Opus Dei is an organization founded in Spain in 1928 by Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer. The stated aim of Opus Dei is to "spread throughout society a profound awareness of the universal call to holiness and apostolate through one's professional work carried out with freedom and personal responsibility." (Encyclopedia of Associations)

Opus Dei is made up of lay members and priests; Opus Dei laity continue to work in the secular world, but remain under the strict spiritual direction of Opus Dei. All Opus Dei members follow "the plan of life," made up of spiritual practices such as daily Mass, rosary, spiritual reading, and mental prayer, as well as Opus Dei prayers and customs.

The true origin of Freemasonry is unknown, lost in time, and there are a good number of historians with diverse opinions, each vehemently supporting his or her own belief. We are making history every day, but its effects will mostly be evident years from now; maybe when we are not even alive to see it. "The truth" will be colored by each perceiver. So, we can talk of some events in our history but never really know the underlying current that for years worked to precipitate the moment. We have to trust there is Plan of Evolution, a Tracing Board, for Humanity and we are but a little speck within the current of life, evolving and cooperating with the big scheme.

In Albert G. Mackey 33°, Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, he states: " The origin and source whence first sprang the institution of Freemasonry, such as we now have it, has given rise to more difference of opinion and discussions among Masonic scholars than any other topic in the literature of the institution. Writers on the history of Freemasonry have, at different times, attributed its origin to the following sources:

To the Patriarchal religion.

To the Ancient Pagan Mysteries.

To the Temple of King Solomon.

To the Crusaders.

To the Knights Templar

To the Roman College of Artificers.

To the Operative Masons of the Middle Ages.

To the Rosicrucian's of the sixteenth century.

To Oliver Cromwell, for the advancement of his political schemes.

To the Pretender, for the restoration of the House of Stuart to the British throne.

The membership of Freemasonry, by and large, is made up of average men. Its ranks include laborers, clerks, merchants, tradesmen, lawyers, enlisted and commissioned members of the armed forces, doctors, statesmen, farmers, salesmen...the whole spectrum.

In all ages, though, its ranks have included the great and the near great, including a sizeable number of Presidents of the United States, as follows:

George Washington: The only President to serve as Master of his lodge during his incumbency, Washington laid the cornerstone of the United States Capitol, acting as Grand Master pro tem for the Grand Lodge of Maryland. He was buried with Masonic honors. Masons of the United States have erected a granite monument in his memory on Shooter's Hill, at Alexandria, Va.

James Monroe: Except for records of his membership, little is known of Monroe's Masonic life.

Andrew Jackson: Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, Jackson was the first of two Presidents to have so served Freemasonry.

James K. Polk: Known to have served as Junior Warden of his lodge, there is no record of Polk ever serving as Master. During his Presidency he assisted in laying the cornerstone of the Smithsonian Institution with Masonic ceremonies.

James Buchanan: Master of his lodge in 1823, Buchanan also served as a District Deputy Grand Master in Pennsylvania. He delivered the address at the Masonic dedication of the statue of Washington, Washington Circle, Washington, D.C. He was buried with Masonic honors.

Andrew Johnson: During his Presidency Johnson participated in five Masonic cornerstone ceremonies... in Chicago, Baltimore, Boston, Antietam (Md.) and Washington. He was buried with Masonic honors.

The story begins at Yale, where three threads of American social history -- espionage, drug smuggling and secret societies -- intertwine into one. ParaScope is pleased to present this treatise on the Order of Skull and Bones, whose initiates fill the ranks of the global elite. Is Skull and Bones the American branch of the Illuminati? Are national and global events manipulated as part of a grand Hegellian equation, thesis and anti-thesis yielding a New World Order synthesis? The evidence and events surrounding the Order of Skull and Bones will shock you. Read on.

The story begins at Yale, where three threads of American social history -- espionage, drug smuggling and secret societies -- intertwine into one.

Elihu Yale was born near Boston, educated in London, and served with the British East India Company, eventually becoming governor of Fort Saint George, Madras, in 1687. He amassed a great fortune from trade and returned to England in 1699. Yale became known as quite a philanthropist; upon receiving a request from the Collegiate School in Connecticut, he sent a donation and a gift of books. After subsequent bequests, Cotton Mather suggested the school be named Yale College, in 1718.

A statue of Nathan Hale stands on Old Campus at Yale University. There is a copy of that statue in front of the CIA's headquarters in Langley, Virginia. Yet another stands in front of Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts (where George H.W. Bush ('48) went to prep school and joined a secret society at age twelve).

Nathan Hale, along with three other Yale graduates, was a member of the "Culper Ring," one of America's first intelligence operations. Established by George Washington, it was successful throughout the Revolutionary War. Nathan was the only operative to be ferreted out by the British, and after speaking his famous regrets, he was hanged in 1776. Ever since the founding of the Republic, the relationship between Yale and the "Intelligence Community" has been unique.

In 1823, Samuel Russell established Russell and Company for the purpose of acquiring opium in Turkey and smuggling it to China. Russell and Company merged with the Perkins (Boston) syndicate in 1830 and became the primary American opium smuggler. Many of the great American and European fortunes were built on the "China"(opium) trade.

The Order flourished from the very beginning in spite of occasional squalls of controversy. There was dissension from some professors, who didn't like its secrecy and exclusiveness. And there was backlash from students, showing concern about the influence "Bones" was having over Yale finances and the favoritism shown to "Bonesmen."

In October of 1873, Volume 1, Number 1, of The Iconoclast was published in New Haven. It was only published once and was one of very few openly published articles on the Order of Skull and Bones.

From The Iconoclast:

"We speak through a new publication. because the college press is closed to those who dare to openly mention 'Bones'....

"Out of every class Skull and Bones takes its men. They have gone out into the world and have become, in many instances, leaders in society. They have obtained control of Yale. Its business is performed by them. Money paid to the college must pass into their hands, and be subject to their will. No doubt they are worthy men in themselves, but the many, whom they looked down upon while in college, cannot so far forget as to give money freely into their hands. Men in Wall Street complain that the college comes straight to them for help, instead of asking each graduate for his share. The reason is found in a remark made by one of Yale's and America's first men: 'Few will give but Bones men and they care far more for their society than they do for the college....'

"Year by year the deadly evil is growing. The society was never as obnoxious to the college as it is today, and it is just this ill-feeling that shuts the pockets of non-members. Never before has it shown such arrogance and self-fancied superiority. It grasps the College Press and endeavors to rule it all. It does not deign to show its credentials, but clutches at power with the silence of conscious guilt.

"To tell the good which Yale College has done would be well nigh impossible. To tell the good she might do would be yet more difficult. The question, then, is reduced to this -- on the one hand lies a source of incalculable good -- on the other a society guilty of serious and far-reaching crimes. It is Yale College against Skull and Bones!! We ask all men, as a question of right, which should be allowed to live?"

In his book "America's Secret Establishment," Antony Sutton outlined the Order of Skull and Bones' ability to establish vertical and horizontal "chains of influence" that ensured the continuity of their conspiratorial schemes.

The Whitney-Stimson-Bundy links represent the "vertical chain".

W. C. Whitney ('63), who married Flora Payne (of the Standard Oil Payne dynasty), was Secretary of the Navy. His attorney was a man named Elihu Root. Root hired Henry Stimson ('88), out of law school. Stimson took over from Root as Secretary of War in 1911, appointed by fellow Bonesman William Howard Taft. Stimson later became Coolidge's Governor-General of the Philippine Islands, Hoover's Secretary of State, and Secretary of War during the Roosevelt and Truman administrations.

Hollister Bundy ('09) was Stimson's special assistant and point man in the Pentagon for the Manhattan Project. His two sons, also members of Skull and Bones, were William Bundy ('39) and McGeorge Bundy ('40) -- both very active in governmental and foundation affairs.

The two brothers, from their positions in the CIA, the Department of Defense and the State Department, and as Special Assistants to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson, exercised significant impact on the flow of information and intelligence during the Vietnam "War."

William Bundy went on to be editor of Foreign Affairs, the influential quarterly of the Council on Foreign Affairs (CFR). McGeorge became president of the Ford Foundation.

Another interesting group of "Bonesmen" is the Harriman/Bush crowd. Averil Harriman ('13), "Elder Statesman" of the Democratic Party, and his brother Roland Harriman ('17) were very active members. In fact, four of Roland's fellow "Bonesmen" from the class of 1917 were directors of Brown Brothers, Harriman, including Prescott Bush ('17), George Bush's dad.

There were so many "Yalies" in the OSS that Yale's drinking tune, the "Whiffenpoof Song", became an "unofficial" song of the OSS. Many in the OSS were "Bonesmen" or belonged to the other Yale senior societies.

Robert Lovett ('18), Harriman's childhood friend, had been tapped into Skull & Bones by Prescott Bush's cell of '17 and was a director at Brown Brothers, Harriman.

Again, from "George Bush: The Unauthorized Biography":

"On October 22, 1945, Secretary of War Robert Patterson created the Lovett Committee, chaired by Robert A. Lovett, to advise the government on the post-World War II organization of U.S. intelligence activities.... The new agency would 'consult' with the armed forces, but it must be the sole collecting agency in the field of foreign espionage and counterespionage. The new agency should have an independent budget, and its appropriations should be granted by Congress without public hearings. Lovett appeared before the Secretaries of State, War, and Navy on November 14, 1945.... Lovett pressed for a virtual resumption of the wartime Office of Strategic Services (OSS).... The CIA was established in 1947 according to the prescription of Robert Lovett, of Jupiter Island."

Gaddis Smith, a history professor at Yale, said, "Yale has influenced the Central Intelligence Agency more than any other university, giving the CIA the atmosphere of a class reunion." And "Bonesman" have been foremost among the "spooks" building the CIA's "haunted house."

Why all this interest in China? Well, China, among other things, is one of the largest producers and users of opiates in the world.

For a while, in the 1800s, the Yankee Clippers in Connecticut and Massachusetts were the fastest ships on the ocean. Speed was crucial to the opium trade; whoever made the trip from Turkey/India to Macao/Hong Kong/Shanghai first got the most for their goods.

During the Opium Wars, the U.S. chose to stand on the sidelines and cheer for the English and French, knowing that treaty obligations would bring the U.S. a share in the spoils. Russell and Company was at times the only trading house operating in Canton and used the opportunity to developed strong commercial ties and handsome profits.

Powerful national interests were behind the drug trade, because American traders were badly in need of some article the Chinese would buy, since by this time the seal breeding grounds had been nearly wiped out. If the Chinese had not bought opium from Americans, then United States imports of silk, porcelain and tea would have to paid in precious coin, which was in short supply. In 1843, when the Port of Shanghai was opened, Russell and Co. was one of its earliest traders.

In 1903, Yale Divinity School set up a program of schools and hospitals in China. Mao Zedong was among the staff. During the intrigues of China in the 1930s and '40s, American intelligence called upon the resources of "Yale in China", and George Bush's cousin and fellow "Bonesman" Reuben Holden.

After stints as UN Ambassador and Chairman of the Republican National Committee for the beleaguered Richard Nixon, George Bush was sent to look after the "China trade". The Bush family is still very much involved in the economic activities of "Red" China.

Before the Vietnam "War", the Golden Triangle was run by French Intelligence and Corsican mobsters. After the French bailed out and America moved in, the triangle was run by U.S. intelligence, with aid from Sicilian mobsters. This narcotics network is well documented in "The Politics of Heroin in S. E. Asia" by Alfred McCoy, "The Great Heroin Coup" by Henrik Kruger and "Double-Cross" by Sam and Chuck Giancana.

Vice-President George Bush, as Chairman of President Reagan's cabinet-level working group and as Director of the National Narcotics Interdiction System, was the highest U. S. governmental official involved in the "war on drugs".

Frances Mullen, Jr., former head of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), called Bush's efforts "an intellectual fraud" and "a liability rather than an asset". Soon after these statements, Mullen resigned and the resultant General Accounting Office (GAO) report was buried.

In July, 1985, the suppressed GAO paper reported that there were "no benefits from the National Narcotics Border Interdiction System, directed by George Bush. In fact, the overall effect was to encourage supply...."

Monika Jensen-Stevenson, a "60 Minutes" producer, quit her job after the CBS news program refused to air the story she had uncovered relating to the covert drug trade. Her book, "Kiss The Boys Goodbye", details how our intelligence community used the apparatus of the POW/MIA governmental agencies as a cover for the trafficking of opiates from the "Golden Triangle".

Rodney Stich's book "Defrauding America" tells of a "deep-cover CIA officer" assigned to a counter-intelligence unit, code-named Pegasus. This unit "had tape-recordings of plans to assassinate Kennedy" from a tap on the phone of J. Edgar Hoover. The people on the tapes were "[Nelson] Rockefeller, Allen Dulles, [Lyndon] Johnson of Texas, George Bush and J. Edgar Hoover."

Could George Bush be involved in the JFK assassination?

In 1963, Bush was living in Houston, busily carrying out his duties as president of the Zapata Offshore oil company. He denied the existence of a note sent by the FBI's J. Edgar Hoover to "Mr. George Bush of the CIA." When news of the note surfaced, the CIA first said they never commented on employment questions, but later relented said yes, a "George Bush" was mentioned in the note, but that it was "another" George Bush, not the man who took office in the White House in 1988.

Some intrepid reporters tracked down the "other" George Bush and discovered that he was just a lowly clerk who had shuffled papers for the CIA for about six months. He never received any interagency messages from anybody at the FBI, let alone the Queen Mary.

It is also worth noting that a CIA code word for Bay of Pigs was Operation Zapata, and that two of the support vessels were named Barbara and Houston.

Many say that George Bush was high up on the CIA ladder at the time, running proprietorial vehicles and placed in a position of command, responsible for many of the Cubans recruited into "service" at the time. All through the Iran-Contra affair, Felix Rodriguez, the man who captured and had Che Guevara killed for the CIA, always seemed to call Bush's office first.

So, why would an intelligence agency/secret society want to smuggle drugs and assassinate JFK?

Well, they make a lot of money, and they garner intelligence assets through their participation. There's also the rationale that the world is a seamy and unseemly place, and if you're going to be the 'big boy' on the block, you better know what's going on. And what better way of knowing than by running it yourself? There are also some who theorize that the covert drug trade fits with plans to destabilize American families and society. Through demoralizing and fracturing the body politic, they can impose their will using psychological warfare and the political alchemy of the Hegellian dialectic.

James Shelby Downard's article, "Sorcery, Sex, Assassination and the Science of Symbolism ," an underground classic, links American historical events with a wild, numerological, grand occult plan "to turn us into cybernetic mystery zombies". The assassination of JFK, this article contends, was the performance of a public occult ritual called The Killing of the King, designed as a mass-trauma, mind-control assault against our U.S. national body-politic.

During Operation Sunrise, Operation Blowback, Operation Paperclip and others, thousands of Nazi scientists, researchers and administrators were brought to the United States after World War II. Many were "smuggled" into the country against direct, written, orders from President Harry S. Truman.

Project Monarch was the resumption of a mind-control project called Marionette Programming, which started in Nazi Germany. The basic component of the Monarch Program is the sophisticated manipulation of the mind, using extreme trauma to induce Multiple Personality Disorder.

