Freemasonry is a post-collegiate mostly-all male fraternity dedicated to the social development of the member to form a broader sense of the self and their community.
Note: The following article originally ran in the pages of Masonic Magazine as an editorial. I am posting it for those not familiar with it, as it is referred to in the previous article, There’s a hole in our bucket.
So there is this restaurant chain with locations throughout North America. Its slogan is a pretty catchy one and the chain’s management uses it on a daily basis to motivate staff and to recruit new patrons to the chain’s thousands of locations.
The slogan is “we take good food and make it better” – eight simple words, which have struck an emotional chord with millions of people who like to eat.
There is no marketing genius behind the slogan or the success of the same in attracting people to the restaurant chain. Everyone likes good food, so it is unlikely that there is a person alive who would not like good food made better. Who could resist such a slogan?
Sadly, the restaurant chain seldom lives up to its own slogan. The restaurants are often poorly decorated – their tables and chairs wobbly and in need of repair. Staff often quarrel with one another and the management, too often, seem only to be concerned with climbing the corporate ladder to the head office. The food, so much talked about is bland at best and dreadful at worst.
Yet as each new patron comes in for the first time to sample this “good food made better” he sees a group of smiling faces, all lapping up the meal as if it was the greatest food on the planet – just like the advertising people said it was.
The new patron does his best to eat his meal even though the food offered does not appeal to the palate as sweetly as the words used to describe it. Not wishing to show his displeasure to his two friends who sponsored him – for it is, after all, an exclusive restaurant – he sits in silence eating his meal with each mouth full being as forced as the smile on his face.
Sometimes the patron simply pays his tab, leaves the restaurant and vows never to return to the establishment. However, sometimes the patron decides that maybe he just went on a bad night – perhaps the staff was having a bad day because the regular cook was away. Perhaps those people enjoying the meal were just being kind and did not want to offend the new cook.
He decides to give the “good food made better” joint one more try.
Returning on another night he sees the same dozen patrons who were there the month previous – they are still arguing with one another about which fork you should use for the salad and the proper way to hold a wine glass. The manager is still ignoring the new customers in favor of the company higher-ups seated at a back table who he is trying to convince of his suitability for a more prominent position in the firm.
What’s worse – the food is still bland, boring and not what the sign on the door proclaims – yet the regulars are still lapping it up like it’s their last meal.
This time the patron decides that the marketing slogan is nothing more than eight simple words cleverly arranged to deprive him of his hard earned money.
The thought occurs to him that maybe he could pull the manager away from the corporate wheels long enough to suggest a few small things that could truly make the good food better. However, he has a sinking feeling that he would be told, “but we’ve always cooked it this way before” or “we tried that once and the patrons didn’t like it.” He feels he might even be told that “the head office would never allow it.”
So instead of voicing his concerns, exercising the old business axiom that the customer is always right, he says nothing. Instead he leaves the restaurant and vows never to return – either canceling his pre-booked reservations on the way out the door or never returning and having his membership cancelled by the chain via a nasty letter.
He wonders how it is that the restaurant survives and why the same dozen diners seem to enjoy the food so much.
His conclusion is a simple one – they like things the way they are and the establishment will never change so long as the chain is run by people who like to make bland food and patronized by people who like to eat the same.
And so we come to a problem that is rife within Freemasonry today.
We advertise ourselves as an organization that makes good men better, and while that is precisely what we have done for millions of men over the centuries, it cannot be argued that we are letting down the many young men who enter our doors who feel cheated and deceived.
“I really feel that I have been sold a pack of lies,” wrote one such young mason recently on an Internet discussion forum.
How sad it is that a young man, who has been a Mason for one year would feel that he has been lied to by an organization that has Truth as one of its three greatest attributes.
“This is not the Masonry I signed up for,” he continued in his posting and in so stating arrives at the crux of our problem.
Freemasonry in large parts of the United States and Canada is not offering what it is advertising, but if it advertised what it offered – would it receive many new candidates.
“Freemasonry – we take good men and let them sit in a room and listen to the reading of minutes and 45-minute debates on spending $50 on why we should or should not buy a plaque to show what great guys we are.”
It just does not have the same marketing strength as “Freemasonry – we take good men and make them better”.
Unfortunately our young brethren, past and present have tried to improve what Freemasonry offers within the tiled recesses of our lodges, but are met with resistance at each step of the way.
We say we are about making good men better through self improvement – yet few are the lodges who apply the working tools within the body of a lodge to educate our young members as to how to do this.
The Masonic Information Center (MIC) recently released a publication entitled, It’s About Time. The publication identifies the problems currently confronting Masonic identity and offers sound solutions for the same.
One of the most powerful statements in the 17 page document follows:
“The Square and Compasses, the best known symbol of a Mason, cannot replace the identity of living the life of a Mason, which is itself perpetually in a state of improving ourselves in body, mind, and spirit. Masonic imagery is a valuable resource when it inspires us to take new action consistent with our personal growth and enlightened thought. We must discover our own Masonic calling, our own place in the history of Masonry, by making authentic Masonic performance our top priority.”
However, we have allowed, as the MIC points out in the publication, Masonry to be shaped by the 20th century’s emphasis on the Masonic ritual being the completion of the Mason’s education about his fraternity.
Like the analogy of the restaurant chain, little changes in how lodges deliver Masonic lessons because the same dozen patrons sit in her seats and run the show.
Those men, like the restaurant patrons in our analogy, come back month after month and year after year because they enjoy the bland food – a meal that is largely comprised of recitation of minutes, tedious debates over how funds are dispersed and arguments over when and how to salute the Worshipful Master.
And when a young man, initiated, passed and raised leaves because he finds the meal unappetizing, he is viewed as a disgruntled customer, which the restaurant is better off without.
The recipe of Freemasonry is as sound today as it was three hundred years ago – it is the present kitchen of stubborn cooks who need to be tossed out.
Closing Note: Before anyone starts yammering about joining a good lodge, let me assure you I have done precisely that. This article is meant to convey the message of why things seldom change. It is not a commentary on my own present situation in lodge.
It’s now time for all of us–those who supported the merger and those who opposed it–to pull together for the benefit of the company. Carly Fiorina, President of Hewlett-Packard Co. in 1999
Let me give you two little words that scares a lot of Masons: “consolidations” and “mergers.” As the fraternity continues to recede in terms of membership and finances, Craft Lodges inevitably face the question of these two dirty words. But let’s be clear, the two are not synonymous; consolidation means to move multiple Lodges into a single building, and mergers represent the combining of multiple Lodges into one. Mergers are probably considered the worst of the two as Masons fear they will lose their identity and will be overshadowed by the other Lodge they are merging with. Nonetheless, both are viable alternatives and, from a business point of view, makes a lot of sense. For example, companies have long known that if a franchise is struggling, it is better to cut your losses and combine it with another. But unfortunately, most Masons do not think from a business point of view and have developed emotional attachments to their Lodge buildings. This is understandable to a point, but if the Lodge is operating on the edge, you have to seriously ask yourself what a Lodge is anyway. Is it the physical building? More likely it is a Brotherhood of men who share common values and are interested in improving themselves, their community, and the world at large. The building, therefore, is nothing more than a venue for the Lodge to meet. So, when push comes to shove, which is more important: the Lodge or the building? Those Lodges struggling to make ends meet financially would be well advised to consider this.
Interestingly, a lot of Grand Lodges do not provide guidance or leadership in terms of assisting Lodges in considering the question of merging or consolidating. Instead, most Craft Lodges have to fend for themselves and only consider it when it is too late. As a small example, I know of a Craft Lodge that lost its way and quietly went out of business, selling its building and donating its remaining funds to local charities. The Grand Lodge did not find out about this until two years later. Had the Grand Lodge been studying Lodge trends, they would have surely spotted a problem and offer advice to the Lodge. They didn’t, and the Lodge went under.
Obviously, there are some simple indicators to measure the pulse of a Lodge, such as finances, membership, attendance at Lodge functions, and the average age of the Lodge members. They could also examine Lodge officers, e.g., do they have enough members to open the Lodge? Do they routinely re-circulate Past Masters through the East? Are they proficient in their degree work and Masonic knowledge? Such analysis may very well have detected the problem of the Lodge that quietly went defunct.
I have discussed this topic with many a Brother, both locally and far away. Sure, we would all like to have large Lodges, but there is nothing wrong with small ones either, as long as they are thriving and actively operating to the satisfaction of the Craft. But we may not know this if we do not study the problem and pay attention to the trends of the variables mentioned earlier. Further, if a Craft Lodge is indeed in trouble and is interested in consolidating or merging, the Grand Lodge should grease the skids in order to help the Lodge make the transition as painlessly as possible.
Some Brothers stubbornly want to hold on to their Lodges for sentimental reasons. As the fraternity continues to decline, we have to look beyond our emotions, as difficult as this may be, and do what is practical in order for the Lodge to survive. For those of you who possess an emotional attachment to your Lodge building, I will remind you that there is only one word worse than the other two: “closure.”
Keep the Faith.
Freemasonry From the Edge
by W:.Tim Bryce, PM, MPS timb001@phmainstreet.com Palm Harbor, Florida, USA A Foot Soldier for Freemasonry
NOTE: The opinions expressed in this essay are my own and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of any Grand Masonic jurisdiction or any other Masonic related body. As with all of my Masonic articles herein, please feel free to reuse them in Masonic publications or re-post them on Masonic web sites (except Florida). When doing so, please add the following:
Article reprinted with permission of the author and www.FreemasonInformation.com
Please forward me a copy of the publication when it is produced.
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The following article originally appeared in Issue 2 of The Masonic Society Journal. By Stephen Dafoe
North American Freemasonry is on a bit of an infinite loop these days. I don’t mean the type of infinite loop we used to see on the Flintstones whenever Fred and Barney would drive past the same three houses and two palm trees over and over again, but it is close. The type of infinite-loop motif I’m referring to is the type that forms the basis of songs like 99 Bottle of Beer or There’s a Hole in my Bucket. In fact, both songs represent two of the problems confronting many lodges today with respect to our declining membership.
Now, before you turn the page, let me assure you this is not another article lamenting our sagging numbers, nor is it a rallying call for us to rise towards that lofty Masonic pinnacle that was the Halcyon Days of the post-World War II influx. But we will be looking at the numbers, not with an eye towards depression, but with an eye towards resolution. We have a problem, but if we can truly know where the problem lies, and if we can convince enough Masons that this is actually the case, we can collectively begin to work towards fixing it.
What the numbers tell us:
Since 1925, the Masonic Service Association of North America (MSANA) has been keeping track of the numbers of Freemasons in the United States.
Without launching into a long and boring examination of the ebb and flow of these numbers, let it suffice to say that Masonic membership’s highest point in terms of numbers was 1959, when it boasted 4,103,161 members; its lowest point occurring in 2007, when our ranks had been reduced to just 1,483,449. Ironically, our highest point in terms of membership may well have been our lowest point for Freemasonry, or at least the start of it.
The hand ringers in our fraternity love to hold on to that 1959 membership number like the middle aged bachelor who holds onto the photo of the fashion model he dated in college, as if it were a goal he may yet attain once more. But as both pine away for a desire that has longed since passed the realm of possibility, they begin to tell themselves lies to justify their current situation.
As such, our hand ringers have created a long-standing belief that once upon a time Freemasons made up a sizable percentage of the population in American communities. However, if one compares the US census with the MSANA membership statistics, an interesting and revealing picture emerges. In 1930, only 2.66 per cent of the population belonged to the Masonic fraternity. By 1940, that percentage had been reduced to 1.86% – largely due to the effects of the Great Depression, men simply couldn’t afford their dues. It reached its lowest point in 2000, when less than 1 per cent of the US population could say they owned a Masonic apron. But even in the midst of those glory days our hand ringers so love to remind us about, only 2.41 per cent of the population belonged to the Craft. If we divide and multiply these figures to represent a male population of roughly 50 per cent, then we see that even at our highest percentile penetration in 1930, only 5 in 100 American males were Freemasons – this is a far cry from the cries of deep lamentation emanating from the lips of our loudest hand ringing Brethren that once upon a time almost every American male was a mason. And yet, they will cling to that four-million-plus-Masons figure like cat hair to black pants, failing to accept that the much brandied about number represents nothing more than a sociological anomaly. It was that influx of men who swelled the Craft’s ranks between 1945 and 1959 that, in many ways set the tone for the downward spiral towards the Masonic caliginosity we have experienced in the decades since. Although many became dedicated members of the Craft, expanding their learning through books and periodicals, discussions and debates, many who took on leadership rules were attracted by the formality of the ritual, to the point where it became the beginning and end of a Master Mason’s education.
Perhaps the greatest decade for Freemasonry – at least from a point of research, education and all around Masonic bigness – was the 1920’s; a decade that saw the creation of the National Masonic Research Society and its publication The Builder, a magazine that offered the words and thoughts of the great Masonic luminaries of the day. It was also a decade where Masons displayed their Masonic pride, not by the number of pins on their lapels, but by the number of elegant buildings on Main Street. It was during the 1920’s that great Masonic buildings including the House of the Temple in Washington DC, The George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia and the Detroit Masonic Temple in Michigan transformed from idea to reality. That decade, which I’ve long-argued to be the most enlightening for Freemasonry, saw an increase in membership of just above four per cent.
But then the Great Depression reduced membership roles by almost 25 per cent by then end of the 1930’s. In fact membership continued to decline until America entered the Second World War in 1941, and that is when the anomaly occurred. By the end of the 1940’s, Masonic membership had increased by more than 42 percent, carrying a forward momentum through most of the 1950’s, which saw an increase of 16 percent from the decade before. From this point on membership has been on a steady decline, with the present decade – now about to enter its final year – on a fast track to surpassing the 1990’s, the current record holder for membership seepage.
It is a mistake for us to pine away for a resurgence of the anomaly that was the 1940’s and 1950’s. The WWII soldier returned home and, looking for the camaraderie of the barracks, he sought to find it in fraternal societies like Freemasonry. This inflated our membership roles like a windfall inflates a bank account, but like the lottery winner who does not invest his new found money properly; it is soon piddled away until nothing remains.
Another tale the hand ringers love to tell us, especially those who have more steps behind them than they have left ahead of them, is that men are not joining today like they used to, and that we are losing members from death faster than we can replace them through initiations. Certainly, if one considers “not joining like they used to” to be those post-war Halcyon Days previously discussed, then I’m more than willing to concede the point. However, if there is one myth in Freemasonry that has gained wide currency and firm traction, it is the notion that Masons are dying faster than we can replace them.
What the numbers don’t tell us!
In 2005 I was asked to deliver the keynote address to the Western Canada Conference – an annual gathering of the Grand lines of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Part of my presentation sought to dispel this myth that the Grim Reaper was using his scythe to cut a swath through the fraternity. Whereas, the MSANA numbers only give us the annual bottom line, I was able to look at the big picture closer to home by tracking specifics in our membership statistics over an eight-year period.
What I discovered was that, like the rest of North America, Alberta had a sizable hole in our Masonic bucket; 1,777 of our Brethren had affiliated with the Grand Lodge above, leaving us with a net loss of 1,512 members between 1996 and 2003. But this is not where our problem was because the numbers showed that in that same period of time, 3,118 men had joined, affiliated or renewed their membership in one of our lodges.
In an ideal world, the difference between deaths and new members should have seen Alberta experience a 14 per cent growth in that time, but instead we were dwindling, just like everywhere else. The question was why? Where was the hole in our Masonic bucket that was causing the decline? It wasn’t through deaths; we were clearly finding the men to replace ourselves. The answer was through demits and suspensions for non payment of dues (SNPD); a combined loss of 2,863 over the eight years. When added to the deaths, we had lost a total of 4,640 men, while gaining a respectable 3,118. The hole in our Masonic bucket had been found and, as I’ve learned, it is not an isolated situation.
This past November I was keynote speaker at the Grand Lodge of Manitoba’s Masonic workshop and presented a similar address and findings, chronicling their past six years of data. Like Alberta, Manitoba has a hole in its Masonic bucket, caused by demits and suspensions outpacing new members. Between 2002 and 2007 Manitoba saw 856 men join, affiliate or reinstate their memberships. During that same time, 753 Manitoba Masons have died; again leaving a positive number between membership losses and gains. Like Alberta, their hole is caused by the combination of demits and SNPD’s. In the past six years the province has seen 1,355 men leave the Masonic fraternity.
But the Craft lodge in Canada is not alone in finding it has a bucket with the same hole.
Membership statistics from the Grand Encampment of Knights Templar show that between 2004 and the end of September 2008, 17,470 American Freemasons have become Templars, while 9,576 have taken a demit and another 21,706 have been suspended for non payment of dues. Add to this the 22,546 Templars who have gone on to join their creator, and you have 36,358 fewer Knights Templar marching about. But perhaps marching about is precisely the problem. Perhaps the men who are joining today are joining to parade about like the sword-wielding Templars of old and disappointed to find only old Templars parading about doing sword drill. It is a question only the Grand Encampment and those who are left remain in her Commanderies can resolve, but like the Craft Lodges, its bucket is leaking primarily from the same rusted out hole.
Towards a solution
Back when I was editor of the short-lived Masonic Magazine, I wrote an editorial titled The Restaurant at the End of the Masonic Universe. Without republishing the editorial here, it told the story of a restaurant that does not live up to its advertising slogan, “We make good food better,” an obvious play on our own slogan “We take good men and make them better.” The editorial, which has received equal doses of praise and criticism, sought to explain in a light manner the malaise affecting Freemasonry today and the true cause for the hole in our bucket.
Every mason has heard the expression “but we’ve always done it that way before.” The fact that it is used as the butt of Masonic jokes serves as proof positive of its longevity and power in maintaining a status quo. But, as we have seen by what the MSANA numbers don’t show us, the status quo is draining our buckets. As the allegory of my restaurant editorial showed, the reason things suck in many lodges is because the men who show up month after month like things that suck. They do so because they enjoy the bland food; not the shoe-leather roast beef and off color green beans, but the Masonic meal that is largely comprised of recitation of minutes, tedious debates over how funds are dispersed and arguments over when and how to salute the Worshipful Master. Clearly these are not the things that appeal to the men who are leaving our ranks. If they were, they’d be with us still. But instead of spending our energies trying to retain them, we devote our efforts to finding their replacements.
For as long as I have been a Freemason, we have been trying to fill a bucket that has a sizable hole in it. Like Henry in the famed children’s song, we have whined through the infinite loop of reasons why we can’t fix the bucket and like Jack in the classic nursery rhyme, have rolled down the hill, our empty bucket tumbling behind us. Like children on a bus trip we have done our rendition of 99 Bottle of Beer by repeating the same pattern ad nausea, as one by one our members – like the bottles of beer on the wall – vanish.
Unfortunately, we are not doing a good enough job identifying what it is that the men who are joining are looking for, which is – in almost all cases – that which they cannot get any place else – FREEMASONRY! They are looking to be educated in the Masonic Craft, in the art of being a gentleman in a world that has largely forgotten what one was, and in how they can be part of – to quote my jurisdiction’s ritual – “the society of men who prize honor and virtue above the external advantages of rank and fortune.” In short, they want to be taught the things about themselves and the world in which they live that only Freemasonry can teach them. If we cannot teach them because we do not know these things ourselves, then we must learn alongside them. Then, and only then, can the hole in our Masonic bucket be truly repaired and we can return to that growth that once allowed us to select men who would most benefit from Freemasonry’s teaching and most benefit Freemasonry by their character and their conduct.
It will not be and easy task fixing this half-century old hole in our Masonic bucket; but it will not be possible at all until we accept that a failure to do so is the cause of our decline and the harbinger of our demise.
V. W. Bro Stephen Dafoe is a past Grand Steward of the Grand Lodge of Alberta, former publisher of Masonic Magazine and the author of several books on the Knights Templar and Freemasonry. In addition, Dafoe is a self-confessed anti-Internet Mason.
The easiest way to approach this point is to perhaps list some of the more dominant activities that tend to be the biggest draw away from the lodge.
Church – Church membership offers much of what a Masonic lodge promulgates by way of affinity and fellowship. It also involves family intimately in its practice, allowing for more fellowship and familial bonding.
Charity/Volunteer – Opportunities abound in today’s society to give back. From the American Cancer Society to the YMCA. At any point, the interested party can man a booth, wash a car, help sell cookies, deliver food, answer phones, rebuild trails, or ring a doorbell; they can give of themselves financially or in person fulfilling the desire to give back.
Hobby Clubs – These interest groups span the gamut from sports, politics, cooking, crafts, hobbies, etc… If you have a particular interest a variety of clubs exists to meet that need. Even within other organizations, multiple levels of clubs exist that offer an assortment of opportunities. Often these, the interaction can be as frequent as desired or as sporadic, and dues are usually minimal if existent at all besides covering costs.
School groups – From the elementary PTA to social fraternities on college campus, there is a diverse range of opportunities to spend time and money on from baking cupcakes to manning a float in a parade. Usually these endeavors are encouraged as they raise and bolster the spirit of the group to build connectivity to the institution.
Work – While not a club, the obligation of work is not to be ignored. With a diverse society today, many work in fields that resemble the ethos of a club, in that ones profession is most likely closely allied to their passion, and their work obligation stretches beyond the 9-5 time clock.
I have no doubt that this list could go no, but I think you can see all of the distractions that we all have before us. When we have so little time to dedicate for in our interest areas, we are forced to be selective. And in this age there are a lot of interest areas to go around. In fact, websites exist to link a volunteer with an interest, Hobbyists to local hobby clubs, School Booster resources. Many websites exist for both churches and employment, or even social interactions including Facebook and LinkedIn.
So why choose the Masonic meeting? Many have said that the detraction is that the meetings don’t accomplish much, that they are focused on past meetings minutes, paying bills or reading communications. That very little work is passed down, let alone education. There maybe a special interest in the history of the process of the meeting, with a special ceremony and in a special room, to get things done, but with so much competition, are new attendees very keen on the SAME activity EVERY month, year after year? Are you satisfied with the same format of meeting month to month?
Does the monthly business meeting meet our needs today? By changing it, does it forsake those that enjoy that type of activity?
With the degree to which our meetings repeat themselves is it the way we meet that makes us Freemasons? Is it our ancient landmarks that dictate the way in which we meet, or is it more a long period of doing the same thing over and over that has trained us such that the practice has become a perpetual habit? Do we meet and conduct meetings in our particular way because it is how we have done it since “Time Immemorial”?
If the way we meet is the measure of our success or failure then what exactly do we do in the meeting of a Masonic lodge? What “should” a lodge meeting look like? How can we do it better and what should we be doing in them?
“It is demonstrated,” he said, “that things cannot be otherwise: for, since everything was made for a purpose, everything is necessarily for the best purpose. Note that noses were made to wear spectacles; we therefore have spectacles. Legs were clearly devised to wear breeches, and we have breeches. Stones were created to be hewn and made into castles; His Lordship therefore has a very beautiful castle: the greatest baron in the province must have the finest residence. And since pigs were made to be eaten, we eat pork all year round. Therefore, those that have maintained that all is well have been talking nonsense: they should have maintained that all is for the best.” Professor Pangloss in Voltaire’s Candide
Voltaire’s story Candide is an examination of the belief held by many that all is for the best and that we live in the best of all possible worlds. This philosophy is propounded by a professor—whom Voltaire describes as a teacher of metaphysico-theologo-cosmonigology—named Pangloss and is taught to the naïve protagonist of the tale, Candide. Throughout the story, Candide is the victim and witness of numerous atrocities and yet still attempts to maintain that his dear Professor Pangloss was correct that all is truly for the best.
The idea that all is for the best brings to mind the concept of predestination. Predestination in theology can be defined as “the act of God foreordaining all things gone before and to come.”1 In modern western religions, this concept doesn’t seem terribly outrageous as God is viewed as a beneficent, merciful father figure. Surely if God is all powerful and all knowing then everything that exists and all events that occur must be for the best. However, when one considers some of the ugliest tragedies in history, the holocaust or acts of terrorism for instance, it is hard to believe that God as a merciful and all powerful being would permit something like that to happen. This has doubtless led many to forsake a belief in the Divine in order to pursue the practice of atheism; if man has no creator then it is easier to understand how mankind can commit great acts of evil. Still, many religious people in society blame Satan, Lucifer, or some other being that exists in opposition to God in order to come to terms with such events.
In Islamic countries, Insha’Allah is a term that is commonly used to give the probability of a future event. It means “God willing” or “if it is God’s will.”2 This term takes a step back from much of the modern thought on religion as it does not express any idea that God wills events for the benefit of mankind to happen, but that he will permit those events to occur that he has chosen, good or bad. This hearkens back to the Hebrew traditions where God was often a wrathful, jealous, and manipulating character. Exodus says that God hardened Pharoah’s heart when Moses tried to convince him to release the Israelites from the bonds of slavery.3 Was this hardening of Pharoah’s heart intended to allow God to inflict the plagues upon Egypt and therefore satisfy his anger with them? Or did God wish to bring hardship to his chosen people to prove to them that without their God, the Hebrews were but a meek group of humans?
These concepts, whether it be the idea that all is for the best, the doctrine of predestination, or the idea of Insha’Allah, have doubtless led to complacency in the human race. If all is for the best or happens at the will and pleasure of the Divine, then how are we to speed up the advancement of our society? One can only wonder how different our world would be if women had only been allowed to receive equal wages for equal work when God willed it or if the genocide of Muslims in the Balkans was all for the best. Yet, society has come to accept sin as a natural part of the world as a consequence of the fall of man.
The Gnostic gospel of Mary Magdelene gives an unorthodox view of sin in the world. Chapter 4 of the partial scripture reads: “The Savior said there is no sin, but it is you who make sin when you do the things that are like the nature of adultery, which is called sin.”4 Therefore, sin is not inevitable, but is made by a man’s own act of free will. While it is easy for a society to proclaim the Panglossian dogma, it is a flawed philosophy. Man has the right to do what is moral and right in every situation. He chooses to sin and he chooses to cause the suffering of others. That suffering is certainly not for the best.
Today, we do not live in the best of all possible worlds. There is pain to be alleviated and justice to be delivered. Free will requires the greatest responsibility from those that practice it. It is important to keep in mind the repercussions of our personal actions at all times and endeavor to act rightly in all situations. As the more experienced Candide tells Pangloss at the end of his travels, “we must cultivate our garden.”
by John J. McManus.
Prepared for Gate City 2, Atlanta, GA, as the fifth installment of their Religion & Culture series.
Copyright 2009, originally published May 26, 2009 Rev Mr. John J. McManus, JD, JCL
Used with permission.
HISTORICAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND FREEMASONS…WHY ROMAN CATHOLICS ARE PROHIBITED BY THE CHURCH FROM BECOMING FREEMASONS
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Gate City II for inviting me to speak with you tonight about a rather difficult topic, the historical relationship between the Catholic Church and Freemasons, and why Roman Catholics have been and continue to be prohibited by the Church from becoming Freemasons. My name is John McManus and in my civilian life I am an attorney who has been practicing law for just over 27 years. I am Roman Catholic Christian from birth, and since my ordination in 2002, I have been a member of the Roman Catholic Clergy as a Deacon, the lowest of the three levels of clerical hierarchy in the Catholic Church. Since 2007, I am also a Canon Lawyer, which means that I have a pontifical licentiate that allows me to practice as a lawyer in the Tribunals, or courts, of the Roman Catholic Church, and also to advise the Archbishop or others regarding canonical issues, or those issues related to the law of the Roman Catholic Church.
I have provided you with that personal background to let you know that my studies have been related to the Roman Catholic Church and its laws. I am not a Freemason, nor have I studied in any detail, other than for the preparation of this presentation, the laws, rules, creeds, or other constitutive documents of Freemasons. Nothing presented herein is intended to criticize, condemn or otherwise cast aspersions on either Freemasonry or Freemasons, as a group or to any individual Freemason, whether Roman Catholic or not. Instead, this presentation is intended to provide historical and current information on the subject matter that may be used in civil discussions and personal reflections about the issues presented in order that each person may be informed and form their own consciences about the issues presented.
This presentation is being given from the Roman Catholic Church’s point of view, particularly since that is the only point of view I can articulate, and the material presented about Freemasons has been gathered from various sources, primarily within the Roman Catholic literature. While I have examined quite a bit of literature preparing this presentation, I have relied to a great extent on a very fine paper entitled “The Evolution Of The Church’s Prohibition Against Catholic Membership In Freemasonry” by Msgr. Ronny E. Jenkins. For those of you interested in the complete text of that paper, it was published in 1996 in The Jurist, Volume 56, pages 735-755. I was particularly interested in that paper because Msgr. Jenkins was one of my instructors at The Catholic University of America where I received my Juris Canonical Licentiate. During my preparation for this presentation, I had an opportunity to communicate with Msgr. Jenkins about recent developments in this area since the publication of that paper, and those developments have been incorporated into this presentation. I wish to thank Msgr. Jenkins for his kind assistance in this matter.
As the title of that article and this presentation suggest, the Roman Catholic Church has for centuries, and continues to this day, to prohibit its members from membership in Freemasonry. That prohibition remains applicable today in the Archdiocese of Atlanta for all members of the Roman Catholic Church. There has certainly been a great deal of confusion regarding whether this prohibition continues today, engendered in large part by the language of the 1983 Code of Canon Law that omitted the specific prohibition against Freemasonry stated in the 1917 Codex Juris Canonici. In response to this confusion, in November of 1983, the Congregation for the Doctrine of The Faith issued a declaration stating that the prohibition was still in force and that Catholic Masons were barred from receiving Holy Communion. However, that declaration did not quell the debate about that prohibition, and the debate continues. It is my purpose here tonight to address the foundational reasons for this centuries old prohibition, clarify the confusion created by the new Code of Canon law, and explain why the Roman Catholic Church through the Congregation of the Doctrine of Faith continues that prohibition today.
As advertised, I will begin this presentation with a look at the origins and historical issues related to this prohibition, then address in passing some of the official canonical documents related directly to that prohibition, then review in some detail the efforts in modern times to reconcile the differences between the parties, and finally address the canonical issues developed by both the 1917 Codex Juris Canonici and the 1983 Code of Canon Law. It is my sincere hope that at the end of this presentation the fundamental inconsistencies between the basic tenants of the Roman Catholic Church and those of Freemasonry will allow at least a better understanding of the prohibition that the Roman Catholic Church asserts in this matter.
In order to understand why the Roman Catholic Church has the authority to prohibit one of its members from belonging to Freemasonry, or to prohibit or allow its members to do or not do other things, it is important to understand a little about the Roman Catholic Church itself. The Catholic Church was founded by Jesus Christ himself. To be Catholic, one must believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and that he established the Church with divine authority. The Gospels state that “As the Father gave authority to Christ,” [Jn 5:22] Christ passed that authority on to his apostles [Lk 10:16], and they passed it on to the successors they appointed as bishops.
For nearly two thousand years, through unbroken apostolic succession, bishops have taught the Catholic faith that was received from Christ in the Gospels, Sacred Tradition, and through the Magisterium, the teaching office of the Church. The Church is not a democracy. The authority of the Church rests in the Bishop of Rome, The Roman Pontiff, the successor to St. Peter, who Jesus himself selected to guide the Church. It is important to note that this “authority” held by the Holy Father is not power, but a right…it is humble in both its origin, as received from Christ, and in its end, which is to serve as Christ served. In fact, all of the laws and all of the traditions of the Church have one goal, one end, and that end is the salvation of souls.
The Roman Catholic Church believes that it has an innate right and obligation to speak the truth about all human matters, and that truth is directed at the one primary end, the salvation of souls. And, therefore, throughout the ages, the Church has issued decrees, which are decisions regarding a particular case, and encyclicals, which are writings approved by the Holy Father, and she has held Councils and synods, discussing various issues related to the faith. The most recent Council was the Second Vatican Council held in the 1960’s which has had a significant effect on the law of the Church, and the Church itself. The rules and laws that are articulated by the Holy Father become laws that Catholics must respect and follow because of the aforementioned authority from which they are derived. Willful failure to follow the teachings of the Church has consequences for Catholics, including excommunication in the most serious cases.
