Riding the Goat – Symbols and Symbolism

In this edition of Symbols and Symbolism, we look at a reading from Albert G. Mackey’s Encyclopedia of Freemasonry on the subject of Riding the Goat.

Goat riding is one of those superstition that permeates most every corner of fraternal initiation. Not exclusively a Masonic institution, goat riding or making candidates “ride the goat” has been an aspect of hazing fueled initiation meant to scare and embarrass neophytes and initiates joining the institution. Yet, the practice seems to have a more succinct history involving ancient pagan practice and ritual.

You can find more installments here: Symbols & Symbolism and on YouTube.

The vulgar idea that “riding the goat” constitutes a part of the ceremonies of initiation in a Masonic Lodge has its real origin in the superstition of antiquity. The old Greeks and Romans portrayed their mystical god Pan in horns and hoof and shaggy hide, and called him “goat-footed.” When the demonology of the classics was adopted and modified by the early Christians, Pan gave way to Satan, who naturally inherited his attributes; so that to the common mind the Devil was represented by a he-goat, and his best known marks were the horns, the beard, and the cloven hoofs. Then came the witch stories of the Middle Ages, and the belief in the witch orgies, where, it was said, the Devil appeared riding on a goat. These orgies of the witches, where, amid fearfully blasphemous ceremonies, they practiced initiation into their Satanic Rites, became, to the vulgar and the illiterate, the type of the Masonic Mysteries; for, as Dr. Oliver says, it was in England a common belief that the Freemasons were accustomed in their Lodges “to raise the Devil.” So the “riding of the goat,” which was believed to be practiced by the witches, was transferred to the Freemasons; and the saying remains to this day although the belief has very long since died out.

Devil Gets His Due

Remember back at the beginning of 2013 when Mercedes-Benz ran an ad featuring Willem Dafoe as the devil seductively attempting to buy the soul of a young man for the price of a car?  In the ad, you may recall, the devilish antagonist (Dafoe) attempts to seduce a young man to trade his soul for a life of glitz, celebrity and excess that comes from owning a spiffy new Benz.

If you haven’t seen the new commercial yet, have a look for yourself of what change looks like.

(The video has since been taken offline)

Just in case you missed it in the spot, you can clearly see the devil’s new ring at the bottom of this post.

The devil, however, was no red pajama wearing horned jape with a pitchfork and pointy tail.  Rather, Mercedes portrayed him as a suave, well coiffed debonair gentleman (albeit with pointy fingernails) who also happens to be wearing an easily recognizable Masonic ring.

Right as the commercial starts, the Square and Compass was almost immediately noticeable (albeit in a quick flash on the screen).  Seeing it used this way took more than a few by surprise.  The original video published on YouTube has been taken down but you can still find it with a quick search.

Recently, the ad, featuring Kate Upton, Usher and of course Willem Dafoe, from February’s big football game, made its way back on the air waves this time, noticeably, without the use of the Freemason symbolism.  It appears that Mercedes-Benz has removed the square and compass from the original commercial.

How, or why the square and compass came off is a bit of a mystery.  After a brief search, I couldn’t turn up any press release or announcement saying it was being revised.  Maybe this kind of change isn’t the sort of thing you state publicly?

Perhaps the change came from a deluge of comments and messages to Mercedes-Benz on Facebook the day the ad appeared.

Or, perhaps it was the post that went up about it on Mark Koltko-Rivera’s blog Freemasonry: Reality, Myth, and Legend, reposted here alerting those watching the day the commercial aired.

Maybe it was the petition that was started on Change.org (Mercedes-benz: Remove the Masonic Ring shot in your Super Bowl commercial titled, “Soul”. ) asking the iconic world wide brand Mercedes-Benz to, respectfully, remove the sacred symbol and stop a vicious cycle of linking Freemasonry with Satanism.  With more than 2,800 signatures on the petition to date, whose to say if the auto manufacturer and  felt the pressure to remove the tell tale symbol of Freemasonry.

But, change it they have.

Now the commercial, in both its long and short form, no longer bears the distinctive emblem of the fraternity prompting us to say:

Thanks Mercedes-Benz for breaking the cycle of linking Freemasonry and Satanism.

Now who can say that the Freemasons still dosen’t  hold some sway…

Old Ad, New Ring, at 00:12
masonic ring new commercial

And, from later on in the extended cut commercial at 01:19

masonic ring new commercial 2

And, the before and afters:

mercedes changes ring side by side 1

mercedes changes ring side by side 2

Mercedes-Benz links Freemasonry with Satanism in Super Bowl Ad

The following comes from Mark Koltko-Rivera’s blog, Freemasonry: Reality, Myth, and Legend, and is cross posted here to communicate as far as possible.

mercedes-benz, satan, square and compass

In his piece, Mark skillfully reminds Mercedes-Benz of the atrocities during the holocaust that befell European Freemasons under the Nazi regime using Satanist Masonic propaganda like their commercial (see below) to put to death many members of the fraternity.

