The Healthy, Happy, Holy Organisation (3HO) commenced on January 5 1969 in Los Angeles when Harbhajan Singh Khalsa Yogiji MA PhD, "Yogi Bhajan", started teaching in the West. It is not primarily a religious association, its focus is on health and personal development. The movement came to Australia in 1975 and now has two centres here with eight members. Worldwide the movement has 140 centres with approximately 1,800 core members and 6,000 peripheral members.

3HO is an association of people dedicated to the excellence of the individual. The basic philosophy of 3HO affirms that human beings are so perfectly created that by using their body and mind through exercises, breath and meditation they can balance and revitalise the physical body, nervous and glandular systems and bring balance and peace into their lives. 3HO brings to the public the ancient science of Kundalini Yoga. It offers comprehensive lifestyle guidelines on nutrition, health, interpersonal relations, child rearing and human behaviour. Participants may choose from a wealth of knowledge to find exactly what techniques they need to upgrade their life.

Acharya's Yoga and Meditation Centre is not a religious headquarters but a teaching place for a universal outlook of faiths and beliefs. The movement originated in Australia in 1969 when its founder Acharya Upendra Roy arrived in Sydney. The centre in Sydney is the only one of its kind in the world. It has an estimated 5000 members.

Ananda Marga is an international spiritual and social service organisation active in more than 120 countries around the world. The movement traces its origins back more than 7000 years to a highly esoteric school of Indian philosophy. The movement originated in Jamalpur, Bihar State in India in 1955, when it was founded by Prabhat Rainjan Sarkar, also known by the spiritual name Shrii Shrii Anandamurti. Shrii Shrii Anandamurti is referred to by members of Ananda Marga as "Baba" which means "Most Beloved". Ananda Marga, the organisation's name given by Sarkar, is Sanskrit for "Path of Bliss" .

The movement arrived in Australia in 1972, and now has 18 centres across the country with an estimated 500 members. The Ananda Marga have approximately 1500 centres worldwide, with an estimated 250 000 plus membership.

Initially, Ananda Marga was active solely in the teaching of yoga, meditation and spiritual philosophy. Sarkar continuously sought to expand the scale of diversity of the social and humanitarian activities of Ananda Marga. Today the organisation operates over 2000 children's schools, orphanages, disaster relief, medical and community development projects all over the world. The projects of Ananda Marga are funded by public contributions, other charitable and religious organisations, and by national governments including Australia, Canada, the United States and several countries of Western and eastern Europe.

The General Anthroposophical Society is a world wide movement with branches and groups in many countries. The centre is located at the Goetheanum, cultural centre in Dornach, near Basel, Switzerland. Dr. Rudolf Steiner founded this philosophical, spiritual and scientific society in 1924. This society quickly arrived in Australia in 1925 and now has seven centres and 750 members. Worldwide, this society has approximately 500 centres and 55000 members.

The Aquarian School of Yoga was founded by Joan Plumridge in 1968. It is a yoga school that teaches 'a way of discovering what it is to be a fully autonomous human being', through physical exercise, study, drama, music and meditation. Yoga originated in India 4000 years ago where it was formulated by ancient Rishis and sages. The teaching of the yoga began in Australia in 1954 with Margrit Segesman. There are now many centres across the country.

The Aquarian Spiritualist Centre is not a religious association. It is a Centre which espouses 'a science, a philosophy and a way of life'.

The Australian Transmission Meditation Network is a network of groups and individuals practising and facilitating Transmission Meditation, a non-sectarian, non-denominational meditation activity. Some interested members are also involved in disseminating information related to a body of esoteric philosophy generally known as the Ageless Wisdom Teachings. These teachings were first released openly into the world, last century through Helena P. Blavatsky - the founder of the Theosophical Society - and later, in the early part of this century through Alice A. Bailey. More recently, the release of the teachings has continued through British artist, author and esotericist Benjamin Creme - who introduced Transmission Meditation to the world in 1974. Under Mr Creme's inspiration and guidance, Transmission Meditation has spread throughout the world.

Since its establishment in Australia in 1991 the Australian Transmission Meditation Network has been drawing people from various backgrounds united by their wish to help the world. The Network now has seven main contact centres in Australia and approximately twenty Transmission Meditation groups, each with between five and ten members. The Network has fifteen national co-ordination centres worldwide and several hundred groups of between five and thirty members. Membership of the organisation is not formal, and there is no core group devoted to full time service within the movement.

The Australian School of Yoga teaches 'yoga' which is a religion, a science and a way of life that originated in India in approximately 3000 BC. The school was established in 1983. The school's patron is Mr B.K.S. Jyengar, the Master who introduced the ancient Indian discipline to the West. "Yoga is both science and art", he says. His method is thorough and precise and emphasises creation within all postures. The practising of postures is believed to lead to better health.

The Baha'i faith is the religion of the followers of Baha'u'llah. Baha'u'llah is an Arabic name meaning 'The glory of God'. The faith is said to have originated in Iran in 1844, when the prophet Bab was declared to be 'The Promised One'. Baha'u'llah was the most able and distinguished of Bab's followers and became the central figure of the Baha'i faith after Bab's execution in 1850. Baha'u'llah suffered great persecution as a result of his faith and consequently lived most of his life in exile. When he died in 1892, his eldest son Abdu'l-Baha became the central figure for the movement.

During the ministry of the prophet Bab (1844-50), the Baha'i Faith reached only Persia and Iraq, but from 1853-1892 during the ministry of Baha'u'llah the Faith was taken to over thirteen countries. The Bab and Balla'u'llah are considered the twin founders of this 'new world religion', but due to the special position of Abdu'l-Baha as the 'Exemplar', his writings also form part of the Baha'i Scripture.

This movement originated in Karachi, India, in 1936. The founder of the Brahma Kumaris is Brahma Baba, though he is not worshipped as a guru.

The Brahma Kumaris arrived in Australia in 1975 and have 25 centres and an estimated 500 members. Worldwide, this path has 4000 centres and approximately 400 000 members.

