Tuesday, April 17, 2007
JEAN BRICAUD WAS A MARTINIST AS WELL AS AN EX-TRAPPIST
Susanna sent in the following evidence of his membership in both:
l'Église Catholique Gnostique
Jean Bricaud, Tau Johannes, had been educated in a Roman Catholic seminary, where he had studied for the priesthood, but he renounced his conventional religious pursuits at the age of 16 to pursue mystical occultism. He became involved with the "Eliate Church of Carmel" and the "Work of Mercy" founded in 1839 by Eugéne Vintras (1807-1875); and the "Johannite Church of Primitive Christians," founded in 1803 by the Templar revivalist Bernard-Raymond Fabré -Palaprat (1777-1838). He had met Encausse in 1899 and had already joined his Martinist Order.
In 1907, with the encouragement (if not direct pressure) of Encausse, Bricaud broke from Fabre des Essarts to found his own schismatic branch of the Gnostic Church. Fugairon decided to join Bricaud. The primary motive for this schism seems to have been the desire to create a branch of the Gnostic Church whose structure and doctrine would more closely parallel those of the Roman Catholic Church rather than those of the Cathar Church (for instance, it included an Order of Priesthood and baptism with water); and which would be more closely tied to the Martinist Order. Doinel had been a Martinist, Bricaud was a Martinist, but Fabre des Essarts was not. Bricaud, Fugairon and Encausse at first tentatively named their branch of the church l'Église Catholique Gnostique (the Gnostic Catholic Church). It was announced as being a fusion of the three existing "gnostic" churches of France: Doinel's Gnostic Church, Vintras's Carmelite Church, and Fabré -Palaprat's Johannite Church. In February of 1908, the episcopal synod of the Gnostic Catholic Church met again and elected Bricaud its patriarch as Tau Jean II. After 1907, in order to clearly distinguish the two branches of the Gnostic church, l'Église Gnostique of Fabre des Essarts became generally known as l'Église Gnostique de France.
Source: History of the Gnostic Catholic Church
Another source indicates that Giraud was involved with not only the Trappists but also the Gallican Catholic Church, a heretical branch of the Roman Catholic Church in France:
Jean Bricaud moved in many circles - from the most conventional and devout of Catholic intellectuals, to eccentric and mysterious sages,
tricksters and phantasts. With his introduction to the Western Gnosis, be it the masonic illuminism of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraim, the internal therapeutic theurgy of Elie Alta, Bouvier and Maistre Anthelme Nizier Phillipe, the enthusiastic messianism of the followers of Pierre-Michel Eugene Vintras who had a French headquarters in the city of Lyons - the path of the heart of Martinism as administrated by his friend Papus or the charismatic ritualism of Tau Synesius Gnostic Church, he discovered a richness and diversity he prior to this thought he could only encounter in the Far East. Among his friends and associates later in life where Bishop Louis-Marie-François Giraud (d. 1951) who after having lived for many years as a Trappist Monk had joined the fray with the Gallican Catholic Church under the Apostolic protection of Archbishop Joseph Renè Villatte, from whom he could trace his Apostolic succession as a Bishop. Bishop Giraud`s consecrator was also a famous "Mage" the Abbe Julio(Jules Ernest Houssay,1844-1912), who through the introduction of Giraud, Jean Bricaud befriended. Louis-Marie-Francois Giraud consecrated Jean Bricaud, already a Gnostic Bishop with three verified lineages from heterodox and esoteric lines of succession on the 21st of July 1913, as Apostolic Bishop, with a fraternal affiliation with the Gallicanne communion.
The following quote comes from a Wikipedia article on Rene Vilatte and again makes the claim of Trappist membership:
On June 21, 1907 Vilatte consecrated a formerly Roman Catholic, former Trappist monk, Louis Marie Francois Giraud, who had been expelled from the Roman Catholic Church for dabbling in magic and the occult. Shortly after this consecration Cardinal Richard issued a warning to the people about apostate priests who were celebrating mass under cover of a pseudo American Bishop, and excommunicated Vilatte a second time. Soon thereafter Vilatte returned to the United States.
Yet another source for the Trappist claim:
The acception of a statement that Bricaud, a former Trappist monk and devote disciple of Maitre Philippe, accepted the "Gnostic Mass" of Crowley and Reuss seems incompatible today. But we have to understand that the possible proposition was made just after the First World War. At the time Bricaud was a representative of Reuss' O.T.O. in France, and I'm tending to believe that Bricaud didn't even know what a "Thelemite" even was. It is known that Bricaud, as a Gnostic Christian, had demonstrated a tolerance of accepting doctrinal variations. M.Evans, a Thelemite, states on this subject: "The documents were circulated during his lifetime, to a relative small group of people who interacted. They were never refuted by Bricaud", and, "What we have is a few mentions, and that is all the evidence that exists for now".
The Cathar Church played a role in Paris occultism, but Bricaud wanted to move his organization closer to Roman Catholicism:
Motive for Bricaud schism - to create a branch of the Gnostic Church WHOSE STRUCTURE AND DOCTRINE WOULD MORE CLOSELY PARALLEL THOSE OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH RATHER THAN THOSE OF THE CATHAR CHURCH..............
In 1907, with the encouragement (if not direct pressure) of Encausse, Bricaud broke from Fabre des Essarts to found his own schismatic branch of the Gnostic Church. Fugairon decided to join Bricaud. The primary motive for this schism seems to have been the desire to create a branch of the Gnostic Church whose structure and doctrine would more closely parallel those of the Roman Catholic Church rather than those of the Cathar Church (for instance, it included an Order of Priesthood and baptism with water), and which would be more closely tied to the Martinist Order. Doinel had been a Martinist, Bricaud was a Martinist, but Fabre des Essarts was not. Bricaud, Fugairon and Encausse at first tentatively named their branch of the church “l’Église Catholique Gnostique” (the Gnostic Catholic Church). It was announced as being a fusion of the three existing “gnostic” churches of France: Doinel’s Gnostic Church, Vintras’s Carmelite Church and Fabré-Palaprat’s Johannite Church. In February of 1908, the episcopal synod of the Gnostic Catholic Church met again and elected Bricaud its patriarch as Tau Jean II. After 1907, in order to clearly distinguish the two branches of the Gnostic church, l’Église Gnostique of Fabre des Essarts became generally known as “l’Église Gnostique de France”.
Source: Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica
