LIFE ON THE SQARE
HUMANISM AND THE FREEMASONS. March 1996 GM Humanist
There are many reasons why humanists should be critical of Freemasonry which
has 600,000 initiates in England alone. The society that many people associate
with respectability and principles of brotherly love, relief and truth, charity
and the establishment old boy network, is actually a religious, occult-rooted,
misogynist and secret society that encourages elitism, sexism, privilege,
snobbery and hierarchical Machiavellian power play.
Freemasonry originated in medieval craft guilds. The great European
cathedral-building programme begun under William I employed hundreds of
craftsmen who had to travel to towns where they were unknown. Their handshakes
and complex greeting rituals told organisers that they were genuinely skilled
enough to entrust with certain duties. You couldn't let just anybody chisel at
a gargoyle.
With work in this field dying out in the industrial eighteenth century, the
Freemasons began to open up their ranks to honoured friends in other
professions. It was useful to know a policeman, a barrister and business
leaders who might be useful one day. Even today people are rarely admitted to
the Masons unless someone else finds it useful to have them under their
influence. You get in because of who you know, not because of what you know.
Freemasonry is about inside knowledge. Masons feel that they are and should be
allowed to keep lucrative business dealings to themselves, and exclude a n y o
n e lacking their b e t t e r qualities. The "Lodge" or exclusive
social club was a product of such a privileged sub-society.
In 1717 the world's first Grand Lodge opened in London.
When alchemist C o u n t Cagliostro (1743-95, of the infamous Marie
Antoinette's necklace affair) joined the masons in Italy he brought with him a
fascination for arcane Egyptology and the kind of Masonic skills he thought
must have been employed in building the pyramids and other great ancient
artifacts. Much Victorian interest in all things Egyptian is owed to
Freemasonry. Masons paid for the transport to England from Alexandria of the
obelisk called Cleopatra's Needle. Masonry thus became pervaded by
pseudo-Egyptian religious ritual and imagery. Architectural symbolism now
dominated Masonic philosophy. Humanity to a Freemason is designed by a master
craftsman, a god, usually called The Great Architect. Many Masonic
buildings and graves and statues of noted Freemasons have draughtsman's
compasses and dividers carved in relief.
All Freemasons must also believe in God (whether Jewish, Christian or
Muslim). Atheists and agnostics are therefore excluded from the ranks, as are
all women, despite feminist protests and equal opportunities in other areas of
life. Some Freemasons go as far as to exclude female mourners including widows
from their own Masonic funeral ceremonies. (Martin Short: Inside the
Brotherhood; Grafton 1989). Annual Lodge ladies' nights are just a social
whirl, intended to appease members whose wives are upset at being excluded from
knowing what the Masons get up to. There are a number of women only Masonic
lodges in existence operating on similar principles to the male fraternity
(though not officially recognised by the other) The Queen has an honorary
status as the reigning monarch. Non-royalists are also unlikely to be admitted
to the intensely patriotic Lodges.
Freemasons have long been accused of being conspiratorial; every war,
assassination and unsolved murder is laid at their door. Mozart probably wasn't
killed by Masons for using their rituals in The Magic Flute, as some
commentators suggest. Then there's Jack the Ripper, whose supposed roots on The
Square are the subject of Stephen Knight's book, Jack the Ripper: the Final
Solution; Granada 1977, (filmed as Murder by Decree). It is easy to
be paranoid about Freemasons. Masonic Lodges did, however, become useful
centres of resistance movements against the Nazi advance during World War II.
Masonry is incompatible with most Christian and other monotheistic
religions. Masons see all gods as equal. Jesus isn't seen as the exclusive
saviour, nor is Allah. They say salvation depends on human works and not on
faith in God. While Catholics are forbidden to join after a papal bull issued
in 1738, many Anglicans are Freemasons, including prominent Synod officials. In
fact, Freemasonry is a major religion in its own right. It has its own core
trinity of gods. The Great Architect, who is central to Masonic cosmology, has
a three-part name, misunderstood by most initiates of the lower degrees: the
name is Jah-Bul-On. The Jah is the angry Old Testament Yahweh.
Bul or Baal is the Canaanite fertility god, denounced and defeated
by jealous old Yahweh in a struggle for the affections of the ancient
Israelites. Bul is, biblically speaking, a false god, a devil. On is Osiris,
Egyptian god of the underworld, a death figure.
The initiation ritual for first degree recruits symbolically strips the
novice of his money to indicate his poverty of power and spirit without the
Brotherhood. His trouser-leg is rolled up, his shirt opened" one shoe is
removed to make him feel alienated, lonely and absurd. He is blindfolded and
given a noose to wear to add to his vulnerability and sense of mortal despair.
