free masons?

Question

are they a religion? a satinic cult? does anybody outside of them really know? where did they originate?

anyone who is a freemason email me please

[e-mail]

Answer 1

My grandfather was a Past Master of the Masons, there is nothing evil or santanic about it. The Following U.S. presidents were masons
George Washington

James Monroe

Andrew Jackson

James Polk

James Buchanan

Andrew Johnson

James Garfield

William McKinley

Theodore Roosevelt

William Taft

Warren Harding

Franklin Roosevelt

Harry Truman

Gerald Ford

History of Masons is below.

History of Freemasonry
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Main article: Freemasonry
The History of Freemasonry studies the development, evolution and events of the fraternal organization known as Freemasonry. This history is generally separated into two time periods: before and after the formation of the Grand Lodge of England in 1717. Before this time, the facts and origins of Freemasonry are not absolutely known and are therefore frequently explained by theories or legends. After the formation of the Grand Lodge of England, the history of Freemasonry is extremely well-documented and can be traced through the creation of hundreds of Grand Lodges that spread rapidly worldwide.

Contents [hide]
1 From origin to 18th Century Freemasonry
1.1 Origin theories of speculative freemasonry
1.2 Name origins
1.3 From historical foundation to 1717
1.4 Creation of the Grand Lodge of England
1.5 The introduction of the Third Degree
1.6 The "Ancients" and "Moderns" Grand Lodges
1.7 Early Freemasonry in the United States (1733-1799)
1.8 Establishment of Prince Hall Freemasonry (1775-1827)
2 19th Century Freemasonry
2.1 The Union of 1813
2.2 The Morgan Affair and Decline in American Freemasonry (1826 - c.1850)
2.3 Freemasons and the Paris Commune
2.4 The great schism of 1877
2.5 Taxil hoax
3 20th Century Freemasonry
3.1 Freemasonry under Totalitarian Regimes (1900-current)
4 Notes
5 See also
6 External links



[edit] From origin to 18th Century Freemasonry

[edit] Origin theories of speculative freemasonry
In the ritual context Freemasonry employs an allegorical foundation myth - the foundation of the fraternity by the builders of King Solomon’s Temple.

Beyond myth, there is a distinct absence of documentation as to Freemasonry’s origins, which has led to a great deal of speculation among historians and pseudo-historians alike, both from within and from outside the fraternity. Hundreds of books have been written on the subject. Much of the content of these books is highly speculative, and the precise origins of Freemasonry may very well be permanently lost to history. The scant evidence that is available, points to the origins of Freemasonry as a fraternity that simply evolved out of the Operative Lodges of the middle ages.

The origin of Freemasonry has variously been attributed to:[1]

King Solomon, and the construction of the Temple at Jerusalem,[2]
Euclid, or Pythagoras,[2]
The Patriarchal Religion, Moses, the Pagan Mysteries, The Essenes, The Culdees, The Druids, The Gypsies, or the Rosicrucians[2]
the intellectual descendants of Noah[3]
an institutional outgrowth of the medieval guilds of stonemasons, [4][5]
a direct descendant of the "Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem" (the Knights Templar)[3][6]
an offshoot of the ancient mystery schools,[7]
an administrative arm of the Priory of Sion,[8]
the intellectual descendants of the Roman Collegia[9]
the intellectual descendants of the Comacine masters[10]
the German Steinmetzen, or the French Compagnonage[2]
Oliver Cromwell, or the Stuart Pretender to the British Crown; Lord Francis Bacon, Viscount St. Alban, Baron Verulam[2]
Sir Christopher Wren and the rebuilding of St. Paul's Cathedral[2]
survivor of late 17th Century, enlightenment period, fashion for fraternal bodies with no real connections at all to earlier organizations (although various documents pre-dating the 17th Century tend to disprove this theory).

