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TheSpiritHeals
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What about the Masons is in opposition to the Church?
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PaulfromIowa
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mymamamary
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They were founded to destroy and undermine the Church. They still are. Look no further than the Anti-Catholic persecution in Mexico during the 1920’s. Masonic. Satanic. Diabolic. A Catholic, cannot be a Mason. CANNOT.
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John_of_Woking
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This could be a long thread
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pnewton
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It’s roots are anticatholic. Should one pass that by, we still have indifferentism. We still have blood oaths which no Christian should take. My personal distaste is the encouraging of favoritism in the workplace. I would rather think we should stick with the teaching of Christ, not this organization.
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Razanir
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BettyBoop416
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Razanir
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Just for the absurdity:
On a more related note, what about the OA (Order of the Arrow)? Is it allowed?
Razanir;10210539:
John of Woking;10210496 said:
On a more related note, what about the OA (Order of the Arrow)? Is it allowed?
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mexolic
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What I find interesting is that the Catholic Church makes no mention of Freemasonry anymore. It continues to make statements regarding abortion, same-sex marriage and other issues. Perhaps that’s why Catholics keep asking questions regarding the Catholic Church’s stance on Freemasonry. 
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benjohnson
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Speaking as a Mason - there’s several things that could very well make it incompatible.
Masons take historic oaths that have rather dire consequences for telling anybody the ‘secrets’ of Freemasonry - in modern times, nobody takes them seriously, but they are quite horrid sounding.
We requite members to have a belief in a monotheistic god so that the vows we take to be better men have some sort of consequence. Because we don’t specify Christ, we could be guilty of the heresy of thinking that all “gods” are equivalent. We have Mormon, protestant, Catholic, Muslim members.
Masonry can look like a religion - we have rituals, hats, symbols so it’s easy to see why this is the case.
Masonry started when the Knights Templar were disbanded by one of the Avignon Popes - so there’s a bit of history there. It’s a rather bloody history.
I’ll also add that Masonry as practiced in the European continent can be very very anti Catholic and anti religion - it’s basically, depending on where you are, a cult of crazies or a secret benefit society, or a weird combination of both.
Even though we have several Catholic members in our Masonic Lodge, unless you have some overriding need to be a Mason, I highly recommend that you join the very Catholic Knights of Columbus if you have a need for silly hats, charity, ritual, brotherhood, and the sort of thing that Masons provide.
You can then rest easy at night.
(PS. The Pope isn’t a Mason. If someone tells you that, then ignore them, in my opinion they’re confused.)
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hn160
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When I was a member of an ELCA church back in Pennsylvania, I belonged to a Masonic Lodge. The ELCA has no prohibition against the Masons, even the pastors can be a member. I joined primary because of work because it was implied that it wouldn’t hurt. When became a member of an LC-MS congregration, I dropped out of the lodge because that was one of the requirements for Chuch membership.
The lodge that I belonged to had Protestants, Catholics, and Jews. One of the reasons why some joined was that members of the lodge could play golf at the local Shrine Country Club.
The lodge that I belonged to had Protestants, Catholics, and Jews. One of the reasons why some joined was that members of the lodge could play golf at the local Shrine Country Club.
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perro_sarnoso
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Three names should suffice for you to research: Hellena Petrovna Blavatsky; Alice Ann Bailey and Albert Pike. Masonry-East and West owe their rise to these personages and their doctrine of demons.
The Red Dragon = Atheistic, Marxist Communism.
The beast like a lamb= Ecclesial Masonry
The Black Beast-agil like a leopard= Freemasonry.
Research…the pieces will start to fall into place. Pray the Rosary before you research.
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peace2u2
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yes and pray a prayer of protection, because you will be attacked, especially if you intervenefor someone.
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fred_conty
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The Masons have a religious rite which is performed by its members.
It has a book on an alter. This book may be any book considered sacred of any religion, but usually one which is accepted where the particular lodge is located. It could be the bible, kuran, satanism, etc.
And in addition members take oaths which are meaningless and therefore immoral, since oaths are only to be taken for serious matters which warrant swearing.
The order also states that they offer resurrection of the dead. This has no reference to Jesus and therefore is contrary to christian belief.
Freemasonry believes in and teaches a universal diety, of which the God of Abraham is only one possible expression or manifestation.
They pray to the “Great architect of the Universe” in their lodges. That is what the “G” in their symbol stands for. To them, Allah, Jehovah, and even Lucifer, are all the same. This is in direct contrast to what Christ taught, that the only way to the Father is through Him.
These are just some of the objections.
It has a book on an alter. This book may be any book considered sacred of any religion, but usually one which is accepted where the particular lodge is located. It could be the bible, kuran, satanism, etc.
And in addition members take oaths which are meaningless and therefore immoral, since oaths are only to be taken for serious matters which warrant swearing.
