Wooden Tracing Board hand-painted by J. Bowring, 1879
Masonic Beliefs and PracticesInitiation Into the Lodge(1) The Symbolism of the Lodge
Although the rule is no longer rigorously applied, Freemasonry requires that candidates must be of sound mind and able bodied; any physical handicap is supposed to bar admission." This is similar to the basic requirements for admission into the Yahad or "Unity group" described in several of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
As the candidate "progresses through the ceremonies he learns that at the building of
King Solomon's Temple at Jerusalem the skilled masons were divided into two classes, Apprentices and Fellows; that they were presided over by three Grand masters (King Solomon, Hiram King of Tyre, and
Hiram Abiff) who shared certain secrets known only to them; that these secrets were lost by the murder of Hiram Abiff - a result of his refusal to divulge the secrets - and that certain substituted secrets were adopted 'until time or circumstance should restore the former'. The implication in the ritual is that Freemasonry was already established in Solomon's time and has continued as an unchanged system since them. The ritual, however, as the candidate quickly realizes, is not literal or historical truth but a dramatic allegory by means of which the principles and tenets of the Craft are handed down."
"While there probably are some actual stone-workers who are Masons, Masonry does not teach is membership the literal techniques of stonework. Rather, it takes the actual 'operative' work of Medieval Masons and uses it as an allegory for moral development. Thus, the symbols of Masonry are the common tools that were used by medieval stonemasons: the gavel, the rule, the compass, the square, the level, etc. Each of these has a symbolic meaning in Masonry. For example, Masons are said to meet 'on the level', meaning that all Masons are brothers, regardless of social status, personal wealth, or office within the Lodge or in the world at large. Similar symbolism exists for other tools."
"The purpose of Masonry is to train a human being so that he will reconstuct, through the body of change and death which he now has, a perfect physical body which shall not be subject to death. The plan is to build this deathless body, called by modern masons Solomon's Temple, out of material in the physical body, which is called the ruins of Solomon's Temple."
"The lodge as a room or hall is an oblong square, which is a half of a perfect square, and which is inside or outside the lower half of a circle. Each lodge meets in the same room, alike furnished, but the lodge working in the Apprentice degree is styled the Ground Floor, the lodge working the Fellow Craft degree is called the Middle Chamber, and the lodge working the Master degree is called the Sanctum Sanctorum, all in King Solomon's Temple."
"Freemasons today claim always to meet symbolically at noon on the basis that Freemasonry is a worldwide organisation and therefore 'the sun is always at its meridian with respect to Freemasonry'. Masonic reference to God as 'the most high' is therefore a description of Re, the sun god in his ultimate position, the zenith of the heavens at noon. Note that the initiation rights for the various degrees of Freemasonry may vary somewhat from lodge to lodge.
(2) First Degree - Entered Apprentice Freemason The working tools of an Entered Apprentice are the gauge and the mallet.
"When the Candidate is first admitted into a Masonic Lodge his condition as an Entered Apprentice is represented by the Rough Ashlar, the first of a set of three symbols which the Craft calls the Three Immovable Jewels. An ashlar is a building stone; a rough ashlar is a stone which has not yet been shaped into the form required by ts place in the structure."
"The material which makes up the First Degree encourages the Candidate to take such a deep look at himself and the workings of his psyche, and it is for this reason that one must ask to become a Mason. No one should b persuaded to assume that sort of responsibility until he feels he is ready for it." The initiation to the first degree begins when the candidate is brought before the entrance to the temple and the guard hits the door with the hilt of his sword.
