User:PedroLamarao/History of A⸫ A⸫

The Order traces it's own history to the foundation of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Through the Golden Dawn's founders, Woodman, Westcott, and Mathers, the A∴ A∴ traces it's history further back to the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia and beyond.

Both of A∴ A∴'s founders were members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. George Cecil Jones was initiated a Neophyte in July 1895, and was initiated an Adeptus Minor in January 1897. Aleister Crowley was initiated a Neophyte in November 1898, and was initiated an Adeptus Minor in January 1900. Both remained members of the Order until scandal and schism its effective destruction.

In November 1907, they decided to found an occult order to act as a successor to the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The result was the A∴A∴.

After Crowley's death his student Karl Germer took over running the Order, but since Germer's death the situation has been less clear. Various lineages of the A∴ A∴ survive today that claim to be descended from Crowley.

One such lineage descends from Crowley's student, actress Jane Wolfe (known as Soror Estai). Soror Estai's one student, Phyllis Seckler (Soror Meral), founded College of Thelema in 1973 and (with James A. Eshelman and Anna-Kria King) founded Temple of Thelema in 1987. She designated Eshelman as her successor in the Jane Wolfe branch of A∴ A∴ and as chancellor of College of Thelema. Later, she also affirmed David Shoemaker's authority to "admit, supervise, and train" A∴ A∴ initiates.

Several lineages run through pupils of Marcelo Ramos Motta, such as Ray Eales, David Berson and Daniel J. Gunther Motta was a student of Germer. Another lineage links itself to Crowley through Israel Regardie and his pupil Gerald Suster, claiming that Regardie joined the A∴ A∴ when he became Crowley’s secretary in 1928, but distanced himself from the organization when the two men parted company four years later in 1932. Other lineages run through Grady McMurtry, Charles Stansfeld Jones, and there is a lineage descended from Frank Bennett and Rosaleen Norton operating in Australia. There are also 'independent' A∴ A∴ lineages that either don't descend from the pupils of Crowley or that choose to declare their link. There presently exists no single undisputed central authority of the A∴ A∴ such as existed under Crowley and Germer; nor has any surviving mechanism for the transference of such temporal authority been preserved down to the present day.