Relatively little critical attention has been paid to Charles Williams’s ten year involvement in the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross (F.R.C.), despite the possibilities for interpretation and understanding of the often obscure imagery... more
Relatively little critical attention has been paid to Charles Williams’s ten year involvement in the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross (F.R.C.), despite the possibilities for interpretation and understanding of the often obscure imagery derived from this experience and applied to his novels and poetry. This paper reviews the F.R.C.’s rituals and meeting minutes in order to gauge the level of Williams’s involvement with the FR.C. and the mystical concepts communicated by its founder, Arthur Edward Waite. It also explores the order’s organizational, symbolic and philosophical roots, particularly the links shared with its parent order, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Having identified the historical and experiential contexts of Williams’s F.R.C. participation, the paper offers examples of the possibilities for interpretation created by greater awareness of the order’s ideas and practices. A number of Williams’s novels are explored in light of several occult concepts important to the F.R.C.—the ‘middle pillar’, the ‘higher self’, and the ‘end of desire’. This analysis indicates that comprehensive interpretation of Williams’s fiction and poetry is impossible without a thorough understanding of the ideas and symbols that he encountered in his ritual experiences. This analysis also demonstrates the importance of the modern occult context to Williams’s life and work.
An essay on the history and practice of theurgy by A.E. Waite published 1888 as an introduction to ‘THE MAGICAL WRITINGS OF THOMAS VAUGHAN’, annotated by Frater Acher in 2015
This essay examines the work of Catholic mystic Arthur Edward Waite in the field of symbolism. Through analysis of the relationship between his Tarot designs and the vocabulary of images present in his written work, this research seeks to... more
This essay examines the work of Catholic mystic Arthur Edward Waite in the field of symbolism. Through analysis of the relationship between his Tarot designs and the vocabulary of images present in his written work, this research seeks to dispel the confusion that presently surrounds both the iconic Tarot he produced with Pamela Colman Smith and the second, secret Tarot he designed for use in his Fellowship of the Rosy Cross. The current state of historical analysis and critical theory around Waite's work is highly imperfect. By organizing and analyzing Waite's familiar body of work alongside newly available materials, we establish an improved scholarly understanding of one of the key figures in the occult revival of the late 19th and early 20th century.