Why this attack against our body politic?

In 1785, a bolt of lightning struck a courier en route to Paris from Frankfort-on-the-Main. A tract written by Adam Weishaupt, founder of the Illuminati, "Original Shift in Days of Illuminations," was recovered from the dead messenger, containing the secret society's long-range plan for "The New World Order through world revolution".

The Bavarian Government outlawed the society and in 1787 published the details of The Illuminati conspiracy in "The Original Writings of the Order and Sect of the Illuminati."

In Adam Weishaupt's own words:

"By this plan, we shall direct all mankind in this manner. And, by the simplest means, we shall set all in motion and in flames. The occupations must be so allotted and contrived that we may, in secret, influence all political transactions."

There is disagreement among scholars as to whether or not the Illuminati survived its banishment. Nevertheless, the group had been quite successful in attracting members and had allied itself with the extensive Masonic networks.

The Illuminati was publicly founded May 1, 1776 at the University of Ingolstadt by Weishaupt, Professor of Canon Law. It was a very "learned" society; Weishaupt drew the earliest members of his new order from among his students.

Is the Order of the Skull & Bones part of the Illuminati?

When a person is initiated into Skull & Bones, they are given a new name, similar to the practice of the Illuminati. And many recorded Illuminati members can be shown to have contact and/or strong influences with many of the professors that taught "Bonesmen" in Berlin.

When a secret society conspires against the sovereignty of a king, they need to organize, raise funds, make their plans operational, and hopefully bring them to fruition.

Could we have in the United States a secret society that has used the "National Security State" as a cover for their nefarious plans?

From "George Bush: The Unauthorized Biography":

"That September [1951], Robert Lovett replaced Marshall as secretary of defense. Meanwhile, Harriman was named director of the Mutual Security Agency, making him the U.S. chief of the Anglo-American military alliance. By now, Brown Brothers, Harriman was everything but commander-in-chief.

"A central focus of the Harriman security regime in Washington (1950-53) was the organization of covert operations and 'psychological warfare.' Harriman, together with his lawyers and business partners, Allen and John Foster Dulles, wanted the government's secret services to conduct extensive propaganda campaigns and mass-psychology experiments within the U.S.A., and paramilitary campaigns abroad....

"The Harriman security regime created the Psychological Strategy Board (PSB) in 1951. The man appointed director of the PSB [was] Gordon Gray.... Gordon's brother, R.J. Reynolds chairman Bowman Gray Jr., was also a naval intelligence officer, known around Washington as the 'founder of operational intelligence.' Gordon Gray became a close friend and political ally of Prescott Bush; and Gray's son became for Prescott's son, George, his lawyer and the shield of his covert policy."

Will we get another failed Democratic administration? A scandal as disgraceful as Nixon's fall? When Robert P. Johnson (William Barr) told Clinton in a bunker in Arkansas that "you are our fair-haired boy, but you do have competition for the job you seek. We would never put all our eggs in one basket. You and your state have been our greatest asset.... Mr. Casey wanted me to pass on to you, that unless you # up and do something stupid, you are number one on our short list for shot at the job you always wanted."

So, you have William Casey -- CIA Director, George Bush's campaign manager and Sovereign Knight of Malta -- speaking through the proxy of George Bush's last Attorney General to George's rival in the 1992 federal elections. Is it all just a show and sham for U.S. hoi polloi?

Perhaps so, if there exists the type of control over the electoral process as told by Mae Brussell and the suppressed book "VoteScam," written by Jim and Ken Collier:

"...Your vote and mine may now be a meaningless bit of energy directed by preprogrammed computers-which can be fixed to select certain pre-ordained candidates and leave no footprints or paper trail.

"In short, computers are covertly stealing your vote.

"--For almost three decades the American vote has been subject to government-sponsored electronic theft.

"--The vote has been stolen from you by a cartel of federal "national security" bureaucrats, who include higher-ups in the Central Intelligence Agency, political party leaders, Congressmen, co-opted journalists -- and the owners and managers -- of the major Establishment news media, who have decided in concert that how America's votes are counted, by whom they are counted and how the results are verified and delivered to the public is, as one of them put it, 'Not a proper area of inquiry.'

Some people say that Skull and Bones is a US chapter of an early 1800s German secret society. Those who have broken into the Bones "Tomb" (or those members who are disaffected from the Bones experience and wanted to report on them), describe many German-language pictures and themes on the walls and in daily use--from pictures of skulls, to swastikas, to the use of Hitler's silverware and table settings, obviously pilfered out of Germany after WWII. Founder of the order, William Huntington Russell spent some time studying in Germany. Some speculate he was initiated into a secret society with a skull and bones for its emblem and brought the inspiration, as well as the drug profits, back to Yale. The Forbes family, partially credited for instigating the Opium Wars, sold their interests in that trade to Russell & Company (a shipping line owned by Samuel Russell, William's step-brother). Opium smuggling profits funded much of Yale's early development, including the construction of the windowless "Tomb." The Order of Death has a fascination with skulls and the occult eerily similar to that of the German Thule Society, the organization whose members became high-ranking Nazis, some even coached Adolf Hitler's public speaking abilities. Some even claim that the Order of Death is a continuation of the Illuminati. Official material from Skull and Bones supports this theory. An invitation to a thirteenth-anniversary describes “a Jubilee Commemoration of the History of Our Establishment in New Haven.” A historical address that has found its way from the tomb states “The Eulogian Club: An Historical Discourse Pronounced before our Venerable Order on the Thirtieth Anniversary of the Foundation of our American Chapter in New Haven July 30th 1863 Thursday evening. By Timothy Dwight of 1849…” A 1933 Bones document refers to the “birth of our Yale chapter.” It is also suggested that when Bonesmen refer to the order as Lodge 322 they are acknowledging that they are but a chapter of a secret society.

