Anti-Masonry
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Anti-Masonry (alternatively called anti-Freemasonry) is "avowed opposition to Freemasonry",[1] which has led to multiple forms of religious discrimination, violent persecution, and suppression in some countries as well as in various organized religions (primarily Abrahamic religions).[2] However, there is no homogeneous anti-Masonic movement. Anti-Masonry consists of radically differing criticisms from frequently incompatible political institutions and organized religions that oppose each other, and are hostile to Freemasonry in some form.[2]
Early anti-Masonic documents
The earliest known[3] anti-Masonic document was a leaflet which was printed in 1698 by a Presbyterian minister who was named Winter. It reads:[4][5]
TO ALL GODLY PEOPLE, In the Citie of London.
Having thought it needful to warn you of the Mischiefs and Evils practiced in the Sight of God by those called Freed Masons, I say take Care lest their Ceremonies and secret Swearings take hold of you; and be wary that none cause you to err from Godliness. For this devilish Sect of Men are Meeters in secret which swear against all without ther Following. They are the Anti Christ which was to come leading Men from Fear of God. For how should Men meet in secret Places and with secret Signs taking Care that none observed them to do the Work of GOD; are not these the Ways of Evil-doers?
Knowing how that God observeth privilly them that sit in Darkness they shall be smitten and the Secrets of their Hearts layed bare. Mingle not among this corrupt People lest you be found so at the World's Conflagration.
Political anti-Masonry
Freemasonry has been alleged to hold its members back from fully committing themselves to their nation.[6] Critics claim that compared to Operative Masonry's clear denunciations of treachery,[7] Speculative Masonry (Freemasonry after 1723) was far more ambiguous.[8] The old Catholic Encyclopedia alleges that Masonic disapproval of treachery is not on moral grounds but on the grounds of inconvenience to other Masons.[9] It also argues[10] that the adage "Loyalty to freedom overrides all other considerations"[11] justifies treason, and quotes Albert Mackey, who said "... if treason or rebellion were masonic crimes, almost every mason in the United Colonies (America), in 1776, would have been subject to expulsion and every Lodge to a forfeiture of its warrant by the Grand Lodges of England and Scotland, under whose jurisdiction they were at the time".[6]
Freemasonry, however, charges its members that: "In the state you are to be a quiet and peaceful subject, true to your government and just to your country; You are not to countenence disloyalty or rebellion, but patiently submit to legal authority and conform with cheerfulness to the government of the country in which you live."[12]
With this charge in mind, American Freemasons are consistent advocates of the US Constitution, including the
Freemasonry was persecuted in all the communist countries.
Fascists treated Freemasonry as a potential source of opposition. Masonic writers state that the language used by the totalitarian regimes is similar to that used by other modern critics of Freemasonry.[19]
The United States
In 1826, William Morgan disappeared from the small town of Batavia, New York. He was alleged to be kidnapped by Freemasons[20] and murdered after threatening to expose Freemasonry's "secrets" by publishing its rituals.[21] Morgan's disappearance sparked a series of protests and suspicion against Freemasonry, which eventually spread to the political realm. Under the leadership of anti-Masonic Thurlow Weed, an Anti-Jacksonist movement became (since Jackson was a Mason) the Anti-Masonic Party. This political Party ran presidential candidates in 1828 and 1832, but by 1835 the party had disbanded everywhere except Pennsylvania.[citation needed] William A. Palmer of Vermont and Joseph Ritner of Pennsylvania were both elected governor of their respective states on anti-Masonic platforms.[22]
Though few states passed laws directed at Freemasonry by name, laws regulating and restricting it were passed and many cases dealing with Freemasonry were seen in the courts.[25] Antimasonic legislation was passed in Vermont in 1833, including a provision by which the giving and willing taking of an unnecessary oath was made a crime. (Pub. Stat., sec. 5917),[26] and the state of New York enacted a Benevolent Orders Law to regulate such organizations.[25]
Asia
In 1938, a Japanese representative to the
Europe