"I was hoodwinked (that is, blindfolded) and dressed in loose-fitting white trousers and top. One foot was in a simple slipper (the expression for this is 'slipshod'), my left leg was exposed to the knee, and the left breast of the tunic had been drawn aside so that my chest was bared on that side. Unbeknown to me a hangman's noose had been put around my neck and draped down my back. I had been relieved of all metal objects and I was not ready to be lead into the Temple. (We later learnt that this mode of dress, the rough smock with the running noose about the neck, was exactly how a medieval heretic would have been treated by the Inquisition prior to making his confession.)" The hangman's noose is actually called a "cable-tow" which is defined as a "rope; cable; cord; ritualistically, symbol or method of control of and initiate" (which may have been how a person was led during the Inquisition). Several Masons have written to me that most of the information Knight and Lomas present about Freemasonry is either outdated or incorrect The candidate was questioned with a dagger blade pressed to his throat about his eligibility and whether his motives in joining are worthy. (Although the dagger is apparently not used in many [if not all] American lodges, I have been reliably informed that it is still used in United Grand Lodge of England [UGLE] rituals.) After a short prayer, the candidate is lead three times around the perimeter, pausing on each lap to be introduced as a "poor candidate in a state of darkness". In the coronation of an Egyptian pharaoh, too, the new king is conducted around the Temple to show himself worthy . The candidate is then brought before the Worshipful Master's pedestal:
The abbreviated modern version goes:
The blindfold is removed and the "lights" of Freemasonry revealed - the Volume of the Sacred Law (the Bible), the Square and the Compass. The secret signs, grips and password of the first degree are explained, as well as the meaning of Boaz, the left-hand pillar in the Porchway of Solomon's Temple. The candidate is then presented with a white lambskin apron "more ancient than the Golden Fleece or Roman Eagle". Throughout the ceremony Apprentice is taught moral virtues based on architectural analogies. At the conclusion, as in each degree, is a celebratory dinner with much toasting, speeches and singing.
(3) Second Degree - Fellowcraft Mason The working tools of a Fellow Craft are the plumb, the square and the level. The candidate is admitted to the Temple in the same garb as he wore during the First Degree. He then has to recite memorized answers to a series of questions, including:
"In the Second Degree ceremony the candidate is asked, 'What are the peculiar objects of research in this degree?' The answer he is required to give is: 'The hidden mysteries of nature and science.' On completion of the making of the new Fellow Craft he is told: 'You are now expected to make the liberal arts and sciences your future study'." Again the candidate is conducted around the Temple, new signs and passwords revealed, and a white apron with two rosettes. This time he learns the meaning of the right hand pillar of Solomon's Temple, "Jachin" and is permitted to extend his "researches into the hidden mysteries of science and nature".
"The Second or 'Fellowcraft' Degree of Freemasonry gives very little knowledge to the candidate but it does introduce the idea of 'hidden mysteries of nature and science' and makes a clear reference to what is called the 'Galilean Heresy'."
(4) The Third Degree - Master Mason
The working tool of a Master Mason is the trowel, which spreads the cement and completes the work of the Entered Apprentice and Fellow Craft.
"The candidate after this is prepared, blindfolded and tied with cable-tow around his waist, enters the lodge. He is received on both points of the compass, pressed against his breast." After a prayer and a ceremony resembling the first two degrees, the Worshipful Master tells the story of Master Hiram Abiff, said to have been the "principle architect" of Solomon's Temple.
"According to Masonic tradition Hiram was murdered by three of his assistants [Jubela, Jubelo, and Jubelum] soon after he had completed the bronzework of the Temple [of Solomon]. And this event was for some reason regarded as so laden with meaning that is was commemorated in the initiation ceremonies for Master masons - in which each initiate was required to play the role of the murder victim." Refusing to divulge the secrets of his craft, Hiram receives a violent blow on his forehead which drops him to his left knee. At that point in the story, the candidate receives a light blow to his temples and is pressed to the ground by two deacons to his left knee. The story where Hiram seeks to escape by the west gate and is struck with another blow. The candidate goes down on his right knee.
At the east gate, the third ruffian "struck him a violent blow full in the center of the forehead with a heavy stone maul, which laid him lifeless at his feet. Such was he manner of his death."
"Blindfolded on the ground, the initiate hears the three murderers decide to bury him in a pile of rubble until 'low twelve' (midnight), when they will carry the body away from the Temple. To symbolize the burial of Hiram Abiff, the candidate is wrapped in a blanket and carried to the side of the room. Soon he hears a bell strike twelve times and is carried from the 'rubble' grave to a grave dug on the brow of a hill 'west of Mount Moriah' (the Temple Mount). He hears the murderers agree to mark his grave with a sprig of acacia, then set out to escape to Ethiopia across the Red Sea." The Junior Warden attempts to raise the candidate from his "grave" using the grip of an Entered Apprentice, but fails. The Senior Warden then is told to try using the Fellowcraft grip which is equally ineffectual. Finally, the Worshipful Master himself grips the candidate tightly using the "Lion's Paw" or "Eagle's Claw" grip and pulls the candidate immediately to his feet.
"As I reached the vertical position the Worshipful Master whispered two peculiar words in my ear." Ma'at means righteousness, truth, and justice within a level and ordered symmetrical scheme and cannot be properly translated into English. Knight and Lomas have chosen "Freemasonry" as the closest equivalent meaning. A Freemason has confirmed that some of the ceremony is recognizable but the last part about the particular words is not correct. The Worshipful Master continues:
The candidate's gaze is directed down in the darkness to an open grave. Inside are a human skull on a pair of crossed thighbones. The candidate is then told:
The Worshipful Master indicates a small illuminated star to the east of the candidate.
"He takes the three steps to the altar where he kneels for the third time, rests his hands on the Bible, square and compass, and takes the obligation of a Master Mason. He asks for further light in Masonry. He is brought to light by the Master of the lodge, and hoodwink and cable-tow removed. Thus he sees that both points of the compass are above the square. This is a symbol that with one who has reached this degree both aspects of the Thinker are operative above feeling-and-desire because feeling-and-desire have put themselves under the guidance of the Thinker. He receives the pass and grip of a Master Mason and wears his apron as a Master Mason, that is, with the flap and all corners down."
Traditions from the Ancients
A Modern Invention? The legend of Hiram Abiff is closely tied to the origins of German Templarism.
"Some of these seventeenth-century manuscripts [preserving the 'Old Charges'] do not refer to Hiram Abif, which has led some to believe that the character was an invention of this relatively recent period. However, the name Hiram Abif was only one designation for this central figure; he is also referred to as Aymon, Aymen, Amnon, A Man or Amen and sometimes Bennaim. It is said that Amen is said to be the Hebrew word for 'the trusted one' or 'the faithful one', which fits the role of Hiram Abif perfectly. But we also know that Amon or Amen is the name of the ancient creator god of Thebes, the city of
Sequenere Tao II. Could there be an ancient linkage here?"
A Connection with the Mystery Religions
"According to scripture, Hiram was not an architect but a master worker in brass and bronze. He was not murdered but lived to see the temple completed and then went back to his home."
Sequenere Tao II?
Knight and Lomas advance the theory that Hiram Abif was actually Sequenere Tao II, the true Egyptian king who lived at Thebes, four hundred miles south of the
Hyksos capital at Avaris, near the end of Hyksos rule. Sequenere was the "new king over Egypt, that knew not
Joseph", who was vizier around 1570 B.C.E. Apophis, they speculate, wanted to know the secret rites of Horus, which allowed the pharaohs in death to become Osiris and live eternally as a star. Apophis sent henchmen to extract the information from Sequenere, but he died from violent blows on the head rather than divulge anything.
"Masonic ritual refers to Hiram Abif as the 'Son of the Widow'...In Egyptian legend the first Horus was uniquely conceived after his father's death and therefore his mother was a widow even before his conception. It seemed logical therefore that all those who thereafter became Horus, i.e. the kings of Egypt, would also describe themselves as 'Son of the Widow'." [See
Isis, the Black Virgin for more information.]
A Sufi Martyr?
(2) Symbolism from the Mysteries
"In the late 18th and early 19th centuries many Europeans, Masons among them, found their way to the Middle East, where they discovered the relics of those cultures which had practiced the Ancient Mysteries. Masons with a philosophical turn of mind recognized the similarities between their Order and the ancient traditions. The similar symbolism, some of which, like the ladder from a Temple of
Mithras, is shared with Masonry, encouraged the idea of Freemasonry's direct connection with those ancient rites."
"Masonry...conceals its secrets from all except the Adepts and Sages, or the Elect, and uses false explanations and misinterpretations of its symbols to mislead those who deserve to be misled; to conceal the Truth, which it calls Light, from them, and to draw them away from it."
