Ordo Templi Orientis (Roanoke, Virginia)
Ordo Templi Orientis (Roanoke, Virginia)
The Ordo Templi Orientis (Roanoke, Virginia) was one of several ritual magic groups to emerge in the 1970s. Karl Germer had served as outer head of the order for 15 years (1947-62), but after his death, the order endured a period of leaderlessness and corporate chaos. While several leaders stepped forward with papers and claims from either Aleister Crowley or Germer, Robert E. L. Snell put forward other credentials. He suggested that the mission of the OTO was to facilitate the movement of humanity into the new age of the Aeon of Horus, which had been announced by Crowley in 1904. Snell suggested that leaders must validate their role by their allegiance to the Law of Thelema (Will), the primary principle guiding the order. He also claimed direct contact with the secret chiefs, those preternatural beings (similar to the Theosophical Society's Great White Brotherhood ) believed to be ultimately guiding the order.