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The Cathar Temple of Albion

CATHARISM
AN INTRODUCTION

GLASTONBURY
2016
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CATHARISM, AN INTRODUCTION
Published by: The Cathar Temple of Albion
Managing Editor: Minna De Groot
Editors: Myrrhophora Dennis, Herman Korneychuk, Anna Bondarenko
Design: Melankton Golubovich

This brochure is written by a dedicated team of modern Cathars, who understand

the principles of Catharism from the inside. After many years of searching, they
discovered that Catharism provided the highest, most progressive spiritual perspective and effective solutions for positive transformation and change.
It endeavours to give a general background on the medieval Cathar phenomenon, but at the same time confesses that a million volumes of encyclopaedia
Britannica could not adequately explain Catharism. The immeasurable depths of
this movement are a catalyst for spiritual revolution in todays uncertain world.
This brochure will not answer all your questions but certainly presents a clear
image of the basics of the Cathar spiritual path.
If you long to live according to the laws of divine love and the truth of simple
inner virtues, this book is for you! It is for brave hearts, bright souls and pioneers
who will successfully create a new paradigm together in the unprecedented days
and times ahead.
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotation in a review this book must not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form without the prior written permission of the
publisher.
The Cathar Temple of Albion, 2016

MEDIEVAL CATHARISM
Medieval Catharism was widespread throughout Occitania
(currently the South of France) and the kingdoms of Aragon,
Navarre, Italy, Germany and Flanders, from the 11th till the beginning of the 14th century. Catharism succeeded the spiritual
tradition of Slavic and Balkan Bogomilism, and went even further back in history.
Cathars lived a simple life.
They shared what they had,
fed the needy, provided employment in their artisan
workshops, and consoled
and cared for the sick...
They lived according to the
virtues of good: unlimited
kindness, perfect purity, sacred love, peace, divine wisdom and divine justice. They did
not reject anyone. Cathars were a peaceful people who found
millions of followers throughout the world. In Europe alone,
more than 50 million people followed Catharism. In all places
where Cathar values were accepted, people lived in societies
ahead of their time, with a material and spiritual prosperity
that was unknown in neighbouring feudal societies.
Official history does not usually value the strength and development of Catharism in Spain (mostly in Catalonia). It was the
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homeland of the last Cathar Perfect, Guillaume Blibaste, who

was burned at the stake in the castle of Villerouge-Termenes
in 1321. Just before his death, Blibaste proclaimed his famous
prophecy:
In seven hundred
years the laurel
will become green
again, good people
will return. Today
is the time of the
fulfilment of this
prophecy.
Cathars considered
the laurel to be the sacred symbol of pure love. When inquisitors executed Cathars, the martyrs said: The laurel wilts. Pure
love fades. But they possessed holy faith and knew that one day
the laurel would become green again.
In fact, almost nothing remained of the Cathars. Most traces of
their memory were erased. Those who sympathized with them
perished in the bonfires of the Inquisition. They suffered an
external defeat, but spiritually, they overcame the Inquisition
who could neither break their will, nor their spirit of love.
Prominent contemporary philosopher and humanist John Bogomil accepted the sacred task of rehabilitating Catharism. Cathars have great love he writes in one of his many books, they
perceive man as a divinity who has descended from heaven.
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John Bogomil conceptualizes the phenomenon of Catharism

in a new way. He has penetrated Cathar metaphysics, and
considers the majority of memories and historical chronicles
about Cathars to be terribly distorted. People called them simply good men (bonshomes)* and good women (bonas donas).

THE CATHAR INFLUENCE

Cathars made a very big contribution to European culture,
and laid the foundations for its most eminent achievements.
Ramon Llull, Leonardo da Vinci, Miguel de Cervantes, Shakespeare and Beethoven are some of the most brilliant representatives of Catharism in its widest sense.
Catharism greatly influenced democratic processes, both in
Europe and in the rest of the world. It was the Cathars who
created the motto of freedom, equality and brotherhood as
the basis of a prosperous civilization.
Freedom is perceived as a creative discovery of the personal
spiritual potential of each and every inhabitant of the Earth.
Equality is an important benefaction, because every person
should be considered equally. Brotherhood is a wonderful dialogue of love, where each individual is regarded as a brother
or sister in a big universal family. Modern day Catharism is a
fresh source for the restoration of a healthy, peaceful and prosperous society, based on archetypal spiritual values.
* In the language of Occitania.
However, Cathar Perfects called themselves good Christians.