"Much of the writings of Albert Pike are extracted from the books of the French magician, Eliphas Levi, one of the greatest transcendentalists of modern times. Levi was an occultist, a metaphysician, a Platonic philosopher, who by the rituals of magic invoked even the spirit of
Apollonius of Tyana, and yet Pike has inserted in his Morals and Dogma whole pages, and even chapters, practically verbatim. To Pike the following remarkable tribute was paid by Stirling Kerr, Jr., 33? Deputy for the Inspector-General for the District of Columbia, upon crowning with laurel the bust of Pike in the House of the Temple: 'Pike was an oracle greater than that of Delphi. He was Truth's minister and priest. His victories were those of peace. Long may his memory live in the hearts of the Brethren.' Affectionately termed 'Albertus Magnus' by his admirers, Pike wrote of Hermeticism and alchemy and hinted at the Mysteries of the Temple. Through his zeal and unflagging energy, American Freemasonry was raised from comparative obscurity to become the most powerful organization in the land."
"...The Rite is organised as a pyramid, the majestic tomb of Hiram, at the top of which a 'mysterious stair' of seven steps is placed, similar to Eraclitus path Çwhich rises and descends and it is one and the sameÈ. The pyramid image immediately leads to the Egyptian sepulchres and to the journey of detachment from the body and rising, which constitute the target of the initiation. At the same time, it wonderfully synthesises the sedimentation of traditions that the Rite has made..."
(3) The Architect of the Universe
"In the gospel of Matthew Jesus' occupation is given in the Greek as tekton, a word that can be translated as "builder'. However, there is a better translation fo this term. Jesus is being called an artisan, a builder and an educated man, all at the same time. There is a profession that encompasses all of these elements; an architect. Indeed, one can still see the etymological traces of the word tekton in the modern word 'architect' which literally means master-builder or master-mason. this is a much more logical craft and title for Jesus than a mere carpenter." - Ralph Ellis, Jesus Last of the Pharohs
"According to Professor Cornford [of the Royal College of Art], every old master painting he had investigated conformed to 'fairly straightforward geometric and/or arithmetic subdivisions of the rectangle'. There were two basic types of system - one 'was based on the account of the creation given in Plato's Timaeus, and was published by Alberti in his Ten Books on Achitecture (Florence, 1485). It proceeds by calculation as much as by construction using instruments, and it had great appeal in the High Renaissance and its aftermath, since it both dissociated art and architecture from the old, manual masonic tradition of mediaeval times, and associated them with humanist scholarship. Moreover the number system used was a kind of invocation of the divine inasmuch as the building or painting became a microcosmic rehearsal of the primal act of creation."
"One who would walk in the Way of the Craftsman must do one thing more. He must remember, always, that he is building a temple to God. He is building an edifice in conciousness in which he, himself, is an individual stone. In time, each human being will square his stone and place it in that temple, and when that temple is complete, God will behold God in the Mirror of Existence and there will be then, as there was at the beginning, only God."
"The ancient Mysteries did not cease to exist when Christianity became the world's most powerful religion. Great Pan did not die! Freemasonry is the proof of his survival. The pre-Christian Mysteries simply assumed the symbolism of the new faith, perpetuating through its emblems and allegories the same truths which had been the property of the wise since the beginning of the world. There is no true explanation, therefore, for Christian symbols save that which is concealed within pagan philosophy. Without the mysterious keys carried by the hierophants of the Egyptian, Brahmin, and Persian cults the gates of Wisdom cannot be opened."
"In Plato's Timaeus, there appears the earliest known equation of the Creator with the 'Architect of the Universe'. The Creator, in the Timaeus, is called 'tekton', meaning 'craftsman' or 'builder'. 'Arche-tekton' thus denoted 'master craftsman' or 'master builder'. For Plato, the 'arche-tekton' crafted the cosmos by means of geometry."
"Although Freemasonry require each of its Candidates to confirm his belief in God, it does not expand on the subject but leaves religion and its practice to the individual Mason. As a result, men of all religious persuasions have been able to join in the study of Freemasonry's moral and philosophical principles."
(4) Thoth and Enoch
"In ancient Egypt, the engineers, draftsmen, and masons who worked on the big architectural projects were accorded a special status. They were organized into elite guilds..."
