There are many that believe that Masonry is some secretive type of religion, where as the Freemasons vigorously refute this. They will tell you that they have a alter which supports the volume of the Sacred Law. But just what this is is not quite clear.
They stipulate they open their meeting in prayer, but it is unclear as to whom they are praying to. Some temples will tell you that you just have to believe in a supreme being, while others say it is God. Then there is the connotation that because they use the name of temple for their meeting places, then it must be religious. They state that they simply encourage their members to be active in a religion and church of their own choice.
It seems that a new members, often receive a Masonic Bible as a gift. The claim is made that this is most often the Holy Bible - being the King James Version. It has an added front page to name the recipient of the gift and the purpose for receiving it. Some of them may also have a special index to show what the rituals are referring to in regards to scripture verses.
This can become quite confusing based on other information they have supplied. They say they don't force a member into believing in God, yet they hand out King James Bibles. They say they don't preach religion, yet they depict scripture in their rituals.
In reference to rituals, they offer the fact that anything that is done repeatedly is a form of ritual. Such as starting a school program everyday with the same opening, or ongoing business meetings. The purpose of their rituals is simply a teaching aid, a way of getting their point across.
When it comes to reference of their use of symbols, Freemasons simply indicate that any type of communication is a form of symbol and will quite often used the ordinary stop sign as being a symbol to indicate a purpose or meaning.
What are most common symbols used by the masons?
The square and compass is the trademark of the Freemasons.
The square is meant to depict the earth and its responsibility to honor and truthfulness as well as integrity. The compass is a symbol of the spirit and self-control. The G stands both for geometry in accordance with the beliefs of historical science in its relationship with God, and it stands for God as well.
The gavel is to depict self-control and self-discipline as being key components of man. The hourglass is a reminder that time stands still for no man and there is no room for procrastination.
The Masons have certain specific ideals that they teach. According to some they state that they teach, that God is the creator - therefore all humans are children of God, therefore they are all brothers and sisters.
It would seem that this is the very concept that Christianity teaches, yet the Masons feel they are not a religious organization. Their whole goal is to promote their members to be constantly bettering themselves spiritually and morally.
This too is a goal of Christianity. When one looks closely at what the Masons purport as their teachings, they on the surface look no different to what many of the standard religions teach.
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Famous Freemasons Part 1-United Grand Lodge of England