The Buddhist Society of Victoria was founded in 1953. Its aims can be summarised as the propagation and further establishment of the Buddha Dhamma (the teachings of the Buddha), that is Sila (mortality), Smadhi (meditation) and Panna (wisdom), with special emphasis on the Theravada tradition. It also seeks to establish suitable facilities for and to support the invited Sangha (Buddhist Monk(s) and Nun(s)) so they may act as spiritual guides and minister for the well being of the Buddhist community in particular and general community as a whole and to foster the establishment of a Buddhist lay community to support the Sangha.

The initial B.O.T.A. stands for Builders of the Adytum, which is a fraternal religious association founded by Paul Foster Case and based on the mystical teachings and practices of the Holy Qabalah and the Sacred Tarot.

The Church of All Worlds is Australia's first national Goddess, Nature and Earth Worshipping Church. It is a religious organisation, originally founded by Oberon Zell in 1962 in Missouri. In 1967 the Church of Worlds moved to Ukiah, California where it has been located ever since. It is an organisation which practices, teaches, explores, and resources all areas concerning the environment in which we live. This includes philosophical and religious thought, practical involvement in the nurturing and supporting of the Earth Bio-sphere, education of those who wish to learn more about the Goddess, Paganism and their involvement in the evolution of earth, and the creation of peace and harmony on earth for all.

The Church in Australia was first formed in 1992 by Fiona and Anthorr Nomchong. It became the first legally recognised Goddess and Earth Worshipping religion Australiawide, in November of 1993. The Church of All Worlds now has four centres in Australia with about ninety members, and fifty centres worldwide with an estimated two thousand members.

In 1957, Herman Adrian Spruit was consecrated a bishop in the Liberal Catholic church. His main consecrator was Bishop Hampton who bequeathed to him the lines of Old Catholic succession. He was co-consecrated by Bishops Wadle, Hoeller, Maxey, Aneed and Robke.

Bishop Spruit withdrew from the Liberal Catholic Church in 1972 because he wished to be distanced from all the political infighting that sprung up at the time. Many who also wished to distance themselves from this unpleasantness followed Bishop Spruit and thus was the Church Universal born. Now Archbishop, Spruit changed the name of the church to "Church of Antioch" to further distance it from the troubled Liberal Catholic Church. As his episcopal genealogy from the Antioch line was as strong as his liberal Catholic lines, the governing committee decided to adopt the Antioch name.

In 1985 Frank Bugge of Melbourne became a pupil of the Sophia Divinity School in California and had the honour and privilege of studying under the direct guidance of Archbishop Spruit. Much of this study was done by correspondence. The Australian Church of Antioch was formed in 1985 when prayer services commenced on a regular basis. Archbishop Spruit accompanied by Archbishop Meri from the American Church of Antioch visited Australia in 1987 and consecrated Frank Bugge to the level of Archbishop. Because of the close work and study of Chearle Bugge, Archbishops Spruit and Meri decided to elevate her to Associate Archbishop. Two bishops pf the Celtic druidic Christian church also co-consecrated the Bugge's at this event. This ensured strong lines of female succession.

The Church of Christ, Scientist, (commonly known as Christian Science) was founded by Mrs Mary Baker Eddy in 1879, when she established The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston Massachusetts. There are now approximately 2, 400 branch churches in 63 countries around the world.

The Church of Scientology is a religious association founded in Los Angeles in 1954. The Church arrived in Australia in 1957, and now has 12 churches and missions, including one in each capital city and a Continental Liaison Office. The Church of Scientology has an estimated 4000 members in Australia with 500 participating in full time service within the movement. It has 385 centres worldwide.

The Spiritualist Church with it's teaching based in International Spiritualism, considers itself to be 'a religion, science and a philosophy'. The movement originated as Modern Spiritualism in New York and London in 1848. Its origins lie in 'God's Universal Law' and spiritualism itself is considered to be as old as Creation. The movement arrived in Australia in 1860 and now has centres in all the states and two centres in the Northern Territory. The exact number of members is unknown.

The Church Universal and Triumphant had its beginnings in the Summit Lighthouse, founded in 1958 in Washington D.C, U.S.A. by Mark L. Prophet under the instruction of the Ascended Master El Morya. Prophet had previously been associated with the Lighthouse of Freedom, a Philadelphia-based organisation headed by Frances K. Ekey.

The Summit Lighthouse, now a worldwide organisation, has as its primary purpose the publication and dissemination of the teachings of the Ascended Masters, described as "Immortal, God-free beings" who have mastered the circumstances of their lives by victoriously passing all their tests and trials on earth. These illuminaries, such as Jesus Christ, Mother Mary, Moses, Zarathustra, and Gautama Buddha, are the saints, revolutionaries, mystics, wise men and women of all ages who have fulfilled their reason for being, balanced their karma and ascended to God, free from the round of rebirth. El Moyra, an Ascended Master, is considered to be the Chief of the Darjeeling Council of the Great White Brotherhood. The brotherhood is thought to be an order of Western saints and Eastern masters. (The word white refers not to race, but to the aura (halo) that surrounds the masters and their embodied disciples). The primary method of disseminating their messages is a periodical Pearls of Wisdom, published weekly since 1958, and numerous books and tapes.

The Summit Lighthouse Melbourne, a study group of the Church Universal and Triumphant was established in Australia in approximately 1978. The movement now has seven main centres and several smaller centres around Australia. The Church Universal and Triumphant is a religious organisation.

Eckankar means "Co-worker with God". Eckankar's goal is to help each person develop their own inner relationship with Spirit - to find their way back to God. Eckankar teaches that God is the source of all life. It is the oneness and wholeness of creation, and not a person or a being. The ECK, the Life Force, or the Holy Spirit, is the essence of God. It flows through all life, sustaining all, and from which all life is manifest. This spiritual essence connects everyone with the heart of God. Spirit can be seen as Light and heard as Sound, it can also be experienced as Divine Love.

Eckankar, Religion of the Light and Sound of God is chartered in Australia as a religious organisation. The movement has ancient roots, but the religion of Eckankar was introduced to the modern world in 1965 by Paul Twitchell. As a seeker from an early age, Paul was introduced to a group of Spiritual Masters who were the Vairagi ECK Masters. While they trained Paul to become the Living ECK Master, he explored a wide range of spiritual traditions under different teachers. The high teachings of ECK had been scattered to the four corners of the world. Paul gathered these golden teachings of Light and Sound and made them readily available.

