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A Call for Cooperation between Catholicism and Freemasonry?

On November 12 in Syracuse, Sicily, the Grand Orient of Italy, Palazzo Giustiniani (GOI), sponsored the conference “The Church and Freemasonry: So Close and yet So Far?” The presenters at the conference included the theologian Msgr. Maurizio Aliotta; Bishop Antonio Staglianò of Noto, Sicily; and Sergio Rosso and Santi Fedele, adjunct grand masters of the Grand Masonic Lodge of Italy.

Why was the conference held? According to an interview given to Avvenire on November 1, 2017, Fr. Ennio Stamile (parish priest of Cetraro, Italy) explained that “[n]otwithstanding our differences,” it is good “to undertake authentic paths of service for the common good and for a responsible and transparent commitment to social justice.”

Are we talking about a Catholic-Masonic connection on the level of social justice and solidarity? Let’s see what the principal speakers had to say about it.

1) In his eleven-minute talk, Msgr. Aliotta demonstrated a good knowledge of Freemasonry, indicating several elements that make it incompatible with the Church: anthropocentrism, religious elements and “super-denominational” initiation rites, and a spirit of relativistic tolerance. Aliotta, while aware of the danger of this dialogue being exploited, seemed to favor “collaboration around projects that help us to walk together toward an ever greater humanization.”

2) Sergio Rosso, who spoke for nearly nineteen minutes, illustrated the philanthropic work of the Grand Masonic Lodge of Italy and gave great praise to the charitable action of the Catholic Church in the world. Rosso attempted to distinguish and separate Masonic “secularism” from “anti-Catholicism.” He also recommended Catholic-Masonic cooperation on the level of solidarity in order to “revive an era of the Spirit who is near to us.” Which Spirit?

3) The conference of Bishop Staglianò, the longest, lasted about fifty minutes. His remarks demonstrated only an incomplete knowledge of Freemasonry. He admitted that he has declared in an interview that he doesn’t know anything about Freemasonry.

Bishop Antonio Staglianò of Noto, Sicily.

At the beginning, Staglianò quoted some words from The Magic Flute, the famous opera of the Catholic-Masonic composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). He cited and praised the theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar, who declared The Magic Flute “an opera of divine traits” (words of Staglianò). His Excellency also reported the judgment of Hans Küng on Mozart’s membership in Freemasonry: Mozart became a Mason because only there did he find embodied the Enlightenment ideals of equality, fraternity, and freedom, which he did not see in the Catholic hierarchy of Salzburg.

Perhaps the speaker would have done well to underscore the fact that, already in the 18th century, membership in Freemasonry (including that of Mozart’s time) was incompatible with the Catholic faith due to Freemasonry’s religious indifferentism, relativism, rationalism, esoterism, and Masonic oaths (with cruel punishments threatened for those who betray Masonic secrets). While it’s true that Bishop Staglianò then said that one cannot be both Catholic and Mason, he did not explain or develop the reasons for this incompatibility. Indeed, Msgr. Aliotta really deserved much more time to speak.

However, Bishop Staglianò was not “soft” with the Masons. He said several times that they are excommunicated, with confirmation from 1983 by Cardinal Ratzinger, then prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Therefore, Staglianò said, between Catholics and Freemasons there is “an abyss-like distance”; there is “excommunication in action.” “You are totally thrown out, truly out,” the bishop said, directly addressing the Masons who were present.

Bishop Staglianò even mentioned the “rumor” according to which there are even priests and bishops who are Masons. If that were true, he emphasized, those priests and bishops are also excommunicated and have “problems with their identity.”

Unfortunately, Bishop Staglianò did not say, or did not say clearly, why Masons are excommunicated, nor why Freemasonry is incompatible with the Church. In that regard, I would like to make a clarification. Canon 2235 of the 1917 Code of Canon Law, which imposed the penalty of excommunication latae sententiae on Catholics who join Freemasonry, was not renewed in the new Code of Canon Law in 1983 (in effect since November 27, 1983). By virtue of Canon 2235 of the 1917 Code, any Catholic was ipso facto excommunicated by the act of his adherence to, or initiation into, Freemasonry. In its declaration of November 26, 1983, the CDF simply reiterated the incompatibility between Freemasonry and the Church, specifying that Catholic members of Freemasonry are in a state of grave sin and cannot receive Holy Communion. Period. It did not speak of excommunication. For reference, I have several articles on this subject.

