h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I know from personal experience that the freemasons effectively works as an old boys network or some might side corrupt network of back slappers.

Fundamental questions remain unanswered such as why the senior ranks of the Police Force are almost entirely filled with members of the Freemasons and why better candidates get looked over. For example the position of Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has permanently been held by a mason preventing the possibility of a female or muslim holder of the office for example. I'm sure the masons do a lot of good, but a lot of the behaviour is simply archaic and not in keeping with the principles of liberal democracy, although you'd be a fool to think this was ever going to be otherwise.

There may well be elements of an old boys network in Freemasonary but I would imagine that it is similar to the old school tie and that friendships are borne out of Freemasonary. However, I have only heard anecdotle evidence of this and most of that centres around the police force.

As a Freemason I took an obligation to do favours for my Bretheren but only if those favours were just and legal and within my means. Therefore giving someone a job just because they are a Freemason goes against the princples of the Craft and should be frowned upon.

As the author states, Freemasonary is about self improvement and benevolance (and not just to other Freemasons) and any candidate who joins for for career advancement or other mercenary reasosn will be sorely dissappointed.

As for your point about Muslims not being able to join, Freemasonary asks that you believe in a supreme diety, not a Christian God.

So is there a large muslim-freemason population these days?

The image of freemasons I have, based on knowing a number is of a middle aged or older, white male and largely but not exclusively middle class social climber.

My Grandfather was a mason but the free was a bit of a misnomer.He charged a lot for his headstones .
Personally I am just a little bit tired of pointing fingers at the free masons.The stranglehold the Mothers Union have on almost every church parish in the country needs investigating.And what are those rotarians all about?

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RE: the religion of Masons

From: A789294, Freemasonry - the United Grand Lodge of England
"Despite what you may have heard elsewhere, Freemasonry is not a religion; members come from many different faiths and creeds. For this reason, the book on which members take oaths (primarily never to reveal any of the secrets or mysteries of Masonry) is referred to as the 'VSL' (Volume of the Sacred Law). For a Methodist or a Catholic this would be the Bible (although each has different versions), but for a Muslim it would be the Qur'an and so on. Additionally, it should be stated that The United Grand Lodge of England is a non-political society, as is Freemasonry generally."

P.S.
while your at it both articles would benefit form a link to
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/freemasons/default.stm

Freemasonry as presented in the article is unfeasibly altruistic. We do good to our friends, but not at all to the detriment of anyone else... how possible is that?

I make a point of never joining clubs that only take good guys. Corruption guaranteed.

Even a mildly secret society is still a secret society. The Roman Catholic church is currently suffering the results of some of its secret-society-like behaviour coming out in public -- and it's not as though it is a malevolent corporation, just a corporation doing what corporations do, protecting its members. All fine so long as you don't simultaneously preach altruism.

"Freemasonry is as sinister as the flower arranging group at your local church!" is a case of "methinks the lady doth protest too much". And anyway according to the Rev Lesley that also can be pretty sinister.

Q. Is there a rule in h2g2 about claiming titles? Can I also call myself The Rev in order to rev up my cred?

~The highly revved Recumbentman

Freemasonry, so far as I can tell is altruistic, while I cant comment on how individual members behave towards each other or towards non-members the amount they give to charity is a matter of record. In A789294 I mention that the United Grand Lodge of England have raised over £75 million for charitable causes in the five-year period up to 2002.

... and for the record I am NOT nor have I ever been a Freemason.

Firstly I should point out that I am not a freemason.

I am sure that there is no grand masonic conspiracy. It's just a fact that wherever people gather together and share experiences (fan clubs, golf clubs, congregations etc.) contacts are made. if I want a plumber, why not approach someone I know, trust and will see me regularly in future?

Theres a bit more to it than that.My friends were educated by the masons after their Mother was widowed.Schools like Charterhouse,I mean.

thats fom a fund that all masons pay into - I suppposse it is a form of life insurance? There is also the Royal Masonic Hospital for those that need medical treatment but I see nothing sinister about either item's.

I think it was the fact that they swore on something other than the bible that was considered to be fishy.In the same way as I as a good Protestant was told to beware of the Catholic Church,the Mormons,Jehovahs Witnesses,Moonies,New Age Pagans,Seventh Day Adventists,Moslems,Jews,Hindus,Humanists and Satanists.The Bible was the Living Word of God and everyone else was misled.

again I quote from A789294

"Despite what you may have heard elsewhere, Freemasonry is not a religion; members come from many different faiths and creeds. For this reason, the book on which members take oaths (primarily never to reveal any of the secrets or mysteries of Masonry) is referred to as the 'VSL' (Volume of the Sacred Law). For a Methodist or a Catholic this would be the Bible (although each has different versions), but for a Muslim it would be the Qur'an and so on. Additionally, it should be stated that The United Grand Lodge of England is a non-political society, as is Freemasonry generally."

Yes that was it,that was the objection the church had to it.

I hate it when people just say "the church", there is a multitude of Christian (and non-Christian) faiths and they do not always speak as one. Specifically though, you did cast aspersions on the holy book used by the Masons as the section I quoted demonstrated a member of the freemasons would use the holy book appropriate to their own faith thus dispelling your aspersions.

It gets interesting when debaters start getting heated. Do I detect a slight hum between Lady L and Happy Dude? And they started out agreeing so nicely with each other.

Nobody's answered my objections though. My dad was a Mason and he said they did charitable things, which clearly they do, but that's not the point. Point is: exclusivity of any sort is basically evil (in biblical terms), anti-social (in old terms) or anti-democratic in current terms. I would say it contravenes the rule of indifference as John Rawls proposed it (that a society is only good if it makes no difference which level of it you are born into, imagining you had a choice). Secret or exclusive societies short-circuit the equality that the use of language bestows on people, though the flowering of that equality has not yet come to pass. In short, Not A Good Thing.

~The getting-warm Recumbentman

"Secret or exclusive societies"

The United Grand Lodge of England is not a secret society, at least no more than any other members-only group. Its headquarters can be found at Freemasons' Hall, Great Queen Street, London, and its website at www.grandlodge-england.org. Its telephone number is in the phonebook – not very secret at all really. It is however a private society - meetings are open only to members - and a membership list is not published, so perhaps this is where the confusion lies. It should also be said that Freemasons are nowadays encouraged to speak freely about their membership and, in situations where a perceived conflict of interest may arise, Freemasons should declare their membership of the lodge.

Now I admit that does not deal with the charge of exclusivity, but it is probably a lot less exclusive than most golf clubs being open to all (yes all, there are also Freemasonry societies for women) regardless of Faith (other than one must have a faith), Colour or Rank.

__________
I must add that I find it somewhat strange as a non-freemason to be in the position of providing the defence arguments for Freemasonry

Yes... thank you HappyDude, a bit cooler now...

{Still muttering though (see posting 8)}