[edit] Name origins
The medieval stonemasons were sometimes known as "freemasons."[11] Historians have suggested several origins of the term:

From the French term franc Maçon, a mason working in a Lodge that has been granted a franchise by the Church to work on Church Property and free from taxation or regulation by the King or the local Municipality.[12]
From the French "frere Macon" literally meaning "brother Mason"
From Free Men, that is they were not Serfs or Indentured, and free to travel from one work location to another.
From working in "freestone," a type of quarry stone, and they were therefore Freestone Masons.[13]

[edit] From historical foundation to 1717
The early development of Freemasonry has two distinct growth periods:[14]

Stage 1. Operative Freemasonry - associated with the craft guilds. Ritual elements are simple and there is no evidence beyond a rudimentary philosophical outlook.
Stage 2. Freemasonry of the late 16th Century and into the 17th Century. Surviving Scottish Lodge records, as early as the 1630s, show a gentrification process - a transition from Operative to Speculative Freemasonry - evidenced by increasing non-operative notable gentleman within the membership. [15] Virtually no records of English lodges survive prior to the, speculative, Grand Lodge period of 1717 onwards. The purely speculative ritual and lectures of William Preston (1742-1818) demonstrate an increasing use of a ritual infusion of Enlightenment philosophy.[16]
A credible historical source asserting the antiquity of Freemasonry is the Halliwell Manuscript, or Regius Poem - believed to date from ca. 1390. This makes reference to several concepts and phrases similar to those found in Freemasonry.[17] The manuscript itself seems to be an elaboration on an earlier document, to which it refers.

There is also the Cooke Manuscript, dated 1430 - the Constitution of German stonemasons.[17] The first appearance of the word 'Freemason' occurs in the Statutes of the Realm enacted in 1495 by Henry VII of England, however, most other documentary evidence prior to the 1500s appears to relate entirely to operative Masons.[17]

By 1583, the date of the Grand Lodge manuscript,[17] the documentary evidence begins to grow. The Schaw Statues of 1598-9(4) are the source used to declare the precedence of Lodge Mother Kilwinning in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland over Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary's Chapel) in Edinburgh. These are described as Head and Principal respectively. As a side note, following a dispute over numbering at the formation of the Grand Lodge of Scotland (GLS) - Kilwinning is numbered as Lodge Mother Kilwinning Number 0 (pronounced 'Nothing'), GLS. Quite soon thereafter, a charter was granted to Sir William St. Clair (later Sinclair) of Roslin (Rosslyn), allowing him to purchase jurisdiction over a number of lodges in Edinburgh and environs.[17] This may be the basis of the Templar myth surrounding Rosslyn Chapel.

The Regius Poem and Cooke manuscript, about 1390 and 1410 respectively, are written in the dialects of the west and southwest of England, and may have been written for the school of masonry associated with Salisbury Cathedral.

Early operative Freemasons, unlike virtually all Europeans except the Clergy, were Free - not bound to the land on which they were born.[citation needed] The various skills required in building complex stone structures, especially churches and cathedrals, allowed skilled masons to travel and find work at will. They were lodged in a temporary structure - either attached to, or near, the main stone building.[citation needed] In this lodge, they ate, slept and received their work assignments from the master of the work. To maintain the freedom they enjoyed required exclusivity of skills, and thus, as an apprentice was trained, his instructor attached moral values to the tools of the trade, binding him to his fellows of the craft.[citation needed]

Freemasonry's transition from a craft guild of operative, working stonemasons into a fraternity of speculative, accepted, gentleman Freemasons began in Scottish lodges during the early 1600s. The earliest record of a lodge accepting a non-operative member occurs in the records of the Lodge of Edinburgh(Mary's Chapel), 8 June 1600, where it is shown that John Boswell, Laird of Aucheinleck, was present at a meeting. The first record of the initiation of a non-operative mason in a lodge is contained in the minutes of the Lodge of Edinburgh(Mary's Chapel) for 3 July 1634, when the Right Honourable Lord Alexander was admitted a Fellowcraft.[13] The first record of the Initiation of a non-operative on English soil, was in 1641 when Sir Robert Moray was admitted to the Lodge of Edinburgh (Mary's Chapel) at Newcastle.

From the early 1600s references are found to Freemasonry in personal diaries and journals. Elias Ashmole (1617-1692), was made a Mason in 1646, and notes attending several Masonic meetings. There appears to be a general spread of the Craft, between Ashmole's account and 1717, when four English Lodges meeting in London Taverns joined together and founded the Grand Lodge of England (GLE). They had held meetings, respectively, at the Apple-Tree Tavern, the Crown Ale-House near Drury Lane, the Goose and Gridiron in St. Paul's Churchyard, and the Rummer and Grapes Tavern in Westminster.[17]

With the foundation of this first Grand Lodge, Freemasonry shifted from being an obscure, relatively private, institution into the public eye. The years following saw new Grand Lodges open throughout Europe. How much of this growth was the spreading of Freemasonry itself, and how much was due to the public organization of pre-existing private Lodges, is uncertain.


