Nelson King, FPS
You Sir Knight, and you and you, everyone of you is a devil worshipper, Satanic and an anti-Christian. So says Dr. James L. Holly of Beaumont Texas. Why? Because we are all Freemasons. During 1992, Dr. Holly mailed an estimated 10,000 booklets to members of the Southern Baptist Convention condemning Freemasonry as a "spiritually devastating and ungodly brotherhood of Satanic darkness", Its "occultic, Satanic and sensual nature" is "an evil that must be removed from the church", that it "is incompatible with being a faithful Christian or a Southern Baptist". Further, that Masonry is "nonbiblical, anti-Christian, and wrong in its doctrine about God".
We as Freemasons are now fighting the most monumental anti-Masonic force of our life time. A force so strong that in June half a million Freemason may have to decide between their Church or their Masonic membership.
You see, Dr. Holly proposed the following motion..
"That the Southern Baptist convention in annual session June 9-11, 1992 at Indianapolis, Indiana, directs the president elected at this convention to appoint an ad hoc committee for the study of the compatibility with Christianity and Southern Baptist doctrine of the organization known variously as the Masonic Lodge, Masonry, Freemasonry and/or Ancient and Accepted Rite of Freemasonry. The study is to encompass any and all branches and/or lodges thereof. Furthermore, the Convention directs the president to appoint this committee within thirty day of the conclusion of this Convention and to charge this committee with the responsibility of bringing a report with recommendation to the convention which is to meet in Houston, Texas [in] June 1993."
The president of the SBC allowed just fifteen minutes for discussion of Dr. Holly's motion. The only person called on to speak in favour of Masonry was Fred McPeake, who was given all of two minutes to address 18,000 messengers about an issue affecting up to half a million Freemason Baptists. The rest of the quarter hour was given to Dr. Holly and a colleague of his from his home state of Texas.
On man left to stand silent before the microphone was Marion Reed a 33 Mason and editor the Kentucky's Masonic Home Journal. Other messengers from his state included three Past Grand Masters of Kentucky, but none of them had a chance to speak.
An ad hoc committee made up of anti-Masons would , of course have been the kiss of death for any hope of scholarly and fair investigation, but on that point Dr. Holly was disappointed. Before his motion could be put to a vote, an amendment to the motion was introduced by messenger Alvin Rowe of Florida and was approved. It read.
"That the Southern Baptist convention in annual session June 9-11, 1992 at Indianapolis, Indiana, directs the Interfaith Witness Department of the Home Missions Board to the study of the compatibility with Christianity and Southern Baptist doctrine of the organization known variously as the Masonic Lodge, Masonry, Freemasonry and/or Ancient and Accepted Rite of Freemasonry. The study is to encompass any and all branches and/or lodges thereof. Furthermore, the Convention charges the Home Missions Board with the responsibility of bringing a report with recommendation to the convention which is to meet in Houston, Texas June 15-17 1993."
The following questions have been proposed by the committee of the Southern Baptist Convention that has been given the responsibility to investigate Freemasonry as to whether it is appropriate for Southern Baptists to be members of the fraternity.
1. Is Freemasonry a religion? This is the crucial issue from which nearly every criticism of Freemasonry arises. Every Masonic Critic cites Albert Pike, who said, "Every Masonic Lodge is a temple of religion; and its teachings are instruction in
religion." -- MORALS AND DOGMA, p.213.
2. Most Masonic critics cite writers such as Pike for documentation that Freemasonry is based on -- or is in fact -- a pagan religion. They quote him in dozens of places. How much of an authority is Albert Pike? Is his MORALS AND DOGMA used in Scottish Rite Masonry? How closely are his discussions on each degree followed? How much, if any, of Pike's discussions are seen as his opinions which Scottish Rite Masons may openly reject? Please respond to Jim Shaw's statement that Pike's "position in Masonry was, and is today, unparalleled, not only in the United States, but throughout the world (THE DEADLY DECEPTION, p.63).
3. L. James Rongstad in HOW TO RESPOND TO THE LODGE (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1977), p.17 says that the "rediscovered" name of the true God is "Jah-Bul-On." He claims this is the Royal Arch Masons' "Trinity" and that "Jah" is an abbreviation for the Hebrew name of God (Jahweh or Jehovah); "Bul" is the name for the Assyrian deity Baal; and "On" is the Egyptian sun god Osiris. John Ankerberg in, THE SECRET TEACHINGS OF THE MASONIC LODGE, makes the same charge. Please respond to these charges.
