Is it a religion or an organization? What do they belive in? and what do they do? I've read that it's evil and stuff, and then I've read the opposite. Can someone explain what this is or what this means? Thank you.
2007-09-20 13:13:30 · 14 answers · asked by sunshine 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Freemasonry is a charitable and fraternal organization. The Order of the Eastern Star is one of several "adoptive" groups within Freemasonry. Freemasonry itself is not open to women, but the adoptive groups like OES and Amaranth are. The Masons raise millions of dollars for charity. Masons meet in lodges, and have initiation rites. A lot of the information about Freemasonry being "evil" came from something called the "Taxil Hoax", and was just that...a hoax.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxil_hoax
2007-09-20 13:22:22 · answer #1 · answered by solarius 7 · 4⤊ 2⤋
Freemasonry is an organization and they demand that their members believe in a higher power, but not a certain religion. Eastern Star is the female's group, but men can also join. What is new is that Masons are now open to women.
All the groups that fall under Masonry, Eastern Star, Demolay and Rainbow Girls include theatrical reenactments of what the historical people and happenings brought about these groups being started. I was Demolay which is the young men's fraternity and we did reenactments of Jaque DeMolay trial and his being burned at the stake for witchcraft.
What is funny is that my family is Pagan and I am still a Witch. We never made it clear what religion we were when we all belonged. But I did have a hard time when I was the Chaplain... But hey thats a whole nother story.
2007-09-20 13:32:02 · answer #2 · answered by humanrayc 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have been a member in Eastern Star for about 20yrs. It is a Masonic organization that allows both women and men. they ask that you believe in a supreme being, and even though they are of a religious nature, they are not a religion. they have initiations and officers much like any club. they have fundraisers, yard sales, and social dinners for the communities they are in. They are not "evil", the amount of charity work they do is amazing.I am a single mom , when I had no place to live, my 8yr old was able to go to the Masonic Home in Covina CA, while I got on my feet. One member gave me a car, and referred me to places for work. The home was such nice place. They had just finished building 8 brand new 6,200sq ft homes. they housed 6 children each with their own room, they went to public school, took them on trips to New York, Hawaii, Colorado, etc., it was 100% funded by the Masonic organization, they also have elderly care there, it has been there for 100 yrs. that is only 1 facility that the Masons support, the people I have met, have never judged me for my choices or mistakes, and have always been there if I needed a hand. This site explains more. www.masonichome.org
2007-09-21 00:27:47 · answer #3 · answered by merraou 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Despite what CJ said...freemasonry is not evil. CJ...how many catholic priests have raped altar boys? I certainly don't think a few priests make all catholics bad...so how could information on one freemason make them all bad? Do your own reading!!! There are black sheep in every organization.
Freemasonry is a fraternal organization that "makes good men better". Order of the Eastern Star is the female equivelant. The biggest requirement is that you have belief in a supreme being...which is referred to as The Grand Architect of the Universe. Directly below is straight off my states Grand Lodge Website. Since this question was geared towards religion...that's the page this came off of.
Freemasonry is not a religion, nor is it a substitute for religion. It requires of its members a belief in God as part of the obligation of every responsible adult, but advocates no sectarian faith or practice. Masonic ceremonies include prayers, both traditional and extempore, to reaffirm each individual's dependence on God and to seek divine guidance. Freemasonry is open to men of any faith, but religion and sectarian discussion is forbidden in Lodge rooms. Masons meet in a spirit of toleration and brotherhood.
Shriner's Hospitals for Children...not evil. Sponsoring low income children in school with supplies...not evil. A friendly shoulder to lean on when needed...not evil. A place to meet other men (or women) in which religion, politics, etc. is not to be discussed...not evil (there wouldn't be such a thing as Yahoo Answers if that was the case for the web).
Many of the founding fathers of this country (George Washington included) were freemasons. Out of the 56 men that signed the Declaration of Independence, 9 were freemasons. There have been several presidents since that have been freemasons (George Washington, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, Harry Truman...I believe 14 all together). Other freemasons include William Shakespere, Benjamin Franklin, John Wayne, Neil Armstrong, the list goes on and on. WOW...look at all these evil men.
