Freemasonry Explained

Thats what it started as

whats with the death ritual every mason has to go through to enter.

why the shriners have them funny hats and special hospitals

do you know theshriners are top masons??


The masons plan to take all their family heirloom and inheritance at any cost if you havea mason in your family you will know they will not stop to no end to get the dying relatives money

Originally posted by thecinic
do you know theshriners are top masons??

Nah, they're no greater than any other Masons. Nothing "top" about them.

Originally posted by thecinic
The masons plan to take all their family heirloom and inheritance at any cost if you havea mason in your family you will know they will not stop to no end to get the dying relatives money

What of your relatives have no money to take?

I like your screen name. It fits you well.

Originally posted by thecinic
Thats what it started as

whats with the death ritual every mason has to go through to enter.

it's part of the ritual. a very important part of the lesson that is taught.

why the shriners have them funny hats and special hospitals

Here is a little information on them. the hospitals is a labor of love for them. They pride themselves on the fact that a child in need can and will get the best care known to man at no cost to that child or the family. Kind of hard to find fault in that. the hats are funny. It's part of the "fun" aspect of it. Everybody looks goofy.

do you know theshriners are top masons??

nope, they are just masons. You do have to be a mason in order to become a shriner though.

The masons plan to take all their family heirloom and inheritance at any cost if you havea mason in your family you will know they will not stop to no end to get the dying relatives money

there are several ways for people to donate their inheritance to masonic charities. More often than not, the ones who complain about this are children who are overly selfish and thought they had some claim to the hard earned money of their parents. The lesson of self reliance is usually taught to them the hard way. Helping others is the greatest thing anyone can do on this earth.

Originally posted by thecinic
The masons plan to take all their family heirloom and inheritance at any cost if you havea mason in your family you will know they will not stop to no end to get the dying relatives money

You know, I've been to many Masonic funerals, and I don't know of a single one where the dying Mason left all his money to the fraternity and nothing to his family or rightful heirs. We're not a cult. Yes, it takes money to run those hospitals (because the patients don't pay a cent, whether they come from Masonic families or not), but duty to family always trumps duty to Masonry. It's one of the core lessons.

reply to post by BobbinHood

You ask one. You can look up the Grand Lodge of your State or Country (for outside the US). They have some Contact information that you can use.

reply to post by torqpoc

What are these "higher tiers" you speak of? And what of the bigger picture?

reply to post by andy1033

We treat each other very nicely, but staying within bounds of our jobs and positions in the respective organization. I'm in charge of my Royal Arch Chapter and one of my officers is also a Sergeant Major in my Army unit, but he has never used his position to give me a upper hand while others were left by the wayside.

And how do you know about this ego? How is it non-members think they know all this while us "low tier" Masons don't?

reply to post by andy1033

I have discussed various lies held against Freemasons with many Grand Masters. It's usually talked about like any running joke is.

Originally posted by thecinic
whats with the death ritual every mason has to go through to enter.

What do you mean by death ritual?

Originally posted by thecinic
why the shriners have them funny hats and special hospitals

Not sure, I'm not a Shriner. The hospitals are used to provide charity to those less fortunate who need medical attention. Are you complaining about free medical care to children?

Originally posted by thecinic
do you know theshriners are top masons??

How do you figure?

Originally posted by thecinic
The masons plan to take all their family heirloom and inheritance at any cost if you havea mason in your family you will know they will not stop to no end to get the dying relatives money

Evidence of this is????

You know I love to pick on you guys (Masons) but despite that, I think it's only fair to say that the Masons of ATS are actually some of the most helpful and kindest members of the site when you aren't picking on them!

Now that we have that out of the way, It seems to me that Masonry is having a hard time attracting younger generations, would it be safe to say that this is leading to a potential crisis in Masonry?

Would you care to speculate as to why younger people are not considering Masonry as frequently as they have in past generations?

Have there been other periods within Masonry's history where recruitment became a problem?

Are Masons nationally or internationally working on shared strategies to make Masonry more attractive to younger people?

If so what are the things being considered or under taken.

I have to tell you, as a relatively young man myself, I am truly worried, that there might come a day I have no Masons to pick on!

