MASONRY AND PAGAN RELIGION
The previously mentioned 1992
SBC resolution that encompassed Freemasonry stated: "Be it
finally RESOLVED, That we urge all Southern Baptists to refrain
from participation or membership in organizations with teachings,
oaths, or mystical knowledge which are contrary to the Bible and
to the public expression of our faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ,
which must be above all reproach."[30] Further, the Study
of Freemasonry submitted to the Baptist Home Mission Board
conceded that "a Christian Mason who takes the higher degrees
of the Scottish Rite will be exposed to beliefs and practices
quite different from his own. For example, the candidate is introduced
to Egyptian deities Osiris, Isis, Horus, and Amun; to Scandinavian
deities Odin, Frea, and Thor; to Hindu, Greek, and Persian deities;
and to Jewish Kabbalism [i.e., occultism]....It cannot be denied
that some of the religions studied in these degrees are pagan
and that their teachings are totally incompatible with Christianity"
(emphasis added).[31]
The Report on Freemasonry
concluded that paganism is not only found in Masonic rituals,
but it also discovered paganism in many readings that Masonry
encourages its initiates to pursue: "[Many of] the recommended
readings, in pursuance of advanced degrees, of religions and philosophies...are
undeniably pagan and/or occult..." (emphasis added).[32]
Among those mentioned are the writings of Masonic authorities
or authors Albert Pike, Albert Mackey, Manley Hall, Rex Hutchins,
and W. L. Wilmshurst.
Even some official Masonic
Monitors encourage paganism. The Texas Monitor, for example,
tells us:
These [aspects and teachings
of Masonry] were practiced from remote ages, in ancient temples
of many nations....The most learned among Masonic scholars...conclude
that Masonry is of very ancient origin, and is, in some aspects,
the modern successor of, and heir to, the sublime Mysteries of
the Temple of Solomon, and of the Temples of India, Chaldea, Egypt,
Greece, and Rome, as well as the basic doctrine of the Essenes,
Gnostics and other mystic Orders.[33]
Because the Texas Monitor
argues that Masonry is related to ancient paganism, it advises
that
every candidate for the Mysteries
of Masonry, at the proper time and in an appropriate manner, should
be taught the truth that the rite of Initiation means much
more than a formal ceremonial progress through the Degrees....Initiation
is to be attained only after real labor, deep study, profound
meditation, extensive research and a constant practice of those
virtues which will open a true path to moral, intellectual, and
spiritual illumination.[34]
In other words, the Texas
Monitor itself maintains that the initiate is to be informed
as to and/or practiced in the deeper pagan meanings of the Masonic
Ritual.
JESUS CHRIST
The Baptist Study comments,
"it is not true that Freemasonry ignores or denies
Jesus Christ" (emphasis added).[35] The Study nevertheless
admits that "Freemasonry today does not see Jesus as the
unique Son of God and Savior of the world."[36]
The Masonic Ritual of the
First, Second, and Third Degrees never instructs its members that
Jesus is the only mediator between God and men. It never tells
them they can't truthfully call God their Father until they have
a relationship with His Son. It doesn't tell initiates that they
can't build their spiritual house until they ask Jesus Christ
to forgive them of their sins and build it for them. No Mason
is ever told officially that a man can never do enough good deeds
or live a pure enough life to gain admission into the Celestial
Lodge Above, or that entrance into heaven comes only by faith
in Jesus Christ. The truth is that by its ritual, teachings, and
prayers, Masonry does ignore and deny Jesus Christ.[37]
IS MASONRY A RELIGION?
One of the key issues in this
discussion is whether or not Masonry is a religion.[38] The Baptist
Study concluded: "Strong feelings have been expressed
on both sides of this difficult issue....the overwhelming majority
of Masons reject the idea that Freemasonry is a religion.