[edit] Creation of the Grand Lodge of England
Organized Freemasonry in London was established on 24 June 1717 when four London lodges came together at the Goose and Gridiron Ale House in St Paul’s Churchyard and formed the Premier Grand Lodge of England, which was the first Grand Lodge of Freemasons to be publicly created in England after George I, the first Hanoverian king of the Kingdom of Great Britain ascended to the throne on 1 August 1714.

See also The United Grand Lodge of England


[edit] The introduction of the Third Degree
In 1723, James Anderson wrote and published The Constitutions of the Free-Masons, For the Use of the Lodges in London and Westminster. This work was reprinted in Philadelphia in 1734 by Benjamin Franklin, who was that year elected Grand Master of the Masons of Pennsylvania.

Sometime after 1725, a third degree, the Master Mason's degree, began to be worked in London lodges. Its origins are unknown, and it may be older than its recorded appearance indicates. But it does not appear in the records of any lodge until April 1727, and its actual conferral does not appear in the records of any lodge until March 1729. Exposures of Masonic ritual, which began to appear in 1723, refer to only two degrees until the publication of Samuel Pritchard's "Masonry Dissected" in 1730, which contained the work for all three degrees. The Master Mason's degree was not official until the Grand Lodge adopted Anderson's revised Constitutions of 1738.[18]


[edit] The "Ancients" and "Moderns" Grand Lodges
Throughout the early years of the new Grand Lodge there were any number of Masons and lodges that never affiliated with the new Grand Lodge. These unaffiliated Masons and their Lodges were referred to as "Old Masons," or "St. John Masons, and "St. John Lodges".[19].

In 1725 a rival lodge in York founded the Grand Lodge of All England at York. During the 1730s and 1740s antipathy increased between the London Grand Lodge and the Grand Lodges of Ireland and Scotland. Irish and Scots Masons visiting and living in London considered the London Grand Lodge to have considerably deviated from the ancient practices of the Craft. As a result, these Masons felt a stronger kinship with the unaffiliated London Lodges. The aristocratic nature of the London Grand Lodge and its members alienated other Masons of the City causing them also to identify with the unaffiliated Lodges.[20]

On 17 July 1751, representatives of five Lodges gathered at the Turk's Head Tavern, in Greek Street, Soho, London - forming a rival Grand Lodge - The Most Ancient and Honourable Society of Free and Accepted Masons. They believed that they practiced a more ancient and therefore purer form of Masonry, and called their Grand Lodge The Ancients' Grand Lodge. They called those affiliated to the Premier Grand Lodge, by the pejorative epithet The Moderns. These two unofficial names stuck.[21]

An illustration of how deep the division was between the two factions is the case of Benjamin Franklin who was a member of a Moderns' Lodge in Philadelphia. During his stay in France, he became Master of the Lodge Les Neuf Sœurs in 1779, and was re-elected in 1780. Upon returning from France it transpired that his Lodge had changed to (and had received a new warrant from) the Ancients Grand Lodge; no longer recognizing him and declining to give him "Masonic Honours" at his funeral.[22]

For many years, "The Great Masonic Schism" was a name applied to the sixty-two year division of English Freemasonry into two separate Grand Lodges. Some even attempted to attribute the division to the changes in passwords made in 1738-39 by the Premier Grand Lodge. Masonic historian Robert F. Gould in his "History of Freemasonry (1885) referred to the Ancients Grand Lodge as "schismatics". However, Henry Sadler, Librarian of the UGLE, demonstrated in his 1887 book "Masonic Facts and Fictions" that the Ancients Grand Lodge was formed in 1751 primarily by Irish Masons living and working in London, never affiliated with the older Grand Lodge. 72 of the first 100 names on the roll of the new Ancients' Grand Lodge were Irish. In 1776, the Grand Secretary of the Moderns' Grand Lodge referred to them as "the Irish Faction (Ye Ancient Masons, as they call themselves)". And so the myth of a "Great Masonic Schism" in English Masonry was laid to rest.[23]


[edit] Early Freemasonry in the United States (1733-1799)
In 1733, Henry Prince, the Provincial Grand Master over all of North America for the London Grand Lodge, granted a charter to a group of Bostonian Freemasons. This lodge was later named St. John's Lodge and was the first duly constituted lodge in America. [24]


