Ordo Templi Orientis
in Canada, I
TALES FROM THE CAFÉ THÉLÈME - THE 'CALIPHATE' O.T.O. IN CANADA
THE MAGICAL PROGRESS OF WILLIAM BREEZE
Here are the bare facts of the early occult career of William (or Bill as he prefers to be known) Breeze, present 'Caliph' and 'Frater Superior' of the 'Caliphate' O.T.O. (COTO or cOTO), as recorded in that organisation's own records and publications:William Breeze took his 'Caliphate' O.T.O. Minerval degree in August 1978 (the location is not listed in the computer read-outs from COTO Grand Lodge.) He took his First Degree at 'LaShtal' Lodge in New York on April 5th 1979.
The first mention of eastern Canada being established in an official O.T.O. capacity is found in the _O.T.O. Newsletter_ Vol. II Nºs 7 & 8, May 1979. Under 'Contact Addresses of Official Lodges, Chapters & Camps' on p. 92 is listed the "W.T. Smith Chapter, Box 31, South Stukely, Québec, Canada, JOE 2JO. Authorized under Bill Breeze, this chapter is initiating and plans an early visit by the Caliph." [The address given is the same as that of 93 Press.] The very next _O.T.O. Newsletter_, (Vol. III Nº 9 August 1979), under 'Contact Addresses of Official Lodges, Chapters & Camps.' on p.66 states: "W.T. Smith Chapter - address is in a state of change." The next _Newsletter_, (Vol. III Nº 10-11 Winter 79/Spring 80), under 'Contact Addresses of Official Lodges, Chapters & Camps.' p.106 it states: "Wilford Smith Chapter, Eastern Canada, dormant at present."
Breeze took the Second Degree at Tahuti Lodge, New York on November 1st 1980. The _Magickal Link_, (Vol. I Nº 3) for March 1981 had a brief article submitted by the W.T. Smith Chapter announcing they finally had an address: "Box 1167 Pointe-Claire Postal Station, Pointe-Claire, Québec, Canada H9S 4R6." The article also mentions their hopes of flying Grady McMurtry up to Canada in the Spring to do initiations. The P.O. Box listed was also used by Breeze.
In June 1981 Grady McMurtry finally flew up to visit Québec.
Breeze took the Third Degree at 'Ra-Hoor-Khuit' Lodge in Syracuse, New York on July 8th 1981. _The Magickal Link_ (Vol. I Nº 8) dated August 1981 includes an article entitled 'Caliph's Log: Star Date - You name it.' It begins, "I have just returned from a most fantastic adventure," and he goes on to discuss his trip to Montréal, Canada. He says he initiated 23 Minervals, and adds that "I am proud to announce that we now have a Phoenix Lodge"; in other words the W.T. Smith Chapter had been raised to Lodge status. The rest of the article is mainly gossip, but it ends by asking: "The next question is: how many countries does it take to elect an O.H.O.? An interesting thought." This issue of _The Magickal Link_ also contains a submission from the new 'Phoenix' Lodge talking about their foundation. It mentions the Café Thélème lunch (where the photo was taken) as having happened on June 14th. It also states that on Saturday June 13th McMurtry consecrated Richard Gernon and Robert Latulippe as "Bishops of New York & Québec."
In the Minutes for the O.T.O. Board Meeting held on August 21st 1981, Resolution No. 242 states: "G[rand] T[reasurer] G[eneral] moves that new Camps and Chapters in the Montréal and Toronto area as proposed by Bill Breeze may be made official outside a board meeting by the concerted opinion of the Caliph, G.T.G. and G[rand] S[ecretary] G[eneral]." The vote: unanimous.
_The Magickal Link_ (Vol. I Nº 11) for November 1981 lists a new address for Phoenix Lodge as "4 Farnham, CP 523, Place Bonaventure, Montréal, Québec, Canada H5A 1C3." This issue also announces that on September 22nd the O.T.O. had been recognized in Canada as a non-profit organization. 'Phoenix' also mention that they held their "first" full Lodge Meeting on September 28th at the Café Thélème, adding that they are forming encampments. The Minutes for the O.T.O. Board Meeting held on November 7th 1981, Resolution 251: "G.T.G. moves that Fra[ter] Peter Ismar Ram Altman Cohen be granted an Encampment titled Dragon's Electrum Arc in the valley of Montréal, Québec." - vote: unanimous. Resolution 252: "G.T.G. moves Fra Michael Verdon, 418, be granted an Encampment titled Sebra Encampment in Montréal, Que[bec]." - vote: unanimous. _The Magickal Link_ (Vol. I Nº 12) for December 1981, under 'Contact Addresses of Official Lodges, Chapters & Camps' lists Sebra Encampment and Dragon's Electrum Arc Encampment with no addresses; instead they may be addressed "care of Phoenix Lodge."
The Minutes for the O.T.O. Board Meeting held on January 23rd 1982 Resolution 269: "G.T.G. moves that Huges De Payenes Encampment, a satellite encampment of Phoenix Lodge be under the direction of Francios [sic] Cartier, be recognised as an official body of O.T.O." - vote: unanimous.
_The Magickal Link_ (Vol. II Nº 3) for March 1982 is the first official mention that Huges De Payenes Encampment even exists. Its address is given as "7718 Rue St. Denis, Montréal, Québec. H2R 2E9." _The Magickal Link_ (Vol. II Nº 5) of May 1982 announces that Sebra Encampment has closed under Michael Verdon's leadership.
Breeze took the Fourth degree and PI at Tahuti Lodge, New York on January 19th 1985. He then jumped straight to the IX° at the Election of the Caliph on September 21st 1985.
OUR INITIAL SOURCES
'Simon' and 'Leah'/Leslie, who were in the Canadian COTO from an early date, are our main correspondents. Here are their "autobiographies" also published at http://adcuirt.topcities.com/morrighinn/liosliathanna.html [defunct now but reproduced below]. Leah/Leslie does a lot of research re incorporation, eg Trademarks of the O.T.O. She has a website at http://satyra.nuit.ca/ about several of the protagonists in this Canada-sectionDavid Poole: "We have no record af any "Simon" or "Eric Cote" ever a member of OTO."
Leah: "hahaha! contrary to what Heidrick writes! look likes Simon is the receipient of a "civil death"/expunging from the record! Not at all surprising! [...] and anyway, again it is where DP did a little creative cheating someone out of money... and now he denies Eric's existence as far as OTO is concerned. LOL!"
Poole: "Cote may have used an alias when he attended "open" Phoenix Lodge events. I found proof in my file that he was initiated to Alan Stewarts Starry Wisdom Church after Stewart was suspended. Stewart gave Frater "Cote" a "charter" for a Camp of the "Esoteric Order of Dogon"(?)! They (Leah & Simon) make it seem as if that is any way significant, and that it has anything to do with OTO. Also, their self-importance and need to create all sorts of aliaces, well what can I say?"
Subject: Eric S. Cote
"He prefers "Simon" since "Eric" was his baptismal name, his apostasy from the RCC was in 1992-3.Eric S. Cote, known as "Simon", was born in Bonnyville, AB. When he was four years old, he moved to Montréal with his mother. In high school he was a clarinetist with Rosemere High School band, travelling to Europe (Holland, Germany, Belgium) on a music program in 1988.
He was first "public" in Winnipeg, MB, when he did a six-day hunger strike on the steps of the Manitoba legislature, to protest the passage of "Bill 36". He also spoke at the hearing concerning that Bill. He was a very outspoken activist there. (Eric S. Cote, if anyone wants to care to go look it up) as a member of PETAS, "People Empowering Themselves Against the System" (1996-7). We both did some pretty interesting "street theatre" there.
He also was on television in Ottawa (maybe Canada-wide), as one of the "Elders' Helpers" at the First Nations Spiritual Assembly, 1995, Hull, QC. He was one of the aboriginal (Métis) youth that the Elders passed on the flame to. He was a keeper of the Sacréd Fire on the island of Odawa, which is just behind Canada's parliament buildings, on Algonquin land. He is Métis (Cree/French/Scots/Irish), and is working at the learning the Cree language. He is bilingual, French and English.
In 1997, he became a singer/drummer, on the big Native Drum, at Odawa. In Montréal last Spring at a workshop, he was given a hawk feather for aboriginal dance.
He continues his activism, no longer as a demonstrator, as a Street Medic. He was originally certified by St. John's Ambulance in Winnipeg. Last April he was at the Summit of the Americas in Québec City in that role, as well as demos in Toronto, Montréal and Ottawa, and gave aid to people during the occupation in Overdale, and the Squat.
Finally, he is an artist and a potter. In Winnipeg, he participated in painting an outdoors mural at the local community centre (West Broadway).
Together we have a partnership, "Atelier Pentangle, Reg'd.", the aegis under which we published Pentangle when it was still being published physically, and also the pottery studio (which is still under development). He studies pottery at the "Centre Céramique de Bonsecours", it is one of the only two pottery schools in Canada, the other is in Banff, AB."
mini-bio of Eric written by his wife
Subject: leslie anne
[bio removed]Date: Sun, 12 Dec 2004 01:15:47 -0500
To: koenig at cyberlink.ch
From: Satyra XIII
Subject: Moose Magick
[...]
By the way, since I had a person (who turned out to actually live near Montreal!) take personal information from the www (and I assume that included your website) to use to impersonate me using the name "[XXX]" (this was completely unrelated to O.T.O. as far as I know) I would like to request that you remove some things.
One, for sure is the "autobiography" which is pretty irrelevant anyway and out of date, for instance who cares about the dogs, except me, or my education for that matter! Why should I have an autobiography up there, when Bill Breeze does not? Doesn't make any sense! And, it was not written for the "O.T.O." site, so almost none of it has any relevance, *and* it gives too much personal information to stalkers and potential impersonators (like birth year and parents' names).
Wherever it appears could you replace "[XXX]" or "[XXX]" with simply, "Leah", or "the former 'Thelemic Nun' Sr. Aristha", or if you want, "Satyra". I legally use the name "Satyra", according to the laws in Canada, as "Simon" legally uses the name "Simon Raven". In fact, if I want to maintain my "legal" claim to the name Satyra, I must do so *by* using it and abandoning the other.
I don't think Simon cares about his autobiography being there since he's still got it up on the www on his site: http://simonraven.nuit.ca/
PENTANGLE EZINE VOLUME V NO. 7 & 8
An Occult Cult StoryMy Experience with the Caliphate O.T.O. Inc.
© 2001 e.v. by LeahA question about my experience with the Caliphate O.T.O. [herein referred to as cOTO] was put to me on one of the incarnations of the Aiwaz_Thelema yahoo-group, and this was my answer:
That's okay, I have posted [my story] in bits and pieces on different A-Ts over a pretty long period of time. Why I joined this [Aiwaz_Thelema] list in the first place? Well I resigned from the cOTO 3-4 times. That sounds like I joined, resigned, joined resigned, etc., but that wasn't it. I resigned, and then in 1999 (could've been 2000) I found out that the Lodge Master [David Poole of cOTO's Phoenix Lodge] still had my name on a list of members!
Now locally we had been told that you could not resign, ever, in fact the line from the Eagle's Hotel California in local lore was said to be about the OTO California that "you can check out anytime you want, but you can never leave". Someone on this list says that song is about Anton Lavey's Church of Satan, which is interesting if true, but I was told that about cOTO. Yet I was quite aware they were a "corporate entity" and that I could indeed resign if I so chose, despite the Oath in the first degree, which says:
So having just gotten access to [The Secret Rituals of the O.T.O., by ] Francis King, [a book in publication since 1973 which the cOTO used for their so-called "initiations" until at least 1987!] [thanks to G.M.Kelly], through the internet around 1999, I decided to challenge that and began to try to have cOTO accept the fact I resigned. I had had nothing at all to do with it since about 1997, which was the last time I actually did pay dues to try to have "my problem" straightened out. It didn't work, and I had resigned again, so I was pretty angry that they still considered me as a member if not "internationally" then "locally".
That problem has been taken care of, I am an "official" resignee, as of early this year. [link to correspondence having to do with my resignation from cOTO] That's part of it. The other part is the various indignities to human beings I was witness to during my time in cOTO, which makes my own "story" pretty trivial.
How does one explain getting caught up in something that, well, is pretty insane, and find oneself behaving in uncharacteristic ways? I am still trying to understand that. I had "experiences" I had never had before in cOTO, so I was not well equipped to deal with them.
My association with cOTO began by meeting, in 1985, a group of people [calling themselves Phoenix Lodge O.T.O.] [Alan Stewart, Sr. Ferox, Michael Hoirch especially] who were all cOTO members. The cOTO thing was kept in the background, up front they were "witches". However it was not long before I started hearing about "The Caliphate" in hushed reverential terms.
I had tied in with one member of the group [Michael Hoirch], who at first claimed to be a "Wicca" teacher, but gave me a stack of books by Aleister Crowley, "The Book of Lies", "Liber Aleph" (I was supposed to read a chapter a day and make a commentary on it), Liber CCXX with AC's comments, and, above all, Liber OZ - I actually was given a framed copy. At first I was okay with the study, in fact study has contined over all these years, and has led me down many other paths of inquiry. I was given Liber MCLI which I did follow faithfully. But it was not long before these cOTO members took over my life. I mean they were there all the time. It also was after about three months or so that my magickal "teacher" [Michael Hoirch] got drunk one night, wanted to sleep over although he only lived a short walk away, and when asked to leave my apartment by me (I had two roommates) punched me in the mouth. He was arrested and part of his conditional release was to have no contact with me before the trial. I did not see it that way at that time, but all at once the "sympathetic" other cOTO members [Alan Stewart and Sr. Ferox] started pushing me to join cOTO. I thought it was because of me, but it became obvious afterwards, that it was to try to keep this person out of jail. I thought he had been totally sidelined, I was having no contact with him [per the conditions of his release from jail]. Anyhow HB ["The Caliph" aka Hymenaeus Beta aka William Breeze aka "Frater Superior"] - who had started his drive to the Caliphate here [in Montreal in 1981] - was brought up [from New York] with a team for initiations. And there I was for my Minerval. I took that early in the morning, most of the Montreal crew of people were still abed. It was later that afternoon there was this hushed conference about the person [Michael Hoirch] who had punched me, who was still out on a conditional release, and how they really wanted him there, too, and how he must be "advanced" to II°. And, that is what was done. And after that I was fed all that stuff about the cOTO Constitution and how it was "impossible" for me to go to court to testify about this "brother". That is about when I figured out just why they were so intent on befriending/recruiting me. It didn't matter, I was never called as a witness, in QC it is the police that press charges, and the trial went on without my having to testify. And I think he received a suspended sentence.
Once I was in cOTO though, I found out a lot, and can honestly say I learned much more Magick working on my own.
I learnt about a young woman [Sabine H... from AB aka Sr. Hawkchild] who had been used as some cOTO magician's [a person named Michael Vaughn] magickal "tool" (which is what she was called), got a PID, and was discarded when she had a hysterectomy at the age of 19, having been totally abandoned by all the local brethren when she got sick and was (temporarily) without her health insurance card (just the card, and to explain in this country we have socialised medicine, but you must have your card, if you don't have it, you have to pay the bill and then later be reimbursed by the provincial government). This was Sr. Hawkchild, she died a few years later in total despair at the antics of the brethren, she walked into the woods, sat under a tree, and died of exposure after ten days, she was only 21 years old. I loved her, and sometimes have understood a little of that kind of despair.
I discovered that my sponsor into the cOTO [Alan Ian Stewart] was a drunk, and that he beat and terrorised his "magickal partner" (and other women) on a regular basis. Over the years the lady [Sr. Ferox] was hospitalised some eight times for those beatings, even being put in a wheelchair for six months, and losing her job. She owned her house [at 3703 rue Coloniale], and had turned it over to the cOTO to use, the third floor was a Temple. She eventually sold the house and left the province, having nothing more to do with cOTO.
By then I was caught up in a relationship [mostly a business partnership] with my magickal teacher [Michael Hoirch], the person who had assaulted me. That is the hard part for me to admit, that I could have been so blind, but I had entered this universe where the game of life was played that way, and for me it became a test of my own survival skills. Did it have anything to do with Thelema? No, decidedly not, on reflection. All the brethren here had that very strange interpretation of Liber OZ, that I mentioned a few posts ago [i.e. that the use of the word "man has the right..." was to be interpreted as the male gendered only], and cOTO here became the last gasp for the worst of the old aeon patriarchal system, with "men" and their rights taking precedence over all other Human Rights.