Thus, it seems that in reality, from a canonical point of view, Catholic Masons are not excommunicated ipso facto by the act of adhering to, or being initiated into, Freemasonry (in the first degree of Apprentice). However, if in the course of their Masonic formation they embrace and manifest heterodox doctrines, or fall into apostasy, then they incur the excommunication foreseen for the delict of heresy or apostasy (cf. Canon 1364, 1983 Code).

It is also worth noting that Bishop Staglianò lashed out at those Catholics who were perplexed by his participation in the conference. He stigmatized them as Catholics who consider themselves “true” and “pure” and who are instead abysmally “distant.” (From whom? From the Church? From Christ?) Staglianò scolded them for having problems with their Catholic identity. He then said to the Masons in attendance that if there are “urgent, shall we say, anthropological matters” (matters Masons could address in union with Catholics) and if they also want to raise their voice to defend human dignity and religious liberty, then they ought to “show” their true face (as people concerned for the true good of humanity) so that those who have excommunicated them (the Holy See) may come to realize that they have excommunicated “something that does not exist.” He exhorted the Masons: “Let’s walk together in that direction.”

But now, let’s ask ourselves: What would it mean for the Masons to show their true face? Also, would the excommunication or “distancing” of the Masons truly be less only if they “show their face”? If, on the one hand, Bishop Staglianò energetically wants to blame the “distancing” between us on the Catholic side (on “pure” Catholics – does that include Catholic-Masons?), on the other hand, he seems too vague in his hypothesis that there really is a “closeness” in our distance.

In fact, Bishop Staglianò insisted strongly on the right of conscience, saying to the Masons that he did not wish to measure their distance or closeness, but that they must be true in their conscience, in their anthropology, to say that they are not thieves, nor corrupt, nor creators of plots (against the Church), etc. But by speaking in this way, how are the Masons not left in their subjectivism? In effect, those Catholics who adhere to Freemasonry already do follow their consciences.

Therefore, the appeal to conscience is not sufficient; rather, one must also give clear and definite directions. For example: Tell the Masons of the Grand Lodge of Italy they must renounce esoterism, Gnosticism, secularism, and their aversion to dogmas of faith and morals if they wish to draw closer to us Catholics.

Perhaps somewhat irritated by the words harsh words of Bishop Staglianò, the grand master, Santi Fedele, spoke for 18 minutes defending the Grand Lodge of Italy, its public “transparency,” and its right to privacy. Fedele defined the Honorable Rosy Bindi (an Italian politician) as a “Catholic communist.” He denied that Freemasons perform “strange magic rituals in the Temple.” (Even on this point, I would have to object.) He exalted the “secular morality” of Freemasonry and admitted that the “Great Architect of the Universe” of James Anderson’s book  Freemasonry (1723) is Deist. Finally – replying again against Staglianò – he declared proudly that he has a “serene awareness” of being “outside the community of believers.”

Permit me to refer to some of my articles, here and here, in which, on the basis of Masonic texts, I underline the essential identity of the Freemasonry of the Grand Lodge as esoteric and based in initiation rituals. Initiation and esoterism (Gnosticism) – here is the true “heart” of Freemasonry, far beyond rationalism, secularism, and humanitarian activity.

Therefore, let’s ask ourselves: To what extent, and to what point, is it possible to publicly cooperate in works of social justice and solidarity with those who practice esoteric and Gnostic rituals, which are very probably open to the influence of superhuman or preternatural influences?

The above article is written by Fr. Paolo M. Siano. It is published here, translated by Giuseppe Pellegrino, with the author’s permission. The original appeared in Corrispondenza romana.

86 thoughts on “A Call for Cooperation between Catholicism and Freemasonry?”

  1. Freemasonry worships Lucifer.
    What cooperation has there ever been between God and Lucifer?
    Bergoglians like to think of themselves as superior to God. To them good and evil don’t exist. This is allegedly thinking in black and white, where there allegedly exist only shades of gray.

    Reply
    • I should add that humanism and humanitarianism sound very noble to our modern ear. They focus on man – what could be wrong this? A well-formed Catholic (I wasn’t one when as a young person I fully embraced secular humanism, and believing myself to be well-meaning, removed God from my narrative about the purpose and meaning of life) knows instantly that everything is wrong with believing in man and serving man instead of His Creator.