[edit] Establishment of Prince Hall Freemasonry (1775-1827)
Main article: Prince Hall Freemasonry

[edit] 19th Century Freemasonry

[edit] The Union of 1813
The Premier Grand Lodge of England and the Antient Grand Lodge of England were amalgamated into the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) on 27 December 1813 (day of Saint John the Evangelist), by twenty-one articles of "The Articles of Union" - specifing the agreements made regarding the various points of contention. A special lodge, The Lodge of Promulgation, was established by the Moderns in 1809 to promulgate the ancient landmarks of the Order, as well as instructing and negotiating with the members of the two factions to include the discontinuation of any innovations or changes introduced by the Moderns. The Union largely confirmed the Ancients' forms and ceremonies, and therefore considerably revised the Moderns' rituals. One of the most important changes was the reference in Article Two to the Royal Arch Degree as included in the, third, Master Masons' Degree - a practice that had always been peculiar to the Ancients lodges.[20]. Following the union in 1813, a Lodge of Reconciliation (1813-1816) was established to complete the rationalisation of the ritual into a form acceptable to both parties forming the newly constituted United Grand Lodge. In 1823 a Emulation Lodge of Improvement was established.

Both the Ancients and the Moderns had daughter Lodges throughout the world, and because many of those Lodges still exist, there is a great deal of variety in the ritual used today, even between UGLE-recognized jurisdictions in amity. Most Private Lodges conduct themselves in accordance with a single Rite.


[edit] The Morgan Affair and Decline in American Freemasonry (1826 - c.1850)
Main article: William Morgan (anti-Mason)
In 1826, William Morgan disappeared from Batavia, New York, after threatening to expose Freemasonry's secrets, causing some to claim that he had been murdered by Masons. What exactly occurred has never been conclusively proven. However, Morgan's disappearance — and the minimal punishment received by his kidnappers — sparked a series of protests against Freemasons throughout the United States, especially in New York and neighboring states.

Under the leadership of Thurlow Weed, an anti-Masonic and anti-Andrew Jackson (Jackson was a Mason) movement grew to become the political party and made the ballot for the presidency in 1828, while gaining the support of such notable politicians as William H. Seward. Its influence was such that other Jackson rivals, including John Quincy Adams, denounced the Masons. In 1847, Adams wrote a widely distributed book titled "Letters on the Masonic Institution" that was highly critical of the Masons. In 1832, the party fielded William Wirt as its presidential candidate. This was rather ironic because he was, in fact, a Freemason, and even gave a speech at the Anti-Masonic convention defending the organization. The party only received seven electoral votes. Three years later, the party had disbanded in every state save Pennsylvania, as other issues such as slavery had become the focus of national attention.


[edit] Freemasons and the Paris Commune
According to Ernest Belfort Bax, Freemasons were responsible for the last serious attempt at conciliation between Versailles and the Commune on April 21, 1870. They were received coldly by Adolphe Thiers, who assured them that, though Paris were given over to destruction and slaughter, the law should be enforced, and he kept his word. A few days after they decided in a public meeting to plant their banner on the ramparts and throw in their lot with the Commune. On the 29th, accordingly, 10,000 of the brethren met (55 lodges being represented), and marched to the Hôtel de Ville, headed by the Grand Masters in full insignia and the banners of the lodges. Amongst them the new banner of Vincennes was conspicuous, bearing the inscription in red letters on a white ground, “Love one another.” A balloon was then sent up, which let fall at intervals, outside Paris, a manifesto of the Freemasons. The procession then wended its way through the boulevards and the Champs Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe, where the banners were planted at various points along the ramparts. On seeing the white flag on the Porte Maillot the Versaillese ceased firing, and the commander, himself a Freemason, received a deputation of brethren, and suggested a final appeal to Versailles, which was agreed to. The “chief of the executive,” of course, hardly listened to the envoys, and declined to further discuss the question of peace with anyone. This last formal challenge having been made and rejected, the Freemasons definitely took their stand as combatants for the Commune. [25]


[edit] The great schism of 1877
See also: Regular Masonic jurisdictions
A great schism in Freemasonry occurred, between the English (UGLE) and French (GOdF), in the years following 1877, when the Grand Orient de France (GOdF) started unreservedly accepting atheists, and recognized Women's Masonry and Co-Masonry. Also French Masons tended to be more willing to discuss religion and politics in their Lodges; unlike the English who banned such discussions outright. [26]

