I one of the greatest objections which has
been lodged against Freemasonry by its opponents lies in the charge
that it is a secret society, conducting its affairs behind closed
doors and keeping its acts from the public. In all ages of the
world there have been those who have looked with jealous eyes
upon that which was not fully revealed to them. They have made
all select meetings an ob
ject of vicious attack. Particularly has this been the case in
monarchial forms of government, especially in those countries
where both church and state have exercised supreme control over
the individual and his acts. It is true that in most foreign countries
Freemasonry has been more or less under the surveillance of the
state and this is one reason why the fraternity has oft'times
sought as its chief executive, the ruler of the nation because
it was felt that his membership in the society not only contributed
to its prestige, but gave him every opportunity to judge of its
worth and the character and nature of its efforts.
It cannot be denied that in various periods of the world the fraternity has been used by designing men for political purposes and prior to the war of 1914, in several European countries where the fraternity maintained a precarious existence it was under the constant observation of state authorities lest its members should become involved in intrigue and conspiracy agains government. For this reason with the exception possibly of England, Masonry in foreign countries has never had a proper opportunity to develop to its highest point of efficiency. It has been obliged to conduct its affairs with the utmost circumspection in order that it might be permitted to exist. It is likewise true that in other periods of the world when opposition to the society on the part of state authorities has been strongest it has found itself obliged to practice the utmost secrecy, otherwise it could not hold meetings and its members would have been sent into exile. In Germany where the secret service of the state has been most complete, the development of Freemasonry has been dwarfed and as a result we find in that country as many as eight Grand Lodges with the fraternity lacking coordinated effort by reason of the disorganized condition of the Craft and the lodges themselves nothing more or less than social clubs wherein the esoteric part of the society is lightly considered. In France, Masonry has assumed political character due largely to the intense hatred of the French people against the Jesuits. This is equally true in all strong Roman Catholic countries where Masons have banded together to fight against the union of Church and State and to uphold those principles of Freedom and right for which the society has ever contended.
It is extremely difficult at the present
time to gain proper recognition for Freemasonry and to convince
the uninitiated that it is anything but a secret society indulging
in fantastical rites and ceremonies and organized solely for the
benefit of the individual members. Such an idea, how
ever is erroneous and one of the problems of the fraternity is
to how best divest the public mind of the idea that Freemasonry
is in any sense a secret society, but that it is rather an institution
or society organized for moral, social, and intellectual uplift.
The old operative guilds of the Middle Ages to which Freemasonry owes its origin were not secret societies. They were organizations of workmen and whatever secrecy they maintained related to the principles of their trade with possibly such means of recognition as had been adopted by the members to make themselves known to one another. During the gradual transition when Freemasonry was slowly passing from an operative society of workmen to an association of gentlemen, it is apparent that the element of secrecy commenced to develop as the society advanced. So that in the year 1717 when the Grand Lodge of England was formed, lodges were meeting behind closed doors and whatever rites, ceremonies, and customs were being used it is evident that it was intended they should be unknown to any except those who were regularly approved and admitted as members of the society. From that day to the present, the fraternity has been disposed to throw about its acts a certain amount of secrecy and has maintained no little circumspection concerning its transactions as well as its membership. One hundred years ago, every means was taken to prevent the public from knowing anything about the fraternity or its affairs, and it was a difficult matter to find out who were members of a lodge. Even nights of meeting were jealously guarded. The whole idea seemed to be to impress the world of the profane with the importance of the society by maintaining a high degree of secrecy. All acts of charity were especially guarded, and were usually performed tinder the cover of night. When a brother became the recipient of the generosity of a lodge, or his brothers, no information was vouchsafed to him and lie was left to his own conjectures as to where his gifts might have come. These customs were simply the result of changing habits which the fraternity acquired from time to time and were due in part to the hostility of persons who provoked Masons to be very secretive about everything that they said and did.
But as the fraternity has proceeded in its evolution, the old idea of iron bound secrecy has been giving way to a broader conception of the institution because members of the society are coming more and more to recognize that the fraternity was never designed to be in any sense a secret organization, but rather, its conception is that of an institution laboring among men for the moral and social advancement of the human family. The better Freemasonry is understood, the more the conviction deepens that it has within it latent elements which prophesy its development into a world force.
