The Grail Movement is a millenarian new religious movement which originated in Germany in the late 1940s, inspired by the work of the self-proclaimed messiah figure Oskar Ernst Bernhardt (also known by his pen name Abd-ru-shin), principally In the Light of Truth: The Grail Message.<ref name="Wilson1975">Sources for 'Messiah', 'true Christ', 'Son of Man', or 'biblical Immanuel':• « Etwa seit 1923 spürte O. E. Bernhardt seinen besonderen religiösen Auftrag. Er betrachtete sich selbst als Gottesgesandten und als den verheißenen "Menschensohn", der das unvollkommene Werk des "Gottessohnes" Jesus Christus vollenden sollte. 1924 ließ er sich scheiden und begann wenig später mit der Veröffentlichung von Abhandlungen in der von ihm herausgegebenen Zeitschrift "Gralsblätter". Dabei nannte er sich "Abd-ru-shin". » (Plagge 2003: 120-122). • « Abd-ru-shin (= Oskar Ernst Bernhardt; 1875-1941), ein Deutscher, sah das Werk Jesu Christi als gescheitert an und verkündigte sich selbst als den „wahren Christus“, welcher der Menschheit die rettende „Gralsbotschaft“ übermittelt. » (Gassmann 1999). • « Das dreibändige 1926 erschiene Werk Im Lichte der Wahrheit – Gralsbotschaft von Abd-ru-shin ist eine Sammlung von 168 Vorträgen und enthält die Hauptgedanken des Mannes, der sich als „Menschensohn“82 verstand und in einer Pyramide auf dem Tiroler Vomperberg begraben ließ. » Diemling (2012: 153). • "EPILOGUE Abdruschin has now completed His Message to mankind. In him has arisen IMANUEL, the Envoy of God, the Son of Man, whose coming to judge and to save those who have not cut themselves adrift from salvation, was foretold by Jesus the Son of God in corroboration of the prophecies of the prophets of old. He carries the insignias of His high Office: the living Cross of the Truth radiating from Him and the Divine Dove above Him, the same in-signias as were borne by the Son of God. Awaken, oh man! For your spirit is asleep!"

• Abdruschin Abd-ru-shin did not establish the organization; the Movement as it exists today was formally organized by followers. Most members reside in 16 countries across Europe, primarily Germany and France, with the Grail Movement reporting hundreds of members in Britain and in the USA. It can also be found in Canada, Brazil, and is currently established in 22 African countries such as Nigeria, Zaire (DR Congo) and Côte d'Ivoire, as well as in South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Ecuador amongst others. Worldwide, there are approximately 10,000 members of the Grail Movement. A declaration of the personal commitment to adhere to the principles of the Grail Message can be made by a request for the "Sealing", a Grail Act (ceremony) that takes place during one of three annual Grail Festivals. This, however, is a personal decision on the part of the individual and leads neither to commitment to an organization nor to formal links with other adherents.

Background

The Grail Movement had its beginnings when Oskar Ernst Bernhardt took up residence in Vomperberg, Tyrol (Austria) in 1928 in order to focus on the writing of his major work "In the Light of Truth" - The Grail Message (as Abd Ru Shin), which was then followed by other works. The establishment of the Grail Settlement on Vomperberg came about when groups of readers of The Grail Message, wishing to live and work in his immediate vicinity, took up residence there. The Settlement developed gradually; adding residences, work, and administration buildings, then a small hall with seating for about 300 people. This hall was used by Abd-ru-shin for Sunday Hours of Worship and for the three annual Grail Festivals, Easter Festival etc., to which adherents of the Grail Message also journeyed. This development was interrupted in 1938 when the Nazi regime annexed Austria and expropriated the Grail Settlement. Abd-ru-shin was arrested on the first day of the annexation and taken to Innsbruck prison. All residents were expelled so that the Settlement could be used as a Nazi training camp. Abd-ru-shin was eventually released but kept under house arrest and surveillance until he died in 1941 in Kipsdorf, Germany. The cult leader (Bernhardt) announced an imminent coming of God's Kingdom on Earth, and his adepts were baffled why that failed to happen. He was described in newspapers as the Messiah of the Tyrol and the Prophet of Vomperberg. He admitted in the Grail Message that the "leading newspapers" did describe him so. It was not until late in 1945 when the Allies returned the Settlement to his widow Maria Bernhardt that new development began. During this time, the term "Grail Movement" was in common use, as a group designation for adherents of the Grail Message. Over the years, national Grail Movements have formed in many countries, some of which, (e.g., Canada, Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Congo (Zaire), and Nigeria) have built their own Halls of Worship although Abd-ru-shin had explicitly stated in his writings that he had not come to establish a new religion. In France this movement is suspected of being a cult. Present in the first report of the Parliamentary Commission on Cults in France in 1995, it will be regularly singled out by the governmental agency MIVILUDES for quackery and its practices aimed at separating its followers from their families if they are not believers.

Publications

Grail Movement books