4. The Masonic funeral ceremony is especially disliked by many critics. Does Masonry teach that all men, regardless of faith in Jesus Christ, will live forever in the Celestial Lodge Above? Masonic critics state this is the impression they receive during Masonic funeral ceremonies.
5. How literally do Masons take the Blue Lodge oaths? How literally are they supposed to take these oaths?
6. Are all references to Jesus Christ removed from Masonic rituals? Are Scripture passages referred to him omitted when the Bible is read in Lodge meetings? Masonic critics make this claim while pointing out that other religious leaders such as Mohammed or deities such as Orisis are regularly mentioned. Please comment on this.
7. Robert A. Morey in THE ORIGINS AND TEACHINGS OF FREEMASONRY argues that the "Christian interpretation of Freemasonry was the accepted norm until the later half of the 19th century" (p.17). He says that only after the anti-Masonic movement from 1826 to 1836 did Christians leave the Lodge in such numbers that non-Christian leaders, such as Albert Pike, were able to change the direction of Freemasonry. Please comment on this. Can you recommend any books from the early 1800s which i might read?
8. One Masonic critic said he read a report in a newspaper that most of the money collected by Shriners is used for their temples and meetings with little actually going directly to Shriner hospitals.
9. In MASONIC PHILANTHROPIES (1991), it is said that Masonic Philanthropy collected $525 million in 1990. Explain how this money was collected and how it was spent. Are 1991 figures available?
10. Explain Prince Hall Masonry, its beginning, growth and relationship to the Grand Lodges today.
11. Did a change in the political/religious atmosphere in England have anything to do with the creation of the first Grand Lodge in 1717?
12. Did Greece ban the Masonic Lodge in 1970 because it was "an illegal, secret society" as claimed by L. James Rongtad in HOW TO RESPOND TO THE LODGE (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1977), p.12. I want to include a section in my report on attacks or bans against Freemasons in countries such as Spain, etc. I heard that the Ayatollah Khomeini had many Masons put to death when he took control of Iran in 1979. Is that true?
13. Was Mason critic Jim Shaw a 33 Mason, "Knight Commander of the Court of Honor," and "Past Master of all Scottish Rite bodies" as he claims on the cover of his book THE DEADLY DECEPTION which he co-authored with Tom McKenney?
14. Masonic critic Jim Shaw makes a connection between the legend of Hiram Abiff and the legend of Isis and Osiris. Both Hiram Abiff and Osiris were killed and buried with an Acacia tree to mark the grave. Shaw quotes Pierson, TRADITIONS OF FREEMASONRY, p.159, "We readily recognize in Hiram Abiff of the Egyptians."
15. Names of well-known Southern Baptist Masons, such as George W. Truett, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, would be helpful. I do not want to embarrass living Southern Baptist Masons so do not plan to include there names in the report unless they agree.
So the battle lines where drawn and for once Masons, Grand Lodges and the public are fighting back. The Southern Jurisdiction of the A.A.S.R. and the Masonic Service Association published "Conscience and the Craft Questions on Religion and Freemasonry" by Dr. Jim Tresner, Ph.D., 33 some of which are.
Why are Masonic buildings called "Temples," doesn't that suggest a religious building?
Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary provides a definition for the word "temple" which is as good an explanation as any: "a building, usually of imposing size, serving the public or an organization in some special way; as, a temple of art, a Masonic temple."
Have some Masonic writers said that Masonry is a religion?
Yes, and again, it's a matter of definition. If, as some writers have, you define religion as "man's urge to venerate the beautiful, serve the good and see God in everything," you can say that Masonry subscribes to a religion. But that, surely, is not in conflict with Christianity or any other faith.
Is Freemasonry a Mystery Religion?
No.
The relationship (if any) between Freemasonry and the ancient Mysteries is a favourite topic of speculation among Masonic writers. Unfortunately, just as Mathematicians tend to write for other Mathematicians and Historians then to write for other Historians.
Masonic writers tend to write for other Masonic writers. Many things are never explained, simply because it is assumed the reader already knows them.
Many Masonic writers say that Freemasonry uses the tradition of the Mysteries. (Others, meaning the same thing, say that Masonry is the successor to the Mysteries.) By that, we simply mean that Masonry also seeks to find men and help them develop in thought and understanding to seek enlightenment. The principles of goodness (not to be confused with the principles of salvation) compassion, concern, love, trustworthiness.
