Collegium Fraternitatis: The House of the Holy Spirit
Ecce: Collegium Fraternitatis. Ab Oriens. Vide, amici et fratres. Nostro T.S. Iesus nobis omnia; in te dignum. Move Amor. Ubi Amor movet, Templum movet. Ab Oriens ad Occidens, a Septentrio ad Meridiem, opus procedit. Fama exit, Collegium manet. Spiritus Sanctus Sapientiae, Sanctum Secretum manifestatur. Hic est Ars Regia et Magnum Opus perfectum.
Behold: the College of the Fraternity. From the East, the source of light See, O friends and brothers. Our most holy secret. Jesus is all things to us; and in thee is worthiness. Love moves this House. Where love moves, the Temple moves. From East to West, from North to South, the work proceeds. Fame goes forth, but the fraternity remains. The Holy Spirit of Wisdom, the Sacred Secret, makes itself known. Herein is The Royal Art & the great work accomplished
This emblem depicts a living, moving Temple as the home of the Rosicrucian Fraternity The true Temple moves where the Spirit moves and manifests wherever the Work is alive and living.
It is the gathering place of a living body of initiates bound by shared illumination and common vocation.
As a castle on wheels, it can never become a fixed institution. At it’s base is written “Move Amor”: “Love moves [it].”
This is not a society one joins, but a College one realizes they were always member of and re-awakens into.
It is an invisible fraternity of those rebuilding the inner Temple, guided by the divine Wisdom of Sophia,
The Royal Art
“For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” - Matthew 18:20
The Latin words and phrases
At the top
ORIENS
“East.”
The direction of origin, light, dawn, resurrection, and revelation. In esoteric Christianity, the East is Christic illumination and the source of wisdom.
Above ORIENS appears the divine name in Hebrew: יהוה (YHWH)
The Tetragrammaton. The divine Name as source of being, light, and order.
Central banner
COLLEGIUM FRATERNITATIS
“College of the Fraternity.”
This is a key phrase. It does not mean a school in the modern sense. It means a living body of initiates bound by shared illumination rather than location.
Below it:
FAMA
A direct reference to Fama Fraternitatis (1614), the Rosicrucian manifesto announcing the existence of the Fraternity to the world.
Between them:
S S
Abbreviation with layered meanings, intentionally polyvalent:
Most commonly interpreted as:
Spiritus Sanctus – “Holy Spirit”
Often extended as:
Spiritus Sanctus Sapientiae – “Holy Spirit of Wisdom”
or
Sanctum Secretum – “Sacred Secret”
On the Temple façade
IESUS NOBIS OMNIA
“Jesus is all things to us.”
This is central. It signals that Rosicrucianism understood itself as Christocentric, not pagan, not merely Hermetic. Christ is the interior principle of totality, not a denominational boundary.
Above the door:
IN TE DIGNUM
“In thee is worthiness.”
On the base:
MOVE AMVR
Usually read as Move Amor
“Love moves [it].”
Directions around the image
SEPTENTRIO
“North.”
Associated with darkness, cold, ignorance, and the uninitiated state.
MERIDIES
“South.”
Associated with heat, action, vitality, and manifestation.
OCCIDENS
“West.”
Associated with death, setting, dissolution, and the descent phase of initiation.
ORIENS (East, already covered)
Associated with resurrection and illumination.
Together these form a complete initiatory compass.
Side inscriptions and phrases
VIDE AMINI (upper left)
Often interpreted as “See, O friends” or “Look, companions.”
An address to those with eyes to see.
AD L.D. FRATRES
“To the brothers.”
A direct fraternal address, reinforcing internal transmission.
NOSTRO T.S.
“Our most holy [thing/secret].”
Likely refers to the inner secret of the Fraternity.
C.R.F.
“Christian Rosenkreutz, Frater.”
The symbolic founder of the Rosicrucian Order.