A community of ECKists began to form as Paul conducted workshops about the teachings of ECKANKAR. Before he died in 1971, Paul initiated followers into the ECK teachings. The present Living ECK Master, the 973rd of a continuous line of spiritual masters, is Sri Harold Klemp. The Mission of the Living ECK Master is to help people find their way back to God. Worship of the ECK master is actively discouraged with emphasis placed on the inner master, which is the Holy Spirit.

The Family is a Christian based religious movement. The Family's predecessor was the Children of God (COG), founded in Huntington Beach, California by David Brandt Berg also known as Father David. In 1968, David and his wife and three of his four teenage children started a small witnessing outreach to the hippies and other counterculture youth at this beach town. Their radical message and methods helped spark the famed world-wide "Jesus Revolution" of the 1970s.

The COG rapidly gained disciples or full time members. David put into practice the method of the early Christians, organising his followers into "Colonies" (now called "Homes"), missionary communities where members lived and studied together. When the membership of a Colony grew too large, the members divided into two Colonies, with the new Colony launching out to pioneer a new city or country.

By 1972, the COG had expanded into Latin America and Europe, and began to pioneer in Japan and the Far East. The first pioneer team arrived in Australia in September of 1972. After establishing a Colony in Sydney, the local membership grew and new Colonies were founded in Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra, and Perth within the first year. "Road teams", mobile teams of disciples, hitchhiked or travelled extensively throughout most regions of the country including Tasmania, and towns such as Darwin, Cairns and Alice Springs, preaching the Gospel. Later, many Australian members became missionaries to Southeast and Far East Asia, and the Indian Subcontinent, as well as other countries around the world.

The Fellowship of Friends is an international organisation. It is non-denominational in the sense that it includes all religions and all races. The Fellowship's main emphases are spiritual attainment, cultural development and creating a positive social environment. There are centres of study in Asia, Australia, Europe, South America, Canada and the United States. The Fellowship has approximately 2000 members world-wide.

The Foundation of Rosa Mystica does not consider itself to be a religious organisation, rather 'a group of people who gather to support and encourage each other to live to their fullest spiritual/creative potential'. The group was founded in response to a self-development initiation that many of the members participated in during April and November of 1994. Ariel Spilsbury of Park City, Utah, USA conducted the initial workshops in Australia in 1990 and in so doing became something like a of founder to the Foundation. Ariel has a centre in Maui, Hawaii and is still in regular contact with the members of the Australian Foundation.

The New Church (Church of the New Jerusalem) is based on the Bible, and on the teaching of the 18th Century Scientist and Theologian, Emmanuel Swedenborg. Swedenborg's mission was to bring Christianity into a new era of understanding.

This church was founded in Philadelphia, USA in 1896 and arrived in Australia in 1905.

In Australia, the church has one centre although it has many links with the Association of the New Church. This centre involves about 40 members. Worldwide, the church has 100 centres for an estimated number of 5000 members.

This religious association originated in Sydney in 1995. There are two centres in Australia and 5 worldwide.

The Church was founded tp serve those souls stranded in prisons of matter, held in the dungeon of materialism, who are seeking Gnosis; i.e. seeking to experience real spiritual power, but who do not know where to find it. As the Age of the Wolf accelerates, the world is becoming darker, and truth is becoming harder to find. Hence the Parfait who are living in the Omega Day, have a responsibility to offer training, initiation to those souls who seek it. As time grows short, many individuals will become sated with the world and wish to enter the Path of Transfiguration. This Transfiguration process becomes more imperative as the world plummets towards its end. This is the time when each of us must decide what he or she will do when the day arrives for the 'great error' to be rectified and all things made anew. The Gnostic Apostolic Church has opened a doorway for those seeking Transfiguration.

The Gnostic Institute of Anthropology is a teaching institute dedicated to study the religious, mystical and ethical principles on which all world religions were originally based. It was founded in Mexico city in 1952 by Samael Aun Weor. It has 500 centres worldwide.

It arrived in Australia in 1985, has 10 centres and an estimated number of 250 people.

The Grail Movement came into being in about 1928. The Movement can be classified under the concept of religious organisation, and asserts that the Grail Message is based firmly in the teachings of Christ. The Grail Message as composed and written by Abd-ru-shin is said to mediate: "the knowledge of the upbuilding of Creation". Put simply, it claims to explain the connections and give a complete survey of all the activity in Creation. It claims to show the individual the "way he has to follow in order to find true happiness even here on earth, which means to attain inner peace and joyful activity". The Australian Grail Movement deals with the printing and spreading of the main Work "In the Light of Truth" of Abd-ru-shin and other Grail Publications.

The Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, commonly known as the Unification Church, was founded by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon in Seoul, South Korea in 1954. It is estimated that the movement now has three million members worldwide. In 1973 the teachings of the Church were brought to Australia, and the Association now has eight centres here with approximately three hundred members.

The Integral Yoga Centre is not part of a religious organisation, rather it is a 'centre for the natural development of every part (physical, mental, emotional and spiritual) of an individual through the practices and principles of the ancient yoga teaching'. The movement originated in India in 1960 and came to Australia in 1980. It now has two centres in Australia and fifty worldwide.

This religious association originated was founded by Grand Master Hsing Yun, in Taiwan in 1958; it arrived in Australia in 1989.

There are nine centres in Australia and more than 100 worldwide. There are some millions of members throughout the world and one thousand are found in Sydney.

The political ideologies of this century have failed to keep their promise of a better world... a world of peaceful co-existence between all peoples. Most have in fact shared a high degree of failure and virtually all display a degree of bankruptcy. Western-style democracies have all in some way betrayed their promise ... misled their adherents and failed to deliver the dream they foresaw. Communism, Socialism, Fascism, Capitalism have all failed to deliver. Petty mindedness, greed, inconsideration, narrow views [poll driven], abuse of office and corruption in belief of our politicians have caused us to stop believing in them and their systems. There is wide spread mistrust, increasing cynicism and disillusionment and dissatisfaction. There is much stress, anxiety and an ever-increasing feeling of helplessness and despair. While the world is not a bad place and the world is not totally corrupt, there is great disillusionment amongst the world population that our leaders do have the answers. Against this background comes a strong search for meaning, for emotional fulfilment and for a spiritual dimension to our lives for something sacred, for something we can hold on to and to which we can sincerely belong and follow. This search entails trust and authenticity for something which is genuine and can genuinely be believed in.