There's no way to answer your question fully in a forum such as this. The best way to find out more is to ask a mason face to face. Not sure how old you are but there are affliated organizations for kids under 18 (Jobs Daughters and Order of DeMolay). If you're 21...visit a lodge. Hope this helps!
2007-09-20 13:49:07 · answer #4 · answered by Arachstorm 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Freemasonry and the Order of the Eastern Star are both social organizations that study morality through ritual, symbol and allegory. They also contribute sustantion amounts to charity (over $2 billion in the USA alone each year in free hospitals, scholarships, youth and retirement homes, etc...).
Neither group is a religion, neither group offers an alternative to religion, neither group offers any offer or means to heaven, salvation or anything else. They do help you understand universal moral truths and help you live your life day to day by them --- i.e. the golden rule, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. It is a pity that all the holy anti-masons cannot live by that creed as well.
By all means, please read all the anti-mason site and masonic sites and judge for yourself what is true and what are sensationalist lies. You will notice one set of sites is about morality, truth, beauty and the other about hatred, lies, and distruction.
anti-mason sites:
www.freemasonrywatch.org
http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0093/0093_01.asp
http://www.destroyfreemasonry.com/
masonicsites:
phoenixmasonry.org
masonicinfo.com (this also provides counter points to almost every anti-masonic claim on the internet)
http://community-2.webtv.net/JohnFromHurst/WelcometomyMasonic/ a site in defense of masonry
to some other points already made:
* albert pike -- first he does not speak for freemasonry, only the southern jurisdiction of the scottish rite, which is an appendant body to freemasonry and is not above or higher than freemasonry. second in his time, the term lucifer had not been associated with "satan" but was still used in its latin context as "bringer of light" so he is calling God (the Christian God, the Catholic Christian God) the "bringer of light", that is hardly a satanic proclomation. masonicinfo.com has a nice bit about Pike as well
* good point on the Taxil Hoax, the perpetrator of that fraud even admitted it was a fraud against freemasonry.
* as you mention, it is a fraternal organization, why should it not allow people of one religion or another? college fraternities accept everyone, professional groups do; freemasonry is non-religious that is why it does not discriminate against anyone's beliefs; that said, you cannot be an atheist or a satan worshipper
* only French Masonry is open to women - the UGLE (United Grand Lodge of England, and all Lodges given charters by them or by one of their Lodges, do not recognize women freemasons)
2007-09-20 13:59:48 · answer #5 · answered by cl_freemason 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Just an organization. They contribute to helping people and do not worship or believe in the devil. Eastern Star (which I was briefly involved) is the ladies' half of the Freemasons. They too do works for good. It is like a fraternity and nothing more.
2007-09-20 14:36:15 · answer #6 · answered by Rev. Kaldea 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Freemasonry is the oldest and largest world wide fraternity dedicated to the Brotherhood of Man under the Fatherhood of a Supreme Being. Although of a religious nature, Freemasonry is not a religion. It urges its members, however, to be faithful and devoted to their own religious beliefs.
The Order of the Eastern Star is a fraternal organization of men and women committed to providing an environment of friendship and fellowship, regardless of age, by implementing innovative ideas, facilitating positive change and planning for the future while working cohesively with our Masonic family.
2007-09-20 13:20:50 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 7⤊ 2⤋
I used to think Freemasons were some weird organization. As far as I know they do charity work. But one day I saw a Freemason bumper sticker on the back of a car with some old guy behind the wheel. So I thought if they have bumper stickers and advertise in the local paper for membership they can't be that bad, right?
2007-09-20 13:22:00 · answer #8 · answered by cc 3 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Raelian: The crimson element stands for Electa,Yellow for Ruth, blue for Adah, white is for Esther, green is for Martha, the middle has a regulate with a bible on it. i don't comprehend appropriate to the rostrum. in case you look up what's the meaning of the Order of the jap action picture star it supply you documents. The Freemasons is for adult men and the Order of the jap action picture star is for women individuals. good success Steve (Blue inn)
2016-10-19 06:24:07 · answer #9 · answered by innocent 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is a fraternity and that is it.
My entire family (as far as I know) belongs to one or the other. They do require a belief in a creator, which is why I'm not involved. But you can find their ritual on line, and it is pretty goofy if you ask me. Nothing evil at all.
2007-09-20 13:24:27 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 2⤋