Terrible things followed, but living through them, all you try to do is survive, you have no time to see "patterns" or "cycles" but just take one day at a time. I thought the person who assaulted me would reform, I felt so sorry for him (having believed his "devil made me do it" story) that I was actually in the role of trying to help him. Anyhow the abuse never ended, lahdidahdidah, and eventually I left. Up to that point I never "blamed" cOTO, I was really in to the individual and psychological explanation, and in fact, what "professional" help that person received was on that line, as was the help I sought. I had no idea that this was going on in other places, I thought that it was isolated incidents that were unrelated, that it was always the responsibility of the individual, and that if cOTO only knew, they would "do something".
So then I found out that they did know (I should say HB knew) and as well another of the IX° [Richard Gernon, who died of a heroin overdose in 1989 e.v. in New York - very soon after Sr. Ferox had contacted him for help] and the direct involvement of the cOTO in affairs here extended to brethren being told "keep those women in line" (this is hearsay) in otherwords, make sure none of us talked. Over the years I came to realise how completely and totally Magickally defunct this cult was, but it took me many years to do so. They are a completely mundane organisation.
The woman who was being beaten (a III°) [besides me], actually was talking to one of the other IX° [Richard Gernon] about the problem via phone calls (after her back was broken), as was a friend of mine (the one who had been tied to a cross for his "first" and had his wallet stolen) and that IX° died a short time (within a month or three) after they both had been talking to him, and without their problems ever being resolved. Is there a connection? I don't know; I just know they both had turned to that person for help, considering that the Oasis Master "controlled" all communication between any of us and HB - he had HB's number, and phoned him frequently.
After that a friend of mine, Bill Kennedy, a non-cOTO member moved into the house aka Church of Starry Wisdom aka Starry Wisdom Oasis cOTO (they had signs in the window to that effect, and were actually written up in the paper back book Witches, Pagans, and Magic in the New Age published by McClellan and Stewart) - to protect the lady from further beatings - he was that kind of guy and it wasn't too long after he'd moved in that he died after a fall down the stairs, hitting his head (officially "an accident"). A young man who was neighbour of the "Oasis" who was there a lot also died around the same time - willing all his papers to the "Starry Wisdom Oasis" supposedly.
Another Sr. [Mimi V°] who was from QC and part of the original HB "team" left and returned to Canada, she was only 28, and she was dead only a short time after that, within months in fact. [She was survived by two children, and had been Bill Breeze's "Scarlet Woman"].
It was just too weird for words (still is). There was a shakeup, and a new Lodge Master [David Poole] eventually. But everyone here had problems with him too, and though I wasn't a party to it I know there were at least two very lengthy letters sent to [cOTO] G[rand] L[odge] resulting in almost everyone going inactive but him, and a friend or two, and that is what the cOTO has been here for about 12 years now, having now been closed entirely as of 4 May 2001 from what I have been told.
The two people who were actually assaulting people were given a "Camp" in one case [Michael Hoirch - Wytchwood Hill Camp cOTO - chartered by Bill Breeze] and an "Oasis" in the other case [Alan Stewart - Starry Wisdom Oasis cOTO] after the assaults of Srs., as if they were being rewarded for their actions. It is possible they both perceived this as a reward, as, if anything, the violent incidents only increased.
I came to the conclusion, on leaving the "Camp", resigning from cOTO (the first time), moving 90 miles away, and meeting the new "Lodge Master", that the whole cOTO gestalt is rotten. I mean you can spend all your time claiming it is this individual and that individual, but the sociological phenomenon that is cOTO in this valley (PQ) [and everywhere] is so rotten I doubt it could ever be fixed. In most cases good people and magicians were drawn to cOTO but they did not stay because of the antics of the leadership/people put into positions of authority over others.
What's behind it? Dunno, but it does not seem too Thelemic to me. Anyhow I dealt with the whole problem and my problem of resigning was one of principle and does pale in comparison to what I wrote above.
And I do not believe those problems were necessarily isolated in this valley, either. I came to this realisation after reading the "stories" on the OTO phenomenon website and through contact with ex-cOTO members.
Last modified 13 February, 2002 02:21
©1999-2001
SUSPECT RECORDS
Leah and Simon had their own comments to make on Breeze's magical resumé:October 2000
Leah: I only joined just before Grady died, and you probably know the dates better than me if you have the membership list in front of you - as all papers that I had with anything to do with the O.T.O. are long since destroyed. I rely on memory which sometimes isn't too good."
"The address given is the same as 93 Press."
Simon: "418 Books was a bookstore on MacKay Street. I always thought that Peter and Linda MacFarlane actually owned the shop. I may be wrong. Linda MacFarlane's paintings appear on a recent edition of 'Equinox of the Gods'. I think - but I'm not sure - that 93 publishing was the publishing arm of the MacFarlanes. There is some connection between them and Breeze for sure - but what I don't know. As I said I was under the impression that the people in 418 were Typhonian O.T.O."
David Poole added later: "418 Books was NOT on Mackay street, it was on the intersection of Marie Anne and St-Dominique. Leah is repeating things that she has heard in the past. There was a University bookstore on Mackay which had some Thelemic& wiccan connection, but she doesn't know about that. It was in the early 70's.
93 Publishing and 418 Bookstore were at the same address 418 Marie Annne ( 4345 St-Dominique) Montreal, QC H2W-2A9 . This is very easy to confirm: do you have copies of "Magical and Philosophical Commentaries on the Book of the Law"? And as far as the address on Mackay street is NEXT STEP PUBLICATIONS 2040Mackay, Montreal 107, Quebec, Canada see "Magical Record of the Beast 666", and again this address on Mackay is NOT the same as the OTHER bookstore that was ANOTHER wiccan-thelemic store near McGILL University."
Leah: "I of course knew about the bookstore (how does DP know what I know)? It used to be very close to my workplace, I was a typesetter at Globe Publications, it was half a block away, AND I bought all my astrological textbooks there. This is too stupid, for him to tell you where he thinks I shopped in 1970, when he did not even know me. His ignorance is offensive. Next he will tell you that I never ate a meal at A&W, or go to "le Bistro" on Friday nights with friends from work! Is he trying to steal my memories? I suggest he stop that nonsense. -- I still maintain that while that bookstore was open , DP must have gone shopping there with his mother, he was too young, I was 21-3, so he would have been eleven-thirteen years old. I "believe" it was called 418, there probably was ANOTHER one called 418 on Marie-Anne. (BIG city, two bookshops with the same name not impossible...).
About "le Bistro" sur la rue de la Montagne in Montréal-- many famous and went-on-to-be famous people used to go there late 60s and early 70s, American ex-pats, too (comme moi, like me): among the famous, journalists: Peter Leney, and Nick Auf-de-Meyer (father of Melissa), artists: Terry Mosher, singers & musicians, Leonard Cohen (father of Adam), my very dear friend Morley Loon (producer with my friend /sister Kateri of "Red Cedar" records — and he worked for the NFB as well on documentary films), a co-worker of mine, Geoff Gray-Cobb (astrologer, writer, and TV personality on the show "Beyond Reason" with Marilyn Rossner) and of course, my old friend, Willie Dunn."
Poole: "93 Publishing was South Stukely, QC, another imprint called NEXT STEP PUBLICATIONS was at 2040 Mackay, but that is NOT the same address as 418 Books. (418 Marie-Anne Street)."
Leah "This I had corrected myself later on in what I said, I always confused 418 (bookstore) with 93 (publishing). South Stukely is where Serge Lebel lives NOW. No comment."
Poole: "Serge lives in downtown Montreal and avoids certain people like the PLAGUE. --
Actually what I said is that I was introduced there by an older friend of mine (he was 19). At sixteen years old I had a few friends that were into the things I was into: yoga, philosophy, magick, etc... Also, he had been introduced there by a certain Jacques B. an elder in a wiccan tradition that Leslie & Michael and co. didn't know about. He was the owner of a boutique of Montreal's underground wicca comunity of the 1960's a place called "The Witches Cave" in the basement of a 200 year old building in Vieux Montreal."
In January 2003, Leah: "above is yet another example of where david poole makes an assumption, based on what? he has never spoken at length to either 'michael' (fr. a.s.v.) OR me... but he assumes that neither of us knew anything in this city as if we were somehow hatched in the caliphate O.T.O. and never pre-existed it. i am sending a copy of this to fr. a.s.v. at his last known email, perhaps he will fill in some blanks, but don't hold your breath... anyway here is my hearsay from him on the subject because he said he was involved with "The Witches' Cave".
i am not going to get heavily into what "witchcraft" activities there were/were not going on in this city in the late 1960s-very early 1970s, except to comment, i *believe* the Witches' Cave actually closed in 1970-71, so here again we have an eleven year old david poole (b. 1959 as he wrote on your site) hanging out with adult occultist(s)! if this is true, it is not "the occult" it sounds more like what? (i don't want to go there!). so what do i believe? that an eleven year old hung out with adult occultists in this city, and no one ever noticed this, or is david poole lying, and just "heard" about the "Witches' Cave" and adds it to his autobiography? he could not have been "sixteen years old" when that shop existed!
this was hardly "underground", it was a shop! anyway, there was a bit run on our local teevee channel "12" about this shop (who knows maybe they archived it), and not only was fr. a.s.v. "involved" he was in the film, i *think*. i don't remember all the details, but it had something to do with a joke someone had pulled on the owner whose name was (again i *believe*) Stevie Paul where they had put a hammer in a display cabinet, labelled the "Malleus Maleficarum" unknown to him before the filming, and he didn't blink on camera but gave a rather convincing "explanation" about this "witches' hammer" which was used during the Inquisition.
i did not know the shop, but know of it, and since it was "in the news" so to speak (again late 1960s-very early 1970s) so did a whole lot of people. anyhow michael (fr. a.s.v.) either worked there, or hung out there... while it is doubtful he will contribute anything i wonder if he feels the same way if he knows this "jacques b." person who david says was "an elder in a wicca tradition" associated with people who had eleven or twelve year old male acolytes (i need to STRESS that if true, this is NOT 'wicca' of ANY tradition, it is something else again)"
"The very next _O.T.O. Newsletter_, (Vol. III Nº 9 August 1979), under 'Contact Addresses of Official Lodges, Chapters & Camps.' on p.66 states: "W.T. Smith Chapter - address is in a state of change.""
Leah: "I am sure you notice when Breeze gets a higher 'degree' there is another Chapter or Lodge opened up in Québec. Coincidence? Hmmmm..."
BREEZE THE ONE-MAN BAND
David Poole (later to be Breeze's representative in Canada -- more about Poole soon, November 2000): "The 'W.T. Smith' Chapter was Breeze himself. He had a couple of people helping him with French translations (Serge Lebel, Frater Yahoo) but no "members".At that time, Breeze seems to be friendly with [the two IX°s] Bill Heidrick and Richard Gernon from NY. He indicates that he's aware of OTOs in Haiti, France, Japan, Denmark, Brazil and Switzerland. He also notes that Argentina, Australia, France, the U.K. and Canada are "currently developing". He "feel[s] that it is imperative to convene an election of O.H.O. before long, even if boycotted by certain countries, and consider it equally imperative that the Caliph's successor be indicated to all national heads, if not publicly." (Undated, but from internal evidence it is before Grady's visit to Montréal in spring 1982, and after a visit Grady made to NY City - late 1981 I guess. This actually a very interesting document; Breeze states: "the Grant organisation, once quite influential here under MacFarlane, is virtually defunct, and there is a real need for a local, accesible organisation offering pratical assistance to aspirants.")
"The _Magickal Link_, (Vol. I Nº 3) for March 1981 had a brief article submitted by the W.T. Smith Chapter announcing they finally had an address: "Box 1167 Pointe-Claire Postal Station, Pointe-Claire, Québec, Canada H9S 4R6." The article also mentions their hopes of flying Grady McMurtry up to Canada in the Spring to do initiations. The P.O. Box listed was also used by Breeze."
Leah: "All I can add to this is that Pointe-Claire is the west island of Montréal, about 20 minutes drive from the city centre. Not downtown like the other addresses or the Café Thélème."
"In June 1981 Grady McMurtry finally flew up to visit Québec. Breeze took the Third Degree at 'Ra-Hoor-Khuit' Lodge in Syracuse, New York on July 8th 1981."
Leah: "This sounds so odd. I thought you had to have a third degree to have a Lodge. What a coincidence. But don't know anything at all about Ra-Hoor-Khuit Lodge."
"_The Magickal Link_ (Vol. I Nº 8) dated August 1981 includes an article entitled 'Caliph's Log: Star Date - You name it.' It begins, "I have just returned from a most fantastic adventure," and he goes on to discuss his trip to Montréal, Canada. He says he initiated 23 Minervals, and adds that "I am proud to announce that we now have a Phoenix Lodge"; in other words the W.T. Smith Chapter had been raised to Lodge status. The rest of the article is mainly gossip, but it ends by asking: "The next question is: how many countries does it take to elect an O.H.O.? An interesting thought.""
Leah: "It is obvious that they 'needed' Québec to claim to be 'international' - they were thinking international even way back then. Very ambitious!" Simon: "It's pretty obvious by the time Breeze 'got up the ranks', up to say 5th (not having the 6th to 8th or 9th degrees without Francis King's book), the 9ths that Grady made, and those members in Québec would stack the 'Council', elect Breeze, then have an 'OHO' in Breeze. In other words, to 'legitimise' an 'international' body, they figured they could get Québec on-side. Which they obviously did."
Poole later added: "Quebec members couldn't have "stacked" the Council to elect a X*. There were no IX* or provisional IX* in Quebec!"
"In the Minutes for the O.T.O. Board Meeting held on August 21st 1981, Resolution No. 242 states: "G[rand] T[reasurer] G[eneral] moves that new Camps and Chapters in the Montréal and Toronto area as proposed by Bill Breeze may be made official outside a board meeting by the concerted opinion of the Caliph, G.T.G. and G[rand] S[ecretary] G[eneral]." The vote: unanimous."
Simon: "The above just confirms what I just said; the "outside a board meeting" is to my knowledge, highly irregular."
"_The Magickal Link_ (Vol. I Nº 11) for November 1981 lists a new address for Phoenix Lodge as "4 Farnham, CP 523... "
Leah: "CP is 'Case Postale' a post office Box - in a shopping centre!"
"...Place Bonaventure, Montréal, Québec, Canada H5A 1C3.' This issue also announces that on September 22nd the O.T.O. had been recognized in Canada as a non-profit organization."
Leah: "I don't know about "in Canada". But I do know for a fact that the lover of a member, a lawyer named Alan MacDonald, drew up the 'Incorporation' papers for Québec - not Canada - just Québec, for a very small fee (as a favour) Only $150 or so, it was a bargain; and this was only done just before I joined, or just after. Meaning filed and finalised with the Government of QC. Quite a bit later than 1981.
If it is Québec, it gets interesting. Though it wants to be, Québec is not a 'Country' - yet - just a province. Canada is the federal government, the country. So if a province is not a country, then where is their International status? Of course Québec is in another country. But why wouldn't they register with the feds?"
The Canadian animator Ryan Larkin died peacefully in his sleep, Wednesday, February 14, in St. Hyacinthe, Quebec following a long-term battle with cancer. Larkin was 63.
Leah (eMails in March 2007):
I was informed Ryan Larkin was a member of Ordo Templi Orientis Phoenix Lodge, necessary to qualify for a corporate officer back then. He was also a musician and had a band called "Billy and the Bats" (I think that was the name of it), that isn't mentioned in an article in Animation World Magazine I found online (link below). However, for awhile he kept his drums (he was a drummer) in the Starry Wisdom Oasis temple and there were jam sessions there.
Most of the 'Caliphate' members in those days lived in the same small neighbourhood, even on the same street (Rue Coloniale) and saw each other frequently, shopped in the same small shops that sort of thing.
