The Cross Wreathed in Roses. The History, Symbols, and Traditions of the Rosicrucian Order

The Rosicrucian Order is one of the most mysterious initiatory orders. Who are the Rosicrucians? What do the symbols of the cross and the rose mean? Where do the roots of this phenomenon lie, and is it connected to Freemasonry? Christian Rebis discusses the secrets of the order's origins and for the first time places it in historical context: from the era of bloody religious wars of the Middle Ages and the devastating epidemics of the 17th century to the emergence of the Ancient Mystical Order of the Rose and the Cross (AMORC), from the predictions of Paracelsus and alchemy to the 'rosary of magicians'. 'In trying to unite the Rose and the Cross in marriage, some were pricked by the thorns that protect the flower of the soul, because all the people in question were not mythical sages, but men and women just like us, with their own virtues and shortcomings. However, each of them contributed to the elevation of humanity, urging their contemporaries to look beyond the visible world in an attempt to touch the Divine.'