The original appelation of the alleged members of the occult-cabalistic-theosophic "Rosicrucian Brotherhood", described in the pamphlet "Fama Fraternitatis R.C." (Rosae crucis), which was circulated in MS. As early as 1610 and first appeared in print in 1614 at Cassel. To the first two additions were prefixed the tract "Allgemeine und Generalreforation der ganzen weiten Welt", a translation of Fr. Boccalini's "Dei Ragguagli di Parnasso", 1612. Beginning with the fourth edition in 1615, the third Rosicrucian rudiment, "Confessio der Fraternitat", was added to the "Fama". According to these, the Rosicrucian brotherhood was founded in 1408 by a German nobleman, Christian Rosenkreuz (1378-1484), a former monk, who while travelling through Damascus, Jerusalem and Fez had been initiated into Arabian learning (magic), and who considered an antipapal Christianity, tinged with theosophy, his ideal of a religion. Concerned above all else that their names should appear in the Book of Life, the brothers were to consider the making of gold as unimportant-although for the true philosophers (Occultists) this was an easy matter and a parergon. They must apply themselves zealously and in the deepest secrecy to the study of Nature in her hidden forces, and to making their discoveries and inventions known to the order and profitable to the needs of humanity. And to further the object of the said order they must assemble annually at the "Edifice of the Holy Spirit", the secret head-quarters of the order, cure the sick gratuitously, and whilst each one procured himself a successor they must provide for the continuance of their order. Free from illness and pain, these "Invisibles", as they were called in the vernacular, were supposed to be yearning for the time when the church should be "purified".

What is Opus Dei? The Alternative Version
By M. Miki, former male numerary, Brazil, São Paulo

Introduction

In this text I would like to discuss Opus Dei (or The Work) and my aim is to give support to former members. Each of the histories of former members is unique, but at the same time the histories could be quite similar. For this reason, I decided not to tell my own personal history, but my personal questions, insights and thoughts about Opus Dei.

I believe that to outsiders who do not belong to Opus Dei, some questions receive more attention than others, but in my opinion are not so important, for example, the cilice and the disciplines. In my opinion, it is more important to discuss other things, like the manipulation of the mind.

In this text, I will answer the question: “What is Opus Dei?” For the former member, an explanation of this question can give support to the existential conflict. Many times, the former member can not rebuild his own life, because this question acts like an anchor. If we can’t give an answer to this question and many others related to Opus Dei, it will be very difficult to go ahead in life to develop other personal projects. I hope the former members, especially the numeraries, receive some support from this text. I don’t want to be a model to anyone. I only want give an alternative vision. If you don’t like what you read in this text, there is no problem. My desire is that the former member find his own answers about Opus Dei and with these answers I hope the former member can be born again.


The Problem

At first, we will introduce the problem about Opus Dei by asking some questions.
How could an institution have so many different opinions about it? Some people love it. Some people hate it. Is it a matter of personal preference? Or it is like supporting a baseball team or something else? Is it only a matter of faith? Is it like saying “Believe it or not”?

These different positions about Opus Dei can be defended by two types of groups. The people who support Opus Dei say the founder of Opus Dei, Escriva, gave Catholics the option of sanctity different from the way of monks, nuns, priests etc. Escriva’s message was that the ordinary person, who has a job or takes care of the home, can become a saint. Catholics didn’t have this option of life before the foundation of Opus Dei. With this revolutionary message, Catholics can offer their work to God. A professional and job well done is an offering to God. With the message of Escriva, people can approach God and do activities like participate in the community, go to the mass, pray in a church etc. These are good things that we can’t deny.

On the other side, there are people who were manipulated by this institution for years and many were expelled for some simple excuse. Others suffered from depression and were asked to leave this organization. Most of the people that we are talking about were numeraries. These facts can´t be denied either. The defenders of Opus Dei could say that it is normal -- that there are human errors in a Divine Institution like Opus Dei. But now we know that these types of error are very common (there are lots of testimonies around the world) and it is no longer possible to accept this kind of apology. Other people say that Opus Dei uses some questionable practices like alienation from their families, control of information and the environment etc.

With these facts in our hands, we can defend or we can condemn this institution. With this in mind, is it really possible to make a productive discussion about Opus Dei? Who is right? Is everybody right? Is everybody wrong? Is it a matter of framework? Depending on the context, are you right and he is wrong?