The order also states that they offer resurrection of the dead. This has no reference to Jesus and therefore is contrary to christian belief.
Freemasonry believes in and teaches a universal diety, of which the God of Abraham is only one possible expression or manifestation.
They pray to the “Great architect of the Universe” in their lodges. That is what the “G” in their symbol stands for. To them, Allah, Jehovah, and even Lucifer, are all the same. This is in direct contrast to what Christ taught, that the only way to the Father is through Him.
These are just some of the objections.
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BettyBoop416
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:bigyikes:
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maltmom
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ex-Eastern Star here.
I have a friend who is an EMHC and RCIA instructor. He is also preparing for the 1st degree in the Masonic order. We talked a lot about him doing it before I converted. About a week after I was brought into the Church he asked what I thought about him joining now that I’m Catholic. I told him that Rome has spoken on this issue and that for that reason he shouldn’t join.
I’ve mentioned in other Masonic threads that I know a lady who is Catholic and Eastern Star. The Priest where she used to live is a Mason. I’m not sure how he was able to do that.
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White_Tree
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Honestly, it doesn’t surprise me at all that the Catholic Church doesn’t talk about Freemasonry anymore.What I find interesting is that the Catholic Church makes no mention of Freemasonry anymore. It continues to make statements regarding abortion, same-sex marriage and other issues. Perhaps that’s why Catholics keep asking questions regarding the Catholic Church’s stance on Freemasonry.
Freemasonry has changed dramatically since its early days. Just look at what has been said about it on this thread. It used to be an organization for spreading esoteric teachings about religion. It is understandable why the Church would feel threatened by that, and advise people to stay away.
However, in its present state, my understanding is that it is mostly just a social club with some structures and rituals that have carried over from its earlier days. Nothing objectively wrong with that, and there’s no reason why the Church would need to make a big deal out of telling people to stay away. My church has a Masonic lodge right across the street, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard Freemasonry, or any reference to it, mentioned ever. And I’ve been at that church for decades. It’s just not an issue for the Church anymore.
Although I have heard of Alice Bailey and Albert Pike, I don’t have a very deep knowledge of their teachings, so I’m not going to comment on them. However, I’ve studied Blavatsky fairly extensively, and there’s nothing demonic about what she taught.
I have seen people make arguments that Blavatsky was satanic, or whatever, but in every case, the person making those arguments generally took isolated quotes out of her writings, stripped away all the context, and grossly misinterpreted them.
Now, I will give you that her writings do tend to be very dense, and she is dealing with very complicated principles in her works, and not everything is straightforward or easy, so I would not fault someone for misunderstanding her. I know very intelligent people who don’t get Blavatsky. But in the words of Bob Dylan, “Don’t criticize what you can’t understand.”
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pnewton
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Canon law still applies and it still remains forbidden.
Canon 1374 from the Code of Canon Law state,“A person who joins an association which plots against the Church is to be punished with a just penalty; one who promotes or takes office in such an association is to be punished with an interdict.”
vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P53.HTM
Following the promulgation of the new Code, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the new Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, issued a new declaration: (1) the new Canon 1374 has the same essential import as the old Canon 2335, and the fact that the “Masonic sect” is no longer explicitly named is irrelevant; (2) the Church’s negative judgment on Masonry remains unchanged, because the Masonic principles are irreconcilable with the Church’s teaching (“earum principia semper iconciliabilia habita sunt cum Ecclesiae doctrina”); (3) Catholics who join the Masons are in the state of grave sin and may not receive Holy Communion and (4) no local ecclesiastical authority has competence to derogate from these judgments of the Sacred Congregation. 3
ewtn.com/library/ANSWERS/BACAFM.htm
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benjohnson
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I would say that’s a fair assessment.
If you do know of a Catholic or a friend that’s a Mason - as a Mason, here’s what you should be alert for:
- If they put Masonry ahead of the Church - while I don’t agree with the teaching, I’ve stopped going to my masonic lodge as frequently (we met once a month) because my own church (LCMS) has as prohibition against it. I would not become an ‘officer’ in the Lodge for example. I probably wont give up the Lodge entirely, but that’s my failing.
- If they’ve joined a lodge that isn’t American, British, Canadian, or Prince Hall. Spanish/Mexican and South American, and European lodges can be VERY dangerous.
- They miss their Sunday Mass obligations or stop going to church to go to Masonic events. Masonry should be a distant adjunct to someone’s life.
- They take it too seriously - I’ll tell you the one of the Masonic passwords if I meet you n person and can whisper it in your ear. You’ve heard it before and it’s kinda fun to but two and two together.
- Personally, I think the biggest danger to a Mason is to perhaps start thinking that religions are coequal. The part of our ritual that has to go with ‘god’ is so small, but there is a risk there.
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