The laws of the Church, codified as canon laws, set forth both the requirement and the penalty for not following the teachings of the Church, and there is a judicial process involved in determining whether the law has been broken and what sanction, if any, is appropriate in the individual case.
The best way for me to explain the relationship between the law of the Church and the essential end of human behavior is in a statement by Mother Teresa. She said, “God did not put me on earth to be successful, he put me here to be faithful.” Catholics have an obligation to be faithful to the teachings of the Church, all of the teachings of the Church, and they are not allowed to pick and choose which teachings they like and which they don’t like as if they were ordering from a menu at McDonalds. Therefore, it is incumbent upon Catholics to understand the teachings of their faith, the reasons why the Church teaches as it does, and then live a life accordingly, constantly striving to be faithful to Christ and his teachings.
It was difficult to determine the precise historical origin of the Freemasons, primarily because there is little historical evidence of the Masons before the eighteenth century. It does appear, however, that on June 24, 1717, four independent guilds of stone cutters met in a London inn to form the first grand lodge. It appears that this new order of masons spread to France by 1732, Hamburg, Germany by 1737, and then throughout much of the rest of Europe, including Italy.
On April 28, 1738, the Roman Catholic Church published the first of many condemnations of this new society when Clement XII issued the constitution In eminenti. In that constitution, Clement XII declared the basic tenants of Freemasonry to be a threat not only to the basic teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, but also to the stability of governments and society. Clement XII imposed the penalty of excommunication reserved to the Holy See on persons who either belonged to or externally supported the society. This document was significant because subsequent popes repeated the condemnations for the next two hundred years. For example, on May 18, 1751 in his decree Providas, Benedict XIV repeated the gravissima damna [the “most serious condemnations”] and appended Clement XII’s constitution to his own decree.
The nineteenth century brought renewed and continued confirmation of the charges and penalties against Masons, particularly Catholic Masons. Here are a few examples:
On September 13, 1821, Pius VII issued his decree Ecclesiam Christi in response to the growing influence of a particular form of Masonry called Carbonarism on the movement to form liberal governments in much of Europe.
On March 13, 1826, Leo XII issued his decree Quo graviora in which he not only reaffirmed past condemnation, he added more condemnations, and he offered a particularly critical view of the influence of Masons on universities.
On August 15, 1832, Gregory XVI in his decree Mirari Vos reaffirmed all previous papal decrees condemning Freemasons, and he added more justifications for the Church’s condemnation of Freemasons.
On October 12, 1869, Pius IX in his decree Apostolicae Sedis that reformed certain automatic [latae sententiae] penalties, retained membership in the Masons among those excommunications reserved to the Holy See. Apostolicae Sedis can be found in Acta Santa Sedis [ASS] 5 (1869) beginning at page 311.
On April 12, 1884, Leo XIII issued his encyclical Humanum genus which was a document dedicated entirely to the condemnation of the Masons and reaffirmed the latae sententiae penalty imposed by Pius IX in Apostolicae Sedis. Humanum genus can be found in Acta Santa Sedis [ASS] 16 (1883-1884), pages 417-433.
The twentieth century canonized the penalties and condemnations of the previous two hundred years. It should be noted here that the law of the Roman Catholic Church, which was developed through Tradition, Sacred Writings, synods, Councils, Decrees and Encyclicals, was not codified in one in a single code of canon law until the Pio-Benedictine Code of Canon Law promulgated in 1917. Three canons in the 1917 code spoke directly against Freemasons:
Canon 2335: This canon, with only a few changes, reaffirmed the reserved ipso facto excommunication of catholic masons promulgated by Pius IX on Apostolicae Sedis. The English translation of that canon reads:
“Those giving their name to Masonic sects or other associations of this sort that machinate against the Church or legitimate civil powers contract by that fact excommunication simply reserved to the Apostolic See.”
Canon 2336: This canon levied additional penalties against clerics or religious who belonged to the masons. These penalties included suspension for clerics and loss of active and passive voice for religious.
Other canons indirectly affected Catholic Masons and included:
Canon 1065, Section 1: Denied them the right to a Catholic marriage.
Canon 542, Section 1: Denied them the ability to enter a valid novitiate.
Canon 693, Section 1: Denied them the right to inscribe validly in a pious association of the faithful.
Canon 1453, Section 1: Denied them receiving the right of patronage [support].
Two requirements had to be met for Roman Catholics to incur the ipso facto excommunication set forth in Canon 2335:
They had to have actually enrolled in the membership books of the organization; and
The organization had to be wholly devoted to heretical or subversive ends.
It was easy to establish whether the first requirement was met-all one had to do was examine the membership books of the organization. But it was not as easy to determine when the second requirement had been met. Jenkins poses these questions:
What if the charitable or fraternal organizations were only indirectly associated with Freemasons? Were these included in the ban?
Masonic lodges themselves varied greatly in their teachings and practices. American lodges were far less subversive than most European ones. Did Catholics who joined an American lodge deserve to suffer the same penalty as one who joined a lodge more patently opposed to the Church?
These and other similar questions gave rise to discussions within the Church hierarchy about a new legal attitude toward Freemasons. Those inquiries lead to the hope that the issue would be addressed by the Second Vatican Council. The Second Vatican Council, however, did not specifically address the issue with Freemasons. Instead, it sought to open dialogue with various groups that had been counted among the Church’s “antagonists.”
As a consequence of this new attitude, several groups of bishops began to view the ban on Masonic membership in the light of the particular character of the respective local lodges. This was first done in 1966 by the Scandinavian bishops who determined that each bishop could judge whether or not a particular lodge was acting or teaching in ways contrary to the interests of the Church. If the bishop decided that the lodge was not manifesting such behavior, the bishop was free to determine whether a particular Catholic could join that particular lodge. Similar actions were taken by the bishops of England and Wales, and the French bishops were even allowed by the Vatican to have limited discussions between the Italian grand master and a priest who was an expert in Masonic affairs.
These events lead to perhaps the most significant advance in Catholic-Masonic relations. In March 1969, a commission of three Catholics and nine masons gathered in Innsbruck to discuss their mutual concerns. The commission met under the auspices of the Secretariat for Non-Believers and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the faith. The committee’s dialogue resulted in the July 5, 1970 publication of a document entitled “Lichtenau Declaration,” which declared that, contrary to the Church’s consistent position, the Masons were not a threat to the Catholic Church. The document recommended that all canonical penalties and condemnations be abrogated and relations opened between Catholics and Masons, stating in pertinent part:
“We are of the opinion that the papal bulls concerning the Freemasons are now only historically significant and no longer relevant in our time. We are of the same opinion regarding the condemnations of ecclesiastical law since, in light of what has been said, they cannot be justified by a Church that follows God’s commandment in teaching fraternal love.”
The next significant event in Catholic-Masonic relations occurred in talks that occurred over a six-year period between 1974 and 1980 when representatives from the German Episcopal Conference held talks with a group representing the Grand Lodges of Germany. The conclusion of the German Bishops’ Conference was:
“the Freemasons have essentially not changed. Membership [in the masons] places the foundations of Christian existence in question. Detailed investigations of the Masonic rituals and fundamental ideas, and of their current, unchanged self-understanding make clear: Simultaneous membership in the Catholic Church and freemasons is incompatible.”
Jenkins points out that “the bishops reached their unequivocal conclusion after having first considered the positive elements of Freemasonry, including its humanitarian interests, charitable works, anti-materialist ideology, as well as the excellent personal qualities required of its members.” He states that the bishop’s listed twelve areas of Masonic teaching that were at variance with the Church’s own belief, and with which the Church could never reconcile itself:
The Masonic World-view: The Masons promote a freedom from dogmatic adherence to any one set of revealed truths. Such a subjective relativism is in direct conflict with the revealed truths of Christianity.
The Masonic Notion of Truth: The masons deny the possibility of an objective truth, placing every truth instead in a relative context.
