Tour of Freemasons’ Hall
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Tour of Freemasons’ Hall including the museum.
Freemasons’ Hall stands on a site that has been used to hold meetings for Freemasons since 1775. Completed in 1933 as a memorial to the thousands of Freemasons who died in the First World War, Freemasons’ Hall is recognised as one of the finest Art Deco buildings in England.
The Curator has agreed to let us see the two splendid silver gilt loving cups which were originally the property of the now defunct United Wards’ Lodge which are now in the Masonic museum. When the lodge closed in 2001 the ownership of the cups was transferred to the Club and it would be good to see them. The Curator will do short ‘show and tell’ with the cups and a few other City related items including things made from buildings lost or damaged in the Blitz.
After the tour we will go for supper in a nearby restaurant.
Some background before you visit:
Freemasonry is a blueprint for living to your full potential.
Currently, it has over 6 million members worldwide who share the belief in the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of mankind.
When it comes to secret societies, Freemasonry emerges in mind.
However, according to Margaret Jacob, the UCLA history professor, this common belief isn’t correct. It is indeed not a religion either.
As part of the President’s theme on religious tollerance this visit will hopfully hight the bringing together of people from different religions, Christian, Jews, Muslim, Hindu, Sikhs for example in the Indian sub continent during the British Raj period.
Freemasonry is all about uniting men of good character, even if they are from different ethnic or social backgrounds.
Though no one exactly knows when Freemasonry was formed, a widely accepted belief is it started during the middle ages, particularly from the cathedral building.
However, with the decline of cathedral buildings, they started to accept honorary members in their circles to bolster their presence.
Before we reveal the beliefs of Freemasons, first it is pertinent to comprehend a few things:
- There isn’t any controlling authority over Freemasonry.
- It has local organizations, known as lodges.
- All lodges follow the same principles, but their activities can be different.
- It has three major degrees – Entered Apprentice, Fellow of The Craft, and Master Mason.
- It also has groups that are social and recreational in character.
- The Illuminati are completely unrelated to Freemasonry.
- Masonic brothers support one another on a grand scale.
It is imperative to perceive all these key things in order to understand the beliefs of Freemasons since most people think this organization compels you to change your faith, family, or occupation… This isn’t the case at all.
Freemasonry, in fact, reminds you of yourself, your family, and your community.
In a way, it makes you care for each other and your communities, and it also keeps your faith in the Supreme Architect.
For that reason, Atheists and Agnostics aren’t welcome in this society. It is not a religion, therefore it doesn’t have any so-called ‘Core Beliefs’.
Freemasonry is a ‘Fraternity’, in which a group of people shares a common interest. You have a friendship and mutual support within a group. For that reason, it won’t be correct to say ‘Beliefs’.
Instead, it is better to say, it has three principles :
Brotherly Love, Relief, and Truth.
In order to join the fraternity, one must believe in the existence of a Supreme Being.
This simply means that one must believe there is something beyond this material world, whether it be God or an unknown force. One must believe there is a hidden answer to existence.
This means that no matter which religion one follows one can still become a Freemason since all religions are based on the assumption that there is something greater than us, the Grand Architect of it all.
People who do not actually follow any religion can still join Freemasonry if they believe there is an omnipresent entity, which Freemasons call the Great Architect of the Universe.
Even if one is not sure what they believe this supreme presence is they can still become Freemasons, so following a religion is not necessary.