"According to a very old Masonic tradition, the Egyptian god
Thoth "had played a major part in preserving knowledge of the mason craft and transmitting it to mankind after the
flood...." "...The author of a well researched academic study [The Origins of Freemasonry]...went so far as to say that, in their early days, the Masons had regarded Thoth as their patron."
"...The Book of Enoch has always been of great significance to Freemasons, and...certain rituals dating back to long before Bruce's time [1730-1794] identified
Enoch himself with Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom." In the Royal Masonic Cyclopaedia is an entry 'that Enoch was the inventor of writing', 'that he taught men the art of building', and that, before the flood, he 'feared that the real secrets would be lost - to prevent which he concealed the grand Secret, engraven on a white oriental porphyry stone, in the bowels of the earth'."
Masonic Ceremonies and Regalia
"Egyptian hieroglyphics depict their extraterrestrial 'gods' wearing aprons. The priests of ancient Egypt wore similar aprons as a sign of their allegiance to the 'gods' and as a badge of their authority."
Egyptian "priests were not permitted to wear wool, since wool came from animals, and animals obviously were unclean. They wore only fine linen, stored in special rooms of the temples and cared for by other priests whose function it was to assure their cleanliness."
"The earliest ceremonial aprons appear to have been simple and unadorned. As time went on, mystical symbols and other decorations were added. Perhaps the most significant change to the apron occurred during the reign of the powerful Canaanite priest-king, Melchizedek, who had achieved a very high status in the Bible. Melchizedek presided over an elite branch...the Melchizedek Priesthood. Beginning around the year 2200 BC, the Melchizedek Priesthood began to make its ceremonial aprons out of white lambskin. White lambskin was eventually adopted by the Freemasons who have used it for their aprons ever since."
The Worshipful Master "presented me with a lambskin or white linen apron which he informed me was an emblem of innocence and the badge of a Mason; that it had bee worn by kings, princes, and potentates of the earth; that it was more ancient than the Golden Fleece or Roman Eagle; more honorable than the Star or Garter, or any other order that could be conferred on me at that or any time thereafter by king, prince, potentate, or any other person, except be he a Mason..."
"In ancient Masonry, the Masonic apron was an untrimmed white lambskin tied around the waist. This lambskin has been proclaimed by Masonry to be a badge of innocence and purity..."
"The apron shown above contains a wealth of symbolism: the beehive, emblematic of the Masonic lodge itself; the trowel, the mallet, and the trestleboard; the rough and trued ashlars; the pyramids and hills of Lebanon; the pillars, the Temple, and checkerboard floor; and the blazing star and tools of the Craft. The center of the apron is occupied by the compass and square, representative of the Macrocosm and the microcosm, and the alternately black and white serpent of astral light. Below is an acacia branch with seven sprigs, signifying the life centers of the superior and the inferior man. The skull and crossbones are a continual reminder that the spiritual nature attains liberation only after the philosophical death of man's sensuous personality."
(2) The York Rite The York Rite, like the Scottish Rite, is an appendant body of Masonry, and confers degrees beyond the Blue Lodge's three degrees. It consists of nine degrees additional degrees: Mark Master, Past Master, Most Excellent Master, and Royal Arch Mason; the Cryptic Degrees of the Royal Master, Select Master, and Super Excellent Master; and the Chivalric Orders of the Order of the Red Cross, Order of the Knights of Malta and the Order of Knights Templar.
"The Temple degrees, which comprise the top degrees of the York Rite are specifically Christian. Or at least, it can be stated that the oath is: in some Grand Lodges in the US and abroad, one need not be a Christian, but rather only be willing to take a Christian OATH. The difference here is that there are some who would willingly swear to defend the Christian faith on the grounds that they would defend any man's faith. The Chapter (or Royal Arch) and Council Of Royal And Select Masters (Cryptic Rite), which comprise the first two sections of the York Rite, are not specifically Christian."
"The York Rite Mason progresses through a series of degrees that culminate in his being made a Masonic Knight Templar. The York Rite Templar commanderies in the United states alone claim over a quarter of a million members. They maintain a national foundation for research into eye diseases of children; and fund cataract surgery for the financially disabled."