The various monitors of the Grand Lodges and statements from the
overwhelming majority of Masonic leaders in the past and today
deny that Freemasonry is a religion"(emphases added).[39]
No one denies that the vast
majority of Masons say Masonry is not a religion, but one
must go beyond mere claims. For example, virtually all Mormons
claim their religion is Christian, which is demonstrably
false.[40]
Masonry claims it has the
qualities of a religion but is still not a religion; or
that it is religious but still not a religion. However,
the latter point makes as much sense (as even Coil pointed out)
as to say that a man has no intellect but is intellectual, or
that he has no honor but is honorable. Religious is defined
as "imbued with or adhering to religion or a religion."[41]
While it is possible for an
organization to have a religious quality and yet not be a religion
-- such as Christian groups that specialize in missions or research
and have daily periods of prayer, Masonry is more than this. The
religious quality of Christian organizations is based on Christianity
while the religious quality of Masonry is based on Masonry itself,
which qualifies it as a religion.
The Study wrongly concluded
that Masonry is not a religion. Nevertheless it was forced to
confess that "many men make the Lodge their religion."[42]
The major issue in determining
whether Masonry is a religion is to look at its demands on the
candidate. Masonry requires the candidate to believe in
God, obey Him, worship Him, seek His guidance, and so forth, which
qualifies it as a religion. And, as I have already documented,
Masonry claims its members will earn admittance to heaven based
on personal character and good works. This also classifies the
Lodge as a religion. In fact, any standard dictionary or encyclopedia
definition of religion proves beyond doubt that Masonry is a religion.[43]
Dr. Shildes Johnson is only one of many scholars of comparative
religion who have concluded: "A comparison of the moral,
allegorical, and symbolic teachings of Freemasonry with these
definitions of a religion reveals that the lodge is a theistic,
non-Christian, man-centered, and universal religion."[44]
All this is why numerous leading
Masonic authorities have publicly confessed that Masonry is,
in fact, a religion. For example:
Albert G. Mackey:
"The religion of Masonry is cosmopolitan, universal...."[45]
Henry Wilson Coil:
"Religion is espoused by the Masonic Ritual and required
of the candidate"; and, "Freemasonry is undoubtedly
religion"; and, "Many Freemasons make this flight [to
heaven] with no other guarantee of a safe landing than their belief
in the religion of Freemasonry" (emphasis added).[46]
Albert Pike:
"Masonry...is the universal, eternal, immutable religion...."[47]
Joseph Fort Newton:
"Everything in Masonry has reference to God, implies God,
speaks of God, points and leads to God. Not a degree, not a symbol,
not an obligation, not a lecture, not a charge but finds its meaning
and derives its beauty from God the Great Architect, in whose
temple all Masons are workmen."[48]
Doesn't all this constitute
evidence that Masonry is a religion? Yet the Study of the
Southern Baptist Home Mission Board concluded it is not a religion.[49]
The Baptist Study offered
a number of reasons to allegedly substantiate its claim that Masonry
is not a religion. For example, it points out that in a 1921 decision
the Supreme Court of Nebraska ruled that Freemasonry is not a
religion. But all this means is that the Supreme Court of Nebraska
was wrong. State Supreme Courts and even the Supreme Court of
the United States have frequently been wrong, as can be proven
by the number of opinion reversals enacted by those bodies. The
United States Supreme Court has reversed itself no less than 200
times in its history. These are admissions of error.
The Study next cites
the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts of America. It points out that
not all Scouts are Christians. Yet Christians may become members
of the Scouts without worshipping the gods of those in the Scouts
who follow other religions, such as Mormons and Hindus. "Baptist
youth certainly do not worship the physical god of Mormonism or
the impersonal god of Hinduism, yet they join with youth and leaders
from these religions to earn religious emblems. They have certain
rituals that identify them as Scouts anywhere in the world...."[50]
What if the Boy Scouts of
America claimed it was not a religion when it was? What if the
Scouts had an agenda that they kept hidden? What if the Scouts
had their own plan of salvation? What if the Scouts actively taught
members that they could be saved and go to heaven by good works?
What if the Scouts had bloody oaths requiring secrecy on pain
of death?[51] Who would argue that Christian youth should join
such an organization?
Next, the Study claims
that those individuals who allow Masonry to become their religion
do so only because of their own misinterpretation or misunderstanding
of Masonry and (quoting a Southern Baptist Mason) "not due
to Masonic teaching."[52] In The Secret Teachings of the
Masonic Lodge, however, John Ankerberg and I devoted some
200 pages showing that the reason individuals do make Masonry
their religion is "due to Masonic teaching."
