Are Freemasons Really Noahides

No.

Noahides, or those who refer to themselves as such, follow the Noahide laws, generally within the Judaic tradition. These laws comprise prohibitions of idolatry, blasphemy, forbidden sexual relations, murder, theft, consuming the limb of a living animal (an expression of cruelty to animals) and lawlessness (that is to say, requiring the setting up of courts and processes of justice).

There are rival philosophies concerning the Noahide laws. The classical orthodox Jewish tradition, as found in Maimonides, the Maharal of Prague and the writings of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, views the source of the authority of the Noahide laws as being the giving of the Torah at Sinai to Moses and therefore of concern only to the Jews.

Elijah Benamozegh (1823-1900), author of Israel and Humanity, and Aime Palliere, author of The Unknown Sanctuary, promoted the idea of an "independent" tradition which goes back to Adam and Noah, and thereby to be transmitted to the Gentiles. The growth of late twentieth century Noahide movements has been a source of concern to some Christians who view the ramifications of this philosophy as an anti-Christian attack.

These are religious discussions and therefore not of concern to Freemasonry. Freemasonry is not a religion.
Masonic author, Albert G. Mackey, defined Noachidae as the descendents of Noah; and Noachite as a reference to the legend "that Noah was the father and founder of the masonic system of theology." Mackey neglected to define or detail that theology. Regular Freemasonry has never had a theology and Mackey was simply expressing his own opinion.

Mackey also wrote that the seven Precepts of Noah are preserved "as the Constitutions of our ancient Brethren"3 but neither the oldest extant manuscript, the Regius Poem, nor the Cooke manuscript mention any such precepts. He can only have been referring to Anderson’s second edition of his Constitutions, published in 1738.

Non-masons, especially those hostile to Freemasonry, have been known to confuse references in masonic ritual to "the Moral Law," or "that religion in which all men agree" with the Precepts of Noah. Albert G. Mackey, in his History of Freemasonry, presented an historical background to the legends of Freemasonry but, in context, is clearly not ascribing the beliefs or practices of Judaism to those of Freemasonry.

A legend of two pillars that survive the Deluge, containing the knowledge of the seven liberal arts and sciences, is contained in the "traditional history" of Freemasonry. The legend that Noah received seven commandments when God made His Covenant after the Flood is not a part of any extant pre-1717 manuscript. The sentiment that "all masons are true Noachidae" was part of "Brother Euclid’s Letter to the Author" included, with no historical authority, with the Rev. John Anderson’s 1738 Constitutions. The 1723 Constitutions contained the passage: "A Mason is obliged by his tenure to obey the moral law." In the 1736 edition Anderson completed the sentence with "as a true Noachida. 5 These references were dropped in the 1756 and subsequent editions, and have never played a role in the ritual or teachings of regular Freemasonry. Dermott’s unauthorized Ahiman Rezon copied Anderson’s 1736 edition and also used the term "Noachida."

Anderson may have taken this idea from the Stonehouse MS., also titled the Krause MS., reproduced in Dr. Krause’s Three Oldest Documents. Probably written by a contemporary of Anderson and now accepted as spurious, it was first alleged to be a copy of the 926 York Constitutions.

Freemasons were called Noachidae by some authors, generally in reference to the Scottish Rite degrees, in a poetical allusion to the preservation and transmission of great truths. But these truths are not defined as the Precepts of Noah.

There is no connection between Noahides and Noachidae. One is a philosophy within Judaism, while the other is a poetical reference to Freemasonry and an eighteenth century attempt to create an older lineage.

The question only has meaning if one assumes that Freemasonry is a religion. Freemasonry is not a religion and has no doctrine.

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Masonic Testament

An invention by the highly imaginative authors Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas, compiled from excerpts of the many rituals devised in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that—at one time or another—were worked in masonic lodges or by Freemasons independently of their lodges or without Grand Lodge authority. These rituals came from a multitude of independent sources and were created for a multitude of reasons. Knight and Lomas have arbitrarily selected passages from these texts to compile what they refer to as a chronology or history. The Masonic Testament is a work of fiction included in their book The Book of Hiram (2003).

Knight and Lomas' "The Masonic Testament" is a contemporary text having no Historical validity. It is not accepted as having any masonic authority, nor is it endorsed by any masonic body. It is a work of fiction. It should also be stressed that the phrase, "Masonic Testament" does not refer to another misnomer, "the masonic Bible." There is no such thing as a Masonic Bible; the Volume of Sacred Law which is used in every regular masonic lodge is that book held sacred by the members of the lodge—generally in North America, the King James Authorized Version of the Christian Bible.

