It would seem that Masons, non-Masons and anti masons all have their own detailed explanation as to what Freemasonry really is. The problem is that no two explanations ever seem to agree in their entirety. In fact one Mason will give his version as to what the organization is all about, and then you can ask the next Mason that comes along the same question and you will get an entirely different explanation. You will be hard pressed to believe that they are of the same organization.

There is no definite date as to when Freemasonry became a reality. It is believed it dates back to the 1700?s during the time of the stonemasons and perhaps dealt with the influence of the Knights Templar. These were Christian warrior monks who were responsible for aiding pilgrims cross the Holly Land. They ended up forming a Grand Lodge in England and they are the administrative sector of the Grand Lodges according to sectors. In the USA it seems there is a Grand Lodge in every state and in Canada one in every province. Therefore, you can see they are not a small organization by any means. It is speculated that in the USA alone there are over 1300 Lodges.

Freemasonry spread from England to the United States and boasted of many Political figures as part of their membership such as George Washington and Benjamin Franklin for example. It is said that the Freemasons played an important part in the revolutionary war. Plus it is said that many of the debates around the ratification of the bill of rights and the constitutional convention took place in Masonic Lodges.

The Lodge is the meeting place of the local chapter of Masons. The symbolic teachings that take place amongst the Mason sfocuses on the lessons that were learned during the construction of King Solomon?s temple during the biblical days. This is where the term Lodge originated. It would seem that during the winter months when the Masons were unable, to work, they would build Lodges for shelter and this is where the Lodge concept is taken from.

It?s interesting to note that the House of Commons in London depicts the layout of the Lodge. England was the founding father of the Freemasons and that which was known to spread to the USA so the English titles remained. In organizations that would refer to their leaders as president this fraternity refers to theirs as the The worshipful Master of the Lodge.

It is reported that every Lodge has their own alter that is required to hold the Volume of the Sacred Law. It is stated that in the USA and Canada that is mostly the Bible.

The backbone belief of the Freemasons is that every individual is designated to make the world a better place to live. No matter how small, one individual should strive to make the life of another individual better. Financial figures state that the Masons spend 1.4 million dollars on a daily basis for charity purpose. Donating money to Children?s Hospitals often sphere headed by the Shriners. Then there is the Scottish Rite Mason who supports a vast amount of charities. Then there are many acts of kindness that goes unnoticed, as the Freemasons reportedly do not boast of their good works.

The Masons feel it is their duty to encourage their members to be constantly striving towards the betterment of their already good qualities. They almost consider themselves a support group for the morals they believe in and stand by. It would appear they favor each other?s company because of their common beliefs.

In addition to all their charitable works, the members of the Freemasons enjoy the time they spend at their Lodges. Aside from it being an only male membership, they are family orientated and plan many family events such as picnics and outings.

There are two types of meeting that take place at the Lodges. One is the usual business meeting. These always start and end with a ceremony dedicated to the living values that the Mason stands for. There is the reading of the minutes such as would take place at any organized gathering and the voting of any applicants. There is the planning of charitable functions and personal events. The members are referred to as Brothers in this fraternity. The next type of meeting would be the initiation meeting. Here is where new members are welcomed into the Freemasonry. This done by way of ritual or formally known as degrees.

It is said that every Lodge has functions at the Lodge outside of their membership for example there are Ladies nights or bring a friend, which constitutes an open to the public scenario.

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It is not a new organization and its known roots go back to the 1700?s and probably beyond that. There has also been said that the Masons are a very secretive organization and it would seem that there are never two identical explanations about exactly whom they are, or what they stand for. In their short-term explanation, they will tell you that they adhere to rigid moral values and standards. They constantly strive for the betterment of themselves as a group of men who simply formed an organization. They strengthen each other in their beliefs by fellowship, which is what their meetings are for.

