Uriella

Uriella (born Erika Bertschinger-Eicke on February 20, 1929 in Zürich, Switzerland) is the spiritual leader and founder of the neo-revelationist (Neuoffenbarer) religious movement known as Fiat Lux (Latin for "let there be light").

Fiat Lux

The Order of Fiat Lux (Orden Fiat Lux) is the centre of Uriella's religious movement. There are several organizations which are affiliated with it: the relief organization "Adsum – ich bin bereit", the club "Internationaler gemeinnütziger Verein zur Erforschung und Förderung einer naturgemäßen Lebens-, Ernährungs- sowie Behandlungsweise" and the international research group "Internationale Forschungsgruppe für Bioenergetik e. V.".

In the past, Uriella had a “sanctum” in Egg ZH, Canton of Zürich, (Switzerland), it served as a centre for the members to gather around her, and she was considered to be the direct “Sprachrohr” (speaking tube) of Jesus Christ. The archangel Uriel advised her as well.

The order “Fiat Lux“ was founded there January 12, 1980. According to the order's members, Jesus founded it using Uriella as a medium. Later, the sanctum, that was origin and centre of the movement, was moved to Ibach/Lindau in Schwarzwald.

The doctrine of Fiat Lux is based on relevations by Uriella, received from Jesus or Mary, interpreted in first person. These announcings wanted to offer a deeper insight on God's plans and to help proselytizing the people before Judgement Day.

Despite the doctrine using many Christian terms and names, it does not contain many Christian aspects. The group's philosophy is a mixture syncretic Jewish-apocalyptic, gnostic, and eastern religious (Buddhist) beliefs as well as esotericism, astrological Kabbala, spiritualism, Theory of Colours, alternative medicine, ecology, archaic mysticism and UFO related ideas.

The ideology of Fiat Lux concerns reincarnation as well. Uriella claims to have been Mary Magdalene and Icordo claims to have been Isaac, Joseph of Egypt, Huldrych Zwingli and Johann Strauss. According to Uriella, the popes John XXIII and John Paul I were poisoned, Paul VI was replaced by a doppelganger, and the whole Vatican was ruled by freemasons. Positive and negative "radiation" plays an important role, as well as world's end. In 1991 Uriella prophesied the end, and the sect members being rescued by ETs with UFOs (Reichsflugscheibe), brought to a „cleaned“ earth called „Amora“.^[1] In 1997 the sect declared that "in August 1998, an important head of state will be murdered, there will be a worldwide stock market crash followed by global economic meltdown, caused by computer viruses, and the Russian army will march into Germany. Three months later, a meteorite will fall into the North Sea. The affected coastal regions will disappear forever in the sea. The human strategy of diverting the meteorite from its path, using nuclear weapons, will fail, because angels will foil the plan, using magnetic power rays. A tsunami several hundred metres high will spread at jet speed. California and Los Angeles and Hollywood will be swallowed by the Atlantic [sic!] Ocean."^[2]

The sect is afraid of bar codes, they get pasted over with stickers. Uriella makes "Athrums-Wasser" ("Athrum water") in her sterile bath tub by stirring tap water. The water is filled into canisters and stored in the basement. The believers drink it, wash themselves with it, or heal wounds. According to www.relinfo.ch, the water is free, but most members (some drive 700 km) buy some "remedies" from "God's drugstore." Fiat Lux prophesied the world's end, but when it didn't happen, it was "postponed." While the members offer their money, Uriella is not poor at all. Some members wear very bright, white clothes, because dark clothing absorbed cosmic radiation. Furthermore, it holds off Lucifer's radiation ("Schamanah"). There are rules concerning nutrition and meditation. Watching TV or listening to the radio isn't allowed. Internet is forbidden, too, that's why the sect doesn't have a website (despite that, some domains are booked).

