Today's post focuses primarily on one aspect of Jane and Phyllis's legacy, and how you can help it continue to manifest, right now. I had planned on waiting to make this post until after the Seckler post was ready, but with NOTOCON, and the Wolfe post turning into actual research, everything takes longer than anticipated, and I'm running out of time to talk about this important opportunity to support the Wolfe legacy.
TL;DR - Jane's student Meral (Seckler) saw a gap between modern American students and Crowley's ideal A.'.A.'. students, and she put together a bridge for the gap called the College of Thelema, now the International College of Thelema (ICOT).
They need money to get space, and they have an Indiegogo campaign in process at this link. Time's running out, and now's the best time to give.
Now keep reading, motherfuckers, I put time into this.
In the previous post, I talked about Jane Wolfe and her lasting legacy to the A.'.A.'. and the OTO. The next post, currently being written by my partner Harper Feist, will explore how her legacy continued to influence the modern manifestations of the Orders through her A.'.A.'. student Soror Meral (Phyllis Seckler).
The Legacy in Brief:
- Jane taught Phyllis A.'.A.'. stuff.
- Phyllis did the A.'.A.'. stuff, and it worked.
- Karl Germer corresponded with Phyllis about A.'.A.'. stuff.
- Karl told Jane Phyllis was 5=6, and intimated the same to Phyllis in gentler words.
- Phyllis pursued her HGA, and went about manifesting things as she saw fit. Like a boss.
One of the things she saw fit to do was inspired by the number of people she saw who came to her to follow the curriculum of the A.'.A.'. who were completely unprepared to handle it. The A.'.A.'. stuff Crowley put together isn't that hard, really, and it isn't that big of a deal when you've been given a complete 19th century private education based on the Trivium and the Classical Educational Model. It's actually an extension of that educational training, focused on the esoteric, mystical, and mathematical aspects of the magical arts.
Seckler, a High School English teacher in California, was painfully aware of the fact that at 18, Aleister Crowley had more academic education under his belt than 99.999% of American students. She understood that the A.'.A.'. curriculum was going to be about impossible for most folks to succeed at, given the tools and training they got from a public education.
At the same time, she understood that people needed to receive Thelema wherever they were at. Some people needed more help, a more structured organized approach to the concepts and libers of the A.'.A.'. materials than they could get from the traditional model of the A.'.A.'. process. She put together a study course to prepare people who weren't able to apply the discipline and practice of the classsical education model to the syllabus of the A.'.A.'. on their own, never having been exposed to it. It was intended to increase the success of participants in the practices of the A.'.A.'..
She formed the College of Thelema, which over the years has morphed into the International College of Thelema (ICOT), a non-profit religious and educational organization based on the principles of Thelema. It was founded in service to the A∴A∴, under warrant from Phyllis Seckler (Soror Meral), to provide preparatory training in ceremonial magick, Raja Yoga, Qabalah, Tarot, Astrology, and much more.
Today, led by David Shoemaker, the International College of Thelema continues to provide aspirants with the opportunity to receive instruction in the tenets of Thelema in a way that prepares them to succeed in their Summum Bonum.
In pursuit of advancing this effort, the ICOT is currently raising funds to expand their physical footprint, and to provide a facility to continue the legacy of Jane Wolfe and Phyllis Seckler. Check out their Indiegogo campaign for further details. This is the chance you have, right now, to contribute to the ongoing manifestation of the legacy of our Progenitrix:
