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Is It True What They Say About Freemasonry?
The Methods of Anti-Masons
By Arturo de Hoyos and S. Brent Morris
(Second Edition, Revised)
With a Foreword and Addendum by James T. Tresner II
All
rights reserved
© 1993, 1997 Masonic Information Center
This HTML version copyright © 1998 by Art deHoyos.
Printed
copies may be obtained by writing to:
Masonic
Information Center
8120 Fenton St.
Silver Spring, MD 20910 4785
Tel
301-588-4010 / Fax 301-608-3457
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Dedicated
to the memory of
John
Jamieson Robinson
Researcher
• Author • Master Mason
The
worst readers are those who proceed like plundering soldiers: they
pick up a few things they use, soil and confuse the rest, and blaspheme
the whole.
I
am appalled, I am bound to say, by the unsolicited material that
has been sent to me...prior to this debate. What beggars my imagination
is the way in which anyone, for whatever sort of malicious or
neurotic or malicious [sic] reason, who writes anything denouncing
freemasonry is assumed by some to be telling the truth. They are
not. We have seen it in public life and we have seen it here.
The Church should be different.... I am ashamed when fellow Christians
are so gullible and so uncharitable, and that is putting it charitably.
--Canon R. Lewis (not a Mason), speaking to
the General Synod of the Church of England.
Quoted in Christopher Haffner, Workman Unashamed
(Shepperton, England: Lewis Masonic, 1989), p.13
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* * *
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Mrs.
Inge Baum, retired Librarian of the Supreme Council 33º, S.J., for her
always gracious assistance.
Bro.
David Blackey Board, for his detailed research on and bibliography of
Léo Taxil.
Bro.
John W. Boettjer, for his permission to use the articles "Garden of
Evil?" and "Stones of Evil."
Bro.
Roger Kessinger, Kessinger Publishing Co., for permission to use extended
quotations from The Cloud of Prejudice: A Study in Anti-Masonry,
by Art deHoyos.
Bro.
Irwin Kirby, General Secretary, Valley of Miami, A.&A.S.R., for
information on Rev. James D. Shaw's Scottish Rite membership in Florida.
Ms.
Joan Kleinknecht, Librarian of the Supreme Council 33º, S.J., for her
kind assistance.
Bro.
Rollin O. Simpson, Grand Secretary, Grand Lodge of Indiana, F.&A.M.,
for information on Rev. James D. Shaw's Masonic membership in Indiana.
Bro.
Eric Serejski, for his assistance in translating passages from Le
Femme et L'Enfant dans le Franc-Maçonnerie Universelle.
Bro.
Arthur Schechner, Secretary, West Dade Lodge No. 388, for information
on Rev. James D. Shaw's membership in Allapattah Lodge No. 271.
Bro.
William G. Wolf, Grand Secretary, Grand Lodge of Florida, F.&.A.M.,
for information on Rev. James D. Shaw's Masonic membership in Florida.
Bros.
Sidney Baxter, John W. Boettjer, Richard Curtis, Richard E. Fletcher,
Wallace McLeod, Pete Normand, James T. Tresner, II, and Thomas E. Weir
for their invaluable textual corrections and suggestions.
FOREWORD
It is not an unmixed blessing,
being asked to write a foreword for this book.
On the one hand, it is a
high honor to be asked to contribute a few words to the work of Masons
I so greatly respect. Art deHoyos and Brent Morris are two of the very
best Masonic writers Freemasonry has produced in a long time.
On the other hand, some
tasks are simply distasteful, no matter how exalted the company in which
they are done. (Unstopping a clogged toilet springs to mind as an example.)
Dealing with the attacks of anti-Masons is a similarly distasteful task,
for similar reasons.
It is a sense of betrayal
which makes me so personally angry with some of these individuals. I
came of age in a time when policemen were your friends, your father
knew best, and ministers lived by high moral codes. And I still believe
that.
But it's getting harder.
St. Luke says (16:10) "Whoever
is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is
dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much."
As you will see in this
book, anti-Masons are often dishonest in both little and much.
That's the betrayal! I don't
expect a banker to steal my money, I don't expect a physician to prescribe
poison, and I don't expect a minister to lie to me.
And these men do lie. They
are not innocently mistaken; they are not led into error; they are not
merely confused. They lie.
Suppose Brent Morris writes
a letter to me, and he writes, "I don't think Art deHoyos is stupid."
And, later in the letter, he writes, "I was watching one of our local
politicians on television last night, and I was strongly reminded of
the line by the ancient poet-philosopher, Sadi, 'Verily, he is like
a jack-ass among men, a calf, a body which is bleating.'"
Then I sit down and write
a letter to Art deHoyos, with Brent's letter in front of me, and I write,
"Dear Brother deHoyos, I got a letter today in which Brent Morris wrote,
'I . . . think Art is stupid.' 'He is like a jack-ass among
men.'"
If I do that, I have told
deliberate, malicious lies. And if I add to my letter, "so you can see
what Brent really thinks about you," I have lied again.
Bear that in mind as you
read the examples of what anti-Masons do when "quoting" Masonic writers.
Dishonest in little-dishonest
in much.
To sell a book, or a tape,
claiming it reveals truth while knowing it to contain lies is cheating.
Soliciting or accepting contributions in the name of truth while telling
a lie is stealing.
It's hard for us to believe
that of men of the cloth. But when a man presents us, in writing, with
repeated proof of his deceit, we ultimately must conclude that he is
deceitful.
This book is not intended
to be an exhaustive defense of Freemasonry. None is needed. It is
intended to show, by example, just what anti-Masons are capable of doing.
There may be some readers
who, in spite of the proof of the lies told by the anti-Masons examined
in this book (and in spite of the fact that they can get the original
sources themselves and check them out if they doubt the integrity of
Brothers deHoyos and Morris), still continue to believe in the honor
and integrity of the anti-Masons. If so, there is little that can be
said to them.
But for readers who resent
being lied to and resent even more the implication that they are too
stupid to know the difference, this book will come as something of a
revelation.
What motivates such men?
Part of it may simply be unreasoning hatred. But a very large part of
it can be explained in financial terms. Anti-Masons are fond of selling
audio and video tapes. One can do a video tape, even in fairly small
quantities, for about $5, and that includes the cost of the tape, its
reproduction, a sturdy hinged plastic case, and a color title card for
the box; an audio tape costs about $1.25. Since these earnest entrepreneurs
sell their video tapes for $2030 and their audio tapes for $56,
there is a useful bit of change left over.
Freemasonry, therefore,
is a profitable target.
It is not that Freemasonry
considers itself above criticism. It is a human institution and, like
all such institutions, imperfect and open to improvement. Criticize
us if you wish--most Masons do. Examine us in depth--we have
nothing to hide.
But do not lie about us.
And, especially, do not
lie about us and then dare to claim you are doing the work of God.
James
T. Tresner, II
Master Mason
PREFACE
TO THE SECOND EDITION
In the three short years
since the first edition of this work was published we have received
an overwhelmingly positive response from the majority of our readers,
to whom we extend our sincere appreciation. We have also heard from
a few anti-Masonic detractors who have accused us of both insincerity
and a motivation to write this work for personal financial gain. These
charges are completely unfounded. As we wrote in the first edition,
we are willing to admit to and correct any verifiable errors if provided
with proper documentation. We also hasten to add that neither of the
authors receives any royalties or financial remuneration in consideration
of this work.
This second, enlarged edition
includes updates, new material and several new chapters.
One of the most contested
matters relative to the first edition concerns the allegations of the
late Rev. James D. Shaw. Among the many claims in his anti-Masonic book
The Deadly Deception, was his alleged reception of an Honorary
Thirty-third Degree from the Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction. As
will be seen, co-author Tom McKenney now admits that the emphasis on
Rev. Shaw's alleged status as a "top leader" was a marketing ploy. We
will provide additional documentation and evidence demonstrating that
Rev. Shaw lied about this, as well as other aspects of his Masonic standing
and career. A lengthy correspondence related to the matter is also included.
The increased popularity
of the Internet and the World Wide Web has not only provided Freemasonry
with a ready medium to disseminate information, but also allows anti-Masons
the opportunity of spreading misinformation. It is notable that most
of Freemasonry's critics prefer to hide under a cloak anonymity on the
Internet, such as Enchanter!, an anti-Mason whose criticisms
are also herein addressed.
This edition includes a
more detailed examination of the tactics used by John Ankerberg and
John Weldon in their anti-Masonic book, The Secret Teachings of the
Masonic Lodge: A Christian Perspective. Since our first edition
was published they have made some alterations to their book, but failed
to publicly acknowledge their errors.
A sad and distressing example
of the "fruits" of anti-Masonry appears in the epilogue which contains
two articles, "The Garden of Evil?" and "Stones of Evil," kindly provided
by Bro. John Boettjer. These articles are a poignant reminder that the
innocent are most often the victims of brutal, ignorant and superstitious
fanaticism.
PREFACE
Freemasonry is a unique
human institution, generating deep loyalty in its members and great
misunderstandings among its detractors. It is difficult for some people
to imagine that a group of men meeting behind closed doors could be
doing anything good, much less encouraging each other to live lives
of greater religious, family, and civic service. And yet this is what
Freemasons have done since at least 1717, when the premier grand lodge
was formed in London.
Recent critics, however,
have gone beyond stating their differences with the Craft to fabricating
vicious lies to defame the fraternity and its members. These detractors
have convinced themselves that Freemasonry is the work of the devil.
Thus they apparently justify their perversions of truth with the thought
that they are doing the Lord's work--saving an unsuspecting world from
Satan. No misquotation, no distortion, no lie is too great to accomplish
what they perceive as their holy mission. All this is done in the name
of Him who said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:18).
Freemasonry teaches its
members tolerance, even of its assailants. The normal Masonic response
to detractors has been to turn the other cheek, letting them wallow
in their own ignorance. The maliciousness and deceitfulness of current
attacks have grown to the point, however, that some reasoned reply is
needed. It is not too demanding to expect the critics of Freemasonry
to state their credentials accurately or to quote Masonic authors correctly
and in context. Surely that is being faithful in very little. The hatred
of some anti-Masons is so great, however, that even this little faithfulness
is too much.
This book points out several
common misrepresentations made about Freemasonry and shows specific
examples of willful fraud. We do not attempt to answer every charge,
because this is an ultimately fruitless task. Anyone willing to overlook
the easily verified lies presented here can just as easily rationalize
away whatever other corruption they might encounter.
We have tried to be scrupulous
in citing our sources and in accurately representing the exact words
and context of quotations. Despite our best efforts, it will not surprise
us if inadvertent errors have crept into our text. All mistakes of quotation
and citation will be acknowledged and will be corrected in subsequent
editions of this work. Please send such errors to the Masonic Service
Association of the U.S., 8120 Fenton St., Silver Spring, MD 20910-4785.
We hope this book will give
pause to fair-minded readers who may be caught in the headlong rush
to condemn Freemasonry. The evidence presented here calls into question
the research abilities of many Masonic critics as well as their integrity.
A.H. &
S.B.M.
IS
IT TRUE WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT FREEMASONRY?
THE METHODS OF
ANTI-MASONS
But he that
filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him
And makes me poor indeed.
--Othello,
Act III, Scene 3
William Shakespeare
It's hard to pinpoint which
arguments a particular anti-Mason will try to use, but there are popular
ploys that continue to pop up regularly. Some have been around for a
long time, others seem to follow sound logic, but all are flawed. Nevertheless,
these ploys are just too tempting to opponents of Masonry not to use.
Most of these lies have been repeated so often that it's relatively
easy to find them in print somewhere. Their reasoning seems to be, "Why
do serious research when with little effort you can find any answer
needed to support your position?"
Dr. Robert A. Morey,
an anti-Masonic researcher, has a low opinion of the standards of research
used by his fellow anti-Masons.
Anti-masonic
writers have generally been as unreliable as Masonic apologists. In
their zeal to attack Freemasonry, they have been willing to use fantasy,
fraud, and deceit. They have even created bogus documents when needed.
Their writings must not be taken at face value. (1)
In this work we
exhibit examples of fantasy, fraud, and deceit, all used to attack Freemasonry
in the name of Christianity. We hope readers will pause to consider
what motivates some men to use such methods.
The
Organization of Masonry
Any discussion of Masonic
government must start and end with one essential fact: all Masonic authority
originates in a grand lodge. The Masonic Service Association of the
United States (M.S.A.) has no authority over grand lodges. No Supreme
Council, no respected author, nor any other group or person speaks for
or controls Masonry; that prerogative rests solely with the grand lodges.
Anyone doubting this need only check the cases when grand lodges have
closed down the Scottish Rite, the Shrine, and other appendant Masonic
bodies in their states or suspended or expelled their "high officials."
It is a rare but powerful reminder of who is in charge.
Generally speaking,
the United States, Canada, Australia, Mexico, and Brazil have autonomous
grand lodges in each state or province while other countries have an
independent national grand lodge. Within its boundaries or "jurisdiction,"
each grand lodge reigns supreme over its lodges and all appendant Masonic
organizations. The only control or influence over a grand lodge comes
from the influence by persuasion of its sister grand lodges which maintain
a network of mutual recognition.
If a grand lodge
strays too far from accepted Masonic norms, other grand lodges will
withdraw recognition and will even help organize a new grand lodge in
the jurisdiction. The most famous example occurred in 1877 when the
"Grand Orient of France" (which functioned as a grand lodge) dropped
the requirements that its members believe in God and that its lodges
display an open Volume of Sacred Law. This action caused the withdrawal
of recognition by virtually every other regular grand lodge and the
creation of the "Grand Lodge of France." Later concerns that the Grand
Lodge of France was not truly independent of the Scottish Rite Supreme
Council of France led to the establishment of the "National Grand Lodge
of France," which today is recognized by American, British, and other
grand lodges as the regular Masonic authority in France.
Just as there is
nothing to prevent a group of worshipers from calling itself "Baptist"
or "Presbyterian" or "Jewish," there is nothing to prevent a group of
men (or women) from calling itself "Masonic." It is hardly fair to judge
the world of regular Masonry by the statements of irregular groups that
have appropriated the name "Mason."
Consider the case
of the notorious "P2 Lodge" in Italy which was largely responsible for
the collapse of the Italian government in 1981. Propaganda Lodge No. 2,
Propaganda Due, or "P2" as it became known, began as a legitimately
chartered lodge. Within the short space of a few years, however, its
Master, Licio Gelli, abused his authority by using his Masonic influence
to gain favors. Geli used illicit information to blackmail people into
joining his lodge, the purpose of which was to gather more intelligence
for his personal political agenda. Members of P2 then became involved
in criminal activities.
As soon as the
Grand Orient of Italy (the equivalent of an American grand lodge) became
aware of a problem, its leaders tried to rectify the situation and,
unfortunately, failed. Gelli would be controlled by no one. The Grand
Orient then administered the ultimate Masonic punishment: revocation
of the lodge's charter and expulsion of its members.
The former members
of P2, however, ignored the judgment of the Grand Orient to whom they
had pledged fealty and continued meeting under their old name. The "lodge"
was now irregular or illegitimate, operating without authority. In 1975
a regular Mason, Francesco Siniscalchi, complained to the Public Prosecutor
in Rome of P2's nefarious activities. When the scandal eventually broke,
the press--and many non-Masons--did not understand the illegitimacy
of P2, nor the fact that legitimate Masons tried to rectify the problem.
This failure to differentiate between regular Masonry and the irregular
P2 tarnished the good name of Masonry.
The ultimate tests
of regularity (greatly simplified) are 1) does a grand lodge directly
trace its origins through legitimate authority to one of the British
grand lodges, and 2) does it maintain the recognition of most of
the community of regular grand lodges, including the British grand lodges?
If an organization doesn't pass these tests, then it's not Masonic,
despite what it may call itself.
The most common
mistake about the organization of Masonry comes from assuming that Supreme
Councils of the Scottish Rite control Masonry. This is not true. There
is no Masonic degree "higher" than the Third Degree or Master Mason
Degree in symbolic Masonry. While the number 33 may be greater than
the number 3, a 33° Mason has no more authority or power in a lodge
than a 3° Mason. Both are equally subordinate to the Master of their
lodge, and all in turn are subordinate to the Grand Master of their
grand lodge. An earlier statement bears repeating:
No Supreme Council,
no respected author, nor any other group or person speaks for or controls
Masonry; that prerogative rests solely with the grand lodges.
You can be sure
something is wrong if anyone says that a single person or organization
speaks for or represents Masonry. Only a grand lodge has that power
and then only within its jurisdiction. Any other assertion displays
a fatally flawed understanding of the organization of Freemasonry.
The Issue
of Masonic "Experts"
Thousands of authors have
written about Freemasonry and several have achieved wide recognition
for their general scholarship. Other Masonic authors have pursued theories
that at best are without factual support and at worst are embarrassingly
wrong. Because Freemasonry values free thought so highly, grand lodges
as a rule neither endorse nor condemn ideas; that decision is left to
individual Masons. Thus it is quite possible to find otherwise highly
regarded Masonic authors who have espoused ideas of Masonic origins
or symbolism that are without substance--ideas that have been politely
ignored and have been allowed to quietly fade away. Unless formally
endorsed by action of a grand lodge, no writer can speak for Masonry,
only for himself.
Dr. Robert A.
Morey, a Christian critic of Freemasonry, noted, "Another error typically
made by anti-Masons is the assumption that Freemasonry is based on the
writings of a single individual. They usually pick Albert Pike as the
official 'spokesman' of Freemasonry."(2) If not Albert Pike, then their choice might be Albert
Mackey(3) or Manley Palmer Hall(4) or some other author espousing his personal theories
about Masonry.
Most anti-Masonic
writers are far too gullible in believing the extravagant claims of
overzealous, misinformed, or devious Masonic writers who have not
done Freemasonry a favor by making outlandish statements which provided
much fodder for the guns of the anti-Masons.
Too many masonic
writers have arrogantly claimed that they speak for the whole Craft
when they give their personal interpretation of the origin and symbols
of Freemasonry. (5)
For example, Manly Hall
didn't become a Mason until 1954, so his 1923 book, Lost
Keys of Freemasonry, represents the personal theories of
a non-Mason. Further, Mr. Hall (who passed away in August 1990) was
a self-avowed mystic and not a "leading authority" of Freemasonry. He
was a promulgator of mystic and theosophical philosophies; his writings
have not received official sanction by any Masonic bodies. The fact
that he held the Thirty-third Degree and was respected by many Thirty-Third
Degree Masons and even by the Supreme Councils 33º is no more significant
than the fact that various Baptist, Anglican, or Methodist authors also
hold or held that honor.
Anti-Masons regularly
parade the writings of Masonic authorities before their audiences
and dissect their words, looking for a sentence here or a phrase there
to be used in their cause. They seek someone like a church authority
who speaks dogmatically on teachings and doctrine; whose every word
must be accepted by the faithful.
Freemasonry has
no such authorities.
The Masonic
authorities used by anti-Masons have been historical authorities
who speak with the expertise that comes from long study, but who do
not--indeed, cannot--speak for all Masons. It is like the difference
between the authoritative teachings of the Episcopal Church and
an authoritative history of the Kennedy assasination.
Albert
Pike and Lucifer
No other lie has captured
the imagination of anti-Masons quite like Léo Taxil's hoax concerning
Albert Pike and Lucifer. Dr. Robert A. Morey parts company with most
of his fellow anti-Masons on this issue.
Of all the
attacks against the Craft, none is so vicious as the charge that Masons
are a secret cult of Devil worshipers or Satanists and that at some
point in the higher degrees they must pass through a Luciferian initiation.(6)
Once anti-Masons have convinced
themselves that Freemasonry is the work of Satan, they are ripe to be
tempted by the enticing fruit of the "Luciferian Conspiracy." It comes
as a quotation that usually starts, "On July 14, 1889, Albert Pike,
Sovereign Pontiff of Universal Freemasonry, addressed to the 23 Supreme
Confederated Councils of the world the following instructions. . . ."
That is all you need to read to know the author has fallen prey to this
infamous hoax.
It's not entirely
certain when the Pike quotation was fabricated nor where it was first
published. We can, however, trace its modern appearances to Lady Queenborough,
Edith Starr Miller, who wrote Occult Theocrasy in 1933. Her work
is excerpted and treated as gospel truth, usually without attribution.
Such practices are known as plagiarism in other disciplines, but neither
serious research nor intellectual integrity stand in the way of the
headlong rush to slander Freemasonry.
Lady Queenborough
found her quotation in the 1894 book by Abel Clarin de la Rive, La
Femme et L'Enfant dans la Franc-Maçonnerie Universelle (Woman and
Child in Universal Freemasonry). Mr. de la Rive, like Lady Queenborough,
was duped by the hoax; they are guilty only of incompetent research
and an eager willingness to believe the worst about Freemasonry. The
ultimate source was the pornographer, anti-Mason, and anti-Catholic
Gabriel Antoine Jogand-Pagès, much better known by his pen name Léo
Taxil. Taxil publicly confessed his deception in 1897; his story is
widely available for anyone willing to look for the truth.
Figure
1. Albert Pike (1809-1891), Grand
Commander of the Supreme Council, 33º, Southern Jurisdiction,
USA., 1859-1891, slandered by Léo Taxil as the author of the
false "Luciferian Doctrine" of Freemasonry.
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Figure
2. Léo Taxil (Gabriel
Antoine Jogand-Pagès) (1854-1907), anti-Mason, anti-Catholic,
and pornographer, who created an elaborate hoax falsely
linking Freemasonry and devil worship, the purpose of which
was to defame the fraternity and to embarrass the Catholic
church.
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* * *
SOME
OF THE ACCOUNTS OF TAXIL'S HOAX
ABOUT FREEMASONRY AND LUCIFER
Allgemeines
Handbuch der Freimaurerei 3d ed. 2 vols. (Leipzig: Max
Hesse's Verlag, 1901), s.v. "Taxil, Leo."
Henry
W. Coil, et al., Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia (Richmond,
Va.: Macoy Publishing & Masonic Supply Co., 1961, 1996),
s.v. "Taxil, Leo."
Ernst
Diestel, "La Diablerie de Léo Taxil," Le Symbolisme,
nos. 77 & 78, Sept. & Oct. 1924, pp. 212223,
245249.
Michel
Gaudart de Soulages and Hubert Lamant, Dictionnaire des
Francs-Maçons Français (Paris: Editions Albatros, 1980),
s.v. "Taxil."
Great
Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd ed., s.v. "Taxil, Léo."
James
Hastings, ed., Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics,
s.v. "Satanism," by E. Sidney Hartland.
Hildebrand
Gerber (H. Gruber, S.J.), Leo Taxil's Palladismus-Roman,
3 vols. (Berlin: Verlag der Germania, 1897), vol. 2,
pp. 4359.
Michel
Jarrige, "La Franc-Maçonnerie Démasquée: D'Apres un fonds
inedit de la Bibliothèque National," Politica Hermetica,
no. 4, 1990, pp. 3853.
Jean-Pierre
Laurant, "Le Dossier Léo Taxil du fonds Jean Baylot de la
Bibliothèque National," Politica Hermetica, no. 4,
1990, pp. 55-67.
Eugen
Lennhoff and Oskar Posner, Internationales Freimauerlexikon,
reprint, 1932 ed. (Munich: Amalthea-Verlag, n.d.), s.v.
"Taxil, Leo."
R.
Limouzin-Lamothe, The New Catholic Encyclopedia,
s.v. "Taxil, Leo."
Curtis
D. MacDougall, Hoaxes (New York: MacMillan Co., 1949;
reprint New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1958), pp. 98100.
Christopher
McIntosh, Eliphas Lévi and the French Occult Revival
(New York: Samuel Weiser, Inc., 1974), pp. 210218.
Alec
Mellor, Dictionnaire de la Franc-Maçonnerie et des Franc-Maçons
(Paris: Editions Pierre Belfond, 1975), s.v. "Taxil Gabriel-Antoine
(Jogand-Pagès dit Léo)," "Anti-Maçonnerie: Le XIXe siècle."
____,
"A Hoaxer of Genius--Leo Taxil (18907)," Our Separated
Brethren, the Freemasons, trans. B. R. Feinson (London:
G. G. Harrap & Co., 1961), pp. 149155.
Robert
Morey, The Truth about Masons (Eugene, Oreg.: Harvest
House Publishers, 1993), pp. 2325.
S.
Brent Morris, "Albert Pike and Lucifer: The Lie that Will
Not Die," The Short Talk Bulletin, Vol. 71,
No. 6, June 1993.
Maximilian
Rudwin, The Devil in Legend and Literature (Chicago:
Open Court Publishing Co., 1931), pp. 167168.
Rudolf
Steiner, The Temple Legend, trans. John M. Wood,
London: Rudolf Steiner Press, 1985, pp. 283284,
408409.
"Taxil-Schwindel,
Der," FreiMaurer: Solange die Welt besteht, catalog
of a special exhibition of the History Museum of Vienna,
18 September 199210 January 1993, pp. 268370.
Arthur
E. Waite, Devil Worship in France or the Question of
Lucifer (London: George Redway, 1896)
Arthur
E. Waite, A New Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, new
& rev. ed., (1921; reprint ed. New York: Weathervane
Books, 1970), s.v. "Palladian Freemasonry."
Wesley
P. Walters, "A Curious Case of Fraud," The Quarterly
Journal, vol. 9, no. 4 (Oct.Dec. 1989),
pp. 4, 7. (Also reprinted in Jerald and Sandra Tanner,
The Lucifer-God Doctrine [Salt Lake City, Ut.: Utah
Lighthouse Ministry, 1988])
Eugen
Weber, Satan Franc-Maçon: La mystification de Léo Taxil
(Mesnil-sur-l'Estrée, France: Collection Archives Julliard,
1964).
Gordon
Wright, "Diana Vaughan: Satanist and Saint," Notable
or Notorious? (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University
Press, 1991), pp. 86147
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Figure
3. Cover of
The Mysteries of Freemasonry, another of Taxil's
anti-Masonic Books. The cover is typical of the lurid
illustrations used to attract readers to the scurrilous
"revelation" of Masonic Lodge activities.
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*
* *
Here are just a
few of the authors who have reported the bogus Lucifer quotation ascribed
to Albert Pike as evidence of the moral depravity of Masonry.
SOME
ANTI-MASONIC BOOKS USING TAXIL'S HOAX
ABOUT FREEMASONRY AND LUCIFER
Muhammad
Safwat al-Saqqa Amini and Sa'di Abu Habib. Freemasonry (New
York: Muslim World League, 1982), p. 41
Anonymous.
Freemasonry Antichrist Upon Us. 3rd ed. (Boring, Or.: CPA
Books, n.d.), p. 32.
Burns,
Cathy. Hidden Secrets of Masonry. (Mt. Carmel,Penn.: Sharing,
1990), p. 27.
Jack
T. Chick, The Curse of Baphomet (Chino, Calif.: Chick Publications,
1991), p. [12].
John
Daniel, Scarlet and the Beast. 3 vols. (Tyler, Tex.: Jon
Kregel, Inc., 1994), Vol. 1, pp. 373, 380.
J.
Edward Decker, Jr., The Question of Freemasonry (Issaquah,
Wash.: Free the Masons Ministries, n.d.), pp. 1214.
J.
Edward Decker, Jr. and Dave Hunt, The God Makers (Eugene,
Oreg.: Harvest House, 1984) p. 130.
Des
Griffin, Fourth Reich of the Rich (Clackamas, Or.: Emissary
Pub., 1976), p. 70.
Jack
Harris, Freemasonry: The Invisible Cult in Our Midst (Towson,
Md.: Jack Harris, 1983), pp. 2425.
James
L. Holly, The Southern Baptist Convention and Freemasonry
(Beaumont, Tex.: Mission and Ministry to Men, 1992), p. 18.
Gary
H. Kah, En Route to Global Occupation (Lafayette, La.:
Huntington House Pub., 1992), pp. 114, 124.
Salem
Kirban, Satan's Angels Exposed (U.S.A. Salem Kirban, 1980),
p. 161.
Texe
Marrs, Dark Secrets of the New Age (Westchester, Il.: Crossway
Books, 1987), p. 273.
Eustace
Mullins, The Curse of Canaan (Staunton, Va.: Revelation
Books, 1986).
Pat
Robertson, The New World Order (Waco, Tex.: Word Publishing,
1991), p. 184.
William
Schnoebelen, Masonry: Beyond the Light (Chino, Calif.:
Chick Publications, 1991), pp. 6061.
Martin
Short, Inside the Brotherhood (New York: Dorset Press,
1990), p. 94.
Harmon
R. Taylor, "Mixing Oil with Water," The Evangelist, June
1986, pp. 4749
|
Some of these authors, like
the Reverend Pat Robertson, simply quote Lady Queenborough's translation
without attribution. Others, like Dr. James Holly and Martin Short
have used the quotation accompanied by equivocations they must think
absolve them from responsibility for repeating lies. For example, this
is how Dr. Holly tried to cover himself when he quoted Mr. de la Rive.
In the late nineteenth
century many antimasonic books were written, purporting to be written
by Masons. Some have argued that this is one such book. There is no
conclusive evidence either way.(7)
Employing less
ambiguous terms than Dr. Holly, Martin Short admitted there were "problems"
with the bogus quote, but he too felt no compunction against using it.
There are problems
with this quotation: its meaning is not immediately clear and its
authenticity is in doubt. It was first attributed to Pike in 1894
by a French authoress who detested Freemasonry, yet no original text
seems to exist. Genuine or not, England's Grand Lodge dismisses it
by pointing out Pike must have been eighty at the time and "may have
been dotty."
Yet the quote
sounds authentic. Its pyrotechnic language and bombastic poesy recalls
Pike's earlier writings, and the message is not so different from
that of Morals and Dogma. If genuine, it indicates there
is a Satanic--or Luciferian--strain in American Masonry....(8)
The public confession of
Taxil and the subsequent recantation by Mr. de la Rive do not seem conclusive
enough for Dr. Holly, Mr. Short and their ilk.
Mr. Jack Chick
showed some clever originality in his use of the bogus Albert Pike "quote"
in the 1991 edition of his comic book, The Curse of Baphomet.