While I doubt Mercedes-Benz is purposefully linking Freemasonry and Satanism, by including the Masonic square and compass in such a manner could not be taken in any other way and is a thumb in the eye to the history of the fraternity.  For context, all one need to do is examine the connection between Anti-Masonic Nazi propaganda and it’s horrific effects on the fraternity in Europe.

Mark and I both strongly urge you to let Mercedes-Benz know how offensive the commercial is which you can do on their online comment form or on their Facebook Page, or sign the petition on Change.org.

From Mark Koltko-Rivera:

Mercedes-Benz Super Bowl Commercial Links Freemasonry to Satan

Mercedes-Benz, commercial, Super Bowl, Satanism

Tomorrow, during the television broadcast of the Super Bowl, Mercedes-Benz will officially unveil its commercial for the all-new CLA-class automobile. It’s a terrific commercial. Unfortunately, it also is a monumental libel upon Freemasonry.

You can see the commercial for yourself here. The commercial features the talented Willem Dafoe (shown above) in a great turn as Satan.

(the video has since been taken off-line)

No, Dafoe’s character is never actually named Satan, but the soundtrack features the Rolling Stones’ “Sympathy for the Devil” (available here with lyrics in the notes). More to the point, Dafoe’s character presents the protagonist with a contract to sign, a contract which has already been executed under the seal of “the Master of Devils and Demons” (translating the Latin, seen below). No reasonable person could see the commercial and think that Dafoe’s character is anyone other than Satan or one of his minions.

William Dafoe, devil, satan, mercedes benz

Here’s the thing: Satan is depicted as wearing a Masonic ring—on his left ring finger, yet!—easily visible at several points in the commercial, some of which feature close-up shots of Satan’s hands (two shown below).

1 Mercedes-Benz 2013 Super Bowl Commercial
satan, masonic ring, mercedes benz


(The pointy fingernails, à la the Devil in the film Rosemary’s Baby, are an especially nice touch, don’t you think?)

The implication is clear: Mercedes-Benz links Freemasonry to Satan. (Yes, I know, this particular ring shows that the Devil hasn’t gotten very far in Masonry, but that’s not the point.)

There are, of course, those who would say we should just ignore this in the spirit of good fun. Except that it’s not good fun to have to answer to people who think that Freemasons are devil-worshipping Satanists.

Last Wednesday night, I attended the Special Communication of the American Lodge of Research, at Masonic Hall, in New York City. (Facebook page here.) Those in attendance heard a paper on the topic, “Freemasonry and the Holocaust,” by Brother C. Moran (which will appear later this year in the published Proceedings). During the presentation, I was struck by the parallels between the situation of the German Masons in the 1930’s, and our Masonic situation today.

To a surprisingly large extent, these Masons faced the same outrageous accusations that Masons today are faced with: that Masonry is an international conspiracy, and so forth. The Taxil hoax occurred only about forty years or so before the Nazis came to power, and many people throughout Europe believed that Masons worshiped Lucifer. Sound familiar? All of this helped to create a climate where thousands of thousands of German and other European Masons would be imprisoned in concentration camps—and many murdered—by the Nazis during the Holocaust.

The Mercedes-Benz people, knowingly or not, are perpetuating a dangerous myth by linking Freemasonry with Satan. I think we should complain about this—in great numbers. The following is the text of the e-mail that I am sending to Mercedes-Benz through their online comment form. Feel free to adapt it for your own comment, if you wish:

During the 2013 Super Bowl, Mercedes-Benz /plans to show/showed/ a television commercial, titled “Soul,” about the new CLA. It features a character portraying Satan, who clearly wears a Masonic ring in plain sight on his left ring finger.

This linking of Freemasonry to Satan is no joke. It was rumors like this that set the stage for the imprisonment and murders of thousands of Freemasons in Europe by Nazis during the Holocaust. The false rumor that Freemasons worship Satan is alive and well among millions of Americans today. Mercedes-Benz is adding fuel to the fire of that defamation with this television commercial.

Surely, to sell cars, Mercedes-Benz would not jokingly link Jews to Satanism (another popular rumor during the Nazi era). It would be good to not jokingly link Freemasons to Satanism either.

There are over a million Masons in the United States. None of them are pleased about this.

Sincerely,

Mark Koltko-Rivera
Master Mason
Winter Park Lodge #239 Free and Accepted Masons (Florida)
The American Lodge of Research (New York)

Masons need to stand up to people who make outrageous slanders and libels against our community. Let’s do that here.

Masons need to stand up to people who make outrageous slanders and libels against our community. Let’s do that here.