According to Simon Sarlin, and Dan Rouyer, intense denunciation of Freemasonry because of its supposed grip on society and government, became standard doctrine within counter-revolutionary thought and action in the 19th century. A major event was The International Anti-Masonic Congress that took place in Trento, Italy in 1896. It was sponsored by Pope Leo XIII and the Austro-Hungarian Emperor Francis-Joseph, a Catholic. The Congress assembled 1,500 delegates and 300 journalists, as well as prominent Catholic bishops. Thousands of telegrams testified to support from the right worldwide. It created a permanent body, the "Universal Anti-Masonic Union." The goal was to create a powerful centre for all anti-Masonic groups, strengthening their resolve and capabilities to battle the Freemasons nation by nation. In practice the Union was too conspicuously Papal, and poorly organized. It proved ineffective in its grandiose expectations but its creation was a measure of bitter anger and frustration among the Catholic enemies of Freemasonry.[27]
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union definitively outlawed Freemasonry, in 1922. At one of the Second International meetings, Grigory Zinoviev demanded to purge it of masons.[28] Freemasonry did not exist not even in the other socialist states. Post-war revivals of Freemasonry in Czechoslovakia and Hungary were suppressed in 1950.[29]
Fascist Italy
Hungary
In 1919, Béla Kun[31] proclaimed the dictatorship of the proletariat in Hungary and Masonic properties were taken into public ownership. After the fall of the dictatorship of the proletariat, leaders of the counter-revolution such as Miklós Horthy blamed the Hungarian freemasons for their First World War defeat and for the revolution. Masonry was outlawed by a decree in 1920. This marked the start of raids by army officers on Masonic lodges[32] along with theft, and sometimes destruction, of Masonic libraries, records, archives, paraphernalia, and works of art. Several Masonic buildings were seized and used for anti-Masonic exhibitions. The masonic documents were archived, preserved and may still be used for research.
In post-war Hungary, lodges were re-established, but after five years,[32] the government described them as "meeting places of the enemies of the people's democratic republic, of capitalistic elements, and of the adherents of Western imperialism". They were banned again in 1950.[15]
Nazi Germany and occupied Europe
Freemasons were consistently considered an ideological foe of
The
On August 8, 1935, as
During the war, Freemasonry was banned by edict in all countries that were either allied with the Nazis or under Nazi control, including Norway and France. Anti-Masonic exhibitions were held in many occupied countries. Field-Marshal Friedrich Paulus was denounced as a "High-grade Freemason" when he surrendered to the Soviet Union in 1943.[39]
In 1943, the Propaganda Abteilung, a delegation of Nazi Germany's propaganda ministry within
The preserved records of the
Francoist Spain
It is claimed that the dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera ordered the abolition of Freemasonry in Spain.[42] In September 1928, one of the two Grand Lodges in Spain was closed and approximately two-hundred masons, most notably the Grand Master of the Grand Orient, were imprisoned for allegedly plotting against the government.[43]
Following
After the victory of dictator General Francisco Franco, Freemasonry was officially outlawed in Spain on 2 March 1940. Being a mason was automatically punishable by a minimum jail term of 12 years.[44] Masons of the 18º and above were deemed guilty of "Aggravated Circumstances", and usually faced the death penalty.[45]
According to Francoists, the Republican Regime which Franco overthrew had a strong Masonic presence.[citation needed] In reality Spanish Masons were present in all sectors of politics and the armed forces.[46] At least four of the Generals who supported Franco's rebellion were Masons, although many lodges contained fervent but generally conservative Republicans. Freemasonry was formally outlawed in the Law for the Repression of Freemasonry and Communism.[47] After Franco's decree outlawing masonry, Franco's supporters were given two months to resign from any lodge they might be a member. Many masons chose to go into exile instead, including prominent monarchists who had whole-heartedly supported the Nationalist rebellion in 1936. The common components in Spanish Masonry seems to have been upper or middle class conservative liberalism and strong anti-clericism.[48]
The Law for the Repression of Freemasonry and Communism was not abrogated until 1963.[47] References to a "Judeo-Masonic plot" are a standard component of Francoist speeches and propaganda and reveal the intense and paranoid obsession of the dictator with masonry. Franco produced at least 49 pseudonymous anti-masonic magazine articles and an anti-masonic book during his lifetime. According to Franco:[45]
- The whole secret of the campaigns unleashed against Spain can be explained in two words: masonry and communism... we have to extirpate these two evils from our land.
