The Order of St. Raphael was instituted by a Charter dated l st January 1953 granted by the British Patriarch of the Catholicate of the West of the Catholic Apostolic Church, which is constituted, established and erected as a lawful and canonical Religious Order. The Catholic Apostolic Church operates in the East, mainly in India. though its Catholicate of the West controls operationally its activities in the United Kingdom and other European States; it has full Apostolic Succession.
In January 2003, the present British Patriarch of the Catholicate of the West confirmed that the Metropolitan See of Glastonbury considered the Order of St. Raphael, by virtue of its Charter, to be fully independent from the founding authority, having a life of its own.
In addition to the above Charter, the Order of St. Raphael was also granted the status of a chivalric order by a Charter dated 17th June 1954 issued by the Sovereign Grand Master of The Teutonic Order of the Levant. The Teutonic Order of the Levant has since been reconstituted under the title Ordo Militaris Teutonicus. This second Charter also confirms that we may grant our members the grades and ranks handed down from this historic Order of Chivalry.