He is totally dependent on his fellow Masons and takes an oath of secrecy that
is clearly against Humanist ethics. The convert accepts that "having his
throat cut across, tongue torn out by the roots and buried in the sand" is
the price to pay for speaking of the Masonic practices he witnesses.
An important myth in the lore and ritual is that of Hiram Abiff, the
architect allegedly responsible for creating Solomon's Temple. He was
apparently executed for not revealing certain mystical secrets - where in the
Temple he had concealed the lost name of God. You won't find Hiram's story in
the Bible. Much Masonic ritual re-enacts his death and resurrects him. For many
initiates of the lower degrees, paying annual fees, attending a few business
meetings and being On The Square is enough. More complex rituals at higher levels
are carried out often unknown to members of long standing.
Many religious, occult and political organisations have modelled themselves
on Masonry's pyramid structure, The Golden Dawn, for one, and the Mormons for
another. Joseph Smith's Book of Mormon denounces Freemasonry while borrowing
extensively from its sources.
Many Masons have quit and complained of being deeply troubled by the
sinister aspects of the initiation ritual. The air of casual threat is very
like the Mafia vow of Omerta (total silence). However, there have been exposes.
Stephen Knight's book, The Brotherhood; Panther, 1985), caused a
sensation by divulging much of Freemasonry's neglected and dubious history, as
well as questioning the membership of high-ranking policemen - there is a Lodge
room in Scotland Yard itself - and of government officials in a secret cult
within a supposedly open democracy. There have been cases of jobs going to
Masons instead of to more able non-Masons; Masons being given light sentences
by judges recognising the hand-signals, and careers quietly ruined by the
withdrawal of support due to pressure from Lodge members.
The charity work of Masons is predominantly though not exclusively for
Masonic causes. They have their own hospitals, benevolent institutions, etc.
True social enterprise, charity, benevolence and humanity should be for
everybody, open and above board, democratic, free and not rooted in absurdly
manufactured dogma borrowed from different religions. Arthur Chappell
FOLLOW UP ARTICLE - MANCHESTER HUMANISTS MEETING REPORT MARCH 12th
1997.
JOHN PASSMORE - THE FREEMASONS.
In March 1996, I wrote an article for the newsletter (Issue #12) about
Freemasonry. This lead to a radio talk on GMR Radio in which I was joined by John
Passmore, who was then serving as Provincial Grand Lodge Secretary for East
Lancashire’s Freemasons, (He has now retired from office) John was
disadvantaged by not having read my article before the talk about it had begun.
After the talk, I sent John the article, and invitation to address our group,
to tell us about Freemasonry in his own words. He kindly took up the
invitation. His
talk took place a year later. Here is my summary of it.
John summarised the history of the Freemasons, from their roots in 15th
century stonemason’s craft guild lodges, where secret signs and handshakes were
used to show prospective employers what kind of work you qualified for.
Cathedral and castle building involved travelling to different parts of the
country to work with people who didn’t know who you were. It was essential to
be able to demonstrate quickly what you could and couldn’t do. The signs and
handshakes were a rapid shorthand way of showing your potential boss your CV.
As work in such specialised fields became scarce, the guilds took in more
non-craft members to maintain numbers and funding. and this eventually lead to
the foundation of the Freemasonry movement as it exists today. In 1817 the
United Grand Lodge was formed from the two major guild organisations 'Ancients'
and ‘moderns’.
As Freemasons must declare belief in a supreme being, the Great Architect,
Humanists, as atheists and agnostics, can never qualify as members of the
Freemasons.
Freemasons see themselves as essentially a benevolent society raising money
for charity and good causes. The Freemasons aim to develop an individual in a
social and independent way that does not conflict with another person’s
interests and needs.
If the freemasons are presented with a case for sending a particular patient
for private health treatment (instead of NHS care), a board meeting takes place
where it is decided how much of the cost (if any) the Freemasons should donate.
Initiation ceremonies are symbolic of the various stages of human life, most
notably birth and death. The ceremonies are often a re-enactment in dramatised
playlet form of aspects of the Masonic myth. This myth has its roots in the
Biblical legend of the founding of King Solomon’s Temple, and in beliefs
concerned with the tragic martyrdom of one Hiram Abif, a personage not
mentioned in the Bible. Because the masons who built Solomon’s Temple were not
to disclose the secrets of its structure, or the location of its secret
chambers and hidden treasures on pain of death, Hiram Abif allowed himself to be
sealed into the fabric of the building, in effect, buried alive, to complete
the last of the work from the inside so that the secret of how he achieved the
task perished with him.