What can us non-Masons do to help ensure we have a fresh supply of Masons to pick on?

reply to post by ProtoplasmicTraveler

Nah, the average age is slowly dropping down as we bring in more members. My year in the Eastern chair we brought in a ton of younger guys. This year other Lodges in my area are seeing similar spikes in new younger members.

As to why there is a generation gap, I'd love to say something about the selfish generations that grew from the 60s through 80s, with some obvious exceptions. Membership in Freemasonry has always come in waves.

I'd say the Morgan Affair crippled Freemasonry for a time, but from early 1900s to the 50s you had a strong wave of new members.

Every Grand Lodge discusses membership. In my area we did open houses, family nights, game nights, and a museum exhibit. I also sat on the PR committee for Grand Lodge and we talked about various ways to promote the activities of Freemasonry such as our various charities and fundraisers.

reply to post by KSigMason

I'd say the Morgan Affair crippled Freemasonry for a time, but from early 1900s to the 50s you had a strong wave of new members.

Was it really the Morgan Affair though, as it was never confirmed if Morgan was actually murdered. If he was I personally like Joseph Smith for the crime since it seems Morgan's alleged widow ended up with the founder of the Mormon Church!

Yet legend has it what led to the founding of the Skull and Bones 322 was a unahappiness over the backlash against secret societies in general including the Masons but my own research shows this has more to do with a general distrust of the Founding Fathers who were Masons after they largely died off and financial obligations to Europe started coming to light from the Treaties of Paris and Ghent as manipulation of the economy by the Second United States Bank as it was in the final year of it's Charter led to a general unhappiness across the land.

I personally think the Morgan Affair in many ways has been used to cover up a darker period of U.S. History that still has not been fully aired or investigated thoroughly to this day.

Now how soon do you think the younger Masons being recruited will be able to argue against this as strenuously as say Rockpuck?

Originally posted by ProtoplasmicTraveler
Now that we have that out of the way, It seems to me that Masonry is having a hard time attracting younger generations, would it be safe to say that this is leading to a potential crisis in Masonry?

Yes. Well, that and the economy. Both combined are causing problems for a lot of lodges and grand lodges. Fewer dues-paying members; the investments of endowed memberships not paying returns because of the stock market; increasing costs of upkeep on old buildings which may not have proper A/C or heating; increases in property taxes. We're in pretty bad shape...

Would you care to speculate as to why younger people are not considering Masonry as frequently as they have in past generations?

I think it's largely generational. The peak was after WWII, but it's been a pretty steady decline in membership since then. The generation of the 1960's and later weren't joiners like their fathers were.

The current generation isn't as social face-to-face as previous generations were... the internet, video games, etc mean that people don't get out as much as they used to. I certainly think that's a factor.

Then again, in the last few years there has been an upward trend... it's still not making up for the number of members dying of old age and such, but there are young men who are starting to find something in Masonry that wasn't being fulfilled elsewhere in their lives. Perhaps its the esoteric aspects; perhaps the social. Hard to say for certain.

Are Masons nationally or internationally working on shared strategies to make Masonry more attractive to younger people?

If so what are the things being considered or under taken.

Sponsoring a NASCAR racing team, or having a prominent country singer who's a member. Dan Brown has helped membership quite a bit, but we didn't ask him to.

I have to tell you, as a relatively young man myself, I am truly worried, that there might come a day I have no Masons to pick on!

Don't worry. With any luck, you won't live that long.

We don't build anything other than a morally strong man. We take a good man and make him better.

What about someone that has the desire to be a good person?

Originally posted by ProtoplasmicTraveler
You know I love to pick on you guys (Masons) but despite that, I think it's only fair to say that the Masons of ATS are actually some of the most helpful and kindest members of the site when you aren't picking on them!

Thanks! Very kind of you...

Now that we have that out of the way, It seems to me that Masonry is having a hard time attracting younger generations, would it be safe to say that this is leading to a potential crisis in Masonry?

Yes, the numbers of new candidates is very low, and Masonry is struggling compared to its past strength.

Would you care to speculate as to why younger people are not considering Masonry as frequently as they have in past generations?

Sadly, I think it is due to rumours and lies posted on the internet which make the youth think that Freemasonry is evil. In the past, the only way to find out what Freemasonry was about was to join. Now, anyone interested in joining first researches it on the internet, and comes across IHateMasons.com and sites filled with lies and anti-masonry propaganda, and they immediately lose interest.

Have there been other periods within Masonry's history where recruitment became a problem?

Yes, Freemasonry seems to have periodic ups and downs. For example, before world war two, numbers had also dropped to an all-time low, but after the war, Freemasonry had a huge boom in numbers.

Are Masons nationally or internationally working on shared strategies to make Masonry more attractive to younger people?

No. A potential candidate must seek membership on their own. Advertising or coercing people to join is against Masonic principles. Trying to debunk the lies and rid the internet of Freemasonry's bad image, as the Masons on ATS are doing, is about the best thing we can do to improve membership.

I have to tell you, as a relatively young man myself, I am truly worried, that there might come a day I have no Masons to pick on!

If you can't pick on them, join them!

What can us non-Masons do to help ensure we have a fresh supply of Masons to pick on?

Deny ignorance. Seek the truth, and share it when you find it.

Originally posted by HomerinNC

We don't build anything other than a morally strong man. We take a good man and make him better.

What about someone that has the desire to be a good person?

If they really had a desire to be a good person, they would already be one.

reply to post by Saurus


Maybe they are, but circumstances make them LOOK like a bad person...

reply to post by JoshNorton

Yes. Well, that and the economy. Both combined are causing problems for a lot of lodges and grand lodges. Fewer dues-paying members; the investments of endowed memberships not paying returns because of the stock market; increasing costs of upkeep on old buildings which may not have proper A/C or heating; increases in property taxes. We're in pretty bad shape...

I appreciate the candid answers, now I would like to ask you some highly speculative questions based on some assumptions that might not be entirely accurate, but starting with the belief held by some (not nessecarily Masons) that the Masons are or were intended to be the building blocks of a "New Atlantis" a more ideal society, do you think it possible that some other rival group or power structure is actually say manipulating things like the economy in a conspiracy against the Masons to attempt to cripple the organization's viability to that end of forming the foundations of a new society based on charity, brotherly love, and higher forms of learning and understanding beyond just the simple Judean-Christian morality and thinking that is the mainstay of most of the Western World?

For instance one could argue that Corporations conspired to weaken and then break up the labor unions.

So could it be possible that the Bankers for instance who like ruling the world through debt, are say opposed to Masonic ideals and phillosophies and one of the reasons for manipulating the economy into the gutter is to disatvantage groups like the Masons and negate them or even render them obsolete like the Corporations did with the Unions.

No matter what it is at the top of Masonry, one would be hard pressed to argue that Masons weren't instrumental in things like the American and French Revolution and limiting the power of the Russian Czars and other world changing movements.

So do you wonder or think it possible entities like the Banking Industry or the Roman Catholic Church could be possibly conspiring in real ways that effect us all, but might be primarily aimed at the Masons.

Then you mention the uptick in membership after World War II, what do you feel led to that, the belief that concerned men should unite in a common cause against evils in the world, or and perhaps exposure to some of Europes architechture and storied traditions linked to Masonry that gave it added mystique and allure?

I would love to hear your thoughts on this?

reply to post by Saurus

Sadly, I think it is due to rumours and lies posted on the internet which make the youth think that Freemasonry is evil. In the past, the only way to find out what Freemasonry was about was to join. Now, anyone interested in joining first researches it on the internet, and comes across IHateMasons.com and sites filled with lies and anti-masonry propaganda, and they immediately lose interest.

So once again since we are on a conspiracy site, do you view this as a random and coincidental natural occurence, or do you think it possible there are real orginizations behind this that have a political reason or financial reason or both of their own to discredit masonry? Do you see this as just the fear of the unknown and what is obviously an orginization steeped in certain elements of secrecy, or does Masonry have some real higher level enemies bent on destroying it, as a means to keep the Masons from reaching real goals of their own as far as having a impact on the world and it's state?

If there were such entities or organizations and if you have given thought to that possibility, what would you name them if you had too?

You know I pride myself as being an equal opportunity picker on! So if there are other organizations out there I am unaware of and thus not picking on, then well, clearly I am remiss in my own sacred duties to pick on every one!

Of course it's always great to have someone new to pick on, so when I find someone new to pick on, that means I generally have less time to pick on those I have picked on already!

Originally posted by ProtoplasmicTraveler
reply to post by JoshNorton

 

Yes. Well, that and the economy. Both combined are causing problems for a lot of lodges and grand lodges. Fewer dues-paying members; the investments of endowed memberships not paying returns because of the stock market; increasing costs of upkeep on old buildings which may not have proper A/C or heating; increases in property taxes. We're in pretty bad shape...

I appreciate the candid answers, now I would like to ask you some highly speculative questions based on some assumptions that might not be entirely accurate, but starting with the belief held by some (not nessecarily Masons) that the Masons are or were intended to be the building blocks of a "New Atlantis" a more ideal society, do you think it possible that some other rival group or power structure is actually say manipulating things like the economy in a conspiracy against the Masons to attempt to cripple the organization's viability to that end of forming the foundations of a new society based on charity, brotherly love, and higher forms of learning and understanding beyond just the simple Judean-Christian morality and thinking that is the mainstay of most of the Western World?

For instance one could argue that Corporations conspired to weaken and then break up the labor unions.

So could it be possible that the Bankers for instance who like ruling the world through debt, are say opposed to Masonic ideals and phillosophies and one of the reasons for manipulating the economy into the gutter is to disatvantage groups like the Masons and negate them or even render them obsolete like the Corporations did with the Unions.

I hope I am not interrupting here, but I would like to interject. Masonry as a whole either has changed dramatically over the years, or small groups were hugely powerful in the past. Our structure is that each state has it's Grand lodge and no other ties to other states. So unless there was some hidden group of grand lodge masons that met on a global scale (hidden form all other masons for hundreds of years) then I would have trouble seeing how any grand scheme could be accomplished. And knowing the structure of grand lodge officers (they are elected and serve 1 year terms) any mason (barring a few positions) could only spend 5 to 7 years in the grand lodge as an officer. So the rotation would change often and past grand masters would be shuffled back to their respective lodges. I am not saying it couldn't happen, just that it seems unlikely.

No matter what it is at the top of Masonry, one would be hard pressed to argue that Masons weren't instrumental in things like the American and French Revolution and limiting the power of the Russian Czars and other world changing movements.

So do you wonder or think it possible entities like the Banking Industry or the Roman Catholic Church could be possibly conspiring in real ways that effect us all, but might be primarily aimed at the Masons.

with this, I would have to ask how important masonry is as a whole to society. We are community driven at the blue lodge level and the hospitals and such are the big "awareness" things we have. I personally don't see the general population or the leaders of the world being concerned about what we represent. I would be much more worried about local militias in the sense of danger to the grand plan.

Then you mention the uptick in membership after World War II, what do you feel led to that, the belief that concerned men should unite in a common cause against evils in the world, or and perhaps exposure to some of Europes architechture and storied traditions linked to Masonry that gave it added mystique and allure?

I would love to hear your thoughts on this?

Membership in my area has been on the rise. I hear stories of problems in other areas of my state, but for some reason, it's booming right where I live. I am sure it goes in cycles and will equal out over time. I kind of wish we were as actively involved in the political picture of this country as we were during the revolution. While there are a lot of different ideals within the lodge, most seem to follow the less government path.

Sorry for the intrusion.

reply to post by network dude


Hey you are more than welcome to chime in my friend.

I have to say though, that when it comes to shared concepts that they can have a profound impact even when maintaining a certain type of independence.

For instance Protestants, Lutherans and Baptists would say they are add odds with Catholicism even while promoting and making common some important shared practices.

So the fact that the lodges act independant of one another doesn't mean that the members aren't popularlizing or instilling important shared principles in their own communities.

While each might have their own slightly unique flavor and impact, each are basically following some similiar core principles.

Further some would say timing is everything, and luck is when determination meets opportunity, arguably throughout the history of the last few hundred years Masons have seen opportunities that they were determined to act upon, now maybe the fact that many of the players then in those events were Masons are coincidental or that it was simply some shared core beliefs that caused them to reach the same conclusions that it was a good time to act, because the timing was ideal, yet I think even Masons themselves would take some pride in the roles that fellow Masons played in certain events.