The Ministry was established in Australia in 1986 and has four temples. The Ministry was established in the USA in 1920.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) is a religious organisation with its origins in India. The movement was established in the West in New York in 1965, by his Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. In 1966 Srila Prabhupada put forward the following purposes for the movement:

1. To systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to society at large and to educate all people in the techniques of spiritual life in order to check in the imbalance of values in life and to achieve real unity and peace in the world.
2. To propagate a consciousness of Krishna, as it is revealed in the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam.
3. To bring members of the society together with each other and nearer to Krishna, the prime entity, thus developing the idea within the members, and humanity at large, that each soul is part and parcel of the quality of Godhead (Krishna).
4. To teach and encourage the sankirtana movement, congregational chanting of the holy names of God, as revealed in the teachings of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
5. To erect for the members and for society at large a holy place of transcendental pastimes dedicated to the personality of Krishna.
6. To bring the members closer together for the purpose of teaching a simpler, more natural way of life.
7. With a view toward achieving the aforementioned purposes, to publish and distribute periodicals, books and other writings.

ISKCON now has 9 centres in Australia and 500 centres worldwide.

Jiddu Krishnamurti is regarded as one of the great religious teacher of our time. For some sixty years he has been travelling throughout the world, giving public talks to increasingly large audiences. He has published over thirty books and founded schools in England, the United States and India.

The Lectorium Rosicrucianum, or the International School of the Golden Rosycross, has its Headquarters at Haarlem, the Netherlands, where it originated in 1924. In that year the brothers Z.W. Leene (1892-1938) and J. Leene (1896-1968), better known under the author's name J. van Rijckenborgh, formed a Dutch branch of Max Heindel's Rosicrucian Fellowship. In 1930 Mrs H. Stok-Huyser (1902-1990), later known under her author's name Catharose de Petri, joined the two brothers. Together they undertook a spiritual quest which led to a growing estrangement with the US-based Rosicurcian Fellowship and in 1935 they severed links with the Fellowship altogether. The three spiritual leaders then formed a new body which became known as the Rosicrucian Society. Later, after World war II when its activities had begun to spread all over the world, it adopted the name Lectorium Rosicrucianum.

In 1974 the first Australian centre was established in Adelaide. At present there are two centres in Australia: one close to Melbourne, Victoria, and one in the Sydney metropolitan area, NSW. There are also centres in Auckland and Karapiro, New Zealand.

The Melbourne Zen Group adheres to the Zen Buddhist religion. The group originated in Melbourne in May, 1985. It practices a traditional form of Zen Buddhist meditation which has developed through its close relationship with the Sydney Zen Centre and with the Diamond Sangha founded by Robert Aitken R›shi, in Hawaii.

Moral Re-Armament (MRA) originated in the first decade of this century, although it was only known by its present name after 1938.

In 1908 in Keswick, England, a 30-year-old Lutheran Minister from Pennsylvania, Frank N.D Buchman, had a renewing Christian experience that changed the course of his life and led to the world-spanning work that developed around him. In its seminal effect it could be compared to John Wesley's experience in 1738 in Aldersgate Street.

The experience freed Buchman from a consuming resentment against a committee that he felt had wronged him by undermining effective work he was undertaking for the poor of Philadelphia. He saw that he had become divided from Christ and become himself "the seventh wrong man". Deep repentance was followed by a powerful awareness of healing and transformation, and that day he wrote letters to all six committee members, asking their forgiveness for his resentment. The same day he was able to pass on this "central experience of Christianity" to another person, and continued to do so for the rest of his life.

In Australia at the end of World war II a young architect, William Coffey, gave up a promising career with the firm of Leighton Irwin (for instance he managed the construction of the Royal Albert Hospital). He and his wife Eunice became the first unsalaried full-time workers for MRA in this country. The Oxford group had already started to become known in Australia between the wars through Buchman's own first visit in 1925, and through Australian supporters such as the prominent Melbourne clergyman Irving Benson.

This religious association originated in London in 1787 and was inspired by the Theological writings of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772). Worldwide, this movement has more than 300 centres and 50 000 thousand members.

This association arrived in Australia in 1832. There are now seven centres for an estimated number of five hundred members.

This Church has also some links with The General Church of the New Jerusalem

(also known as New Church Hurstville Society)

The Ordo Sinistra Vivendi is an esoteric Order of the Western Tradition. Its goal is a new and vital Western Imperium by way of the Galactic Aeon. Members seek to restore balance to both the individual and the societies of Western Civilisation. They oppose those creeds, political and religious, which seek to undermine the Western peoples.

The Order consists of men and women who are bound by their personal destinies to progress (in times past this was the original meaning of the word evil: to go beyond measure) to the next step in human evolution. Traditional Satanism offers an understanding of the forces that create and shape change in the phenomenal world. Members of Ordo Sinistra Vivendi believe that they are able to understand the reality of carnal existence because they are not constrained by the abstract moralities of the rest of Humanity. They believe this to be the essence of Heresy, the way of the Prince of Darkness.

The Ordo Templi Orientis (Order of the Temple of the East) or O.T.O. was founded in 1902 by a wealthy Austrian paper chemist Karl Kellner, who was also a Freemason, a scholar of Eastern mysticism, and an initiate of an organisation called the Hermetic Brotherhood of Luxor, or the Hermetic Brotherhood of Light. Kellner is regarded as the "Spiritual Father" of the O.T.O., which was co-founded by Theodor Reuss, Franz Hartmann, and Henrich Klein. The O.T.O. is perhaps best known for its involvement with the poet and mystic Aleister Crowley, who served as the world (or Outer) Head of O.T.O. from 1922 until his death in 1947. The O.T.O. was first established in Australia in 1915 under the leadership of Frank Bennett, a devoted student of Aleister Crowley. However the organisation had more or less ceased activities by the mid-late 1920s, and closed with Bennett's death in 1930. It was reestablished in Australia and New Zealand (jointly) in the early 1980s. In 1990 the O.T.O. incorporated as a New South Wales Association. In 1994 it registered as an Australian Registrable Body, and it was recognised as a tax exempt religious institution.

