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Correspondence from Kenneth Grant to "John"
3 Alba Gardens N.W.11
8 March 66
Dear John,
I have been reviewing my position with regard to the OTO and though you might like to be in possession of the salient facts.
I obtained formal admission to the Sovereign Sanctuary IX° OTO on the 5th October 1948, and for the following three years instructed individual candidates, initiating three of them into the Sovereign Sanctuary: one into the IX°, two into the VII°.
On the 5th March 1951, I obtained a Charter from the Outer Head of the Order (Frater Saturnus/Karl J. Germer) to found a Lodge in London. This I did, calling it NEW ISIS LODGE which I worked in collaboration with the three other members of the Sovereign Sanctuary mentioned above. A Manifesto was issued and circulated very widely. The Lodge was advertised in certain periodicals concerned with the Occult. The Rules and Regulations of the Lodge were printed together with an Enrolment Form and General Pledge Form for prospective candidates.
During this period of the Lodge's activity (i.e. from 1951-1956) more than thirty candidates were admitted for instruction.
I wrote entirely new Rituals for each degree, based on occult knowledge derived from The Book of the Law and the writings of Aleister Crowley.
As you may see from the accompanying documents, and letters from Karl Germer, I am the only person to have operated OTO degrees in Great Britain since A.C. died. And on the strength of the establishment of a Lodge of the OTO on the charter issued by Frater Saturnus in 1951, I claim to be the sole official Head of the Order in Great Britain.
A letter from a X° in California (W.T. Smith [Wilfred Talbot Smith]/Frater 132) is added as confirmatory evidence that my position was recognized in that State; and a translation of my original OTO Manifesto into German by the late Brother Gregor A Gregorius (Eugen Grosche), Head of the Fraternitas Saturni in Berlin, is also added.
Although the Lodge and the Order of which it is a part are now both dormant, I, as a member of the Sovereign Sanctuary retain the authority for life to initiate individuals into the various degrees of the Order at any time. Also, I may at any time re-energize the Lodge and cause OTO to be operative once more in the Outer, particularly in London.
It appears that Gerald Gardner held the IV° and had authority from A.C. to initiate as far as that grade, but later—as a letter from Germer to me shows—Gardner came under my jurisdiction when I received a charter for Ninth Degree in 1951. As far as I know, no other person in Great Britain holds an official OTO grade except the persons I myself initiated during the period of the Lodge's activity. You may, however, know of some others.
You yourself must have held some grade, as I believe you said you were made Assistant Grand Treasurer General to the Order during A.C.'s lifetime? What was this grade?
The following is a list of the items enclosed:
1. The Charter from Germer, dated 1951 (Photostat Copy).
2. Seven letters from Germer to me which gave an over-all view of the situation as it stood when I started the Lodge.
3. A letter from W.T. Smith X° (California) who helped me in matters connected with the working of the lower degrees.
4. The original Manifesto of the British Branch of the OTO which I produced when dealing with individual candidates from 1949-1951.
5. The Manifesto of New Isis Lodge which I produced on receiving the Charter from Germer; with sample copies of (a) The Rules and Regulations (b) The Enrollment Form (c) The General Pledge Form
6. A Copy of Blatter Fur Lebenkunset, issued by Brother Gregor A. Gregorius, containing a translation into German of my original Manifesto (No. 4 above).
Apart from this, of course, I have masses of letters from various individuals over the years, a tithe of which could substantiate my claim to the Headship of the Order.
Yours,
Ken
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