So if Freemasonry seems to be something that many people are familiar with why is it dubbed a secret society? It?s true they don?t hide the fact that they exist. In fact, they have temples or Lodges as they are most often called around most of the world. In addition, they are very active within their communities by way of charities. The secrecy they are accredited with is in regards to what goes on behind closed doors at their meetings. They would appear for the most appear to almost be sworn to an oath of secrecy and no member is allowed to discuss the specifics of what takes place at their meeting.

The members will admit that they are some things that are kept secret like what goes on at their meeting and their secret handshakes. Then there is a secret password one has to use to gain entrance. The masons don?t find this unusual as they say that many facilities have codes that must be used to gain entrance. While this is true, that?s normally applied to places for top security reasons. Therefore, what goes on at the Masons meetings that require security by way of password? Perhaps nothing, but this is where people have built their beliefs on the Masons being a secret society.

As mentioned there are organized Masons in many parts of the world. It is apparent that there are variations according the Lodges but it is said they all stand for the basic concept or charter of the society. This could explain why different Masons will tell you different things about what goes on in their meetings.

The basics of the freemasons must remain the same. They are all subject to the same oaths, which are universal as well as the rituals. The entire structure is based on the rules dating back to the time of the stone Masons who had their own groups or guilds as they were called them. These rules have withstood the passage of time for the most part and are called the Ancient Charges. It is believed that the duty of the stonemasons was to literally build foundations and this concept is that the Freemasons are now building the foundation of their members through teachings and expectations. They use the tools that the stonemasons did for their building as teaching aids in their present day meetings. This is done by way of various rituals that are carried out at specific times.

The expectations that the Masons put upon their members is that they must display brotherly love and respect towards their fellow members. They must all be treated equally and their must be strong trust amongst which resorts back to the secrecy issues.

One interpretation of the structure of the free masons is that their Lodges are headed by a Master Mason who utilizes assistants called warden. The criteria of becoming a Master consists of having high morals and possess the mental capabilities that the position demands. On his way to achieving this title, he must participate in various rituals.

All Masons must acknowledge a supreme being but remembering the Freemasons emphatically state they are not a religious organization. Every member may choose to practice any religion they so choose.

As mentioned depending on the Lodge some of their structure may change but the basics must remain the same.

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It is the policy of the Freemasons not to recruit therefore they will never ask anyone to joint their organization. An interested party must approach them. Becoming a Mason is not an unrecognizable goal but there is certain criteria that you must meet before you will even be considered.

It is an absolute must that you believe in God, whereas many masons will not refer to him as God but will use the term you must believe in a Supreme Being. In the majority of countries, the age requirement is twenty-one but if one happens to be the son of Freemason then the age requirement is reduced to eighteen.

Another criterion is that you must be a person of good standing. You will be tested in this area when you go before the Freemasons examining board. They will ask you about your history and about your life in general. Their decisions will be based on your answers. The concept of the Freemasons according to their charter is to make good men better. There are no women allowed in this organization. Once passed your board examination your request to join will be put to a vote. Each member of that particular chapter is given the chance to vote regarding your membership.

If it turns out that, you are not voted in then that doesn?t mean that you can?t apply again but there is a waiting period. If on the other hand you are accepted then you are in for an experience. You will find that they have rituals that are full of metaphors and allegory. This is there way of teaching their lessons.

It?s not suggested that you try to join the Freemasons just out of curiosity. If these are your reasons most likely, they will be detected at the board examination and you will fail anyway. Try to find out as much as possible about them before applying. Perhaps you know of a Mason that will point you in the right direction.

One interesting point you are going to discover when you start your research is that there is much conflicting information. It has been said that is because the Freemasons are such a secretive society that nobody is allowed to talk about the inner workings of it. If this is the case then how can one really discern what they are all about and make an informed decision as to whether to apply for membership.

In addition, it would seem that there are different orders of Freemasons. If you have one in particular that you want to join then perhaps you need to find out if they are in fact a full Freemason organization or just an offshoot.

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