The Pan Pacific Pagan Alliance, commonly known as the Pagan Alliance, is a religious association. It was founded in Sydney, Australia in 1991 by Julia Phillips. The Alliance now has seven centres in Australia with approximately 250 members, and one centre in New Zealand with approximately 25 members.

The Path of the Heart Movement considers itself a vehicle to disseminate the teachings of the 'Elder Brothers of Humanity'. The movement originated in Rosebud, Australia in 1986, but it was not until 1991 that teachings began in earnest. In 1990 at Rosebud, Victoria while preparing to write an updated version of Thomas A 'Kempis's classic of spiritual literature 'The Imitation of Christ' a telepathic message on 'Brotherhood' was received unexpectedly. What followed, on a weekly or sometimes monthly basis, was a series of short spiritually based messages of but a few paragraphs each. Over time these increased in length and richness. No author was given and the teachings were presented purely on their content rather than in the name of some higher authority. It was not until the beginning of 1992 that the collected writings were produced in pamphlet form, a process which has continued to this day. Public meetings began in 1993 with a successful series on the Apostles and the Zodiac.

The Path of the Heart Movement now has three centres in Australia and four worldwide.

The Peace Mission Movement is an organisation that originated in Sayville, Long Island, New York, in the early 1930s. The Movement was formed around the Teachings of by the Rev. M. J. Divine, better known as Father Divine. In previous years there have been churches and congregational meetings held within Australia, but at present there are no active congregations of the Peace Mission Movement.

The International Raelian Movement was founded in France in 1973. It spread rapidly in French speaking countries in Europe, Africa and the Americas. Following the translation of the Messages into English and other languages, the movement now exists in 67 countries in the world, and has over 27,000 members. There have been members of the Raelian Movement in Australia since 1992.

Raelianism is an atheistic religion based upon infinity, with no beginning and no end. Raelianism develops reconciliation between science and religion. The movement was founded by "Rael", who is believed to be a messenger for "the Elohim" (extra terrestrials). The messages dictated to Rael are said to explain how life on earth is not the result of random evolution, nor the work of a supernatural "God". It is a deliberate creation, using DNA, by a scientifically advanced people who have made human beings literally in their "image". References to these scientists and their work, as well as their symbol of infinity can be found in the ancient texts of many cultures. For example, in Genesis, the biblical account of creation, the word "Elohim" has been mistranslated as "God" in the singular, but it is a plural which means "those who come from the sky", the singular of which is "Eloha".

The Ramakrishna Vedanta Society of Victoria, was established in Melbourne in 1975 on the Vedantic Philosophy of Ramakrishna Math (Monastry) and Ramakrishna Mission, which was founded in Calcutta, India in 1897 by the famous Hindu Monk, Swami Vivekananda. The exact date of the Ramakrishna Vedanta Movement in Australia is unknown. The first European woman devotee came to Australia in the middle of 1897. In the late 1920's more members of the Vedanta movement arrived and since then the movement has continued in Australia. The Vedanta Movement now has seven centres in Australia while the Ramakrishna Mission has 134 official worldwide. The number of members is unknown.

This order is a non-sectarian fraternal body of men and women devoted to the investigation, study and practical application of natural and spiritual laws. Its purpose is to enable everyone to live in harmony with the creative, constructive cosmic forces for the attainment of health, happiness and peace.

It was founded in 1915 in New York by Dr. Spencer Lewis and draws its inspiration from the 17th century European Rosicrucian works by Christian Rosenkreuz. It arrived in Australia in 1928.

Worldwide, the order has approximately 1500 centres for an estimated 250.000 members. In Australia, there are 14 centres for exactly 1582 members.

The Rune-Gild was founded in 1980 by Dr Edred Thorsson, a leading academic authority on Runes and Germanic religion and an experienced practitioner of the magickal arts. The movement does not consider itself a religious association, rather 'a magickal order devoted to the academic and esoteric study of Runic and Odinic heritage as a part of a broader cultural and religious heritage'.

The movement originated in 1980 at the University of Texas in Austin, USA when Dr Thorsson completed his PhD thesis on the magical use of Runes in early Germanic cultures. The movement began in Australia in 1989 and now has two established centres. Reports indicate that there are at least six centres worldwide.

The aim of the Gild is to encourage the informed study of the Runes and their place in magickal and religious heritage and to provide guidance to members and advice to the occult community on Runic matters. The Gild provides a reliable archive of knowledge at a time when most of the popular New Age books on Runes are lacking in academic or magickal foundation and tend to lose the essence and clarity of the system. By studying the Gild Curriculum, each student achieves an individual relationship with the Runes and the benefits flow into their everyday life.

Sahaja Yoga is a spiritual movement 'based on individual awareness and experience rather than institutional belief systems'. The movement was founded in Bombay, India in 1970 by Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi. Sahaja Yoga came to Australia in 1980. The movement now has 36 centres in Australia with an estimated 550 members. The number of centres and members worldwide in unknown but Sahaja Yoga is practised in over 60 countries.

The Sathya Sai Movement is a non-sectarian spiritual organisation with members from a variety of religious and philosophical backgrounds. The aim of the organisation is to encourage the spread of truth, right conduct, peace, unconditional love and non-violence by practice in daily life and in service to others.

Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is a world teacher whose mission, teachings and example are summed up as Universal Love. Born in Southern India on November 23, 1926, he began his mission at age 14 when he is reported to have demonstrated his knowledge and capabilities among the local people in the region. As time progressed his fame and reputation grew, drawing people from all over India to his presence. In the 1960s people from many Western countries began to visit Sathya Sai Baba. Today, Puttaparthi, his birthplace and principal place of residence is a centre to which millions of people on a spiritual path visit each year. Puttaparthi has Sathya Sai schools and Universities, a spiritual museum and a Super Specialty Hospital which provides advanced surgery by top volunteer specialist surgeons free of charge to those in need.

The movement arrived in Australia in the mid 1970s. As of January 1995 the Sai Organisation had 103 centres in Australia, and approximately 5000 world wide.

'Satsuma Dojo' was established by Frenchman André Sollier who arrived in Australia in 1970 after spending three years studying Zen in Japan. At the Satsuma Dojo, in Melbourne, Sollier teaches various activities including zazen - sitting meditation; sumi painting; ikebana - flower arranging; karate; judo and Japanese archery. The teachings of the centre are not religious, they foster a mental discipline or a 'way of life to liberate the self'. Zen Buddhism originated in India, China and Japan in approx 450 B.C. with the first sermon of Buddha. The religion's founder was the Indian philosopher Bodhidharma.

