Secret Society Investigation – Freemasonry
Table of Contents
Overview
There is no ‘secret’ society with as much controversy surround their organization as the Freemasons and freemasonry. There are thousands of rumors and conspiracies that involve the Freemasons, some of the ideas concerning the various topics are fact, some are fantasy. Here we will take a look at the history and involvement of the Freemasons, and study the evidence and information trail left behind by its members, as well as look at the testimonies of some of its ex-members.
History of Freemasonry
Freemasons trace their origins to the fraternal organization of the stone Masons. The stone Masons, from the end of the 14th century regulated qualifications and interactions of all members with authorities and stone Mason clients.
Masonic historians regard the origins of their movement to be, as stated in some of the oldest Masonic manuscripts, of 1425, such as the Regius Poem. Members at this time had operated in large masses. It is not well documented how this trade of stone Masonry became the social organization that it is today with all kinds of various members. The lodge is mostly related at the time of its origin to the regions of England, Scotland and Ireland, forming the first of the Grand Lodges.
Over the centuries, the Masonic lodge has grown into what it is today, a more fraternized organization of members only that focus on social events and organized gatherings. They publicize themselves as a charity, helping in areas from public education to disaster relief programs.
Governing Order
Local Freemason units, also called lodges, are the meeting places for member to gather together to practice their duties and beliefs. These local lodges are governed by the Grand Lodge or, Grand Orient which supervises the local lodges on a national, provincial or regional level.
Every Masonic lodge has a master, two wardens, a secretary and a treasurer. There is not a particular consistent standard operating procedure between any two lodges as each has their own jurisdictional standard. However this does not mean they do not have similar goals or associations with one another.
It is believed that there is no dominate order that governs the entire Masonic lodged that proceeds over the Grand Orient, however this is controversial as some believe there to be a ‘most worshipful’ High Grand Lodge. For instance the United Grand Lodge of England (est. 1717) holds a list of over 250 thousand members.
There are times that an individual or group of individual start their own Masonic Lodge that is not recognized by the Grand Lodge of that jurisdiction or region. Any lodge that is recognized by the Grand Lodge is said to be in ‘amity’ with the lodge. This is also a way to keep the Masonic secrets safe within truly legitimate and recognized lodges.
Degrees of Freemasonry
Apprentice (1st degree) ~ Master Mason (3rd degree)
Candidates whom wish to become Freemasons are usually invited by an active member to join social functions and other active members, however candidates are never specifically invited to join, and they must ask to join. The process varies between different jurisdictions, but usually a vote is made for the candidate, they must be a mature male of good reputation and believe in a supreme being, however on occasion they do accept some atheists.
The first three degrees or ranks of membership are typically all that most Masons ever know about. The members involved on these lower degrees typically will never even find out there are 30 more degrees above them. These members carry out the mundane and mostly ‘public’ duties for the fraternity, and participating in helping their charitable causes and help give their time and resources to the Masonic organization.
Secret Mason (4th degree) ~ Grand Inspector General (33rd degree)
Member who are considered worth of the secret of the Masonic lodge are given the privilege to proceed through the ranks of the 4th to 33rd degree, in which more secrets are revealed to them. Each promotion in rank is supposed to be accompanied by additional knowledge of the order.
Freemasonry Beliefs and Practices
Fraternity Gathering
Today, the typical Masonic gathering comes into order under the consensus of charitable events, member elections, festivals, fellowship dinners and toasts. They abide to their social calendar and base their degrees of ritualistic activities on the degree of membership that has attended.
Masonic meetings are private, for members only, however they create many opportunities to present many of their ideas or contributions to the public in various types of charitable events or organized community gatherings.
Oaths & Secrecy
Each member is sworn to secrecy concerning their rituals, practices, teachings and beliefs. Each oath is typically associated with a ceremonial rite along with a threat of some type of suffering that would come with breaking one of the oaths. Once an initiate takes the oath into the brotherhood, he is considered a member for life.
The members are linked in oaths and spiritual bondage to one another, and to secrecy in favor for one another. i.e. technically, based on Masonic duty and oaths, if a Freemason police officer catches another Masonic member speeding, he is supposed to warn him of his offense and ‘do no harm’ to his brother, therefore let him go without giving him a ticket. This goes for lawyers, judges, wardens, etc, all member of the lodge.
When making an oath, a member is supposed to kneel before alters and various gods to make their promised. Some oaths, such as the ‘Mystic Shrine,’ required a blood oath and a sworn submission to the Islamic god Allah.
Symbolism & Ritualism
All of the rituals in Freemasonry are heavily associated with Masonic symbolism and their teachings. Each of the symbol they use, the square and compass, the trowel and the plumb all have associated meanings to their Masonic rituals.
Deity
Even though each member is encouraged to have a religious background and believe in the God of their faith, the Masonic lodge teaches that God is the ‘Great Architect.’ They believe in mixing beliefs and believe that God can be worshipped in various forms by all the world religions; Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, etc.