Catholic Knights - Catholic Knights of America is a fraternal benefit society for Catholics.
Druids - This is the United Ancient Order of Druids. It was founded in London in 1781. Pure paganism, they are founded on reason and sound morality. They imply that their religion is older and superior to Christianity. The greatest of all Druid teachers was Merlin. His Seven Precepts are considered the moral way to live a life: (1) Labor diligently to acquire knowledge for it is power; (2) When in authority decide reasonably, for thine authority may cease; (3) Bear with fortitude the ills of life, remembering that no mortal sorrow is perpetual; (4) Love virtue-for it bringeth peace; (5) Abhor vice-for it bringeth evil upon it; (6) Obey those in authority in all just things, that virtue may be exalted; and (7) Cultivate the social virtues, so shalt thou be beloved by all men.
Elks (Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks) - The Elks would probably never have existed if the New York state legislature did not pass a law in 1866 which closed all the saloons on Sunday. A group of sociable actors met on Sundays in their "drinking society" which they called the Jolly Cork. They later changed their name. The order was founded on February 16, 1868. There is some Masonic influence. The BPOE used to be limited to white male citizens of the U.S. who believe in the existence of God.

Foresters - Over the years, the Foresters had split into several branches: The Independent Order of Foresters, Catholic Order of Foresters, and Ancient Order of Foresters. The Ancient Order of Foresters claims to have begun in 1798, but historical records show its beginning as 1813. For its secret ritual, the Foresters used the legends of Robin Hood, Friar Tuck, Little John, and the Merrie Men.
Freemasonry - Freemasonry is the largest international secret society. Legendary Masonry goes back to the building of King Solomon's temple when Hiram Abiff, a mason, is said to have chosen death rather than reveal the secret Masonic word. The realistic beginnings of modern Freemasonry can be found in the crafts of working masons in medieval times. They adapted a system of signs and passwords which served the purpose of a union card. Twelve American Presidents have been Freemasons: Washington, Jackson, Monroe, Polk, A. Johnson, Garfield, McKinley, T. Roosevelt, Taft, Harding, F.D.R., and Truman. Others believed to be, or have been Freemasons: Ben Franklin, Charles Lindbergh, John Pershing, Robert J. Dole, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Mark Twain, and Cy Young.
Grotto - This is the Mystic Order of Veiled Prophets of the Enchanted Realm. Master Masons may join this organization. It imitates the Shrine. The ritual is supposedly founded on a very ancient Persian manuscript that was discovered in a secret vault in one of the sacred temples of Teheran, the City of Mystery.
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn - This order formed in England at the end of the 19th century. Members believed it was possible to control the forces of nature with magic. Yeats, the poet, and Aleister Crowley were members. Crowley supposedly accomplished the ability to become invisible. Israel Regardie was one of the most important figures in the Golden Dawn. He published many of the rituals and magical material. It is the synthesis of mythical and magical ideas that were adapted from numerous sources such as: Fama Fraternitatis, Egyptian Book of the Dead, Cornelius Agrippa, Tycho Brahe, and John Dee. It was conceived to be composed of three degrees, each of which corresponds to an entire order. The First Degree and Order is the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The Second Degree and Order is the Ordo Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis. Aleister Crowley was an early adept in the Second Degree. The Third is the Ordo Argentei Astri.
Hibernians (Ancient Order of Hibernians) - The AOH was organized in the United States on May 4, 1836 in New York City. The founding of the AOH has been placed as early as 1565 in Ireland. However, the latter date has not been substantiated. The AOH has been a Catholic organization which provides benefits (e.g., relief, burial, sick) to their members. John F. Kennedy became a member in 1947.

Illuminati - The Illuminati was first seen in the 15th century by occultists proclaiming to have wisdom from a higher source. Illuminati means, "Intellectually inspired." The secret society became strong in 18th century Germany. It adopted many different grades of Freemasonry. It claimed to be a blend of philanthropy and mysticism. Goethe was a member of the Bavarian Illuminati. They placed the fear of Masons and Jews within the extreme right wing political camps. Conspiracies were spun about the forces of order, bureaucracy, and repression. People soon realized that espionage was their main focus, then the French Revolution arrived and changed the country. The only people who mention the Illuminati anymore is the John Birch Society.
Job's Daughters - Teenage girls who are related to Master Masons can apply for membership in Job's Daughters. Mrs. Ethel T. W. Mick was the founder. The emblems of the Order are the white dove, urn of incense, lilies of the valley, and horn of plenty.

Knights of the Golden Eagle - Founded by John E. Burbage of Baltimore, Maryland in 1873. There were three degrees: Pilgrim, Knight, and Crusader. Combination of secret society and religious movement (Evangelical Protestant). The order offered sick and funeral benefits. The individual who shot President McKinley was supposedly a member of the Cleveland Lodge.

Knights of Columbus - This is the world's largest organization of Catholic men and their families. It was founded in 1882. They looked to the Masonic Lodge for its model. They use passwords, signs, and grips. They take pride in providing insurance policies to members. There are currently about 11,000 councils internationally.
Knights of Malta - Introduced into the U.S.A. in 1870. This order welcomed all Protestants and were aggressively anti-Catholic. The Knights of Malta is not the same as the Order of Knights of Malta which forms one of the degrees of the York rite of Freemasonry.