Integrity, a sense or "connectedness" with history-- these are the elements of the Mysteries, along with other schools of thought, preserved by Freemasonry. And they are not in conflict with any faith.
Masonry has nothing to do with the religion taught in the Mysteries. Rather, we are concerned with the ethics and morality taught there--ethics and morality which have been ratified by Christianity and every major religion or mankind.
Can a man be a Christian and a Mason at the same time?
Perhaps the best answer is that most of us are, at least in the United States. The ranks of Masonry have been and are distinguished by many of the outstanding religious leaders of America. A quick scan through the book "10,000 Famous Freemasons," gives us these names from history, among many others.
Rev. Charles T. Aikens, who served as President of the Lutheran Synod of Eastern Pennsylvania
Bishop James Freeman, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington, D.C., who first conceived and began the construction of the National Cathedral
Bishop William F. Anderson, one of the most important leaders of the Methodist Church Rev. Lansing Burrows, Civil War Hero and Secretary of the Southern Baptist Convention
Rev. James C. Baker, who created the Wesley Foundation
William R. White, 33 degree, who served as President of Baylor, and secretary of the Sunday School Board, Southern Baptist Convention
Rev. Hugh I. Evans, who served as national head of the Presbyterian Church.
It is useful on this question, to let some of America's most honoured Clergy speak for themselves.
Carl J. Sanders, Bishop of the United Methodist Church and holder of the highest honour conferred by the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, writes: "My Masonic activities have never interfered with my loyalty to and my love for my Church. Quite to the contrary, my loyalty to my Church has been strengthened by my Masonic ties. Good Masons are good Churchmen."
Dr. James P. Wesberry, Executive Director and Editor of the Baptist publication "Sunday" writes: "It is no secret that Masons love and revere the Bible nor is it a secret that Masonry helped to preserve it in the darkest age of the Church when infidelity sought to destroy it. The Bible meets Masons with its sacred message at every step of progress,
in its various degrees."
The Reverend Louis Gant, 33 degree, Mason and District Superintendent of the Methodist Church writes: "Let no one say you cannot be a Christian and a Mason at the same time. I know too many who are both and proud to be both."
But we are proud, as Masons, that members of all faiths have found value in the fraternity. Rabbi Sambar Atlas, 32 degree, and holder of some of the highest Masonic honours, writes of what he finds in Masonry: "I was brought up in a religious home, a son of a Rabbi with seven generations of Rabbis preceding me... I am proud to be a Mason who believes in the dignity of God's children and opposes hatred and bigotry, and stands for truth, justice, kindness, integrity and righteousness for all."
Is Masonry Anti-Christian?
No, Masonry is not anti ANY religion. This charge is raised by some anti-Masonic writers. Quoting Matthew 12:30 ("He that is not with me, is against me; and he that gathereth not with me, scattereth abroad."), they claim that, since Masonry does not require its members to be Christian, we are actively anti-Christian. First of all, of course, a reading of the entire passage makes it quite clear that Jesus was answering the Pharisees who were criticizing Him; it is not a passage which relates to the present discussion at all. Most people wouldn't agree that there are only two positions in the world-- Christian and anti-Christian. The government of the United States, the city library, even the natural gas company, all serve and employee Christians and non-Christians alike-- but no reasonable person would say they were, therefore "anti-Christian." Masons encourage their members in their individual faiths, we do not oppose any faith.
Does Masonry have a hidden religious agenda or practice, known only to "higher" Masons?
No, The religious position of Freemasonry is stated often and openly, and we've already mentioned it above. A Mason must believe in God, and he is actively encouraged to practice his individual faith. Masonry has no "god" of its own. Some anti-Masons have said that we are not allowed to mention the name of God in Lodge. That isn't true-- in fact that is one of the two meanings of the "G" in the square and compasses logo (the other meaning is "geometry"). It is true that we generally use some other term, "Grand Architect of the Universe" is most common, to refer to God. That is done only to avoid giving religious offense to anyone whose faith refers to God by another name. But the God to whom Masons pray is the God to whom all Christians pray.
But haven't some Masonic writers said that the information given in the early Masonic degrees is incomplete or even misleading?