Perhaps it is worth noting
that of all the conservative Christian bodies who have studied
Masonry, I discovered almost unanimous agreement among them that
Masonry is a religion and that Masonry and Christianity are not
compatible.[53] The conclusion of a Presbyterian report is only
one of almost two dozen denominational inquiries that concluded
Masonry is a religion: "In our study of Freemasonry's promotional
literature, through personal interviews with Masons, and by letters
received from Masons, we were told that Freemasonry is not a religion.
However, a close scrutiny of the ritual of the lodge and books
written by authoritative Masons points to the contrary...(emphasis
added).[54]
In its section on the position
of other Christian denominations relative to Masonry, even the
Baptist Study documents that Masonry has been rejected
by the Roman Catholic church, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod,
the Presbyterian Church in America, the Free Presbyterian Church
of Scotland, the Greek Orthodox Church, the Church of the Nazarene,
the Church of the Brethren, the Orthodox Presbyterian Church,
the Assemblies of God, the Reformed Presbyterian Church, "and
other Christian denominations have also taken positions against
Freemasonry, or against secret societies without mentioning Freemasonry."[55]
One must wonder, "Didn't
this near-unanimous condemnation tell Baptist committee members
something?!" If Masonry and Christianity are really compatible
(as the Baptist Study implies), and if individual Christians
can actually become Masons "in good conscience," then
why all the negative conclusions condemning Masonry and urging
Christians not to join the Masonic Lodge from all these
widely varying Christian bodies?
The Study acknowledges
that "this issue has divided Baptists for two centuries."[56]
But why has it divided Baptists for two centuries? We think
the reason is evident -- because the Baptist tradition has never
officially taken a position on Masonry, thereby allowing individual
Christians in every generation to be deceived by its false claims.
This would seem to explain why, as the Study itself concedes,
half a million Southern Baptists (at least) are now Masons --
including many Southern Baptist pastors, ministers of education,
deacons, and directors of missions.[57] But even if there were
ten million Christians in the Lodge, this fact alone would not
justify Masonry. I can only agree with the conclusion of the Presbyterian
report and many others that say:
a) Joining Masonry requires
"actions and vows out of accord with Scripture."
b) "Participation in
Masonry seriously compromises the Christian faith and testimony."
c) "Membership in Masonry
and activity in its Ritual lead to a diluting of commitment to
Christ and His kingdom."[58]
Certainly the Baptist stress
on individual freedom of conscience cannot be carried so far as
to accept the right of Christians to join the Mormon church or
the Baha'i Faith. On what basis, then, can the Southern Baptist
Convention say it is permissible for a Christian to join the Masonic
Lodge? The issue is not individual conscience. The issue is, Can
Christianity and Masonry be logically joined together without
violation of scriptural teaching and Christ's glory? If not, then
the verdict of each Christian's conscience must be to abstain
from the Masonic Lodge, and the obligation of each church body
must be to proclaim this basic incompatibility of Masonry and
Christianity.
NOTES
1 In the text and endnotes, the term Study refers to the 75-page analysis, A Study of Freemasonry (Atlanta, GA: Home Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1993), available from the Home Mission Board, SBC, 1350 Spring Street, N.W., Atlanta, GA 30367-5601 (1-800-634-2462). The term Report refers to the six-page A Report on Freemasonry, published by the Home Mission Board, SBC, 17 March 1993.
2 See John Ankerberg and John Weldon, Bowing at Strange Altars (Chattanooga, TN: Ankerberg Theological Research Institute, 1993), 10-12.
3 Report, 5.
4 Ibid., 5-6.
5 Code Revision Committee, Masonic Manual of the Grand Lodge of Georgia, Free and Accepted Masons, 10th ed. (n.p.: Grand Lodge of the State of Georgia, 1983), 17.
6 Most Worshipful Grand Lodge Free & Accepted Masons of Arkansas, Masonic Monitor of the Degrees of Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft, and MasterMason (n.p.: Grand Lodge of Arkansas, 7th ed., 1993), 17.
7 See John Ankerberg and John Weldon, The Secret Teachings of the Masonic Lodge: A Christian Appraisal (Chicago: Moody Press, 1991), 86, cf. 78-92.