This was the same time frame he was the partner of Alan Macdonald who was one of the corporate officers in Montreal (circa 1981), who I believe was the 'man who put Larkin up in a studio' mentioned in the Animation World Magazine (I was told he was a lawyer); Macdonald's name and address of the apartment above Ryan's former studio is on the 1981 corporation documents. The studio was right up the street from where I lived, about two blocks away. I saw Ryan frequently during the mid 1980s. He certainly tried to discourage me from joining the 'Caliphate', I didn't listen to his advice.
Macdonald was an 'invisible' member (I never saw him once) as far as Phoenix Lodge events or meetings went during the time I was a member, and yet he seems to have been somehow instrumental in filing the corporate documents in 1981 and is listed as an officer of the Caliphate's O.T.O. corporation in Quebec.
Probably everyone who knew Ryan was happy he made such a tremendous recovery recently from life literally on the streets, including me. I know he found peace before he died. He was a great person and I am happy to have known him. He was a great encouragement to me as an artist and as a human being.
http://www.awn.com/mag/issue5.08/5.08pages/robinsonlarkin5.php3
http://www.awn.com/mag/issue5.08/5.08pages/robinsonlarkin.php3
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Larkin
http://www.ryanbango.com/
http://www.cnw.ca/fr/releases/archive/February2007/16/c9595.html
"'Phoenix' also mention that they held their "first" full Lodge Meeting on September 28th at the Café Thélème, adding that they are forming encampments."
Leah: "It's only hearsay, but back then anyone could propose anything and Breeze would say 'go for it'. They were also encouraged to form guilds. None of them really did anything; like the 'Translators Guild' which fell apart over rendering 'Do What Thou wilt' en français."
"The Minutes for the O.T.O. Board Meeting held on November 7th 1981, Resolution 251: "G.T.G. moves that Fra[ter] Peter Ismar Ram Altman Cohen be granted an Encampment titled Dragon's Electrum Arc in the valley of Montréal, Québec." - vote: unanimous."
Leah: "We spotted Cohen in the photo. He was the owner (still is) of a shop here, but has ahd nothing at all to do with anyone in the occult community for years now."
Simon: "One day I was speaking with Alan Stewart, and he had mentioned Peter Cohen. I said "I know that guy!" So I decided to go down sometime and ask him "Do you know Alan Stewart?" All he did was look off towards the front of the store without saying a word, and I saw him there very little after that (he wouldn't speak to me again). What I realised after this 'event' was that what I thought, and what others thought of Alan Stewart, coincided. I was VERY naive at the time..."
"Resolution: 252: 'G.T.G. moves Fra Michael Verdon, 418... "
Leah: "I know Michel Verdon (same person obviously, but he is French) fairly well. I know he must been in that group, but only met him in 1985 or 86, when he was no longer an Order member but still friendly with some. He was a writer and poet."
"...be granted an Encampment titled Sebra Encampment in Montréal, Que[bec]."
Leah: "The Magickal Link (Vol.I No.12) for December 1981 under 'Contact Addresses of Official Lodges, Chapters & Camps' lists Sebra Encampment and Dragon's Electrum Arc Encampment with no address, just "care of Phoenix Lodge."
As mentioned, Peter Cohen was Hoirch's roommate at the time, on Sewell Street. Don't know how/why the relationship ended, but do know Cohen will not even speak to anyone who even mentions O.T.O. or its members, especially Stewart and Hoirch. I think Peter Cohen's girlfriend (magickal partner) was Sr. Eva (Micheline ...) and then she was 'stolen away' by Latulippe, and then went to New York with Gernon, who she married I think. I only met her twice. Perhaps Peter Cohen was bitter over this. Sr. Eva and Latulippe were partners at the EGC mass I think, as were Donna and Hoirch, with Latulippe as the Deacon. There also was a professor from Concordia University who may have been Donna's priest too; was he O.T.O.? I don't know! Peter's shop is called 'Valet de Coeur' and carries Dungeons and Dragons stuff, and Tarot cards. I know that people came to O.T.O. or heard about it through his shop for a while - a lot of people in the early years here were into role-playing games."
"The Minutes for the O.T.O. Board Meeting held on January 23rd 1982 Resolution 269: "G.T.G. moves that Huges De Payenes Encampment, a satellite encampment of Phoenix Lodge be under the direction of Francios [sic] Cartier, be recognised as an official body of O.T.O." - vote: unanimous."
Leah: "We have both heard a lot about Cartier, but nothing specific or important - and he is not on the scene now (nor has he been for 15 years). Never met him."
"_The Magickal Link_ (Vol. II Nº 3) for March 1982 is the first official mention that Huges De Payenes Encampment even exists. Its address is given as "7718 Rue St. Denis, Montréal, Québec. H2R 2E9.""
Leah: "I assume that is where Cartier lived."
"_The Magickal Link_ (Vol. II Nº 5) of May 1982 announces that Sebra Encampment has closed under Michael Verdon's leadership."
Leah: "No surprise there - he had a way of antagonising people."
"Breeze took the Fourth degree and PI at Tahuti Lodge, New York on January 19th 1985. He then jumped straight to the IX° at the Election of the Caliph on September 21st 1985."
Leah: "I keep thinking I joined in 1985, but maybe I am wrong; Breeze was gone from Montréal by then, and most of his inner circle (Gernon, Eva, Mimi, etc.) were gone too. Alan Stewart always let us think that Breeze was only a first. Alan also said he was Breeze's 'revolutionary' - he always had a hot line to Breeze - called him day or night, whenever he felt like it. I always thought that he knew something about Breeze that Breeze did not want the rest of us to know; almost like Breeze was worried about what Alan might say or do if he got annoyed with him. Maybe Alan just knew how bogus Breeze was! I think he had known Breeze for quite a while, as Alan had 'hung out' at 418 books since he was very young (he was born in 1949, so that would have been in late 60s). Hoirch on the other hand, knew Breeze, but not that well."
MAIL-ORDER POPES
Leah: "We have both been doing a lot of reading - and having a lot of laughs - on your site. One thing that occurs to me, in light of the McOTO phenomenon which may not occur to others. The USA has a unique position in the history of the world. Having broken with their ancestral 'roots' as it were, they recreated themselves as individuals and as a nation. Have you ever heard of the Universal Life Church in Canada? For very little (a dollar or ten) they will make you a Pope, a Goddess, a Bishop, an Angel, a Doctor of Metaphysics - giving you the title, and a certificate. And it is considered perfectly legal in the USA - both religiously and legally. You can also custom order a title, like, for instance OHO of O.T.O. The ULC will do this. This is how the USA seems to interpret freedom of religion. You can be anything at all you dream up, and call yourself anything at all you want to, as long as you register it with the government, you're legitimate. So the Caliphake always has that to fall back on. That is, US 'protection' of their rights. This is why it has been so important for them, to have the 'legal' documents, even to the point of sacrificing the real magick (and often denying it exists, like Bill Breeze wanting his XI°, but not really knowing what it is all about. I can see he is magickally clueless. I never thought that was so until I read your site. But it explains a lot. Universal Life Church - also a California corporation in Modesto CA - is also on the Internet. Check it out for yourself. It probably hasn't occurred to them that people would want Lodge Charters, but I am sure they would supply them to anyone who asked, for a small fee. You can be a duly ordained minister of their Church for one dollar. You can get a 'press pass' once you are a minister. Etc. So you do have to take the American 'attitude' towards religion/history into account. Your piece on 'McCulture' tells me you figured this out!"FRANCIS KING and THE VERY SECRET RITUALS
Simon: "You might be interested to know that Bill Breeze got his start right here in Montréal with the 'Caliphate' - I guess it was in 1981 - with Phoenix Oasis and Francis King's book. He initiated 50 people into O.T.O.; that so impressed Grady McMurtry that subsequently Bill became the 'Caliph'. Grady McMurtry has also been up here (a little before my time).The 'Caliph' O.T.O. is VERY dormant here right now. And no one is talking about it either."
Later, Poole commented: "Simon has nothing to say about early OTO history, he wasn't there, was never a member."
Leah: "Civil death. IOW. At least BHeidrick admits he was a member."
Leah was asked whether she had actually seen Breeze doing these initiations using Francis King's book as a 'crib':
Leah: "At my Minerval, which was done by Breeze himself, with Steve Santiago and "Soror Eva" present in the Temple basement of the Café Thélème, the ritual had been memorised by the Officers. There was no book present but Liber AL. I think about 30 people were initiated on the two days the 'Grand Lodge' team was here, in the summer or early fall of 1985. (I may be wrong about the year).
William Heidrick, several years later, on 8 November 2004 pretends that this "can't be accurate." He thinks that in the entire decade of the 1980's, Phoenix Lodge in Montreal (they met at Café Thélème during part of that decade) did a total of 85 Minerval initiations — from 1981 to 1989 and that no Minervals were done there in 1984. Five were done there in 1985 and two were done there in 1986. Heidrick provides the information that in the remaining years of the 1980's they had 5 or fewer per year. That is, most were done in the first few years of operation, particularly 1981. Heidrick recalls that Starry Wisdom Oasis in Montreal did a total of 4 Minerval initiations during the 1980's and that they had their own temple. Witchwood Hill didn't do any initiations.
Furthermore, Heidrick thinks that "Leah" as a name apparently is not the name used by this individual then, for 'Caliphate' records. No one of that name was initiated in the Montreal area, as a civil name reported to Heidrick at the time. There was a L. initiated Minerval with one other person in 1986. Maybe that's the individual.
-
Leah Thu Dec 9, 2004:
What's rather hilarious about a lot of this, is that the Crowleyan O.T.O.[TM], Inc., and its members, friends, and fans, don't and didn't have my "legal" name at the time I joined. I don't mean my "name as an artist" (SatyraX) or my "maiden name" (allegedly) but my "real" and "legal name".
Funny, I filled out an application, but NO ONE EVER ASKED ME FOR ANY ID! Not a driver's license, no ID at all was required!
That is a pretty glaring omission. Somehow I doubt I EVER gave my legal name to either of my two sponsors either. I know one person who was a member of the Crowleyan O.T.O.[TM], Inc., who might have it, or might be able to figure it out, but to date s/he has remained totally silent.
Leah Leslie
(It's in accord with the O.T.O. that my name should not be known — even to the "brethren")
O.T.O. Manifesto: "The names of women members ARE NEVER DIVULGED."
And, in my own case, this has never been done.
Heidrick guesses that probably the remark refered to other degree initiations beyond Minerval. Even so, the number is too high for that period and the remark seems to have been interpreted as refering to Minervals only.
Leah Tue Nov 16, 2004
QUOTE Leah: "At my Minerval, which was done by Breeze himself, with Steve Santiago and "Soror Eva" present in the Temple basement of the Café Thélème, the ritual had been memorised by the Officers. There was no book present but Liber AL. I think about 30 people were initiated on the two days the 'Grand Lodge' team was here, in the summer or early fall of 1985. (I may be wrong about the year).
William Heidrick, several years later, on 8 November 2004 pretends that this "can't be accurate."
UNQUOTE
I suppose by that he means that there couldn't have been "30 people" initiated, I noticed how this immediately became "30 minervals" on "nox-online", even though I had written no such thing. There were probably about 50 people drifting in and out of the Café during those two days, who knows, maybe some of them were just there for coffee, it is a place of business where coffee is sold as well, and was open for business during the time. The "initiations" were held in the cellar which was the beer storeroom. I figured out of the 50 — maybe more -- people at the Café, probably 30 were there for initiation. That does not mean there for Minerval, if I had meant that, I would have said that. If I stop to count the people that I know were there and apparently were intiated into the "next" degree in the hierarchy, that would be (by initials) A.S., L.M., F.S., M.H.; there were two there for Minerval, V.M., and me. That's people I knew, there were many people there that I had never seen before (and never saw again), since I did sit in the Café upstairs, and was not down in the cellar with the beer cases' Oasis, I can not attest to there having been more than those I mentioned, in each case the person told me that's why they were there.
I did sit in the Café from early one morning — for when it was "scheduled" — at 8 a.m. (if I recall correctly) until very late in the evening; over the course of the day, many people were drifting in and out, many were going "downstairs", I assumed that those going "downstairs" were being intiated. Maybe they weren't, maybe they were just friends or witnesses or something.
QUOTE
He thinks that in the entire decade of the 1980's, Phoenix Lodge in Montreal (they met at Café Thélème during part of that decade) did a total of 85 Minerval initiations — from 1981 to 1989 and that no Minervals were done there in 1984. Five were done there in 1985 and two were done there in 1986. Heidrick provides the information that in the remaining years of the 1980's they had 5 or fewer per year. That is, most were done in the first few years of operation, particularly 1981. Heidrick recalls that Starry Wisdom Oasis in Montreal did a total of 4 Minerval initiations during the 1980's and that they had their own temple. Witchwood Hill didn't do any initiations. Furthermore, Heidrick thinks that "Leah" as a name apparently is not the name used by this individual then, for 'Caliphate' records.
UNQUOTE
No, it wasn't.
QUOTE
No one of that name was initiated in the Montreal area, as a civil name reported to Heidrick at the time. There was a L. initiated Minerval with one other person in 1986. Maybe that's the individual. Heidrick concludes that Steve Santiago could not have participated as an initiation officer before Mid 1986 since that's when his membership started.
UNQUOTE
Interesting that his initiation started in 1986. And 1986 must be the date, since as far as I know there were two of us. How I heard the name "Steve Santiago" was because that person came up into the Café once or twice and I guess was acting authoritative, so I "assumed" he was Bill Breeze (I was never introduced). I continued to think that for quite awhile, until someone told me, when I described him (physical appearance) that had been Steve Santiago, and the "other man" had been Bill Breeze.
QUOTE
Heidrick guesses that probably the remark refered to other degree initiations beyond Minerval. Even so, the number is too high for that period and the remark seems to have been interpreted as refering to Minervals only.
UNQUOTE
Yes, the netizens of "nox-online" kind of ran with it and spun it just a bit. I was not referring to Minervals at all, and I allow that my interpretation of the numbers of people being initiated was quite inflated. I can account for this by having been told many times that there were "lots of" O.T.O. members "eager to be advanced" when the initiating caravan came to town, so to speak. And there were "lots of" people in the Café during those two days. Maybe those six were the only ones who actually were initiated.
QUOTE
Heidrick complained about being quoted but agreed to be simply paraphrased. "No one owns facts, aside from issues of privacy. I posted here, in this context. Your site does not provide such a context. It is an act chilling to my freedom of speech to do as you have done.". I have gladly altered his direct speech into paraphrases.
UNQUOTE
hahaha
I note that "Yahoo" does allow forwarding of posts outside of "Yahoo" (and to other groups within Yahoo as well). That is normal functioning of "Yahoo".
The recipient of such forwarded posts is obviously not bound by the "Yahoo" T.O.S., you don't have to be a member of "Yahoo" to receive such emails. I'd say it's the responsibility of the individual to control their own speech (or in this case postings on the net) rather than trying to control the internet.
Anyway you can add the above or just read it for amusement, I don't care.
[...]
It *is* a public archive, so if one has the URL
cont. Leah: "There were some anomalies, however, for example I was never 'disarmed'. This struck me as odd at the time (magickally) and still does. Perhaps it is how I survived!
The other anomaly was that Breeze asked me to choose which Chapter [of AL vel Legis] I would read - this is not the usual process. I do not have a clue why he did this with me.
But it was pretty well known that Francis King was being used by O.T.O., at least here in Montréal. Also many people here were "proud" of the fact that they personally knew who the "head" of the O.T.O. was. [Allegedly] Breeze was not in Montréal legally; and someone in the O.T.O. turned him in to Immigration and he did not leave Canada voluntarily. It might have been Alan Stewart (who died at the age of 50, in a fall down some stairs, about a year ago [in October 1999]) and the other a person named Michael Vaughn. Both were given Oasis status by Breeze: Michael Vaughn, an Oasis/Lodge in Edmonton, Alberta; Alan Stewart, the 'Starry Wisdom Camp'. The 'Phoenix Lodge' at that time, which Breeze himself started, was in the hands of Robert Deumié, owner of the Café Thélème (the basement of which is now converted to the Sol-Om-On Temple Memphis-Mizraim - perhaps irregular? - after Deumié's expulsion from O.T.O.), here in Montréal. Both were expelled or suspended from O.T.O. much later. After which, Alan Stewart proceeded to register EGC in his name with the Government of Québec. (He never did anything with the EGC really, except name himself head of it and appoint a 'Grand Inquisitor General' whose task it was to stop people from performing the Mass because they didn't meet his requirements, and to do the Mass himself, without a priestess present.)"