From 1984 to 1988 Uriella's husband Kurt Warter (called Uriello), who died 1988 in an accident, supported Uriella's activities and unified/standardized the doctrine. Since 1992 there have several instances of legal action being taken against Erika Bertschinger-Eicke, because two members died after mysterious healing methods. She didn't want them to consult regular physicians. (In that case, "Fiat Lux" was compared to Ryke Geerd Hamer's "Neue Germanische Medizin^{[citation needed]} ,". Today, Fiat Lux actually is administrated by Uriella's fourth husband, Eberhard Bertschinger-Eicke (called Icordo). Uriella has taken herself out of the public eye.^[3] The centre today is in Ibach, Ortsteil Lindau. Other groups are located in Schwellbrunn (Appenzell Ausserhoden, Schweiz), Egg, ZH Schweiz and Strittmatt (Deutschland).

"Icordo" stated 723 members in October 1997. Since that it is supposed that membership has shrunk. 300-400 members are estimated. In 1999 there was an electoral list of Fiat Lux members campaigning for a mandate in "Gemeinderat" (district council). Icordo was successful. In 2004, there wasn't a list anymore. Icordo hoped for worldwide changes, and stated that he would be the earthly leader of a "cleaned mankind" afterwards.^[4][5]

Erika Bertschinger-Eicke (Uriella)

Bertschinger had contacts to the Geistige Loge Zürich (Literally: Spiritual Loge Zürich) and to various sects in England and the U.S., relatively soon in her life. After a riding accident in 1973, in which she suffered head injuries, she claimed to be clairvoyant. On Christmas Day 1975, she allegedly had her first revelation at the "Lichtzentrum Bethanien". She first appeared as "Uriella" at worships in the Sanctum in Egg, Canton of Zurich. In December 1998, Uriella was given a suspended, 22-month prison sentence by a Mannheim court for duty and tax evasion (import of various "remedies" from Switzerland). Furthermore, she was ordered to pay 100.000 Deutschemark to charitable institutions.

Sources

1. ^ <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.relinfo.ch%2Fofl%2Finfo.html> Uriellas Ufo-Glaube, Relinfo.ch
2. ^ <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.relinfo.ch%2Fofl%2Faugust98.html> Uriella Prophezeiungen 1998, Relinfo.ch
3. ^ <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ekd.de%2Fezw%2F42714_informationen_fiat_lux_spekulationen_um_uriellas_gesundheitszustand.php> Spekulationen um "Uriellas" Gesundheitszustand, Materialdienst der EZW, 9/2006, von Christian Ruch
4. ^ <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kath.ch%2Findex.php%3Fna%3D11%2C0%2C0%2C0%2Cd%2C28047> Icordo wird Oberbefehlshaber, Basler Zeitung, 13.05.2004
5. ^ <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ecclesiabz.com%2Frfw%2Ffiat_lux.htm> FIAT LUX, Südkurier, 10.5.2004

Literature

• Gasper, Müller, Friederike Valentin: Lexikon der Sekten, Sondergruppen und Weltanschauungen. Herder 2001. ISBN 3-451-05528-7
• Barbara Büchner: Irrlicht; Im Bannkreis der Sekte. St. Gabriel 1993. ISBN 3-401-02551-1 (A novel loosely based on Fiat Lux.)

External links

• <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mike-shiva.com%2Fvip%2Fpages%2FUriella_Mike_jpg.htm> A picture of herself meeting TV-fortuneteller Mike Shiva
• <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.relinfo.ch%2Fofl%2Fselbstdarstellung.html> About Uriella and the “Orden Fiat Lux”, article on www.relinfo.ch <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.relinfo.ch>
• <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.viktorgiacobbo.ch%2F> The comedian that parodied Uriella
• <http://service.gmx.net/de/cgi/derefer?DEST=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.agpf.de%2Furiella1.htm> AGPF: Fiat Lux and Uriella

Persondata
Name	Uriella
Alternative names
Short description	spiritual leader of the Fiat Lux order
Date of birth	February 20, 1929
Place of birth	Zürich, Switzerland
Date of death
Place of death