Knights of Pythias - The Order of Knights of Pythias was founded in 1864. They claim to promote friendship among men and to help relieve people's suffering. It bases its rituals on the story of Damon and Pythias. It borrowed elements from the Masons and Red Men. Today there are about 2000 lodges in the USA and Canada. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was initiated into the Knights of Pythias in 1936 in a special ceremony in the diplomatic reception room of the white house.
Knights Templar - Originally, these people were members of a religious military order founded by the Crusaders in Jerusalem about 1118. Also known as The Order of the Poor Knights of the Temple of Solomon. They wore a white tunic with a red cross on the front (sounds familiar). They were not allowed any association with women and were also Roman Catholic. Some believe that the Templars, at one time, possessed the Shroud of Turin. In 1314, the Master of the Temple of Solomon (Jacques de Molay) was executed. Some feel that the Templars disbanded at this time while others believe they went to Scotland and began the first of the Ancient Scottish Rite of Masons. Today they are a part of the Masonic order. The Knights Templar is equal to the 32nd degree Mason and gives them the opportunity to join the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.
Ku Klux Klan - The society was organized at Pulaski, Giles County, Tennessee, in June, 1866. It was originally designed as a diversion for young men, to help relieve the dulness immediately following the Civil War. It had been reported that the decision for a name occurred during the society's second meeting. The founder's wished to use the name "Kukloi" from the Greek word kuklos, meaning a band or circle. Someone else in the group suggested Ku Klux, and Klan was added to complete the alliteration.
Modern Woodmen of America - Joseph Root began the Modern Woodmen around 1883. It was primarily an insurance society with certain lodge features. Root had been associated with the Masons, Knights of Pythias, Odd Fellows, and others. His intentions of this new order was to bring together Jews and Gentiles, Catholics and Protestants, and agnostics and atheists.
Moose (Loyal Order of Moose) - The Moose Lodge was founded in 1888. Around the beginning of the 20th century, the Moose found themselves in a membership slump. The order was in dire straights until James J. Davis began working for the Moose and enrolling thousands of new members. He was responsible for pulling the Moose out of a major membership slump. The Moose Lodge was responsible for providing sick benefits and a small death benefit to its members. There was even a city for dependents of deceased Moose and for the aged called Mooseheart, which was in Illinois. Mooseheart is still in existance.

National Ancient Order of Hibernians - The Ancient Order of Hibernians was organized on May 4, 1836 in New York City. However, its founding has been placed as early as 1565 in Ireland. In 16th century Ireland, the Catholic priest was a hunted man. To protect the priesthood and preserve the practice of their religion, certain Irishmen formed themselves into groups of Ribbonmen, the forerunners of the Hibernians. Members were required to be of Irish birth or descent. They had their secrecy and passwords. JFK joined the Order in 1947.
National Grange (Order of the Patrons of Husbandry) - The founder of the Grange, Oliver Hudson Kelley, was asked by President Andrew Johnson to tour the South to see what steps could be taken to rehabilitate the war devastated rural areas. Kelley, a Freemason himself, proposed that a new secret society dedicated to the advancement of rural life would help serve this purpose. The Order was founded in Fredonia, New York, in 1867. The Masonic fraternity was its model, but it was open to both men and women. From the beginning, meetings of the Granges were not only ritualistic but educational. In some respects, the Grange resembles a typical secret society.
Odd Fellows - This is the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. The first recorded Lodge of Odd Fellows began in England in 1745. Historically, this organization was started to help fellow members find employment when out of work. They were known as the poor man's Masonry. The initiate must believe in the Supreme Being.
Order of Owls - This order was founded in 1904 by John W. Talbot in South Bend, Indiana. Their main purpose was "To assist each other in business, to help each other in obtaining employment, to assist the widows and orphans of our brothers, to give mutual aid to our brothers in any way that they may need, and assemble for mutual pleasure and entertainment." The Owls did not have any religiousness. Their local lodge was called a "nest" and they have the usual secret ritual, grips, and passwords. Their national headquarters was in Hartford, Connecticut.

P.E.O. Sisterhood - There is an unusual degree of secrecy regarding the P.E.O., their name, and rituals. It is not for certain, but their initials are thought to stand for Protect Each Other. The P.E.O. Sisterhood is considered a woman's secret society with it's main purposes as social and educational. It was was founded in 1869 in Iowa.

Red Men (Improved Order of Red Men) - This order claimed to be the oldest secret society of purely American origin. However, it was actually founded in Baltimore, Maryland in 1834. A Society of Red Men was founded in 1813, but the Improved Order of Red Men sought to distance itself from the Society of Red Men due to its known love of the "fire water." Indian nomenclature was established in the Improved Order. Local tribes met in wigwams and initiated palefaces into their secrets upon payment of wampum. The Improved order was modeled after the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and used the legend of Hiram Abiff (of Masonic legend) - which became its third degree.