Alchemical references
In some windows and marginal symbols:
Salt, Sulphur, Mercury
The Tria Prima of alchemy, indicating that the Temple is also an alchemical vessel.
The Temple on wheels
This is the core symbol.
The Temple is:
- solid
- fortified
- geometrically ordered
Yet it is mounted on wheels.
This communicates several doctrines simultaneously:
The true Temple is not fixed in Jerusalem, Rome, or any city.
The true Temple is not institutional.
The Temple moves with the Spirit.
In Rosicrucian theology, the inner Temple replaces the destroyed outer Temple.
The Tower of Illumination
The upper dome is the nous: illuminated intellect.
It represents:
- higher consciousness
- spiritual vision
- access to divine wisdom
The four guardian figures
At the four corners are armed figures with shields and swords.
They represent:
- the four directions
- the four elements
- the four evangelists
- the four cherubim of Ezekiel
- moral and spiritual guardianship
The trumpet
The trumpet announces, but does not explain.
This reflects the Rosicrucian strategy:
revelation by signal, not instruction.
Those who hear, hear.
The surrounding landscape
The figures around the Temple:
- The man drawing water from a well: seeking wisdom at the source.
- The anchor: hope and stability amid flux.
- The bridges: transition from ignorance to initiation.
- The solitary houses: Hermetic solitude and contemplation.
The stars and rays
These indicate astrotheurgy.
The Fraternity operates in harmony with:
- celestial intelligences
- cosmic order
- divine timing
- a model of an invisible college
- a theology of mobility
- a Christ-centered esoteric identity
- a justification for non-institutional transmission
- a living Temple doctrine
Collegium Fraternitatis: The House of the Holy Spirit
the mobile Temple or House of the Rosicrucian Fraternity
The Rosicrucian Order as a moving, living organism. The vehicle of divine wisdom in the world
The building is the Temple of the Fraternity.
It is solid like a fortress, yet mounted on wheels, showing:
- mobility
- invisibility
- spiritual adaptability
- the idea that the True Temple moves where the Spirit moves
The door bears mottos such as IN TE DIGNUM (“In thee is worthiness”) and JESUS NOBIS OMNIA (“Jesus is all things to us”).
The upper dome is the “Tower of Illumination.”
- nous, illuminated intellect
- the inner light of wisdom
- the spiritual Sun
- access to the higher worlds
The figures on the four corners:
- Guardians of the Four Directions
- Angels of the Elements
- Messengers of the Invisible College
Each one wields a sword and shield, implying:
- protection of the Mysteries
- discernment
- the necessity of moral purity
They echo the four cherubim of Ezekiel and the four fixed signs of the zodiac in esoteric astrology.
The Mottoes
Collegium Fraternitatis
“College of the Fraternity”
FAMA
A direct reference to the Fama Fraternitatis manifesto.
S S S
Spiritus Sanctus Sapientiae (Holy Spirit of Wisdom) or Sanctum Secretum Sapientiae (Sacred Secret of Wisdom).
The rays, stars, and constellations
These represent the Astrotheurgical dimension of the Rosicrucian worldview:
- influence of divine intelligences
- celestial harmony
- the belief that wisdom is written in the stars
The upper clouds contain Hebrew divine names such as יהוה (YHWH)
The Landscape Around the Temple
This is a map of the human condition and the spiritual path.
The man drawing water from a well - Symbolizes seeking truth at the source.
The man with the anchor - Represents hope, faith, and stability
The crossing bridges - Show the transition from ignorance to initiation.
The isolated houses on hills - Refer to retreat, contemplation, and Hermetic solitude.
The Wheels of the House
- the Order is not fixed in one city or institution
- true initiation moves with the seeker
- the Brotherhood is “in the world but not of the world”
The Hidden Doors, Windows, and Apertures
- inner chambers of meditation
- degrees of initiation
- graded knowledge
- the invisible work of the Adepti
Many versions show alchemical symbols in the windows—salt, mercury, sulphur.