When the Process Church opened a branch in San Francisco, they were just a strange, new religious movement that was looking to make converts.
They stepped into a cultural tinderbox.
San Francisco was where Haight-Ashbury was, and in 1967, thousands of young people followed the lyrics of a song written by John Philips of the Mamas and the Papas, to wear flowers in their hair and come to San Francisco.
Expecting to meet some "gentle people,"" many kids instead found themselves homeless, addicted to drugs, involved in prostitution and underground pornography, members of cults, and worse.
When it became clear that young, idealistic kids were migrating to San Francisco, a lot of less than pure-hearted people flocked there too, to exploit them, and lots of other people used the freedom and idealism to act out their darkest fantasies and desires.
The Process first tried to enlist the San Francisco Oracle, a leading underground paper, to their cause, but the paper declined, being far more interested in sex, drugs, and rock and roll than Jesus and Satan. They reportedly also tried to interest Anton LaVey, founder of the Church of Satan, but he was less than impressed.
Still, the Process set up shop at 407 Cole Street. They were just up the road from 636 Cole, which was the address of a 32 year old ex-con named Charles Manson who was surviving by panhandling, and also preaching his own Scientology-influenced Biblical message to anyone who would listen.
While Moor and MacLean - the future DeGrimstons - studied Scientology in London's Hubbard Institute, Charlie Manson was studying it in various prisons. Since he was a child, Manson had been in and out of juvies and prisons, and learned everything there - indeed, it was in prison where he learned how to play guitar.
The natural question is - did Manson ever meet up with Processeans? More to the point, did he ever meet up with "The Omega"?
No actual evidence exists for any sort of meeting, and dates are extremely hard to come by. Manson didn't keep his flat at Cole forever - he was living on the road, cashing at the pads of his followers, etc.
Given the stringent rules for joining - celibacy, obedience, giving everything one owns to the church - it seems very unlikely that Charlie Manson ever joined the Process Church proper, or any church, for that matter.
He loved to have sex with underage girls, which makes celibacy very unlikely. He never had much to his name, relying instead on aid from his followers and petty crime. Most importantly, Charles Manson was not the sort of man who would permit others to boss him around.
One can imagine that if Manson and Mary Ann ever did meet, the results would be hilarious, with Mary Ann attempting to make Charles obey her with threats, manipulation, intimidation, whatever, and Charles spouting off a line about how women have their place, and to shut up and make him some money or give him sex.
Further, simply because the Process Church existed in name in San Francisco, that doesn't mean that "The Omega" was there much. If Charlie, or the other family members, crossed paths with Process members, it is very unlikely that those members would have been Robert or Mary Ann.
In addition, the mere fact that Mary Ann attempted to make the Process appear wealthy and classy to outsiders - a fact that Wylie reiterates when he writes about her spending above the group's means - it seems very unlikely that they'd care one iota about some scroungy 32 year old ex-con.
It's not hard to imagine Charlie or one of his girls getting Process material, reading it, assimilating it, turning it to his own ends, and using it that way. It is extremely hard to imagine that someone like Charlie Manson had any real dealings with the Process beyond the superficial.
Manson did have connections to some strange folks in those days, and when I write on Manson, believe me, they'll be covered - but not the Process.
Unfortunately for the Process, they did become forever linked with Manson in the popular imagination due to the efforts of one beatnik author/musician to figure out how the hippie movement went so wrong, and while the Process probably never counted Manson as a member, they made their own connection to him after the murders which, in retrospect, was a very, very bad move.
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