Ritual , Secrecy , and Civil Society
Tschoudy returns to this point with several additional details in the secret instruction that he composed for Les Maîtres Ecossais de Saint-André d ' Ecosse :
“ The Rose-Croix , in other words Masonry renewed , is nothing other than the Catholic Religion put into degrees . In that respect , it is nevertheless more august in that it depicts objects that are more real , more sacred , more precious ; and by combining in one and the same group the consoling mysteries of the Faith & the axioms necessary for salvation , it seems to consecrate the era of those times of grace when our ancestors , sons or nephews of the first Masons , Workers of the first Temple , opened their eyes to the truth , and renounced the prestige of the ancient law to follow the rites of the new , by embracing Christianity during the First Crusade .” 19
In the early 1780s , the Grand Orient of France entrusted a “ Chamber of Degrees ” with the task of studying high degrees . On August 20 , 1782 , the brothers came together to examine the degree of Chevalier Rose- Croix .
“ The Rf . Dejunquières read the degree entitled Chevalier de l ' Aigle - Rose Croix . The chamber judged this degree to have too many Ceremonies in line with ecclesiastical ceremonies and judged that it could not be preserved . It was consequently rejected .” 20
In the final third of the 18th century , the Rose-Croix would become accepted as the terminal degree of Masonry . After hesitation , the team constituting the Grand Chapter General of France would make it the culmination of the four orders , and the rallying of the majority of the chapters to the system adopted by the Grand Orient would therefore contribute to reinforcing the Rose-Croix ' eminent position . During the Enlightenment , the Christian nature of the Rose-Croix seems universally admitted . But what Christianity is it a part of ? How do we determine , in the vast continent of Judeo-Christian tradition , the Christian current in which this Masonic degree has its roots ?
II . What Christianity for the Chevalier Rose-Croix ?
To try to respond to these questions ,
it is appropriate to examine the ritual ' s principal sequences in view of the theological conceptions of different schools whose positions have been determined by the controversies that have occupied such a major place in the history of Western Christianity . We are indeed aware of the difficulty of such an undertaking , of the limits and of the necessarily elementary character of the analyses that we are offering , but , as a first step , it means sketching out some hypotheses and opening some workable avenues . Upon ending this journey through the Chevaliers Rose-Croix ' abundantly rich ritual , one fact will become obvious : in a century exhausted by theological quarrels — first between Protestants and Catholics , then between “ Romans ” and Jansenists — the Rose-Croix chapter is the locus of an unheard-of undertaking : restoring primitive worship .
19
[ Théodore de Tschoudy ], Ecossois de Saint-André d ' Ecosse contenant le développement de l ' Art Royal de la Franc-Maçonnerie , & le but direct , essentiel & primitif de son institution ... , in Paris , chez le frère La Vérité , au Grand Globe Français , 1780 , 67 . In question are manuscripts from Tschoudy published by Labady close to 15 years after the death of the
Baron .
20
Registre de la Chambre des Degrees , BN FM1 56 , f ° 27 .
18