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From: heidrick@well.sf.ca.us (Bill Heidrick)
Newsgroups: alt.magick.order,alt.magick.tyagi
Subject: Re: EGC/OTO/Gnostic Mass/Thelema Lodge
Date: 10 Jul 1995 20:16:00 GMT
Organization: The Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link, Sausalito, CA
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(This is slightly paraphrased from my response to the same post on
Thelema93 list).

Hsi Wang Mu (tyagi@HouseofKaos.Abyss.com) writes:

>The EGC clamped down, as I understand it, and for all I know this led to 
>the disintegration of Thelema Lodge into Oz House, but I was not a 
>resident and am hazy on the facts of the matter.

Thelema Lodge is intact.  OZ House is the name currently used by the
residents of a house where Thelema Lodge once had it's principal place
of meeting.  After the BPD raid on that location, Grand Lodge moved the
location of Thelema Lodge, partly to get away from the profaned site and
partly to disassociate the Lodge from a location where non-OTO members
were in occasional residence.  The raid was a flop, but it was felt that
the rules of Grand Lodge to prevent future complications for innocent
guests would be too much of a burden on the lives of the residents at
that location.

>could you fill us in on the history of Thelema Lodge and 
>whether it had any effect on the Church (EGC) or the Caliphate Vacancy?  
>Alpha lived near to or in it, yes?  Did there erupt a serious problem with 
>Thelema Lodge at any point in the Lodge's history?  If so, was it a result 
>of any of the things mentioned above?  Have political struggles among 
>Officers ever been a difficulty, even Officers of OTO bodies?

Too tall an order.  I can give a broad outline, but anything like a complete
history would make a rather large bound volume just for selections.

Thelema Lodge was suggested to Grady McMurtry by Jack Parsons, back when
Parsons was head of Agape Lodge.  Grady (Hymenaeus Alpha) chartered
Thelema Lodge 10/12/77 e.v., at the exact moment of a full solar eclipse
on Crowley's birthday.  Agape Lodge had gone dark by the end of the 1940's.
Thelema Lodge was Grand Lodge of O.T.O. from 1977 until 1986 e.v.  After
that, it reverted to status as a local O.T.O. Lodge, Agape Lodge being
reopened as Grand Lodge.  Everything in O.T.O. developed in the period
of Thelema Lodge's standing as Grand Lodge came out of Thelema Lodge,
either in creation, implementation or endorsement of a proposal by another
O.T.O. body.  After Grady died in 1985 e.v., Thelema continued as Grand
Lodge until Hymenaeus Beta was settled in.  Most of the more serious
problems in Thelema Lodge have arisen, in my opinion, since July of 1985
e.v.  It has been very difficult to find anyone able to run a former
Grand Lodge, especially since so much of the operation of Thelema Lodge
depended on Grady's presence.  One particular problem has been an excess
of over-experienced officers.  Once a person has been a Grand Lodge
officer, it is extremely difficult to go back to a local level of
management.  Too many Grand Secretaries General retired into leadership
of Thelema Lodge between late 1985 e.v. and a few years ago.  Frankly, I
think it may be unwise to routinely run local Lodges of O.T.O. under a
master or mistress above the rank of VIth degree.  Most of those higher
degree members naturally acquire a perspective that isn't easy for the
general membership to fit with on a direct level.  There are other duties
that are more appropriate after VIth degree.  Speaking for myself,
I absent myself from most local O.T.O. functions.  The years have made
me a little difficult in such things.  Once I catch myself pulling rank
over trivia, I get my ass out of there.  It's better to let the members
run their own show, with a little distant guidance in necessities.
   The present Master of Thelema Lodge is doing the best job since
Grady, in my opinion.  I don't fault the others, rather I sympathize
with the difficulty of moving from a national or international
perspective back down to a purely local one.

  It would appear that the three-fold division of Hermit, Lover and
Man of Earth is more than an abstract categorization.  Those changes
in perspective definitely channel skills from one area to another.

93 93/93
Bill Heidrick, GTG OTO