The Anti Masonic PartyJoin now to read essay The Anti Masonic PartyJames DAnti-Masonic party 1A group of men joined together for fellowship, who may share the same beliefs, work, or way of life is how Websters New World defines the word Fraternity. In many cases, fraternities are concentrated a great deal at institutions of higher learning, thus forming cohesive bonds with men for extended periods of time. Various aspects of the individual fraternity define the role and responsibility of that group, to where a person can identify with the ideals, and determine if gaining membership would enhance their position. Many of these groups, during the 19th century were very much on the surface, but other such as the Skull & Bones and the Freemasons were viewed as secret societies of exclusivity, leading to suspicion and intrigue by many in attempts to discover the meaning, cause, and creed of these various organizations. The oldest fraternity of the two (or in the world for that matter) the Freemasons had a special interest with many due to political leaders and influential citizens who gained membership into the order. The founding fathers of the United States organized and established documents of Independence and later a Constitution to form a more perfect union had another commonality, and that was of the Masonic Order. Natural resentment and theories of conspiracy were very apparent (as in present day affairs with the “New World Order/Masonic Illuminati” phenomenon) due to the political and bourgeoisie aristocracy that were associated with the Freemasons during this time. With a level of interest so intense with mystique, many attempted to infiltrate the order by way of fraudulent practice with legitimate Freemasons in an effort to divulge “secrets” about the order.
Some forms of anti-Freemasonry stems from the Catholic Church who initially supported the ideals of the organization, but later denounced the same ideal and persecuted many who were members. To further promote anti-Masonic behavior, many types of literature and propaganda were generated to give the public more reason to distrust the current membership. Under authority of Pope Pius IX in the 1870’s, a gentleman by the name of Leo Taxil emerged as the anti-Masonic spokesperson on behalf of the church. The chief requirement for admission into a Masonic Lodge is to profess belief in Deity otherwise the initiation could not be conferred. Taxil, an avid atheist, was
2Blackballed due to his “lack of belief” and thus ending his drive for membership. Having downplayed the Masonic order and various aspects of the Catholic Church, Taxil rescinded his unkind attitude toward the Church and took on a partnership with Pope Pius IX. It was during this time that the claim of Masonic and Luceferian ideologies (introduced by Taxil) coincided and the Masonic Origins were determined by Taxil to be of Lucifer. Because of his attempt at admission, then refusal, Taxil set out to write propaganda based on a devil worshipping society that he “observed”, and the intercepting of speeches written by influential Masons. Modifying of these texts signed by Masonic leaders and converted to talks of devil worship was extreme, but was a catalyst for the anti-Masonic movement. As the public digested the works brought forth from Taxil, many challenges started to arise regarding the validity of his findings. With regards to the document intercepted from the leadership of the organization, Taxil attributed the claims and works to a confidant named Diana Vaughan, who was said to be an author. Later evidence showed that Diana Vaughan was not a real being, but a pen name for Taxil himself and used as an outlet to justify his works even further. Though this movement was of Europe it paralleled with the behavior the Anti-Masonic Party in America.
The Anti-Masonic political party of the United States emerged roughly in 1826 and was the first third party in American National Politics. Its formation was on the basis that the Freemason influence was too much in America, feeling that a total rule of citizens was inevitable and democratic principles would be done away with because of this alleged power. Others skeptics believed the Masons were worshippers of the occult, witchcraft and ceremonial magic and felt suppression of the order was necessary. The key figure in the midst of this is a gentleman by the name of William Morgan, who pretended to have membership in a Masonic Lodge, interacted with many other masons in discussion, and even formed a Royal Arch chapter of Masons under Grand Lodge authority. Many questioned his validity and some time later found him to be a fraud. Outraged that expulsion and blackballing were in order for Morgan, his vow to disclose
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What we are seeing in the Masons of the United States today is nothing new either. There have been many other forms, but Masons have always been very involved in political matters at the time which is perhaps even in some ways too political for their time. Many prominent political parties were associated with Freemasonry, but when the government did not support the efforts of masons, they formed committees in order to keep the government from pursuing masonic interests.
There have also been Masonic schemes to eliminate the anti-Masonic element of American politics and at times, support the actions of Freemasons, with the result that there were various anti-Masonic groups operating at any one time in America. For example the Mason Society of the United States, founded in 1826 by a member of the Masons, sponsored a march at the Washington DC Masonic Fraternity in order to defend the Constitution against the British Union.
Masonic Society of the United States, Inc. v. D. J.
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Masonic societies of the most powerful nation in the world have come under increasing attack in recent decades. The Freemasons in particular are in a constant state of danger. A series of organizations such as the Mason Society of the United States had recently been founded in 1834, under the leadership of the Freemason Lord R. D. Smith who was, for many years, a national symbol of Freemasonry. The National Alliance for the Restoration of Free Masons sponsored the Masonic National Congress. Under their direction, the Masonic Lodge of Michigan was created, and this year, two of the oldest and most active Masonic Societies of the United States have sprung up in Detroit and Detroit, which is where the Freemason Society stands today.
In the past, Freemasons have attempted to create an American National Party in this country, without success. Although there have been several major victories for the United States Party (e.g. Franklin Roosevelt’s World Series success in 1927, for instance) the Masons are now firmly under attack by a growing group of European countries. Even the Freemasons in Ireland have begun attacking their respective Masonic Union in the United States and they are now being attacked by similar anti-Masonic movements in Canada, Poland, the Czech Republic, Russia, Germany and the United States.
While the Church is well aware of the importance placed on the Masonic Temple in this country, some members of the Church think the American Masonic Movement should be the last. Some Catholic members of the Church may hold a position of neutrality towards anti-Masonry and are prepared to defend the Temple against the threat from the Freemason Freemasons. Some people believe that all those who believe in Masonic doctrine have to accept the truth of Masonic belief and thus to see it fulfilled. The American Masonic Movement does not condone its conduct under any circumstances.
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The use of the term Freemasonry and Freemasonry as an identity label is still being used by the Mormon Church. In one case, a person who received a Masonic Membership Certificate by mail told the Church, “The Masonic Methodists use many different terms, some used Masonic or another religion altogether.” The Church, they continue, “don’t like to use the word Masons or Masonic, but many people don’t understand the real meaning of what it means and why it means so, particularly at our school district level when it relates to the education of my students.”
The Mormon Church will try to avoid the use of the word Masonic in the U.S. The Mormons do not want to be seen as being in favor of the use of these terms which seem to mean that there is no Masonic foundation or