The Realities of Today’s Freemason
Throughout 18th century Europe a growing dissatisfaction with the church
inspired a group of men to begin a fraternity, based on spiritual and moral values that
epitomize a good member of society. Inspired by the medieval guilds of stonemasons, the
ritual craft of Freemasonry was officially born in England, 1717. “Masonry is defined as
a fraternity of men bound together by vows of morality in public and private life that
believe in God, and respect the different choices of religious and political orientations
from its members”1. Common to organized religions, all Freemasons believe in a higher
power, which ultimately debases the ego of humanity, encouraging humility and the
brotherhood of man for its members, naturally rejecting atheism.
To conduct ethnographic research on Freemasonry I willingly became a member
of a lodge called Wellington/Allenby No.89. Joining involved approaching a committee
and declaring my intentions as a possible candidate. After three friendly interviews with
different members of the community known as a lodge, and an official vote conducted
during Masonic proceedings, I was accepted candidacy as an Entered Apprentice
Freemason.
The details of the induction ceremony cannot be addressed here due to the nature
of the Masonic craft, but I can tell you its intense and quite memorable. As the centre of
attention, digesting the experience was a bit overwhelming. The following night I was
privileged enough to watch someone undergo the same ritual I had just experienced
inside the main Masonic temple of Montreal. Only then did I begin to understand the
great capacity of Freemasonry, as I watched a young man join the same lodge of his
deceased fatherwith hopes of continuing the tradition. The ceremony was an emotional
1
Masonic Study Group (2002) St. George’s Lodge No.10.
one, in which memories of his father by several members were shared among the
community. As a son of a Mason, the apprentice was offered a special pin, which
signifies an unbroken line of Masonic kinship. Although Freemasonry is glad to accept
new members in its body, the concept of upholding the tradition from father to son is
highly valued and duly praised. As a new member of the fraternity yet still unsure of
what it all meant, observing the ritual gave me a sense of familiarity. That very feeling
over time is what bonds Freemasons. Complete strangers can come together in a crowded
room and bond over the recognition of their membership and shared experiences. As the
Entered Apprentice stood in frozen awe at a room full of men who at some point in their
lives, had also undergone the same ritual; a voice in the proceedings grabbed his
attention, and mine. It said, “It is not reasonable to expect that you should at first sight
penetrate the outer or allegorical symbols, but I trust you will make it your business, as a
Mason, to arrive at these hidden meanings2.
Freemasonry is a fraternity with a rich tradition of exclusive semiotics veiled in
allegory, that embody the nature of the craft. Due to this secretive temperament, much
anti-Masonic sentiment has spawned a wealth of misinformation that without knowing
better, could be considered as truth. Freemasonry in Canada is not a secret society,
I strongly recommend for those who are honestly interested in the order, to contact their
local Masonic community through the Yellow Pages.
2
Ethnographic field notes on St. George’s Lodge No.10