Question Four: Do I have to give up my hobbies
I’m a competitive video-gamer and I was just wondering if I would have to give that up if I join. I don’t play highly violent video games(I hate guns) but I was just wondering if I would have to give it up if I join.
Question Five: Do I have to reveal my politic party
When I will register to vote I will be part of a party who’s views don’t exactly follow the political system of America. Its not a party of crazies or racist but it is controversial to a lot of people. I know that at the loge and at meetings politics are not spoken of but I was just wondering weather it would play a part in the process of me getting in if I decided to join.
Question Five: How expensive is it to join.
Well… I guess that title really speaks for its self.
It’s nice to see some well thought out questions especially from someone of your age. I won’t reproduce all that you wrote as that doesn’t help I’ll just answer the numbers.
However, before I begin can I just point out that:
a) the American “letter fraternities” actually borrow form and copy Freemasonry. That’s because Freemasonry is more than 3 Centuries (provable) old and
b) Jay-Z uses some Masonic symbols (even Pitbull sound-checks “the Masons” in “Tonight”) but only because it is a trendy thing at the moment (following things like “National Treasure” and the “Davinci Code”) and it sells his merchandise, as soon as people stop buying he will move onto something else.
Anyway to business:
1) There is nothing within Freemasonry that should clash with your religion generally. That’s because Freemasonry isn’t a religion but it has some religiousity and that’s because its origin was at a time when that was the norm in all aspects of life. However, this is not to say that it might not clash with your, very own, personal interpretation of your religion, this unfortunately is something that only you can know. If you were to join and find you didn’t like it, it is quite straight forward to resign.
2) This again is a question that is difficult to answer without knowing you personally and very well. This is why every Candidate must have a Proposer someone who is already a Freemason and who knows the Candidate well enough to advise him whether he is ready. It looks to me like it’s time for you to chat with your grandfather.
3) Without knowing what it is specifically that creeps you out, it’s not really possible to say whether it’s reasonable or not. However, some non-Masons do get hung up about the Rituals as they picture them being all Funeralish etc, all I can tell you is that they are not that way at all.
4) There is no requirement for you to give up existing pastimes or hobbies although if any are an illegal nature there is. Although it sems important to you at the moment you will probably naturally grow out of gaming anyway.
5) Your political beliefs are like your religious ones, not really of any relevance in Freemasonry other than when talking to other brethren as friends outside of Lodge meetings in the way that people normally do.
6) Depends on the particular Lodge and how interested you get in it. If you decide to join the extra Orders there is obviously extra cost cos they’re extra.
Question 1: Dose Masonry conflict with my religion?
The answer is a definite “no”. Masonry is a secular, man-made organization, that offers no conflict with any religion. An applicant must believe in the Supreme Being, prior to petitioning. Only an avowed atheist cannot be made a Mason.
Question 2: How do I know that I’m ready
That varies with the individual. In some states, the minimum age is 18. In Ohio, the minimum age is 19, in most states the minimum age for applying is 21. As far as the individual, you should approach Masonry seriously. Joining our fraternity is a life-changing decision. The decision must be yours alone, no one is ever invited to join. Masonry does not seek men. Men seek Masonry. The decision should be made “prayerfully and carefully”.
Only you will know if you are ready.
Question Three: Rituals
There are three instructional degrees in Craft Masonry. Each of them has a ritual. The rituals are serious, and there is no “horseplay” or “hazing”. The rituals are performed in great dignity, and certain moral lessons are conveyed to the candidate. You need have no fear.
Question Four: Do I have to give up my hobbies
You need not give up your leisure acitivities. One of my favorite hobbies is Amateur Radio. When I lived in Columbus Ohio, there were enough Masonic Amateurs, that we assembled our own degree team. You may find others in Masonry, who share your same leisure activities.
Question Five: Do I have to reveal my politic party
Your political activities are of no concern to Freemasonry. In fact, all discussion of religion or politics, is forbidden in our meetings.
Question Five: How expensive is it to join.