The Masonic Notion of Religion: The Masonic teaching holds a relative notion of religions as all concurrently seeking the truth of the absolute.
The Masonic Notion of God: The Masons hold a deistic notion of God which excludes any personal knowledge of the deity.
The Masonic Notion of God and Revelation: The deistic notion of God precludes the possibility of God’s self-revelation to humankind.
Masonic Toleration: The masons promote a principle of toleration regarding ideas. That is, relativism teaches them to be tolerant of ideas divergent or contrary to their own. Such a principle not only threatens the Catholic position of objective truth, but it also threatens the respect due the Church’s teaching office.
The Masonic Rituals: The rituals of the first three Masonic grades have a clear sacramental character about them, indicating that an actual transformation of some sort is undergone by those who participate in them.
The Perfection of Mankind: The Masonic rituals have as an end the perfection of humankind. But Masonry provides all that is necessary to achieve this perfection. Thus, the justification of a person through the work of Christ is not an essential or even necessary aspect of the struggle for perfection.
The Spirituality of Masons: The Masonic Order makes a total claim on the life of the member. True adherence to the Christian faith is thereby jeopardized by the primary loyalty due the Masonic Order.
The Diverse Divisions within the Masons: The Masons are comprised of lodges with varying degrees of adherence to Christian teaching. Atheistic lodges are clearly incompatible with Catholicism. But even those lodges comprised of Christian members seek merely to adapt Christianity to the overall Masonic world-view. This is unacceptable.
The Masons and the Catholic Church: Even those Catholic-friendly lodges that would welcome the Church’s members as its own are not compatible with Catholic teaching, and so closed to Catholic members.
The Masons and the Protestant Church: While a 1973 meeting of Protestant Churches determined that individual Protestants could decide whether to be members of both the Christian Church and the Freemasons, it included in its decision the caveat that those Christians must always take care not to lessen the necessity of grace in the justification of a person before God.
The German bishops’ statement had a significant influence on the subsequent attitude of Rome toward Catholic-Mason relations, renewing the age-old attitude of distrust and antagonism. The canonical questions about these issues, however, were still to be resolved.
During the period of time between the 1970 Lichtenau Declaration, which indicated a more positive relationship between Catholic’s and Masons, and the German Bishops’ statements in 1980, the code of canon law was being revised. As a direct result of the Lichtenau Declaration, canons 2335 and 2336 of the 1917 Pio-Benedictine Code of Canon Law were abandoned early in the code revision process and were not included in the penal law schema of 1973. This has lead to some confusion among the bishops about the Church’s stance toward Masons. In 1974, Cardinal Franjo Seper of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a letter to select bishops stating that “the law toward masons had not changed, but that its application might be more strictly interpreted in favor of lay Catholics.” In essence what the Cardinal was saying was that the canon’s penalty applied to Catholics who joined a Masonic group “or similar associations that conspired against the Church.”
Therefore, if the particular lodge the Catholic joined did not conspire against the Church, then only one of the two requirements for incurring the penalty of excommunication had been met. Therefore, membership in a neutral lodge would not necessarily bring with it an ipso facto excommunication for the Catholic.
The 1977 coetus for the revision of penal law formulated its draft of what would become canon 1374 of the 1983 code, and it is stated in English as follows:
“A person who joins an association which plots against the Church is to be punished with a just penalty; however, a person who promotes or directs an association of this kind is to be punished with an interdict.”
Therefore, the revised canon removed the ipso facto excommunication of canon 2335, and it was broad enough in scope to allow for particular legislators to determine when the penalty was warranted and if, or whether, harsher penalties were called for in certain circumstances.
The broad language provided room for what Catholic’s call “pastoral sensitivity” in a particular case. Based upon this canon, it appeared that the decision about whether Catholics were allowed to join a particular lodge was left up to the local legislator, the bishop.
However, the new code promulgated in 1983 did not settle the issue. There are two canons in the 1983 code that most clearly apply to Catholic Masons, although, as indicated, Freemasonry is not mentioned specifically:
Canon 1374 against subversive societies; and
Canon 1364 against heretics and apostates.
As indicated earlier in the presentation, on November 23, 1983, the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith attempted to resolve the doubt created by the 1983 code revisions and issued Declaratio de associationibus massonicis, the “Declaration on Masonic Associations.” Declaratio de associationibus massonicis can be found in Acta Santa Sedis [ASS] 76 (1984) beginning at page 300. The Congregation stated the following:
The Church’s position regarding the Freemasons had not changed.
Catholic membership in Masonic lodges was still prohibited because Masonic principles were still contrary to the teachings of the Church.
Catholics who did, in fact, belong to Masonic associations were committing grave sin and were, consequently, barred from receiving Holy Communion.
The reason the Masons were no longer explicitly referred to in the new code was due simply to the principles that guided the revision of the law.
Local ordinaries did not enjoy the prerogative of determining which Masonic lodges operated against the interests of the Church and which were neutral towards or even supportive of the Church’s interests.
The National Conference of Catholic Bishops of the United States did not officially respond to the Congregations 1983 declaration. However, it did ask the Pastoral Research and Practices Committee to write a report on the compatibility of Masonic principles with the Catholic faith. Their report, which is quite brief, was published in the June 27, 1985 edition of Origins [Origins 15/6] at pages 83-84. The committee restated the fundamental conclusions of the German bishops, stating:
“Even though Masonic organizations may not in particular cases plot against the faith, it would be still wrong to join them because their basic principles are irreconcilable with those of the Catholic faith.”
While the Congregations declaration reflects the current law in the Church and Catholics are prohibited from joining the Masons, the debate among Church scholars and canonists about this issue and the related issue of enforcement, application, and the canonical implications of each issue remain.
Once again in Masonic circles of discussion we hear the debate searching for the answers as to why the decline in Masonic membership continues. All sorts of hypotheses have been advanced. The ones I hear most often are the greater number of choices available in today’s world, the limits of time in a what has become a very high strung, stressed out overworked society and the rise of women to equal status in American society thus restructuring the male/female role which often results in couples doing everything together rather than each going their separate way.
These explanations are all well and good and certainly have some merit in the scheme of things. Often times when no explanation reaches out and knocks you in the head it is because there are multiple causes for the resulting effect. But I believe that most are overlooking certainly the largest explanation for the continuing decline of American Freemasonry.
It is precisely Freemasonry’s interaction with civil society, its sympathetic response to what is troubling the nation that brings it into the focus of the uninitiated individual. When Freemasonry leads society into nobleness and righteousness, when it is society’s conscience it becomes a highly regarded institution upon which many will look with favor if not join.
That is not, however, to promote what American Grand Lodge’s of today have done to Freemasonry by turning the Craft into a giant Service Club where Freemasonry tries to use society for its own advantage and gain, where it tries to buy and bribe friends and recognition. There is a big difference between interacting with a nation and serving a nation.
It is often said that no one knows who we are as Freemasons. That’s because we are not interacting with society with the best interests of society at heart but rather merely concerned with ourselves and what’s in it for us.
American Freemasonry was never meant to be or destined to be a secretive monastic society, totally withdrawn from civil society and all its goings on. When Freemasonry actually rolled up its sleeves and became immersed in the “big play”, the overwhelming issue of the day, it was noticed, it garnered membership and it had influence.
When Freemasonry was concerned with civil society’s concerns it was able to LEAD society. As a leader involved with the well being of society, it was an accepted institution. When Freemasonry hid in its own shadow and pushed toleration to the extreme of being “politically correct”, then “Masonically correct” Freemasonry started to whither and die.
Everybody today talks about Freemasonry staying out of religion and politics. Most, however, are neglecting to clarify that it is partisan politics and sectarian religion that Freemasonry prohibits. There is a big difference between broad moral and social issues that define the structure of civil society and specific policies advocated as a remedy.
Freemasonry was always at its height when it chose to lead society. As a product of the Enlightenment it championed religious freedom, democratic government, public school education and separation of church and state. American colonial Freemasonry provided a system of networking in a society with no communication systems. It played a vital role in the formation of this nation. While one can point to the midnight ride of Paul Revere let’s not forget his and his Lodge’s possible involvement in the dumping of tea into Boston Harbor. Nor should we overlook the fact that at least 42% of the Generals commissioned by the Continental Congress were Masons. It was the values of Freemasonry that were drafted into the Constitution of the United States. Freemasons set up the government of this nation, authored the “noble experiment.”