CRIBBING FROM FRANCIS KING'S PROMPT-BOOK
Leah: "It's weird, in all I wrote, I completely forgot Robert Deumié, and the 'Phoenix Lodge'. Well, at least temporarily. Also, when I said they had the rituals memorised, yes it is true they are from Francis King. I was able to confirm this when I actually saw Francis King - which I was NOT allowed to read when in the Order - and compare what was said. The book was actually present at my first, though, in The Temple. I was never permitted to borrow the copy that was here in Montréal, which was Alan Stewart's. I did ask why they didn't have the 'real' rituals. The person I asked was 'Fr. Ani La Ani' - Michael Hoirch, who is not a very reliable source - but what he told me was the 'reason' Francis King was being used (I don't know if this was an official story or not) was that More on Parsons in Nikolas and Zeena Schreck: Demons of the FleshJack Parsons had had the rituals, and when L. Ron Hubbard 'ran off with Parson's wife' - remember, Hubbard had been Parson's secretary - 'and the boat, he took the "real" secret rituals, and other important O.T.O. papers with him, which he used to start up his Church of Scientology with.' It was implied that the 'Caliphate' was a sort of 'victim' but the magickally 'white' or 'just' group, and that eventually, The Church of Scientology, which was the 'black' group, would get their just desserts for the theft by Hubbard. Again, it's a weird story, from an unreliable person, but it is what I was told. And this person also considered Bill Breeze his friend, at one time. And also Bill Heidrick, with whom he corresponded."Robert Latulippe commented in 2002: "Bill Breeze did tell me several years ago, that the Francis King version of OTO initiations (from Minerval to Third) were identical to OTOs and that it was OK to use them. After we deposed Deumié, Grand Lodge sent us new charters to initiate and new texts for the initiations. Phoenix, under Poole and myself, never used King's book! We also practiced the rituals to ensure that they weren't botched up. We made damn sure that the signs, steps and grips etc. were correct!" (We are going to meet Latulippe again)
THE DEATH OF SOROR 'MIMI'
Leah: "Alan Stewart, also known as 'Frater Daystar', 'Frater Sapiens Dominatabur Astrum' (SDA) [sic: 'Sapiens Dominabitur Astris' was the magical motto of Fräulein Anna Sprengel, supposedly the inspiration for the foundation of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn; it is likely she was a figment of William Wynn Westcott's imagination; see Ellic Howe's 'The Magicians of the Golden Dawn'], and 'Hymenaeus Omega' (the latter supposedly after he left the Order) [McMurtry, first 'Caliph' of the COTO, was 'Hymenaeus Alpha'; his successor Breeze was 'Hymenaeus Beta'] was a correspondent of G.M. Kelly's. Which surprised me a great deal!He had a very interesting and personal relationship with Breeze. He had Breeze's personal phone number, and was known to call him day or night, whenever he felt like it, which was often when he was drinking. According to Stewart, Breeze had stolen 'his woman', that is the woman he loved most in the world (he hated the rest of the sisters here, and terrorised his partner), a woman known as 'Soror Mimi'. Srs. Eva and Mimi (Mimi was actually married to another man but seems to have been Breeze's magickal partner for a while), were both from Montréal, and French-Canadian; 'Eva' was married to Richard Guernon. Both women moved to New York to Breeze when he started up. Both women eventually returned to Montréal.
'Mimi' left Breeze and returned to her husband. This was in 1986-87. Less than a year after this (she was only 28 years old), she was dead of a 'heart-attack'. Well, Breeze came up for her funeral, which was RC. A lot of people were very suspicious about it, and I know the police were looking into it. I do not know what, if anything, they found out. It seems that 'Mimi' and Stewart had been junkies together at one time, and some thought she might have returned to those ways. That doesn't make sense to me, as she had two young children when she died. Some felt that Breeze had something to do with her death, and some felt Stewart did. I do not know details about the investigation. Nor are any of the surviving 'brethren' speaking to any of the surviving 'sisters'.
What I do know is that many people loved 'Mimi'. One of them was a man named Robert Latulippe, 'Frater Julien', who is the EGC's wandering Bishop for Québec. He also just happens to be a private investigator. And he was suspicious of 'Mimi's death, and as well a couple of others that happened in or near Alan Stewart's place, for instance a neighbor of Stewart's died and left all his papers to Stewart's group, 'Starry Wisdom Oasis'. (Since a lot of people were drinking and doing drugs, it is perhaps not that unusual that they die so young.) Another person actually died in Stewart's house, a friend of mine, named Bill Kennedy. He fell down the stairs. Not O.T.O., but a good friend of mine and Stewart's partner, 'Soror Roe'. Kennedy had moved into the house at her request (it was her house) to help protect her. Stewart had beaten this woman, who he called his 'magickal partner' badly enough to put her in hospital some eight times, once she was even in a wheelchair for six months. (She eventually sold the house, and moved to another province to live with her daughters).
'Roe' was not the only woman in the Order who had this kind of experience with what were supposed to be our 'brothers'. I did too. We quickly learned that the worst thing we could do was to involve the police in any way. And yet, there is a law in Québec that says the police press charges, not the woman. In both Roe's case and mine it was not us who called the police, but others who obviously cared more about us than the 'brethren'. We were both scolded for this. It is hard now to see just how much I was caught up in the Order; I was not behaving like a rational human being at all. But then again, imagine living with someone who calls himself your 'brother', yet feels free to beat and torture you, and who you think you might kill you if you leave. I eventually got out, but it took me years to work through the psychological damage inherent in the contradictions.
Breeze himself knew about all this, by the way. His attitude was not to reprimand the 'bretheren' at all, but make sure the 'sisters' were kept quiet, and well-behaved. Actually it is startling when you consider how many that started off in Montréal, with Breeze, are now dead. Sabine Huegelshaeffer, suicide (she walked into the woods and died of exposure) age 19-20 'Soror Hawkchild', 'Mimi', Richard Guernon, Alan Stewart, and all of them were quite young (50 or under)."
A FIGHT IN THE TEMPLE
Leah: "At my first degree, the actual book was used. And yes, of course, Grand Lodge knew all about this. There were (again) several initiations done over two days. 'Mimi' was present for two, which were third degrees, using King (I wasn't in the Temple, but I am pretty sure of this). The actual book was used for my first. Stewart was the 'Oasismaster'.Strangely enough there were not only anamolies this time, but an actual fight developed in the Temple. There was a conflict between the 'brother' 'Frater Ani La Ani' that I lived with at the time (we had a camp in the Laurentian mountains called 'Wytchwood Hill Camp') also known as Michael Philip Hoirch, and Stewart. They had been in a (so-called) magickal competition for years, and it blew up in the Temple, during my first degree. This resulted in the other two officers - Hoirch and a man named David Poole, who later on went on to become a high-ranking O.T.O. Lodgemaster (Frater Salazar, later Frater Scarabeus in Breeze's 'Phoenix Lodge') actually walking out of the Temple. Ultimately, because of the problems between Hoirch and Stewart, Breeze closed 'Wytchwood Hill' (which had its Charter directly from Breeze, not Stewart), closed Alan Stewart's 'Starry Wisdom Oasis', and gave 'Phoenix' to Poole. Poole is currently the 'nominal' Phoenix Lodge Master, but it is totally inactive. I always thought that Montréal was unique in its experience with O.T.O. Your website and others let me know this is not so. Thank you again. I discovered about eight years ago that the Order was not going to help me 'do my Will' and that I had better leave if I wanted to live. Women in the Order tend to feel very isolated. The reality for them is pretty horrible ... even though we see the contradiction between the writings of AC that draw us into The Order and the subsequent behaviour of the brethren, like any 'battered woman' situation, we are made to feel like it is somehow our fault, that we just don't 'love' enough, that if we do accomplish this, 'love' things will improve. At the time I didn't realise just how magickally defunct the 'Caliphate' was. I kept thinking of Breeze as a REAL Frater Superior, who, if he only knew the truth, would rush in and save the ladies. When he obviously knew the truth all along, and not only did nothing to help, went out of his way to make sure we were kept quiet. I was very naive. You cannot think rationally anyway in such a situation. Maybe in the final analysis it is the writings of AC that also enable us to get away: 'Let the Woman be girt with a Sword before me!'
WHY DID I JOIN THE O.T.O.?
Leah: "No one asked me. But I had been interested in Crowley's writings, and had been interested in the Templars themselves for many years, reading everything I could get my hands on. I was never told, but my family were AASR. Both grandfathers, and my father, they wanted me to make my own choices in life, because they were also 'freethinkers'. I was never baptised, and told nothing about the AASR. Even though my father did not try to influence me, at the time I was probably in the most 'danger' in the Calipake-O.T.O. - even though he lived 1200 miles away, and I had no phone, and hadn't talked to him in years, and he was an old man - he still drove 1200 miles to see me, saying nothing much, but giving me the money (in secret) which enabled me to physically get free. Once I was physically free, I was spiritually free as well. I buried the O.T.O. lamen I was given at my first and planted a rose bush over it. The next year the rose bloomed with seven beautiful red roses. That is real 'magick'. The 'Caliphake' never had it though."BREEZE THE 'MYSTERY MAN'
From another correspondence with P.R. König, December 1996PRK question: "Why was Breeze promoted through the grades, in your opinion?"
Christopher K. Dxxx, a IX° who has left the 'Caliphate' in 1981: "Fame as editor of Crowley materials. I do not know the details. I know that he and [IX°] James Wasserman were friends. I do not recall where or by whom he was initiated. I was ordered to initiate him to II°."
Leah: "I found this very interesting. In Montréal, Breeze was not known as an editor, but as a typesetter. In fact when he 'reviewed' my application to Minerval, he noted that I also put as occupation 'typesetter' and said, 'Oh, I'm an old typesetter myself'.
Breeze a 'Mystery Man'? Ha! not to the people here in Canada. Everyone knew him, and were quite proud to tell people so.
No one in California seems to know where he came from - just appearing on the Scene, as it were. He MAY (not sure) have worked as a typesetter for 418 Books of Peter and Linda MacFarlane. It was not the Caliphake that was active in Montréal, it was the Typhonian O.T.O., though. At first. All the Typhonians left? Went underground? Who knows? - as the Caliphake became active. 418 Bookstore/publishing (on MacKay Street, here) is long defunct. I remember buying Astrological books from it, oh way back in 1972-73, before I had ever heard of O.T.O.
I was told that Grady McMurtry himself came to Montréal, and that Breeze, who may have been a first brought in and initiated 50 people which greatly impressed Grady. Almost all of them dropped out rather rapidly. One, when he found I had joined, advised me that I shouldn't waste my talents with that crew. I should have taken his advice. I am not sure when those 50 people were initiated, 1979 sounds about right. Fr. Ani La Ani was also made a priest of EGC then. Also Fr. Julien, the 'wandering bishop'. [More on Fr.Julien aka Latulippe later] It is just possible that Grady initiated (?) Breeze, who then proceeded to bring 50 people into the Order. After this, it was said around here that to 'advance' to a certain degree, I think V°, you were expected to bring 111 members in, or 'induce them to join'. A phony pyramid scheme.
One night some of us were at Fr. Julien 'The Black Bishop''s house, mostly partying. The next morning I asked him something about the EGC - just wanting to know about it. He obviously had no memory of what he had done the evening before, because he looked at me in shock and said (I'll never forget this!) 'O I didn't initiate you last night, did I?'
I laughed, thinking it quite funny, that this didn't seem to be a new thing with him, meaning he had probably 'initiated' people before, while drunk. About the Certificate - at first (1979 or 80 not sure) it was just a hand-scribbled piece of paper, almost like a note (Fr. Ani La Ani had his hanging up on the wall for years) saying he was a 'priest duly ordained' of EGC. I cannot remember who signed it, there was only one signature, I'm pretty sure."
[Editorial: A short outline from P.R. Koenig's Der O.T.O. Phaenomen RELOAD: "William Breeze is an American, the son of a US Army man whose family travelled with him; Breeze simply happened to be born in Paris. His father is dead, while his mother lives in Wintergreen, Florida. Breeze spent six years at Harvard University in Boston, his education being paid for by his father's G.I."
SECRET ROBES AND FORBIDDEN MONTRÉAL
Leah: "You ask about the secrets of the O.T.O. Ha! Besides the fact that 'brethren' were mistreating 'sisters' more or less at will, and the usual O.T.O. shenanigans involving drugs and alcohol (magick, what magick?) the BIG secret was our robes. I was surprised to find out our Lodgemaster got expelled, not for anything nasty, cruel or mean-spirited, but because he 'betrayed the secrets of O.T.O.' by wearing his O.T.O. robe, to do a Tarot reading, in a silly film called 'Montréal Interdit' - filmed right in the backyard of the Café Thélème."[Here is another source's recollection of 'Montréal Interdit',
Jerry Cornelius, a VIII° 'Caliphate', in October 2000: "Regarding the film which cost the Lodge Master to be expelled. Marlene & I had the opportunity to watch a copy which had aired on Canadian television while we we're visiting Breeze in North Carolina. It was not a 'simple' tarot reading in an O.T.O. robe but rather the film showed the Lodge Master in O.T.O. robe reading from the First Degree Initiation Ritual, amongst other things. You have to admit, justifiable grounds for expulsion. It was hardly a smart move."
Simon and Leah responded to this: "We only know what Robert told us (and he might also have said it was a banishing ritual?) and he also offered to show it to us - we declined.
Do you know this for sure? Have you seen the film yourself?"
[Remark by P.R. Koenig: I copy of that film is in my possession. You may find some stills of it via the Intro Page]
David Poole: "Deumie did not wear an oto robe to do a tarot reading, he wore his full Masonic regalia for that! He wore his oto for his backyard "fire" ritual and the narrator voices over that "here are the members of oto doing a strange ritual..." There was not one member of oto there! They were all extras hired off the street for the shoot! He then dresses as saladin and "exposes" parts of the Minerval in his basement..." From: Robert Latulippe Subject: McTV Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2002 PRK: in that famous tv-movie: deumié did some tarot reading and the salt and bread ritual from the O° (=IX°). he initiated a certain michel peltier. he was assisted by a young black woman. do you know her? Latulippe: To answer your question as to the identity of the young black woman. Yes, I do know her somewhat. She was Deumié's waitress at the Café Thélème at the time the movie was shot. She was never initiated into OTO. I do not know her name. I don't know who would, other than Deumié. I guess she wound up in the movie because Deumié needed an extra to play the part and she got picked. I am sorry, but that is all I can tell you about her. Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2002 From: N.G. Subject: McTV To: Peter-R. Koenig PRK: in that famous tv-movie: deumié did some tarot reading and the salt and bread ritual from the O° (=IX°). N.G.: hahaha PRK: he initiated a certain michel peltier. he was assisted by a young black woman. do you know her? N.G.: Not from my generation, but I think that her name is Silvia, which used to work in Café Thélème at this time. As for Michel Pelletier, I have no idea if its his real name or not, or even if he was a member of the O.T.O. From: Leah Date: Tue Dec 31, 2002 Subject: torontonians, montrealaises, etc. To: t93-liberty Message 248 of 253 dear peter, well, i'll bring it up again, since there are some psychopompeiians openly admitting they're here.... did any of you folx know Robert Deumie who was the lodgemaster of Phoenix Lodge? have you seen the film (teledocumentary) "Montréal Interdit"? as you may/may not know, it was shot (the bit with RD in it) at the Café Thélème (311 ontario est) which is pretty much right in the heart of the Café society (which includes the "village") of Montréal (near St. Hubert and St. Denis etc.) anyhow this AM i posted a photo still from the film, and i am wondering if the young lady in the film is the same that works at the Café.... i think her name is Angelique or Angeline not sure..... but do you To ppl ever come here anyhow? ....like for the jazzfest, (if you do BTW, be sure to check out the Café....RD never holds any grudges, to my knowledge) oh yeh, the photo can't be posted here, the owner doesn't permit files or attachments, it is in the files over at this group: http://group.yahoo.com/group/t93-liberty/files if you want to have a look at it....i'd like to know the young lady's name in the film....
