The Holy Order of MANS was an esoteric Christian group that grew out of the vision of Fr. Earl W. Blighton, who in 1930 had experienced a divine revelation in which he was told to work for the unity of science and Christian teachings. An electrical engineer, he ruminated on the idea for several decades before assuming the role of a clergyman and in 1960 called together a small group of people who would become the core of the new order. The group accepted the task of considering what could be done for humanity and the world in light of the 2,000 years of dogmatism that had been inflicted upon them. Out of their next years of discussions, the Holy Order of MANS was formally incorporated in 1968.
The Holy Order combined Christian teachings with insights from the Western esoteric tradition. The acronym MANS stood for "Mysterion, Agape, Nous, Sophia," Greek for mystery, love, mind, and wisdom. It considered itself a Pauline Christian group in that it adopted Paul's work as its own. Its motto was service to the creator through service to man. It considered the Master Jesus as the master of the order.
The group was modeled on Roman Catholic orders, except that both men and women were invited into membership. Prospective members were accepted following a three-month novitiate. They took their first vows and six months later they took their second vows. These were considered vows for life, which committed members to a list of humility, service, obedience, purity, and poverty. Members worked in regular jobs and in addition attend some 19 hours of class work. The money earned was turned over to the order and the order assumed responsibility for the members' needs. Members donned clerical clothing though only a few began training for the priesthood. An Outer Order of Discipleship was created by those who wanted to work with the group but felt unable to follow the full ordered list.
Fr. Blighton and the ruling Esoteric Council developed their teachings out of the Hermetic teachings, beginning with the foundational principle, "As above, so below," the statement of human correspondence with divine reality. The universe was seen as a manifestation of the great creative mind. Each individual built his/her own personal universe in the form of an atmosphere that surrounded him/her. This atmosphere is created in the individual's thinking and reacting, and serves as a protector and projection of the individual. Becoming master of their personal universe was a primary goal of members.
Order members believed that personal growth took place as one came into attunement with the harmonious vibrations of the universe. Attunement occurs primarily through meditation, which also leads to psychic unfoldment. As one unfolds, it was believed that he/she comes into contact with God, the golden force, and can use that force for various self-determined ends. The flow of the golden force was manifested in the active love.
Blighton established the Holy Order in San Francisco, California, but it soon spread to cities across the United States and into Canada and Europe. One center opened in Japan and seminaries were established in Chicago, Illinois, and Boston, Massachusetts. Blighton died in 1974 and left the leadership to his wife, Ruth Blighton, and to Rt. Rev. Andrew Rossi, the steward of the Esoteric Council. Rossi steadily pushed the order toward Eastern Orthodoxy and its rich mystical tradition. In 1986, he led the order to merge into the Greek Orthodox Missionary Diocese of Vasiloupolis, a small independent conservative Orthodox jurisdiction. With that merger, the Holy Order of MANS effectively ceased to exist as a separate organization.
While most of the members went into the Greek Church, not all agreed with that action, including Ruth Blighton. Over the next decade a number of former Holy Order members withdrew and several moved to found new organizations based on the former order beliefs and structures. These include the Science of Man (the name under which the Holy Order originally existed), now headed by Ruth Blighton, and the Gnostic Order of Christ.
Sources:
The Golden Force. N.p.: Holy Order of MANS, 1967.
Holy Order of MANS. San Francisco: Holy Order of MANS, n.d. An 18-page pamphlet.
