Why do people think the Freemasons have so much power when...

It's a dying organization? There's hardly any Masons in the Baby Boom generation and even fewer born after 1965. If they were really so powerful wouldn't their numbers be increasing?

I'm sure they have some power just like any organization of people naturally does, but their power was surely much greater in the past. If I were seeking world domination I definitely wouldn't invest in their social assets.

reply to post by lampsalot


free masons along with the rest of secret societies will cease to exist when the world is finally put in place. its all part of the plan.

reply to post by lampsalot
I know several Masons and as far as I can tell the guys I know aren't out to take over the world. They have all always been very good to me and my family and do a lot of fundraisers and volunteer work to help the community.

Yes, their numbers are dwindling as "secret boys clubs" and service organizations don't draw the numbers they used too as the younger generations are too busy for such things anymore. I worry for who will fill the void when their organization is gone in my area because they help so many people and help fund other service organizations.

people just fear what they don't understand.

I have several family members who were or still are Masons. Both sides of the family. Nothing nefarious about any of them.

My Great Uncle was 32 degree when he passed. It's just a boys club where you can get connections. What's wrong with knowing people who know people?

The old saying "It's not what you know but who you know."

If you happen to be a numbers nut on this subject, I'm the guy.

The Masons in the US hit their peak in 1959. They had 4,103,161 members. There totals have gotten smaller every year for over fifty years. Their total in 2011 was 1,336,503.
www.msana.com...

As an aside, the Knights of Columbus have half a million more members than the Masons. Perhaps the Illuminati are going with the Vatican to win control of the world. Better be nice to me, and send me cookies.

I think the answer is... because they overthrew a king... expelled his forces... and founded an entire nation. Yeah... I'd. Be suspicious too. If they weren't my ol pals.

reply to post by lampsalot


Population of Earth? 6-7 Billion.

Number of Billionaires? 1,250 (approx.)

Strength (or in this case power) does no longer come in numbers. Unless it is the number of 0's in your bank account, of course.

reply to post by lampsalot

Quantity doesn't equal quality. The Baby Boomers gave a false sense of numbers and now that it's decreasing I don't see it necessarily as a bad thing, but rather Masonry needs to re-adapt to the old ways.

I'm not saying that we're all powerful as many would say, but I'd rather say that declining numbers isn't always bad.

Originally posted by lampsalot
It's a dying organization? There's hardly any Masons in the Baby Boom generation and even fewer born after 1965. If they were really so powerful wouldn't their numbers be increasing?

I'm sure they have some power just like any organization of people naturally does, but their power was surely much greater in the past. If I were seeking world domination I definitely wouldn't invest in their social assets.

edit on 10-5-2013 by lampsalot because: (no reason given)

What you say is absolutely true. The reason non-Masons think the Masons are powerful is because they sense a great deal of power in the Masons' mystery, symbolism, and so on. This sensing is subconscious, and harnesses some of the archetypal power of the symbolism. But not consciously understanding that, they jump to ridiculous conclusions about political conspiracies and other nonsense. Non-Masons instinctively know that power is there, they just don't understand the nature of it.

Most Masons, on the other hand, are conditioned to view Masonry as a fraternal organization lacking deep seriousness, so they don't understand the non-Masons who think that they (the Masons) are powerful, when obviously, most Masons certainly aren't. On the other hand, these Masons also subconsciously sense the power of the Order's archetypal symbolism, and continue to be drawn to it in spite of the fact that the fraternity has become decadent, and mostly useless in the process of true initiation.

So what we have are two groups who have manifested as the Masons and the Anti-Masons. They oppose each other, and dedicate themselves to fighting each other in a war of propaganda even though both groups have been seduced by the same magical glamour.

Originally posted by charles1952
If you happen to be a numbers nut on this subject, I'm the guy.

The Masons in the US hit their peak in 1959. They had 4,103,161 members. There totals have gotten smaller every year for over fifty years. Their total in 2011 was 1,336,503.
www.msana.com...

As an aside, the Knights of Columbus have half a million more members than the Masons. Perhaps the Illuminati are going with the Vatican to win control of the world. Better be nice to me, and send me cookies.

Those coming back from WWII swelled the numbers of Freemasonry and now Masons/non-Masons today have a false sense of what the membership numbers are supposed to be . And during this huge influx of new members , the investigation of petitioners became less than stringent in many lodges ( I am not saying this happened in every lodge/jurisdiction ) . Now these members of the WWII generation are dying off and many view this as Freemasonry fading away .Far to many are hung up on membership numbers . Masonry was never meant to be huge , with a lodge every few blocks in large cities with 200 , 300 or more members in each lodge . We did not hit a peak because Freemasonry should not have gotten that large in the first place .

We are not dying off or dwindling away . Freemasonry is righting itself , getting back on an even keel and back to where it belongs . Less lodges and fewer members . I would much rather be a member of a lodge with 25 to 30 close knit members who all know one another on a personal level , than some huge lodge with 500 impersonal members .

One type of lodge called an Emulation Lodge is , in my opinion , the way to go . They only allow 50 members and no more . They are very selective whom they allow in as members . A petitioner does not move through the degrees in a three month period but must write papers and wait for months to be Passed and Raised . I like that .

ETA: And someone stated that young men are to busy these days . I do not agree , it is they have to many gadgets and TV channels that claim their attention . Lodges back before all these Modern "conveniences" that made life "easier" thrived and the men were far busier then , working full time jobs , raising families , taking care of farms when they got home from their regular jobs (in my area) , yet they still found time to attend lodge once or twice a month . They found time because they were not rapped up in their own little lives .

Originally posted by lampsalot
It's a dying organization? There's hardly any Masons in the Baby Boom generation and even fewer born after 1965. If they were really so powerful wouldn't their numbers be increasing?

I can only speak of my Toronto-area district but the number of applications to the district in general and my lodge in general in the last 2 years has been way ahead of any other span in my 12 years as a Mason and shows no sign of diminishing. In fact, we're having four meetings this month alone conferring 6 degrees (3 of them initiations). And that's fairly typical of the last 15 months.

However, to be fair we've kept our stick on the ice and stayed relevant in our community; this isn't necessarily the case with all lodges and I don't think the future bodes well for those where the median age of members is 50-something. Bear in mind that the Boomers' motto was "Don't trust anyone over 30" and now the Boomers' kids are taking a page from their parents' book and doing the opposite of THEIR parents.

Sweet schadenfreude

Fitz

My uncle has been a freemason for years and he is one of the most caring and most intelligent men I have ever known, as well as all of the other masons he has introduced me to. They are not out to "take over the world".

Originally posted by qualm91
My uncle has been a freemason for years and he is one of the most caring and most intelligent men I have ever known, as well as all of the other masons he has introduced me to. They are not out to "take over the world".

Thank you. It's good to see someone who "gets it".

If people here could see what's going on inside their local lodge, I'll bet most would see a bunch of regular, unremarkable (and sometimes completely laughable), mostly middle-aged guys from all walks of life, with a few shuffling old timers thrown in, talking about who's going to do what charity event this month or voting on whether to accept a new membership application. This is not a group of power-hungry villians bent on world domination - most of them can't even dominate their own shoelaces.

Those who want to actually become better men through Masonry are working on the lessons, finding a way that the teachings apply to them personally, and to their lives. Those who are just there because they expected being a member would somehow grant them some kind of "power" usually become disappointed, and stop participating.

But I guess the truth is just too boring for some, so they have to make stuff up..

reply to post by lampsalot


the society is going to unleash their plan in the next couple years so they wont need the society anymore

Originally posted by ICanHearTheTrumpets
the society is going to unleash their plan in the next couple years so they wont need the society anymore

So there's a conspiracy against the Masons? Why wouldn't the Masons be needed anymore?

Originally posted by IslandMason

Those who want to actually become better men through Masonry are working on the lessons, finding a way that the teachings apply to them personally, and to their lives. Those who are just there because they expected being a member would somehow grant them some kind of "power" usually become disappointed, and stop participating.

But I guess the truth is just too boring for some, so they have to make stuff up...

There are two types of Masons - those who remember the following lines from the 'charge after initiation', and those who don't:

"Let me exhort you... to study more especially such of the liberal Arts and Sciences as may lie within the compass of your attainment, and ...to endeavour to make a daily advancement in Masonic knowledge. "

Originally posted by lampsalot
It's a dying organization? There's hardly any Masons in the Baby Boom generation and even fewer born after 1965. If they were really so powerful wouldn't their numbers be increasing?

I'm sure they have some power just like any organization of people naturally does, but their power was surely much greater in the past. If I were seeking world domination I definitely wouldn't invest in their social assets.

edit on 10-5-2013 by lampsalot because: (no reason given)

The masons are not dying my friend, they are learning.

Originally posted by littled16
reply to post by lampsalot

 

I know several Masons and as far as I can tell the guys I know aren't out to take over the world. They have all always been very good to me and my family and do a lot of fundraisers and volunteer work to help the community.

Yes, their numbers are dwindling as "secret boys clubs" and service organizations don't draw the numbers they used too as the younger generations are too busy for such things anymore. I worry for who will fill the void when their organization is gone in my area because they help so many people and help fund other service organizations.

They already OWN the world.

ALL LODGES ARE THE FOOT SOLDIERS OF THE LODGES WHOSE INITIATES HAVE UNDERGONE THE SCOTTISH AND YORK RITES OF INITIATION. COMPARTMENTALIZATION.

The lower downs have no idea what the upper ups have planned they just know to collect money, keep THEIR ORDER, and gloat to the bosses how good everything is going and...