Rather than plagiarizing Lady Queenborough, as have so many of his allies,
he used a fictitious reference to a legitimate publication: "'The Freemason'
(the organ of English Freemasonry), 19th January, 1935"!(9) Although he has removed the fictitious reference from
current editions, the bogus quote remains.
Figure
4. A fictitious reference to a legitimate
Masonic publication demonstrates the zeal of anti-Masons in
using the discredited Taxil fabrication. Following an exposure
of this deception, the reference was changed but the bogus
quote remains. From Jack T. Chick, The Curse of Baphomet
(Chino, Calif.: Chick Publications, 1991, 1996), pp. [11,12].
|
Mr. C. Fred Kleinknecht,
Grand Commander of the Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction, U.S.A.,
wrote to Rev. Pat Robertson on May 12, 1992. The Albert Pike "quotation"
in Robertson's The New World Order was exposed as a fraud. Rev.
Robertson was invited to read any of Albert Pike's writings at the House
of the Temple. Mr. Kleinknecht suggested that Rev. Robertson would better
serve his readers if he removed the false quotation from any future
editions of his book. In his closing paragraph, Mr. Kleinknecht said
to Rev. Robertson, "If we must disagree let us base our disagreement
upon truth."(10) As of November 1, 1993, Rev. Robertson has not answered
Mr. Kleinknecht.
Before commenting
on the hoax, the complete quotation from Mr. de la Rive, a modern translation,
and its partial translation by Lady Queenborough are presented in parallel
columns for easy comparison.
Léo
Taxil's False Luciferian Quotation of Albert Pike:
Abel
Clarin de la Rive.
La Femme et L'Enfant dans la Franc-Maçonnerie Universelle.
Paris & Lyon: Delhomme & Briguet, Editeurs, 1894.
pp. 587-589
Le
quatorzième jour du cinquième mois de l'an 000889 de la Vraie Lumière
(Par conséquent le 14 juillet 1889, ère vulgaire) Albert Pike, Souverain-Grand-Inspecteur
Général, 33º et dernier degré; Très Puissant Souverain Commandeur
Grand-Maître du Suprême Conseil de Charleston, premier Suprême Conseil
du Globe; Grand Maître Conservateur du Palladium sacré; Souverain
Pontife de la Franc-Maçonnerie Universelle, en la trente-unième
[sic] année de son Pontificat, adressait aux 23 Suprêmes Conseils
Confédérés du monde entier ces diaboliques instructions dont nous
n'extrayons que les passages relatifs à la Femme:
«A la science
de Faust, le vrai Maçon joindra l'impassibilité de Job. Il piétinera
la supersitition dans son coeur. Il sera sans indécision et sans
caprices. Il n'acceptera le plaisir que losqu'il le voudra et
ne le voudra que losqu'il le devra.
«NOUS RECOMMANDONS TRÈS-INSTAMMENT DE MULTIPLIER LES LOGES D'ADOPTION.
ELLES SONT INDISPENSABLES POUR FORMER DES MAÇONS BIEN MAITRES
[sic] D'EUX-MÊMES. Le prêtre essaye de dompter sa chair
en s'astreignant au célibat.... Le vrai Maçon, au contraire, arrive
à la perfection, c'est-à-dire à se dominer, en employant son
zéle dans les Loges d'Adoption à se soumettre aux épreuves naturelles.
LE COMMERCE AVEC LA FEMME COMMUNE A [sic] TOUS SES FRÈRES
LUI FAIT UNE CUIRASSE CONTRE LES PASSIONS QUI ÉGARENT LE CŒUR.
Celui-là seul peut vraiment posséder la volupté de l'amour, qui
a vaincu, par l'usage fréquent, l'amour de la volupté. Pouvoir,
à volonté, user et s'abstenir, c'est pouvoir deux fois. La femme
t'enchaîne par tes désirs, disons-nous à l'adepte; eh [sic]
bien, uses des femmes souvent et sans passion; tu deviendras ainsi
maître de tes désirs, et tu enchaîneras la femme. D'où il résulte
que le vrai Maçon parviendra facilement à résoudre le problème
de la chair...»
«Evidemment il n'est pas de nécessité absolue que l'homme que
vous allez diriger vers les hauts grades soit immédiatement parfait
et ait compris notre secret dès son entrée dans la Maçonnerie.
Ce que Nous vous demandons, c'est de l'observer, avec le plus
grand soin pendant son Apprentissage, d'abord, et de faire
ensuite, de la Loge d'Adoption, où il pénétrera quand il sera
Compagnon, VOTRE CRITERIUM, VOTRE INSTRUMENT DE CONTROLE INFAILLIBLE.
»
L'Atelier de Frères, qui ne s'annexe pas une loge de Surs,
est un Atelier incomplet, destiné fatalement à ne jamais produire
que des Maçons, dont la politique sera le principal souci, qui
se préoccuperont surtout des intrigues et des compétitions, qui
s'agiteront dans le vide, qui avanceront tantôt de trois pas pour
reculer après d'autant, en un mot, qui feront du mauvais travail
et dont la politique sera incohérente.»
... ...
Ce que nous
devons dire à la foule, c'est: --Nous adorons un Dieu, mais c'est
le Dieu qu l'on adore sans superstition.
A vous, Souverains
Grands Inspecteurs Généraux, Nous disons, pour que vous le répétiez
aux Frères des 32º, 31º et 30º degrés: --La religion maçonnique
doit dire, par nous tous, initiés des hauts grades, maintenue
dans la pureté de la doctraine LUCIFÉRIENNE.»
... ...
«Si Lucifer
n'était point Dieu, Adonaï, (le Dieu des Chrétiens) dont tous
les actes attestent la cruauté, la perfidie, la haine de l'homme,
la barbarie, la répulsion pour la science, si Lucifer n'était
point Dieu, Adonaï et ses prêtres le calomnieraient-ils?
«Oui, Lucifer
est Dieu, et malheureusement Adonaï l'est aussi. Car la loi éternelle
est qu'il n'y a pas de splendeur sans ombre, pas de beauté sans
laideur, pas de blanc sans noir, car l'absolu ne peut exister
que comme deux; car les ténèbres sont nécessaires à la lumière
pour lui servir de repoussoir, comme le piédestal est nécessaire
à la statue, come le frein à la locomotive.
«En dynamique
analogique et universelle, on ne s'appuie que sur ce qui résiste.
Aussi l'univers est-il balancé par deux forces qui le maintiennent
en équilibre: la force qui attire et celle qui repousse. Ces deux
forces existent en physique, en philosophie et en religion. Et
la réalité scientifique du dualisme divin est démontrée par les
phénomènes de la polarité et par la loi universelle des sympathies
et des antipathies. C'est pourquoi les disciples intelligents
de Zoroastre, ainsi qu'après eux les Gnostiques, les Manichéens,
les Templiers ont admis, comme seule conception métaphysique logique,
le système des deux principles divins se combattant de toute éternité,
et l'on ne peut croire l'un inférieur à l'autre en puissance.
Donc, la
doctrine du Satinisme est une hérésie; et la vraie et pure religion
philosophique, c'est la croyance en Lucifer, égal d'Adonaï,
mais Lucifer Dieu de Lumière et Dieu du Bien, luttant pour l'humanité
contre Adonaï Dieu des Ténèbres et Dieu du Mal....»
Dans une
autre partie de ses Instructions, Albert Pike disait encore:
«C'est avec
le plus grand soin qu'il est nécessaire de choisir les adeptes.
Dans beucoup d'orients, on les prend trop au hasard; aussi tardons-nous
à atteindre le but.
«Ne conférez
la Maîtrise qu'au Compagnon qui se connait lui-mème. Sur le fronton
des anciens temples érigés au Dieu de la Lumière, on lisait cette
inscription en deux mots: «Connaistoi.» Nous donnons le même conseil
à tout homme qui veut s'approcher de la science.