United Kingdom
It was the
In the United Kingdom, anti-Masonic sentiment grew following the publication of
In 2004,
Religious anti-Masonry
Muslim anti-Masonry
By the middle of the 19th century, Freemasonry and its semi-secret organizational structures were able to establish
Many contemporary Islamic anti-Masonic arguments are closely tied to both
The Egyptian newspaper
1905 rebellion in Russia. Rida also believed that the Jews were planning to take over Al-Aqsa Mosque and expel the Muslim and Christian inhabitants of the Holy Land. Rida’s mix of European conspiratorial thought and political Islam left a lasting mark.[64]
Influenced by Rida,
Many
However, a few countries such as
Christian anti-Masonry
One of the first highly vocal Christian critics of freemasonry was
A number of
Since 1738, the
Conspiracy theories
There have long been conspiracy theories concerning Freemasonry in which the organization is either bent on world domination or it is already covertly in control of world politics.[77]
The earliest document which accused Freemasonry of being involved in a conspiracy was Enthüllungen des Systems der Weltbürger-Politik ("Disclosure of the System of Cosmopolitan Politics"), published in 1786.
See also
- Abel Clarin de la Rive
- Anti-Catholicism
- Anti-clericalism
- Anti-Protestantism
- Judeo-Masonic conspiracy theory
- Mormonism and Freemasonry
- New World Order (conspiracy theory)
- Propaganda Due – The P2 pseudo-Masonic Lodge Scandal
- Secret society
- Taxil hoax
References
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- ^ Morris, S. Brent; The Complete Idiot's Guide to Freemasonry, Alpha books, 2006, p. 203
- ^ As quoted by Morris, S. Brent; The Complete Idiot's Guide to Freemasonry, Alpha Books, 2006, p. 204
- ^ Additional information on this pamphlet is available in Ars Quatuor Coronatorum 55 (1942)
- ^ a b "Another characteristic of Masonic law is that "treason" and "rebellion" against civil authorities are only declared political crimes, which affect the good standing of a Brother no more than heresy, and furnish no ground for a Masonic trial." Masonry (Freemasonry) from the Catholic Encyclopedia, partially quoting Mackey, Jurisprudence, 509.
- ^ "2nd – You shall be true liegemen to the King of England without any treason or falsehood, and if you know of any that you amend it privily, if you may, or else warn the King and his Council of it by declaring it to his officers."
- ^ II. Of the CIVIL MAGISTRATES supreme and subordinate "A Mason is a peaceable Subject to the Civil Powers, wherever he resides or works, and is never to be concern'd in Plots and Conspiracies against the Peace and Welfare of the Nation, nor to behave himself undutifully to inferior Magistrates; for as Masonry hath been always injured by War, Bloodshed, and Confusion, so ancient Kings and Princes have been much dispos'd to encourage the Craftsmen, because of their Peaceableness and Loyalty, whereby they practically answer'd the Cavils of their Adversaries, and promoted the Honour of the Fraternity, who ever flourish'd in Times of Peace. So that if a Brother should be a Rebel against the State he is not to be countenanc'd in his Rebellion, however he may be pitied as an unhappy Man; and, if convicted of no other Crime though the loyal Brotherhood must and ought to disown his Rebellion, and give no Umbrage or Ground of political Jealousy to the Government for the time being; they cannot expel him from the Lodge, and his Relation to it remains indefeasible."
