Posted on 06/17/2011 6:42:30 AM PDT by marshmallow
The order of the Knights Templar was founded by Hugh de Payens, a French nobleman from the Champagne region, along with eight of his companions, in Jerusalem around 1119.
They originally consisted of a group of knights who protected Christian pilgrims travelling to the Holy Land against attack from brigands and Saracen pirates, after the crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099.
The order's full name was the "Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon".
They were given quarters next to the temple and adopted their distinctive uniform – white tunics with an eight-pointed blood-red cross.
In 1129 they took monastic vows of poverty, chastity and obedience and pledged themselves ready to die for their faith.
They were gradually transformed into a chivalric order of warrior-monks who fought with distinction in the Crusades.
Thanks to generous donations they received from kings, feudal lords and the Church, they accrued territory and property throughout Europe.
They were granted special privileges by the Vatican – in 1139 Innocent II exempted them from lay and ecclesiastical jurisdiction.
They may even have secretly venerated and guarded the Shroud of Turin for 100 years after the end of the Crusades, Vatican researchers claimed two years ago.
Dr Barbara Frale, a historian in the Vatican Secret Archives, said the Shroud – said to be the cloth in which Christ was buried after his crucifixion – vanished during the sack of Constantinople in 1204 during the Fourth Crusade and did not surface again until the middle of the fourteenth century.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
But much easier to appease, with simple shrubbery.
That is science fiction, according to a real book on the history of the Templars:
http://www.amazon.com/Templars-Piers-Paul-Read/dp/030681496X
The Templars by Piers Paul Read
That is science fiction, according to a real history of the Templars:
http://www.amazon.com/Templars-Piers-Paul-Read/dp/030681496X
The Templars by Piers Paul Read
Pretty short reference material. All from Catholic Papal perspective.
There is a lot more to this than what that states.
And there is an incredible amount of miss-information about this subject.
Should a Christian be a Mason?
by David R. Reagan
“..................In other words, Masonry teaches salvation through all religions, whereas the Bible teaches there is salvation in only one name under Heaven - the name of Jesus
(Acts 4:12).
Another unscriptural Masonic doctrine is salvation by works. Masonic literature is replete with references to being justified before God by our works. For example, in the Kentucky handbook quoted previously the lambskin apron worn by Masons is described as a reminder “of that purity of life and conduct which is essential to gaining admission to the Celestial Lodge above, where the Supreme Architect of the Universe presides” (Monitor, p. 32)
A third unscriptural posture of Masonry is its treatment of Jesus. Jesus in not exalted in Masonry. The Kentucky handbook lists only one reference to Jesus in the index, and it is indirect. Masonry focuses on “The Great Architect of the Universe” who can be defined any way the worshipper wants to define him. In the Kentucky handbook there are dozens of prayers for every conceivable thing from the dedication of halls to
the internment of a body. Not one prayer in the book is offered in the name of Jesus, yet the Word of God says that Christians are to offer all prayers in Jesus’ name
(Colossians 3:17)....................”
http://www.gospeloutreach.net/christmason.html
“Masonry teaches salvation through all religions”
Actually, Masonry teaches acceptance, not salvation. The first thing one is old is that if you’re looking for salvation, find a church.
His 2nd book about the Crusades is also interesting, but a bit buried in detail.
Here is another source of Crusade history that I thought was good:
Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds by Mackay http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/24518
“The Crusades” portion of the book is here:
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24518/24518-h/dvii.html#crusades
AAAaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!
LMAO!
Hail the founders of modern Switzerland!
Placemarker
Very inaccurate and bearing false witness by that author. Masonry doesn’t teach or preach salvation or any sorts of religion. It is not a religion at all. Most of the metaphors can be looked at in many ways and come from eras when it was helping people learn about civics and citizenship when few could read. The metaphors paint pictures about subjects in the same way an author will use them to help a reader understand the subject. But just like anything looked at from the outside if you don’t understand context, you will paint your own picture of what it means based on your own world view. In other words, if you don’t know what you are looking at, you see a real reflection of your own values - just like a Rorschach Test.