      Lower levels of Freemasonry make man the focus of their humanitarian endeavors, while high-level Masons worship Lucifer, the alleged light bearer, saviour of humanity from the evil Demiurge. That evil Demiurge is the God we love and worship and serve.

      There should never be any dialogue between Satan worshipers and us. We should have certainty that God despises such a dialogue.

      Reply
    • PlushGrizzly wrote: “Freemasonry worships Lucifer.”

      Clearly demonstrating that you haven’t the slightest idea what you’re talking about and are merely parroting Internet nonsense. Don’t make a fool of yourself by spreading provable silliness. The hoary old “Lucifer” claim was a practical joke played on Pope Leo VIII by a cruel French (anti-Catholic) charlatan who later publicly admitted it in a Paris auditorium full of people. It was a deliberate hoax perpetrated against the Church, the credulous Pope, and Freemasonry itself.

      And yes, I am one of those really scary “high level” Masons. And was raised and educated by Catholics.

      Reply
      • Say, oh enlightened one, didn’t Albert Pike invoke Lucifer in “Morals and Dogma”? Hasn’t Captain Morgan been murdered by his Mason “brothers” for revealing the secrets of the Brotherhood? Didn’t your Brother Manly P Hall say:
        “When the Mason learns that the key to the warrior on the block is the
        proper application of the dynamo of living power, he has learned the
        mystery of his Craft. The seething energies of Lucifer are in his hands
        and before he may step onward and upward, he must prove his ability to
        properly apply energy”?

        What degree and of which lodge are you?
        Can an enemy of the Church not be raised by faithful or nominal Catholics?

        Reply
        • Yes, I know of Teichrib, and discussing him here would only be a pointless diversion and waste of time if you believe him.

          Masonic ritual has been exposed for 300 years at numerous times. I will simply say that the two books to start with for you are, as silly as it sounds, Freemasons For Dummies and The Complete idiot’s Guide To Freemasonry. Both are written by 33° Freemasons, since that seems to be important to you (that you are concerned about what degree I have attained already shows your misunderstanding, but I too am a 33° Scottish Rite Mason, along with having witnessed scores of other degrees and read hundreds more historical ones). But because they are written by Masons, don’t decide ahead of time that they are in any way worthless in the truth department. A non-Mason makes a lousy source of authentic information, just as a non-Catholic makes a poor choice to write about subtleties of Church doctrine, ritual, and practices. To that point: Manly P. Hall wrote his books about Freemasonry in his early twenties based on books, rumors, and suppositions— decades before he actually joined the fraternity. Once he actually joined and experienced the degrees himself and spoke with other members, he never wrote another word about it.

          Grand Lodges generally have large libraries in their headquarters or museums, and while they may not permit you to remove books from their facilities, every one I have encountered both here and abroad permits the public to come in and read on the premises. And Freemasons are PROLIFIC writers, some good, some terrible, some nutty, some deeply serious. Take your pick. As for ritual, Masonic exposures like Look To The East or Duncan’s Ritual, or even the one William Morgan whom you referenced wrote that caused the whole ruckus in the 1820s about him, are all fairly close to rituals worked in the U.S. Every country has different rituals (some like England publish them, others don’t), so even trying to accuse Masons of some sort of terrible oath or other silliness is a pointless gesture from one jurisdiction to another…

          Reply
          • Thank you for taking the time to address my comment. Please, forgive me – I do not trust you, and I consider your answers to be spin-doctoring.
            It is enough to see how you glide over Morgan, Teichrib, Blavatsky or Hall, to move on.

            There is also Saint Maksimilian Kolbe. Please, spare me any comment about the man. I do not expect anything other than you have already offered.

            Your secretive and deceptive ways are incompatible with the ways of a Christ follower. He Himself told us that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Not one of, but The Way. Christianity is so straight-forward, we have no secret oaths and ceremonies. We proclaim our Truth from the rooftops. Any child can understand it.

          • If your statenent about “Saint Maksmillian Kolbe” is in reference to St. Maxmillian Kolbe, please elaborate and clarify with credible references. Thanks.

          • I meant the Polish Saint, Maksymilian Maria Kolbe (in my comment I misspelled his name in Polish).
            What I meant to convey was the tremendous research of and activism against Freemasonry he undertook as a priest in Poland, with the intent of educating and warning the Nation.
            I did not mean to imply that he was a Freemason.