- ^ "The brotherhood ought to disown the rebellion, but only in order to preserve the fraternity from annoyance by the civil authorities." from the article Masonry (Freemasonry) in the Catholic Encyclopedia
- ^ "Such language would equally suit every anarchistic movement." Masonry (Freemasonry) in the Catholic Encyclopedia
- ^ "If we were to assert that under no circumstances had a Mason been found willing to take arms against a bad government, we should only be declaring that, in trying moments, when duty, in the masonic sense, to state means antagonism to the Government, they had failed in the highest and most sacred duty of a citizen. Rebellion in some cases is a sacred duty, and none, but a bigot or a fool, will say, that our countrymen were in the wrong, when they took arms against King James II. Loyalty to freedom in a case of this kind overrides all other considerations, and when to rebel means to be free or to perish, it would be idle to urge that a man must remember obligations which were never intended to rob him of his status of a human being and a citizen." "Freemason's Chronicle" 1875, I, 81, quoted as footnote [89] in Masonry (Freemasonry) in the Catholic Encyclopedia
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- ^ "Freemasonry Does Not Support any particular political position. It has long stood for separation of Church and State, and has been a champion of Free Public Education." From a speech given by Bill Jones Archived 2006-02-15 at the Wayback Machine Grand Master of Arkansas, 1996
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- ^ a b c d Bessel, Paul M. (November 1994). "Bigotry and the Murder of Freemasonry". Retrieved 2011-10-19.
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- ^ Cuba's muzzled mavericks find haven among Masons Archived 2006-12-31 at the Wayback Machine, by Gary Marx, published April 14, 2005
- ^ Stein, Jeff (7 April 2014). "Bay of Piglets: How the Freemasons Got Caught in a Plot to Topple the Castros". Newsweek. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
- ^ Paul M. Bessel (1994). "Bigotry and the Murder of Freemasonry".
These people who attack Masonry with exaggerated language, and without accepting reasonable explanations of what Freemasonry really is, would probably say that their use of language about Masonry that is strikingly similar to that which was used by the Nazis and other vicious attackers of Freemasonry in the past does not mean that they are following in the footsteps of the Nazis.
- ^ Ridley, Jasper;The Freemasons: A History of the World's Most Powerful Secret Society, pp. 180–181 (Arcade Publishing 1999).
- ^ Finney, Charles Grandison; The Character, Claims, and Practical Workings of Freemasonry.
- ^ William Preston Vaughn, The Anti-Masonic Party in the United States, 1826–1843 (University Press of Kentucky. 1983).
- ^ Adams, John Quincy Letters on the Masonic Institution, pp. 68–71, 1847 Press of T.R. Marvin
- ^ Adams, John Quincy (1 April 1833). "Autograph Letter Signed as Congressman, to Stephen Bates. Washington, D.C." Seth Kaller, Inc. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7661-4721-8.
- ^ Vermont Catholic Encyclopedia, 1911, Accessed June 26, 2008
- ^ Simon Sarlin and Dan Rouyer, "The Anti-Masonic Congress of Trento (1896): International Mobilization and the Circulation of Practices against Freemasonry." Contemporanea: Rivista di Storia dell'800 e del '900 (July-Sep 2021, 24#3, pp. 517-536.
- ^ "Кац Александр Семенович. Протоколы Сионских Мудрецов и Всемирный Жидомасонский Заговор". samlib.ru. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
- ^ Whalen, W.J. "Freemasonry" Archived 2013-01-30 at the Wayback Machine The New Catholic Encyclopedia (1967), hosted at David Trosch's website. Retrieved 2011-10-09.
- ^ 'The Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction', Alphonse Cerza, published by the Masonic Service Association, September 1967
- ^ King, Edward L. ""Famous" Anti-Masons". www.masonicinfo.com. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
- ^ a b L. Nagy Zsuzsa: Szabadkőművesség a XX. században, Budapest, 1977, Kossuth Könyvkiadó; L. Nagy Zsuzsa: Szabadkőművesség, Budapest, 1988, Akadémiai kiadó
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- ^ Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, pp. 315, 320.
