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membership in the Order of Saint Lazarus within any constitutional
jurisdiction of Carpathia is by invitation only.
Why?
For
the past several years a number of events took place pertaining to a huge proliferation of many groups using the
name of the Order of Saint
Lazarus of Jerusalem, or one of it's variations. It appears that
main reason for what we are experiencing is lie to the
fact that many local and international Saint Lazarus administrators believed that the strength of their Jurisdictions, or the
Order itself, lies in
the "membership numbers" and not the quality of it's members.
By doing so these groups became platforms for medal seekers and
social climbers. In short, the "Honorary Members"
became policy makers and the actual reason why the Order was created at the first place is now
irrelevant.
The Order was newer about
distributing
used clothing, or to act as "middleman"
in promoting and distributing questionable commercial products to
third world countries under the
heading of "charity". There are many good
organizations that are experts in collecting
and distributing used closing, and there are many good international
promotion companies that are good in promoting their
client's commercial products to new markets or the Third World Countries.
So, let them do it.
Regardless of the above, we believe that there is nothing
wrong with any individual Jurisdictions being involved in
various charitable work, including youth and elderly community programs,
etc. However, all of these activities should be secondary to Saint
Lazarus
objectives. The Order was, and always
should be about individual member's commitment to work, or to support the work
in War Against Leprosy.
2004 Schism.
Before the summer of 2004,
the two main groups that dominated various jurisdictions within
the Order (The Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of
Jerusalem) were known as the Malta Obedience - under the patronage of
Duke of Seville,
and the Paris Obedience - under the patronage of Duke of Brissak.
The 2004 Schism gave a rise to another entity known as the Paris -
Orleans Obedience under the patronage of Prince Fillip, Duke of
Anjou.
NOTE: Due to the numerous
schisms and intricacies
even a persons with good understanding of history and knightly
orders would have a problem in following these
events.
Where to start?
The present-day situation is not about which group is
"legally registered or not" by some sort of state authority, but rather
we should be asking whether any present-day group using the name of the
historical Order of Saint
Lazarus is descending from the original historical Order.
All at the same time, while historians are preoccupied
by trying to
resolve the puzzle of legitimacy and continuity of the Order, one thing that we can do is at
least to subscribe to the original Constitution of the Order of
Saint Lazarus and
follow the Order's historical objectives.
What is the Order of Saint
Lazarus?
The Order of Saint Lazarus was traditionally a Nobiliary Christian Chivalric Service Order.
That means that selected individuals from hereditary nobility
(Knights of Justice) were invited or volunteer into the Order to serve and carry for
those with Leprosy.
Does membership in the Order of
Saint Lazarus creates Nobility?
"NO"
Only individuals of a noble
descent are admitted into the Order in a category as the
"Knights of Justice". (Nobiliary category).
However, under special circumstances
a deserving persons, not of a noble birth, could be invited into
the Order in the category of Magisterial Grace (Honorary
Member). However, for
those admitted into the Order in the category of Magisterial
Grace the admission or promotion to any
Grade of the Order, or the privileges derived does not confer on
them any rank, style, title, dignity, appellation or social
precedence. In other words, a membership in the Order of Saint
Lazarus does not elevate a person to the status of Nobility.
It is the means of recognizing one’s outstanding volunteerism
or leadership to their community trough the work of the Order of
Saint Lazarus. Even the
present Grandmaster of
the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem
cannot change this. He doesn't have the "Royal Prerogative", i.e. he doesn't
have the power to bestow any-kin of titles of nobility on anyone.
If this is the case, why sow many
people are seeking admission into the "Order of Saint Lazarus of
Jerusalem"?
The fact is that the majority of
the general public does not really understand differences between
various chivalric orders. They simply cannot differentiate
one Order from another. To them the "Order is an
Order", and the "Knight is a Knight". As a result of this there are many people waiting
in line to be "knighted", dress up in fancy uniforms, showoff
their new shining medals and tell their uninformed friend and business
associates about their importance and "their high social
position" in a "prestigious chivalric order".
As well, there are are many dubious individuals who for various
selfish reasons tell to their business associates (or victims) that their Order is truly
legitimate and that for a few Dollars or Euros (or a favor), and
with their endorsement, they could become
"true knights" with certificate, title and all.
How could this happen?
When the majority or the entire membership of a
Jurisdiction is made up of the Honorary Members the formula for Schisms,
"high" personal ambitions and dubious objectives get in place. And, as
already pointed out, when a general public is lucking
knowledge in recognizing differences between legitimate Order of
Chivalry and the
groups active in creative anachronism
the opportunity is just right for making mail-order "modern-day
knights" by dubious "Grand Priors". Especially
in non-monarchial states or pos-communist countries".