San Salvador Verdadero, Cathar castle in Spain.

CATHAR HISTORICAL
PERSPECTIVE
The main milestones of the Christian era of Catharism, which
preceded the modern day Cathar movement, are:
1. Ephesus (in Asia Minor, 1st century AD).
After Christs persecution Mary, Mother of Christ, together
with St. John, St. Andrew, Mary Magdalene and a few other
disciples left Jerusalem and moved to Ephesus, a Greek polis
at the time. The first and central Christian community was
established there. It flourished until the fourth century, when
the official Church started their persecution.

2. Slavic Bogomilism (1st9th centuries).

St. Andrew, the Apostle, the disciple of the Mother of God,
went from Ephesus to the lands of Scythia and Slavonia and
brought Ephesian Christianity to these lands. For several
centuries, the authentic Christianity of pure love prevailed in
the territory of Eastern Europe. It has been preserved within
oral spiritual tradition and Slavic folklore, and later, when
the persecution of good Christians started, spread to the Balkans and Western Europe. They were known as Bogomils.
3. European Catharism (11th14th centuries).
Due to continuous severe persecutions, Bogomil elders emigrated to
the West, passing through the Balkans
and lands of Central and Western Europe, where many Bogomil communities and spiritual schools were founded. In spite of the Inquisition, which
was organized to struggle against Cathars and Bogomils (the first bonfire
lit kindled in the West took place on
the brink of the year 1000), Cathar faith captivated the hearts
of many people and laid the basis of an unique civilization
that existed for centuries on the Mediterranean coast.
4. The Holy Grail.
In the same way as St. Andrew brought Christianity from
Ephesus to Holy Rus and Scythia, Mary Magdalene and St. Joseph of Arimathea became the messengers of original Chris9

tianity for Western Europe and especially for the British Isles.
They brought the chalice of the Holy Grail, which, according
to legend, was the vessel filled with the blood of Christ, to
Britain and founded numerous Christian communities.
Later, in the 12th century, the Bogomil and Mary Magdalene branches united in the lands of Southern France. This is
when Catharism blossomed.
5. The great anointed ones (13th19th centuries).
Although the branch of good Christians has been persecuted
severely by the Inquisition in both Eastern and Western Europe, many historical traces of their existence have remained
to this day. Most saints of the Byzantine Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches were, according to historical records,
persecuted by church officials during their life and later, after
their death, were ascribed to the institute as their saints. John
of the Cross, Theresa of Avila, Father Pio in the West; Seraphim of Sarov, Innocent of Balta, and Sergiy of Radonezh in
the East belonged to the Cathar-Bogomil branch of Ephesian
Christianity and were the glorious successors of Christ.
6. The Second Golgotha (20th century).
The Second Golgotha is a concept, which unites the suffering of millions of righteous souls who gave their life for love
during the 20th century. Millions of Christs true disciples repeated His great deed and suffered in world and civil wars,
genocides, concentration and labour camps in different parts
of the world, for the sake of mankinds future.

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7. The Cathar Church of the 21st century is not a carbon

copy of medieval Catharism. It has been enriched with the
spiritual experience of thousands of great souls, who have
been coming to the world for 700 years. Although modern
day Cathar teaching is based on certain universal knowledge,
which was revealed by Christ, it is very dynamic and corresponds with the current issues of mankind that have changed
dramatically for the last few centuries.

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UNIVERSAL CATHAR
SPIRITUALITY
Cathar belief has kept its authenticity and evolved since medieval times. Catharism is a spiritual, historical movement, a
way of life and perception of the world.
Medieval Cathars built an unique civilization, whose base
consisted of the absolute certainty that Divinity abides within us, that man is good, that man is the highest treasure on
Earth. Catharism is not a medieval Christian sect, which was
persecuted by Roman Catholics, but the authentic Christianity of the first Ephesian community. It is based on universal
Christian virtues: love your neighbour, forgiveness, mercy
and selfless service.