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(3) Royal Arch
"The Master Mason who wants to be 'exalted to the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch' must fist prove himself by answering the text questions of the Craft Third Degree before he is given a grip and a password (the meaning of which is 'my people having obtained mercy') to allow him to enter. The candidate wears his Master Mason's apron and is blindfolded with a length of rope tied about his waist." In the ritual of the Royal Arch, or Seventh Degree, the candidate re-enacts the excavation of the first temple of Solomon. In the first part of the ceremony he must search in darkness until he finds a vellum scroll. The candidate is then readmitted with two other Companions playing the parts of the three Master Masons of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshech and Abednego.
"As they enter they take part in a ceremony known as Passing the Veils, which represents a Priest of the Temple approaching the Holy of Holies of the Temple of Solomon." The three sojourners, freed from captivity in Babylon, offer their services to Zerubbabel to help rebuild the Temple at Jerusalem after the Jews returned from captivity in Babylon. They are assigned the lowly job of repairing the foundation.
"The whole narrative is told as though those conducting the excavation were Jews from Babylon digging in the ruins of the first Temple, but we believe it is actually describing the discoveries of the Knights Templar at the site of the last Temple. It can only refer to the ruins of Herod's Temple because the type of arch described in the ceremony is an arrangement of stones supporting each other in compression to form a curved load-bearing structure which was unknown at the time of Zerubbabel. The curved arch employed wedge-shaped, precisely cut stones requiring little or no mortar, and since it is that type of arch with three keystones which plays such a prominent part of the Royal Arch ceremony, it is absolutely certain that the setting of the story re-enacted in the ritual is Herod's Temple, which was constructed using Roman engineering principles." In the next part of the ceremony, the three masons return and discover the keystone of the principal arch of King Solomon's Temple and the master's jewels. The account continues as they are questioned by the First Principal:
"By this time the sun had attained its greatest altitude, and shining in al its splendor, darted its rays immediately into the aperture, which enabled me to distinguish those objects I had before but imperfectly discovered. In the center of the vault I saw a pedestal of pure virgin marble, with certain mystic characters engraven thereon, and a veil covering the upper face of the altar. Approaching with reverential awe, I lifted the veil, and beheld what I humbly supposed to be the sacred word itself." The meaning of the sacred word is revealed later in the ceremony. Making a "living arch", three masons grasp each other's left wrist at waist level and their right wrist over their heads. They then intone:
"They then balance three times three, bringing the right hand with some violence down upon the left. The right hands are then raised above their heads, and the words, Jah-buh-lun, Jeho-vah, G-o-d, are given at low breath, each companion pronouncing the syllables or letters alternately..."
"In the ritual of exaltation, the name of the great Architect of the Universe is revealed as JAH-BUL-ON....Each syllable of the 'ineffable name' represents one personality of this Trinity:
"...During the years between 1723 and 1813 the invocation of the name of Christ in the endings of prayers gradually died out. In masonic quotations of scripture the name of Christ came very pointedly to be deleted from the text." Knight's analysis is only partly correct and his conclusion is almost certainly off the mark.
"...The assumption that Jahbulon means Jehovah [Yahweh], Ba'al, and Osiris is itself pure conjecture. No one knows for certain what it means, or even how the name was originally pronounced before it underwent changes from centuries of strictly verbal communication." In the initiation ceremony, the candidate is told:
"The first part, 'Jah', is the Hebrew word for their god, very probably with a Sumerian connection. It can be seen in this form in the name of the prophet Elijah, which is actually Eli-jah, meaning 'Yahweh is my god' (El being the ancient word for a god)."
"Simply, Ba'al is a Hebrew word that means lord or master. Numerous deities were addressed by that title in the Middle East, but their names have not come down to us." It is an honorific title "that is still used by the Jewish faith. For example, one who can work miracles in the name of God is known as a Ba'al shem, the lord (or master) of the Name." On is also the Hebrew word for "one". Jah-Baal-On could thus be interpreted to mean "Yaweh, the one Lord over all" which would be very much in keeping with the Christian nature of the Royal Arch rites. Most students of Masonic lore, however, prefer to place the origin of On in ancient Egypt.
"1. JAH. This name of God is found in the 68th Psalm, v. 4. [Yahweh]
"During dynastic Egypt Ra's [the god of the sun during dynastic Egypt] cult center was Annu (Hebrew 'On', Greek 'Heliopolis', modern-day 'Cairo')."