In 1776 Amshel Rothschild commissioned the marriage between the Illuminati and the free masons, in that meetin it was said that the conspiracy being woven is so well thought out that it will be impossible for the British as well as the french Monarchy and the Church to escape.

That same year you have the masonic overthrow of the British crown in America, 1786 you have the masonic slaughter of the french monarchy, and in 1792 with the election of the new pope all charges and investigations of heracy against the freemasons and illuminati stopped. Investigations of possible Illuminate masons spies within opius dae ceased. Inquisitions ceased. Oppression from the church stopped. In replace of church rule Masonic installed republics start popping up on the map like popcorn.

Since then there have not been once span of 20 years where a us president, british prime minister or french president or prime minister was not a mason. And almost every single pope, against papal law, have had engaging relationships with Free Masons.

Sorry to burst your bubble but that is the big secret.

They are not dying and they are not trying to take over the world they have taken over the world. Get used to it, your fore fathers did.

Originally posted by lucifer6

 

They already OWN the world.

ALL LODGES ARE THE FOOT SOLDIERS OF THE LODGES WHOSE INITIATES HAVE UNDERGONE THE SCOTTISH AND YORK RITES OF INITIATION. COMPARTMENTALIZATION.

The lower downs have no idea what the upper ups have planned they just know to collect money, keep THEIR ORDER, and gloat to the bosses how good everything is going and...

In 1776 Amshel Rothschild commissioned the marriage between the Illuminati and the free masons, in that meetin it was said that the conspiracy being woven is so well thought out that it will be impossible for the British as well as the french Monarchy and the Church to escape.

That same year you have the masonic overthrow of the British crown in America, 1786 you have the masonic slaughter of the french monarchy, and in 1792 with the election of the new pope all charges and investigations of heracy against the freemasons and illuminati stopped. Investigations of possible Illuminate masons spies within opius dae ceased. Inquisitions ceased. Oppression from the church stopped. In replace of church rule Masonic installed republics start popping up on the map like popcorn.

Since then there have not been once span of 20 years where a us president, british prime minister or french president or prime minister was not a mason. And almost every single pope, against papal law, have had engaging relationships with Free Masons.

Sorry to burst your bubble but that is the big secret.

They are not dying and they are not trying to take over the world they have taken over the world. Get used to it, your fore fathers did.

I don't think I've ever seen a bigger load of horsesh1t in one place.

1./ You haven't got a clue about the structure of Freemasonry. Define "lower downs" and "higher ups" please.

2./ Do you have documentation of said marriage between the disbanded Bavarian Illuminati and the Masons, or just "everybody knows" and "it's common knowledge"?

3./ Do you have documentation of the alleged "overthrow" of the British Crown by Freemasons in the American fight for independence? How Many Masons signed the Declaration on Independence? Hint: Icke's guess at the number is provably wrong.

4./ How about documentation of a Masonic plot to overthrow the French Monarchy? Didn't think so, because there is none - there was no plot.

5./ Since the Catholic church and the Popes have had a special dislike for the Freemasons, it's not likely they'd have ANY part of helping them. But again, show documentation and I'll stand corrected. Masonic interaction/infiltration of Opus Dei was also debunked long ago.

6./ There are Freemasons in positions of power, true. There are also Lions, Rotarians, Elks, sports figures, actors, Girl Scouts, and frat guys from "phi beta kappa" in positions of power. But there is NO proof whatsoever that their rise to those positions has ANYTHING to do with being a member of any organization.

To illustrate, I'll ask the same question I have a few times here: There have been a number of instances of pedophilia in the world where young boys have been assaulted by a Catholic priest. Does that mean that all Catholics are pedophiles? How about all clergymen? Does it mean that all pedophiles are Catholic? Is one a requirement to become the other, or is it just possible that one HAPPENS to also be the other?

Show me hard evidence, not conjecture, not coincidence, not hearsay from some nutjob's website, that ANYONE has "taken over the world", let alone Freemasons. But go ahead and believe it if you want to; doesn't make it true.

How convenient you can say that there hasn't been a 20-year span without a Mason in one of those positions. Maybe that's true, but a "skewed" statistic. Why not add a few more countries into the equation so you can say there's there hasn't been a five year span, or how about a single year? The fact is only 14 US Presidents and 6 Canadian PMs have been Freemasons, the last of either being Gerald Ford (USA, 1977, 36 years ago) and John Deifenbaker (Canada, 1963, 50 years ago). Contrary to some nutter's websites, neither Ronald Reagan nor George Bush were Freemasons. I can't find any hard statistics from a believable source about how many British PMs or French Presidents have been Masons.

The Freemason conspiracy theory has been going for a long, long time, and always the same lies. Don't you think if the Masons were REALLY that all-powerful, they'd squash all of the conspiracies and kill guys like Icke, Jones, and Schonbelen? The truth is, the conspiracy is good for business . Ever thought about how much cash guys like Icke, Schonbelen, and Jones REALLY make selling books and doing speaking engagements?