Max Heindel's mysticism is set firmly in the western tradition of the Gnosis. Following a series of disappointments and ill health, Heindel claims to have been visited by a Spiritual Being, who he identified as an Elder Brother of the Rosicrucian Order. From this entity he received a compelling explanation of the spiritual evolution of both the Cosmos and Humanity, couched in terms best suited to the logical, linear mind of western culture.    Together for the first time are two of Heindel's most influential works, Ancient and Modern Initiation and Freemasonry and Catholicism serve as a convenient volume for further incite into the great Heindel's philosophy, teachings, and mind. Cover photography by Paul Spremulli.