The schism between the two branches was occasionally, (unofficially or partially) breached, especially during the First World War when American Masons overseas wished to visit French Lodges.[26]

As to religious requirements, the oldest constitution found in Freemasonry — the Constitution of Anderson, 1723 — says that a Mason "will never be a stupid Atheist nor an irreligious Libertine" if he "rightly understands the Art". The only religious requirement was "that Religion in which all Men agree, leaving their particular Opinions to themselves".[27] Masons debate as to whether "stupid" and "irreligious" are meant as necessary, or as accidental, modifiers of "atheist" and "libertine". It is possible the ambiguity is intentional.

In 1815, the newly amalgamated UGLE modified Anderson's constitutions to include: "Let a man's religion or mode of worship be what it may, he is not excluded from the Order, provided he believes in the glorious Architect of Heaven and Earth, and practices the sacred duties of morality."

In 1849, France (GOdF) followed the English (UGLE) lead by adopting the "Supreme Being" requirement, but pressure from Latin countries produced by 1875, the alternative phrase "Creative Principle". This was ultimately not enough for the GOdF, and in 1877 it re-adopted the original Anderson document of 1723. They also created an alternative ritual that made no direct reference to any deity, with the attribute of the Great Architect of the Universe.[28] This new Rite did not replace the older ones, but was added as an alternative, as Continental European jurisdictions, generally, tend not to restrict themselves to a single Rite — offering a menu of Rites, from which their lodges may choose.


[edit] Taxil hoax
Main article: Taxil hoax
Between the years 1885 and 1897, Léo Taxil maintained a hoax against both Freemasonry and the Roman Catholic Church, by making increasingly outlandish claims regarding Freemasonry. On 19 April 1897, Taxil called a press conference at which he claimed he would introduce the "author" of his books to the press. He instead announced that his revelations about the Freemasons were fictitious. Nevertheless, the material is still used on some anti-Masonic websites today.


[edit] 20th Century Freemasonry

[edit] Freemasonry under Totalitarian Regimes (1900-current)
Main article: Freemasonry under Totalitarian Regimes
Many twentieth century totalitarian regimes, both Fascist and Communist have treated Freemasonry as a potential source of opposition due to its secret nature and international connections. It has been alleged by Masonic scholars that the language used by the totalitarian regimes is similar to that used by some modern critics of Freemasonry.