«N'initiez
jamais au troisième degré l'homme qui, malgré les enseignements
reçus aux deux grades précédents, est demeuré esclave des préjugés
du monde profane. Il ne parviendra jamais tant qu'il ne se
réformera pas. Au grade le Compagnon, vous lui ouvre: les portes
des Loges d'Adoption; là, vous le jugerez bien. Vou verrez si
ses préjugés tombent. S'il reste esclave de ses passions,
s'il s'attache exclusivement a une femme, ne vous préoccupez plus
de lui, vous perdriez votre temps. Il ne saurait être un adepte;
car le mot «adepte» signifie celui qui est parvenu par
sa volonté et par ses uvres, qui méprise les préjugés et qui
triomphe de ses passions.»*
*Ce fut la
Sur Diana Vaughan qu'Albert Pike, --afin de lui donner
la plus grande marque de confiance, --chargea d'apporter son
encyclique luciférienne, à Paris, pendant l'Exposition Universelle.
|
Abel
Clarin de la Rive.
Woman and Child in Universal Freemasonry. Paris & Lyon:
Delhomme & Briguet, Editeurs, 1894.
[translated by Eric Serejski]
The
fourteenth day of the fifth month of the 889th year of True Light
(consequently July 14, 1889, of the vulgar era) Albert Pike, Sovereign
Grand Inspector General, 33rd and last degree; Most Puissant Sovereign
Commander Grand Master of the Supreme Council of Charleston, Premier
Supreme Council of the Globe; Grand Master Preserver of the sacred
Palladium; As Sovereign Pontiff of Universal Freemasonry, in the
thirty-first year of his Pontificate, he addressed to the 23 Confederated
Supreme Councils of the entire world these diabolic instructions
from which we extract only the passages related to Woman:
"To the science
of Faust, the True Mason will join the impassiveness of Job. He
will trample down superstition in his heart. He will be without
indecision and without whims, he will accept pleasure only when
he wants it and will want it only when he must."
"WE MOST EARNESTLY RECOMMEND INCREASING THE LODGES OF ADOPTION.
THEY ARE INDISPENSABLE FOR MAKING MASONS MASTERS OF THEMSELVES.
The priest tries to subdue his flesh by forcing himself to be
celibate.... The true Mason, on the contrary, reaches perfection,
which is to say control over himself, by using his zeal in
Lodges of Adoption, submitting himself to natural tests. COMMERCE
WITH A WOMAN BELONGING TO ALL HIS BROTHERS FORMS AN ARMOR AGAINST
PASSIONS THAT LEAD THE HEART ASTRAY. He alone can really possess
the voluptuousness of love, who vanquishes, by frequent usage,
the love of voluptuousness. To be able, at will, to use and to
abstain, is a two-fold power. Woman enslaves you by her desires,
we say to the adept; so use women often and without passion; you
will thus become master of your desires, and you will enslave
women. From this it results that the true Mason will easily resolve
the problem of the flesh."
"Evidently
it is not absolutely necessary that the man whom you will lead
to the highest grades has to be immediately perfect and has to
understand our secret from his entry into Masonry. What we ask
of you is first to observe him with the utmost care during his
Apprenticeship, and afterwards, in the Lodge of Adoption, where
he will enter when he will become a Fellow Craft, to make him,
YOUR CRITERION, YOUR INSTRUMENT OF INFALLIBLE CONTROL."
"The Lodge
of the Brethren which does not annex a Lodge of Sisters
is an incomplete Lodge inevitability destined to never produce
anything but Masons for whom politics will be the main concern,
who will mostly be engaged with intrigue and competition, who
will move about in emptiness, who will walk three steps forward
then three steps backward, in one word, whose work will be unsatisfactory
and whose politics will be incoherent."
... ...
"What we
must say to the crowd is:--We worship a God, but it is the God
that one worships without superstition."
"To you,
Sovereign Grand Inspectors General, we say, so that you can repeat
it to the Brethren of the 32nd, 31st and 30th degrees: --The Masonic
religion must be, by all of us initiates of the high grades, maintained
in the purity of the LUCIFERIAN doctrine."
... ...
"If Lucifer
were not God, Adonai (the God of the Christians) whose deeds prove
his cruelty, perfidy and hatred of man, his barbarism and repulsion
of science, if Lucifer were not God, would Adonai and his priests
slander him?"
"Yes, Lucifer
is God, and unfortunately so is Adonai. For the eternal law is
that there is no splendor without shadow, no beauty without ugliness,
no white without black, because the absolute can only exist as
two, because darkness is necessary to light to serve as its compliment,
as the pedestal is necessary to the statue, as the brake to the
locomotive.
"In analogical
and universal dynamics, one can only lean on that which resists.
Thus the universe is balanced by two forces which maintain its
equilibrium: the force that attracts and the one that repels.
These two forces exist in physics, in philosophy and in religion.
And the scientific reality of the divine dualism is proved by
the phenomena of polarity and by the universal law of affinities
and antipathies. This is why the intelligent disciples of Zoroaster,
as well as, after them, the Gnostics, the Manicheans, and the
Templars have admitted as the sole logical and metaphysical conception
the system of the two divine principles fighting one another in
all eternity, and one cannot believe one inferior to the other
in power.
Thus, the
doctrine of Satanism is a heresy; and the true and pure philosophical
religion is the belief in Lucifer, equal to Adonai, but
Lucifer, God of Light and God of Good, is fighting for humanity
against Adonai God of Darkness and God of Evil...."
In another part of his Instructions, Albert Pike also said:
It is with
the greatest care that it is necessary to choose adepts. In many
orients, they are taken too much at random, which explains the
delay in reaching the goal."
"Only make a Master of the Fellow Craft who knows himself. On
the exterior of the ancient temples built to the God of Light,
one read this two-word inscription: 'Know thyself.' We give the
same advise to each man who wants to approach the science."
"Never initiate
to the third degree the man who, in spite of the learning received
at the two preceding degrees, remains enslaved to the prejudices
of the profane world. He will never approach before he reforms.
At the Fellow Craft degree open to him the doors of the Lodges
of Adoption; there you will well judge him. You will see if
his prejudices fall. If he remains enslaved of his passions, IF
HE EXCLUSIVELY BINDS HIMSELF TO A WOMAN, do not worry about him
anymore, you are losing your time. He cannot be an adept; because
the word "adept I despises who one deeds, his by and will arrived
signifies>prejudices and who triumphs over his passions."*
*It was the Sister Diana Vaughan that Albert Pike, --in
order to give her the greatest mark of confidence, --charged
to carry his luciferian encyclical, to Paris, during the Universal
Exposition.
|
Lady
Queensborough,
Edith Starr Miller.
Occult Theocrasy. 2 vols. 1933. Reprint. Hawthorne, Calif:
The Christian Book Club of America. 1980.
p. 233
As
regards the position of women in Masonry, we think that this cannot
be better explained than in the words of Albert Pike himself. In
La Femme et l'Enfant dans la Franc- Maçonnerie Universelle
page 578 [sic], A. C. De La Rive states that on July 14,
1889, Albert Pike, Sovereign Pontiff of Universal Freemasonry, addressed
to the 23 Supreme Confederated Councils of the world the following
instructions, which we quote herewith in part.
"To the science
of Faust, the real Mason will join the impassibility of Job. He
will eradicate superstition from his heart and cultivate decisions
of character. He will accept pleasure only when he wishes it and
will wish it only when he should do so.
"We earnestly recommend the creation of Lodges of Adoption. They
are indispensable to the formation of Masons who are indeed Masters
of themselves. The priest tries to subdue his flesh by enforced
celibacy.... The real Mason, on the contrary, reaches perfection,
that is to say achieves self mastery, by using his zeal in the
Lodges of Adoption in submitting to all natural ordeals. Commerce
with women, belonging to all brethren, forms for him an armor
against those passions which lead hearts astray. He alone can
really possess voluptuousness. To be able, at will, to use or
to abstain, is a twofold power. Woman fetters thee by thy desires,
we say to the adept, well, use women often and without passion;
thou wilt thus become master of thy desires, and thou wilt enchain
woman. From which it must perforce result that the real Mason
will succeed in easily solving the problem of the flesh.
"It is evidently
not absolutely necessary that the man whom you are leading towards
the high grades be immediately perfect and have understood our
secret on his entrance into Masonry. That which we ask you is
first to observe him with the greatest care during his apprenticeship
and afterwards, when he enters the Lodge of Adoption as Companion
to use that as your criterion, your instrument of infallible control.
"The Lodge
of Brothers which has failed to annex a Lodge of Sisters is incomplete
and destined inevitably never to produce anything but Brethren,
with whom politics are the chief concern, men who will be chiefly
preoccupied with intrigue and rivalry, who will do bad work and
whose politics will be incoherent."
pp. 220-221
The theological
dogma of Albert Pike is explained in the "Instructions" issued
by him, on July 14, 1889, to the 23 Supreme Councils of the world
and have been recorded by A. C. De La Rive in La Femme et l'Enfant
dans la Franc-Maçonnerie Universelle (page 588) from which
book we translate the quote as follows:
That which
we must say to the crowd is:--We worship a God, but it is the
God that one adores without superstition.
To you, Sovereign
Grand Inspectors General, we say this, that you may repeat it
to the Brethren of the 32nd, 31st and 30th degrees-The Masonic
religion should be, by all of us initiates of the high degrees,
maintained in the purity of the Luciferian doctrine.
... ...
"If Lucifer
were not God, would Adonay (the God of the Christians) whose deeds
prove his cruelty, perfidy, and hatred of man, barbarism and repulsion
for science, would Adonay and his priests, calumniate him?
"Yes, Lucifer
is God, and unfortunately Adonay is also God. For the eternal
law is that there is no light without shade, no beauty without
ugliness, no white without black, for the absolute can only exist
as two Gods: darkness being necessary to light to serve as its
foil as the pedestal is necessary to the statue, and the brake
to the locomotive.
"In analogical
and universal dynamics one can only lean on that which will resist.
Thus the universe is balanced by two forces which maintain its
equilibrium: the force of attraction and that of repulsion. These
two forces exist in physics, philosophy and religion. And the
scientific reality of the divine dualism is demonstrated by the
phenomena of polarity and by the universal law of sympathies and
antipathies. That is why the intelligent disciples of Zoroaster,
as well as, after them, the Gnostics, the Manicheans and the Templars
have admitted, as the only logical metaphysical conception, the
system of the two divine principles fighting eternally, and one
cannot believe the one inferior in power to the other.
"Thus, the
doctrine of Satanism is a heresy; and the true and pure philosophic
religion is the belief in Lucifer, the equal of Adonay; but Lucifer,
God of Light and God of Good, is struggling for humanity against
Adonay, the God of Darkness and Evil."
"One must
not lose sight of the fact that Pike occupied simultaneously the
positions of Grand Master of the Central Directory of Washington,
that of Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of Charleston and
that of Sovereign Pontiff of Universal Freemasonry.
|
There are several problems with this quotation, some obvious and some
subtle. To start with, about 1 million out of 2½ million American Masons
have the 32° in the Scottish Rite, including ministers, rabbis, bishops,
and other devout worshipers of God. It is inconceivable that there would
not be mass resignations and protests if these men were taught this
disgusting "Luciferian doctrine." Is it believable that the millions
of Scottish Rite Masons during the last two centuries could be cowed
into such total silence? Dr. Robert Morey, an opponent of Masonry, put
it well, "Since most Masons in the United States are members of Christian
churches and many clergymen belong to the Fraternity, the idea that
they are all involved in some kind of devil cult is absurd."(11)
Also, the quotation
is riddled with logical inconsistencies. There is not now and never
has been a position of "Sovereign Pontiff of Universal Freemasonry."
This office is Taxil's invention and alone demonstrates the letter is
a forgery. There is no "Confederation of Supreme Councils." Neither
Albert Pike, the Mother Supreme Council, nor any grand lodges ever recognized
any lodges of adoption (Masonic lodges open to men and women). In the
United States virtually every Scottish Rite Mason progresses to the
32°. Why would Albert Pike suggest special treatment for 30°, 31°, and
32° Masons, when that would have included nearly everyone?
The real evidence
of a hoax comes in de la Rive's footnote, which neither Lady Queenborough
nor anyone else has ever bothered quoting. The footnote refers to Diana
Vaughan, the matchless creation of Léo Taxil's twisted mind, who, despite
her illustrious pedigree created by Taxil, never existed.
*Ce fut la Sur
Diana Vaughan qu'Albert Pike,--afin de lui donner la plus
grande marque de confiance,--chargea d'apporter son encyclique
luciférienne, à Paris, pendant l'Exposition Universelle.
*It was the Sister
Diana Vaughan that Albert Pike,--in order to give her the greatest
mark of confidence,--charged to carry his luciferian encyclical,
to Paris, during the Universal Exposition.
The hoax is well known and
has been explained time and time again for nearly a century. The New
Catholic Encyclopedia says this about Léo Taxil.
Taxil purported
to reveal the existence of "Palladium," the most secret Masonic order,
which practiced devilworship. He recounted the story of its high priestess
Diana Vaughan; and ended by publishing the Mémoires d'une ex-Palladiste
after her conversion to Catholicism. When doubts began to spread,
Taxil realized the time had come to end the deceit. In a conference
in Paris (April 19, 1897), he cynically admitted his hoax, whose aim,
he said, was to hold up Catholicism to derision.(12)
After Taxil's public confession,
A. C. de la Rive expressed his disgust and recanted his writings on
Diana Vaughan in the April 1897 issue of Freemasonry
Unmasked, a magazine devoted to the destruction of the Craft.
As much as he hated Freemasonry, de la Rive had the integrity to admit
Taxil's hoax.
With frightening
cynicism the miserable person we shall not name here [Taxil] declared
before an assembly especially convened for him that for twelve years
he had prepared and carried out to the end the most extraordinary and
most sacrilegious of hoaxes. We have always been careful to publish
special articles concerning Palladism and Diana Vaughan. We are now
giving in this issue a complete list of these articles, which can now
be considered as not having existed.(13)
Figure
5. Cover of Woman and Child in
Universal Freemasonry, the most frequently quoted source
of the "Luciferian Doctrine" falsely attributed to Albert
Pike. Most of the quotes, however, have been plagiarized from
Edith Starr Miller's Occult Theocracy.
|
* * *
Morals
and Dogma
Few Masonic books have created
as many controversies as Albert Pike's Morals and
Dogma. It is a collection of thirty-two essays that represent
Pike's interpretation of the lessons of the Scottish Rite degrees. The
essays are largely concerned with the history of philosophy and with
man's constant search for God. First published in 1871, the book was
given to every 32° Mason in the Southern Jurisdiction for about a century;
hundreds of thousands of copies have been distributed. It is now out
of print, though widely available in used book stores.(14)
Morals and
Dogma is not available only from a "secret publishing house,"(15) it is not "the Bible of the Masons,"(16) nor is it "the most readily available and universally
approved doctrinal book of Freemasonry."(17) It is not even widely distributed or read. It is
used only by the Supreme Council 33°, Southern Jurisdiction, which in
1871 had far less than 5% of American Masons as members and in 1993
claims only 20%.
The preface gives
the best understanding of how Pike and all succeeding Supreme Councils
have viewed his book.
