A Brief History
The O.T.O., as many would believe, was not founded by Aleister Crowley. Rather, it evolved from a rich fraternal and magical heratige beginning with the work of Austrian paper chemist, Carl Kellner. Kellner sought to create a German "Academia Masonica" by collecting together the various high degrees of Masonry (coupled with his own beliefs and practices of yoga and sacred sexuality) so they could be administered by a single institution. Kellner's collaborator, Theodor Reuss, began publishing "The Oriflamme" in 1902 as the organ of these collected rites, and he carried on this vision after Kellner's death in 1905.
Along the way, the name Ordo Templi Orientis was coined with Reuss as its first Outer Head; in addition, the degrees of high-grade masonry were condensed into the 0° (Minerval) to VII° (Sovereign Grand Inspector General), with an inner circle or Sovereign Sanctuary (VIII° and IX°) preserving the central secret of the Order.
During these early years, the O.T.O. was affiliated with European Masonry, and attepted to combine the various masonic rites. Soon after meeting him, Ruess initiated Aleister Crowley into the Order in 1910, who was then appointed National Grand Master General X° for Great Britain and Ireland. Crowley's appointment included authority over an English language rite of the lower (Masonic) degrees of O.T.O. which was given the name "Mysteria Mystica Maxima," or M.'.M.'.M.'. (which eventually became the initial degrees up to VII° of the current Order).
In 1912, the O.T.O. began seeking to distinguish itself from Freemasonry, especially as the Order was initiating women. They were also very careful not to infringe on the rights of Freemasonry with these condensed degrees. However, O.T.O. still played nice with the Freemasons. Around 1920, Reuss sought (unsuccessfully) to convince Masonry to adopt the Gnostic Mass as the official religion of the Rose Croix (18°): This--combined with a.) the collapse of the Lakes Region Supreme Council in Detroit (made up of 32° and 33° masons), b.) the Scottish Rite's refusal to admit Frater Achad, and c.) Reuss' Gauge of Amity with Matthew McBlain Thompson, who was later sentenced to prison for masonic fraud--caused Reuss and Crowley to finally back away once and for all from Freemasonry.
Between 1913 and 1918, Crowley rewrote the largely masonic M.'.M.'.M.'. degree system to reflect and embody Thelemic priciples.
In 1923, upon the death of Reuss, Crowley became the Outer Head of the Order of O.T.O. and remained so until his death in 1947. Since that time, the office of O.H.O. has been held by Karl Germer, Grady McMurtry, and the current Frater Superior, Hymenaeus Beta, who took office in 1985.
In 1996, Sabazius X° was appointed as National Grand Master General for the U.S. Grand Lodge.
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