Freemasonry (or simply,
Masonry) is a fraternal order whose basic tenets are brotherly love,
relief (philanthropy), and truth. We strive to enjoy the company of
our brother Masons, assist them in times of personal trouble, and
reinforce essential moral values. There is an old adage that Masonry
"takes good men and makes them better", which is our goal. It has
often been observed that men are the products of everything they come into
contact with during their lifetime. Masonry offers a man an
opportunity to come into regular, enjoyable contact with men of good
character, thus reinforcing his own personal moral
development.
Of course, Masonry is
also meant to be enjoyed by its membership, so the order should not be
viewed simply as a philosophical club, but rather a vibrant fellowship of
men who seek to enjoy each other's company, a fraternity. To
maintain this fraternity, discussion of religion and politics within the
Lodge is forbidden, as these subjects are those that have often divided
men in the past. Masonry covers the spectrum of both religious
and political beliefs and encourages a man to be religious without
advocating a particular religion, and to be active in his community
without advocating a particular
medium of political expression.
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.
Masonry is distinguished from
other fraternal orders by its emphasis on moral character, its ornate
rituals, and its long tradition and history, which dates back to at least
the 17th century in modern form, the 14th century (c. 1350-1390) in the
written evidence of its precursors, and back to the mists of antiquity in
its origin. Masonry has a continuously documented paper history (i.e.,
Lodge to Lodge) since 1717, though historical analysis shows Masonry to be
much older. There are also a great many things that Masonry is NOT: a
religion, a secret society, etc. There are three degrees in Masonry. Other
appendant bodies confer additional degrees, up to the 32nd (or the
honorary 33rd) of the Scottish Rite, but in symbolic Masonry (or Blue
Lodge Masonry) proper, there are only
three.
At the Blue Lodge, Masons
receive three degrees. Promotion generally requires the mastery of a small
body of memorized material, the contents of which varies from jurisdiction
to jurisdiction. In some jurisdictions, only the basic elements of each
degree must be learned; in others, a longer amount of material. Of course,
no Mason would ever look down upon a Brother simply because he was of a
lower degree-- the degrees do not exist to create a pecking order or to
confer rank. Rather, they are a system of initiation that allows men to
become familiar with the august and ancient history and principles of
Masonry at a comfortable pace. Proceeding from the firrst to the third can
take as little as three months, but often the time period between each
degree can be considerably longer. Most Lodges have regular meeting once a
month, that are also referred to as "business meetings". Conferring
of degrees is usually done at other meetings during the
year.
While conferral of degrees and
mundane business do take up a lot of a Lodge's time, there are a host of
other activities that Masons engage in within the fraternity, Charitable
work is often done, in the form of fundraisers, community volunteer work,
etc. And there are also a great many things done for the simple pleasure
of company: monthly breakfasts or dinners, picnics and bowls matches,
lecturers on Masonic history, you name it. Masonry is a fraternity,
and its membership seeks to have fun. Local Masonic Lodges are
organized under Provincial and Grand
Lodges.
Masons are very traditional and
the differences between Grand Lodges are usually minor . The head of
a Lodge is given the title Worshipful Master (Right Worshipful Master in
Scotland). This, of course, does not imply that Masons worship him;
it is merely a stylish title. Masonic Lodges can be found in many
cities, of all sizes, around the world. There are presently approximately
5 million Masons, half of which are in the United States.