8-58 Some Misconceptions about
Freemasonry
THE SHORT TALK BULLETIN
The Masonic Service Association of
the United States
VOL. 36 August 1958 NO. 8
"Oh that my words were now
written! Oh that they were printed in a book! . .
For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter
day upon the earth."
( JOB 19: 23, 25 )
In these sentences Job is
replying to his critics, who were asserting that his affections were the result
of his unrighteousness. In the
first verse Job expresses the wish that his honor be proclaimed for all
generations to know; but in the second, he rejects the dream of a human
acquittal in the centuries to come and confidently asserts his belief in an
Ultimate Vindication.
Job never knew Freemasonry, but
his words might well serve to encourage Freemasons who are troubled by the
misconceptions and the falsehoods which are disseminated about the Ancient
Craft.
In the charge of the Entered
Apprentice Degree, Freemasons are told: "neither are you to suffer your zeal for
the institution to lead you into argument with those who, through ignorance, may
ridicule it." This Bulletin, setting forth seven of the accusations which are
leveled at Freemasonry, is not a polemic to confute those who do not understand
our Order. It is written as a
reassurance to the members of the Fraternity that "truth and justice are on our
side" and that these are the living Redeemer (ie: a Vindicator) in whom we put
our trust.
"FREEMASONRY IS A SECRET
SOCIETY"
The statement is not true. Freemasonry is a society which keeps
certain matters secret, but the organization, its membership, its officers, its
purposes are not secret.
Freemasonry meets in
Temples. Many of these are
beautiful, prominent buildings in the cities and towns in which they are
erected. Men enter and leave these
Temples openly, not secretly. A
number of Grand Lodges publish the names of the members of the Order in their
Proceedings. Many lodges issue
directories of their membership.
Men wear the square and compasses on their lapels. Who's Who lists Masonic membership in
many of its biographies. Masons
appear as such in public at cornerstone layings and at funerals. These are not the characteristics of a
"secret" society.
The vast majority of Masons are
proud of being such. They boast of
it, knowing that the general public conceives of Freemasonry as an honor; that
not every one can be a Mason; that it is a character building organization of
good men.
But let us suppose for a moment
that "Freemasonry IS a secret society." Is belonging to a "secret society"
criminal? Only if such a society has inhuman or unlawful purposes. There are "secret societies" which
engage in conspiracies, or terrorism, or other illegal practices; membership in
them is "secret" because their members do not admit publicly that they belong to
such organizations.
On the other hand, a number of
individuals form a "secret" Christmas Club. They each make a contribution to buy
gifts for poor children at Christmas.
They keep the organization and their names secret because they know that
otherwise they will be overwhelmed with publicity and with too many
requests. They take pride in doing
good without advertising. Is it
harmful because it is secret?
In this country the Masonic
Fraternity whose only objectives are charity and the building of character,
counts approximately four mil- lion men in its membership. It is difficult to conceive how such a
number, proudly asserting their affiliation, can constitute a "secret"
society.
"FREEMASONRY, BEING A RELIGION, DETRACTS FROM
ALL ORGANIZED RELIGION"
The statement is also
untrue. Freemasonry is not a
religion. The dictionary ( Funk
& Wagnall’s Standard) defines religion as "Any system of faith, doctrine
and worship, as, the Christian religion." Freemasomy has no "system of
faith", and its acknowledgment of a Grand Architect of the Universe is, in its
own words ( Old Charges, first printed in Anderson's Constitutions of 1723)
"that natural religion in which all men agree"--that is, the reverence
for a supreme, single, creative Power.
No Grand Lodge phrases a
doctrine, and a religion without a doctrine is no religion. No Masonic Lodge uses any service of
divine worship in its ritual or meetings.
True it is that lodges have an
Altar, use a Sacred Book upon it, open and close meetings with prayer, possess
an officer called a Chaplain, and are dedicated to God and the Sts. John.
In almost every hotel room in
America is to be found a Bible.
Does that make the hotel either a religion or a church? The Army and Navy
have Chaplains for every regiment, every ship. Does that make the Army and Navy
religions, or the ships churches? The American Legion and a hundred other
organizations have Chaplains, but no one thinks of them as religions.
Our symbols are not religious
symbols. Our purposes, while
virtuous, are not religious. We
seek no converts; we profess no dogma; we gladly accept men of any and of every
faith; indeed, we accept men of no particular faith who yet believe in one
Supreme Being. Freemasonry does,
indeed, inculcate morality, believes in human dignity, encourages charity,
practices relief. The family,
schools, institutions of higher learning, organizations of a hundred characters,
all are moral, charitable, humanly helpful. But that does not make them
religions.
One of the central teachings of
Freemasonry is immortality. The
answer to Job's question, "If a man die, shall he live again?" and the
central teaching of all religions is also immortality. Therefore, say our critics, Freemasonry
must be a religion.