Rosicrucians-The Rosicrucians state that their order began in 14th century Europe. It was during this time that Christian Rosencreuz, after traveling in Asia and Africa, attained many secrets. Rosencreuz was credited for starting the organization (Rose Croix or Rosie Cross). The Rosicrucians remained extremely secretive until the 17th century when two books were published: Fama Fraternitatus laudabilis Ordinis Rosaecrusis (The Report of the Laudable Fraternity of Rosicrucians) and Confessio Fraternitatis (The Confession of the Fraternity). Sir Francis Bacon is considered to be Imperator of the Rosicrucians during the late 16th and early 17 century. Sir Isaac Newton is also said to have been a Rosicrucian. The Rosicrucians are devoted to the pursuit of esoteric wisdom. They combine elements of Egyptian Hermeticism, Gnosticism, Jewish Cabalism, and other occult beliefs and practices. There is the Rosicrucian Fellowship and AMORC (Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis).
Shrine-The Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine limits membership to Masons who have achieved the 32nd degree of the Scottish rite or the Knights Templar of the York rite but is not associated with Freemasonry. The shrine was invented as a fun drinking society in 1870. Later, the Shriners decided to install a humanitarian aspect to their organization. In 1920, it was proposed that they would establish a hospital to care for crippled children. Shriners are also recognized for wearing the red fez.
United Order of the Golden Cross- The order was founded by Dr. J. H. Morgan in New England in 1876. It consisted of men and women who agreed to abstain from alcoholic beverages. It was organized by Freemasons who wanted to form an economical and safe method of providing life insurance to its members. Its strength lied in New England but was also located in New York, District of Columbia, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Indiana. It claimed to be one (if not the first) of the societies to admit women on an equal rank as men.
Woodmen (Modern Woodmen of America) - This order was founded in 1883. The chief symbols were the beetle, ax, and wedge. Local lodges were called Camps and members were known as Neighbors.

What is the Bohemian Grove? The Bohemian Grove is a 2700 acre redwood forest, located in Monte Rio, CA. It contains accommodation for 2000 people to "camp" in luxury. It is owned by the Bohemian Club.

What is the Bohemian Club? The Bohemian Club is a private. all male club, which is headquartered in the Bohemian building in San Francisco. It was formed in 1872 by men who sought shelter from the frontier culture (or lack of culture).

Who are the present members? The Club has evolved into an association of rich and powerful men, mostly of this country (there are similar organizations in other countries). Some artists are allowed to join (often at reduced rates), because of their social status and entertainment value. The membership list has included every Republican U.S. president (as well as some Democrats) since 1923, many cabinet officials, and director; & CEO's of large corporations, including major financial institutions.

What industries are represented among the members? Major military contractors, oil companies, banks (including the Federal Reserve), utilities (including nuclear power), and national media (broadcast and print) have high-ranking officials as club members or guests. Many members are, or have been, on the board of directors of several of these corporations. You should note that most of the above industries depend heavily on a relationship with government for their profitability.

It is difficult, in the modern English-speaking world, to determine exactly what the Illuminati of Bavaria really was. Although both John Robison and the Abbé Barruel 2 published their accusations and theories in English, the source documents have remained in their native German. Robison freely admitted that he had scanty knowledge of German and had derived all his information from other writers. 3 Unfortunately neither he nor Barruel were concerned with providing references for their sources. When they do quote from the papers and correspondence of the Order as published by the Bavarian government or the published works of Adam Weishaupt and Adolph Knigge, they also fail to provide context or citations.

Adam Weishaupt (1748 - 1830)
Adam Weishaupt was born February 6, 1748 at Ingolstadt and educated by the Jesuits. His appointment as Professor of Natural and Canon Law at the University of Ingolstadt in 1775, a position previously held by one of the recently disbanded Jesuits,4 gave, it is said, great offence to the clergy. "Weishaupt, whose views were cosmopolitan, and who knew and condemned the bigotry and superstitions of the Priests, established an opposing party in the University...." 5 Weishaupt was not then a freemason; he was initiated into a Lodge of Strict Observance, Lodge Theodore of Good Council (Theodor zum guten Rath), at Munich in 1777.
Most information regarding the rituals and objectives of the order is derived from papers and correspondence found in a search of Xavier Zwack's residence in Landshut on October 11, 1786, and a search of Baron Bassus's castle of Sondersdorf in Bavaria in 1787. 6 These documents were published by the Bavarian government, under the title: Einige Originalschriften des Illuminaten Ordens, Munich, 1787. Perhaps the best English exposition on the Order is found in Chapter III of Vernon L. Stauffer's New England and the Bavarian Illuminati, pp. 142-228.

Locations of Illuminati Lodges: Aix-la-Chappelle (2), Alsace (many), America (several), Ancona, Anspach, Austria (14), Bartschied, Bonn (4), Brunswick, Buchenwerter, Calbe, Carisruhe, Cassel, Cologne, Courland, (many), Cousel, Deuxponts, Dresden (4), Dusseldorff, Echstadt, England (8), Florence, France, Frankendahl, Frankfort, Hahrenberg, Holland (many), Hanover, Heidelberg, Hesse (many), Ingolstadt, Livonia (many), Magdenburgh, Mannheim, Mentz (2), Monpeliard, Munich, Naples, Neuwied (2), Osnabruck, Poland (many), Rome, Upper Saxony (several), Scotland (2), Spire, Strasburgh (5), Stutgard (3), Switzerland (many), Treves (2), Turin, Vienna (4), Warsaw (2), Weimar, Westphalia (several) and Worms.