Cornelius: "Yes. I personally saw the film along with Marlene. If needed I'll swear out an affidavit as to what I saw. Breeze may have been a clown to expel Deumié but in all honesty, it a violation of Oath to be filmed wearing one's robe reciting an initiation ritual in MOST fraternities throughout the world. It was simply a stupid thing to do. It was obviously done to impress the media but didn't go over big within O.T.O. circles."
Simon and Leah asked: "People I know who have actually seen it, think Breeze was a clown to have expelled Deumié. Anyway, expelled for reading Francis King on camera? Is this for real?"
Cornelius' response: "Yes. Again, I saw the film."
Back to Simon and Leah's original account: "This Lodgemaster (with Masonic 'connections') was supposed to be Breeze's delegate here, and yet he got expelled. He also had an O.T.O. lodge in Guadeloupe, which he also lost. This big expulsion happened 1988-89. After that the Lodge was given to an up-and-coming I°. A lot of us - including him (Robert Deumié) thought this was hilarious. The thought that the BIG secret was a damned black robe with an upside down red triangle and blue O.T.O. letters on it! I think it was done by the National Film Board of Canada."
Poole: "It was NOT done by National Film Board of Canada, their level of professionalism far exceeds that piece of rubbish!"
what a bunch of hypocrits
as for the grips and signs, i saw all i wanted of those in the "Templar Center" (name the degree) and so did all the public non-OTO members who attended, Fr. Scarabaeus even put on rituals (i used to call them jokingly "banishing contest") where he insisted that ALL members of the cOTO robe themselves (i refused categorically) enter the "temple", there were folding chairs positioned around the room where the public could "watch", and each of the brethren did a "ritual" such as the Star Ruby or whatever they chose.
i refused to participate
b) disclosing to members of the public that one was a member;
c) rituals like the Star Ruby are IMHO "personal or private" magickal work, not rituals for public group performance and entertainment
i have seen "robed" brethren make "beer runs" i.e. run across the street to the dépanneur before it closed at 11 p.m., wearing their cOTO robes
again, what hypocrits to have expelled Deumié"
Leah and Simon: "One other thing about leaving. I left twice (the second time someone had paid my dues for me and I did not know about it until I started getting stuff in the mail). There was a saying here that the line in 'Hotel California' by the Eagles was about O.T.O. 'you can check out any time you want, but you can never leave.' I was written a letter by Heidrick saying something like 'watch out for the magickal backlash' the second time. The first time it was implied that I could never quit, just go 'inactive'. Nothing specific. But again, I was able to laugh, because by then I knew how little the Caliphake knew about Magick. (I was actually 'reinstated' and then asked to teach a newly named Lodgemaster how to do a Banishing! - something I had done for over a year, twice daily, before I even thought of taking my Minerval!!)"
SOROR ROSEDUANN AND MONSIEUR LATULIPPE
Leah: "Montréal was a kind of matrix for the O.T.O. caliphake. For instance, the woman Breeze himself sent to England to start up O.T.O. there, one Donna Parks 'Soror Roseduann' (fifth degree), who had once been living with 'Frater Ani La Ani' Michael Hoirch; they had been partners in the EGC. She lived in Montréal, but was originally from Texas, USA."Quotation from 'Collection of Recollections', Joe Collins, London, October 1998: "Rose was 5th Degree and KRE at the time of the split, and was to be the International EGC Treasurer under Prospero and Phoenix. I was also a 5th and KRE and to be one IXth Degree Opponent to the UK King in OTOF (Ordo Templi Orientis Foundation), and Susanne was a 5th and groomed for International Secretary of OTOF. We were all three of us Ordained in EGC"
[Comment by Leah: Roseduann "is the person I referred to as Donna Parks, early on known here as Sr. Roseduann, but the 'Wiccka' she was working here then was called 'Thelemic Wicca' - in fact at one point I happened to actually have her Sword in my possession, which she came from England to retrieve. I can't really confirm she worked the Mass that often, I wasn't in the community then, but I know she and Fr. Ani La Ani were partners."]
PRK: "Is there any documentary evidence of Breeze being expelled from Canada?"
Joe Collins: "Not that we know of."
PRK: "Tell me more about LaTulippe. That name sounds familiar but I can't locate it."
Joe Collins: "He believes that he is descended from the Merovingians and in the view of those Priestesses he ordained into EGC under COTO (including Rose) he was mostly out just to get into their knickers. Rose spoke to Breeze about his behaviour and suggested that she doubted the efficacy of her ordination as a result, and Breeze told her that he believed that the ordination would become powerful through USE, that by performing the Mass her ordination would become good no matter the possible ill-intent of the one who ordained her (this was all going on in Montréal.)"
[Comment by Leah: "Also Frater Julien, aka Latulippe: he and Rose had a big 'personality' conflict. About his beliefs, well he spent years compiling all these charts and so on for the 'Caliph' - Breeze. These were supposed to help the 'Caliph' 'prove' their succession. Latulippe was almost obsessed with this, and had a lot of stuff written down. Well I wrote earlier of the 'Bishop' and how he thought he might have ordained me. So what Roseduann (which is the name I still think of her as) or Donna said about him doesn't surprise me at all. I know whatever Latulippe had 'discovered' about EGC he believed. How accurate was it... well I doubt it."]
MASONIC AMBITIONS
PRK: "I would like to know more about the 'Memphis-Misraim' in the 'Caliphate'. What did they think? pretend? Did they consider themselves to be THE real MM, or what?"Leah: "The Lodge Master that Breeze expelled was Memphis-Mizraim, which might have been the only reason they had him in O.T.O. in the first place. They definitely wanted some Masonic connection. Much later they were actively courting the Masons, even doing initiations in the [Masonic] Temple on St. Marc Street - though I am pretty sure they didn't tell the Masons that women were nude for the first degree! (I did, and after that they only had meetings there, I don't think the Masons liked the idea of naked women candidates!) The active courting of the Masons was strangely enough after they expelled Breeze's friend the Lodge Master, who is chartered from Cleveland Ohio, 33° for wearing an O.T.O. robe in a film (mentioned previously). The new Lodge Master let us know that the O.T.O. was going to get 'solid' Masonic connections. I am pretty sure, seeing how these people behave, they got laughed out of the Temple. After a while O.T.O. was having its meetings in a local occult bookshop. Until they got thrown out of there."
Poole: "There is no way that we'd even want to do I* at the Masonic temple, logistically prohibitive! How silly!
As above mentioned, Metamorphoses didn't "throw us out", we needed more space."
Leah: "One thing I cannot tell you, is whether or not Breeze was Memphis-Mizraim. The Lodgemaster [Deumié] himself (Phoenix Lodge) was a complete anomaly. He was about ten years older than most of the members, from Guadaloupe originally, French as his first language (when most of the others were definitely English), and definitely a 'businessman'-type (well, a small business, the Café Thélème and a small hotel or two) as opposed to most members who were unemployed. Not a druggie, either, a very straight person. So he did not fit in with the rest of the people.
I always assumed that he and Breeze possibly exchanged initiations or something; Robert Deumié had no other reason to put up with the mad antics of most of the O.T.O. crew, unless he considered Breeze some kind of 'brother' - other than O.T.O. which I don't think Robert Deumié took seriously at all. The O.T.O. just about died when he was Lodge Master, except when the Grand Lodge came up and did a 'flurry' of initiations. It was very surprising that he (Deumié) got expelled. But I think the subsequent Lodge Master was 'offering' more to Breeze; for instance, he was able to travel to New York, he had money, and perhaps some 'better' connections? Robert Deumié said that he 'bought' his fifth degree with a ring he gave Bill Breeze that Breeze liked. It wouldn't surprise me."
BREEZE EXPELLED FROM CANADA!
Leah: "The papers regarding Breeze getting thrown out of Canada - well for sure the government here would have copies of this! I don't know if they are accessible to 'the public' though. Maybe you could try Government of Canada, RCMP, or Immigration, and get them yourself under the 'Freedom of Information Act.' (Simon says you probably could) it is a matter of public record, since he was here illegally, too, I don't think they protect who they consider 'criminals' or 'deportees'). [We are going to meet Breeze's alleged expulsion again]After I joined O.T.O. I was told 'the RCMP has a file on us...' - this has to do with one of Grady's visits to Canada; Alberta, by the way. He was busted at the airport in Edmonton, in fact."
[More on the 'McMurtry bust' soon, and in the facsimile reproductions via the intro-page]
THE FRATERNITAS SATURNI MISSIONARY
Simon and Leah: "We forgot to mention about Deumié that he is 33° MM; his Lodge is 'Am-Hat'. He has other degrees in other Orders, but I can't recall them right now. Ask me sometime about the time he tried to bring the F[raternitas]S[aturni] here! It's a funny story. :)"PRK: "Leah, consider yourself asked!"
Leah: "Oh boy! This will really stretch my memory. First I have all this second or third hand. There was briefly - early 1991 - an O.T.O. temple that several of us belonged to (Poole, Latulippe, Hoirch, me, and others, but we four split the rent)."
Poole: "Sure, 1/7th on occasion, thanks."
Leah: "A lot of people came in to check us out. The relationship between Poole and Deumié had degenerated to the point that Poole was doing drive-by 'curses' directed at the Café (magickal silliness in my opinion). Well we had an open 'pagan' or 'wiccan' night on Fridays, and this guy showed up. He told everyone he was an 'hereditary Witch', and that his parents were from France. We just said, yeah sure, and left it at that. I spent hardly any time talking to him; his name was Pierre Combes. (I saw Combes one other time, at a nightclub called The Gypsy Club, where he did Tarot readings for money). Some time that same year, I had gone by the café and met an intense young man there named Jean-François Dugas. We talked and he was very interested in Wicca and its possible Masonic connections, wanted to see a Book of Shadows, that kind of thing. One of the things I remember telling him was 'Wicca' was about 'gender magick', and that in circles, anyway, he would work with a female partner. I just mention this because I met him again, a year almost to the day, and he had a female partner.
However, sometime during that year, Jean-François and Pierre (who it turned out were friends) hung out a lot at the Café Thélème, I only dropped in once in a great while, anyway they made contact with someone in Europe, and with Deumié's help (he had money, I don't think they had much, they were both quite young) brought the FS [Fraternitas Saturni] to Montréal. Deumié, I am told, even had an active Temple in the basement.
Again, 1991-2 it did not last long. One time I and Hoirch were there and Robert Deumié invited us up to his office (which he does not usually do) and - not really openly showing anything, but kind of casually shuffling papers around on the desk, and not speaking about it - 'let' us see the FS certificates, and also, just as casually, let us see his 'robe collection' (including one I recognised as being Martinist, by the way!).
Then he told Hoirch that "the way was open to him". There was something said about it being pretty or very expensive which I don't recall. Hoirch was actually invited downstairs to see the new temple (I declined or wasn't invited - don't remember now). It is J-F who told me one side of the story, Deumié the other. According to J-F, Deumié was discovered to be too controlling or wanted too much to run things, and was doing it solely to make money, so he and Pierre Coombs broke into his office and took back the papers they had been instrumental in acquiring or helping Deumié make the contacts with, or whatever, from an FS in Europe, I don't know where. They felt they had a right to the papers. Deumié had been to the printer with whatever they gave him, and produced a batch of certificates. It was something like that, major enough in their eyes to justify a break-in. According to Deumié, they just broke in and trashed his office. He never said why. But went on to imply that J-F was gay, and a bit of a con artist. It needs to be said that Deumié, whose Café is very near Montréal's large 'gay village' is a homophobe, and probably assumes everyone is. He didn't really slam J-F, it was more the tone of 'those pesky children'. Deumié is very good at the role of good-humoured patriarch. Very good at it (he is a Capricorn!). But that was the last anyone here ever heard of FS."
Poole commented: "Fraternitas Saturni: I sold Deumie the book Fire and Ice, there was never a european connection! What an imagination."
Leah: "Yes, Pierre Combes did exist, I am a friend of the mother of his ex-girlfriend Suzie, in fact, who is a well-known professional astrologer in this city, named L*** L*****. Of course Poole does not know my friends in this city, frankly I wouldn't want him anywhere near them!"
Poole: "Nobody cares about what she "thinks". Pierre Combes was a I* in Phoenix Oasis for a short time, no one denies that!"
Leah: "Pierre Combes did do Tarot Readings for money in "The Gypsy Club", which was at one time owned by the father of another friend of mine, named "Johnny" (they are real Roms, and the club-owner wrote a book called "Damned Gypsies" I believe!). And it is accurate that Pierre was frequently in the Café Thélème, Poole NEVER went there (after Deumié was expelled), I and others did. Again boring, as he seems to think he knows everything that I and others did in this city, and he does not even LIVE in the city, he lives on an Island to the North of Montreal. Extremely boring."
Poole: "I was ever and still am on "polite terms" with Robert Deumie. I visited him on many occasions in that time period, he in turn came toi home for coffee with his high grade masonic friend, and hes visited my store on several occasion to purchase essential oils and incense. Just because she is personna non-grata all over Montreal that doesn't make any difference to me!"
Cont. Leah on Memphis Misraim etc.: "The certificates Deumié casually let us see, did look like they were just back from the printer. And several years later, the Café had the MM Lodge in its basement. And a bunch of crypto-christians hanging out there (6 months ago about). Too weird for me!"
Simon: "Those six months ago, I was 'initiated' in that M-M Temple, to the 1°. I had very quickly quit however, for the simple reason that they had a Bible as 'the sacred book' - I thought it Liber AL, having known about R. Deumié's O.T.O. past, I figured oh, ok, the book is 'just' Liber AL, so this is acceptable to me. But, on the 'revealing of the light' part, I had seen the Bible there, so I quit very soon after, and haven't been down there since, and never will. Other things had happened, coming from others in the Lodge, their actions towards me and others, that were totally 'un-brotherly' (Deumié was one the few who behaved), so that is another reason I left. I am a formal apostate from the RC Church, so I don't feel that comfortable in the presence of certain RCs - RCs (or other Christians) that are open-minded I have no problem with - call it one of my 'hang-ups'."
THE HIGHLY IRREGULAR RITES OF MEMPHIS AND MISRAIM
Leah: "Now we are reading the stuff you put up on Memphis Misraim. Very interesting! But once again we discover how naive we both are. Part of the reason Simon decided to go to Deumié for initiation was because of my confiding my family's history and probably a desire to connect somehow with my family (I am an expatriot American living 1200 miles from my bio-family), some way, so we went down to visit Deumié, who I had know for a long time had 'Masonic' connections I thought independent of O.T.O. Here is how naive I was, I was not kidding when I said my family never spoke of it. I only found out when my father was in the hospital in 1989, and as the eldest child, I returned to see him. He put me in charge of his house-cleaning, just straightening things up, while he was in hospital. I discovered the 'connection' (which he probably wanted me to discover in this way) when I found a book he had left out, Albert Pike's book, and also my grandfather's sword in the back of the closet. My father told me he had been a Master Mason, as well. I knew my mother's family was, this was the first I knew it of my father's family. So the only background I had was that I read Albert Pike's book from cover to cover. That is it.I confided this story to Deumié. That is when he I guess started to recruit Simon (though of course we didn't see it that way at that time) - neither of us knew anything at all except what I wrote above. But we still wanted some kind of assurance, before Simon took this step, and we were assured, by Deumié, that he would be 'accepted in any lodge on the planet' and that of course, he was as regular as AASR (my family tradition).
It is only now we learn just how 'irregular' Memphis Misraim is. Though we did suspect something amiss, within a week of his induction, as mentioned in the previous e-mail. Just some things amiss, and an attitude towards me from certain of the other Lodge members because I am a witch, which is pretty well-known around here. Call it intolerance, which I know is not a Masonic ideal. (!) (Both my parents knew this - that I am a witch - by the way, I knew less about them, than they did about me :) they always wanted me to make my own choices!)
Anyhow he quit the Lodge; and what you say on the site about Memphis Misraim, only confirms to us what we were feeling already. Something we couldn't put our finger on not being quite right - we are not happy that Deumié outright lied to us. Who would be happy at that? Why would he do such a thing? I have such a hard time understanding the justification for such lies and trickery.