That question depends on which lodge you join. Some, but not all lodges charge an initiation fee. This is to cover the cost of certain supplies, such as books and other materials, that are presented to you when you finish the degrees. All lodges charge an annual dues, to cover the costs of maintenance and upkeep of their lodge building. A new fancy lodge, in a large city, will have higher overhead costs, and therefore their dues will be higher. A small, lodge in rural Kentucky, that is not carrying a mortgage, will charge lower dues.
The monetary costs of Freemasonry, are not a secret. If you are considering joining a lodge, just ask the secretary what the annual dues are.
Thanks for your thoughtful questions. They have been answered well by my brothers in the posts above this. I just wanted to throw my two cents in.
Masonry is a fraternity but one very different from those I was exposed to in college. I know I have friends and brothers where ever I travel so long as freedom of thought and religion are permitted in the country. I have experienced this first hand and can tell you there is nothing like it. We are friends and brothers first.
Because we have this precious bond, we extend our brotherly love to the world around us through acts of charity. Masons give over $2 million per day to charity, we are not a charity, though. We are a brotherhood.
The three principals we follow are Brotherly Love, Truth and Relief. They are intertwined so much as to be inseparable. You would never be untruthful to a brother and you would never stand by and let him suffer if your could prevent it. As I said earlier, we extend these concepts to the world at large.
As the actor in our Ben Franklin videos says, “Is there greatness in you?” If you are ready to experience and share brotherly love, truth and relief, you are ready to join us as soon as you are of legal age (18 in NC. Here is a link to all the requirements http://ncmason.org/code2009a/066.html )
First I just wanted to say thank you for answering me questions. Also I know the whole rappers being in the Illuminati thing is bunk. It mostly started when 2pac made the Killuminati album, but he named it Killuminati because he wanted to “Kill” the fear created by the conspiracy theory because it was keeping people(mostly people in jail) down and preventing them form advancing on with their live, thus he added the “K” to Illuminati. The conspiracy theory died off until “The Truth about Hip-Hop” DVD came out, I love how people fail to relise that this DVD is made by an extremest Christian group who are parodied. And as far as Jay-Z and the other rappers(I have yet to see too many rock artist or artist form foreign countries be accuse to be a part of the Illuminati/Freemasons) go, yeah they just want money. Ok time to get away form the whole NWO stuff that’s for a different part of this forum.
To answer the questions on what creeps me out about the ritual for the 33rd degree is the skull that is supposed to be of a mason who has reviled the secrets of the organization, that is then hit on the skull of the mason being initiated into the degree. Then form what I read the mason spends quite some time in a coffin, and then they rise out of the coffin and they are a 33rd. Though I’m sure that a lot of it is symbolic it kinda sounds like a baptism to me.
To answer the questions on what creeps me out about the ritual for the 33rd degree is the skull that is supposed to be of a mason who has reviled the secrets of the organization, that is then hit on the skull of the mason being initiated into the degree. Then form what I read the mason spends quite some time in a coffin, and then they rise out of the coffin and they are a 33rd. Though I’m sure that a lot of it is symbolic it kinda sounds like a baptism to me.
I’m not sure how to put this without sounding like I’m having a go at you but you need to know 2 things.
1) As a non-Mason the 33rd Degree is of no relevance to you. If you were to become a Mason tomorrow you could not become a 33rd Degree Mason for many, many years from tomorrow. This is because it is not a degree like all the others it is an honourarium or a reward for long and outstanding service to the Ancient and Accepted Rite.
2) You need to stop reading whatever sources you are reading, they are misleading you and probably intentionally. A big part of the problem is that the Degree Ceremonies cannot be read and understood properly as that is not how they were designed, they are understood by taking part and having it explained to you, this is essentially what an initiation is.
To answer the questions on what creeps me out about the ritual for the 33rd degree is the skull that is supposed to be of a mason who has reviled the secrets of the organization, that is then hit on the skull of the mason being initiated into the degree. Then form what I read the mason spends quite some time in a coffin, and then they rise out of the coffin and they are a 33rd. Though I’m sure that a lot of it is symbolic it kinda sounds like a baptism to me.