- ^ a b The American Mercury Newspaper, 1941 Archived 2012-08-13 at the Wayback Machine accessed 21 May 2006
- ^ The Enabling Act Accessed February 23, 2006.
- ^ a b "Documented evidence from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum pertaining to the persecution of the Freemasons Archived 2012-12-10 at the Wayback Machine" accessed 21 May 2006
- ^ Bro. E Howe, Freemasonry in Germany, Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No 2076 (UGLE), 1984 Yearbook.
- ^ Denslow, Freemasonry in the Eastern Hemisphere, at page 111, citing a letter from Otto Arnemann in 1947, cited as Note 22 in Bigotry and the Murder of Freemasonry by Paul M. Bessel
- ISBN 978-1118412084.
- ^ "Holocaust Memorial Day Trust". Archived from the original on November 12, 2007.
- ^ "In 1925, Spain's first dictator of this generation, General Primo de Rivera, ordered the abolition of Freemasonry in his country." The Anhilation of Freemasonry by Sven G. Lunden by The American Mercury Newspaper, 1941. Hosted by the Grand Lodge of Antient Free and Accepted Masons of Scotland
- ^ a b Scanlan, Matthew. "Freemasonry and the Spanish Civil War: Part I, the Path to War". Archived from the original on 28 August 2010. Retrieved 19 August 2009.
- ^ "Freemasonry banned in Spain by General Franco". www.freemasons-freemasonry.com. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
- ^ a b ""Freemasonry and the Spanish Civil War: Part II", by Matthew Scanlan retrieved 19 August 2009". Archived from the original on 11 July 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
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spain during wwII.
- ^ a b Ruiz, Julius, Franco's justice: repression in Madrid after the Spanish Civil War, p. 25 Oxford Univ. Press
- ^ Hugh Thomas, The Spanish Civil War, Penguin, 1965 pp. 47–48
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- ^ "Martin Short – HarperCollins". Archived from the original on 2013-12-15. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
- ^ a b "New judges must declare masonic membership", BBC, March 5, 1998, retrieved February 26, 2006
- ^ "Freemason policy review due", BBC, December 8, 2001, retrieved February 26, 2006
- ^ a b c "House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 21 July 2005 (pt 69)" Archived 15 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine, UK House of Commons, July 21, 2005, retrieved October 2, 2007
- ^ "Morgan criticised over job blocking", BBC, March 22, 2004, retrieved February 26, 2006
- ^ "Mr Morgan wanted another QC, Malcolm Bishop, who has stood as a Labour candidate and is a close associate of former Lord Chancellor Derry Irvine." Morgan 'blocked' QC appointment
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- ^ a b c Layiktez, Cecil "Freemasonry in the Islamic World", Pietre-Stones Review of Freemasonry, 1996
- ISBN 978-8869693397.
Summary 6.1 ʿAbd Al-Qādir Al-Jazāʾirī. – 6.2 Jamāl Al-Dīn Al-Afghānī. – 6.3 Rizā Tevfīk.
- OCLC 47785421.
It traces Afghani's connections with Freemasonry and concludes that he attempted to use the brotherhood as a ready-made agency for political mobilization and agitation against the Khedive Isma'il and the increasing European intervention in the affairs of Egypt. Many of his followers, such as Muhammad 'Abduh, Sa'd Zaghlul, Ya'qib Sannu' and Adib Ishaq, joined, as did some notables, army officers, and Isma'il's son, Tawfiq Pasha.
- ^ ISBN 978-3110671964.
- ^ Prescott, Andrew. The Study of Freemasonry as a New Academic Discipline (PDF). pp. 13–14. Archived from the original (pdf) on 2007-03-17. Retrieved 2006-05-21.
- ^ Rickenbacher, Daniel (6 December 2019). "The 'War Against Islam': How a Conspiracy Theory Drove and Shaped the Islamist Movement". Archived from the original on 18 August 2021.
