Church Universal and Triumphant - History

History

Mark Prophet claims he was first contacted by the Ascended Masters at the age of 18. In 1945 he joined the Rosicrucians under Max Heindel, working in a branch in Saint Louis, Missouri. He later affiliated with the Self-Realization Fellowship. In 1952 Prophet founded a group known as the Ashram, sending out periodic letters received from the Ascended Masters, in particular El Morya. In about 1956 Mark Prophet came in contact with The Bridge to Freedom, an offshoot of the I AM Activity led by Geraldine Innocente. Innocente had been a member of the I AM Activity, but left in 1951 to begin her own group. Prophet studied with the Bridge until 1958 while also continuing with his own Ashram group. On August 7, 1958, Mark sent the final communication to the members of the Ashram, announcing the establishment of The Summit Lighthouse. The founding meeting of The Summit Lighthouse was held in Philadelphia on August 7, 1958. The headquarters was in Washington, D.C.

In 1961, Mark met Elizabeth Clare Wulf; they married in 1964 and had four children. Wulf, subsequently Elizabeth Clare Prophet, had grown up under influences including New Thought and Christian Science.

In January 1966, the Prophets moved their church to Colorado Springs, Colorado. In 1970, a second major center of the organization was established in Santa Barbara, California. The first session of Ascended Master University – a religious study center for teaching of the ancient wisdom – was held there in July 1970. (Ascended Master University was later renamed Summit University.)

On November 2, 1971, the church opened a branch of Montessori International, a private school based on the principles of Italian educator Maria Montessori. In later years, the school was expanded to provide a full program from preschool to Grade 12. On May 1, 1972, the church opened the Four Winds Organic Center in Colorado Springs, a health food store and organic restaurant. On February 26, 1973, Mark Prophet passed on, leaving his wife as leader.

Church Universal and Triumphant was incorporated as a part of the organization on May 1, 1975. The organization moved its headquarters to Pasadena, California, in 1976. In 1978, it moved to "Camelot," a 218-acre (0.88 km2) property in the Santa Monica Mountains, outside of Los Angeles.

In 1981, the organization purchased a 12,000-acre (49 km2) property in Montana, on the northern border of Yellowstone National Park, which it named the Royal Teton Ranch. Camelot was sold and the organization moved its headquarters to Montana in 1986.

The church became well known during the late 1980s when it predicted the possibility of nuclear war at the end of that decade. Members were urged to prepare by building fallout shelters and supplying them with food and other necessities. The predicted date of the nuclear war was April 23, 1990. When nuclear war failed to occur, Prophet claimed that the community had averted the war through their prayers. Some adherents were left in debt or bankruptcy. Since then church membership has fallen in the United States. However, the CUT remains a significant presence in the area of its headquarters, and centers continue to be active in large cities across the nation. During this period, international membership has grown significantly.

With its decline in U.S. membership and changes in employment laws for non-profit organizations, the church was forced to downsize its headquarters staff in the late 1990s and the first years of the 2000s. In July 1996 Elizabeth Clare Prophet handed over the day-to-day running of the organization to a new president and board of directors, who oversaw this major restructuring of operations at the church headquarters. Portions of the Royal Teton were sold to the U.S. government as part of a complex sale and land-exchange agreement. A second large property that had been purchased in 1983 was sold on the open market, along with other smaller landholdings.

Due to health reasons, Prophet retired in 1999.