Again, it's a matter of Masonic writers writing for those they assume have a background knowledge. Another way we say the same thing is "Masonry is a progressive science, revealed by degrees." There is nothing astonishing, and certainly nothing sinister in that. All knowledge is gained bit by bit, and this is especially true in ethics and morality. A minister, who gave a new member of the church a copy of the works of, for example, Cyprian, Clement of Alexandria, and Origen, and said "When you've mastered those, let me know," would do very little good. Instead, Masonry introduces the idea of ethics and morality, and gives some practical instruction in each. But then it says to the Mason, "We teach by symbols because symbols can be constantly explored. Think about these things, read what others have written. Only in that way can you make the knowledge and insight really your own." Masonry tries very hard to raise questions, and to help its members acquire the tools for thought-- but we do not try to give answers.
Why is it so hard to find an official statement of Masonic dogma?
Because there isn't such a thing. We've already mentioned everything Masonry has to say officially on the topic, To go further, as an official position would deny a man his right to think for himself and his right to follow the dictates of his own faith. Each Mason has a right to seek Masonry for what he wants to find. It is his right to believe as he wishes; BUT is not his right to force that belief on others.
But isn't the Masonic scholar Albert Pike's major book entitled "Morals and Dogma?"
Yes. As is clear from his writings, however, Pike using the word in its original Greek sense of "that which I think is true." or "that which has been thought to be true," not in the modern sense of "this is what you are required to believe."
And the question of "Morals and Dogma" brings up an important point. Anti-Masonic writers are forever "discovering" something they find shocking in the book, largely because they don't understand what kind of book it is. Pike was attempting the almost impossible task of surveying and condensing the whole history of human thought in philosophy into one volume. He writes about things which were believed in ancient Egypt, China, Persia-- all over the world. It's easy to take a paragraph out of context-- as one writer does with Pike's comment about the ancient Egyptian belief in Osiris-- and then insist that Masons teach and believe that all good comes from Osiris. But a history lesson is not a statement of theology.
Some of the anti-Masonic writers seem almost to deliberately twist things to make them say what they want. As an example, the same writer, takes a passage in which Pike in contrasting the immortality of the soul with the temporary nature of earthly things. To illustrate the impermanence of the body as opposed to the soul, Pike notes that, when we die, our bodies resolve again into the earth. The minerals of which it was composed may scatter far. Those minerals may be picked up again by the roots of plants, grow into food, and be eaten by other men. This, the anti-Masonic writer suggests, is pagan Masonic communion--eating the dead! A simple illustration is distorted into a cannibal feast.
Which Masonic writer does Masonry consider authoritative?
None, if you mean "authoritative" in the sense that they speak for the fraternity or that what they say is "binding" upon Masons. Each Mason must think for himself, and each is entitled to write whatever he wishes.
It's like the situation is studying government. If a person really wants to understand American Government, he or she almost has to read Madison's and Hamilton's "Federalist Papers" as well as de Toqueville and the History of the Constitutional Convention. But none of those things are the law-- they are just commentaries on the way the law was made, and the thinking of the people who wrote the Constitution.
It's like that with Masonic writers. Some have a lot of value to say -- some are useless (each man can write whatever he wants, after all)-- but none of them "speaks" for Masonry. He can only speak for himself.
Is there such a thing as a Masonic Bible?
No. The Bibles sometimes called "Masonic Bibles" are just Bibles (usually the King James Version) to which a concordance, giving the Biblical citations on which the Masonic Ritual is based, has been added. Sometimes reference material on Masonic history is included. Anyone is welcome to read one.
Is Freemasonry a secret society?
No. A secret society tries to hide the fact that it exists. Masonic Lodges are marked with signs, listed in the phone book and their meeting places and times are usually listed in the newspaper. Members identify themselves with pins and rings. The only secret in Masonry relates to the ways we can recognize each other. The ritual of Masonry, the Monitor, is in print and anyone can read it. Interestingly, the anti-Masonic writers who condemn us for being a secret society are always quoting from the Monitor. If it's a secret, it isn't a very well-kept one.
So what do Masons mean by "Secrecy?" What kind of secrecy do we teach?
The first and most important kind is the ability to keep confidences. All of us value those friends whom we can talk, "blow off steam," really open ourselves to, and still know without any question that the friend will never tell anyone else or use those moments of sometimes painful honesty against us in any way. As it says in Proverbs 11, 13 "a talebearer revealeth secrets, but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter." Masons are taught it's important to be such a friend.