But that is false reasoning. The central teaching of the land in
which we live is patriotism--love of America and the American way of life. Exactly the same thing is true of an
Englishman, of a German, a Frenchman.
Each is taught patriotism, but that does not mean each loves OUR country
best. Each loves best his own. Freemasonry insists on a belief in
immortality, but it teaches no particular doctrine concerning survival after
death.
Freemasonry is reverent,
charitable, and ethical in precept and practice. So are millions of people who are
neither Masons nor church members.
The only religious affirmation required of a Freemason is that he
believes in one God.
Freemasonry accepts as members
the Christian, the Jew, the Mohammedan, the Parsee, the Buddhist; a man may be a
Unitarian or a Baptist, a Spiritualist, a Quaker or a Catholic. Freemasonry accepts him as a man, not as
a member of a church. Quakers and
Catholics cannot become Masons without offending their own religion, which fact
Masonic authorities will always explain to men of those faiths who apply, but
Masonry accepts them if they are good men and wish to join. Ministers of all faiths are Masons, just
as Masons are members of all churches.
A minister of one faith cannot profess a doctrine other than his own; yet
he can be a Mason. The Fraternity
obviously is not a religion, but only a philosophy of life.
"FREEMASONRY IS
ANTI-CHRISTIAN"
Freemasonry is not anti any
faith. It is non-Christian, yes--it
is also non-Jewish, non- Mohammedan, non-Buddhist, non-Republican,
non-Democrat. Freemasonry makes no
test of religion or of politics.
Discussion of both is strictly forbidden in Masonic lodges. Freemasons, being good Americans, and
teaching patriotism and love of the American way of life, are individually
anti-communist. Some Grand Lodges
have passed anti-communistic resolutions, but most of them have not dignified
that cruel system with any notice, preferring the positive teachings of
patriotism to any "anti" expressions whatsoever.
The American public school is
non-sectarian. It teaches all
children of parents of all faiths.
It is non--not anti--religious.
Any bank will receive and care for the money of any well-recommended
citizen without regard to his color, his race, his creed. The bank is not anti-Negro,
anti-African, anti-Christian; it is merely non-Negro, non-African,
non-Christian. Its concern is with
money and credit. Freemasonry's
concern is with character and morality.
School, bank, Masonry are all non; none of them is anti.
"FREEMASONRY DENIES JESUS--IT NEVER MENTIONS
HIM"
Freemasonry does nothing of the
sort. It does not mention
Isaiah. Does that connote denial?
It does not mention Woodrow Wilson or Abraham Lincoln. Does that mean that Freemasonry denies
that they lived and worked and were great Americans? Freemasonry does not talk
of Mohammed or Confucius, but that does not mean that the Order denies their
greatness, or their importance to those to whom they are great and
important.
The Chaplain of a Masonic lodge
who prays as the voice of the lodge does not pray in the name of the Carpenter
of Nazareth or the name of Jehovah or the name of Allah. He prays to the Grand Artificer or the
Great Architect of the Universe.
Under that title men of all faiths may find each his own deity. Failure to mention any deity by name is
not denial, but merely the practice of a gracious courtesy, so that each man for
whom prayer is offered can hear the name of his own deity in the all-inclusive
title of Great Architect.
"MASONIC CHARITY IS ONLY FOR
MASONS"
The statement that Masonic
charity is only for Masons is simply not true. While the charity provided by the local
lodge may be largely for Masons, their widows, and orphans, the individual Mason
participates in a number of other benevolent enterprises under Masonic auspices
which are not limited to Masonic beneficiaries. He can also point out examples of
benevolence which his lodge has extended to non-Masons or community
projects.
But let us suppose for a moment
that a Masonic lodge charity IS only for its own members. Is that a matter for censure? A father
provides a home for his own children, not his neighbor's. He clothes and feeds his own family, not
another's. A church builds its
edifice for its own members first.
A member of a workingmen's group gets into difficulties; his fellows
contribute to his necessities. To
help, aid, and assist those with whom we are closely associated is common
practice. It is admirable, not
reprehensible.
Many of the co-ordinate bodies of
Freemasonry have established outstanding charitable foundations or enterprises,
whose efforts to help the needy or to alleviate suffering are not restricted to
those who are Masons or who have Masonic relatives. A few examples will suffice to
illustrate the point. The Supreme
Councils of the 33ø, Scottish Rite, in both the Southern and Northern
jurisdictions, have made tremendous contributions to education, public health,
and relief. The Southern
Jurisdiction founded the George Washington University's School of Government
with a grant of one million dollars, and has supplemented it with additional
gifts and scholarships. Recently it
has given a $20,000 grant to American University in Washington, D. C., and $10,000 to Baylor University in
Texas. The Northern Jurisdiction
provides scholarships for young men and women at the Boston University School of
Journalism and Arts of Communication.
Proven ability and financial need are the only tests applied to
applicants for these scholarships.