As a new nation American Freemasonry was instrumental in the formation of public schools and universities. Men of letters came to Freemasonry not for the arts and sciences taught in Lodge but because Freemasonry was a learning promoter.
“Brothers officially sponsored educational endeavors that reached beyond the fraternity. This encouragement of broader education seemed to link the fraternity to the post-Revolutionary vision of an enlightened society built around equality and openness, values that brothers came to see expressed even in their order’s structure. By supporting learning and by teaching and embodying republican relationships, Masonry seemed to be upholding and advancing the Revolutionary experiment itself.”(1)
During the civil War Freemasonry was the only organization, society or institution that did not split in two. Even churches became promoters of either the Union or the Confederacy. Freemasonry, as in the Revolutionary War, contained many military Lodges that had a great influence on holding the armies together. But its greatest Civil War influence was ameliorating the harshness of the fighting and acting as a healer of society.
Post Civil War saw American Freemasonry usher in an age of great Masonic authorship and great Masonic building. Its ability to grow right along with the industrialization of the United States was a great asset to its continued influence.
Somewhere into the 20th century Freemasonry lost its leadership role. Oh it wasn’t evident right away. The nation was consumed with fighting two world wars and the post war push of returning soldiers who wished to continue the exhilarating uplift of camaraderie kept the numbers high and the coffers full. But by 1960 American Freemasonry was living on past laurels and fresh blood was nowhere to be seen. The plain fact is that American Freemasonry became SOCIALLY IRRELEVANT.
If Freemasonry had remained socially relevant it could have lead the nation into breaking the color barrier and busting Black discrimination in society. William Upton was the Jackie Robinson of Freemasonry. As Grand Master of Washington State in 1898 he recognized Prince Hall and black/white fraternization. If we had built on this start, even if ever so slowly, Freemasonry could have led the nation into integration thereby avoiding the confrontation of Rosa Parks and the marches of Martin Luther King.
As one of the only institutions worldwide to actually live peaceful, cooperative brotherhood among people of different races, religions, cultures and economic circumstances, American Freemasonry was in a unique position to encourage and promote world peace. People today looking back 50 years ago could have pointed out that the “peace movement” was Freemasonry. The fact that Freemasonry refused to do so out of fear of offending and being politically incorrect caused it to lose esteem in the eyes of the general public.
If Freemasonry had led the nation in the 50s, if it had been the conscience and the moral compass of the nation in the area of Civil Rights and the peace movement then it would not have lost a whole generation to Masonic membership. Freemasonry would have been respected and revered and consequently flourished. But instead we turned a blind eye to black lynching and the evil of the KKK and watched in silence from the sidelines while the Vietnam War tore this nation apart. And then we have the audacity to ask why the generation of the day refused to join Freemasonry. Who was fighting for the soul of the American nation? It sure wasn’t Freemasonry and we paid the price.
Today we are faced with a worldwide HOLY WAR. Who better to promote ecumenical and religious tolerance in the world than Freemasonry? Who better to pave the way for a better understanding among different religious traditions than the institution that has actually accomplished that for centuries? This is not partisan politics or sectarian religion. This is being the moral leader in a time of crisis. This is spreading the values of Freemasonry just as our Masonic forefathers did in the formation of this nation.
But alas, American Freemasonry would rather withdraw within itself than risk the path of greatness. The result will be continued Masonic stagnation and a general misunderstanding of Freemasonry’s role and purpose by the general public.
(1) “Revolutionary Brotherhood” by Stephen C. Bullock, pg. 145
Freemasonry and the Qabbalah have a tacit relationship. In many deep philosophical discussions, the two often come up as being interrelated but just as often leave the conversation without a clear connection defined. As a Mason, we can start to study where the Jewish Mysticism has been woven in, but without a deep degree of study and practice, the two still seem as distant as night and day.
On this episode of Masonic Central, our guest Timothy Hogan joins us to talk about this mysticism and help us join some of the loose threads the three degrees with the various paths and points on the Tree of Life.
Hogan is the author of the new book The 32 Secret Paths of Solomon: A New Examination of the Qabbalah in Freemasonry which is a new examination of Kabbalah and its interconnectivity with Freemasonry. In it, he demonstrates how there are different interpretations of Freemasonry that can be found in the Sephirot and Paths, exploring Gematria and Masonic ritual.
It stands to be an interesting exploration and one sure to enlighten as much as it leaves us wanting to know more.
From the last installment, the point I wanted to build on was the item covered by Br. Dafoe’s article in the Masonic Journal and the missing membership. To touch on briefly what his article said, the most significant loss measured was in NPD’s and SNPD’s which made up the lion share of members who join our ranks, and then for a variety of reasons stop attending or paying dues. That in these numbers could be found the reason for the decline.
But, there are certain problems with that measure. When a member joins the organization the process can take several months, but when a member leaves, there is really very little process or paperwork, and consequently, no way to quantify why the member is leaving. This is different from returning an item or requesting a refund from a store where there is a short form or question involved to explain “why” the item is being brought back. In Masonry, that’s not the case, as there is no exit interview, no closure, to find the point of dissatisfaction. Rather it is a phantom hole, members who were there and now who are not.
So, because of that vacuum, there is no way of knowing what happened. Does the new member come in, stay a while, and then lose interest? Do they make the decision to drop out because of other membership obligations (church, work, bowling leagues, etc), or is that there was a lack of an affinity with Masonry itself? Did they just not find it relevant? Once they’ve left, do they pursue other interest groups (civic, spiritual, or academic)? What they do after Masonry is beyond the scope of our ability to know. All we can quantify it as is that they are no longer on the roles. Is it a society issue where there is a lack of resonance with the society, or is it sociological issue in that the ideas from the non masonic society is shaping their perception of what Masonry is supposed to be doing?
So this leads me to another question, are there other avenues to do what the lodge offers without having to meet to pay bills, or plan events? Is the competition today different than what it was before (say 50-100 years ago)?
In the next post, let’s look at some of the competition. What do you do when you’re not doing Masonry?
Hopefully this response will find each of you Immortal Light Beings within the best of health, spirits and the 4 immeasurable states of mind: joy, love, compassion and equanimity. As we all are enrolled by the Universe in Earth school, our studies, in respect to truth, will vary as each of us spiral upward in degrees towards Infinity of becoming One again; hence the notion that there will come a point when all truths blend and become Truth. With that said, allow me to bring to the attention one of the lesser known truths regarding the Square & Compass.
Freemasonry stresses the concept that one needs to not only subscribe to a livelihood of high ethics, but that one needs to also lead a life of high moral standards. On the Volume of Sacred Law, within every lodge, Freemasonry presents an incomplete Star Tetrahedron. As many are unaware, just as many have discovered that the Star Tetrahedron possesses the symbol (Pentalpha) that King Solomon used to construct the Temple. Recently I wrote a post regarding Sulayman being a Magician, and I’m sure that some will find it to be quite disturbing only to discover the type of energy Solomon used to raise the Temple was far from ordinary hands — which gives a new revelation to the phrase “…a house not made with hands” — and as to why the Craft most likely terms our new Initiates as “Cornerstones,” and thus they are placed within the Northeastern corner, but this is not the purpose of this post.
As Solomon used the symbol to raise the Temple, so shall we raise our personal Temple by the symbol of the Square & Compass. Once one has raised his personal Temple figuratively, then consciously he is able to raise his Temple literally. While one can gather that the Square & Compass represents the sexual union of a male and female, during the most natural of all positions (Missionary Position), the legs actually form a Square and Compass. The Square would be the feminine principle and the Compass would be the male principle. In the center of this Square and Compass, or sexual union, is the act and/or center of Creation itself… just like our letter “G.” It takes no stretch of the imagination; just look at you emblem. One can also gather the incomplete Star of David, the natural, but non-sexual, fusion of the Sacred Feminine and Sacred Man as well as many other allusions. However, the following would be the most obscure: Merkabah or Merkaba (Light Vehicle).