On top of that many of this
"modern-day knights" pretend their affiliation to the
legitimate churches, or, and become "Armigers".
However, once again the unexpected general public doesn't know
what making a promise to a church means, or what being an Armiger
is all about.
Lets answer the first point
first. Making a promise, or wows to a church is a one sided
act, and it doesn't mean that the church is recognizing a
persons credentials, or is entering into any kind of special
relationship with that person. Anyone can make a promise to
anyone. Annually, as a part of the New Year's resolution, great
many smokers promise to themselves and their families that they
will stop smoking. Do they? A great many people during their wedding
ceremony, before God, make wows to each other to be faithful to
each other, etc. In most of the countries around the world
the divorce rate is on increase.
So, what is Armiger?
An armiger is a person
entitled to use a Coat of Arms. Such a person is said to be
armigerous.
Originally an armiger was an
Armour-Bearer or Esquire, attendant upon a Knight, but bearing
his own unique armorial device.
The term "armiger"
is well-defined only within jurisdictions (such as the United
Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, and Spain) where heraldry is regulated
by the state (monarchial state) or monarchial heraldic body (such as the
College of Arms in England, Wales, and Northern
Ireland, (the
Office of the Chief Herald in Ireland or the Court of the Lord
Lyon in Scotland). In the Netherlands titles of nobility are regulated by
law but heraldry is not. In Sweden the nobility has had since
1762 the prerogative to use an open helmet, while others use a
closed helmet. etc.
Since anyone may use any coat of arms in
countries that lack regulated heraldry, such as the United
States or Slovakia this creates even more confusion. For
example, Slovakia is a state
in an open denial of its Hungarian monarchial past, however, in a peculiar
way it grants Citizens Coat of Arms, that very closely resemble Coat
of Arms of the Hereditary Nobility of the Kingdom of Hungary and
the Austro-Hungarian Empire, to its citizens.
So, how about Coat of Arms granted
by a non-monarchial state?
For a fee, any person in the Republic of
Slovakia can apply for Coat of Arms:
HERALDICKY REGISTER - Slovenskej
republiky: http://www.civil.gov.sk/p19/p19-04.shtm
Are these Coat of Arms a mark
of Nobility?
"NO".
All of the Coat of
Arms issued by the non-monarchial,
or Republic state heraldic offices
are known as the "Citizens Coat of Arms" . These
Citizens Coat of Arms have nothing to do whatsoever with the
nobiliary hereditary Coat of Arms issued by a monarch.
As well, the Republic's state
heraldic offices, or any of its affiliates, cannot matriculate Arms belonging to a person
who has the hereditary right to such nobiliary Coat of Arms.
In
fact, if a person who possesses hereditary Coat of
Arms under the Letter Patent of Nobility chooses to register his/her Coat of Arms by a
non-monarchial
state heraldic office he/she is actually changing the
status and the character of his/her hereditary Coat of Arms from
Nobiliary to
Citizens Coat of Arms. Please see: Law
of Arms.
Back to the resent
developments within
the Order of Saint Lazarus,
including 2004 Schism.
The
initial position and the Statement filed by the Constitutional
Commandery of Slovakia - Carpathia and all it's
sub-jurisdictions during September 12, 13, Chapter General of
the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem
(MHOSLJ), held in the City of Manchester, England, was:
"The
entire membership of the Commandery of Slovakia is in support of
the reunification process and the election of the new
Grandmaster, but we will not support the development of the
Order into new organization that will be without the historical
mandate of the Order, traditional organizational structure,
knightly and noble virtues and Christian believes".
However, several days after
Chapter General in Manchester, UK, the Military and Hospitaller
Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem (MHOSLJ) published, on their
official Website < http://www.st-lazarus.net/
> it's "new Constitution" of the Order. As a result of it, the
Commandery of Slovakia declares that in "NO
WAY" it could support such Constitution. Therefore, together
with it's International Green Cross Organization for
reasons hear indicated terminated all relations with the Military and Hospitaller
Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem and their 49th. Grandmaster,
H.E. Don Carlos Gereda y de Borbón, Marquis de Almazŕn.
As well, the Commandery of
Slovakia wish to point out that there is no connection "whatsoever"
between the Constitutional Commandery of Slovakia and so called
"Grand Priory of Slovakia", or its members, or
any other group masquerading under the banner of the Order of
Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem within the territory of the Republic
of Slovakia.
