thanks for your reply..
I’m not sure what you’re referring to on varying standards here. The specific proscription on Freemasonry goes back about 300 years I believe.
I can understand your point about leaving it up to the member. However for a practicing Catholic not being able to validly receive the sacrament of Holy Eucharist and being in grave sin would certainly interfere with his relationship to God. By definition, this is the state that one knows his relationship with God needs repentance and repair.
Again, I’m not arguing for Catholic beliefs to you here; just stating what they are.
I appreciate your time and courtesy in reply.
I believe the first papal bull on Freemasonry was by Pope Clement XII in 1738 (remember, Freemasonry first became open only in 1717, so it’s not surprising that a pope would feel a bit threatened by this new secret society - especially one rumored to have arisen from Catholic malfeasance). It’s been reinforced several times by various popes since then, but some popes made no effort to speak out against or condemn Freemasons at all during their reign, leading some to believe that the church had loosened up a bit on it. When I say “varying standards,” I don’t necessarily mean those on Freemasons, but many standards outside of that, including Vatican II.
I am not Catholic, so I don’t speak from expertise here. The closest I get is that my wife is Catholic, and we are raising our children Catholic. By the way, by Catholic papal standards, my wife apparently is living in sin, being married to a Methodist with a Jewish mother - let alone a Freemason. To me, it seems strange and unnecessary that anyone is required only to receive the word of God through the funnel of another human being. I admit I was astonished even to learn that no one in church had their Bibles. In my mind, it shouldn’t matter what a pope tells one to do. It is only important what God says to me, through His word and my prayers. I am no less of a Christian for the way I worship than any Catholic. So why should a Catholic feel bound and guilty by a papal bull issued 300 years ago? I don’t know anywhere in the Bible where a man is forbidden to be a Freemason, or a woman to marry outside of the Catholic faith (of course Catholics don’t appear in the Bible at all), or be a Protestant, or even an agnostic.
But that’s just me. As much as you find Freemasonry confusing, the Catholic faith is even more so to me.