Jan van Rijckenborgh
Encyclopedia
Jan van Rijckenborgh was a Dutch born mystic and founder of the Lectorium Rosicrucianum
, a worldwide esoteric Rosicrucian movement.
Jan van Rijckenborgh was born in Haarlem
, Holland under the name Jan Leene, adopting the name van Rijckenborgh later. With his brother, Zwier Willem Leene he rejected the teachings of the orthodox Christianity
he grew up with in favour of a more mystical approach. Under the influence of Dr A H de Hartogh he read the theosophical works of German mystic Jakob Boehme and in 1924, with Zwier, joined Max Heindel
's school of Esoteric Christianity
the Rosicrucian Fellowship
, eventually becoming the heads of the Dutch branch.
Ultimately even Heindel's approach proved not enough for van Rijckenborgh and his brother, who left the Fellowship in 1935 to found their own Rosicrucian movement, the Lectorium Rosicrucianum. By this time they had made acquaintance with female Dutch mystic Catharose de Petri
who became a co-founder of the Lectorium with the brothers.
based upon the Rosicrucian Manifestos
, Johann Valentin Andreae's works The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz and Rei Christianopolotanae Descriptio and his own wide ranging explorations into hermeticism
, alchemy
, Freemasonry
, the Cathars (thanks in part to his collaboration with neo-Cathar historian Antonin Gadal
), Christian Gnosticism and other forms of esoteric study. Taking as his central image of the relationship between the Soul and the Body the Rose Cross he argued for the Transfiguration/Gnostic Rebirth of the Soul in Man, thus achieving a transcendence of the dialectic of ordinary life. The Lectorium was founded to study and proselytize these ideas.
Lectorium Rosicrucianum
The Lectorium Rosicrucianum is a worldwide school of Esoteric Christianity founded in 1935 by Dutch mystics Jan van Rijckenborgh, his brother Zwier Willem Leene and Catharose de Petri...
, a worldwide esoteric Rosicrucian movement.
Jan van Rijckenborgh was born in Haarlem
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
, Holland under the name Jan Leene, adopting the name van Rijckenborgh later. With his brother, Zwier Willem Leene he rejected the teachings of the orthodox Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
he grew up with in favour of a more mystical approach. Under the influence of Dr A H de Hartogh he read the theosophical works of German mystic Jakob Boehme and in 1924, with Zwier, joined Max Heindel
Max Heindel
Max Heindel - born Carl Louis von Grasshoff in Aarhus, Denmark on July 23, 1865 - was a Christian occultist, astrologer, and mystic. He died on January 6, 1919 at Oceanside, California, United States.- Early infancy :...
's school of Esoteric Christianity
Esoteric Christianity
Esoteric Christianity is a term which refers to an ensemble of spiritual currents which regard Christianity as a mystery religion, and profess the existence and possession of certain esoteric doctrines or practices, hidden from the public but accessible only to a narrow circle of "enlightened",...
the Rosicrucian Fellowship
Rosicrucian Fellowship
The Rosicrucian Fellowship – "An International Association of Christian Mystics" – was founded in 1909 by Max Heindel as herald of the Aquarian Age and with the aim of publicly promulgating "the true Philosophy" of the Rosicrucians....
, eventually becoming the heads of the Dutch branch.
Ultimately even Heindel's approach proved not enough for van Rijckenborgh and his brother, who left the Fellowship in 1935 to found their own Rosicrucian movement, the Lectorium Rosicrucianum. By this time they had made acquaintance with female Dutch mystic Catharose de Petri
Catharose de Petri
Catharose de Petri was a Dutch born mystic and co-founder of the Lectorium Rosicrucianum, an international esoteric school based on Gnostic ideas of Christianity....
who became a co-founder of the Lectorium with the brothers.
Ideas
Van Rijckenborgh propounded his own form of Gnostic ChristianityGnosticism
Gnosticism is a scholarly term for a set of religious beliefs and spiritual practices common to early Christianity, Hellenistic Judaism, Greco-Roman mystery religions, Zoroastrianism , and Neoplatonism.A common characteristic of some of these groups was the teaching that the realisation of Gnosis...
based upon the Rosicrucian Manifestos
Rosicrucian Manifestos
The Rosicrucian Manifestos were two documents of unknown authorship written in the early 17th century in Europe. They purported to announce the existence of a hitherto unknown esoteric order, the Brotherhood of the Rose Cross, to the world...
, Johann Valentin Andreae's works The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz and Rei Christianopolotanae Descriptio and his own wide ranging explorations into hermeticism
Hermeticism
Hermeticism or the Western Hermetic Tradition is a set of philosophical and religious beliefs based primarily upon the pseudepigraphical writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus...
, alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
, Freemasonry
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
, the Cathars (thanks in part to his collaboration with neo-Cathar historian Antonin Gadal
Antonin Gadal
Antonin Gadal was a French mystic and historian who dedicated his life to study of the Cathars in the south of France, their spirituality, beliefs and ideology.-Life:...
), Christian Gnosticism and other forms of esoteric study. Taking as his central image of the relationship between the Soul and the Body the Rose Cross he argued for the Transfiguration/Gnostic Rebirth of the Soul in Man, thus achieving a transcendence of the dialectic of ordinary life. The Lectorium was founded to study and proselytize these ideas.