- Royal Arch Purple
The Royal Arch Purple is a "higher degree" of initiation within most of the Orange Order although it is still outlawed by the
Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland , the degree [Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland Laws and Ordinances] is believed to be ofMasonic origin."The ritualists were those renegade Orangemen who adhered to the neo-Masonic Royal Arch Purple Order andRoyal Black Preceptory degrees . Their unflinching aim was to introduce these ritualistic degrees into the Orange Institution and as a consequence make it a mirror of Freemasonry." [http://www.evangelicaltruth.com/GOLI.htmGRAND ORANGE LODGE OF IRELAND hostility towards the RAP and Black degrees] from the [http://www.evangelicaltruth.com Evangelical Truth] website]It was started in
1798 . TheGrand Orange Lodge of Ireland disliked the ritualism and tried to suppress it as being incompatible with Protestantism. The degrees were practised in great secrecy for fear of expulsion from the Order. The Grand Lodge maintained this position throughout the nineteenth and into the early 20th century, which was mirrored throughout Great Britain. [http://www.evangelicaltruth.com/orange.html The Orange Order] from the [http://www.evangelicaltruth.com/index.html Evangelical Truth] website]Although the Royal Arch Purple is officially forbidden in Ireland it is now widely practised as a natural step of advancement from the Orange Institution to the
Royal Black Institution .Notes and References
External links
* The opinions of those sympathetic to the [http://www.geocities.com/royalarchpurple/ Royal Arch Purple]
* [http://www.orange-order.co.uk/chronicle/forum/viewtopic.php?id=2423 Video clip of Mohawk LOL 99 in Belfast]
* [http://www.orange-order.co.uk/ Orange Chronicle]
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