The Soka Gakkai International (SGI) is a worldwide association of 76 constituent organisations with membership in 128 countries and territories. In the service of its members and society at large, SGI centres its activities on developing the positive human potentialities for individual happiness and for global peace and prosperity. The breadth and focus of its mission derive from the philosophy and practice of Nichiren Buddhism.

SGI began in 1930 as an educators group, the Soka Kyoiku Gakkai (Value Creating Education Society). The founder of the group, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi (1871-1944), an educator and author was passionately dedicated to reforming the Japanese educational system which emphasised rote learning over critical, independent thinking. He strove to develop modes of education that would unleash the potential of the individual.

Central to Makiguchi's philosophy was his theory of value, the view that the creation of value is a uniquely human activity and in fact constitutes the essence of being human. His relentless quest to understand the meaning of human life led to his encounter with the teachings of Nichiren. After studying Nichiren's philosophy, he realised that these teachings could provide the spiritual underpinnings for the kind of value-creating education that had been his lifetime goal.

SGI commenced activities in Australia in 1964 and has now three centres and an estimated number of 2000 members. Worldwide, there are approximately 1300 centres (most are located in Japan) for an estimated number of 12 million members.

Sri Chinmoy Kumar Ghose was born in Bengal, India in 1931. He is a spiritual master who teaches that yoga is the way of life which shows how the ultimate reality can be discovered within each individual and in life itself. He preaches that the path of Love, Devotion and Surrender is the fastest way to achieve union with the Supreme. Sri Chinmoy believes that world peace can be truly achieved if every human being can discover peace in their own lives. Much of his work is based on this universal truth, including a unique combined peace and fitness initiative, the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run, a global torch relay held in over seventy countries and on all seven continents.

In 1964 Sri Chinmoy travelled to America. He is now the permanent director of Sri Chinmoy: Peace Meditations at the United Nations in New York. He travels extensively giving musical concerts, lectures and public meditations free of charge to the public. Sri Chinmoy Centres around the world offer free meditation classes and hold events such as fun runs and triathlons to encourage physical fitness. Other global peace programs such as musical concerts and sporting events are also held.

The movement that has evolved around Sri Chinmoy is not considered a religion by its followers, rather 'a meditation group whose members practice a lifestyle based upon the highest principles of yoga'. There are approximately 200 Sri Chinmoy Centres throughout the world with more than 5000 members. Since its inception in Australia in 1972, seven Sri Chinmoy Centres have been established with approximately 150 members. A newsletter Meditation and a magazine Kettledrum are produced in Australia.

The Star Wolf Medicine Lodge was founded in Perth in 1995. It was created after the cessation of the activities of the "Starseeds Supporting Earth's Ascension" group by its former member, Mark Small.

The group does not consider itself as religious but rather as a place where freedom of creative and spiritual practice is encouraged and lovingly accepted. It also provides, or makes available, natural and alternative therapies for health and lifestyle (for a nominal fee).

The World Subud Association, known in Australia as Subud Australia Inc, originated in Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia in 1947, and came to Australia in 1958. Founded by Bapak Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo, the movement now has between ten and twelve thousand members worldwide. Subud is established in over eighty countries but the exact number of centres is unknown. In Australia there are ten Subud centres and approximately 600 members.

The name 'Subud' was formed from an abbreviation of the words; Susila, Budhi and Dharma. Susila means 'the character of a true human being in accordance with the Will of One Almighty God'. Budhi means 'the highest power that exists within man'. Dharma means 'the reality of the inner-feeling which submits to the Will of Almighty God with patience, trust and sincerity'. Subud is not a religion, but considers itself a religious association. There is no theology or doctrine but a wish to worship and surrender to the Power of God is necessary to be a member of Subud. Although members surrender to one Almighty God, as there is no teaching in Subud, the definition of God is an individual matter for each Subud member.

The Mahikari organisation, an international, apolitical, non-denominational organisation, was established in 1959 by Mr. Kotama Okada, generally known as Sukuinushisama. In 1978, the organisation was named Sukyo Mahikari. Beginning in Japan, Tokyo, Sukuinushisama made it possible for hundreds of thousands of people throughout the world to radiate the Light of God from the hand (see later in the directory).

After Sukuinushisama passed away in 1974, he was succeeded by his daughter, Keishu Okada, generally known as Oshienushisama, who now bestows on people the practice of radiating the Light of God. In addition, Oshienushisama, the present Leader of Sukyo Mahikari internationally, regularly transmits teachings revealed by God for people to help create a high-quality civilisation, which will develop in the 21st century.

Mahikari arrived in Australia in 1974 and is recognised as a non-profit religious and educational organisation by the Australian Government. There are 9 centres in Australia and about 2000 members, and hundreds, possibly thousands of centres worldwide. There are probably at least one million members (Sukyo Mahikari has spread to about 100 countries).

Emmanuel Swedenborg was born in Sweden in 1688 and died in London in 1772. He is arguably the most amazing scientist and seer of the Western World. He has been favourably compared to Leonardo da Vinci for his breadth of interests and knowledge, and described as the 'Aristotle of the North'.

At the age of 57, Swedenborg found himself experiencing a 'double awareness'. In addition to normal consciousness of the natural world, during the remaining 27 years of his natural life he became fully aware of the spiritual realm of existence. He explored the world of spirits, heaven and hell. Everything he saw and experienced was analysed in a scientific manner. He wrote it down to provide the reader with a fully rational and spiritual explanation of the Divine, creation, spiritual growth and the symbolism of the Sacred Scriptures (which he recognised as an allegory from beginning to end).

Over the last 200 years, many well known individuals and movements have acknowledged their indebtedness to insights provided by Emmanuel Swedenborg. Today his books are read around the world in many languages with new translations being published regularly.

The name Emanuel Swedenborg has been a part of the history of Australia since the early days of white settlement in 1788. An assortment of the theological writings of the renowned 18th century Swedish scientist, philosopher and Christian visionary, came to Australia on the ships of the First Fleet as a gift for the founding of a new Colony. What effect those writings had on those early settlers and pioneers is unknown.