8 Report, 4.
9 Ibid., 5-6.
10 Study, 34.
11 Report, 5.
12 Ibid., 6.
13 Ibid., 54.
14 Jim Tresner, "Conscience and the Craft," The Scottish Rite Journal, February 1993, 23.
15 Study, 2-3.
16 Ibid., 70.
17 Joseph Fort Newton, "The Great Light in Masonry" (title of the section containing: "The Words of a Great Masonic Divine: The Bible and Freemasonry," in The Holy Bible: The Great Light in Masonry (Nashville: A. J. Holman, 1940), 3-4.
18 See Ankerberg and Weldon, Secret Teachings, 194-95.
19 Carl H. Claudy, Introduction to Freemasonry, vol. 2 (Washington: The Temple, 1984), 110.
20 Carl H. Claudy, "Belief in God," in "A Master's Wages," in Little Masonic Library, vol. 4 (Richmond: Macoy Publishing, 1977), 32.
21 Study, 43.
22 Henry Wilson Coil, Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia (New York: Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply, 1961), 516-17.
23 Ibid., 517.
24 Ankerberg and Weldon, Bowing, chs. 7, 9.
25 Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry (Charleston, SC: Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree for the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States, 1927), 223.
26 Ankerberg and Weldon, Secret Teachings, chs. 8-9.
27 Pike, 516; cf. 226, 295-96.
28 Tresner, 18. See also J. N. D. Anderson, Christianity and Comparative Religion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1977), 11-12.
29 Study, 26.
30 Ibid., 3.
31 Ibid., 32.
32 Report, 5.
33 Grand Lodge of Texas, Monitor of the Lodge: Monitorial Instructions in the Three Degrees of Symbolic Masonry (Waco, TX: Grand Lodge of Texas, A.F.&A.M., 1982), xiii, xiv.
34 Ibid., xv, xvi.
35 Study, 48. See also Ankerberg and Weldon, Secret Teachings, 126-29; Jim Shaw and Tom McKenney, The Deadly Deception: Freemasonry Exposed by One of Its Top Leaders (Lafayette, LA: Huntington House, 1988), 72.
36 Study, 48-49.
37 For further information on Masonic views of Jesus Christ, see Ankerberg and Weldon, Bowing, ch. 4, and Secret Teachings, ch. 10.
38 Study, 23.
39 Ibid., 70.
40 See, e.g., John Ankerberg and John Weldon, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Mormonism (Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 1991) for detailed documentation.
41 Macmillan Dictionary for Students (1984), 842.
42 Study, 26.
43 Ankerberg and Weldon, Secret Teachings, 37-38.
44 Shildes Johnson, Is Masonry a Religion? (Oakland, NJ: Institute of Contemporary Christianity, 1978), 21.
45 Albert G. Mackey, An Encyclopedia of Freemasonry and Its Kindred Sciences, vol. 1 (Chicago: Masonic History Company, 1921), 301.
46 Coil, 512, 158; Henry Wilson Coil, A Comprehensive View of Freemasonry (Richmond: Macoy, 1973), 186.
47 Pike, 219.
48 Joseph Fort Newton, The Religion of Masonry (Richmond: Macoy, 969), 58-59.
49 Study, 70.
50 Ibid., 26.
51 Ankerberg and Weldon, Secret Teachings, chs. 2, 13-16.
52 Study, 26.
53 Ankerberg and Weldon, Secret Teachings, 269-71; cf. ch. 16, Epilogue; and James Holly, The Southern Baptist Convention and Freemasonry (Beaumont, TX: Mission and Ministry to Men, 1993), ch. 3.
54 Minutes of the General Assembly, appendix R, The Report of the Ad-Interim Committee to Study Freemasonry, 16th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America, 6 June 1988, 466.
55 Study, 63.
56 Ibid., 64.
57 Ibid., 64-65.
58 Presbyterian Report, 473.
-------------
End of document, CRJ0168A.TXT (original CRI file name),
"The Masonic Lodge and the Christian Conscience"
release A, August 31, 1994
R. Poll, CRI
(A special note of thanks
to Bob and Pat Hunter for their help in the preparation of this
ASCII file for BBS circulation.)
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