A lot of this is interesting from another point of view. My father was in the US Army, and our family was actually in Berlin when some of these things were going on. So I found it interesting, though I was very young at the time (1957-1959). Before the wall!"
DEUMIÉ AND DOUBTFUL CREDENTIALS
Leah: "We were just looking through some AASR Sites, and discovered that Deumié used a stamp with a modified AASR sigil/seal on the certificate - which I have here in front of me - not the MM one! There are are number of strange things on this Certificate, which we only really looked at now. For instance it is for the 'Ordre Maçonnique Universel'. (is this bogus or what? - I suspect so, it sounds like the Universal Life Church!)If you are interested, we could send you a photocopy (it is part of Montréal's occult 'history') or a fax - let us know. There are so many 'new' elements on the AASR 'stamp' too many to describe.
There was something about the bread and salt in your 'Whitewashing the Caliphate' article - so I looked up our copy of 'Secret Rituals of the OTO'; I thought they had put the bread and salt thing in wrong, (that is not according to King) but it wasn't that - I didn't catch it on first reading, but it is in 'The Oath' - Breeze never shook hands with me, he never rose from his seat, (thus no magickal link was ever made! duh!) he even remained seated throughout, nor was I asked to be seated 'at his right hand' All three officers remained seated, facing me. Some things were omitted. I was given the bread and salt, the sword (was there a sword? - I don't recall one!) was not used for the penal sign, I was told to make it with my own hand, and immediately read from the Book (which I was never given, either!) Nor was I ever given a Certificate - the Minerval one was "somewhere in Deumié's office" I was told (never got it) the first was never received either.
The ritual which the officers had memorised, was considerably shorter. The actual physical Lodge (or Camp or Oasis, which is what they call the Chapters) meaning place to do initiations, hold meetings, etc., did not exist for quite some time as far as I know. It was just members' homes or the Café Thélème. Robert Deumié told us when he took his Minerval that it was done in a schoolyard; it was cold and he was naked - running around in a schoolyard after dark with everyone laughing at him, too! (the 'youngsters').
Alan Stewart had a large temple at one time, including a music room, which he lost in about 1984, apparently after joining O.T.O. He let the O.T.O. use this temple (was he a member then?) for EGC masses. The Café Thélème basement was not finished - it was a beer store - until only a little before I joined, then in late 1985-86 there was a flood and everything, all the carpets, etc., got ruined. Then Alan, who actually owned all the Temple furnishings, removed everything. He and Deumié were openly battling then, though when the flood hit Deumié was in Guadeloupe.
I have a sense that the Café Thélème Temple was only finished (and it was still mostly storeroom) just before the batch of initiations I was part of in 1985. Just one EGC mass was performed there. So for some years, there was no physical space you could call a Temple here that was officially O.T.O. Not that they were overly fixated on observing any standardised rituals; a bathtub in the backyard of 'Starry Wisdom' was the central 'well' in my so-called first degree - all in view of the neighbours - the whole 'secret' ritual. The water was only about 2 feet deep, and cold. The flag 'of my country' was a piece of black cloth. But then again, when you are initiated into a book publisher-cum-Caliphornia Corporation, what would you expect?
But this does raise questions, such as how did Robert Latulippe and Robert Deumié get their higher degrees? I never heard that they travelled to New York for them! Yet Deumié was supposed to be a fifth, and Latulippe a second or third. Which Temple did they go to when there wasn't one, but Alan's (and it was a personal temple, not an Order temple), and who then were the officers? Donna was also supposed to be a fifth... all these high degrees, but there wasn't even a well until Alan built one, and that was in 1985! Alan also made the harness used in the third, in 1985 again, strangely enough, Alan is the one who physically travelled to New York for his IV°. (No one here to do it)."
Poole: "Silliness, the well was there from the start. Marc Desjardins, Robert Latulippe and possibly Luc-Andre built it extremely well (!). Phoenix Lodge has the original one to this day, all we've done to it is paint and aquire machine screws and wing nuts for efficient disassembly (McCultered?)."
OH, THOSE CANADIANS!
Here are some comments on the stories Simon and Leah had to tell, from an American source (Jerry Cornelius, a VIII° 'Caliphate') who was another observer of the COTO's early days:Cornelius, in October 2000: "I'm finding all this Canadian/New York info rather amusing. We always knew this section of the O.T.O. was racked with lunacy but never quite understood just how much! It's funny how some areas of the O.T.O. over here in America were so problematic, while others seemingly had little or no problems. Leah says:
-
"One thing that occurs to me, in light of the McOTO phenomenon which
may not occur to others. The USA has a unique position in the history
of the world. Having broken with their ancestral 'roots' as it were,
they recreated themselves as individuals and as a nation. Have you ever
heard of the Universal Life Church in Canada?"
Most of the comments they made I either don't know about or agree with. However, a few points I'd like to address are:
-
"'In June 1981 Grady McMurtry finally flew up to visit Québec. Breeze
took the Third Degree at 'Ra-Hoor-Khuit' Lodge in Syracuse, New York on
July 8th 1981.'
This sounds so odd. I thought you had to have a third degree to have a Lodge. What a coincidence. But don't know anything at all about Ra-Hoor-Khuit Lodge."
-
"But don't know anything at all about Ra-Hoor-Khuit Lodge."
-
"'_The Magickal Link_ (Vol. I Nº 8) dated August 1981 includes an
article entitled 'Caliph's Log: Star Date - You name it.' It begins, "I
have just returned from a most fantastic adventure," and he goes on to
discuss his trip to Montréal, Canada. He says he initiated 23
Minervals, and adds that "I am proud to announce that we now have a
Phoenix Lodge"; in other words the W.T. Smith Chapter had been raised
to Lodge status. The rest of the article is mainly gossip, but it ends
by asking: "The next question is : how many countries does it take to
elect an O.H.O.? An interesting thought.""
"It is obvious that they 'needed' Québec to claim to be 'international' - they were thinking international even way back then. Very ambitious!"
-
"Simon: It's pretty obvious by the time Breeze 'got up the ranks', up
to say 5th (not having the 6th to 8th or 9th degrees without Francis
King's book), the 9ths that Grady made, and those members in Québec
would stack the 'Council', elect Breeze, then have an 'OHO' in Breeze.
In other words, to 'legitimise' an 'international' body, they figured
they could get Québec on-side. Which they obviously did."
-
"'The Minutes for the O.T.O. Board Meeting held on January 23rd 1982
Resolution 269: "G.T.G. moves that Huges De Payenes Encampment, a
satellite encampment of Phoenix Lodge be under the direction of
Francios [sic] Cartier, be recognised as an official body of O.T.O." -
vote: unanimous.'
"We have both heard a lot about Cartier, but nothing specific or important - and he is not on the scene now (nor has he been for 15 years). Never met him."
-
"There was something about the bread and salt in you 'Whitewashing the
Caliphate' article - so I looked up our copy of 'Secret Rituals of the
OTO'; I thought they had put the bread and salt thing in wrong, (that
is not according to King) but it wasn't that - I didn't catch it on
first reading, but it is in 'The Oath' - Breeze never shook hands with
me, he never rose from his seat, (thus no magickal link was ever made!
duh!) he even remained seated throughout, nor was I asked to be seated
'at his right hand' All three officers remained seated, facing me. Some
things were omitted. I was given the bread and salt, the sword (was
there a sword? - I don't recall one!) was not used for the penal sign,
I was told to make it with my own hand, and immediately read from the
Book (which I was never given, either!)"
Second, there are not three officers in Minerval Degree. Only Saladin and an Emir. The Sword is usually put before the candidate during the Oath to represent the Penal Sign. Later, when the Penal Sign is given, the candidate is told to mimic it with his thumb drawn across the stomach. This probably occurred and possibly they have just forgotten.
They didn't get given a copy of Liber AL vel Legis? How lame.
-
"Nor was I ever given a Certificate - the Minerval one was 'somewhere
in Deumié's office' I was told (never got it) the first was never
received either."
-
"The ritual which the officers had memorised, was considerably
shorter."
-
"Robert Deumié told us when he took his Minerval that it was done in a
schoolyard; it was cold and he was naked - running around in a
schoolyard after dark with everyone laughing at him, too! (the
'youngsters').
OTO INCORPORATED - BIG BUSINESS
Now we return to Simon and Leah's account:"I noticed that O.T.O. became a California corporation in 1981. Since both Canada and California have the same abbreviation - CA - for mailing purposes, is it possible they wrote 'O.T.O. was recognised by CA' - meaning California - not Canada? I have seen with my own eyes the Québec incorporation papers, and that was later than 1981 (like 1984-6).
It has occured to me, that since they did make use of a casual laying on of hands - when they felt like it, it seems - to 'initiate' or 'ordain', then that might be why it was omitted in the Temple at my Minerval.
What I am getting at is at least part of O.T.O. seems to have been a very closed little group - not a 'brotherhood' in the normal sense of the word. If they considered 'laying on of hands' to be the way they made links/transferred the 'magickal current', by then perhaps they were not all that interested in having such links established between themselves and the rest of the 'peasants'. Of course with them it might also be just pure ignorance. You never know. Malefic intent? or stupidity? Any other Minervals who had this experience? Deumié's experience was much worse than my own (if we can believe what he told us).
I just looked at OTO headquarters' list of official bodies - I thought I would try to see if any of the New York O.T.O.'s had any official history on the net, in light of the fact that Breeze kept going to New York from Montréal for his various initiations. I note there is now only one: 'Knights Templar' Oasis in Boston, MA in the whole of the Northeast - which includes some very big cities.
What happened to 'Lashtal', 'Tahuti', 'Ra-Hoor-Khuit'? All those lodges look like they just vanished! Just like all the ones in Montréal. I've never heard of 'Knights Templar'. 'Phoenix Lodge' now is just one person - David Poole - but 'Phoenix Lodge' seems just to be an e-mail address now. It's also is odd that in the early years you didn't mention a person named Michael Vaughn at all. I know that he and Breeze were in some kind of competition for a while; in an O.T.O. a Lodge or Camp whose named started with a letter 'I' which I can't recall (never met the guy)... Michael Vaughn was very bad news, yet when Breeze became 'big brother' Vaughn was given a Lodge, or headed a Lodge, or something in Edmonton, Alberta. Later on he seems to have gone really crazy - Alan Stewart had the newspaper clipping - going back to shoot up (or threaten to shoot up) the Edmonton Lodge; he was arrested for this and expelled. Has he been retroactively expunged from the records (_Magickal Link_ and membership files) as well? Alan Stewart also finished very badly. He continued to beat women including his mistress, and did six months in jail for it. He also had a very freaky accident: he worked for a machine shop - strangely enough, his boss was Mimi's husband - was drunk, not using the safety equipment, and cut most of the fingers off his right hand. Because of a 'habit' of shooting at things when he was drunk, he lost his weapons collection to the police. He was able to get 'disability' from the government because of the accident, but tried to cheat and got caught, and had to pay back a couple of thousand of dollars. His life was pretty awful before he died."
THOSE CANADIANS RESPOND
Leah: "Your American correspondent [Cornelius] says: "There are not three officers in Minerval Degree." There were four at mine! Two of them wore turbans, even, I believe." He/she goes on: "The Sword is usually put before the candidate during the Oath to represent the Penal Sign. Later, when the Penal Sign is given, the candidate is told to mimic it with his thumb drawn across the stomach. This probably occurred?" I do not remember the sword being present. But it just might be a memory lapse."[Cornelius comments: 'This is typical Breezism. Condemning others for ritual indiscretions but allowing his buddies to sit in the Temple robed as he is. There should be only 'one' robed as Saladin (or figure) inside the tent, especially if Breeze knew how the rituals unfold O.T.O. sex secrets. The candidate is supposed to unconsciously see and have things sink in. If the Tent is the Phallus, the candidate the 'seed' preparing for birth, how many acts of Will are needed?']
Leah: Commenting on my original memory that 'The ritual, which the officers had memorised, was considerably shorter,' your correspondent says: "I don't understand. Which ritual & how do you know unless you knew the ritual in advance?" Well, I did not know the Minerval in advance. But I have my memories, which I was able to compare with Francis King's 'Secret Rituals' book much later. I should have said they 'had it memorised' because they had no sheaf of papers, no book with them at all except Liber AL vel Legis. Your American source [Cornelius] asks "See if you can find out who the Saladins were!" when we said 'Robert Deumié told us when he took his Minerval that it was done in a schoolyard, it was cold and he was naked, running around in a schoolyard after dark, with everyone laughing at him, too! (the 'youngsters')'
My Saladin was Breeze himself! Sitting on his left was 'Steve Santiago' (I was told that was his name) - on his right was 'Micheline...' or Sr. 'Eva', Gernon's wife or mistress. I cannot remember the name of the Emir, he was French-Canadian, a wispy little blond - very blond, perhaps named Luc-something or something-Luc - I was told he had been the treasurer of 'Phoenix' Lodge, and used to do EGC masses, had become a Buddhist, and returned only to help out with this 'batch' of initiations.
[Cornelius adds: 'Like I said, Breeze catering to his "friends" allowing them to sit with in tent rather than performing the ritual for the candidate properly. And he was he one researching correct ritual performance in Canada. It's sad.']
Leah: The Saladin for my first degree at 'Starry Wisdom Oasis' was Alan Stewart, who was so drunk and stoned he could barely stand. Sr. Roe and I were very concerned about his state; she phoned Mimi, and asked whether they should proceed. Mimi spoke to me briefly and said something like, 'it will be all right I am sure, dear'. Sr. Roe was a III° but either refused or didn't want to go into the Temple, and stayed outside. Poole was there in the backyard for my first. He wasn't the Emir or Saladin though. Just there.
One other irregularity at my Minerval - since you now say only Saladin and Emir are meant to be present: this one is very strange. They had three officers of the Temple on chairs - or some kind of cubes or boxes - arranged so that the three of them sat side-by-side facing the Candidate, but Breeze's seat was elevated above the other two by almost a cube-height (about 18 inches), so that they resembled a living, upside-down Tau cross.
Cornelius: 'Three cubes of this nature are used in First Degree, where Saladin, the Emir & Wazir aka "Mother & Father" preside over the birth.']
Leah Breeze also wore a turban throughout - I never saw Breeze until I walked into the Temple, and he didn't come up much into the Café. No one shook my hand, the three of them sat there looking serious and 'aloof'. There were many initiations done, and I am still unsure if it was 1985 or 1986 - but it was when I took my Minerval."
THE MAN FROM EDMONTON
Now another Canadian 'Caliphate' member, this time from western Canada, got in touch. It is Stephen L*** who will talk later again:L***, in November 2000: "I never knew much about O.T.O. in eastern Canada, so I cannot help too much with this. I will see if more comes to mind. The name Michael Vaughn sounds vaguely familiar... I probably heard it in conversation at Nephthys Lodge. Robert Deumié and 'Café Thélème' also sound slightly familiar. I will need to ask about them, since I did not absorb much about O.T.O. activities outside of the current situation in Edmonton at the time. Your Montréal correspondent says: 'After I joined O.T.O. I was told 'the RCMP has a file on us [...] this has to do with one of Grady's visits to Canada, AB, by the way. He was busted at the airport in Edmonton, in fact. [...] The papers regarding Breeze getting thrown out of Canada - well for sure the government here would have copies of this!'
[Jerry Cornelius: 'I'm not sure when this occurred or why; I think Grady was still alive. Breeze is very 'cagey' on this topic. At the time, I heard he got caught in a scheme to buy guns and ship them to Ireland. Years later, when Breeze was staying at my house he denied it. Laughing, he told me he got caught sleeping with a politician's wife, who then pulled his green card and ordered him deported. I fear the truth may never be known unless we can get some Canadian paperwork.]
L***: Can you provide me with the most specific information you have about this... in particular the date and location (Montréal?). I can inquire about the availability of the record of this event.
In the attached photo, the man on the right in the white clothes looks like a young Eugene Plawiuk, lodgemaster of Nephthys Lodge, Edmonton. I am not absolutely certain, but he at least looks like him."
[Cornelius adds: 'Not knowing what picture he's referring to, I am at a loss. Eugene is another oldie but mouldie. He became an Associate Member in July of 1977. Took Minerval on March 20th 1979 at Thelema Lodge in Berkeley. In fact, he took all his initiations except Second, at Thelema Lodge. He incorporated EGC Church of Alberta; their bye-laws were amended on August 12, 1984, and prepared September 1987.']"