          • I just wanted to be clear. I’d never seen his name spelled that way. Yes, he was very opposed to freemasonry – as the Church should be now. With all the deviation from the True Faith, the Bride of Christ is in a Dance with the Devil.

          • As for Pike’s SINGLE paragraph that referenced Lucifer out of the tens of thousands of pages he wrote over the decades, that has been endlessly debunked as anything besides what he intended it to be: an exploration of the Latin root of the name and its origin, and the irony that the word itself meant “light bearer” and was ascribed to the “Prince of Darkness.” Period. Every other Lucifer reference attributed to Pike is a provable forgery, and even that one has been tinkered with by some anti-Masonic writers to make it sound like something it wasn’t. Satan, Lucifer, the Horned One, Old Scratch, or any other such figure does not appear in legitimate Masonic ritual or any degree of any related appendant organization—not even veiled in allegory or cloaked by symbolism.

            Since you asked about him, William Morgan’s body was never found, and he may very well have vanished into Canada or elsewhere. However, there is no denying that he was abducted by men from the lodge in Batavia after bragging about the money he was going to make by exposing Masonic ritual. That lodge in 1826 was on the edges of the frontier in a wild part of the state, and New York had vastly over extended itself with scores of new Masonic lodges far too quickly into barely civilized areas with too many ignorant men brought in as members. Lodges were hoped to be civilizing forces, just as churches were. If guilty, the men who abducted Morgan very clearly misinterpreted the symbolic penalties of their Masonic degrees to be taken literally, and at least hoped to scare the wits out of Morgan to convince him not to print his book. At worst, they may very well have killed him. No one knows. But his wife Lucinda went on to marry another Freemason just a few years later, which makes no sense if she thought Masons were inherently evil. In any case, IF Morgan was murdered by Masons for breaking his obligation, his is the only case that has ever been heard of, after three centuries. Now, shall we discuss the hundreds of thousands murdered in the name of Catholicism by both ignorant and learned members of the Church over its history? Or can we quit with the silliness?

          • LOL. As I suspected. Since you’re hiding behind a screen name yourself, I guess secrecy works two directions. But I will happily tell you anything you’d like to know, apart from the very specific parts of ritual that permit Masons to identify each other. NOT because they are sooper-secret secrets. But because I gave my word. Plain as that. Masonic secrecy is itself a symbol of honor and keeping a promise. It’s nothing any more sinister than that.

            But since you bring up Kolbe (do these conversations just all come out of the same workbook?), I will simply say his life and ultimate end were the very embodiment of Martin Niemöller’s famous poem, “First they came for the Socialists…” He was canonized for the actions of the last day of his life, not his first 47 years. Before he was tossed into Auschwitz, he was a disgusting anti-Semite, and typical of the Polish peasantry’s attitudes towards Jews that so easily permitted the Nazis to build their biggest death camps in that country. Actually read some of his lesser known and grotesque diatribes, and not just his tracts against the Masons sometime.

          • Spoken like a Mason to a profane.
            No, I will not discuss the hundreds of thousands murdered “in the name of Catholicism” with a Mason.
            Say, how can an intelligent person get together with members of mutually-exclusive religions and find brotherhood with them? You seem to care about knowledge, How is it that God, the Father, The Creator, The All-Knowing, the All-Powerful can be brushed aside for the sake of a humanitarian hobby? This hobby is only a front of the sinister organization, behind which evil is hiding. Albert Pike has stated this much, though necessarily considering himself evil.
            How can an intelligent person, who claims to care about Truth, consider God, the Author of a believer’s life and hopes, be set aside, when to a believer He is the motivation to and the meaning of life?

            Freemasons who do this are showing everyone willing to see that they are hypocrites. While believing themselves to be climbing a pyramid (of which I am the human resource for their high endeavors, the stepping stone, the sincere fool) leading to ultimate knowledge at the top, they waste their precious time on going through the motions of primitive beliefs. You know, what this shows me? – You are very little men, liars consumed with ambition and pride,

          • P.G. wrote:
            “No, I will not discuss the hundreds of thousands murdered “in the name of Catholicism” with a Mason. “

            No, I thought not. Defending the indefensible is by definition a pointless gesture.