THE BASICS OF
CATHAR SPIRITUALITY
GOD
The Cathar belief system originates from early Christianity
which was based on St. Johns Gospel. Cathars believe in God
the Heavenly Father, following Christ and being under the
protection of and dedicated to the All-Holy Virgin Mary and
Cathar saints.
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Cathars believe that the Supreme Deity and the object

of worship in Catharism, is
the Kind Father, to whom
anger, judgment, punishment or cruelty are not
characteristic; according to
St. Johns letter ...that God
is light, and in him is no
darkness at all. (1 John 1:5)
CREATION
The Kind Father created the perfect World and all creation
was perfect until the tragedy of the Fall. Lucifer, the first
angel, rebelled against the Father and left the realms of the
perfect Kingdom. He created the material dimension and
tempted angels from the lower heavens to follow him to the
material world.
Accordingly, these angels were transformed into stars and
planets, animals and plants. So, they are dualistic, containing two natures: one is original, divine and eternal, and the
other is fallen (corrupted and mortal).
MAN
Cathars believe that man consists of two parts: one is the divine immortal soul, created by the Kind Father in His like13

ness, and the other part is of mortal flesh. The Kind Father
sends All-good Spirit to restore mans divine being.
CATHARSIS
The basis of Cathar practice is catharsis: mans deep and
complete purification, which transforms his negative side
to divine. Catharsis includes introspection, analysis and
repentance.
CHRIST
Cathars believe that Christ is the Son of the Kind Father and
the elder brother for each and every human soul, who came
to this world through Immaculate Conception, brought His
Divinity to people, helping them to return to their divine origin and to restore their original relation with the Heavenly
Father.
DEATH
Cathars believe there is only physical death, the soul is eternal and transcends to the other world. Each human soul
achieves a certain destiny, depending on its earthly life. Cathars believe in reincarnation and in the possibility to change
their eternal destiny.

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CONSOLAMENTUM
This is the consolation of the soul at the moment of its conversion, and the sacrament of inheriting the grace of the
All-good Spirit. It has a few stages: Pure one, Perfect one,
Anointed one, and Immortal one.

Cathar faith and doctrine bring to society efficient keys of

tolerance and respect for people of different religions and belief systems, because to Cathars, man is the central object of
service, regardless of faith, gender or nationality.
The Cathar belief system serves as the basis for equality
between men and women, philanthropy and democracy
as it was in medieval ages and is now. The Cathars actively participate in the formation of a non-violent world and
peace-making. The Cathar doctrine perceives humanity as
one brotherhood.
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Catharism actively helps to form social morality defending

and respecting the life of humans, animals and all living
nature.
The Cathars consider every human to be a potential godman
and encourage everyone to become pure. The goal of the Cathar spiritual path is the multiplication of kindness.
The eight main Cathar virtues are:

- Wisdom

- Love

- Kindness

- Purity

- Mercy

- Peace

- Harmony

- Beauty
The goal of each and every Cathar is to acquire these virtues
and share them with mankind.

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JOHN BOGOMIL
John Bogomil is undoubtedly a prominent personality: a
mystic of the highest rank, a notable thinker and a brilliant
writer. More than 500 divinely inspired books and treaties
flowed from his pen. He astounds with an inexhaustible
source of wisdom and the penetrating voice of the last truth.
John Bogomil was born in Russia in 1946. From an early age
he rejected Bolshevik ideals.
John received an excellent musical education and was an acknowledged, talented young poet. He was expected to pursue
a career as a writer, poet or musician, but he left everything
to become a pilgrim: he wanted to know God and the truth.
He travelled to many temples and monasteries, across many
lands. He looked for kind elder-guidance and found it in
Euphrosinia. Mother Euphrosinia belonged to a catacomb
branch of Bogomils. It was the Church of Martyrs that had
persecuted for centuries.
The spiritual elders of the catacomb church ordained John
Bogomil as a priest. He became the head of the secret branch
of the Church of Martyrs.
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He began his service as a priest in the 1980s. He established

the Mother of God Church in the early 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since then his followers set up many
Bogomil and Cathar communities in different countries.
Some of John Bogomils books are translated into English,
Spanish, Croatian, German and other languages.
John Bogomil supports the theory that medieval Catharism
was the source of the Reformation and European democracy.
The followers of John Bogomil restore the culture of medieval minstrels and troubadours. Now, after many years, the
Cathar Church of Love is reborn.