Both Supreme Councils maintain a
Foundation or Benevolent Fund to help, aid, and assist. In the Northern Jurisdiction the Fund is
used to promote public health by promoting research in the field of mental
illness, particularly in the area of dementia praecox. In the Southern Jurisdiction local
bodies support particular charities, two of the most famous being Hospitals for
Crippled Children at Atlanta, Georgia, and Dallas, Texas.
Each of the local bodies of the
Rite has an Almoner, who is provided with substantial funds to administer to the
needy, without regard to Masonic membership. This longtime contribution of the Rite
to public welfare is never publicized; its extent and importance are rarely
known. Thousands of people are
helped each year by Scottish Rite Almoners.
For more than thirty years the
Grand Encampment of Knights Templar of the United States has maintained a large
trust fund as an Educational Foundation, to enable young men and women to defray
the costs of a college education, by borrowing on exceedingly liberal terms a
part of their college expenses.
More than a thousand young people are helped annually; they are using
approximately a half million dollars each year. The Grand Encampment has also set up a
foundation which supports research and treatment of diseases and injury to the
human eye, in an effort to prevent blindness. The treatment is provided for
individuals who are in need, regardless of race, creed, sex, age, or national
origin.
Most widely known, perhaps, is
the extensive work of alleviating distress which is carried on in the Shriners'
Hospitals for Crippled Children.
All Nobles of the Mystic Shrine must first be Master Masons; but the
seventeen hospitals which Shriners have built and maintain at tremendous cost
are for children of all colors, faiths, and either sex. They must be crippled and unable to get
other hospitalization; the Shrine requires no other tests for admission.
Most of the Masons in the United
States, through their Grand Lodges, contribute to the support of The Masonic
Service Association. The
far-reaching comfort and personal helpfulness of this agency's Hospital
Visitation Program is provided for all who need it in the ranks of our disabled
veterans, regardless of race, creed, or fraternal affiliation.
Freemasonry is proud of its
contributions to human welfare!
"FREEMASONS FORM A POLITICAL PRESSURE
GROUP"
It is difficult to say of one
false charge against the Ancient Craft that it is more ridiculous than another,
but no accusation of wrong-doing by Masons is more unjust than this one. Freemasonry has existed in the United
States since 1730. Enough years
have passed since our earliest American brethren met in Pennsylvania to
demonstrate the "political activities" of the Fraternity, if such existed.
Politics--meaning partisan
politics--are strictly forbidden to be discussed in lodges, and have been, since
the publication of Anderson's Constitutions in 1723. If Masons were a "political pressure
group", obviously they would need a cause, an idea, a program for which to exert
their pressure. No one has as yet
been able to name such an aim.
Freemasons, as a general rule,
elect a new leadership every year; a few Grand Lodges re-elect a Grand Master
for a second term, one usually for a third term. Each year every one of the Grand Lodges
of the forty-nine in the United States publishes its Proceedings, which contain
the annual addresses of the Grand Masters.
In none of these, for any year, at any time in the history of Freemasonry
in the United States, is there to be found any political objective, any aim to
be obtained by pressure, any indication of the Fraternity's taking any part in
partisan politics.
If Freemasonry is a "pressure
group", it must have something to "press" for. It must have a political leader; he must
apply that pressure. Since not the
slightest scintilla of evidence for such activity exists, it is obvious that
this charge is the nonsense of ignorance.
"FREEMASONRY WORKS IN SECRET FOR SECRET
AIMS"
It would seem essential, to
establish the truth of such an accusation, that somewhere, at some time, someone
must have known of these "secret aims".
A secret which no one knows and no one does anything about seems
harmless!
What are these "secret aims"? No
one has ever stated! Presumably, they are something too terrible to phrase. The destruction of government? The
murder of opponents? The elimination of all religions?
Thirteen Presidents of the United
States have been Freemasons. At the
present time five members of the Supreme Court are Masons. A majority of Congress is now and always
has been composed of Masons, whose political beliefs have been as various as the
nation itself! Thousands of ministers and hundreds of Rabbis are and have been
Freemasons. What "secret aim" can
be imagined which would appeal to such men as these?
Thousands of books have been
written about Freemasonry, for Freemasons and for the general public. Many books have been published by the
enemies of Freemasonry. The most
virulent of these have never been able to specify any "secret aim" to the
completion or attainment of which the Fraternity is dedicated. They cannot find it, because it does not
exist. A "secret aim", of which
there is no evidence and which no one has described factually, can exist only as
a fancy in a credulous mind.
Freemasonry will continue to have
its critics and detractors. Just
criticism should always be welcomed; but ignorance and willful
misrepresentations should be ignored.
"By acting upon the square .
. . and avoiding the intemperance" of a
reply, the true Freemason will maintain "a zealous attachment to those duties
which will insure private and public esteem."
THE SHORT TALK BULLETIN
The Masonic
Service Association of the United States
VOL. 36 August 1958 NO.
8