"ON is but another name for the [Egyptian] god Amen...and...in Revelation 1:8, in the original, inspired text of this verse, the Greek word Christ used was 'On' - the 'existing one'."
"My feeling is that 'Jah-Baal-On' was simply the names of the three great gods, of the Jews, the Canaanites and the Egyptians , all of whom were referred to as the 'Most High'." A Freemason correspondent does not remember these secret words being given in the Royal Arch Degrees so the ritual may have changed since Duncan's book was written.
"Today about one in five Freemasons are Royal Arch 'Companions', these constituting a more fervent, more indoctrinated, closer-knit inner circle."
Masonry Today
"History will show that Freemasonry has always been outlawed under totalitarian regimes. As an aside; some 200,000 Masons perished in the Nazi holocaust. Both the Church of England and the Baptist Church have recently completed studies of the Craft and have decided that it is eccentric but not dangerous."
"The old English Masonic model involving three degrees of membership still exists, and many Masons stop at the third degree, that of master mason. Others, however, go through a ceremony called the royal arch, which admits them to a spectrum of higher degrees. The Ancient and Accepted Rite of Masonry is a system of thirty-three degrees that offer such titles as perfect master, prince of Jerusalem, grand pontiff, chief of the tabernacle, commander of the temple, grand elected knight kadosh, grand inspector inquisitor commander, and sublime prince of the royal secret. And the Ancient and Accepted Rite is but one of a staggering array of rites and orders."
"The 'Masters', who form the largest proportion of Freemasons, are in most cases quite unaware of the thirty superior degrees to which they will never be admitted, nor even hear mentioned. This is the real picture, with the three lowly [Craft] degrees governed by a Grand Lodge and the thirty higher degrees governed by a Supreme Council." "The Grand Orient of France is considered a clandestine body by many Grand Lodges due to a major revision of the Constitution of Freemasonry. The Grand Orient of France removed the requirement for belief in a Supreme Being and for belief in the immortality of the soul in 1877. This was done on the basis of Freemasonry's lack of status as a religion. 'Whereas Freemasonry is not a religion and has therefore no doctrine or dogma to affirm in its Constitution...' This caused considerable uproar in England, whose Grand Lodge came to the conclusion that the Grand Orient's actions were in violation of the Landmarks of Freemasonry. Visitors from France could not be received in English Lodges unless they could prove that they were initiated within a Lodge the professed belief in the G.A.O.T.U. Masonic communication between the Grand Lodge of England and the Grand Orient of France ground to a screeching halt.
"The Grand Orient of France permitted the Rite of Memphis and Mizraim to govern Initiation, Passing and Raising under its own authority. Today, Craft Lodges function entirely under the authourity and legislation of the regional Grand Lodges. These Grand Lodges are extremely wary of organizations claiming to make Masons while operating in their regions. Seeing as M&M had the capacity to do exactly this as it functioned under the Grand Orient of France, and understanding the questionable status of said Grand Orient, many Grand Lodges treat it as irregular and are very cautious about the Rite of Memphis and Mizraim."
"There are also a number of social organizations that draw their membership from Masonry without actually being connected with it. In the United States, the most visible of these is the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine - better known as the Shriners - which admits only those who are at least thirty-second-degree Masons."
"Members of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles the Mystic Shrine for North America (AASONM is an anagram for A MASON) are members of the Scottish Rite's 32nd degree, and/or Knights Templer of the York Rite. The Shrine is most noted for its emphasis on philanthropy and its jolly outlook on life-- it has been called 'the playground of Masonry'. This is expressed as 'Pleasure without intemperance, hospitality without rudeness, and jollity without coarseness'."
"The Shrine is the wealthiest 'charity' in America. Its assets for 1984 were estimated by the internal Revenue Service at $1.979 billion. That's almost twice as much as the second richest charity, the American Red Cross, with assets of $1.07 billion, and four times as much as the American Cancer Society which takes third place, with $446.8 million in assets."
"In defense of the Fraternity, as a combined group, they spend about $1,500,000.00 per day on charities. This includes the Scottish Rite Hospitals and Shriner Hospitals.
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