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Isaak Newton And Freemasonry

There is no verifiable record of Newton being a Freemason. Despite this lack of evidence, Isaac Newton is still Frequently identified as being a member of several early Masonic Lodges including the Grand Lodge of England. There is currently a Freemason Lodge operating at Cambridge University named The Isaac Newton University Lodge, however this does not emphatically mean that Isaac Newton was a founder or even a member, as there are many social and scholastic clubs which bear his name.

Considering the lack of records concerning early Freemasonry and the belief that the modern structure of the organization was partly established during Newton's lifetime in and around London, there is continued speculation as to the role that Newton may have had in the formation of Masonic Orders in their modern context. Newton's membership of The Royal Society and the fact that many Royal Society members have been identified as early Freemasons has led many to believe Newton was a Mason himself. It is clear that Newton was deeply interested in architecture, sacred geometry, and the structure of the Temple of Solomon, a subject that also interested many notable Freemasons of the era. However, ultimately there is no evidence to directly connect Newton to Freemasonry.

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Freemason Guide And Compendium

Book: Freemason Guide And Compendium by Bernard Jones

First published in 1950, the Freemasons' Guide and Compendium is filled with authentic, detailed information on a wide variety of subjects related to masons and masonry. Written by an experienced Freemason with the interests of rank-and-file members of the ordinary lodge in mind—especially the young Craftsman who wishes to learn the nature of Freemasonry's claim to have a history that goes back to ancient days—it provides key facts about masonic history, tradition, and lore. In doing so, the book offers a far greater scope of information than any other comparable work. And Bernard E. Jones critically examines conflicting ideas about how some of the traditions came to be, coming to conclusions of his own.

The book is divided into six main sections:

1-Operative Masonry and the London Company
2-Speculative Masonry
3-The Grand Lodges (1717 - 1813)
4-The Craft Degrees and Other Matters
5-The Lodge and Many Related Subjects
6-The Royal Arch, Mark Masonry, and Additional Degrees

There are also 31 illustrated plates, and numerous other illustrations throughout the text.

There is so much in the "Freemason' Guide and Compendium" that it is difficult to describe the breadth of its content, and yet for all its amazing content Worshipful Br. Jones continues to hele, conceal, and never reveal an. o. t. scs. ars. prts. o. r. pnts. of. th. hdn. msts. o. fmy.

The early chapters of Freemasons' Guide and Compendium describe how the masonic guilds arose in eleven-century England after the Norman conquest. From there Jones moves into the emergence of speculative Freemasonry in the late medieval period and exlpores its amazing growth as an esoteric system during the eighteenth century.

The major part of the book consists of a comprehensive, systematic presentation of information about masonry's customs, principles and tenets, words and phrases, lodge appointments and working tools, symbols and emblems. With the help of the guide and compendium, the Craftsman will have no difficulty in making daily progress in masonic knowledge, and the thorough, exhaustive index will help him to access a great story of knowledge.

As interest in the subject of Freemasonry continues to grow, as seen in the movie National Treasure and in Dan Brown's forthcoming book, the Freemasons' Guide and Compendium will be a valuable source of information for anyone who wants to research and understand the masons.

For any Master Mason the "Freemason' Guide and Compendium" is an essential addition to his personal library and to that of the Lodge. An absolutely outstanding book! Highly Recommended!

Bernard E. Jones (1879 - 1965), a Freemason of fifty years, living in Sussex, England, was widely recognized as a great authority on the history, beliefs and symbols of Freemasonry. In the "Freemason' Guide and Compendium" Worshipful Br. Jones has given us a most excellent and detailed reference to the Craft.

Buy Bernard Jones's book: Freemason Guide And Compendium

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Oto Under Crowley

Aleister Crowley served as the Outer Head of the Order from 1922 until his death in December of 1947. Crowley's first act as O.H.O. was to reconfirm the charters of Jones and Tranker as Grand Masters for North America and Germany, respectively. Tranker, on Jones's recommendation, invited Crowley to formally assume leadership of O.T.O. as well as of the various organizations included in the Pansophical movement, at a conference to be held at Hohenleuben, near Weida, in the summer of 1925. The other attendees of the conference were: Heinrich and Helene Tranker; Karl Germer (Saturnus, Jan. 22, 1885 - Oct. 25, 1962), at the time Tranker's secretary and publisher); Albin Grau; Eugen Grosche; Martha Kunzel; Henri Birven; a gentleman named Hopfer; Crowley; Crowley's associates Dorothy Olsen, Leah Hirsig, Norman Mudd; and others.

