Can anyone tell me what a free mason is?

Question

I don't like them, everytime I see one, i don't get a good vibe from them, can anyone tell me their purpose in life?

Answer 1

Freemasons are a fraternity "men only" There is also a female version called the Eastern Star. They have three appendent bodies the York Rite, Scottish Rite, and Shriners. Masons raise money for charity providing millions of dollars a day to various charities and it costs about 8 million a day to run a Shriners hospital where a child is treated at no charge. A society of secrets rather than a secret society all our rituals are plastered all over the Internet. But our grips,keys, and tokens are kept as secret as possible in the information age. We are not devil worshipers we are your neighbors who help others and each other.

Answer 2

Freemasons are a semi-secretive order who meet regularly in a building they call a "Lodge".

They raise money for charity and also support their fellow members if they get into financial or other difficulties. As an example, when my father (who was a Freemason) was very ill with cancer, the Masons provided my family with financial support and paid for him to spend time in a private nursing home.

They believe in God, or as they prefer to term it, a "Supreme Being" and generally do good for the community.

Because they are a secretive organisation there are many rumours and suspicions about what else they might do. There was a minor scandal in the UK a few years back when it was revealed that most senior police officers were Freemasons - leading to accusations of preferential promotions for masons over non-masons.

As they have their own hierarchy or order of seniority, it is often the case that within a Lodge, a person with a relatively low social status outside would be more senior inside. For example, my grandfather was a bus driver but he was also the most senior Freemason in the whole of North East London, covering many Lodges. This also leads to suspicions and accusations at times by people who feel the "natural order" or things is upset by such arrangements.

Answer 3

Sorry you do not get "a good vibe" from Freemasons. You see, I am a Freemason of an esoteric Order (American Co-Masonry). I will write a bit from our viewpoint, but understand that the word "free" is a very real part of being a Freemason. There are many who are Freemasons and all are free to interpret certain things their own way.

The purpose, as I see it, to being a Freemason is to improve yourself. That does not mean becoming a member of a gang of rich folks. Fact is in my Order we have folks who are pretty middle class, some who are just barely making it, and some who are doing ok. I am a teacher, kind of in the top middle economically.

What I mean about "improving" is that we try to work on things in ourselves that keep us from being at peace within ourselves. Give you a for instance: I was getting older, having trouble with my hearing, shutting off communication with folks. What did my Lodge need? A Secretary! The head of my Lodge asked me to be Secretary. So what do I have to do? Listen closely at the Lodge meeting, take notes, send out things by snail mail (which I was always bad at), and keep records. Becoming Secretary to my Lodge has helped me. I did not want the job; but when the head of the Lodge (the Right Worshipful Master) asks you to do it, you generally do.

In my Order, we are not men only BTW. We are women and men, equally admitted to all of the rights and privileges. That is why we are called Co-Masons. We accept folks who are at least 21 years old, all races, who believe in a Supreme Being, who are tolerant of folks of all religions and races, who are not slaves, who are of good reputation (we do not want felons or bad guys), who want to improve the world by improving themselves.

After all, what of this world can you change? Only yourself, right? We use the symbols of the stone masons because human thought and habit are truly as hard to change as stone is to shape.

We are not a religion. We are a system of morality. We concentrate on the here and now: how should we treat each other. You might read a lot of guff about Masons only helping other Masons. That is not true. All Orders of Masons help folks outside Masonry. The masculine only groups have the Shriners who have hospitals for burned and crippled children. We contribute to them and to women's shelters and other worthy causes. And sure, we help fellow Masons. Just like you would help a family member in need or someone you were friends with.

So, all generalizations are false, including this one. Freemasons are a widely diverse group of men and women. The folks I know in my Order, American Co-Masonry, are good people. The ones I have met in the masculine rite are pretty nice folk too. Maybe you just got one or two bad samples. Hope you keep your mind open and keep asking about.

Regards,
A Master Mason
American Co-Masonry

Hiram Lodge (Santa Cruz, CA)
Amon Ra Lodge (Los Angeles, CA)
Sapientia Lodge of Research (Larkspur, CO)
Adamant Mark Lodge (Santa Cruz, CA)

Answer 4

Freemasonry is a fraternal organization whose membership is held together by shared moral and metaphysical ideals and—in most of its branches—by a constitutional declaration of belief in a Supreme Being.

The fraternity of Freemasonry uses the allegorical metaphors of operative stonemasons' tools and implements against the backdrop of the building of the Temple of King Solomon, to convey what is most generally defined as: A peculiar (some say particular or beautiful) system of morality veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols. This is illustrated in the 1991 English Emulation Ritual.

It is an esoteric society only in that certain aspects are private; Freemasons have stated that Freemasonry has, in the 21st century, become less a secret society and more of a "society with secrets." Dr. Dieter Anton Binder, a historian (and not a Freemason) who is a professor at the University of Graz (Austria) describes Freemasonry as a "confidential" society in contrast to a secret society in his book Die diskrete Gesellschaft. Most modern Freemasons regard the traditional concern over secrecy as a demonstration of their ability to keep a promise and a concern over the privacy of their own affairs. "Lodge meetings, like meetings of many other social and professional associations, are private occasions open only to members." The private aspects of modern Freemasonry deal with the modes of recognition amongst members and elements within the ritual.

While there have been many disclosures and exposés dating as far back as the eighteenth century, Freemasons caution that these often lack the proper context for true understanding, may be outdated for various reasons, or could be outright hoaxes on the part of the author. Freemasons are proud of their heritage and are happy to share it, offering spokesmen, briefings for the media, and providing talks to interested groups upon request.

Answer 5

the Masons is a group of men, who have many outreaches. Free masonry is part of the traditions. They completely run the Hospitals for Children that is free to any child. My Father was a Mason, Please talk to someone at your local lodge, Unfortunately there are always some who must make trouble for those trying to do good. Betty L

Answer 6

I am surprised you have come across even more than one. I like to call it a group of deep thinkers. We study things the world has forgot about or just doesn't care about due to material obligations etc etc/