During "Norwich Group's"
Chapter General in Vienna, September 5 -7, 2008, the Grand Prior of
Ireland in
a private discussion with the writer spoke about the Military
and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem in becoming
an "Electoral Kingdom". Than,
on October 4th. 2004 the following entry was made on the
Wikipedia WebPages: ..."Today
the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem
(former Malta & Paris Obedience) is an international
self-governing and independent body, having its own
Constitution; it may be compared with a kind of electoral
kingdom"...
NOTE: Order of Saint Lazarus -
Wikipedia - Statement may differ significantly from the current revision, however, the
Web link below will do the connection to the above mentioned
reference.
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Order_of_Saint_Lazarus&diff=242955744&oldid=242927454
Several
days later we received a call, from a member of another to us
sympathetic Jurisdiction, pointing us to the United
Malta & Paris Obedience of the MHOSLJ Website
< http://www.st-lazarus.net/international/index.html
>, especially to the information posted under the
heading "The Order", and sub-heading
"Introduction", where again the reference to
"electoral kingdom" was made: ... "Today the
Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem is
an international self-governing and independent body, having its
own Constitution; it may be compared with a kind of electoral
kingdom." ...
We
believe that this type of talk is usually typical and in line with
groups active in creative anachronism and not legitimate Orders of
Chivalry.
NOTE:
Due
to the "reunification" between Malta and Paris Groups
(including Norwich Group) into one United
Malta & Paris Obedience of the Military and Hospitaller
Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem, the above thinking is
becoming a mainstream idea for the future of the Military and
Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem. We fill that
our Jurisdiction can-no-longer support, or be associated with
such organization.
Our
Response to Chapter General and to the "new
Constitution" of the MHOSLJ.
We
believe that the Reunification Meeting, held
on September 12, 13 in Manchester, England, didn't just
unfulfilled our expectations, but instead left us with even more
unanswered questions. In-fact, the new Constitution of the Order published shortly thereafter, plainly spelled-out that
the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem
- United Malta & Paris Obedience became nothing more than
another social club, and thus stray-away from being a Nobiliary
Christian Service Order of Chivalry.
Following
are some of the points that support our view:
1.
Before the Election there was no information available to
Chapter General as to how will the "reunified body"
deal with various entities (self-style groups) that were
created by "self-appointed" individuals during the
2004 - 2008 schism period?
Note:
During September
4 - 5, 2008, the Norwich Group Chapter General in Vienna simply ignored the legitimacy issue of some of their
self-appointed groups, and in fact allowed these self-style
groups to participate in the reunification vote and the
Grandmaster's elections in Manchester.
2.
Before the Election there was no information available to
Chapter General as to how will the "reunified body"
deal with various entities (Priories) that were created by
"opposing camps", in already established Jurisdictions
during 2004 - 2008 schism period, that bluntly violated: Chapter
2 / 2.1.,
a., b., c.; Chapter 6 / 6.1., c.; Chapter
7 / 7.1., a., b.; 7.3., h., i., j., k., of the
Constitution of the Order of Saint Lazarus.
3.
Before
the Election there was no information available to Chapter
General as to how
will the organizational structure of the "new Order" look like, especially what will be the role
and the position of Knights
of Justice in comparison to members in the category of Magisterial Grace.
4. Before
the Election there was no information available to Chapter
General as to how will the
"new Order" deal with recruitment of new members,
especially those from post communist countries, and those who
have communist, racist or other extremist past?
5.
Before
the Election there was no information available to Chapter
General as to how
will the "new Order" deal with recruitment of new
members, especially those who in their past held, or presently
hold a membership in organizations that are in total
contradiction to the objectives of Christian Chivalric Orders
and the Canon Law?
Therefore,
we
believe that the "new Constitution of the Order" has made the
Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem
nothing more than another civic organization parallel to Lions
Club, Rotary Club, etc.
The
power of the Order is in it's historical continuity and in it's
historical Constitution. The
actions of the executives of the MHOSLJ and their new
Constitution have failed on all of these points.
In addition to the above we also
say that not only the Grandmaster of the Order, but also the
administration of the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint
Lazarus of Jerusalem and it's respectable Jurisdictions
must be appropriately represented by Knights of Justice
if the Order is to remain a traditional nobiliary institution. Please
read ...
What
is the public's response to all of this?
As already pointed out the
general population doesn't
really understand the inner workings of various private
organizations or various Orders of Chivalry. A good
reference-point from where to start, and from where to learn
about it, is the "Register
of Orders of Chivalry".
Following information is the position of The
International Commission of the Register of Orders of Chivalry
regarding the Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem:
"Premise".
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