Tobias Churton

Tobias Churton's book, Freemasonry: The Reality, is probably the single best book for understanding the history and development of Freemasonry from its operative beginnings, through the period of the 1600s, and into the grand lodge era of the 1700s. Undoubtedly, there are other obscure books that go into greater depth about different eras, but no one brings it all together the way Churton does. I have recommended this book to numerous new Masons who seek to understand the fraternity's roots a little better.… (mais)

Tobias Churton's Occult Paris is an impressively wide-ranging yet detailed account of the French occult revival, treating developments in art movements, philosophy, politics, religion, and secret societies. Although the book's scope is much larger, it takes for a principal guide and perspective the memoir Les Compangnons de la Hiérophanie by Victor-Émile Michelet (1861-1938). Personalities central to the history in question include Lady Caithness, Stanislas de Guatia, Joséphin Péladan, Erik Satie, Gerard "Papus" Encausse, Jules Doinel, and many others.

Those interested in the history of esoteric movements will appreciate the focus on the Kabbalistic Rose-Croix (R+C+K), its competing Catholic Rose-Croix Order (R+C+C+), the Gnostic Church and its offspring, and the Martinist Order, all of which are treated as central topics with a wealth of detail not easily accessed in other English-language publications. In addition, Churton supplies a Paris-centric perspective on the Victorian Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, and information on the Parisian manifestations of the Antient & Primitive Rite with connections to the early Ordo Templi Orientis.

I feel a special responsibility to recommend this book to readers concerned with the early history of the Église Gnostique, for its very full accounting of the context of those developments. As regards the actual founding of the church, Churton relies chiefly on Doinel's own account transmitted by the Cathar revivalist and onetime Église Gnostique bishop Déodat Roché (1877-1978), and provides a more coherent and detailed picture than I have encountered elsewhere.

The book is amply illustrated with black-and-white figures throughout, plus a generous set of color plates. Most of the figures are portraits of key individuals, and while these usually give the dates of the subject's life, they only rarely give the date of the portrait, leaving the reader sometimes a little confused about whether they accurately represent that person at the time treated in the neighboring text.

At numerous points I found Churton's prose a little off-putting in its chattiness, but even when the text seemed digressive it had valuable knowledge to offer. I read a borrowed copy of this book, but I will seriously consider acquiring my own, because I don't doubt its value as a continuing reference in future study.… (mais)

Jerusalem!: The Real Life of William Blake by Tobias Churton is a biography and a deep look at William Blake. Churton is a filmmaker who studied theology at Oxford. His documentaries include "The Gnostics" and "A Mighty Good Man," a biography of Elias Ashmole. He is currently a lecturer on Freemasonry the Exter Centre for the Study of Esotericism, Exter University.

I started this book with the hope of learning more about William Blake, whose works, I admit, are limited to Songs of Innocence and Experience. I came to read that collection after hearing a musician include “The Lamb” on an album and joke on another that it was William Blake's birthday so we should listen to his records. The musician was Patti Smith and she was also responsible for me picking up Blake as well as Rimbaud. I was impressed with Blake and, of course, wanted to learn more.

In the introduction, Churton spends many words talking about the epic poem “Jerusalem.” Its sudden popularity in England had some people thinking it was an important part of their national identity. I had expectations that this might be similar to The Most Dangerous Book about the printing of Joyce's Ulysses and Irish identity. However, this turns out not to be the case either.

William Blake had a problem which is a fairly unique among those who are famous. No one knew him. Blake did not keep or have a surviving journal. Most of his letters are lost. And, sadly, no one cared about Blake's work until years after his death. People did care about his work in that he was a skilled engraver, but not as an important artist and poet. The only biography that existed was written by Frederick Tatham, who is discredited by Churton and others.

Jerusalem! begins with Blake's death. Here there are several accounts of his passing. That, however, seems to be the most documented part of his life. There is virtually no personal information on Blake. In the absence of information, Churton does something intriguing. He creates a psychological and forensic profile of the artist.

Churton takes documented information such as addresses and places of employment and uses them to explain financial success and style of living. He goes further in detail with local and world events to form a picture of how these events would have influenced his life. Blake’s religious beliefs, Moravian Church, played a crucial role in his life. A lamb is the center of the church's seal, perhaps an influence to “The Lamb” and “The Tyger.” Churton ties in Swedish philosopher Swedenborg with enough information to make him a secondary subject in this biography.

I usually tend to give the author the benefit of the doubt, however, in the introduction, Churton mentions the rock band The Doors and Blake's influence on Jim Morrison. In the body of the book he mentions the song "Wild Child" and the seemingly out of place final line "Remember when we were in Africa." Churton credits this to Blakes "Preludium to America." Morrison, however, admired Rimbaud -- who faked his death to escape fame and went to Africa to run guns. Morrison, likewise, spoke about disappearing to Africa and returning as Mr. Mojo Risen. Rimbaud has a deep connection with American artists like Morrison, Bob Dylan, and Patti Smith. There is more than a causal connection between Morrison and Rimbaud and little to none of Morrison and Blake. It may seem like a small error to many, but it is one that made me question other information in the book.

For a biography, I found it light on documentation. Granted much is inferred on little information. I felt I learned more about world events and those who influenced Blake rather than learning about Blake himself. I will admit the lack of the usual documentation makes it difficult to recreate Blake's life. Churton's approach is an interesting answer to the problem but leaves holes for criticism. Rather than I biography, I would consider this more of a psychological profile based on the historical limited information. I would think it would much more appeal to the scholarly crowd than the average biography reader.



… (mais)

GOLDEN BUILDERS - ALCHEMISTS, TOSICRUCIANS, AND THE FIRST FREEMASONS

In a breathtaking span of detailed research, Tobias Churton reveals, without resorting to mythology or pseudo-history, the most up-to-date knowledge on the development of Gnostic alchemy, the true origins of pre-Grand Lodge Freemasonry, and the mysterious Fraternity of the Rosy Cross (the Rosicrucians). Following the Hermetic spiritual and philosophical stream through 1,600 years of esoteric history, Churton introduces readers to great men of magic and wisdom--spiritual heroes and masters like Paracelsus, Caspar Schwenckfeld, Johann Valentin Andrae, and Elias Ashmole. The Golden Builders is an essential addition to any serious seekers' library.
The Golden Builders is divided into three parts:
Part 1 presents a broad survey of the Hermetic current and its transmissions from Hellenistic Alexandria to the time of Paracelsus.Part 2 focuses on the Rosicrucian movement as a vehicle of the Hermetic current, drawing on state-of-the-art research, such as the works of Spanish scholar Carlos Gilly. Part 3 concentrates mainly on one man, the English polymath, antiquarian, collector, alchemist, astrologer, and early Freemason, Elias Ashmole, after whom the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford is named, and one of many Renaissance figures who carried the Hermetic current forward. Debunking myths while revealing genuine mysteries, The Golden Builders is an enticing read that contains much spiritual wisdom. Explore the deeper meaning of magic and human existence, as revealed in the records and inspiring lives of the Golden Builders.

Tobias Churton is a writer and filmmaker, best known for his work on English television's award-winning Gnostics series and the best-selling book that accompanied it. Churton was also founder-editor of the controversial Freemasonry Today magazine. He recently completed a dramatic film on Elias Ashmole and the origins of Freemasonry, A Mighty Good Man.… (mais)