As you develop a deeper initiation into the Masonic lodge [typically in the 17th degree of the Scottish rite or Knights of the East], the name of the Masonic Deity is revealed, the name Jubulum and the ‘sacred word’ Abaddon is given. In the Bible Abaddon is the fallen angel or the devil of the Abyss.
The Freemasonic lower degree ritual also reveals another name for the Masonic Deity ‘ Jahbulon,’ which stands for:
JA – the short name for Jehovah, the God of the Israelites
Bul – the name for the Ba’al, the ancient Phoenician lord of their gods
On- the term used to call on the Egyptian god Osiris.
“No man or body of men can make me accept as a sacred word, as a symbol of the infinite and eternal Godhead, a mongrel word, in part composed of the name of an accursed and beastly heathen god, whose name has been for more than two thousand years an appellation of the Devil” – General Albert Pike 1873, Grand Commander of the Southern Jurisdiction 33rd degree, after learning of the Masonic sacred name for god as Jabulon.
LITERATURE & PUBLICATIONS
The Freemasons have a variety of texts and literature in which they have documented their philosophies, beliefs and rituals into. Each lodge carries its own set of doctrinal literature however there are many basic forms that are universally accepted by Masonic lodges, as they describe their basic foundational beliefs.
Landmarks of Freemasonry
Each Masonic lodge operates according to their own set of principles known as the landmarks of Freemasonry. There is not one specifically defined document on this as each jurisdiction has its own accepted definition.
Within a specific jurisdiction, each lodge sets up what the requirements are for their own ‘landmarks.’ This is the set of basic membership requirements, tenets, and the rituals that the lodge will abide by. The Grand Lodge will uphold whatever its landmarks are for each of the ‘local Lodges’ within its territory, and may withhold irregular or insignificant rituals it does not wish to recognize.
The basic foundations for these ‘Landmarks,’ are laid out as the following:
- The Grand Lodge should be established by an existing regular Grand Lodge, or by at least three regular lodges.
- The Grand Lodge has complete control over the first three degrees, and is not subject to another body.
- Each member will believe in a supreme being and a divinely inspired scripture.
- Initiates should take their vows on the scripture they believe in.
- Freemasons will only accept men as members, and they cannot be a member of another lodge
- All lodges shall display a volume of scripture with the square and compasses while in session.
- Common customs and rituals ‘landmarks’ observed.
The Sacred Tenants of Freemasonry
Also known as the Great Tenets of Freemasonry, the Sacred Tenants are the list of virtues or truths that a Freemason is supposed to live and abide by. The topics it bases its foundation on are brotherly love, relief, truth, fortitude, prudence, temperance and justice.
General Ahiman Rezon
This is a collection of the Masonic rituals, hymns and ceremonies and even funeral rites. It related directly to the first degrees of Freemasonry and contains documents for various situations a Freemason may experience.
AGENDA
The controversies concerning the Freemasons agenda are revealed to the public as devious and in many cases very extreme. The stories surrounding the Freemasons in many instances are almost unbelievable with tales of world domination, social disorder and the ability to sway any world politics into obedience.
The primary evidence we have for any of the Freemasons having a hidden agenda, since most of their literature for higher members are kept form public eyes, comes in the form of eye-witness accounts, and testimonies from members and ex-members that ranked high in the organization. However, this evidence should not be so easily dismissed as many critics do, as it is the evidence of an eye-witness that can turn a trial upside down in a court of law.
Personal testimonies are a very powerful piece of evidence concerning any investigation, and all the facts have to be carefully examined and weighted in order to correctly determine the most plausible solution or fact concerning any situation.
Testimonies of former Freemasons
There are countless testimonies by ex-member that give very prominent information concerning the Freemasons, and these are men of high standard that where once involved in the organization such as layers, doctors and officers of the law. Those whom received a high ranking only to later be disturbed morally by what they found in the organization have come forward to share their experiences.
These are the experiences of many ex-member that found out that the Freemasons did have an agenda for being able to influence and control various part of government and social structure. They testify that this organization is much more then what it seems from an outside perspective.
CRITICISM OF FREEMASONRY
Religious Opposition
One of the longest standing religious organizations opposed to Freemasonry is the Roman Catholic Church. The real problem between the Catholic doctrine and the Freemasonic teachings is the direct contrast in beliefs. Pope Leo XIII in 1890 declared that Freemason member will be automatically banned from the Catholic Church.
Political Opposition
It is documented that during WWII, that even the Masons where persecuted and kills by Nazi’s. Some 200,000 Masons where killed by the holocaust, labeled as political threat and word inverted red triangles on their prison clothes. The small blue forget-me-not flower was used in the Grand Lodge during the 1926, and was used as a Masonic emblem in Bremen, Germany, as a memorial for the victims of the holocaust who suffered.
Historic Figures Involved in Freemasonry
Just because a well-respected historic figure was involved in Freemasonry, they may not have necessarily known about ulterior agendas of other Masonic members. Many prominent individuals and world leaders would most certainly be the target of organizations seeking to influence the world, looking for other world class leaders to join their fraternity, and this may have been the cause of different world leader’s joining the fraternity. As mentioned earlier, many lower ranking members have no real idea what the agenda of the top officials in the organization may be.
