This post is fated, and by that, I mean this: I was going to post about Masons yesterday but decided it was too complex a subject to tackle and it would have to wait for another day. Last night I went over to 985 only to walk in on a conversation about Masons.
- The Freemasons are the oldest fraternity in the world and, though no one is entirely sure, probably dates back to the stonemasons of the Middle Ages.
- Masonry as we know it came to Britain in 1717.
- Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Paul Revere, etc. were masons. Apparently all those guys were. You know, the Founding Fathers. From the sound of it, our country was founded by Freemasons.
- Masons congregate at lodges. There are 13,200 in the United States.
- The lodges are sometimes referred to as “temples” because Masonic symbolism, of which there is an abundance, originated in King Solomon’s Temple.
- In short, Masons want to better the world and better themselves while keeping company with men whom they respect and enjoy being around.
- They spend $2 million a day making things better in the United States - donating to charities and providing for the disadvantaged.
- Three levels of membership exist: Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft, Master Mason.
- According to the “What’s a Mason?” pamphlet I’m consulting for much of this information, Masons are only secretive in 2 ways: the ways in which they identify themselves to each other (“grips and passwords”) and ineffable secrets (here they stress the difference between “can not” and “may not” - these secrets, they argue defy verbal description, it’s not that they wouldn’t want to tell other people).
- Masonry is not a religion, though you must believe in God to be a Mason. Atheism is not permitted.
- It is a ritual-heavy organization and there is a Volume of Sacred Law kept handy in the lodge at all times.
- I was surprised to read that one can apply to become a mason - it’s not just some sort of nepotic (?) thing. The applicant is questioned and observed, then his membership is voted upon. Usually, interested men get in.
Freemasonry doesn’t sound nearly as exciting as I hoped it would. It’s time to see what Wikipedia has to say about this.
Man, nothing cool! Where to now? Conspiracyarchive.com, I guess. Alright, nothing much there either, except some really vague ties to the occult and witchcraft and such. There you have it, I guess. Masonry isn’t all that ridiculous or creepy or whatever. Just a bunch of men having some laughs, sharing some secrets, shaking some hands. NBD.
OMG - update: I’m listening to NPR on my computer so that I can listen to “Car Talk” while I’m doing work in my living room. Anyway, that song by Cake came on that says “the stone mason does all the work.” Can you believe it?! There’s more here than meets the eye, but I’m just too lazy to look further into it.