            “Say, how can an intelligent person get together with members of mutually-exclusive religions and find brotherhood with them?”

            Easy. I do it every week. Are you so loathing of your fellow man that you are unable to do so? Say three full rosaries for penance, and no cheating.

            You seem to care about knowledge, How is it that God, the Father, The Creator, The All-Knowing, the All-Powerful can be brushed aside for the sake of a humanitarian hobby?”

            He isn’t. Not at all. God is invoked at every Masonic lodge meeting, degree conferral, even before (and periodically after) every meal. The letter G is lit when the lodge is open, symbolizing God. The Bible or whatever Volume of Sacred Law that is most widely revered by a lodge’s local members is opened on the altar at all meetings. But the words and symbols we use are deliberately designed to RESPECT the differences that are all too commonly used to divide men in society. Perhaps you think that is apostacy. I don’t agree, since a lodge meeting is NOT a church gathering—any more than the opening of Congress or a city council meeting where a non-denominational prayer is invoked. Or do you advocate deliberately insulting anyone who doesn’t attend your parish? Do you burst into such gatherings, or into synagogues or mosques and demand a Douay-Rheims be opened up and their members all recite the Apostle’s Creed OR ELSE?!

            “This hobby is only a front of the sinister organization, behind which evil is hiding. Albert Pike has stated this much, though necessarily considering himself evil.”

            This little gem is a glittering jewel of colossal ignorance all by itself. You’re quite a tragic person, really.

          • When I asked, how can a man who believes in God find brotherhood with those whose deity despises Him (God), and continue on with their little projects all united (without ever discussing truth about the matter), I was really stating that such a man is a fool.
            A Catholic knows that his neighbor, who rejects Jesus Christ, is on the path to hell. What is more important than helping him not get there?

          • If I believed in the masonic Great Architect. I would not stoop to calling myself a Catholic and attending the Holy Mass. God in Whom Catholics believe does not wish to be made one among many or a liar below some. Defying Him equals putting oneself above Him.
            You confirm that for some ends known to you (though I can easily imagine them) you don’t believe in God, but play a charade to fool others. You may believe in a Great Architect, but that is not God. On this ground you would commit a very grave offense against God, should you present yourself to the world as a Catholic.

            My final point (got to cook dinner) to you is this:

            The way you speak to me, is deliberately demeaning. Again – you may be an ignorant Freemason. but you are not a follower of Jesus Christ. Some members of humanity your organization allegedly exists to help, might be very similar to me. Were you a follower of the true God. you would know that while bread is important, few things are as unjust as putting down another human being. I would not want to find myself among those you so generously help.

            I used to work in a place for the homeless, for the junkies, the alcoholics and wife-beaters, but I never dared to put myself above them.
            Don’t worry – YOU can not ruin my day.

            Moving on to serve my family, and while doing it – hopefully to serve God.

          • What makes you think that’s “Masonic”? Because it is NOT. Zodiacal symbology does not appear in the degrees of legitimate Freemasonry.

          • “Legitimate Freemasonry” indeed. The crux of the matter is that you will never come to realize the
            REALITY of Jesus Christ Our Lord and Savior whilst engaged in the machinations and charades of
            your beloved cult. You (masons) believe in the will of MAN whilst attempting to assimilate all “religions” into a
            grand fudge that denies absolute truth, denies GOD (Jesus Christ) in reality, and offers a false message to the world that in actuality acknowledges the “prince of darkness” as sovereign. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/5ccead9a5013f702d0474e5c3f73227fec2fa2b6f5314b6866967c93623746ea.jpg

          • The Volumes of Sacred Law in the photograph are there to accommodate the lodge’s members of different faiths when they take their personal obligation. Would you ask a Jew to swear to tell the truth, for instance, by placing his hand on the New Testament? Or a Muslim? Or a Hindu? Or a Japanese Shinto? Would such an oath have any meaning to his soul or his conscience if that book had zero meaning to him (because the world is filled with deeply religious people who feel just as passionately about their faith as you might, but aren’t Catholics)?

            What makes you or anyone else think that a lodge is a church or a religious service? It’s nothing of the kind. It requires its members to have a belief in God, of whatever religion may happen to be held sacred to him. Would you join an organization that specifically told you that your own deeply held religious faith is the “wrong” brand? Think of the Boy Scout oath “to God and my Country.” Are they “aping a false religion”? Does the Pledge of Allegiance proclaim a “false god”, or a generic term that satisfies all (at least until recently)?

