What are those Freemasons really up to?

Question

Freemasonry is a very interesting topic to me and I'm just wondering if there are any good resources out there. Has anyone (like an exmember) leaked any of their secrets over the years to the public?

I guess I've been intrigued since I started paying attention to the Masonic Temple in my own town. Oddly enough, the building is uniformally covered with windows except for a large portion on one side of the building. It is fairly obvious that this is a section of the building that they dont want to the public seeing anything about. What is going on in there?

I am aware that they do many good things including donating much money to charity. I was also aware that the Shriners have a very close tie to or are a part of the Freemasons. I never said that they were up to anything sinister, I simply am wondering what they are so secretive about.

Answer 1

I don't think that they are as sinister as everybody would like to believe. My grandad and dad were masons, but I'm not. However, my friend IS a mason and he got married in their local (temple?) and I will say....there is some wierd s*** in there! In the room he got married were these wierd pillars and stuff - no kidding it looked like the set of a bad action movie.

Answer 2

Nothing very exciting or exotic. Over the years exposees have been published describing the "rites". A little research in a large reference library will reveal some of those books. I suspect that the net has material but I haven't checked. I did a lot of research before I joined to make sure I agreed with what they do. Incidentally the shriners organisation requires high level Masonic membership as a condition for joining. They do a lot of good charity work.
D.
Many lodges allow the public in to see the interior of the lodge, once a year.. Though they do not open their rites to non-members.

Answer 3

I am a Freemason. What we are up to is really simple. Masonry makes good men better. We teach charity, humility, honesty, equality, and brotherhood for all mankind. We emphasize a respect for spiritual values (whatever values those might be). As someone said above, we are not a secret society, but a society with secrets. Indeed, the only true secrets among modern Masons are the signs of recognition. Our ceremonies are conducted behind closed doors to emphasize the importance of the symbolism and the message contained in that symbolism. The Masons, and their appendant bodies like the Shriners, the Order of the Eastern Star, the Scottish Rite, and the York Rite, give billions of dollars annually to charity. The Shriner's Children's Hospitals are world-renowned for their effectiveness is helping crippled children. And not a single child or their family has ever paid one dime for treatment there. The Scottish Rite Learning Centers provide counselling and help for thousands of children who have learning disabilities. And not one child or their family has paid one dime for help there. This is what Freemasons are up to.

And to correct a misconception, all Shriners are Masons, but not all Masons are Shriners.

And Freemasonry is NOT a religion. Religions require their members to be exclusive. All religions are welcome in Masonry. I regularly sit in lodge with Protestants, Catholics, Mormons, Jews, and "Nature Worshipers" (I don't know what to call them, but their Supreme Being is more like the "Force" in Star Wars). We are all equal in Masonry.

And the entire ritual can be found on the internet in different places. Like I said before, the only things that Masons truly hold to be secret are the signs of recognition.

Answer 4

Just up to trying to make you guess what they are up to. Probably nothing, but it is kind of fun to keep you off guard. Remember, the Masons are Shriners too, most of the time. And the Shrine Lodge totally supports the Shrine children's hospital where children can be treated for free. Now how bad can that be?

Answer 5

My husband is a former officer in the Masons. He insists they are not a secret society, they are a society with secrets. And though many of their ceremonies are off-limits to the public, it's more like a closed-door meeting than anything else. They do have some strange ceremonies, but they are intended to be purely symbolic. I have heard my husband use one of the lines of the ceremonies which seems to fit them--"You may have my life, but my integrity, never." The compass and square in their symbol are intended to remind them to be "on the square" in their dealings with others. The "G" stands for God.

Answer 6

A minister that I used to have when I used to attend church (he's the reason I quit)...anyways he became the minister of my mother's church and he preached against the Masons and kicked them out of church. All in all half the congregation ended up quitting because they didn't like his judgemental ways. I can understand that. I think he was a bad minister because he basically believed that if you were any kind of sinner you shouldn't be going to his church. Kind of a hypocrite since he used to be into all the drugs and boozing and he lived with his wife before marriage....but how dare anyone who does that, go to his church!!

Doesn't answer your question but I see it's already been covered.

Answer 7

MANY of the Founding Fathers of the USA were Freemasons... check your history books. And, it might surprise you, so were some of the great philosophers from the 1700s to present.

Relax, nothing nefarious is being planned... they're benefit every society they've been involved in in more ways than just donations... they're promoted free thinking, democracy and many of the things we take for granted today in democracies...

Answer 8

from a lot of people ive heard that most are nice, honest people that donate charity and all that good stuff, but the master masons and higher up in the ranks (many whom have children who talk about this) which usually means $$ are corrupt and do rituals like bohemian grove so it kind of blurrs the line between what we know and dont know hope that helped =)

Answer 9

ya know mostly they are up to doing good works in their own community, helping out widows and children....

and in those secret places.... they simply carry out ceremonies the like of which can be seen in oh so many other organisations such as clubs and churchs throughout the world....

and they can't tell you because hundreds of years ago when membership of secret societies could get you killed they devised an oath to never tell out of tradition.... theymaintain that oath today..

Oh and the pillars.... that's the salt and pepper shakers from old king solomons temple..... lol

Answer 10

hmmm...im also interested, i've recently just been informed of them-i mean i always hrd their name but never really paid attention to it...im interested