Ask a Freemason a question - Dispelling Rumors and Myths

Oh, it's highly entertaining. I had a family member ask me if I worshipped the devil now. I just laughed at her and walked away shaking my head.

I had a lady approach me in a walmart parking lot a few weeks ago, she saw my square and compasses emblem on my back window and asked me if i was illuminati or a freemason, I turned toward her and said "are you sure you want to know?", she quickly walked away. I saw her again in an isle and explained that I was joking and that I'm a mason and she asked further questions, ending up her shaking my hand and told me that she respects us masons. The look on her face was priceless and will always remain the funniest encounter.

(kidding)

Thanks for this...it's been a difficult day and I needed a good laugh.

No Problem, Chief...that's what happens when you have a twisted sense of humor and read Dan Brown books!

Someone asked Dan Brown why he hadn't joined a Lodge here in NH (he's from my home town and still lives near-by) when he came to speak at a Masonic meeting. He said he didn't want people who don't like Masonry trashing his books because he was a member, but it is not out of the realm of possibility in the future if he decides the by-line has run its course. He does take some literary license, but always treats the Fraternity fairly.

Hello right back and congratulations! Don't do what I did, I got elected Secretary of my mother Lodge two months after I was raised...

On the square as well, Killeen Lodge 1125 AF&AM

SGT Chris Hill I'll have to catch up with you next time I'm up that way, then. Mt. Horeb #137 in my Home lodge but I live in Bulverde, TX now. I get up to Lampasas every once in a while though.

Just a bit more information on it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Eastern_Star

It's not really a requirement for you to join the Order of the Eastern Star just to support your husband being a Mason. It may even be that there is no OES chapter affiliated with your husband's lodge (when and if he joins).

SrA Kelly Richard "ask 1 2 be 1" is a masonic term because it's meant for one to ask a mason to become one, it's uncommon and unorthodox for a mason to approach and invite one to join the freemasons. once one petitions for the degree's of masonry and they are accepted, they are initiated.

Sorry, I'm late to the party.
SrA Kelly Richard Your husband does not need to be in the states to join. We are global. If he would like more information on this there is a plethora. Just ask.

-Brother Tutt Junior Deacon of Army Navy Lodge No. 306 & Web Master.
Mason of the Grand Lodge of Virginia. AAFM.

SGT Chris Hill
there are more sites by "betrayers" than the one I posted. Why all the secrecy? It seems kind of childish. At what level do you get the decoder ring?

SFC (Join to see) I'm not going to keep going back and forward with you, it's one thing to ask questions out of pure interest and desire understanding about the craft, which I would have no problem answering, but it's another to ask questions out of ignorance, especially since you have no true interest, you just want to pick.

SFC (Join to see) - It's a club, plain and simple. The secrets are nothing more than how to identify fellow Masons (as others have already stated). At the end of the day, Freemasonry is simply one of, if not the, largest philanthropic organizations in the world. People join for comradery (much like they do the military), because of a desire to do more for their communities, or any number of other reasons. People always have their own reasons for joining organizations that are personal to them. Freemasonry is no different!

Great response SFC!

I cant speak on specifically on inner workings of freemasonry since I am not one. I am a graduate of a college fraternity, which took our organizations secrets serious. Mostly it is tradition based off freemasonry. In theory we learned the reasons why the secrets for these societies existed. Today mason like organizations maintain their secrets because of tradition. It was also our common bond in the organization that we held certain subjects private among ourselves in that we had a commonality of knowledge that we onkly wanted to be privy to our members. We had no skull and bones nonsense or anything like that. I do know a little bit of history on similar groups like masons from my time in the fraternity.

On a practical matter organizations like masons were the terrorists groups of the day in the governments they resided in. Specifically in England under the crown, they considered such groups as being un-loyal subjects and possibly enemies of the crown at the time. They promoted free thought and ideas such as equality among among men and concepts of natural rights of humans. There are other organizations not as ubiquitous such as the "Odd fellows" which were off shoots of Masons. In nations where you were cast into sects by birthright, their concepts were extremely radical, as it was not aligned to the idea that rule of a nation was a birthright and members were considered as attempting to subvert the rule of the crown. Members of such organizations when caught would be tried for crimes against the crown where the punishment was usually always death. The only way to operate, was under complete anonymity and secrecy. Any public acknowledgement as to belonging to such organizations would have been dealt with harshly. In the 1600's the king was trying to infiltrate these groups. So in order to ensure loyalty to the members, new prospect had to undergo a strenuous vetting process to ensure they were not agents of the state. At the time keeping absolute secrecy was a matter of life and death. Hence, why they had to rely on countersigns and codes to gain access to the meeting places.

My understanding the vetting process continues once a member, as to why there are different levels of membership. Each level earned you more information about the organization and its structure. This was a safe guard that if the initial prospect turned out to be an infiltrator, the amount of damage could be minimized as to not risk the organization as a whole. These are similar concepts that we apply today in dealing with national security.

So if you think of the practical reasons of when these organizations were founded and the consequences were grave, it makes sense. Even today there are nations under tyrannical regimes. Being that Masons are international, one could assume applying the practices of a few hundred years ago still might be valid if such organizations are operating in those nation states.

I can bring you by to meet some of my lodge brothers at some point if you want. It is really a great historical society and enhances brotherhood and the development of good men.

Lt Col (Join to see) - Ditto with the college fraternity/Masonry tie in. The author of my fraternity's initiation ritual was also a Master Mason and borrowed heavily from it. Secrecy? mostly it's about being "in the club".....

Well said. Things must have changed as the Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of England has been a Royal or of noble blood since 1813. Lots of cool history there.

Our secrets are mostly modes of recognition and ritual. I won't discuss those with anyone not a Mason. Greek-letter fraternities also have secret modes of recognition, but no one says anything about that........

and really, CW5 (Join to see) your question is flawed in its premise, because it implies that people outside the organization have a right to know anything they want to know.

If you want to know the modes of recognition, the ritual, or any of the other secrets, you're free to petition a lodge and join Freemasonry.

There are plenty of organizations that keep certain things secret from those not members.....to include families.

My family is just me and my wife. Would you demand of us that we tell you about some of the things we do in the privacy of our own home? Why not, if you're going to demand that an organization you're not a part of disclose things they choose to keep secret.

Furthermore, if you and I meet up, and you claim to be a Mason, how else would I know you to be one if the secrets are completely available to anyone and everyone?

Never understood the big deal over secrets, every relationship, company, family has them. You should really look into the things that the shriners hospital provides, look into what charitable events masons are part of. There's far more to masonry than secrets.