The results of the conference were mixed. The attendees were divided over Crowley's teachings and The Book of the Law, of which they had previously been largely unaware (it had only recently been translated into German). There were personality conflicts as well. Fraulein Kunzel and Herr Germer went with Crowley. Herrn Tranker, Grau, Hopfer and Birven decided to keep the Pansophical Lodge independent from the Master Therion. Herr Grosche originally sided with Crowley, but he and Germer quarreled, and Grosche decided to remain independent. After the closure of the Pansophical Lodge in 1926, Grosche regrouped a number of the ex-Pansophists to found the Fraternitas Saturni. Fraternitas Saturni recognized Crowley's status as a prophet, and accepted the Law of Thelema in a modified form; but Grosche insisted on keeping it independent from O.T.O. and under his own, rather than Crowley's, authority. Fraternitas Saturni continues to the present day in Germany, Canada and elsewhere, and does not represent itself as being O.T.O.

Tranker apparently attempted to lay claim to the title of O.H.O. of O.T.O. for himself in 1925, but it appears that he was not widely recognized as such and that he ceased his efforts in this direction by 1930, when he and H. Spencer Lewis began to work together directly (but unsuccessfully) to establish a German branch of A.M.O.R.C.

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Freemasonry And Sabaeanism

The doctrine of the Sabians, termed Sabaeanism or Sabianism, is a form of idolatry which consists in worshiping the sun, moon, and stars, in other words, heliolatry. Although the rituals of Freemasonry refer to the sun, moon, and stars, and their images are incorporated on masonic regalia, this is symbolism, not a form of worship.

As has been stressed throughout this FAQ, Freemasonry is not a religion... in any form. There is no part of worship in the rituals of Freemasonry, although a careless reading might suggest otherwise. Within Freemasonry, metaphor, simile, allegory and symbolism are the tools used to teach certain lessons. They are not instructions in worship, Sabaean or otherwise.

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The Freemasons What They Are What They Do What They Are Aiming At

Book: The Freemasons What They Are What They Do What They Are Aiming At by Louis Gaston De Segur

It is important to remember that this book was written in France in the year 1869. The author, Louis Gaston de Segur (1820-1881) was a French Bishop and French apologist. He dedicated himself to the evangelization of the people in Paris; the children, the poor, the imprisoned soldiers to whom he was the volunteer and gratuitous chaplain. Besides his apostleship and ministry he was also engaged in writing. Some of his writings were destined to make known or defend Catholic ideas concerning questions which occupied public attention; others to extend or to confirm his apostolate of preaching. The author intended his apologetic books for the people and for all who ignored religion. They were mostly brief pamphlets vigilant, full of vivacity and spirit, written with a frankness wholly French in a popular style, sprinkled with caustic irony. His zeal was crowned with success, his little books attained numerous editions. This book is a spirited, caustic, and very frank look at Freemasonry in 1869.

Contents:

The Name Freemason ---- There is Freemason and Freemason ---- What is the Secret of the Customary Recruiting of Freemasonry? ---- With what Ceremonies one is made a Freemason ---- First and Terrible Trial of the Apprentice Mason ---- The Three Journeys; a Second Trial of the Apprentice Mason ---- The Final Trials ---- The Oath ---- Of the Degree of Companion, the Second Masonic Degree ---- Of the Third Degree, the Degree of Master Mason ---- Of the High Degrees of Freemasonry ---- Of the High Degree of Judge-Philosopher-Grand-Commander-Unknown ---- Of the High Degree Knight Kadosch ---- Of the High Degree of Rosicrucian ---- Of True Freemasonry, which is Occult, and all Secret ---- Horrible Excesses Practiced by the Masons of the Back Lodges ---- What the Brothers of the Back Lodges Think and Say of, and Expect to do with, their Dear Brothers of the Exterior Lodges ---- How the Masons of the Back Lodges make use of, and Manage the Princes and Noblemen who Join Freemasonry ---- Does Masonry Love the Poor as it would have us Believe? ---- That Freemasonry is, in spite of its Sayings, Essentially Impious, Anti-Christian and Atheist ---- About Adoption by Freemasonry, otherwise Female Freemasonry ---- How Masonry Finds its Happiness in the worship of the Sun ---- The Masonic Press ---- That Freemasonry is Beginning to lay Hold on Youth by Means of Instruction and Education...

Buy Louis Gaston De Segur's book: The Freemasons What They Are What They Do What They Are Aiming At

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