There’s a thing going around on LiveJournal in which the poster picks seven interests from your user profile and you have to explain why they are important to you. I volunteered, and eeknight hit me with the with following: flying, freemasonry, half-life 2, libertarian, texas history, urban legends, and women. The original premise was to write about all seven in one post, but I’m going to take the long road and write about a different one each day. This is the second.
Freemasonry
Growing up, I never had a very clear idea of what Masonry was about and nobody I knew was in a position to enlighten me. At some point I learned that my grandfather had joined but almost immediately dropped out either because he didn’t have the money for dues or the time. Unfortunately he had passed away before I was even 10 years old, so his knowledge was never passed down to me. In my college years a close friend told me that his grandfather was a Mason, but he didn’t really know the particulars either. He knew there was some sort of test to get in, but he didn’t know what it covered.
Part of the reason I accepted that challenge was curiosity about their secrets. Another reason was the idea of finding a new connection with a grandfather whom I only vaguely remember. I filled out an application, met with the fellows in a local lodge, and awaited my initiation.
This is the part where you get to learn more about Freemasonry up front before I did when I joined. Here’s how it works. Freemasonry is a fraternity, so it’s a mens-only club. There are three “degrees”. Once you’re through the first initiation you’re technically a Mason, but in most jurisdictions you’re not a full voting member until you pass all three degrees.
What about the secrets? For the most part, there aren’t any. What people think of as the Masonic “secrets” can be found in 10 minutes on the web. The problem is that there’s about twice times as much outright bullshit about Masonry on the web too, and unless you’re a member you may have a hard time separating fact from fiction. Masonry’s secrets are really just the tradition of its secret phrases and handshakes so that strangers who are Masons can identify one another. Beyond that, the meetings and ceremonies themselves aren’t secret so much as private. Chances are good that your local school board has a private session as well as a public session. It isn’t that they’re scheming for world domination. Some things just aren’t our business unless they directly pertain to us.
What I find fascinating is that there’s actually a good reason for the tradition of secrecy. You have to consider that Freemasonry as an institution pre-dates the American Revolution. You also have to understand that one of Freemasonry’s tenets is that while it is important to believe in a higher authority (i.e. deity), the exact nature of your worship is nobody’s business but your own. Now today we take freedom of religion for granted, but prior to the American Revolution people of all nationalities were subject to a state religion. Publicly supporting the idea of Catholics and Protestants sitting side by side in universal brotherhood could have gotten you killed by your government and/or church. Thus the idea of having secret phrases or handshakes to safely identify one another makes a lot more sense. Of course it’s not necessary today (unless you’re in the Middle East or possibly China), but it’s a way of honoring and recognizing the tradition from which the fraternity sprang.
I realize I still haven’t explained what Masonry is about. In a lot of ways, it’s like Rotary Club or Lions Club. It’s a civic organization that does good works. Masons have a tradition of not tooting our own horns, but consider that Shriners are Masons. The Shriner Children’s Hospitals that give 100% free medical care to children in need are a result of Masons. Most likely there are charities in your area that Masons quietly fund without ever issuing a press release. That’s the external. The internal is that Freemasonry exists as a fraternal network of mutual support to make good men better.
So here’s how it works. You apply, then you meet with some members who make sure you’re not on the verge of going on a murderous rampage or some kind of other evil-doer. Then you’re initiated. This is a ceremony with lots of talking. After it’s over, you’re an “Entered Apprentice” Mason. The “test” my friend vaguely knew about in college is basically a catechism related to all the talking done in the ceremony. This catechism isn’t written down but passed from one member to another in oral tradition. Then you go through the next “degree” ceremony to make you a “Fellowcraft” Mason, followed by learning the catechism for that ceremony. Finally you attend the Master Mason degree ceremony, followed by learning that catechism. Once you’ve mastered that, you’re a full voting member of the lodge.
It’s a time consuming process. It took me somewhere around six months at a time when my marriage was still new and I also had other activities keeping me busy. Mrs. Flametoad didn’t appreciate what she saw as my wanting to run off and keep secrets from her. It was a stressful time, and in the end I had to promise her that I would drop out of lodge as soon as I finished my last degree. I did so, but I kept on the e-mail mailing lists, I read books, and generally tried to not lose touch entirely. This past year I started returning to lodge again and have enjoying hanging out with them. At 35 years old, I’m the second youngest person there. Like all civic organizations, Freemasonry is in decline. Nobody makes time for civic organizations anymore. Older members who joined during the peak around WWII are dieing faster than new members can replace them.
That’s my interest in Freemasonry. There’s no devil worship, no blueprint for world domination, and no arcane lore…unless you count the holy grail we use for iced tea.
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