This is the problem with such a large organization, those at the top of the organization are able to put out different propaganda to confuse and distract the masses (both those outside and internal) to keep them from the truth. This is why it is important to focus on the facts & evidence and base your results off of them.
Freemasonry & Christianity
Freemasonry, for the average person or member, seems to be just another group or social gathering to promote a social environment and make people feel accepted. For those that are Christians, you have to ask yourself as a believer “is Freemasonry the best place to be looking for that acceptance and spending my resources?”
Freemasons teach that no one god of any religion is better than another, and as you develop later into higher degrees of initiation, they worship their own god – Jabulon.
Freemasons teach the Bible has no more or less authority than any other religious book or writing, and the relying of Jesus for your salvation is not specifically required. In fact, salvation is not a part of the Masonic belief system at all; rather they focus on honoring the Supreme Architect.
Based on the belief systems incorporated in the Masonic lodge and the testimonies of those initiated into higher ranks, this fraternity is not the place a believing Christian should spend their time as it will directly conflict with their belief in the Bible at the very least.
For those that are at a low level and enjoy the fraternity games and social gathering, there will be very little opportunity to experience for yourself any agenda higher then what is presented to you. However, knowing that you could be encouraged and give you resources and time to a cause you truly believe in and know is right, you have to ask yourself the question, why am I not invested more in the Body of Christ, Christian Church.
Sometime lodges can fell good in the fellowship you receive form other members but that deep commitment and good fellowship is something we should be contributing to in our local church and building our church family. The church is focused (or at least should be) on building up the things of God’s kingdom, which is the purpose for the believer. Any organization besides the church is going to use your resources contrary to this purpose, or influencing society in ways contrary to our own personal convictions- to know the one true God and be saved!
What Does Freemasonry Teach About Jesus
There are many Masonic references have teachings that directly contradict those of the Bible. Some of the most disturbing are those references that teach people NOT to true in Jesus for their salvation.
“It is far more important that men should strive to become Christ’s than that they should believe that Jesus was the Christ.” – Mystic Masonry p.62
The perfect man is Christ; and Christ is God. This is the birth-right and destiny of every human soul.” – Mystic Masonry p.86
“Therefore Masonry teaches that redemption and salvation are both the power and responsibility of the individual Mason. Saviors like Hiram Abiff can and do show the way, but men must always follow and demonstrate, each for himself, his power to save himself, to build his own spiritual fabric in his own time and way. Every man in essence is his own savior and redeemer; for if he does not save himself, he will not be saved.” – The Meaning of Masonry p.95
Name of Ba’al & The Devil
The god of the Freemasons Jabulon contains within it a reference to the ancient false god Ba’al, which is known by occultists to be another name- the Devil. This is quite problematic for those who are familiar with occult teachings or Biblical theology, knowing that they are a part of an organization that is focused on the Great Architect of their reality and organization – Ja-Bul-On.
“The devil is the personification of Atheism or Idolatry. For the Initiates, this is not a Person, but a force, created for good, but which may serve for evil. It is the instrument of liberty and will. They represent this force, which presides over the physical generation, under the mythological and horned form of the God Pan; thence came the he-goat of the Sabbat, brother of the Ancient Serpent, and the Light-Bearer or Phosphor, of which the poets have made the false Lucifer of the legend.” – Masonic Book – Morals and Dogma p.102
Egyptian Mysticism – Symbolism
Freemasons admit their organization is heavily focused on the use of symbols and symbolism. Most of the symbols Freemasons use relate to Egyptian beliefs and ancient religions. Whether or not all Freemasons recognize or use the symbol as mystic or religious symbol, they are still kneeling and paying homage before alters erected and imbued with Egyptian symbols based on the ancient Egyptian mystic religions.
Masons admit in their literature their belief that through symbols a person’s mind or mental state is changed, and that a man can be reformed and is able to focus their worship through the use of symbols.
Even if every Mason doesn’t accept this teaching literally, you have to ask yourself is this the kind of teaching you want to be influenced by?
Belief in all Gods – Unification of Religions
One of the biggest controversies, in defiance to most major world religions is that Freemasons, in their own literature accept the credence of all religions as one of many different roads to the Supreme Architect – God.
Masonry directs us to divest ourselves of confined and bigoted notions, and teaches us, that Humanity is the soul of Religion. We never suffer any religious disputes in our Lodges, and, as Masons, we only pursue the universal religion, the Religion, of Nature. – WM. Hutchinson, The Spirit of Masonry
This is a direct contradiction to the entire Biblical doctrine of One God! In fact Masonry devotes itself to the religion of Nature as stated above; this is closely aligned to the belief systems found in Wicca and the religions of Old.
REFERENCES
CARM.Org Forum Discussion on Freemasons
The Masonic Lodge – What you need to Know Quick Reference Guide; Ed Decker. Harvest House Publishers, Or 1997
Masonic Monitor of the Degrees of Enter Apprentices, Felowcraft and Master Mason, Arkansas F&AM 1983
Duncan’s Masonic Ritual, Duncan