            (And seriously, the “Prince of Darkness” business is a major non-starter. Don’t show your foolishness in public. The whole “Masons worship Lucifer” idiocy is disprovable in ten seconds.)

          • Phony smears have a shrapnel effect, and you do no one any favors by peddling them against Masons. The fraternity is a place designed to break down artificial barriers men have made for themselves, not erect more.

            Back in the early 1900s, a phony chunk of the oath taken by Knights of Columbus was widely circulated throughout the country. It was alleged to be from the KofC’s Fourth Degree ritual (yes, they have one) that supposedly called upon loyal Knights of Columbus members “to wage relentless war against all heretics, Protestants and Masons; hang, burn, waste, flay and bury alive all such infamous heretics…” and more. It got peddled and reprinted all through the 1920s, and was even read out in Congress and used to try to sink the presidential candidacy of Al Smith in 1928. Anti-Catholics have likewise circulated bogus oaths supposedly taken by Jesuits, who have come with their own baggage of distrust by the non-Catholic world for 500 years.

            So do you know who publicly exposed the fraudulent KofC oaths to the world, in print and with firm conviction? The Grand Lodges of California and Indiana. Both Masonic jurisdictions investigated it, shared texts with the KofC, and publicly exposed the fraud for the lie it was. Twice.

            I know all of this because I was raised and educated by Catholics, my whole family is Catholic, and my parents have been major financial and spiritual supporters of the Church all of my life. I’ve had more dinners with priests, bishops and archbishops than you would ever imagine. I respect their beliefs, and they respect mine. We are all quite well informed in matters of faith.

          • “The fraternity is a place designed to break down artificial barriers men have made for themselves, not erect more.”

            This speaks volumes about your worldview.
            You really really have no clue or are being dishonest in your promotion of “masonry”

          • Yes, it DOES explain my worldview.

            You’ve now accused me of having no spiritual discernment, of lying, and of cluelessness—all in response to thoughtful explanations and factual information, I’ll leave you to fester in your echo chamber of ignorance.

          • No, you will leave me to strive in the carrying of MY CROSS while you are left to ponder life
            in a vacuous space willfully rejecting the Grace of Faith in The Word Made Flesh!

          • LOL! “Don’t show your foolishness in public.”

            This chimes well with your private charades and false sense of purpose. Despite your claim to be a 33rd degree mason (whatever that really means) masonry has an elite inner circle that is in essence satanic and you can deny that all day
            long. You have NO spiritual discernment or are lying.

          • More importantly what is the point of an Oath if not to keep it? That is “silliness” of the finest rank.

            If your oaths have no weight, then why conceal them? Publish them for all the world to see. Enlighten us in the latin root of lucifer.

            Fromious’ replies are why I could never join freemasonry. It is no different than Scientology. Commit, swear, obey and then we will tell you what we truly believe. If I give an oath I intend to keep it and I intend to be bound by its consequences. Apparently, that’s not the the case with masons.

          • FeOtter,
            There are countless sites that explain the Pike/Lucifer nonsense. Here’s a concise one that I’m not sure if a Mason wrote it or not:
            https://albertpike.wordpress.com/albert-pike-lucifer/

            Here’s another on the excellent site of the Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon, a website countless Masons and non-Masons consult regularly because of its accuracy:
            http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/texts/LuciferandSatan.html

            Once you’re there, root around. It’s a massive resource and you’ll find plenty of accurate answers to your questions.

          • So, again, please explain why you take an Oath you don’t mean or intend to keep? How could I trust anything else you say? I know enough about masonry to know I don’t need allegories that are inconsistent from degree to degree (or lodge to lodge) while claiming faith in God but rejecting His word. My grandfather was a master mason of the “craft” in one of the state’s oldest lodges. He was also an alcoholic oathbreaker who beat us over the slightest offense. His fellow masons revered him highly.

            In discussing (or offering) portions of the rituals and sacred knowledge you have already violated your “oath” and so your word is meaningless. As I said, a great deal in common with Scientologists. We have secrets but trust us they’re good ones. No seriously. We’re good guys. (But to an SP they lie as does the mason to the profane “for their own good.”).

            Is that not true? Are masons permitted to lie about their teachings to those who are not on the level? Regardless of your answer, I could never trust you because your oaths are empty.