It is in the early 1840s that records begin of individuals studying the works of Emanuel Swedenborg and joining together in groups. Congregations were formed which still meet for public worship.

Since 1992, in Sydney, through a bequest of the late Dr. William Moore, a Homoeopathic Practitioner, The Swedenborg Lending Library and Enquiry Centre has carried out specific promotional activities to make Swedenborg and his theological writings better known throughout Australia. All of these avenues of activity are continuing and will continue into the future.

The Swedenborg Association of Australia is incorporated under the Australian Companies Code, as a non-profit autonomous company, to serve the wider interests that individuals have in Emanuel Swedenborg the man, the scientist, the philosopher, the influence of his thought and particularly the invaluable insights, in the theological writings which he penned. For the moment, there are two centres in Australia with one hundred members listed.

Sydney Goodwill Unit of Service cooperates with World Goodwill, an international movement founded by Alice A. Bailey in 1932 to help mobilise goodwill and establish right human relations. The work of World Goodwill is based on the principles of brotherhood, human unity, sharing and co-operation, and on the fundamental rights and freedoms embodied in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. World Goodwill is a world service organisation practising the principle of non-discrimination in race, religion, ideology, and political and economic convictions.

World Goodwill is an activity of the Lucis Trust, a registered charity established in 1922 in New York. The Lucis Trust provides worldwide financial support for the Arcane School, the Lucis Publishing Companies, World Goodwill, Triangles, Lucis Trust Libraries and Lucis Productions. The global activities of the Lucis Trust seek to foster right human relations through the power of loving service. They promote the education of the human mind towards recognition and practice of the spiritual principles and values upon which a stable and interdependent world society may be based. The Lucis trust is nonpolitical and nonsectarian. It sponsors no special creed or dogma. The motivating impulse is love of God, expressed through love of humanity and service of the human race. World Goodwill and the Lucis Trust do not have religious or political associations, they are spiritual service groups.

The Sydney Goodwill Unit of Service was founded in Australia in 1978. It was incorporated in August 1979 in order to market publications of the Lucis Press in Australia, particularly the books of Alice A. Bailey.

The Synchronicity Foundation Inc was founded in Virginia, USA in 1983 by Master Charles. It is a non-profit incorporated foundation, organised exclusively for charitable, religious, educational and research purposes. According to its Articles of Incorporation and By-laws, its stated purpose is to share and further the Source Conscious experience and Source Conscious living through the art and science of meditation. The sole purpose of the Synchronicity Foundation is to explore the sourceful, multidimensional human experience and to share discoveries in ways that assist fellow human beings to actualise their full potential. Its work includes the empirical validation of holographic multidimensional experience. Its primary focus is High-Tech Meditation.

Master Charles is a contemporary American non-sectarian monk. His life, from his earliest years, has been marked by spontaneous metanormal experiences of expanded, heightened, and transcendental states of awareness. His formative education was in the creative arts, with an emphasis on comparative religion and philosophy.

In 1989 Master Charles visited Australia, and a Foundation was formed here. The Foundation now estimates that it has 5500 members in Australia and at least 50,000 worldwide.

While The Temple of Set as an organisation was formally incorporated in 1975 CE, its magical and philosophical roots are prehistoric, originating in mankind's first apprehension that there is "something different" about the human race - a sense of self-consciousness that places humanity apart from and above all other forms of life. Ancient religions - of which those of Egypt are generally acknowledged as the oldest - either exalted or feared this self-consciousness. Those which exalted it took the position that the human psyche is capable of opposition to and domination of forces of nature. Those fearing it warned man that such a presumption of independence would be sinful and dangerous. Therefore, they said, such "will to power" should be concealed, sublimated - and if necessary punished and exterminated - that mankind might return to an Eden-like "state of nature" untroubled by the burdens of having to take responsibility for decisions, judgements, and actions based upon an essentially personal determination of "good" and "evil".

In 1966 a San Francisco sorcerer named Anton Szandor LaVey founded the Church of Satan as a medium for the study of the Black Arts and as 'a statement of indignation repudiating the religious hypocrisy of conventional society'. The event marked the creation of Satanism as a religion in its own right. The Church suffered periodically from petty crises and scandals among the general membership, and finally Anton LaVey lost confidence in its organisational viability. LaVey's 1975 corruption of the Church of Satan was emphatically rejected by the majority of its Priesthood, who immediately redesigned the Church in protest and denied its legitimacy as an authentic Church of Satan henceforth. The senior Initiate, Michael A. Aquino, invoked the Prince of darkness in a quest for a new Mandate to preserve and enhance the more noble concepts which the Church of Satan had conceived and outlined. The Mandate was given in the form of The Book of Coming Forth by Night - a statement by that entity in his most ancient semblance as Set ordaining the Temple of Set to succeed the Church. The Temple was incorporated in California as a non-profit church in 1975, receiving both state and federal recognition and tax-exemption later that same year. It has science remained the sole "Satanic" religious institution possessing these legal credentials.

The Temple of the Vampire is the only Vampire religion federally-registered with the US government in the world today. The membership is international with a Priesthood dedicated to the service of Undead Gods Who rule this earth (not to be confused with non-physical entities or forces). Its primary focus is that of a unique religion which is devoted to enabling candidate humans to achieve the Vampiric Condition and to promote the spread of authentic Vampirism as it serves the desires of the Undead.

The Tenrikyo religion was founded by Miki Nakayama (later known as 'Oyasama') in 1838. It is understood that the religion was first brought to Australia from Japan by a sailor missionary who regularly served on a cargo ship trading between Australia and Japan. The first mission in Australia was established in 1978 in Boronia Road, Boronia. This mission later became the first Tenrikyo church in Australia in 1989. Worldwide the movement has 17,087 Churches, 27,556 missions with 20,3457 ministers and an unknown number of general members.

The Fellowship is a membership organisation for people of goodwill who wish to live lives based on right human relations and Divine Wisdom - Theosophy. It is a focus for people who wish to help heal the Earth and humanity and to develop as individuals in accordance with Maitreya Theosophy, which is Theosophy taught from the Heart of the Lord Maitreya, the Risen Christ. Through the Fellowship's Church services, programs of education and meditation, system of healing and opportunities for service, individuals who seek to follow a spiritual path, may learn the principles of Maitreya Theosophy and strive to apply them to their daily lives.

