A pondering of the evidence

jchrist

New Member
I have been a seeker of truth my whole life,and a lover of history.there have been lodges in most if not all the cities Ive been in.Its a fact that masons were instrumental in the creation of the united states,in fact an argument could made that we could still be a British colony if not for them.So I pose a question,with all due respect,would humanity been transformed for the better with the knowledge that many of your order may posses? what you have been given freely,freely give.distribute blessings so they may abound.Do you think Im misguided?
 

Windrider

Plus-sized tuxedo model
You are asking a question many others have asked through a lack of understanding of what we teach and what our "secrets" actually are. First, let me tell you what we keep private and why. We take an oath before almighty God to not reveal our means of recognition or the details of our rituals. That's it. The means of recognition aren't shared because this is one of the ways we identify each other as brothers. You would not share the pin number on your ATM card, we aren't going to give anyone our means of recognition who doesn't have a right to have them. Our rituals are time-tested teaching tools that work best when the person going through them does not know what to expect. If you can't keep simple secrets like these, how can you be trusted with a brother's problems?

Some people think we have these deep secrets that make us special in some way. I have to admit that we are special but not in the way you might think. The lessons we learn in the degrees are no different than those we all learned in kindergarten, sunday school, or at our grandmother's knee. We learn how to be moral men who have faith, believe in charity and can be trusted. We are men of our word and an agreement between two Masons rarely requires more than a handshake. The tenants of our fraternity are friendship, morality and brotherly love.

So why not share these lessons with everyone? We don't have to, they are already available to everyone. You are right, though. If everyone followed the teachings of their faith and the rules of morality the world would certainly be a better place. Why don't we just throw open our doors and show everyone how to live like this? Because it would be a futile effort. You see, the only way to become a Mason is to ask a Mason. This first step is how we tell if the person will be receptive to our lessons. We can't force a man to be good, we can only lead by example.
 

sigmanx

New Member
You are asking a question many others have asked through a lack of understanding of what we teach and what our "secrets" actually are. First, let me tell you what we keep private and why. We take an oath before almighty God to not reveal our means of recognition or the details of our rituals. That's it. The means of recognition aren't shared because this is one of the ways we identify each other as brothers. You would not share the pin number on your ATM card, we aren't going to give anyone our means of recognition who doesn't have a right to have them. Our rituals are time-tested teaching tools that work best when the person going through them does not know what to expect. If you can't keep simple secrets like these, how can you be trusted with a brother's problems?

Some people think we have these deep secrets that make us special in some way. I have to admit that we are special but not in the way you might think. The lessons we learn in the degrees are no different than those we all learned in kindergarten, sunday school, or at our grandmother's knee. We learn how to be moral men who have faith, believe in charity and can be trusted. We are men of our word and an agreement between two Masons rarely requires more than a handshake. The tenants of our fraternity are friendship, morality and brotherly love.

So why not share these lessons with everyone? We don't have to, they are already available to everyone. You are right, though. If everyone followed the teachings of their faith and the rules of morality the world would certainly be a better place. Why don't we just throw open our doors and show everyone how to live like this? Because it would be a futile effort. You see, the only way to become a Mason is to ask a Mason. This first step is how we tell if the person will be receptive to our lessons. We can't force a man to be good, we can only lead by example.
I couldn't have said that better myself, and the only thing I might add to it if I may, is that a lot of people have no idea that they live by some of our principals and methods already. Especially people that live in the USA. And as a man who lives the life of a mason you will find yourself in wonder when you realize it.

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