          • Barry,
            I’ve taken Masonic obligations in scores of different degrees over twenty years and I can tell you absolutely truthfully that EVERY SINGLE ONE of the seven items your graphic lists is wrong.

            Masons do not conceal a brother’s crimes. Masons are specifically enjoined to obey the laws of the land in which they reside, and members may be tried by their lodge and expelled for violating the legal or the moral law. Fellow Masons bring charges and provide evidence for and against the accused.

            Masons are NEVER asked nor told to favor each other in politics or business. Masons do not discuss politics in lodge, and specifically deny membership to men seeking to join for business purposes or financial gain. (However, I will simply ask, if you have a friend in your parish with a business, do you “favor” him over a stranger? If a parishioner running for office asks for your vote, all things being equal, do you give it to him or her?)

            Since the early 1800s, every legitimate Masonic jurisdiction in the English speaking world has made it clear that the medieval wording of the “ancient penalties” are symbolic in nature only, and are retained in deference to the language of the period, and to impress upon the candidate the importance of a man keeping his word. Some rather gutless jurisdictions have removed them completely in a forlorn effort to answer outside critics (which, as your ready-made, anti-Masonic graphic demonstrates, is a useless gesture). The whole purpose of Masonic “secrecy” is as a symbol of a man’s honor over something as trivial as a password or handshake. But because the anti-Mason has an agenda, it’s simple to take it out of the context of the degree and tout it as something frightful. As you are attempting. And BTW, NO Masonic obligation expects a member to “avenge Masonic oath-breakers unto horrible death.” You read too many Jack Chick tracts.

            Pay dues? Yes, of course. It’s a membership club. The Knights of Columbus will toss you out if you don’t pay, too. Problem? However, any Mason may request his dues be remitted if he is unable to pay. And just so you know, none of that is in the obligation. Neither is there any requirement to donate to Masonic charities. The only exception is if some jurisdiction has a charitable entity like a retirement community that is partially funded by a small portion of the annual dues. Not every grand lodge does that.

            So, your graphic is entirely wrong.

          • You do not believe and actually reject The Kingship Christ, The Savior Of All Mankind, and
            consequently warrant no further dialogue.
            I urge you to reconsider your philosophy, reconsider your chosen path.

          • Before I took an oath, I’d want to know up front and in advance wgat I was swearing to and the underlying beliefs. To take an oath and then kearn what you’ve sworn to and the beliefs that are the foundation is putting the cart before the horse and invalidates any claims made by those who propose the oaths such as the freemasons – who actually never free once the first oath is taken – they have bound themselves to and been enslaved by satan who drags them around shackled at the hands and feet until they have been sufficiently brainwashed as to be his thoroughly willing, loving and obedient accomplice and co-conspirator.

      • A separate question:
        Where would a student thirsty for thorough knowledge about the world, not limited to the Freemason-approved narrative, missing elements so vital to understanding, go? To a public school. university perhaps? To the mass-media?
        If I wanted to see for myself, what you and your “brothers” do and talk about, the secret chapters you keep to yourselves, for which one will be murdered upon giving them away, would I be invited?

        It is unreasonable and truly wicked to accuse me of drawing my knowledge about Freemasonry form the Internet. I want to draw it from Freemasons, should I be misinformed by unreliable sources. I want full access to your secret books and oaths. I want full access to the bloody history of all your wicked plots. What you are willing to show to the world, your humane and caring face, anyone can see. I want to see your true face.

        Are you familiar with the man Carl Teichrib? If not, should you desire to see that we the profane know more than you think, use the Internet.

        Reply
    • The truth is they (the Freemasons) are trying to formalize what has been evident by practice if not by declared fact. Namely, the election of PJ23 (Freemason) formerly opened the Church windows to ongoing apostasy and surrender to the world. Freemasonry has won temporarily. The formal name is Vatican 2. The heresy is Modernism. The primary practice is under the flag of “Ecumenism”.
      The results of the last 50+ years speak for itself. Collapse of the Church at an ever accelerating rate. It’s not an accident. Spiritual warfare at it’s finest. Satan at his best aka..”Disobedience in the name of Obedience” Pope Francis is just the latest (and worst) conductor of an accelerating train wreck…..which leads to the rebirth of the OTF

      Reply
  2. Masons like to make a production of how they are friendly to Christ and the Church, and claim even that the Bible forms the basis of their system. But all this is sacrilegious display: they place their own unholy symbols on top of the Bible (compass and square, etc) showing in effect that their symbols are superior to, and trample, God’s word. Catholics must exercise discernment and have nothing to do with this is infernal sect. “And what concord has Christ with Belial?”