THE GRADY MCMURTRY BUST
[See the picture material via the Intro-page]Simon and Leah responded to the Edmonton ex-member's queries: "I believe Breeze's expulsion from Canada happened just before his election as Caliph which would have been 1985, but I am not sure, it was before I joined. Sorry!
Your source says: "the man on the right in the white clothes looks like a young Eugene Plawiuk, lodgemaster of Nephthys Lodge, Edmonton. I am not absolutely certain, but he at least looks like him."
Simon says that Alan Stewart had a newsclipping from Edmonton, something about the blow-up in the Edmonton (Nepthys) Lodge... big event to be in the newspaper, they had a photo of someone who looked like that guy. Simon says maybe it was a long time ago and another persona - Simon's, not Eugene's.
All those people are so much younger than when either of us met them, so it is a little hard to tell. Too bad we can't bop down to the Café - we're not speaking to Deumié - and ask him, he would be sure to tell us, and probably would love to see the photo - maybe you can do this, say a friend of a friend gave it to you, I don't think he knows who you are,though one never knows. Deumié also goes to Guadaloupe, usually in the winter, but I am not sure exactly when.
Then your source says: "do you know more about this 'bust'?" Oh yes I do. This was just before I joined, apparently. The Edmonton people had posters all over town announcing Grady's visit (all this is hearsay by the way) and apparently someone tipped off the RCMP - so they hit him at the airport. Checked his luggage, and found several bottles of nitrous oxide - which Grady referred to as 'party favours for the children' and a hash pipe with some residue in it. So they busted him. The children got him out, and there was a court thing, but there was so little residue in the pipe that they couldn't charge him with possession - and I don't think the nitrous oxide was illegal anyway. Though the police were very suspicious - in those days they were really after Amway (of all things), Scientology, and, apparently, O.T.O. Any pyramid-type-American-cult thing (this was before Canada-US 'free' trade).
So the date must have been a little after Breeze left Canada, but before he was made Caliph. Anyway Grady went on to Edmonton and did whatever he came for (probably making more Minervals). I wasn't too pleased when I was told that 'the RCMP has a file on us...' by the way, having lived here for some 20 plus years without trouble at all with the police myself! Stewart - who told me this - did seem proud of it, like, 'oh we are such revolutionaries and the RCMP are watching us... ' - yeah, right. A smart revolutionary does not get themselves known to the police! Somebody in O.T.O. though seemed to be calling the police on various people though. Like Breeze, the thing in Edmonton, well it seems to be something O.T.O. was plagued with here. And usually unjustified. I even was getting ready for a private (two people) ritual one night when the Swat Team broke down the doors and rushed in with M16s drawn looking for 'guns and ammunition' - later they said 'oops, sorry, wrong house'. Sure. A lot of people thought Alan Stewart might be making these calls mostly because h e was not usually invited to rituals, or parties.
Fun group, the O.T.O... Not really missed here."
[Jerry Cornelius had other memories of McMurtry's arrest: 'I know Grady travelled throughout 1982. For months he had been planning to visit the Nephthys Chapter in Edmonton, Canada. He planned on being there between August 4th till the 16th. Unfortunately after his Air Canada flight landed at the Canadian border Grady ran into serious trouble with the local customs agents. After opening his luggage for inspection they found a small pipe which contained a minute residue of marijuana, too small for a legal clinical sample. But also they found ten small canisters of Laughing Gas, for which they arrested him. Grady's first reply was "I didn't know laughing gas was illegal!" To which the custom agent replied deadpan: "They might be explosives." Grady was then put into a glass booth where he was able to watch as numerous custom agents went through his luggage with a fine-toothed comb. Nothing else was found. After detaining Grady for a few hours they decided they couldn't make a case. In the end he was released and allowed to remain in Canada to continue his visit which was a great success. That is about the whole story in a nutshell as I know it...']"
'THELEMIC WICCA' AND 'WHITE STAINS'
Leah: "I saw your posting about copophragy and it reminded me of something. I remember in No. 34 'Rose' (who I am pretty sure is a woman named Donna maybe I am wrong?) talking about Montréal and 'New Aeon Wiccka'.Well I know you are not that interested in Wicca but there is some relevance here. The second covin I trained (if you can call it 'training') with was called 'Thelemic Wicca' and probably was the remnant of the covin that the lady above left behind in Montréal. It was called 'Nu Tiamat Covin' and was pretty infamous for 'smoke till you choke, drink till you puke, and pretend to worship the gods until you fall on your face' - those words are how the High 'Priest' Brandwinn (Also known as Fr. Ani La Ani' III° and EGC priest) Michael Hoirch described the Covin. Well he says that Donna (Roseduann was what she called herself) made the 'improvements' - I think that he did. One of the improvements was hash as a 'sacrament' (before my time) the usual result in the Circle was predictable, everyone passed out before the finish of the ritual (you'd know this if you have been in a Wicca circle, which tends to act as an 'amplifier' of energy, etc.) The other improvements only Hoirch could have put there. Obviously from O.T.O., such as the Wand - they called it the 'Shiva Lingam' and the 'adoration' that candidates, male and female, were supposed to give it, by kissing it 3-7-9-21=40 times. [...] The other modification was 'The Lord's Cup' which was filled with hard liquor.
Neither of those two elements are in Wicca. As far as I can see, and this was done more than once in Montréal, and by other people, they both saw Wicca as a bit of a joke or excuse to 'party' but also to bring people in to O.T.O., about which both of them were serious. Though as usual, all this was kept secret. Meaning people thought that they were joining a 'real' Wicca group, and then finding that it wasn't so. Of course after they had taken some pretty serious Oaths - joining in good faith and then finding out the group was pure BS (sound familiar?) Why is it so often the wrong kind of secrets are kept?
Donna left behind some pretty messed up people when she went to England. I took over as HPs for a while, actually I ended up spending eleven years working with people from Nu Tiamat, some of whom were undoubtedly messed up before they joined Nu Tiamat, some of whom were probably pushed over the edge after they joined ... and found anything but magick in those early circles. Donna was the HPs for some 18 months... then as I said, she left, as a V° O.T.O. to start up/head an English lodge (not many details ). Not many people in O.T.O. are all that honest (maybe they don't see it?) about the obvious homoerotic element in O.T.O./AC himself... I still laugh thinking of Bill Breeze begging for his XI°. But at least Hoirch - who has many faults - admired Crowley just for that reason. Cute, because some of the Brethren who joined later were homophobes! You should see some of them trying to deny things like XI° and poetry like 'White Stains' - that anyway is hilarious!
[Jerry Cornelius close to the 'Caliph' had this to say about 'Caliphate' O.T.O. homophobia: 'Bill Breeze is homophobic, although he denies it. He made some rather crude, if not derogatory off-hand remarks to me about a gay guy at one of my parties. I thought it rather inappropriate at the time. I told him the guy in question was one of my best friends who I had known for almost fifteen years. Breeze apologized but I never forgot how crude he was, laughing about the "feminine queer" whom the O.T.O. had attracted. I am not gay, nor homophobic. In fact, that "feminine queer" is the godfather to my son, my best man at my wedding and most important, a friend.']"
[More on Thelemic Wicca below, and in Part VII]
SEX'N'DRUGS'N'SPERMO-GNOSIS
PRK question: "There was never discussion about spermo-gnostics and the XI° when you were member(s)?"Leah: "Not in the O.T.O. Lodges and with most of the members, a lot of whom are actually homophobic. But as I mentioned, I was with Hoirch, and he and Donna were quite aware of the spermo-gnostics of it all, mainly through Louis Culling's book on Sex Magick. Also Hoirch, as mentioned, was b***. And another of his ex-roommates was actually gay - also a Frater, his name was David Thraves, he died of Aids, which is probably when Hoirch decided not to be b*** anymore (my opinion). So you had this weird situation in Montréal where some of the people had figured out or even actually joined O.T.O. because of the sexual 'spermo gnostic' current, and others who did not see it in Crowley's writings and would completely deny it - probably depending on their own sexuality, which they tended to bring with them into the Order. I guess you have to understand Québec history a bit to understand some of this. The Roman Catholic Church (not the EGC!) was very strong here. In the 60s there was what is called the 'quiet revolution'. People turned from the Church and just went quietly about their business. The Church lost most of its power and had to start behaving itself. Being nice to people: they seem to have feared some kind of revolution. In addition there also was a sexual revolution, but not so much like the one in the USA, here it was an outspoken 'gay' sexual revolution. Which just keeps growing. There are several huge 'gay pride' events that attract people from around the world to Montréal - like the 'Black and Blue festival' These events make tons of revenue for the government, which although nominally RC (most of them) keep their judgment to themselves.
In Montréal's gay (mostly male) community, there still are a lot of people who read Crowley as some kind of sexual-revolution hero - kind of like Oscar Wilde but naughtier, I guess. I don't think this is true of the Americans, who have that cult of Barbie Doll and John Wayne as ideals - and don't tell them Crowley was a faggot!
The people in O.T.O. here saw him (Grady) as some kind of old hippie hero... an American come to rescue them in the name of Thelema from the repressive Canadian law which is absurd if you consider that John Humphreys, who wrote the UN Declaration, was a professor at McGill University, and a Canadian - and Tommy Douglas who brought in socialised universal medical care (which the Americans still don't have) was a Canadian and a Freemason. Canadians are proud of their history! What the Canadian Government doesn't tolerate as far as I can tell is cults that will bilk the individual and take away his or her liberty - like Scientology and the 'Caliphate' O.T.O. and, yes, even Amway. But Grady made a lot of mileage out of looking like he was being unfairly persecuted - maybe the government just saw him as an old fraud. He got mileage out of the fact that many people wanted to see the government as being unfairly repressive - and of course, their churches (maybe they just wanted to make their own choices) - against who they were in rebellion. They saw Grady as a 'rebel leader hero' which is absurd if you consider the stories of Grady the person, not Grady as he wrote about himself.
But I have also been to Edmonton, and yes that area (Alberta) is a bit of the bible belt of Canada. But I think the police were tipped off that he was carrying drugs - I don't see it as 'religious persecution' at all. Grady McMurtry didn't use cannabis as a sacrament - he wasn't a Rastafarian. Many people are confused about this: how do you tell a Sham from a Shaman? One of the first things I did when I took over as High Priestess of the group which was called 'Nu Tiamat', was to throw out the drugs, requiring people to do research into Cannabis, and 'prove' that it was a drug used by Western Europeans in their rituals - convince me of that, and also, if they really believed it should be used, they should work for its legalisation first. (There is now a big movement in Canada in re the Medical use of Cannabis - but I can guarantee no OTOers are involved in this - they are cowards). I don't ask people to do what I have not done - so I also did the research, which I never shared with the others. I believe from my readings the Ancient Greeks may have used it in the 'dream cults'. My main purpose was to get people to think and find answers for themselves, not just 'do what you feel like' or worse, do what others are doing because of 'peer pressure' and desire for approval. So yes, some did know about the 'spermo-gnostics'; some did not; but in Montréal it is because they more or less voluntarily kept their head in the sand. There have always been very open discussions here about the IX°, XI°, and other (so-called) secrets. Which the Califake seems to be denying... so it goes."
PRK question: "How openly was the secret of the IX° talked about in Montréal?"
Leah: 'The Secret of the IX° - he licks her - Elixir!'
This little poem is still around, and I think originated here. (May be wrong).
'The Government has no business in the Bedrooms of the Nation.' - Pierre Elliot Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada (he died in Montréal just this year). When I came to Canada, he was just elected (1968). Got rid of all the very repressive sexual 'laws' - all of them! He was a true revolutionary."
MORE NEWS FROM EDMONTON
The western Canadian source, Stephen L*** had more to add after seeing Simon and Leah's later statements, in November 2000:"Simon mentioned a newspaper clipping about 'Nephthys' Lodge. That article may have been the result of 'Heru-em-Anpu' splitting off from 'Nephthys' near 1983-84.
I remember seeing a charter for 'Nephthys' Lodge. I think it was dated November 23rd 1985 for Lodge status, but that may have been re-issued when Breeze became 'Caliph'. 'Prometheus' split off from 'Nephthys' in 87-88. They were an oasis when I came into contact with the O.T.O. in 1989. Breeze got booted out of Canada for working without a proper work-visa. He apparently had an affair with the girlfriend or wife of a Lodge member. That member turned him in (and later got expelled). That was in Montréal... what was there - 'Phoenix' Lodge?"
[Simon and Leah commented: 'The woman was Mireille (?)Gauthier - not sure at all about her last name, in those days we did not know women except as Soror whoever; this was Soror Mimi, who I understand left Canada (she was French Canadian) to go to New York with Breeze; she seems to have been his partner for quite a while. She was actually married to a man named (?)Bjorn.
From information provided by David Poole, Breeze's representative: [partly paraphrased] "This was Mireille LeGallic-Larson; she took her Minerval on 22/8/81 at Phoenix; I° on 24/4/82 at Phoenix; II° on 15/4/83 at Phoenix; III° on 3/2/85 at Phoenix; IV° on 13/5/86 at Agapé; made K[night of the] E[ast and] W[est] 12/4/87 by the Caliph (dues transfer from Bill Breeze); V° on 20/9/87 Tahuti. She died two weeks after David Poole named her Secretary-Treasurer of the O.T.O. in Québec."
Simon and Leah: 'Alan Stewart was the "boyfriend". He claimed "Mimi" was the only woman he ever loved, and he seemed to hate Breeze for "stealing" his woman (and yet she seems to have remained married to Bjorn). In 1986-87 the two French Canadian woman who had left with Breeze, Sr. Eva, and Sr. Mimi, returned. We think Eva had been married to Richard Gernon, and of course, he had died. Mimi seems to have returned to her husband, Bjorn, and had two small children when she died, in 1988-89 or so. A heart-attack (she was very young, 28 or so). I met her once only and talked to her on the phone once.'
Again Poole paraphrased: "The 'Caliph' came to Montréal for the Catholic funeral Mireille's parents wanted; David Poole was there, as was Robert Latulippe and Alan Stewart. She was cremated at Côté des Neiges Cemetary, and a wake followed at the church basement. Breeze and company sat at the back of the Church, as the 'Caliph' didn't want to get too close to the family and Bjorn. Mireille had an 8-9 year old daughter, Emily, and a baby. Bjorn remained friendly with Alan Stewart, and gave him her V° regalia, which Stewart began to wear after he was expelled, and had a photograph of himself wearing it for a newsletter that he made when the EGC was incorporated. He invited David Poole to his elevation ceremony as 'Cardinal' of EGC, and threw Poole and Robert Latulippe out of EGC because they 'ignored him'. He started using the OTO lamen on his EGC letterheads, and reactivated a registered name: OTO Registered, a 'production and publishing company' claiming that his productions would include 'initiations' and that he was now a IX°. He had been 'on suspension' since August 25 1990, with a one year moratorium on all privileges and responsibilities."
Leah: 'I can't help but think that Sr. Mimi (or maybe Sr. Eva) were one of the women speaking French in the background of the 'Caliphate' tape, possibly made in New York in early 1984. I notice the person who submitted the tape/transcript does not even mention them, as if they are not important. And yet up here, Sr. Mimi and Sr. Eva had a tremendous amount of love and respect from the membership. Sr. Eva was one of the officers at my Minerval. Very lovely person. Haven't listened to the tape; just skimmed the transcript.
'The really odd thing is that some believed that Michael Vaughn - who moved to Edmonton - had been the one who turned Breeze in, some thought it was Alan.'
Poole adds: "Some think it was the Black Bishop Latulippe, a.k.a. Mr. Scorpio a.k.a. Agent 93."
Leah: 'After Mimi died - and Breeze came up there for her funeral, I am told - Alan and Bjorn seem to have become friends (maybe they always were?) and Bjorn even got Alan, who had been unemployed/unemployable for years, a job in a machine shop where he worked.'
Poole: "Where he soon chopped off a couple pf fingers, putting an end forever to his ambition of becoming a rock star."]