The second kind of secrecy we teach is the idea of "doing good in silence." One of the degrees says it this way: "Be careful that you do not contribute to showy charities in order to have the reputation of being a charitable man, while sending away from your door the Poor whom God has sent to test you."
Secrecy, in those senses, is a virtue, and it is in those senses it is taught in Masonry.
Can a Christian take the vows or obligations of a Mason?
Yes, with the exception of a very few denominations. If a Christian belongs to a denomination which forbids all vows, such as the Oath of Office of the President of the United States or the common oath of the law courts, "I solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God," then he probably could not take the obligation. Any Christian, whose denomination does not forbid the Presidential or the court oath, or the oath taken when entering the Armed Services could take the Masonic obligation. Some anti-Masonic writers have complained about the so-called "penalties" in the Masonic obligations. Those penalties are purely symbolic and refer to the pain, despair and horror which any honest man should feel at the thought that he had violated his sworn word.
Does Masonry use symbols which are diabolical in nature?
No. Masonry uses many symbols-- it's our primary way of teaching, as it has been the primary way of teaching from ancient times (just try teaching arithmetic without number symbols)-- but there is nothing satanic about them. Symbols mean what the person uses them to mean. X may be a St. Andrew's Cross, ancient symbol of Scotland, or it may mean "multiply two numbers together" (or "10" in Roman Numerals, or "unknown" in algebra, or "don't do this," or "truce," or "Xenon" in chemistry, or "by" as in 2 x 4 board, or "this is the spot," or even "railroad crossing"). It depends on the meaning in the mind of the person using it.
It's the same for Masonic symbols. We sometimes use the five-pointed star, for example. Some people chose to see that as a symbol of witchcraft. It's their right to use it that way in their own thinking if they wish. But we use it as a symbol of man, because that is its oldest meaning (the five points refer to the head, the hands and the feet). The five-pointed star, with one point downward, is used by the Order of the Eastern Star. Some anti-Masons like to see it as a symbol of the devil. But it's also known as the "Star of the Incarceration," with the downward-pointing ray representing that moment when God came down from Heaven and was Incarnate by the Holy Ghost. And it is in that meaning
it is used by the Eastern Star ("We have seen His star in the East, and are coming to worship him").
Is Masonry "guilty" of teaching toleration?
And proud of it! It seems a strange accusation, but anti-Masonic writers often charge that we accept people with many different religious viewpoints as Brothers. They are correct. Jesus did not say to us, "A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another-- as long as he goes to the same church you do, or belongs to the same political party." Yet one anti-Masonic writer claims that this toleration is the blackest sin of Masonry. Toleration, he says, "springs from pits of hell and from the father of lies, Lucifer." When you consider what intolerance has produced in the world-- the Inquisition, the burning of Protestants at the stake, the horrors of Hitler, the mass murders of Stalin, the "killing fields" of Cambodia, the massacre of the inhabitants of Jerusalem by the Crusaders-- it is hard to believe that toleration springs from the devil.
Does freemasonry teach that man can be saved by good works?
That charge is sometimes levelled against us by anti-Masons who mistake both the nature of Masonry and the meanings of its ritual. Salvation is not a grace which Masonry can or does offer. As the Reverend Christopher Haffner points out in his book, "Workman Unashamed: The Testimony of a Christian Freemason," "Within their Lodges, Freemasons are not concerned with salvation and conversion, but with taking men as they are and pointing them in the direction of brotherhood and moral improvement. In so far as the Order is successful in this aim, it is content, and leaves the member to devote himself to his own religious faith to receive the grace of salvation.
In most Masonic rituals, the candidate is reminded of that even before he steps into the Lodge room for the first time. A typical example reads: "You are aware that whatever a man may have gained here on earth, whether of titles, wealth, honours, or even his own merit, can never serve him as passport to heaven; but previous to his gaining admission there he must become poor and destitute, blind and naked, dependent upon the sovereign Will of God; he must be divested of the rags of his own righteousness, and be clothed in a garment furnished him from on high.
Did Albert Pike really say that all Masons were secret followers of Lucifer?
No. In many anti-Masonic books you'll see what is supposed to be a quotation from Pike, saying that all Masons of the "Higher Degrees" are secret worshippers of Lucifer or that we regard Lucifer as God. The historical fact is that those words were written in 1894, three years after Pike's death. They were written by a notorious achiest and pornographer named Gabriel Jogand-Pages, but better known by his pen name, Leo Taxil. Taxil was engaged in an elaborate hoax to discredit both Freemasonry and the Church of Rome, and made up the Pike quotation out of thin air. He then "discovered" the letters, and revealed them to the world. He was highly praised by the religious authorities--showered with honours and listed as a defender of the faith for having revealed the "true evil purposes of Masonry."
