About us
The “Grail Movement”The organisation of the Grail Movement is limited to a minimum. There is no “membership” and there is no attempt at solicitation. There are no ties entailing obligations either between adherents of “In the Light of Truth” - The Grail Message or with regard to the Movement. Supporting the establishment of Hours of joint Worship for the veneration of God is an important task of the Grail Movement. It also contributes to the development of true humanity on the basis of the Grail Message and of the original Message of Christ, with which it is in complete accord. This is not, however, the same as the interpretation of the churches.
Organisation National Grail Movements deal with their individual organisation and finances alone. However, they honour directives mandated by Abd-ru-shin for all matters concerning Hours of Worship, Festivals, Grail Acts and the design and arrangements of rooms, halls and buildings for these purposes.
Within the countries there are local Grail Circles which are free associations without legal form. Their primary function is to hold Sunday Hours of Worship of God for adherents of The Grail Message and to support their joint endeavours in connection with the Grail Message. The Hours of Worship are meant to sanctify the Sabbath Day, as well as to provide for the joint veneration of God.
Parallel to the Grail Movement itself, most countries also have legal entities, typically known as Foundations; these are responsible for the business assets – mainly donations – of the Grail Movement. The international Grail Movement is also supported by a legal entity: The Society for the Practical Application of the Grail Knowledge of Abd-ru-shin; in German – Verein zur Verwirklichung des Gralswissens von Abd-ru-shin. The president of this society is, ex-officio, the leader of the international Grail Movement.
The Grail Message Foundation of Great Britain
The Grail Message Foundation is the authorised UK representative of the Stiftung Gralsbotschaft (Grail Foundation) which was founded in Stuttgart, Germany in 1950. The literal English translation of Stiftung Gralsbotschaft is Grail Message Foundation.
The Grail Message Foundation in Great Britain P O Box 3480 Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 6YW Tel: 0845 658 5666 E-mail: GralGB@aol.comThe Grail Movement in other Countries To get in touch with the Grail Movement in other countries please contact the Grail Foundation in Germany (see below) or click on the link:
Contact Addresses of the International Grail Movement
The Grail Foundation (Stiftung Gralsbotschaft) Abd-ru-shin's (Oskar Ernst Bernhardt's) major work, In the Light of Truth - The Grail Message, was forbidden by the Nazi regime in 1938. It could not be publicized until 1945, at the end of the war. This took place through a publishing company called "Verlag Maria Bernhardt, Vomperberg, Tirol." In order to achieve a more effective distribution, Maria Bernhardt proposed the establishment of a foundation which would be active as the central point for the worldwide distribution of In the Light of Truth - The Grail Message and related works.
The Foundation was established in 1950 in Germany. The "Grail Foundation" (Stiftung Gralsbotschaft) was legally certified by the German authorities in Baden-Wurtemberg, and recognized as a non-profit organization. It was originally located in Schwäbisch Gmünd, but has resided in Stuttgart since 1963. Connected with the Foundation is its publishing house, the "Verlag der Stiftung Gralsbotschaft," which is located in Ditzingen, near Stuttgart/Germany, and serves to publish the work of Abd-ru-shin and related literature, and since 1996, the periodical "GralsWelt."
The task of the Stiftung is to publish the book, “In the Light of Truth” - The Grail Message and other written works by Abd-ru-shin; it is also tasked to publish various other associated writings. All these works have to be translated into the living languages on earth. Since the international Foundation was established in 1950, related Grail Foundations have been established in many countries throughout the world.
Stiftung Gralsbotschaft Schuckertstr. 8 D-71254 Ditzingen Germany Tel: 0049-(0)7156-5096 Fax: 0049-(0)7156-18663 E-Mail: info@gral.de
History of the Grail Movement
Over 80 years ago groups of readers of the book “In the Light of Truth” - The Grail Message by Abd-ru-shin wished, as like-minded individuals, to establish contact with one another. It was out of this wish that the first Grail Settlement developed in Vomperberg, Tyrol (Austria).
The Settlement developed gradually; adding residences, work and administration buildings and then a small hall with seating for about 300 people. This hall was used by Abd-ru-shin for Sunday Hours of Worship of God and for the three annual Grail Festivals to which adherents of the Grail Message journeyed.
This development was interrupted in 1938 when the Nazi regime annexed Austria and expropriated the Grail Settlement. Abd-ru-shin was arrested on the first day and taken to Innsbruck prison. All residents were expelled so that the Settlement could be used as a Nazi training camp. Abd-ru-shin was eventually released but kept under surveillance until he died in 1941, far from Vomperberg. It was not until late in 1945 when the Allies returned the Settlement to his widow Maria Bernhardt that, under her direction, a new upbuilding began. During this time the term “Grail Movement” was in common use, as a group designation, for adherents of the Grail Message.
Over the years Grail Movements have formed in many countries, some of which, (e.g., Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Holland, Congo (Zaire) and Nigeria) have built their own Halls of Worship. However, Abd-ru-shin explicitly stated that he had not come to found a new religion or to lead people out of their self-created errors by explaining to them or disputing and arguing with them. He had brought a Message to which men could cling in order to extricate themselves from their errors.
A declaration of the personal commitment to adhere to the principles of the Grail Message can be made by a request for the “Sealing”; a Grail Act (ceremony) that takes place during one of the three annual Festivals. This, however, is a personal decision on the part of the individual and leads neither to commitment to an organisation nor to links with other adherents. Those who receive the Sealing have, during the Grail Act, the sign of the Cross made with water upon their foreheads. Afterwards such adherents are referred to as “Crossbearers”. The total number of Crossbearers who are associated with the Grail Movement is currently over 20,000; they live throughout the world.
The number of those who acknowledge “In the Light of Truth” - The Grail Message is no doubt considerably higher. This can be assumed by the sale of over 1,000,000 copies of this work which has now been translated into 15 languages.
Grail Acts
In connection with the depiction of Creation transmitted in his Grail Message, Abd-ru-shin also established Grail Acts. They symbolise on the material plane a spiritual happening and are conducted by persons especially charged with the task, primarily during the three Grail Festivals. They include, above all, the Sealing as the definite expression of a desire consciously to live one’s life according to the principles of the Grail Message. In addition, other Acts include the Grail Marriage (for newlyweds), the Marriage Blessing (for couples who have been married for more than one year) and the Blessings for children and babies. The latter Blessings do not provide an “automatic belonging” to the Grail Movement, for, as stated in the Grail Message, only an adult can choose, through inner conviction, his or her own spiritual path.
A Grail Act which may also be carried out in public – in funeral homes or cemeteries – is the Grail Funeral. Abd-ru-shin gave this Act a form in which the words spoken and the actions performed are, above all, addressed to the person continuing on his way in the ethereal world. This act also gives comfort and help to those who are left behind.
All Grail Acts affect only the individual and his spiritual attitude. The request for a Grail Act is made voluntarily and the blessing mediated corresponds to the recipient’s inner conviction. No-one is bound; if someone should someday question what the Grail Message has given him and wishes to depart from it, he is free to set forth on another spiritual path.
Any declaration of loyalty to the Grail Message binds the individual only to his Creator and includes the personal obligation to develop true humanity. It is not necessary for an adherent of the Grail Message to leave his or her church in order to be Sealed.
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