Take notice of the placement of the male and female energy symbols.
Mer – (Light) Ka – (Spirit) Ba – (Body)
The Merkaba is an inter-dimensional vehicle with counter-rotating fields of energy or light (wheel within a wheel) and is housed at the base of the spine along with the serpentine power known as Kundalini or K-energy. Kundalini is an energy that is coiled around the base of the spine (like a snake) and travels along the spinal cord, in a winding fashion, through each of the chakras as one becomes more “awake.” [See Side Note 1 Below]
This vehicle has been used by the Ascended Masters such as Yeshua, Ezekiel, Buddha, Muhammad, Krishna, Moses, Ankhnaten, Leonardo and many other illumined sages to access various dimensions or higher realms. This vehicle, or the Merkaba, raises the Astral Temple from the 3rd dimensional plane into the remaining 4 dimensions; or the remaining 141 dimensions depending upon one’s school of thought. 141… where have we seen that before? {…chuckling…}
Do you remember when you were Raised that you changed angles by 90 degrees? Within the study of quantum physics, each dimension is separated by a 90-degree rotation. When you change wavelengths and rotate 90 degrees, you will disappear from this world and reappear in whatever dimension you are tuned-in to. The images that you see on this physical plane or 3rd dimensional realm would change according to the wavelength of the realm that you have entered. Our planet has many different worlds; they are all right here, but most of us are only viewing the maya or illusory realm because the human conscience has been preconditioned to tune in to one particular wavelength.
Though one may travel, via their Merkaba, to other dimensional levels, if your consciousness is not fully developed, you will not be strong enough to handle the higher vibrational levels and therefore will not be able to stay for an extended period. Certain beings, however, have managed to move through all the dimensional levels and remain conscious. They are known as Melchizedek’s. The level of a Melchizedek is realized when the consciousness has been fully developed or completely circumscribed and squared.
I can understand that this information can be hard to accept or one may even laugh at it; that is expected. But allow me to ask you a question: When was the last time you dreamed vividly standing up? Other realms (dreamworld) are involuntarily accessed when one changes angles (sleeps); however, these realms can be accessed without changing angles when one has come to master the mind. Many state that dreams are not real; nothing could be further from the Truth. The reason one does not “die” has been explained by one of the first rules of thermodynamics: Energy cannot be created or destroyed; only transferred or transformed. We are all made of pure light and energy. No matter which realm one is experiencing, he or she will and cannot “die.” [See Side Note 2 Below]
The physical body is not energy; it is the electricity (light) and soul, or spirit, that is the energy that propels the body. The only things that are not real are those things that are temporary; such as our current realm on the 3rd dimensional plane. This world is a school for the consciousness — just as the lodge represents the world and is a school for the conscience of a speculative Mason.
The symbols, of the superimposed Square & Compasses, are missing 2 parallel lines that will create a two-dimensional image of the Merkaba. The two parallel lines that are missing are the two pillars that you by-passed and often one will find the emblem within the middle of these two parallel lines, or pillars, in various artworks and depictions. It is up to you to take these keys and place them within their respective lock(s). These two parallel lines also represent a particular work within Alchemy that states “As Above, So Below,” as one pillar correlates to the celestial (Above) and the adjacent pillar represents the terrestrial (Below). It is also up to the work of an alchemist (Freemason) as to whether or not he will realize The Great Work or bring into fruition “As Above, So Below.”
A true alchemist will tell you that the “hidden stone” can only be found by journeying inside the hidden earth and then rectifying it. I am inter-mingling different sciences because I am trying to show that it is true that “all roads lead to Rome;” better yet even, all roads lead to Home. On every Masons ring, that bears a Square & Compass, the addition of 2 parallel lines (pillars) will create the symbol, used by Solomon, to raise the Temple. [See Side Note 3 Below]
Not only will these 2 lines create the symbol that Solomon used to construct his temple, and will enable each person to raise their own Temple, but it is also an every day reminder that if one will finish The Great Work and realize “As Above, So Below,” he will then have Raised his own Kundalini, truly become Crown Conscious, and will possess the power to activate the Merkaba at the base of the spine … thereby giving him passage to truly “Travel Light” … (chuckling) … and some thought the phrase was just a figure of speech.
[Side note 1: It is interesting to note that before one can “travel” within Speculative Freemasonry, he must first take passage via the flight of winding stairs. Within the realm of metaphysics, it has been overstood that before one can “travel” using their Merkaba, they must first raise their Kundalini — or wind the serpent up the stairs (chakras) of the spine.]
[Side Note 2:I know of only Life; death does not exist… death is but a phantom of one’s ignorance and fear. A change, however awful, demonstrates movement and movement is Life; those who have attempted to check the disrobing of the Spirit have tried to create a real death. We are all dying and being renewed everyday, because everyday our bodies have changed to some extent. Each of us are immortals. As a matter of fact, Jeremiah (1:5) stated that the Lord said: “Before you were in the womb, I knew you.” That’s because you and I have always existed. Energy cannot be created nor destroyed; only transformed if not transferred.
Think about it… it is impossible to go from mortal to immortality. One has a definite beginning — the other does not; meditate on that for a day or two.
Heaven and Hell are created by the mind… simple concepts to explain a complex truth.
Reincarnation… this simply means to be born anew in another body after death; it does not necessarily mean a “physical form;” however, if this was the case and argument, did not Jesus mention that John the Baptist was Elijah reincarnate? Does not a particular Volume of Sacred Law, that houses the book of Revelation, speak of the 2 saints returning in the flesh to preach to the masses? Does not the plethora of Volumes of Sacred Laws teach that you will be given “a new body” if you have “personally confessed or acknowledged your sins and/or karma” and from that point have led a life of “righteousness?”
Now maybe not here (within this place of existence), but sounds to me that somewhere your prana, energy, life-force, consciousness, or vibrational signature will “reincarnate” or take on a “new body” as the energy is transferred and you transform from one manifestation to another.
Each of the Volumes of Sacred Law(s) address particular truths that other respective volumes may fail to mention. When one consolidates these truths… then he’ll find the Absolute. Hence the reasoning our Craft accepts all creeds, or truths, so that one will meet and dwell within the Absolute. Which many are unaware, but at some point in time, one will come to overstand that there is no need to dwell within the Absolute because one will come to self-realization that the Absolute dwells within him and that he is All and the All is One. The macrocosm exists within the microcosm. Again, the Macrocosm exists within the Microcosm.]
[Side Note 3:The Square & Compass is also a reminder of man realizing his divinity by perfecting his heart. When one closes the physical eyes, beauty ceases to exist; actions cease to exist because they cannot be witnessed. What remains is/are the intention(s) of the heart and consciousness. It is true that one can become perfect while enrolled in Earth school; all of the illumined sages, that have come before us and presently, have been and are lively demonstrated examples of perfection attained here on Earth school. Each illumined sage attained perfection in the form of flesh. The reason many never realize perfection is because many still judge the action(s) of others — when they should be weighing the intention(s) of themselves — therefore leaving and rendering the judgment flawed; as opposed to an unbiased and perfected judgement of the Self. This concept can be found within one of the Volumes of Sacred Laws I Samuel 16:7 and within the ancient system of Ma’at. Our actions are influenced by our thoughts; when one can can originate intention(s), thought(s) and action(s) from Love and selfless desire… the results will be “perfect.” ]
In closing, I will reaffirm my mental mantra regarding the Craft:
An Entered Apprentice is one who has awakened to self-realization, a true Fellow of the Craft is one who has begun the Path to Enlightenment… while a true Master is one who has mastered the mind.
“Mind the mind; the wise tame themselves and if you tame yourself you’re wise.” ~ Buddha
Keep the mind attuned to a positive frequency!
Techqua Ikachi
In’lakech
Ekam Sat
Brother Isaiah
11 Tones :: Ahau
W.C. Thomas 112
MWPHGL of Georgia
…former owner of the blog: Kingdom of Conscience ~ Osiris
which is a new examination of Kabbalah and its interconnectivity with Freemasonry. In it, he demonstrates how there are different interpretations of Freemasonry that can be found in the Sephirot and Paths, exploring Gematria and Masonic ritual.