The teachings
of these Readings are not sacramental, so far as they go beyond the
realm of Morality into those of other domains of Thought and Truth.
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite uses the word "Dogma" in its
true sense, of doctrine, or teaching; and is not dogmatic
in the odious sense of that term. Every one is entirely free
to reject and dissent from whatsoever herein may seem to him to be
untrue or unsound. It is only required of him that he shall weigh
what is taught, and give it fair hearing and unprejudiced judgement.
Of course, the ancient theosophic and philosophic speculations are
not embodied as part of the doctrines of the Rite; but because
it is of interest and profit to know what the Ancient Intellect thought
upon these subjects, and because nothing so conclusively proves the
radical difference between our human and the animal nature, as the
capacity of the human mind to entertain such speculations in regard
to itself and the Deity.(18)
This is not the way to introduce
the ultimate authority on any subject. Anti-Masons choose to ignore
the clear intent of the book and to distort Pike's personal opinions
into the absolute truth for all Masons.
One of the most
frequently quoted passages by anti-Masons from Morals and Dogma
concerns Pike's theory that symbolic lodges exist to hide the true secrets
of Masonry from the masses.
The Blue Degrees
[1º-3º] are but the outer court or portico of the Temple. Part of
the symbols are displayed there to the Initiate, but he is intentionally
misled by false interpretations. It is not intended that he shall
understand them; but it is intended that he shall imagine he understands
them. Their true explication is reserved for the Adepts, the Princes
of Masonry. . . . It is well enough for the mass of those called Masons,
to imagine that all is contained in the Blue Degrees. . . . (19)
Anti-Masons would have us
believe this passage is a public admission of the deceptions imposed
on most Masons by the "leaders" of the Craft. Common sense is again
thrown out the window. Why would such a damaging "secret" doctrine be
printed in a widely available book? With hundreds of thousands of copies
distributed, shouldn't some blue lodge Masons have caught on by now?
Anyone, like Pike, is free to think he knows the true interpretation
of Masonic symbolism, but it will remain his personal opinion. Only
grand lodges have the authority to interpret the symbolism of the blue
lodge, and they are not inclined to yield to any other power.
Pike was simply
repeating one of the currently popular theories about the origins of
the "high degrees." Just because Albert Pike was a brilliant ritualist,
an able administrator, and a well-respected Mason doesn't mean all of
his opinions are right. The Masonic encyclopedist, Henry Wilson Coil,
offers a good summary of the influences on Albert Pike's Masonic writings.
Fate decided
that Pike should enter the Scottish Rite only four years after he
became a Mason and before he had time or occasion thoroughly to study
the history of all branches of the Society and, so, he began his study
from the upper levels without knowing much of the foundation. He evidently
did not know until his later life that the Scottish Rite degrees were
a part of that type of ritual which sprang up in France in 1737 and
subsequent years but regarded it as Primitive Masonry which had come
right on down from Greece, Asia Minor, and Egypt and out of the Ancient
Mysteries and Magism, which there held sway. He found books which
said so and he never had any doubt about that theory. He regarded
Craft Masonry as then known to be puerile, though he said it had a
deeper meaning which was hidden from its superficial adepts, who were
taught to be satisfied with trite explanations. He even asserted that
Craft Masonry had been devised so as not only to hide its true meaning
but to cause its members to think that they understood it. [Albert
G.] Mackey encouraged him in those notions, for he, too, had been
made a Mason only four years before he began writing books on the
subject, in which he adopted the more sensational theories of mystery
and symbolism. But Mackey changed his views as soon as the work of
the British realistic school began to be felt. Pike did not waver;
his work was nearly complete and too voluminous to be done over. (20)
* * *
FOOTNOTES
1.
Robert A. Morey, The Truth About Masons, (Eugene Oreg.: Harvest
House Publishers, 1993), p. 21.
2.
Robert A. Morey, p. 22.
3.
"Freemasonry on Its Own Terms," The John Ankerberg Show, DM-170, 1986.
4.
James L. Holly, The Southern Baptist Convention and Freemasonry,
Vol. II (Beaumont, Tex.: Mission and Ministry to Men, 1992),
pp. 46-51.
5.
Robert A. Morey, p. 21.
6.
Robert A. Morey, p. 23.
7.
James L. Holly, The Southern Baptist Convention and Freemasonry
(Beaumont, Tex.: Mission and Ministry to Men, 1992), p. 19.
8.
Martin Short, Inside the Brotherhood (New York: Dorset, 1989),
pp. 94-95.
9.
Jack T. Chick, The Curse of Baphomet, Chino, Calif: Chick Publications,
1991, p. [10]. The general level of Mr. Chick's writing can be
inferred by these comments on what he has written about Roman Catholicism.
"[O]n the whole we feel that Chick Publications does more harm than
they do good. Because of its lack of scholarship and, more importantly,
Christian sympathy we can only conclude that Chick Publications promotes
what can be called 'Comic-book theology,' something Christians ought
to definitely avoid." (Hendrik H. Hanegraaff, "Chick Publications and
Roman Catholicism," CRI Perspective, CP-0809 [San Juan Capistrano:
Christian Research Institute, n.d.]).
10.
C. Fred Kleinknecht, Washington, to Pat Robertson, Virginia Beach, Va.,
May 12, 1992, Typescript, Copy in the Archives of the Supreme Council
33º, S.J., Washington.
11.
Robert Morey, p. 23.
12.
R. Limouzin-Lamothe, New Catholic Encyclopedia, s.v. "Taxil,
Leo." Even with Taxil's exposure of the twin hoaxes of Diana Vaughan
and the Palladium, entrepreneurs still try to sell this stale story
to the gullible. "I was brought into Palladium Lodge (Resurrection,
#13) in Chicago in the late 1970's and received the degree of 'Paladin'
in that Lodge in 1981. . . ." (William Schnoebelen, Masonry:
Beyond the Light, [Chino, Calif.: Chick Publications, 1991], p. 194.)
It is interesting to note that Mr. Schnoebelen has combined two distinct
and unrelated ideas in his tale, though both use similar sounding words.
Palladium refers to a small statue of Pallas Athena which
was thought to protect the city of Troy. Paladin is a type of
European knight descended from Charlemagne's Counts Palatine.
13.
Quoted in Alec Mellor, Strange Masonic Stories (Richmond, Va.:
Macoy Publishing & Masonic Supply Co., Inc., 1982), p. 151.
14.
While there are no plans to reprint Morals and Dogma, The Supreme
Council 33º, S.J., has recently published two books to help readers
better understand Pike's often dense prose: Rex R. Hutchens and Donald
W. Monson, The Bible in Albert Pike's "Morals and Dogma" (Washington:
The Supreme Council 33º, 1992) and Rex R. Hutchens, A Glossary to
"Morals and Dogma" (Washington: The Supreme Council 33º, 1993).
The Supreme Council 33º, S.J., sells used copies of Morals and Dogma
when they can be obtained.
15.
Ron Carlson, Freemasonry and the Masonic Lodge, preached by the
author, audio cassette (Eden Prairie, Minn.: Christian Ministries International,
n.d.), side 2, 34:18. N.B. The times listed are measured from the
beginning of the audio and may vary slightly depending on the equipment
used.
16.
Ron Carlson, side 1, 4:41.
17.
J. Edward Decker, Jr., The Question of Freemasonry (Issaquah,
Wash.: Free the Masons Ministries, n.d.), p. 3.
18.
Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish
Rite of Freemasonry, rev. ed. (Washington: Supreme Council 33°,
S.J., 1950), p. iv, emphasis added.
19.
Albert Pike, p. 819.
20.
Coil, s.v. "Pike, Albert."
Chapter
Two: Anti-Masonry in the Electronic Age
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