The oaths are no more sinister than the oaths taken in court or in a fraternity. Very symbolic and dramatic, but not much more than that.
Yes Freemasons require a belief in God, as do many fraternal organizations. It is one of those things that bind the members under a common, fundamental value.
Yes, you will find references like that is stated in here that Masons should not undertake an action without prayer first. This doesn’t make Masonry a religion any more than it makes your family a religion for praying over your meal before you eat. It reminds members to be true to their faith in all actions. It does not substitute your religion but tells you to hold on to it.
There are many falsehoods out there by people who, frankly don’t understand or don’t wish to understand. It is usually best to look for the truth instead of just jumping to follow attacks by others who may or may not have ever had a single connection, only an opinion.
Some call me......Tim
Call it what you will, but Masonic "moral" teaching goes against Christian doctrine. Masonry teaches that members of non-Christian religions are led to God by their religion. Masonry dogmatically demands tolerance of non-Christian religions, not only by government, but at a personal level. Jesus does not tolerate falsehood and is therefore unwelcome inside the lodge.
That is why no Catholic is allowed to become a Mason and many Protestant denominations have similar prohibitions.
Mnehring wrote: “Masonry doesn’t teach or preach salvation or any sorts of religion.”
Exactly and very well put. As someone who’s family roots have records of Freemasons going back well before BEFORE the emergence of the Grand Lodge in 1717, the ignorance from outsiders of our brotherhood is a constant source of frustration.
I’ll see if it’s at the library.
It also pays to remember that this was the days of the Babylonish Captivity, as it is known. This was the period when the Papacy was housed in Avignon and under the direct control of the French king, who usually was the originating nominator. That was the reason so many worked so hard to return the Papal See to Rome, which then was the center of a very unorganized area.
No. Masonry obliges all Masons to believe in a personal God and requires that disputation about differences in belief in God be kept outside the masonic forms, ceremonies and meetings. Masonry has nothing to say about how any person, Mason or not, arrives at their professed faith. That is all to that.
Masonry dogmatically demands tolerance of non-Christian religions, not only by government, but at a personal level.
At best, misleading. Masonry makes no demands on government at any level and certainly makes no claims about any particular religion or variation on a wide religious tradition, such as the various strands of Christianity. Governments may legislate as their founding documents, if any, allow, and Masonry will have nothing to say about it, qua Masonry. Masons may have personal opinions one way or another, but if they express them, that is their personal liberty to speak being exercised and has nothing to do with Masonry.
Please appreciate that Masonic oaths are subordinate to oaths given to first, God, second one's nation, third one's neighbors and fourth, oneself.
They’re a different organization whose requirement for membershipis that a man be a Master Mason is my understanding.
The basic Masonic Lodge is the blue lodge whose highest rank is Master Mason. Then you’ve got your York Rite and your Scottish Rite. Fromerly, a Shriner had to have completed the degrees in one of those rites.
Then there are a bunch of other organizations that require Masonic, that is Blue Lodge, membership
mas cerveza por favor wrote:
“Call it what you will, but Masonic “moral” teaching goes against Christian doctrine.”
So by your standards, Christians can’t be associated with or friends with any non-Christian, nor can they take moral advise, guidance, or help from any non-Christian?
The basic tenants of Masonry essentially call for one to check their religion and political persuasion at the door, as those subjects many times interfere with brotherhood, friendship, and cooperation - similar to what you demonstrate with your comments. If you want religion, go to church. Freemasonry is not a church - nor a religion. If you want honesty, charity, friendship, and brotherhood, one place you can find it is in Freemasonry (among other institutions if you prefer to find them elsewhere).
An interesting factoid about the Templars:
They invented what might be called the first “travelers’ checque”.
Back then one of their primary missions was to protect travelers as they went back and forth to the holy land and elsewhere around the known world. It was very dangerous of course to travel with all of your money in your possession. Thieves and highwaymen were everywhere. A traveler could, however, deposit their money with the Templars in exchange for a coded document. The traveler could then take that document into the local templar office when they got where they were going, where it would be decoded and they could withdraw money from their account.
Pretty nifty and downright practical.
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