In the present age there is but little about the Masonic fraternity that is secret. Its times and places of meeting are known to all. Its objects and purposes are acknowledged; they are extolled upon the platform and commented on in the public press. There is no secrecy about its charities for in every jurisdiction there stand magnificent institutions, homes, and asylums, informing the world that the fraternity is ever mindful of the poor and indigent member.
The history of the fraternity is available to the public. Volumes have been written upon its symbolism; monitors have been published, in which much of the ritualistic work has been promulgated, and outside of a few rites and ceremonies, some grips, and passwords of merely traditional interest there is little concerning the fraternity which is not known to the public.
But there are those who object to even the small degree of secrecy which the fraternity maintains and who never lose an opportunity to make it the basis of bitter attacks. But the secrecy of Masonry is simply that universal secrecy which is recognized the world over. It is merely the secrecy of the lawyer to his client, the minister to the penitent, the physician to the patient, or of friend to friend. Trustworthy confidence is the glory of man. There is secrecy connected with everything that is valuable. It pervades all social, domestic, and official relations of men. It is a requisite of existence, and without it, family, commercial, national, and international relations would be greatly imperiled if not destroyed.
The Bible teaches secrecy by declaring that "the secret of the Lord is with him that fears Him." Secrecy prevails in all of God's work as the Creator of the universe. The revelation to Moses in the burning bush was secret. The Lord's Prayer was instituted in secrecy. The Bible directs that each shall enter his closet and close his door when he prays, and that when he gives alms to let not his left hand know what his right hand doeth, that his Heavenly Father who knoweth in secret may reward him openly.
The world about is full of secrecy. The astronomer is still looking for the secret of creation. The geologist is searching the rocks for the power that laid the foundations of the earth. The chemist is watching the forces of nature in an effort to discover the secret of life. Nature works behind closed doors and wherever we go we find secrecy.
Many of the same people who are making - complaints concerning the secrecy which Masonry observes, practice it every day of their lives by writing letters to friends and then sealing them against the scrutiny of prying eyes. They call on neighbors and privately transact business with them. The merchant records the cost of his various wares in hieroglyphics known only to himself, and let it not be forgotten that every family closet has a skeleton.
The world can have, no personal interest in those things which Masons do when they gather in their assemblages behind closed doors. When the great Peace Conference assembled at Versailles in the year 1919, its discussions were conducted in secret. It was only after much veiled deliberation that certain statutes were finally agreed upon and given to the public. The secrecy which Masonry maintains is merely that which is practiced by all individuals. What right has the world to know of the fallen brother who has been placed upon his feet; the widow who has been sustained in her hour of need; or the orphan who has been educated at the expense of the fraternity, and yet this is part of the secrecy of Freemasonry and it is maintained that the society may not appear either vain-glorious, or boastful.
The secrecy which Masonry practices is merely ended as a safeguard to the institution in order that it may have proper security. Freemasonry is a secret society only so far as its signs, legends, traditions, and methods of teaching its science of morality are concerned. As to its design, its object, its moral and religious tenets, its various doctrines, it is just as open as any society or assemblage of men.
In the year 1848, in the National Assembly of France, an interpretation was sought of that portion of the law relating to secret societies. After much investigation, the conclusion was reached that Freemasonry was not a secret society; that a society might have a secret and yet not be a secret society. As a result of lengthy discussions, a secret society was interpreted to be one which seeks to conceal its existence and its objects.
As Freemasonry slowly evolves, it is gradually
eliminating itself from the charge of being a secret society for
the reason that much of the atmosphere of secrecy which distinguished
it in the years through which it has passed is being dispelled
and with the effort to make the fraternity of some practical value
in the world there is gradually coming a desire to have it better
understood and to secure for it proper recognition as an institution
which, while maintaining an element of retirement sufficient to
lift it out of the common place and preserve it from being regarded
as of a light and trivial character, is in its efforts toward
moral and social betterment in no sense either secretive or clandestine.
Back to History and Evolution of Freemasonry [ Next ] [ Previous ]
