“Like you, what I know of Freemasonry comes from my forebears. In my case a Grandfather, who was a 32nd Degree Mason and founder more than a century ago....”
Spirited: There is no doubt that Freemasonry is shrouded in conspiracy, mystery, and misunderstanding. On one hand it is seen as a high-toned ethical order interested in doing good works. Against this are those who dip their brushes in a bucket of black and paint the entire order black.
It is often said that the truth is stranger than any fiction, and so it is with Freemasonry.
In his book “Painted Black,” Carl Raschke, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Denver, provides us with a thoroughly-researched background history of Freemasonry that clearly reveals that it has two faces: one harmless, the other magical and satanic.
Raschke is a leading authority on subcultures of darkness and in his book he puts together, piece by piece, a terrifying puzzle revelatory of an alarming epidemic of violence sweeping our country. Fully documented, “Painted Black” clearly presents the chilling facts and cases behind an invisible wave of evil that with every day makes its’ presence felt more openly.
With respect to Freemasonry, Raschke traces its first glimmerings all the way back to the growth of an occult elite during the Rennaisance.
Certain leading Churchmen and intellectuals, having embraced the occult science of Hermetic Cabalah, had harshly critiqued the medieval Christian worldview by this ‘science,’ thereby paving the way for the rebellion against the God of the Bible and Christianity that eventually gave birth to liberal pantheist theology and its primary doctrine evolution, Marxist Communism, National Socialism and gnostic progressive liberalism here in America. Crossan and the gnostic Jesus Seminar advanced by BroJoeK is a further outgrowth.
The occult mystery tradition of ‘secret knowledge’ (gnosis) closely guarded by secret fraternities and orders into which followers had to be initiated had been preserved from Babylonian, Egyptian, Greek and Roman times despite the vigilance of the Catholic Church. During the Renaissance this tradition emerged into the daylight with the consequence that hermetic evolutionary science became respectable and fashionable among Europe’s educated elites.
By the 17th century it had permeated the,
“...Protestant countries where it was ensconced as the spirit of Freemasonry, or what are popularly known as the Masonic orders. Extolling the God of ‘nature’ and ‘nature’s laws’ over the God of biblical revelation, Freemasonry served as the popular faith of the Age of Reason...from the late 1600s to about the time of the French Revolution in 1789.” (p. 139)
For most members, this early Masonry was a gentlemen’s club for religious doubters and even libertines. Raschke adds that history clearly shows that the majority of Masons were really,
“...armchair intellectuals who maintained tight organization control by offering quick-and-easy access to the ‘ancient mysteries’.....that turned out to be little more than imaginatively embroidered exercises from old Egypt and Babylon (comingled) with some Muslim mysticism. Many of the signers of America’s Declaration of Independence were members of the ‘secret fraternity’ of Masons.”
Despite their membership in Masonic fraternities, the Founders nevertheless held a Christian consensus explained in previous posts to this thread.
It was during the late 18th and 19th centuries that the more conventional and harmless orders became prey for sinister occult entrepreneurs seeking to subvert Masonic rationalism and its high-toned ethical philosophy. The entrepreneurs introduced goetia (magic)including tantric sex magic, libertinism, and exultation of Lucifer as the seething energy of evolution, the first free spirit, liberator of man from Yahweh (the evil demiurge) and so on.
The most notorious sect of magical Luciferian Masons were the Illuminati, or the ‘illumined ones.’ This sinister order developed an incestuous relationship with Blavatsky’s Theosophy (Blavatsky taught that Satan is god) and not only did it have a significant place in the early modern era but a broad, deeply evil impact that is being felt today.
The Illuminist hierarchy and initiatory structure was designed to mimick ordinary lodge Masonry for the indisputable purpose of confusing and snaring ordinary members into participating in its occult goals.
From the outset, the goal of Illuminism was to accomplish what,
“....alchemists and occultists have called the ‘great work’ as a social and political undertaking” Its’ magical objective was the “creation of a universal, utopian society that knitted together all humankind.’ (p. 144)
In other words, their goal was the ‘healing’ and ‘purifying’ of nature (matter) through combination of opposites: initiates with god or Lucifer; the masses of men with nature (methodological naturalism; reductionism); the natural dimension with the supernatural; male with female, female with male; light with dark, good with evil, and so on.
Hopefully, this brief overview demonstrates the fact of Freemasonry’s two faces.
In fact, the "mysteries" of Freemasonry are eventually available to anyone who wishes to join & support them over many years.
In that sense, they are equivalent to the "mysteries" of any major corporation.
To pick an example: nobody knows exactly how Microsoft does what it does, outside their "inner circle", but millions are willing to pay for Microsoft products.
Since it's a big "mystery", can we assume that Microsoft is somehow "satanic" or "Gnostic"?
Not without serious evidence, and certainly not if the actual evidence points in the opposite direction.
And so with American Freemasons: we have no evidence -- zero, zip, nada -- that Freemasons of our Founders' time or of ours are anything other than the best of citizens, exemplifying the highest moral standards, credits to themselves and their communities, and including a broad range of specific religious beliefs reflecting their local communities.
Any suggestions that these people are somehow "satanic" or anything else wicked, is simply uninformed malice at work.
spirited irish: "Despite their membership in Masonic fraternities, the Founders nevertheless held a Christian consensus explained in previous posts to this thread."
And that is the only point of yours which matters, since it also applies to virtually every other American Freemason.
Whatever skullduggery European Freemasons may have been up to (i.e., Illuminati), I can't defend because I don't know.
But to categorically smear American Freemasons with "Satanism" or classical "Gnosticism" based on allegations against their European brothers, speaks of a mind steeped in deceit and malice.
But there is a much larger point here, one which I am ill-equipped to defend, but certainly needs a strong defense: our Founders did not found our uniquely free, constitutionally limited federal republic because of their Christian heritage and despite their Freemasonry, but just the opposite.
In 1787, the 1,500 year history of Christendom, with powerful Church and Monarchies in deadly alliances was an abomination that our Founders were utterly united in rejecting.
Instead, they turned to the principles of Freemasonry, along with those few other good examples they could find in history -- i.e., the old Roman Republic.
spirited irish: "Crossan and the gnostic Jesus Seminar advanced by BroJoeK is a further outgrowth."
Rubbish.
What I "advanced" were distinctions between the words "science", "history" and "religious faith".
As an example of "history" I recommend reading Crossan's analyses of the New Testament.
I specified this was not for religious inspiration, but rather to learn the points where "history" leaves off and "religious faith" begins.
But I do understand your over-eagerness to grasp this meager straw and turn it into yet another hammer to hammer, hammer away "satanic Gnosticism".
It's what you do, it's who you are.
I "get" that.
I reject it, except in cases where it obviously applies.
Our Founders' Freemasonry is not a case.