CATHARISM OF
THE 21ST CENTURY
The Cathar community in Britain was established in 2012,
and is a branch of the international Cathar Church.
The goals of the Cathar Temple of Albion are to research and
shed light on the true history, culture and spirituality of Catharism in the widest sense and proclaim it as the original
foundation of general European culture. Catharism has always existed and did not perish.

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Cathar spirituality is very optimistic and humanitarian in its

essence. It rests on very rich tradition and inherits the knowledge, abilities and gifts of great personalities from the past.
Nowadays it has a wealth of various spiritual keys to achieve
perfect harmony, joy, love and peace, with the ability to awaken the interest of many people. It develops actively, progresses and grows in different fields. Catharism of the 21st century
means, first of all, an inner personal change. When millions
of individuals achieve a certain level of perfection, primarily
kindness, the world will change for good beyond recognition!

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CONTENTS
MEDIEVAL CATHARISM...................................................................................3
THE CATHAR INFLUENCE...............................................................................5
THE CATHAR HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE.........................................................6

1. Ephesus (in Asia Minor, 1st century AD)..................................................6

2. Slavic Bogomilism (1st9th centuries).................................................7

3. European Catharism (11th14th centuries).........................................7

4. The Holy Grail.................................................................................7

5. The great anointed ones (13th19th centuries).....................................8

6. The Second Golgotha (20th century)....................................................8

7. The Cathar Church of the 21st century..................................................9

UNIVERSAL CATHAR SPIRITUALITY...............................................................10

THE BASICS OF CATHAR SPIRITUALITY.........................................................10

God............................................................................................10

Creation.....................................................................................11
Man..........................................................................................11
Catharsis.....................................................................................12
Christ.........................................................................................12
Death...........................................................................................12
Consolamentum.........................................................................13

JOHN BOGOMIL ...........................................................................................15

CATHARISM OF THE 21st CENTURY..............................................................16
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Books by John Bogomil

THE IMMORTALS

The famous movement of the European Cathars, destroyed by the Roman Inquisition in the Middle Ages, causes great interest today. The
outstanding thinker, John of the Holy Grail, rehabilitates and comprehends in a new way the phenomenon of Catharism, which was the
spiritual basis of European democracy and humanism. The Immortals
reveal themselves and explain the foundations of their unique spirituality, and invite the reader to inherit their treasury.

THE GRAIL, Being in virginal love

A spiritual commentary on the medieval legends, ballads and stories

of the mystery of the Knights of the Round Table and the compelling
quest for the Holy Grail.

GUAN MIN AND THE DIVINE MOTHER

A book of Cathar readings from 2012 on the mysterious spirituality of

Guan Min in the third millennium. The author, Blessed John Bogomil,
presents the unique teaching of new humanism and recounts the ancient Hyperborean and Atlantean legends and prophecies in this book.

THE ROSE OF THE SERAPHITES

A book of revelation from the Goddess-Virgin-Mother on the top of

Nightingale Mountain, near the ancient city of Ephesus, which describes for the first time in history, the mysterious sixteen years of Her
life after Christs Calvary. Nightingale Mountain will become the centre of a new divine humanity in the forth-coming immaculate civilization.

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THE NEW GOSPEL OF MARY MAGDALENE

Some accept the indisputable authority of the Tetraevangelion. Others add ancient apocrypha to it. John of the Holy Grail, Cathar writer
and spiritual leader, author of four hundred and fifty divinely revealed
books, says that thousands of sacred scrolls of the Eternal Gospel exist
and are stored in Heaven. The Gospel of Mary Magdalene is one of the
most beautiful pages of these mysterious scrolls.

CATHARISM XXI,

The magazine of the international Cathar movement. Volume 2

A magazine about modern day Cathar culture, history and spirituality.
16 authors contributed to this volume to unveil the mysterious tradition of the medieval Cathar civilization, which is being revived today.

We organize various cultural activities:

Distribution of books and music by John Bogomil
Conferences, talks and seminars
Art exhibitions
Retreats and residential workshops on Cathar spiritual practices

CONTACT US
Please telephone or email us if you require further information about modern day Cathars or wish to meet us. You can purchase Cathar books and
music by John Bogomil from The Cathar Temple of Albion.
Web: www.cathartemple.org
FB: The Cathar Temple
Tel.: +44 74 66 825 441, +44 77 46 277 614

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