Though rooted in traditional, symbolic and archaic ritual procedure, much Masonic
activity is formally democratic, according to John Passmore. If you wished to
join the Freemasons (and not female or/and a Humanist) you would have to be
nominated and seconded by practising freemasons, and a committee session would
then be held where your application was voted on. This is done through a secret
ballot, in which votes are cast with white balls (For) and black (opposed)
balls. If two or more black balls are in the ballot box (sometimes it can be as
few as one black ball), the applicant is irrevocably rejected as a possible
member. It may be questioned how one or two blackball votes can overturn a
majority of white ball votes in a ‘democratic’ election procedure. It was not
ascertained whether the blackballing procedure originated in Freemasonry or if
they inherited it elsewhere.
John argued against claims that freemasonry is a secret society by producing
a number of books and articles approved and authorised by freemasons for public
distribution. He believes that no secret society would have such accessibility
as that. Even the names and addresses of the senior ranking Freemasons are
published.
There is much that Freemasons will not divulge. When pressed by one or two
of our questioners for details of rituals, John declined to answer. Much of
what has been kept secret in the past has been discussed more openly in recent
years by the Freemasons. This is largely in response to the criticism received
following publication of ‘The Brotherhood’, a best-selling expose of
Freemasonry secret by Stephen Knight (Grafton 1984), and the sequel, ‘Inside
The Brotherhood’ by Martin Short (1989) . John, like many freemasons was quick
to pick up on Stephen Knight’s death by brain haemorrhage in his thirties
shortly after The Brotherhood was published. (There is no suggestion of a
Masonic involvement in the writer’s death, but it is picked upon as a kind of
poetic, ironic justice). The books, (which formed the root research material
for my own article in our own newsletter) forced freemasons to be more open
about their activities. Many lodges now have public open days and museum tours.
This was unprecedented before the books came out. Freemasons don’t question the
facts raised by Stephen Knight, but challenge his ‘interpretation’ of the
evidence.
John Passmore joined the Freemasons in Southend, in 1970 following in the
footsteps of his Father and his brother. When he moved to Sale, Manchester, he
had to prove that he was a mason by demonstrating his knowledge of the rituals,
and secrets and handshakes to prove his authenticity and that his intentions
were genuine. When the Lancashire Lodge was becoming too large and powerful, it
was obliged to divide into the East and West Lancashire Lodge Divisions, and
John Passmore became Grand Secretary of East Lancashire.
Most Lodge meetings are of an evening. There are no Lodge gatherings on
Sundays by constitutional ruling. A festival is a five year concentrated fund
raising programme to raise money for a particular cause, i.e., a Masonic
hospital. A Freemason who supports the festival cause for the full five years
secures entitlement to buy a medal commemorating his contribution and work.
These purchased medals (never awarded free, as the money raised in their sales
also contributes to the charitable cause) can then be worn with pride. John
brought a sample selection of medals (Freemasons prefer to call them jewels)
along. They look like the medals worn on the chests of war veterans. Masonic
memorabilia often becomes highly collectable, and is much sought after, often commanding
high auction prices. Such artifacts often depict Masonic and architectural
imagery, such as compass-dividers or building keystones. John also brought
along some of the Masonic aprons worn at various degrees of initiation by
freemasons. (these start from basic kitchen-work pinnies and progress to
elaborate and ornate material, the higher up the ranks a mason progresses.
Originally they would have been made of lamb-skins.
Members of our group raised a number of questions and points of view, which
John responded to well. In fact, his brave willingness to speak before an
audience of non-masons and people likely to be critical of his beliefs was very
commendable. Members were quick to pick up on recent Guardian reports that
Frederick Crawford, current Royal Arch-Mason, is alleged to have told fellow
masons to protect their brothers even if they believe them to be in the wrong.
John was unfamiliar with the details of this case and pointed out that he knows
of cases where freemasons who have been asked to leave the Brotherhood because
of crimes and scandals they have been involved in as individuals, so Masons
certainly don’t protect their own in every situation. One of our members, a
former policeman, told how he was once invited to join the Freemasons by a
senior police officer. Aware that his Humanism would cause problems when it
came to taking the oath of allegiance to a supreme being (any god will do, as
long as it is a God, so Allah does count as well as Jehovah), he was told by
his would be recruiter that most freemasons didn’t believe in the Great
Architect either, but went along with the ritual for the benefits they hoped to
gain by being Freemasons. Our member was happily too principled to pretend such
beliefs for personal gain.
There are currently 8,500 lodges, and some 360,000 members of the Freemasons
in Britain (some may serve in more than one lodge). Asked why they are still in
effect a small minority of the British male population, John Passmore suggested
expenses. Entrance fee is set at £50.00, with an annual subscription membership
fee of £120.00 which covers eight lodge meetings per year, all of which are
followed by a meal (actually a veritable feast). Others may be deterred by
books like Stephen Knight’s and by their allegiances to other churches and
organisations. Christians are wary of a group that relegates God to a general
figurehead status. By seeing God and Allah as reflections of the same being,
the Freemasons trod on some theological and doctrinal toes, and some religious
groups are openly hostile to Freemasonry. The Catholics have had a papal bull
issued against Freemasonry for centuries.