Stephen L*** in November 2000: "'Nephthys' Lodge lost its status as an official COTO body a few years back. 'Prometheus' Lodge disappeared in the last year or so. O.T.O. in Edmonton, Alberta is dead."
[Simon and Leah add: 'Phoenix Lodge (Deumié then Poole), Starry Wisdom Oasis (Alan Stewart), Wytchwood Hill Camp (Michael Hoirch). Breeze seems to have started up Phoenix Lodge.']
L***: "While I was an active member there, a police officer joined the Lodge. He initially was assigned to document all occult groups in the city and put together a handbook for the police. With that task done (O.T.O. got a favorable report, apparently) and his reassignment to other duties, he took his Minerval degree (1990?), but did not stick around too long. He was suspended from the force for making allegations (later proven to be true) of links between the police and organized crime and biker gangs. Also, ot her stuff was going on - divorce?"
MESSRS. POOLE, HOIRCH & STEWART
Leah again: "As you know if you have read the Constitution of the Order at all (which the 'Caliph' never found the balls to implement) "The names of female members are never disclosed". I actually quit the Order over this. Not only did they not implement this 'privacy' aspect of the Sorors, but they actually sold their mailing list - with my name on it - to various book publishing companies. So I joined the Order, and THEY violated my privacy. This has to do with David Poole. When he appeared on the scene, I did not even live in the city, I lived in the mountains. He took his I° about a month before I took mine. I only saw him once or twice. But then he started up a magazine, 'Pan*Gaea', and asked me if I wanted to contribute - I wrote an article or two, did some cartoons, art work, etc. Now because of what happened at my I° I was 'silent' for one entire year, at least in stating my version of what went on before, during and just after the initiation (remember I said earlier, there had been a big fight in the Temple, with two people walking out - one of them was Poole the other Hoirch).Hoirch with whom I lived at the time, and who was Camp-Master of 'Wytchwood Hill' Camp, assured me that he would get things straightened out. He corresponded with Heidrick, knew Breeze, was a III°. So all this took time and I stayed out of it. It took almost a year for Hoirch to finally get a decision on the matter from Breeze himself, who had chartered Hoirch's camp (this is what started the whole rivalry thing: Hoirch refused to let Alan Stewart 'charter' him, and went directly to Bill Breeze to get a Charter from Grand Lodge).
The 'result' of the Caliph's investigation was to close 'Starry Wisdom' Oasis AND 'Wytchwood Hill' Camp. Though we did not know it at the time, David Poole had his own ambitions and probably was the one Breeze 'appointed' to investigate, but it also might have been Robert Latulippe. I remember the day the letter came from Breeze - whom Hoirch literally adored - saying something like you both (Hoirch and Stewart) are projecting onto each other, and you both are wrong. And he 'chided' Hoirch about me - not mentioning me by name - about an event from years before, where the police had been called; something like he did not appreciate that certain people (me) involved the police or the law or something. It was one of Breeze's non-specific type things.
The impact of this letter was pretty awful. The mailbox was half a mile down a hill from the house. I had walked down with Hoirch, and when he opened and read the letter, he got so enraged that he had some kind of stroke - one side of his body was paralysed, and he could hardly make it back up to the house. We lived in a very isolated area, so I insisted that he go into the city 90 kilometres away, and get checked at a hospital. As it turns out I don't think he ever actually got to the hospital (he was a pathological liar) - I heard he actually went to 'Starry Wisdom', got and stayed drunk for three days, and was barred from their house for peeing on a carpet downstairs. Later on he told me he had gone to hospital, and his 'stroke' must have been caused by a spider bite.
No one was actually expelled, or suspended, but the Camp and Oasis were lost. But both Hoirch and I quit soon after that. Within a year or two my father visited me and made it possible for me to leave that isolated place in the mountains.
I became friendly with Poole, rather, got to know him somewhat better. I even taught him how to do a banishing ritual."
Poole: "Leah" never taught me a "banishing". I had been doing the practices of Liber O for at least twelve years. So ridiculous!"
Leah: "Poole proposed opening the Papineau Temple and I agreed to help him with it. But only by paying a quarter of the rent (because I had quit the O.T.O.), and I was allowed to use the space for what I had planned, which had to do with paganism and Wicca. I remained on cordial terms with Hoirch, but he stayed in the Mountains, and I moved to the city, near the new Temple.
This did not last long, and I split with Poole for two reasons. The first was that though I just had Friday nights to use the space, Poole was ever present with a clipboard, trying to sign people up for O.T.O. (using me, and Wicca, to try to draw them in). The second reason was he refused to give me a key. I had stuff stored there in a file cabinet, and he put a label on the drawer saying 'Witch Stuff' or something, and let people 'borrow' from the cabinet. But I pulled out, and I think Hoirch kept paying the $50 anyway until it blew up - which did not take long after Poole started attacking Robert Deumié. Poole was fighting with just about everyone then; not physical, but real childishness. So about the mailing list. I had moved to an apartment. I do not remember exactly what came in the mail at this point - a book catalog maybe - but it was obvious that the O.T.O. had my new address. So I wrote to Heidrick to find out how they had gotten it... he wrote back and said, 'oh you have been reinstated, and your dues are paid', but never told me who did it. I assumed Poole paid them without telling me, and also against my Will - because Poole definitely knew that I did not want to work with the COTO any more. So I wrote back to Heidrick, and said, 'take my name off the list! return the money to whoever!' and also told him I did not appreciate the 'mailing'. There was something about that mailing that clued me to the fact that the COTO's list was being used commercially; I don't recall what, perhaps my magickal name, perhaps the date-code (9-87), but it was something that let me know the list had become 'public' or had been sold. I did not live long at that address. When I moved I did not get mail forwarded. I never checked, but assumed that the dues were returned - but who knows, perhaps they got paid for me for years?
Heidrick's last letter to me was weird. It said something about 'quitting for the second time' and 'being careful about the reflux current'. I think he was trying to 'scare' me, but I do not scare easy. Maybe he was just making a bad joke. Poole definitely wanted me back in. I wanted nothing to do with it. This actually had less to do with Poole than he might have thought - and everything to do with Alan Stewart (my sponsor into the Order, my 'superior' as he called himself) and Michael Hoirch - my other sponsor - who was beating me, abusing me in other ways, and continually lying to and stealing from me. Even though Hoirch and Stewart had both quit or been expelled by this time (I think Hoirch's status now is 'reinstated but inactive') they still were omnipresent, whenever something was going on in this city, for a long time (Stewart died last year). Big city, very small magickal community, and most groups overlap."
Poole added later: "1) Breeze didn't appoint anybody to investigate, the superfluous letter writing campaign they indulged in did it for him!"
Leah commented: "There was no "they", Michael wrote those letters."
Cont. Poole: "2) As above, "Leah" never taught me a banishing!"
Leah commented: "Many people were there, but hmmmmm, they are now all part of the "Agape-Montreal Phoenix Lodge Revival and Magickal Mystery Tour Group". Again, as with the money thing, I know, Poole knows that what I say is true, and I don't really care."
Poole: "Oh come on! I had "Gems from the Equinox" since the age of sixteen, and I signed the probationers pledge, and had earnestly begun the recommended practices... She probably showed me her version of casting a wiccan circle, apples and oranges again!"
-
Leah Sun Dec 12, 2004
QUOTE
She probably showed me her version of casting a wiccan circle, apples and oranges again!"
UNQUOTE
No. It was a banishing.
4) There were three keys: one for me, one for Latulippe, and one for Frater Zalanes. Since they wanted me in the circle, I opened for them, when I could. What clipboard? Dont have one! The evening was wicca and that is all. Just more sillyness.
5) Hoirch quit at the same time as her."
Leah commented: "Not true. He never quit. Lapsed maybe, but he never quit. He resigned I believe in 1990 after losing his camp, was reinstated by the Supreme Council and he actually DID do OTO rituals in that OTO Temple of David's. I am VERY sure he has all his regalia to this very day. Prolly still has a shriveled up old cake of light around someplace, too. (grin)"
Poole: "Oh boy, if it really matters: "I'll try to find the exact correspondence". Leslie, do try and be civil!"
Cont. Leah: "He also has joined the "Agape-Montreal" list. (When you live in an Aquarium where all can see you swimming around, don't throw gravel! LOL!)"
- Leah Sun Dec 12, 2004
Cont. Poole: "3) They didn't pay a quarter of the rent, sometimes 1/7th.
Then what David Poole told me at the time was untrue. Fine. (I should have got a receipt).
By the way the $50 *I* paid and the $50 Hoirch was supposed to pay (and how often was that, eh?) were paid completely separate. There was no "they". Poole keeps bringing up "they" over and over again. Let's get it straight. At that time I lived in Montreal on St. Hubert St. I had left the "Wytchwood Hill Camp" (and commune, and artist's collective) for all time. Hoirch lived in Ste. Jovite. For some reason, known only to David Poole, he seems to have believed that we constituted something like a "couple" (other than the business relationship) because he saw us together in the same room a time or two. Hoirch was considered *by me* to be a brother in a fraternal organisation, with whom I *occasionally* did rituals, and who had formerly been my "teacher" in the A.·. A.·. When I met David Poole, I was, by then, a divorced woman (that was my "civil status") (I add again, *not* married to Hoirch!) I had a number of male friends. I had a magickal partner, whose secular name I will not disclose, known publicly as (lemme see, at that time) *Dianos*?, perhaps, who also was *not* Hoirch, David Poole may remember meeting that person at one of the rituals in Ste. Jovite he attended (hint, he was the guy with the black robe who stood to my right, at the altar, kind of hard to miss.) I really really *really* wish David Poole would get over the utter nonsense about Hoirch having been anything other than my teacher in the A.·. A.·., a some-time fellow ritualist in group rituals, my business partner, and a brother in the Order. If he can prove we were anything else, I want to see the photos!! Or the documents!!! How can someone who purported to be a bodymaster of a fraternal organisation have *so little understanding* of what a strictly fraternal relationship is between fellow Fraters and Sorors, is *absolutely* beyond my grasp. Where on earth *did* Mr. Breeze *find* this precious gem that is David Poole! He is *too quaint* for words!!!
Although occasionally Hoirch was an "acting High Priest" in some rituals I chose to do with him, and note carefully the "acting" which means he was *not* the actual High Priest, he was not, during any of the time David Poole knew me either my magickal partner, or anything other than a (by then former) brother of an Order I'd resigned from and (at the time I believe) a good friend and business partner (hint, the cartoons we did together? Wytchwood Hill Arts and Graphics? later on, WytchKraft Arts and Graphics, Reg'd.?) who let me occasionally use what was *his* leased property to do rituals on in Ste. Jovite.
QUOTE
DP: 4) There were three keys: one for me, one for Latulippe, and one for Frater Zalanes.
UNQUOTE
One of the reasons I quit and "expelled myself" from the so-called "Templar Centre" was that David Poole took my money each month and then refused to give me a key, My ritual tools were stored in a file cabinet. People were "borrowing" things from that drawer when I wasn't there and not replacing them. Only small things such as candles, but nonetheless, I was not even permitted to have access to my own ritual tools unless it was at David Poole's "convenience", so I took my toys, and left. One of many reasons, the others was the excessive marzipan consumption.
QUOTE
DP: Since they wanted me in the circle,
UNQUOTE
I have no idea what he is talking about. There were "Wicca-Pagan" nights on Friday Nights. There was a *lot* of unpleasantness surrounding this, for instance, *someone* unknown to me, had printed up posters advertising "Wicca Nghts" — WITH David Poole's phone number on them! Unknown to me, who was supposedly renting the space, and promoting the space as I saw fit (as far as I knew), *someone* was actively promoting, on University Campuses no less (something I wouldn't do!), where the posters were put up, that I would be there, and apparently *someone* thought that all attendees should be "screened" first by phoning David Poole in Laval. I found out about this when one Friday Night a whole bunch of (unexpected) people showed up, and I asked where they had heard about it! The person told me about the posters!!! (I took all my stuff out that week, that was the final straw!) Apparently, whoever printed up those posters without my knowledge, with David Poole's phone number on them, seems to have believed that Wicca (or I?) could be used as some sort of "hook" to reel people in to the O.T.O., Inc., whoever had those posters printed up and posted -- without my knowledge or consent. Maybe the same one who saw fit to label the drawer where my personal ritual tools were being kept, supposedly securely, with a BIG label that said "WICCA STUFF".
QUOTE
DP: 1) I opened for them, when I could. 2) What clipboard? Dont have one! 3) The evening was wicca and that is all. Just more sillyness.
UNQUOTE
1) He insisted on *always* being there. 2) The clipboard with the "Application to Minervals" stack on it. I sat there in the office with Fr. OZ one "Wicca" night, before he was Fr. OZ, and watched him fill out the Minerval application, on the clipboard that David Poole had handed to him. He even asked me what it was about and showed it to me!!! Which is how I know about it!!!! I also clearly remember the two goth girls that David Poole actually *scared away* because they were there to learn more about Wicca, and they got really frightened and left when David Poole shoved a clipboard, I assume with Minerval application on it, in their face, they didn't know what the hell was going on, and probably thought it was some sort of deceptive cult trying to recruit them (heh), they left right away — after looking at me quizzically — and never came back 3) No comment necessary, except the statement reveals more about David Poole's character and respect for others
QUOTE
5) Hoirch quit at the same time as her."
Leah commented: "Not true. He never quit. Lapsed maybe, but he never quit.
UNQUOTE
I thought, because the paragraph was about the "Templar Centre", that David Poole meant "quit the O.T.O., Inc." and I stand by what I wrote. He did not quit the O.T.O., Inc., about "events" in the "Templar Centre", as to whether or not he kept going *to* the "Templar Centre" or kept paying his "share" I have no idea, and it is and was no concern of mine. When I 'took my toys' and went home, that was the end of any association I had with O.T.O., Inc. (well at least not until I found out I had been 'reinstated' and had my dues paid without my knowledge, which by the way, has been finally been cleared up: it was *not* Hoirch who paid, and it was *not* David Poole who paid, I know who paid, and I've generously forgiven the person for doing so without my knowledge, I don't think the intention was malevolent.)
QUOTE
Leah: He resigned I believe in 1990 after losing his camp, was reinstated by the Supreme Council and he actually DID do OTO rituals in that OTO Temple of David's. I am VERY sure he has all his regalia to this very day. Prolly still has a shriveled up old cake of light around someplace, too. (grin)" Poole: "Oh boy, if it really matters: "I'll try to find the exact correspondence". Leslie, do try and be civil!"
UNQUOTE
My name is not "Leslie". By the way, I note, again, I am reading some of this for the first time on the website. David Poole is 'addressing' me, in an email to Peter Koenig that he knows will appear on the www, without having sent me a copy of the email???? David Poole must think the "O.T.O. Phenomenon" site is like some sort of message board! Wow! I think it's two years later I actually realised this!
Mind you, I did tell David Poole not to contact me anymore after I got my artwork back from him.
HOIRCH and THELEMIC WICCAS
A 'CALIPH' CANNOT CHANGE ITS SPOTS
Leah: "When I lived in Ottawa, 1997, I picked up a magazine someplace called 'Psychopomp', which was well written. The editor, it turns out, Rikki La Costa, has since become a friend, and also seems to have left the COTO since. Anyhow it was from 'Amon-Re' Oasis (Lodge) and I thought when I read it, maybe things have changed. Also Simon and I were missing the sense of community, which is not all bad. So we wrote to Amon-Re, and I wrote to Breeze myself, telling them the full story (my p.o.v. which they had never asked for) of my I°, thinking I wanted it redone, maybe at 'Amon-Re'. Their immediate response was to send me a book catalog (put me on a mailing list) for Falcon Press!Eventually I got a letter from Heidrick, to which I replied that I quit again, that this was not a magickal fraternity, but a book club - or words to that effect. That one year - must have been 1997 - I did actually pay my dues. Simon also paid as an 'associate'."
Whereabouts of the Temple Part I Part II Part III Part IV Part V Part VI Part VII - Reactions to the previous sections Alan Stewart |
O.T.O. Phenomenon navigation page | main page | mail
What's New on the O.T.O. Phenomenon site?
Scattered On The Floor
Browsing Through The Rituals
More about all this in Andreas Huettl and Peter-R. Koenig: Satan - Jünger, Jäger und Justiz
|