- ^ a b c Rickenbacher, Daniel (6 December 2019). "The 'War Against Islam': How a Conspiracy Theory Drove and Shaped the Islamist Movement". www.eeradicalization.com. European Eye on Radicalization. Archived from the original on 18 August 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
- ^ "Can a Muslim be a freemason?". Islamonline.com. Archived from the original (asp) on 2007-10-16. Retrieved 2007-05-08.
- ^ Hamas Covenant of 1988. Wikisource. Accessed 2 October 2007.
- ^ "Saddam to be formally charged", The Washington Times, July 1, 2004. Retrieved 2011-10-09.
- ^ "استيقاظ الماسونية السورية". تلفزيون سوريا. September 9, 2019.
- ^ Leyiktez, Celil. "Freemasonry in the Islamic World". Accessed 2 October 2007.
- ^ DGLME.org – The District Grand Lodge of the Middle East Archived 2008-12-06 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Districts Online | Grand Lodge F. & A. M. State of New York". Archived from the original on July 5, 2008.
- ^ "Famous Freemasons | The Lodge of Unity, Warwick". Retrieved 8 June 2023.
- ^ "Extract from World of Freemasonry" (PDF). linfordresearch.info. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
- ISBN 1590771532
- ^ "Catholic Encyclopedia: Excommunication". www.newadvent.org. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
- ^ Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Prefect. Declaration on Masonic Associations Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 26 November 1983. Accessed 2011-10-09. "Therefore the Church's negative judgment in regard to Masonic association[s] remains unchanged since their principles have always been considered irreconcilable with the doctrine of the Church and therefore membership in them remains forbidden. The faithful who enroll in Masonic associations are in a state of grave sin and may not receive Holy Communion. It is not within the competence of local ecclesiastical authorities to give a judgment on the nature of Masonic associations which would imply a derogation from what has been decided above..."
- ^ Pawns in the Game, (4th Edition, April, 1962), William Guy Carr
- ^ "Bereits um 1786, kurz zuvor waren die Illuminaten in Bayern verboten worden, kursierte das erste Pamphlet über die Freimaurer, das von einem anonymen Autor als "Enthüllungen des Systems der Weltbürger-Politik" veröffentlicht wurde." Transl. "As early as 1786, shortly before the banning of the Illuminati in Bavaria, the first pamphlet about Freemasonry arrived, the anonymously authored "Enthüllungen des Systems der Weltbürger – Politik"." Freimaurer im Wandel der Zeit – von der Gründung bis heute Archived 2008-09-25 at the Wayback Machine, from the Neue Freimaurer Archived 2008-09-25 at the Wayback Machine website.
- ^ prof. Dr. Pfahl-Traughber: Der antisemitisch-antifreimaurerische Verschwörungsmythos
- ^ Evangelical Church in Germany
- ^ a b Dr. Johannes Rogalla von Biberstein, historian and librarian of the University of Bielefeld: Die These von der Verschwörung 1776–1945. Philosophen, Freimaurer, Juden, Liberale und Sozialisten gegen die Sozialordnung, Flensburg 1992
Further reading
- Sarlin, Simon, and Dan Rouyer. "The Anti-Masonic Congress of Trento (1896): International Mobilization and the Circulation of Practices against Freemasonry." Contemporanea: Rivista di Storia dell'800 e del '900 (Jul-Sep 2021), 24#3, pp. 517-536.
External links
Critical of Freemasonry
- www.conspiracyarchive.org – Freemasonry: Midwife to an Occult Empire by Terry Melanson
- www.masoncode.com – The Jewels of Freemasonry
- www.ephesians 5-11.org – How can you lead Masons away from the Masonic Lodge?
- Workers' Movement: Marxism against Freemasonry
Supportive of Freemasonry
- srmason-sj.org – Is It True What They Say About Freemasonry? by Art DeHoyos
- masonicinfo.com – Masonic rebuttal to Anti-Masonic claims
- www.freemasonry.bcy.ca – Anti-masonry Frequently Asked Questions
- www/freemasons-freemasonry.com – Anti-Masonry in the contemporary world
Academic examinations of Anti-Masonry