This was a bold and assertive talk, that seemed aimed squarely at countering
my previous assertions on Freemasonry. Sadly, I believe that many of my views
remain unchanged, though I still have no doubt as to the integrity and
essential moral goodness of the majority of freemasons. A social benevolent
society that automatically excludes fifty percent of the population from its
movement, (as Freemasons do in the case of women) is one that needs to open
further to progress and change. Asked whether women are ever likely to be seen
as acceptable freemasons, John Passmore was doubtful; the initiation of a male
mason involves a symbolic baring of the breast and the nipple over the heart,
both to show humility and a willingness to be vulnerable even unto death, and
also to show that one is not a woman in disguise (such intrusions have been
attempted). Women would be embarrassed and humiliated by the breast-baring, and
are thus excluded. The idea of changing the ritual to increase membership seems
unthinkable to the freemasons. asked whether he sees a day when Humanists might
become freemasons, John was in no doubt that such a day will never dawn.
Arthur Chappell.
WHAT IS A SECRET SOCIETY?
I was intrigued by John Passmore’s assertion that Freemasonry cannot be a
secret society because it publishes senior membership lists and some books,
such as John Hamill’s The Craft, (Guild Publishing 1986). This made me think
about what is or isn’t a secret society.
If a society is totally secretive then we know nothing whatsoever about it,
and have no inkling that it might even exist. Most secret societies at least
leave people in the belief that they exist and that they do something. The
Illuminati is a classic example; this Masonic conspirational organisation is
sometimes blamed for involvement in various conspiracies, but no hard evidence
exists of any such group existing. The Rosicrucians also fall into this category
for many years, being rumoured to exist by various mediaeval pamphlets and
flyers that may or may not have been a hoax, but since the sixteenth century
organisations have adopted that title, though they may not have direct links
with the original organisations that have served that cause.
Most Secret Societies are known to definitely exist in some form, and some
of their activities have been exposed or publicised. The Cosa Nostra, (or
Mafia) hides its identity for obvious reasons; it is involved in organised
crime. (Mafia is a word often used to denote any and all organised crime
fraternities, but the Sicilian Mafia has a more exclusive pedigree) Its
exposure has come from police investigation, and confessions from Mafia people
who have spilled the beans (presumably before being made offers they could not
refuse). Christianity itself once survived as an underground society, under
Roman oppression with much use of secret signs (like the fish) being used to
signify membership. Many atheists and unbelievers would similarly have kept
their doubts to themselves under threat of Inquisition, torture and death by
fanatical Christians. Many 18th century Humanistic tracts were published
anonymously for the safety of the authors. Wartime resistance movements are
another example of a necessary degree of deception being required by a society.
Espionage agencies are known to exist, but remain tight lipped about the
identities of their field agents and officers. The CIA is in the American Phone
book, but understandably won’t tell you what its people are doing right now in
Bosnia. MI5 takes secrecy to a degree of paranoia. They won’t even disclose
their own postal address on Whitehall. Their outrage at the publication of
Peter Wright’s book on his work there is a case in point. The book was banned
in Britain for many years. The elite Special Armed Service soldiers (SAS) are
worried by a crop of recent sensationalist memoirs being published by its
former and once secretive members.
The Freemasons, like other groups, organizations, cults and sects, are known
to exist, but are guarded about what they will and will not say. Many known
cults have meditation techniques that they will not willingly divulge to
non-members, notably TM, (Transcendental Meditation).
It’s true that Masonic lodges are easily located and details of their
location are public knowledge. Women are allowed in for social events called
ladies night, but details of handshakes, rituals and procedures are only ever
likely to be exposed, rather than voluntarily revealed. The Freemasons are
therefore a secret (or at least ‘secretive’) society despite its extensive
publicized materials. In fact, the different ranks and degree levels between
ordinary Mason and master mason, and later levels like Lodge Master, Grand Lodge
Secretary, all have secrets of their own. Freemasons have secrets even from
fellow freemasons. Secrecy is not good for society. It creates an atmosphere
conducive to mistrust, fear and paranoia. In an open, just and free society,
there should be no room for secrecy and closeted thinking. Secular Humanism
alternatively has no secrets from anyone, unless there’s something we haven’t
been told about .... ? ? ? ? God, and his angels are a very good secret
society. Many believe they exist, but they cannot be found anywhere.
© Copyright. Arthur Chappell
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