summary such as here will leave out an enormous amount of detail.
The Rite was first constituted in September 1762. This was followed by The Grand Constitutions, allegedly under the titular direction of Frederick II of Prussia, dated May 1786 which described the Ancient and Accepted Rite as consisting of thirty-three degrees, largely as it exists today.
There was certainly some form of Rose Croix encompassing a whole host of prior influences from the Renaissance, Kabbalah, Rosicrucianism, and Enlightenment thought – being conferred in France in the early 1760s.
Variants of the degree arrived in England in different forms and by the 1770s the Rosae Crucis degree was being conferred in Knight Templar Encampments — now called Preceptories.
The superbly named Dr Crucefix, a mason with a considerable interest in degrees outside the Craft, obtained a patent from America backdated to 26 October 1845 and he, along with other Knights Templar, formed an English Supreme Council.
The story from there on is one of this Supreme Council taking control of the Rose Croix and persuading the Knights Templar to give up their Rosae Crucis ceremony along with another form of the degree now called the Knight Kadosh (the current 300), then often referred to as ‘Ne Plus Ultra’ (‘nothing higher’), while at the same time warranting chapters of its own.
The rose-pink collar of 180 is not only beautiful, but conveys many of the lessons of the degree. Embroidered with key symbols – the Rose, the Pelican in its Piety, the Crown of Thorns, the Serpent – it serves the ‘perfected mason’ as a wonderful aid in the teaching of Rose Croix and is used as such in the ritual.
Candidates for membership of the Order in England and Wales must have been a Master Mason for at least six months at the point of Perfection and provide evidence that they are in good standing with the Craft units of which they are currently, or have previously been, a member. Candidates must also be prepared to join an Order by means of a degree based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.
The Order in England and Wales is in Amity with some 49 other Supreme Councils across the world, from Andorra to Venezuela. Members of the Rite under any of these jurisdictions are most welcome to attend meetings of the Order in England and Wales. Members of the Order under the Supreme Council for England and Wales will also be welcome to visit Chapters overseas where a Supreme Council with whom we are in Amity presides. Apart from Scotland, arrangements for such visits should be made through the office of the Grand Secretary General in the first instance.
Meets at the Masonic Hall, Green Lane Redruth TR 15 1JY on the fourth Saturday in February, June and October at 1.00pm. Enthronement February
Meets at the Masonic Hall, South Street, St Austell PL25 5BH on the third Saturday in January, April and September at 11.00 hours.
Enthronement September