[edit] Notes
^ A History of Freemasonry by H.L. Haywood and James E. Craig, pub. ca 1927
^ a b c d e f Coil, Henry W. (1967). Freemasonry Through Six Centuries 2 vols., Vol. I, pg. 6. Richmond, Va: Macoy Publ. Co.
^ a b The History of Freemasonry by Albert G. Mackey, Gramercy Books, 1996
^ The Origins of Freemasonry: Scotland's Century, 1590-1710 by David Stevenson, pub Cambridge 1990
^ English Speculative Freemasonry: Some possible Origins, Themes and Developments. The Prestonian Lecture for 2004 in Ars Quatuor Coronatum 2004 by Trevor Stewart, pub London 2005
^ Freemasons for Dummies, by Christopher Hodapp, Wiley Publishing Inc., Indianapolis, 2005, pp. 203-208, sec. "A crash course in Templar history"
^ The Hiram Key: Pharaohs, Freemasons and the Discovery of the Secret Scrolls of Christ by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas, pub London 1997
^ The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh and Henry Lincoln, pub London, 2005
^ Freemasonry and the Roman Collegia by H.L. Haywood, The Builder, 1923 — Freemasonry and the Roman Collegia
^ Freemasonry and the Comacine masters by H.L. Haywood, The Builder, 1923 — Freemasonry and the Comacine Masters
^ Ridley, Jasper. "The Freemasons." New York. Arcade Publishing. 2001. p. 3.
^ Naudon, Paul (1991). Les Origins de la Franc-Maçonnerie: Le Sacré et le Métier. Paris: Éditions Dervy.
^ a b Coil, Henry W. (1961). Article: "Free-Mason; Freemason," pp. 272-273. Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia (ref. ed. 1996). Richmond, Va: Macoy Publ. Co.
^ English Speculative Freemasonry: Some possible Origins, Themes and Developments. The Prestonian Lecture for 2004 in Ars Quatuor Coronatum 2004 by Trevor Stewart, pub London 2005
^ Stevenson, David (1988). The Origins of Freemasonry: Scotland's Century 1590-1710. Cambridge Univ. Press.
^ http://www.cornerstonesociety.com/Insight/Articles/articles.html
^ a b c d e f http://www.grandlodge-england.org/
^ Coil, Henry W. (1961). Article: "Degrees; 17. Master Mason," pp. 195-196. Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia. (rev. ed. 1996). Richmond, Va: Macoy Publ. & Masonic Supply Co. Inc.
^ Coil, Henry W. (1961). Two articles: "England, Grand Lodge of, According to the Old Institutions," pp. 237-240; and "Saints John," pp. 589-590. Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia. (rev. ed. 1996). Richmond, Va: Macoy Publ. & Masonic Supply Co. Inc.
^ a b Jones, Bernard E. (1950). Freemasons' Guide and Compendium, (rev. ed. 1956) London: Harrap Ltd.
^ Batham, Cyril N. (1981). "The Grand Lodge of England According to the Old Institutions, otherwise known as The Grand Lodge of the Antients." The Collected Prestonian Lectures, 1975-1987, Vol. Three. London (1988): Lewis Masonic.
^ Revolutionary Brotherhood, by Steven C. Bullock, Univ. N. Carolina Press, Chapel Hill, 1996
^ Coil, Henry W. (1961) Article: "England, Grand Lodge of, According to the Old Institutions," pp. 237-240. Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia. (rev. ed. 1996). Richmond, Va: Macoy Publ. & Masonic Supply Co. Inc.
^ American Freemasons: Three Centuries of Building Communities Mark A. Tabbert, New York Universoty Press, New York: 2005, pp.33-47
^ The Paris Commune - IX. The Freemasons, the Committee of Public Safety, and Rossel, byE. Belfort Bax. Found at www.marxists.org.
^ a b see Masonic U.S. Recognition of French Grand Lodges in the 1900s, Paul M. Bessel. Accessed November 14, 2005
^ Anderson's Constitutions, accessed November 14, 2005.
^ "On 10 September, 1878, the Grand Orient, moreover, decreed to expunge from the Rituals and the lodge proceedings all allusions to religious dogmas as the symbols of the Grand Architect, the Bible, etc. These measures called out solemn protests from nearly all the Anglo-American and German organs and led to a rupture between the Anglo-American Grand Lodges and the Grand Orient of France. As many freethinking Masons both in America and in Europe sympathize in this struggle with the French, a world-wide breach resulted." from Masonry (Freemasonry) from the Catholic Encyclopedia

[edit] See also
stonemason
Masonic Appendant Bodies
History of Freemasons in Manitoba
List of Freemasons
List of Masonic Grand Lodges
York Rite
Scottish Rite

[edit] External links
Craft, Trade or Mystery by Dr Bob James (Revised 2002). Provides extensive discussion on the operative and speculative origins of Freemasonry, including extensive citations.
The Constitutions of the Free-Masons written by James Anderson and published "For the Use of the Lodges" in 1723 in London, and in 1734 by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia. Contains a mythical-biblical-historical account of the order, as well as "charges" and general regulations for members and lodges.
The Web of Hiram at Bradford University An electronic database of the Masonic material held in many of the University's Special Collections

Answer 2

They originated during the time of King Solomon's Temple. They were the builders. They were Hebrew! They are not a religion or satanic cult. Many nationalities belong to the Masons today. The charter was brought over from England to United States. George Washington the first president was a Free Mason
There are many who have tried to make up stuff to make it seem they Masons are dark to tare the fraternity down. Many have been removed from the masons because of their own wrong deeds , so they set out for revenge. Some just make stuff up because they were not excepted after investigation. I am speaking to you with experience. I am a 32 degree Mason and a brother of the lodge for 28 years. I have never seen anything satanic about the masons. They use the Holy Bible is our standard. They have a Chaplin and one requirement is that you must believe in God. We do share Jesus Christ and those who represented him through the church, " The KnightsTemplar".
The degree work is kept secret just like most all other fraternities. I hope this helps your curiosity and others who are in error by learning the opposite!
Rev. TomCat

Answer 3

I'm a Freemason. It is one of the oldest fraternities in the world. Its origins are obscure. But they are thought to date back to the building of King Solomons temple in Jeruselem. Back then it was operative masonry. They used tools to do their work. Down through the ages they were free to travel across lands and they are responsible for building much of the beautiful gothic cathedrals that still stand today.