I’m not sure how to put this without sounding like I’m having a go at you but you need to know 2 things.
1) As a non-Mason the 33rd Degree is of no relevance to you. If you were to become a Mason tomorrow you could not become a 33rd Degree Mason for many, many years from tomorrow. This is because it is not a degree like all the others it is an honorarium or a reward for long and outstanding service to the Ancient and Accepted Rite.
2) You need to stop reading whatever sources you are reading, they are misleading you and probably intentionally. A big part of the problem is that the Degree Ceremonies cannot be read and understood properly as that is not how they were designed, they are understood by taking part and having it explained to you, this is essentially what an initiation is.
Oh no you not coming off as aggressive. I understand. You are basically telling me
1) Though I already knew that 33 Degree Mason…rank is something that is a gift given to toughs who excel and do outstanding services for the community, I seem to have misunderstood stood what its about, and its something that I can’t truly understand because I am not a Mason.
To answer the questions on what creeps me out about the ritual for the 33rd degree is the skull that is supposed to be of a mason who has reviled the secrets of the organization, that is then hit on the skull of the mason being initiated into the degree. Then form what I read the mason spends quite some time in a coffin, and then they rise out of the coffin and they are a 33rd. Though I’m sure that a lot of it is symbolic it kinda sounds like a baptism to me.
I’m not sure how to put this without sounding like I’m having a go at you but you need to know 2 things.
1) As a non-Mason the 33rd Degree is of no relevance to you. If you were to become a Mason tomorrow you could not become a 33rd Degree Mason for many, many years from tomorrow. This is because it is not a degree like all the others it is an honorarium or a reward for long and outstanding service to the Ancient and Accepted Rite.
2) You need to stop reading whatever sources you are reading, they are misleading you and probably intentionally. A big part of the problem is that the Degree Ceremonies cannot be read and understood properly as that is not how they were designed, they are understood by taking part and having it explained to you, this is essentially what an initiation is.
Oh no you not coming off as aggressive. I understand. You are basically telling me
1) Though I already knew that 33 Degree Mason…rank is something that is a gift given to toughs who excel and do outstanding services for the community, I seem to have misunderstood stood what its about, and its something that I can’t truly understand because I am not a Mason.
2) Ok I will. Thank you
I know a man who has been nominated for the honor of the 33rd degree in Scottish Rite in my lodge. He is a friend and mentor to me. He lives the tenets and lessons of Masonry every day. While we were both going through cancer treatments, he went out of his way to encourage me while he suffered silently. He would be the first to tell you that even the 33rd degree is not a rank any higher than the third degree, Master Mason.
Pardon me if I show a bit of annoyance here but the uninformed who believe everything they see on youtube and hear in rap music seem to think they know more about Masonry than those who have the privilege of being part of the Craft. I’m just a Senior Steward in my lodge, just beginning the hard work of learning the Rituals of our Fraternity but I can tell you without hesitation what I try to tell every candidate sitting outside the lodge waiting for his first degree. While helping to prepare them, I say:
“Remember that every man in that room voted to become your friend and brother. You have nothing to fear from us. Nobody will harm or embarrass you during any of our Rituals. The officers have put in long hours of study and practice to make sure this is an evening you will fondly remember for the rest of your life. Relax, pay attention and enjoy yourself while you take the first steps in a life-long journey.”
This is not part of ritual, it is simply something I started saying when I saw a particularly nervous man sitting outside the lodge room. It seemed to help him and it comes from my heart.
I have no clue as to what goes on in the 33rd degree ceremony and, with all due respect, neither do you. I know the men who are so honored are the best of us. They are the men who put their brothers and those in need before themselves. I strongly doubt that what you have heard or read about this ritual is accurate. There is only one way to find out what really happens inside a lodge room and that’s to put aside your fears and join us. If you are a good man, we will help you become a better one.
