Masonry, also called Freemasonry, is the name of one of the oldest and largest fraternal organizations in the world. The organization’s official name is Free and Accepted Masons. Masonry is dedicated to the ideals of charity, equality, morality, and service to God. Masons donate millions of dollars each year to charitable projects, including hospitals; homes for widows, orphans, and the aged; relief for people in distress; and scholarships. The organization has millions of members worldwide.
Symbols and rituals are an important part of Masonry. At times, some Masons dress in elaborate, colorful costumes and take part in dramatic ceremonies, many of which are kept secret from all except members. Most masonic symbols and rituals are based on the tools and practices of the building professions. Masons call God the “Great Architect of the Universe.”
Masons try to promote “morality in which all men agree, that is, to be good men and true.” Throughout its history, Masonry has sought to bring together men of different religious beliefs and political opinions. Men of any religion who profess belief in one God may join. Historically, however, most Masons have been Protestants. During much of its history, Masonry normally did not admit Roman Catholics as members, in part because the Catholic Church prohibited Catholics from becoming Masons.
The lodges and degrees of Masonry.
Men who wish to become Masons must apply for membership. They are not invited to join. Most of these individuals apply through a friend who is already a member. After a man has been accepted by the Masons, he joins a Blue Lodge, the basic organization of Masonry. Members of Blue Lodges may hold three degrees. When they join, they automatically receive the Entered Apprentice degree. Later, they may earn the second degree, called Fellowcraft, and the third degree, called Master Mason. To earn each degree, a Mason must learn certain lessons and participate in a ceremony that illustrates them. After a Mason acquires the third degree in a Blue Lodge, he may be invited to join either or both of the two branches of advanced Masonry—the Scottish Rite and the York Rite. He may receive further degrees as a member of these branches.
If a Mason enters the Scottish Rite, he may advance through 29 degrees that are designated both by names and numbers. The first degree in the Scottish Rite is the fourth degree in Masonry. The highest degree in the Scottish Rite is the 33rd, an honorary degree that members receive in recognition of outstanding service to Masonry, the community, or the nation. This degree is commonly called Sovereign Grand Inspector General.
If a Mason chooses to advance in the York Rite, the first four degrees he receives are called Degrees of the Chapter. The next three degrees make up the Degrees of the Council. In some U.S. states, members of the York Rite do not have to receive the Degrees of the Council in order to go on to higher degrees in the rite. The three highest degrees make up the Orders of the Commandery. The highest degree in the York Rite is that of Knight Templar.
The names Scottish Rite and York Rite are symbols of early times in Masonry. The earliest traditions are associated with Scotland and the city of York, England.
Organization.
In most countries, all the Blue Lodges are governed by a National Grand Lodge headed by a Grand Master. But neither the United States nor Canada has a National Grand Lodge. Instead, each state or province has its own Grand Lodge and Grand Master.
More than a hundred fraternal organizations have a relationship with Masonry, but they do not form part of its basic structure. One of the best known is the Order of the Eastern Star, an organization for women relatives of Masons who have achieved at least the degree of Master Mason. The Masons and the Order of the Eastern Star also sponsor organizations for boys and girls. Boys may join DeMolay International. Girls may become members of Job’s Daughters in some U.S. states and Rainbow for Girls in others.
The Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine admits members who are at least 32nd degree Masons in the Scottish Rite or Knights Templar in the York Rite. There are three Shrine-associated organizations for wives and some female relatives of Shrine members. They are the Ladies Oriental Shrine of North America, Daughters of the Nile, and Imperial Council Shrine Guilds of America, Inc.
Prince Hall Freemasonry
is a separate masonic organization for men. Almost all of its members are African Americans. Nearly all other Masons are white. Prince Hall Masons are devoted to the same ideals as other Masons. In addition, the structure of the organization of Prince Hall Freemasonry resembles that of the principal Masonry group. For example, in each state with Prince Hall lodges, one Grand Master heads all lodges in the state. Prince Hall members also earn degrees that are similar to those earned by other Masons. However, many white Masons claim that Prince Hall Freemasonry is not a true Masonic organization.
History.
Many of the ideas and rituals of Masonry originated in the period of cathedral building from the 900’s to the 1600’s. At that time, stonemasons formed associations called guilds in various European cities and towns. With the decline of cathedral building in the 1600’s, many masons’ organizations became social societies. They began accepting members who had never been stoneworkers and called these men speculative masons.
In the early 1700’s, speculative masons created the complicated masonic system of rituals and symbols that is still in use today. The system is based on stonemason traditions and on ideas developed during the Enlightenment (see Enlightenment ).
In 1717, four fraternal lodges, which originally may have been masons’ organizations, united under the Grand Lodge of England. The Masons of today consider the formation of the Grand Lodge of England to be the beginning of their organized society. The order spread quickly to other lands and included such famous men as the American statesman Benjamin Franklin, King Frederick II of Prussia, the Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, U.S. President George Washington, and the French philosopher Voltaire.
British colonists brought Masonry to North America, where it developed into two separate organizations, one for whites and one for blacks. White Masonry was popular in the early 1800’s. But its involvement in politics and its secrecy contributed to an antimasonic movement in the late 1820’s and early 1830’s. This movement almost destroyed the organization. White Masonry regained its popularity by the mid-1860’s. By the 1880’s, it had become a highly respected organization whose members included prominent businessmen, ministers, and politicians. During the 1900’s, white Masonry became one of the world’s largest fraternal organizations.
The organization for blacks, Prince Hall Freemasonry, was founded by Prince Hall, a free black Methodist minister who settled in the Boston area in 1765. White American Masons had refused to admit blacks into their lodges. But in 1775, a British Army lodge admitted Hall and 14 other free blacks. Soon these 15 men formed African Lodge 1, but white American Masons refused to grant the lodge a charter. It received its charter, as African Lodge 459, in 1787 from the Grand Lodge of England. In 1791, the American Prince Hall Grand Lodge was established. Before the American Civil War (1861-1865), this lodge spread mainly throughout the U.S. states in which slavery was illegal. After the war, the lodge expanded into the South.
Prince Hall and other early black Masons protested slavery and sought to improve the status of free blacks. More recently, many Prince Hall lodges have taken part in the U.S. civil rights movement. Prince Hall members have included the historian and sociologist W. E. B. Du Bois and Thurgood Marshall, the first black justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
