When you are a centuries-old secret society, what do you do? Group on Facebook.
The ability to be invisible was the only thing that kept the society going. Over the past several hundred years, the world has changed and so has the need for Rosicrucians to remain hidden. With the help of the most public tools they could find, they are finding new ways to connect.
The 30 Year War was raging in Europe when it was founded. The Rosicrucian Order is not a religion, but it is a system of study to understand natural laws. There are references to Christian mysticism and Hermeticism in its doctrine. They kept their organization private because they were afraid of persecution.
Julie Scott is the Grand Master of the Rosicrucian Order. It was just too much of a superstition. The manifestos were published without the knowledge of their authors.
In the early 17th century, anonymous pamphlets in Germany claimed that a group of people were working to change Europe's politics and religion. There is a lot of drama surrounding whether or not the pamphlets that were written actually existed or if it was just a pamphlet of science fiction.
Jon Crowley, a novelist who studied rosicrucianism for some of his books, has argued that the books were likely works of fantasy, not based on real life. It's hard to know one way or the other.
"Nobody could really track them down because nobody would admit to being one."
The idea of an organized group of people who all belong to this group and kept themselves secret, even though they might have announced that they know about a group that is the Rosicrucians, but they never admit that It's difficult to figure it out. It was even more mysterious that there were people like that. Nobody would admit to being one of them.
A group formed that believed the pamphlets to be true, regardless of whether they started as a secret society or a work of fantasy. They are related to the beginnings of the Freemasons because they were influenced by Christian orders. Today, there are still people who check Facebook.
Scott said that the organization has members all over the world who are free to practice their own traditions. Natural laws are studied so that we can live in harmony with them. We learn about the best time to do things, the best way to approach things, whether it's meditation or developing our intuition, so that we get into the natural rhythm of whatever it is.
"We study natural laws so that we can live in harmony with them."
The group's invisibility was no longer needed as the years went by. They had glossy magazine ads in the 70s. You can join one of dozens of regional and national Facebook groups today.
Members can join any of the private groups on Facebook. Anyone can join.
Scott said that anyone can be a member and that there are people who make sure that people who aren't a member don't join. We want people to feel welcome and included, and just to be able to observe what the Romans do and how we approach the world.
Anyone can like and follow the Rosicrucian Order AMORC on Facebook. You have to be granted permission to join the largest private group on the internet. Not all of the followers are members of the Order, and it's mostly a place to do what you do on any other community-based Facebook group.
Scott says that the power of Facebook lies in the dozens of pages made for the rosicrucians. Scott is a member of the Rosicrucian Order.
She moderates a few thousand people on social media and runs the organization's social media in Georgia. She loves her job with the Order but is trying to increase their social media reach.
She said that they have blockbuster online events that cater to the needs of both members and non members. Soror Julie Scott hosts a weekly teleconference that is hosted by her. The experience is amazing. Non members are able to attend.
"Facebook has given us a way to connect with seekers who we wouldn't have been able to before, like those who live in rural areas," said Karen Wark in an email. They launched their main Facebook page in 2009.
Wark said that being able to connect with each other in Facebook groups has been great for members of the group. We used to only see each other at world conventions, which weren't available to everyone.
"Facebook has given us a way to connect with seekers who we would not have been able to before."
Facebook helps connect people with the formerly secret society's other online programs, like the YouTube and Zoom sessions they host weekly, where a class master from their department of instruction presents on different topics. They hold a symposium on those platforms once a quarter, where members watch several different presentations and take part in an experiment or meditate at the end.
It's not clear what the future of organizations like the Rosicrucians will be as membership in voluntary associations has been steadily falling. Membership rates in some organizations fell from 75% in 1974 to 42% in 2004. Scott believes that social media has helped grow memberships.
Scott said that they presented the Wednesday teleconferences in 2015. Two of our class masters thought that this would be a good way to reach members who were in more remote areas. For a long time, we would have 75 to 85 people every Wednesday. Since the Pandemic, we've had between 400 and 500 participants, and for our symposiums that we present once a quarter, we usually max out at 1000.
Social media is increasing their numbers.
With a global Pandemic and no in-person activities, coupled with seasoned and coordinated expertise from our Grand Lodge, we are experiencing exponential growth in both memberships and online participation.
One push to put the Order online is the Pandemic. They hired Lopez to be the communications manager because of that.
Lopez said that it was a new role created by the Order to address the need to adapt during the Pandemic. Our lodges were closed but we still wanted to connect our members the best way we can, by making sure that every moment spent in these trying times is alleviated by the lessons from the lectures we host and the content that we produce, that can ultimately create a sense of community online.
Lopez and Okanime are confident that their online outreach will continue to increase memberships even with the vaccine rolling out.
Lopez said that the trend had always been upward. It's a confirmation that more people are looking into ancient wisdom teachings on the internet. Hopefully they can get some answers to their questions.
With committed social media managers and members across multiple states and countries, it makes sense that a pivot online could serve as a lifesaver. Their decision to work within one of the most notoriously public spaces in the world is fascinating. The group is more dedicated to the society aspect of secret society now that they know about the lack of privacy on Facebook.
The original article was published in April 2021.
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