Thanks again, I have one last question for you guys. What do you think about this site. ephesians5-11.org Is any of it fact or is it some fact and some lies or is it just a bunch of lies. This site is were most of my questions rooted
It is chock full of guys pretending that they are ex-Masons and writing “testimonies” that will probably condemn them to Purgatory but don’t care because they are so Godless. If even one of them were actually an ex-Freemason they would know that they are peddling in lies and that I don’t know if its still there but there used to be a Forum where they used to invent characters to complain about Freemasonry. I personally have not visited for more than 4 years as I refuse to increase its visitor count.
If they were truly Christians as well as Ephesians they would consider: 1Kings 22:16, Zechariah 8:17, Proverbs 19:5.
E511 does contain some fact, however it is so skewed and taken out of context that it is hard to even see what is really there. I used to get really annoyed when reading what Larry, Skip, Cowan, Duane and the rest of the characters over there used to write. However, after applying what I learned in the 3 degrees of Craft Masonry, I find that it just does not bother me in the same way that it used to.
It is chock full of guys pretending that they are ex-Masons and writing “testimonies” that will probably condemn them to Purgatory but don’t care because they are so Godless. If even one of them were actually an ex-Freemason they would know that they are peddling in lies and that I don’t know if its still there but there used to be a Forum where they used to invent characters to complain about Freemasonry. I personally have not visited for more than 4 years as I refuse to increase its visitor count.
If they were truly Christians as well as Ephesians they would consider: 1Kings 22:16, Zechariah 8:17, Proverbs 19:5.
Let me ask you the same question now that you have been exposed to a small part of what Masons are really like. What do you think of E511? Do they seem credible? Do you believe that a group of men who have in common a belief in the Grand Architect of the Universe, good moral character, and a desire to be of service to their fellow creatures would be capable of the horrible things that we are accused of there? Do you seriously believe I worship the devil or would have anything to do with a group who does?
We are simply a group of good men who gather together in fellowship to help each other and those in need. It really is that simple. No goats, no New World Order, no devil worship, and (unfortunately) no treasure rooms filled with riches.
and (unfortunately) no treasure rooms filled with riches.
In one sense that is true my Brother. In another it is not. But that is beyond the scope of this board.
On another forum, a brother was working on his mother’s brick wall and asked the group for suggestions for Masonic jokes to pull while working on the wall. I suggested he take an old skeleton key and place it in a hollowed out brick with the label “Templar Treasure Room”. Of course, the brick needed a Square and Compasses mark :)
It is chock full of guys pretending that they are ex-Masons and writing “testimonies” that will probably condemn them to Purgatory but don’t care because they are so Godless. If even one of them were actually an ex-Freemason they would know that they are peddling in lies and that I don’t know if its still there but there used to be a Forum where they used to invent characters to complain about Freemasonry. I personally have not visited for more than 4 years as I refuse to increase its visitor count.
If they were truly Christians as well as Ephesians they would consider: 1Kings 22:16, Zechariah 8:17, Proverbs 19:5.
Let me ask you the same question now that you have been exposed to a small part of what Masons are really like. What do you think of E511? Do they seem credible? Do you believe that a group of men who have in common a belief in the Grand Architect of the Universe, good moral character, and a desire to be of service to their fellow creatures would be capable of the horrible things that we are accused of there? Do you seriously believe I worship the devil or would have anything to do with a group who does?
We are simply a group of good men who gather together in fellowship to help each other and those in need. It really is that simple. No goats, no New World Order, no devil worship, and (unfortunately) no treasure rooms filled with riches.
Well form what I’ve seen their testimonies seem to be inconsistent, there seems to be a lot of trolls on the page as well. They almost never back up what they say with fact. The site just seems like a bunch of Christians that think the bible is meant to be read with out interpretation. They also seem very hateful to those that oppose them and will ban anyone with a different option for the sake of “Doing God’s Work”. Anyway that’s how I see the group for the most part, what that being said I think I’ll petition my nearest lodge when I become of age( I still don’t know the age in SC).