So in other words you might be underestimating the overall impact of masonry from just your own unique perspective based on how you and your intimate brothers practice it, but some other organization might see it as a whole in a whole different perspective, when weighing the organizations broader impact across the board when it does come to some pivotal points in history.

I'll try to address all your points, but I may shift the order a bit...

Originally posted by ProtoplasmicTraveler
Then you mention the uptick in membership after World War II, what do you feel led to that, the belief that concerned men should unite in a common cause against evils in the world, or and perhaps exposure to some of Europes architechture and storied traditions linked to Masonry that gave it added mystique and allure?

I think primarily it was the "we're all in this together" attitude. I hadn't really thought about it, but yes, there may have also been some push from men who encountered some of the mystique of Europe after having grown up in the farmlands of America. I would even go so far as to say there may have been a few soldiers who personally encountered some of the lost treasures by accident and wanted to learn more about what they found. Pure speculation, of course, and it would only account for a few, because if every soldier came home from WWII with a brick of lost gold, things would have been a lot different, I'm sure.

No matter what it is at the top of Masonry, one would be hard pressed to argue that Masons weren't instrumental in things like the American and French Revolution and limiting the power of the Russian Czars and other world changing movements.

Even today, Freemasons vow to oppose tyranny in any form. To what extent they act on that vow, though... I guess the tyrants are a bit harder to define, or they hide themselves behind the press. In my personal opinion, we should have revolted against GW Bush... there are laws in place that citizens of the United States are expected to follow, but those laws are secret and no regular citizen is allowed to even read them. This reeks of tyranny, in my opinion. But we also vow to be loyal and peaceful citizens. (That part of the vow probably thrown in to placate the government who might fear us because of our history in revolutionary involvement...)

...do you think it possible that some other rival group or power structure is actually say manipulating things like the economy in a conspiracy against the Masons to attempt to cripple the organization's viability to that end of forming the foundations of a new society based on charity, brotherly love, and higher forms of learning and understanding beyond just the simple Judean-Christian morality and thinking that is the mainstay of most of the Western World?
...
So could it be possible that the Bankers for instance who like ruling the world through debt, are say opposed to Masonic ideals and phillosophies and one of the reasons for manipulating the economy into the gutter is to disatvantage groups like the Masons and negate them or even render them obsolete like the Corporations did with the Unions.

So do you wonder or think it possible entities like the Banking Industry or the Roman Catholic Church could be possibly conspiring in real ways that effect us all, but might be primarily aimed at the Masons.

To be honest, such a theory would really only float if Masonry actually had any power. It doesn't. I think the banks and the Vatican and any of the other groups actually calling the shots (Trilateral, Bildeberg, Bohemian Grove, CFR, etc...) are more interested in their own greedy ends... I doubt very much the Masons are even on their agenda. We're not a threat to them, so saying that their impetus was a reaction against us, or to keep us down, artificially inflates our real influence. Again, just my opinion.

Originally posted by ProtoplasmicTraveler
So in other words you might be underestimating the overall impact of masonry from just your own unique perspective based on how you and your intimate brothers practice it, but some other organization might see it as a whole in a whole different perspective, when weighing the organizations broader impact across the board when it does come to some pivotal points in history.

of course that's possible. But in order for anyone to target Freemasonry as a group, there would have to be a generalized organization to go after I would think. Other than the regular slander that takes place here and on the silly fundie sites. I personally feel that that type of banter attracts much more qualified people towards masonry than it detracts from it. People who can think for themselves are't going to buy into the whole eating babies thing and worshiping Satan. Maybe I am just missing it, but I don't see any agenda against masonry as a whole, other then the same old group.

edit to add:
I do agree that our forefathers had a very beneficial impact on our world as a whole and without that influence, our whole world would be a very different place. But as Josh said, we are charged to be peaceable citizens and be true to our government. So by attempting any sort of coup, we would be directly conflicting with our masonic ideals. And yes, I would be very interested to know when that particular part of masonry was enacted.