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Roll call. How many Freemasons on OCDO?

self preservation

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2012
Messages
1,036
Location
Owingsville,KY
There is no such thing as a "secret mason." I didn't ask anyone to divulge Masonic secrets. I just asked if anyone else was a F&AM.


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JamesCanby

Activist Member
Joined
Jul 2, 2010
Messages
1,480
Location
Alexandria, VA at www.NoVA-MDSelfDefense.com
I am a Confessing Lutheran, I am not a Mason, though I am sympathetic to their cause vis-a-vis Declaratio de associationibus massonicis. For those reasons, as in the Declaratio, secrets should be kept secret.

There are "Confessing Lutherans" within my ELCA church who are active Freemasons and, in fact, one of the Deacons is a Past Master of his Masonic Lodge. My Pastor has no problem with Masons being members, but it is my understanding that one cannot be ordained if they are a Mason.

The whole kerfluffle, as I understand it, relates to Freemasonry's requirement of belief in a Supreme Being without requiring belief in a specific religion. Since most religions, on principle, demand that its members believe in that religion's specific doctrine to the exclusion of others, and since Freemasonry does not adhere to one specific religious belief, they have been declared anathema by several organized religions. Thus, religions tend to be divisive rather than inclusive.

The idea that Freemasonry is antithetical to any religion is not supported by fact.
 
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JamesCanby

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Alexandria, VA at www.NoVA-MDSelfDefense.com
Freemasonry is anathema to orthodox religions, Catholic, Eastern, et cetera. Oh, and Islam.

Freemasonry and Rosicrucianism rose with the reformation. See the history of the Scottish Rite from 1535, following Luther's 1515 The Ninety-Five Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences Disputatio pro declaratione virtutis indulgentiarum.

Thank goodness religions are discerning and divisive of good from evil.

If you are categorizing Freemasonry as 'evil' then you simply know nothing about Freemasonry.
 

KBCraig

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Joined
Aug 7, 2007
Messages
4,886
Location
Granite State of Mind
If you are categorizing Freemasonry as 'evil' then you simply know nothing about Freemasonry.

My late former father-in-law was a 32nd Degree Scottish Rite Freemason. His daughter (my wife at the time) had a book in our library that was written by a former Mason which revealed a lot of secrets, and spoke of much of the evil he had seen done to let members in good standing get away with evil acts, and to punish those who "betrayed" the lodge in any way.

One morning when they were visiting, she got up to find him reading the book with his morning coffee. He finished it and said, "It's all true." He took off his ring and never attended another meeting, but he was afraid --truly afraid-- to openly renounce membership, or even stop paying dues.

This is a man who retired from the Army and then spent a second career working in the county courthouse, finally retiring as the elected tax assessor. He saw all the inner workings of the local government, and knew exactly how they were tied together with Freemasonry.
 

JamesCanby

Activist Member
Joined
Jul 2, 2010
Messages
1,480
Location
Alexandria, VA at www.NoVA-MDSelfDefense.com
My late former father-in-law was a 32nd Degree Scottish Rite Freemason. His daughter (my wife at the time) had a book in our library that was written by a former Mason which revealed a lot of secrets, and spoke of much of the evil he had seen done to let members in good standing get away with evil acts, and to punish those who "betrayed" the lodge in any way.

One morning when they were visiting, she got up to find him reading the book with his morning coffee. He finished it and said, "It's all true." He took off his ring and never attended another meeting, but he was afraid --truly afraid-- to openly renounce membership, or even stop paying dues.

This is a man who retired from the Army and then spent a second career working in the county courthouse, finally retiring as the elected tax assessor. He saw all the inner workings of the local government, and knew exactly how they were tied together with Freemasonry.

Anecdotal. There are disreputable men in every organization, e.g., Catholic Priest pedophiles, but that does not mean the institution is evil. Freemasonry has existed for hundreds, if not thousands of years and has evolved from operative tradesmen's guilds into Speculative Freemasonry with the cognoscenti of every age and just about every country as members. The Tenets of Brotherly Love, Relief (Charity) and Truth are integral to membership. Here in the U.S., the Freemason community donates an average of two million dollars a day to charity. The 22 Shriners hospitals provide comprehensive medical care regardless of the patients' parents ability to pay. Sorry your father-in-law had a bad experience that was exacerbated by reading a book written a "former" Mason.
 
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Kopis

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
674
Location
Nashville, TN
Greek Orthodox Mason here. 32 Scottish Rite as well. OP is just asking if there are Masonic Brothers here, not to divulge secrets. Of course, you will get funny responses with that question but it's certainly not unreasonable to ask.

It's so comical hearing some of these stories about how Masons "punished those who spoke ill of the lodge or helped them steal babies souls"... It gets old guys, you sound like someone from the Spanish Inquisition.

Our Ritual binds us but we are God fearing men seeking to better ourselves through symbolism and allegory. We do lot's of fundraising to help others and our members and even more community service. Some lodges may be more exclusive than others or have some debate on certain topics but it sounds like your brother in law is not adhering to the principles of Freemasonry himself. Scared to stop pay dues? Please, they're like $40-70 per year depending on where your lodge is. More than likely, he didn't get elected to an office or had a disagreement with someone there and stopped going.
 

Kopis

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
674
Location
Nashville, TN
The whole kerfluffle, as I understand it, relates to Freemasonry's requirement of belief in a Supreme Being without requiring belief in a specific religion. Since most religions, on principle, demand that its members believe in that religion's specific doctrine to the exclusion of others, and since Freemasonry does not adhere to one specific religious belief, they have been declared anathema by several organized religions. Thus, religions tend to be divisive rather than inclusive.

The idea that Freemasonry is antithetical to any religion is not supported by fact.

I agree this is why FM gets a bad name, especially in the South. Heck, i cant even buy beer on Sundays in Arkansas, where's the separation of church and state there? One thing that all religions have in common is that if you dont believe as they believe, you are going to hell. Masonry is inclusive of all religions that believe in a singular diety which counters most religions therefore there have been many kerfluffles as you so elegantly put it between religion and FM.
 

OC for ME

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2010
Messages
12,452
Location
White Oak Plantation
Got invited to join by a seasoned citizen relative. Went to a lodge and asked why there were no windows...no windows, no joining for me. Even a VFW has a window or two and they really don't need them.
 
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