Masonic Rites And Wrongs

Is Freemasonry compatible with Christianity? Many Masons answer yes, but even they are often ill-informed of official Masonic teachings. What are the secret doctrines of the Lodge, what do the rituals mean, and do they conflict with biblical truth? Find out in this thoroughly researched exposé of Freemasonry—an eye-opener to those both inside and outside the Lodge.

Both the Prophet Joseph Smith and his Book of Mormon have been characterized as ardently, indeed evangelically, anti-Masonic. Yet in this sweeping social, cultural, and religious history of nineteenth-century Mormonism and its milieu, Clyde Forsberg argues that masonry, like evangelical Christianity, was an essential component of Smith's vision. Smith's ability to imaginatively conjoin the two into a powerful and evocative defense of Christian, or Primitive, Freemasonry was, Forsberg shows, more than anything else responsible for the meteoric rise of Mormonism in the nineteenth century. This was to have significant repercussions for the development of Mormonism, particularly in the articulation of specifically Mormon gender roles. Mormonism's unique contribution to the Masonic tradition was its inclusion of women as active and equal participants in Masonic rituals. Early Mormon dreams of empire in the Book of Mormon were motivated by a strong desire to end social and racial discord, lest the country fall into the grips of civil war. Forsberg demonstrates that by seeking to bring women into previously male-exclusive ceremonies, Mormonism offered an alternative to the male-dominated sphere of the Master Mason. By taking a median and mediating position between Masonry and Evangelicism, Mormonism positioned itself as a religion of the people, going on to become a world religion. But the original intent of the Book of Mormon gave way as Mormonism moved west, and the temple and polygamy (indeed, the quest for empire) became more prevalent. The murder of Smith by Masonic vigilantes and the move to Utah coincided with a new imperialism--and a new polygamy. Forsberg argues that Masonic artifacts from Smith's life reveal important clues to the precise nature of his early Masonic thought that include no less than a vision of redemption and racial concord.

Is Masonry nothing more than a harmless brotherhood, a club for men? Or is there more behind the camaraderie? This in-depth book probes the secret teachings and oaths, revealing how Masonry conflicts with the very foundations of Christianity.

Is there anything wrong with a Christian being a member of the Lodge? Are you a Christian pastor who has studied Masonry found nothing wrong with it and so you have not warned your members and possibly even joined the Lodge yourself? Does your church allow Masons to serve on your boards to teach the Bible in Sunday School and serve in other positions of influence and leadership? In this book we will document from the Masonic Ritual the authoritative book given to a person who enters and becomes a member of the Lodge how Masonry conflicts and denies foundational Christian truths. Masons are promised that nothing in Masonry’s teachings will ever conflict with their own Christian belief. Has Masonry lied to or deceived Christians? In this book you will find answers to all these questions from the Masonic ritual and the Bible itself.

This volume investigates the implications of breaking ritual rules, of failed performances and of the extinction of ritual systems. The essays thus break new ground in the comparative analysis of rituals and introduce new perspectives to ritual studies.

Are Masonry and Christianity truly compatible? Using their concise question–and–answer style noted researchers John Ankerberg and John Weldon look at the basics of the issue examining Masons’ claims and terminology and asking such critical questions as: Is Freemasonry a religion? What do Masons teach about Jesus Christ? What do Masonic symbols represent? Is the God of the Bible also the God of the Masonic Lodge? Easy to follow and practical this thought–provoking resource will help readers understand this widespread organization—and the beliefs of people belonging to it—in light of the clear teaching of the Bible.

Who were Tubalcain, Aholiab and Zabud and what is their significance for the Freemason? There is a general interest in the rituals of Freemasonry, generated in part by the apparently obscure references they contain. This is the only book that offers a guide to the stories used in Masonic ritual and their links to the Bible and Christianity. The new Mason is directed to a ‘serious contemplation of the Volume of the Sacred Law’ — but that is easier said than done without a grounding in the Scriptures, something that fewer and fewer people have. The historical and geographical setting of the Bible is explained here, making such contemplation easier for Mason and non-Mason alike. Mike Neville has systematically cross-referenced the most influential Chapters of the Bible to the ceremonies. It is his intention to get Freemasons to understand the ritual — not just to memorise and regurgitate — as well as to elucidate for the non-Mason. Sacred Secrets will aid the clergy, theologians and any other person interested in Freemasonry to see the links between ritual and scripture.