Sometime during the age of enlightenment and down toward the 17th and 18 centuries Freemasonry went from being operative to speculative. By this I mean that the use of tools became symbolic and allegorical. The square and compass is a popular symbol in masonry. Take the square for example. We use the square as a reminder to ourselves that we are to square our actions with all of mankind.

Freemasonry has gotten a bad rap from alot of different sources. We do have peculiar initiation ceremonies, but if it was satanic or anything even close in nature why then would so many great men have allowed themselves to be led astray? Don't believe it. We are a society with secrets, not a secret society. And unless your a part of it and know something about it, don't judge it.

Freemasonry is not a religion, albeit promotes you in the religion in which you belong. Your religious and political beliefs are not interfered with in any way whatsoever. You are required to believe in a Supreme Being. Freemasonry is a fraternal organization. Plain and simple. Its sole purpose and real secret is to take good men and make them better. We believe in brotherly love, relief, charity, hope and truth. We are also heavily involved in the community in philanthropic projects. Since I joined, it has been quite an experience. It is something I have not regretted nor do I think I ever will. I'm proud to call myself a Freemason, to be in the same company of some of the greatest men in history. Thank you for inquiring about it.

Below I posted some additional links that may be helpful:

http://www.askafreemason.org

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCnp1_SybR4

Answer 4

No, they are not a religion or a satanic cult. They evolved from medieval stone mason guilds in London (and no, they are not descended from the Knights Templar).

But, being a Freemason myself, I guess my opinion is suspect.

Oh - they are not based on Christianity, they are not a Gnostic branch of Christianity. They are not a religion, and they only practice religion in the sense that they believe in living a moral life, require a belief in God as a minimum requirement for membership, and open their meetings with a prayer. Masonry is open to members of all religions.

Answer 5

The masons are a secret socitey. At the introductory levels (lower degrees) they seem like a very godly group. However in the upper degrees as "more knowledge is revealed" there are some things that are very ungodly. They state their roots go back to Egypt in the time before Moses and many practices do resemble some of the false worship practiced there at that time. Basic doctrines of the Masonic orders include teaching that all religions are basicly the same. There is acknowledgement of a "higher power" sometimes called the great architect but that architect is not God as the Christians know Him. Lucifer is revered and considered the God of all that is good. They expressly deny that acceptance of Christ is necessary or beneficial and in fact have a drama that is done that is a mocking parody of Jesus sacrifice for us on the cross. There are oaths taken sometimes called blood oaths which very much resemble those taken in witchcraft. A part of the 3rd degree oath includes swearing by their own life and calling for a very grusome death sentence on themself or anyone else who reveals the secrets of the order or secrets or even serious crimes of other members. This site quotes from that oath http://www.godonthe.net/cme/links/masons.htm A newly inducted person is 1st degree and as they get in deeper they advance in degrees so 3rd degree is not very advanced at all. The same site also lists the stands of many churches and denominations about membership in the Masons. In higher degres of masonry (30th degree and beyond) it is specifically taught that the the Judeo- Christian God is evil.

Please do not just take my word or anyone's word for this. Do some research yourself so you will know the facts.
additional references:
www.iljboards.com/showthread.php?t=6309
http://www.ephesians5-11.org/ex_maso...us/quickly.htm
http://www.ephesians5-11.org/index.html
http://www.otherside.net/masonry.html
http://www.godonthe.net/cme/links/masons.htm
http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/Cults/masons.htm.

Answer 6

There are detailed answers regarding your enquiries already on Y! Answers, some by myself.

I've sent you a number of links and e-mailed you as requested.

Answer 7

It's a philanthropic fraternity.

Answer 8

They are a Cult Spawned of Satan to substitute Mans "Good Works" for Christs "Perfect Work" on the cross!!! But no matter how good the "Forgery" is, it's NOT GENUINE!!! Much has been written about them & can be found all over the Inet., just do a search! John

Answer 9

They are a "secret" organization based on Christianity. I think they have their own version of Christianity, similar to the gnostics. Otherwise they are just a secret society.

Answer 10

Fraternity.

You can find their ritual on line if you look for it. There have been several who reveled everything there is about them.

Answer 11

http://usminc.org/freemasonry.html