The Theosophical Fellowship Ltd, continues the work of H.P. Blavatsky, founder of The Theosophical Society, which was established in 1875 in New York City. The work of Ananda Tara Shan (Rev. Jeanne Dara DeMurashkin), Mother Founder of the Theosophical Fellowship, began in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1977. Pauli Tirsgaard Pallesen is the President and Bent Peter Mundt, the Minister. In 1982 Ananda Tara Shan came to Melbourne, Australia to begin her work for Lord Maitreya. The Theosophical Fellowship was founded in 1994 in Daylesford Victoria. The movement considers itself to be a religious organisation.

The Theosophical Society is a religious and philosophical association, but not a church. It was founded in New York, USA in 1875 by Madame Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and Colonel Henry Steel Olcott. The Society now has centres in over 50 countries around the world, with an estimated 30,000 members. The Society has 17 centres in Australia consisting of thirteen lodges and four study groups, with 1485 members.

Unity school of Christianity began as a structured movement in the mid-west of the United States towards the turn of the last century, when in 1897 Charles and Myrtle Fillmore began printing a magazine called Modern Thought. It could be said that it was a product of the Enlightenment, when even the long hallowed beliefs of the established churches came under close scrutiny. Earlier in that century Ralph Waldo Emerson had been the catalyst for the Transcendentalist Movement; his premise was that "no man needed a mediator between himself and God." It is also recorded that he stated that the larger thought of God was the new thought of man.

Many different concepts arose under the banner of "New Thought". Phineas Parkhurst Quimby, a clock maker by trade, declared that Jesus Christ taught and demonstrated scientific principles. After experimenting with "mesmerism" he arrived at the conclusion that the power of thought was powerful in both creating sickness and healing it. Because medicine was not as advanced as it is today, healing was of paramount importance.

Myrtle and Charles Fillmore, as well as Nona Brooks of the Divine Science Movement, and Mary Baker Eddy who brought Christian Science into prominence, concentrated on the healing aspect of the new approach to the old Truth. A school was established in Chicago by Emma Curtis Hopkins; its focus was on a metaphysical interpretation of the Bible; the word metaphysical not being used in a academic sense, but simply the meaning behind the physical, or 'that which is true of the inner life of every person, regardless of time, place or circumstance.' Myrtle Fillmore attended a presentation by a lecturer from the Metaphysical School, and totally accepted the theory behind his words "you are a child of God, and you cannot inherit sickness." She went on to live a long and productive life, basing her life on prayer and helping other people to apply the principles of Truth that resulted in their own healing. Charles Fillmore was at first sceptical; however he determined to prove for himself whether these principles would work in a scientific way. He was able to prove for himself, and demonstrate to others that the power of thought was paramount in healing; he studied many other facets of faith in a time when religious pluralism was not generally acceptable. Mr Fillmore was reluctant to crystallise a particular theory or belief, but made it known that he expected others to build upon the concepts he had discovered; even today Unity chooses to declare of itself that "it is not a form to be followed, a creed to be accepted or a doctrine to be adhered to, rather it is an open door to self discovery".

There are Unity Centres in Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane (which is the Australian Headquarters).

The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC) was founded in Los Angeles in 1968 by the Rev Troy Perry who had been discharged from his position as a minister from the Church of God of Prophecy after disclosing his homosexuality. Rev. Perry realised that he had been called to minister to members of the Christian Church that had been driven away because of prejudice and lack of understanding.

In 1995 there were over 300 churches in 17 countries , with a membership in excess of 50, 000. About 85% of its membership is homosexual, and 99% of its clergy are homosexual, 51% of those being female. The movement has 8 centres in Australia with an estimated 200 plus members and a wider congregational following.

Spiritualism is a way of life which combines philosophy, science and religion. It covers a very wide field, and requires a great deal of study and investigation. The Victorian Spiritualists' Union (VSU) was founded in 1870. There is no known date of origin or founder for the religious philosophy adopted by the VSU. The Spiritualist Church grew out of a world wide interest in spirit communication. Spiritualism has no fixed creed or dogma. It relies on continuing communication of Spiritual Teachings through sensitive people called 'mediums', who are able to link with Spirit Teachers who provide an evolving flow of philosophical thought.

Wat Buddha Dhamma (hereafter 'the Wat') is a hermitage and meditation centre in the Theravada Buddhist tradition. This tradition, which is the predominant form of Buddhism in Thailand, Burma and Sri Lanka and is common in other countries, was founded by Gautama the Buddha over 2,500 years ago in Northern India. The Wat was founded in 1976 by Ilse Ledermann (who subsequently ordained as a nun and received her present title, Ayya Khema) and the Venerable Phra Kantipalo (an English monk who disrobed in recent years and resumed his original name, Lawrence Mills).

Its main connections are with the Thai tradition (and with other offshoots thereof), but it has constant contact with other traditions. For instance, Korean Zen nuns and monks have frequently come to the Wat for solitary retreats, and other Buddhist teachers book the meditation centre facilities from time to time for larger retreats and courses.

The Wat occupies approximately 100 hectares in a remote locality completely surrounded by the Dharug National Park just north of Wiseman's Ferry outside Sydney. It models itself on the Thai forest monastery tradition which, in contrast to urban monasteries, lays the emphasis on intensive meditation, stillness and simplicity of living. The hermitage area in the Wat's grounds consists of small scattered huts (kutis) for nuns, monks and lay people who come to stay there for periods of intensive practice. The library and large meditation hall (Sala) are close to the hermitage.

Wholistic World Vision is a network for communication of spiritual awareness. The movement was founded in Eastborne, England by Simon Peter Fuller and the Wholistic World Vision group. In 1990 Spirit guidance is said to have triggered major Earth-energy rituals in England. These culminated in the making of an Aquarian Cross in Jerusalem and a ceremonial raising on Glastonbury Tor on April 21st 1991. The event was called an "Aeon shift" and signifies the movement, approximately every 200 years, of the main planetary energy centre at the start of the new age. Since this time Simon Peter Fuller has travelled the world speaking of the Second Coming of the Christ Consciousness, while using the Aquarian Cross as a focal point for energy re-alignment work on many of the Earth's sacred sites of power.