Theosophical
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Church Universal and Triumphant (1975)
The Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT) is a New Age religious organization founded in 1975 by Elizabeth Clare Prophet after the death of her first husband, Mark Prophet. The group developed from the Summit Lighthouse, which Mark Prophet established in 1958. The movement’s teachings combine elements of Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Theosophy, with significant influence Continue reading
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Church of Light (1932)
The Church of Light is a religious organization incorporated in Los Angeles in November 1932. Its stated mission is to “teach, practice, and disseminate The Religion of The Stars, a way of life for the Aquarian Age, as set forth in the writings of C.C. Zain.” The church’s creation was prompted by county ordinances passed Continue reading
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Aumism (1969)
Gilbert Bourdin was born in Martinique in 1923 and spent his early career in the French Civil Service. His early life is otherwise mostly obscure. When he was 33, he moved to France and studied law, economics, and politics. He also developed an interest in esoteric studies and got involved with several Rosicrucian and Martinist Continue reading
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Association for Research and Enlightenment (1931)
Edgar Cayce was born into a farming family in Kentucky in 1877 and was raised within the Disciples of Christ, a church that sought to restore original Christian teachings. He would later state that a winged woman visited him in his childhood, and that he could memorize his schoolbooks by sleeping on them. Cayce’s purported Continue reading
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Assembly of Man (1928)
Franklin Wolff was raised as a Methodist in California but abandoned Christianity in his youth as he began to explore philosophy. He studied mathematics at Stanford and Harvard, and briefly taught at Harvard before giving up on academia to focus on his own philosophical explorations. In 1920, he married Sarah Merrell Briggs and they combined Continue reading
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Arcane School (1923)
Alice Bailey was born Alice La Trobe-Bateman in Manchester, England, in 1880. Though born wealthy, she said her childhood was isolated and unhappy. Her mother died when she was young and she described her father as indifferent. She attempted suicide three times by the age of 15. After the third attempt, she said she had Continue reading
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Anthroposophy (1912)
Rudolf Steiner was born in a part of the Austrian Empire that is now Croatia in 1861. His father was a telegraph operator and the family moved regularly during Steiner’s childhood. Steiner would report supernatural experiences from early in life, including encountering the spirit of an aunt who told him she had recently died. This Continue reading
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Ancient Teachings of the Masters (1983)
After stints in Scientology, the Self-Revelation Church of Absolute Monism, and several other groups, Paul Twitchell founded Eckankar in 1965. He claimed to be the 971st in the line of ECK Masters, the spiritual leader of Eckankar. Twitchell adapted many Sanskrit words into English in his teachings, and it is believed that “Eckankar” is a Continue reading
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Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis (1915)
Though some Rosicrucians claim a direct lineage dating back to ancient Egypt, the first verifiable evidence of Rosicrucians came in the early 17th century with the publication of three anonymous texts in Germany. The first of these was the Fama Fraternitatis Rosae Crucis, or “The Fame of the Brotherhood of the Rosy Cross,” which was Continue reading
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Amica Temple of Radiance (1959)
The Amica Temple of Radiance originated in the early 1930s through the experiences of Ivah Bergh Whitten. She claimed that as a child she had overcome a seemingly incurable illness via “color awareness,” which she explored and then wrote about. Whitten launched a yearlong correspondence course called “The Initial Course in Colour Awareness,” and attracted Continue reading
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Agni Yoga (1920)
Agni Yoga is a spiritual system with roots in Hinduism and Theosophy that was created by Nicholas and Helena Roerich in the early 20th century and that continues to have practitioners today. Though Nicholas Roerich was the public face of Agni Yoga, many of its ideas came primarily from Helena, who influenced her husband’s spiritual Continue reading
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Adonism (1926)
Adonism is a Neopagan religion that was founded by German esotericist Franz Sättler in 1926. Its name is drawn from both the Greek “Adonis” and the Hebrew “Adonai.” Sättler, who wrote under the pseudonym “Dr. Musalam,” claimed that Adonism was an ancient faith, but scholars concur that it was his own creation. Sättler was born Continue reading
Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religious Movements 