Then, just as he was being acclaimed all over Europe for his "religious zeal," he publicly announced the hoax, making everyone look like fools. The scandal broke in 1897, but the supposed "Pike letter" had already been published by a man named Abel Clarin de la Rive, who took Taxil's hoax at face value.
Rive's book, "La Femme et l'Efant dans la Franc-Maconnerie Universelle", (Woman and Child in Universal Freemasonry) was quoted by Edith Starr Miller in 1933, in her book, Occult Theocrasy. She translated the "quotation" into English.
Since that time, several writers of anti-Masonic books have simply repeated the "quotation" without checking on its source or authenticity. Taxil's pubic confession and Rive's subsequent retraction of his book notwithstanding, it continues to shadow the name of Pike, who was, to his death, a sincere and devoted Trinitarian Christian.
Brethren even the public is fighting for us, and I would like to read an article from the Houston Post dated February 24, 1993.
Calling Masons satanic is folly
By: Paul Harasim
If Dr. James Holly of Beaumont is right, George Washington, the father of our country, was a devil worshipper. Marvin Zindler has to be one, too. Ditto for Sam Houston and Presidents James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, James Polk, James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, James Garfield, William McKinley, Teddy Roosevelt, William Taft, Warren Harding, Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Gerald Ford.
To take Holly's argument to its logical conclusion, Irvin Berlin was under the influence of Satan when he wrote "White Christmas." So was John Wayne when he played in TRUE GRIT on the silver screen. And astronaut Buzz Aldrin did devil's work when he flew to the moon.
What makes these people satanic? Well Holly says, it's because they're Masons, members of the most widely known fraternity in the world--a fraternal group that spends $250 million each year in the United States on charities, including free treatment of children at its network of 22 Shriners hospitals.]
Now if we start thinking Holly's way--that Masonry "springs from pits of hell and from the father of lies, Lucifer" because the fraternity accepts people from different religious groups as brothers--chances are our friends would suggest we get our heads examined.
But when Holly the Baptist wrote a tract arguing that Masonry is satanic, the Southern Baptist Convention decided a study should be undertaken to determine whether membership in a Masonic Lodge conflicts with its beliefs. It was not called Holly's Folly. It should have been. Too many people had too much time on their hands. If they had become Masons, like 1 million other Baptists, they could have found people to help.
In Saturday's POST You probably read that Masons are breaking their tradition of keeping silent when criticized. They've realized ignorance isn't bliss. They worry that a negative finding against their 4 million member organization by the 15.3 million-member Southern Baptist Convention when it meets in June could cost membership.
That should worry all of us who care about children. The Shriners hospitals alone have helped more than 500,000 children at no cost. It's a shame that the Rev. Ed Young, the brilliant preacher at Second Baptist Church and the president of the Southern Baptist Convention hasn't used his position as a bully pulpit against this nonsense. With America's charities hurting badly, as has been evidenced by United Way's problems, this isn't the time for him to utilize a "don't make waves" leadership style. Something tells me he understands the five-pointed star sometimes used as a Masonic symbol is not a symbol of witchcraft but the oldest symbol of man--the five points refer to the head, the hands and the feet.
Holly tries to argue Masonry is a religion. The Rev. Norman Vincent Peale, himself a Mason, says no way. "Freemasonry has no dogma or theology," he says. "It teaches that it is important for every man to have a religion of his choice and to be faithful to it. . . A good Mason is made even more faithful to the tenets of his faith by membership."
Toleration, according to Holly, is Masonry's blackest
sin--a definite link with the devil. Masonic leader Allan D. Large has a memorable
response to the charge. "When you consider," he says, "what intolerance has
produced--the Inquisition, the massacre of the inhabitants of Jerusalem by the Crusaders,
the burning of Protestants at the stake, the horrors of Hitler, the mass murders of
Stalin, the killing fields of Cambodia--it is hard to believe that toleration springs from
the devil."
Oh, by the way, I'm not a Mason.
-30-
--Paul Harasim
Houston Post
February 24, 1993
Brethren these are times that try us. But we shall over come. For there is nothing wrong with Freemasonry. Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth will stand the test of time.
Thank you.
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