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  3. Freemasonry is another supremacist ideology, ie. outsiders get worse treatment than insiders. Catholicism is universalist. The two ideologies can never be reconciled. Masons make a big show of their visible charitable efforts, but all their dirty work is done in the dark, eg. the french revolution and keeping South American in a permanent state of chaos.

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  4. How many freemasons are there in the world? I don’t know but I suspect it is a small number. Their existence provides fodder for Dan Brown-type paranoid conspiracy stories, but they seem insignificant in the larger world, certainly nowhere near as important as even a minor Protestant sect, much less the Catholic Church.

    Further, I don’t see what the Church and Freemasonry would cooperate about. What is the point of cooperation when you have nothing in common and no overlapping interests?

    Reply
    • The number of high-degree Freemasons is not very large, but their hold on positions of power (in banking, politics, Church, faith leaders, military and police, academia, business) around the world, for centuries, make them a formidable enemy of the Catholic Church. How can a declared enemy of the Church, so clearly excommunicated by popes and warned about by saints, be a partner in anything for us? It defies reason.

      Reply
  5. I rewrote the first few paragraphs to show the absurdity of all this. I thought to myself…”would the Church organize such a conference if it was the Mafia rather than the Masons which are under discussion?”

    On November 12 in Syracuse, Sicily, the Cosa Nostra of Italy,
    sponsored the conference “The Church and the Mafia: So Close and yet So Far?”
    The presenters at the conference
    included the theologian Msgr. Maurizio Aliotta; Bishop Antonio Staglianò
    of Noto, Sicily; and Sergio Rosso and Santi Fedele, godfather and consigliere of the Sicilian
    Cosa Nostra
    .

    Why was the conference held? According to an interview given
    to Avvenire on November 1, 2017, Fr. Ennio Stamile (parish priest of
    Cetraro, Italy) explained that “[n]otwithstanding our differences,” it
    is good “to undertake authentic paths of service for the common good and
    for a responsible and transparent commitment to social justice.”

    Are we talking about a Catholic-Mafia connection on the level of
    social justice and solidarity? Let’s see what the principal speakers had
    to say about it.

    1) In his eleven-minute talk, Msgr. Aliotta demonstrated a good
    knowledge of organized crime, indicating several elements that make it
    incompatible with the Church: anthropocentrism, religious elements and
    “super-denominational” initiation rites, and a spirit of relativistic
    tolerance. Aliotta, while aware of the danger of this dialogue being
    exploited, seemed to favor “collaboration around projects that help us
    to walk together toward an ever greater humanization.”

    2) Sergio Rosso, who spoke for nearly nineteen minutes, illustrated the
    philanthropic work of the Sicilian Cosa Nostra and gave great
    praise to the charitable action of the Catholic Church in the world.
    Rosso attempted to distinguish and separate Mafia “secularism” from
    “anti-Catholicism.” He also recommended Catholic-Mafia cooperation on
    the level of solidarity in order to “revive an era of the Spirit who is
    near to us.” Which Spirit?

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  6. The bigger question is why are bishops and theologians wasting time with this? There is nothing to gain by “dialogue” with the Masons or any other secular group. For instance, what would be saying if some prelates in the US were wasting time trying to dialogue with 4H groups? WHAT. IS. THE. POINT. How does dialogue with the Masons further the message of Christ?

    How did this come about? I bet it was by a phone call that went something like this:
    Prelate Desperately Seeking Worldly Adulation (Henceforth “Prelate”): “Hi, Grandmaster Jerkface (henceforth “Jerkface”). It’s Prelate. Can we have a joint conference to dialogue?”

    Jerkface: “Why? We are not interested in and have no intention of changing. So what would we dialogue about?”

    Prelate: “How we can work together”

    Jerkface: “We don’t need to work together”

    Prelate: “But…dialgoue. Dialogue. Right? Right?”

    Jerkface: “What?”

    Prelate: “Don’t you want to dialogue?”

    Jerkface: “Really? We’re not changing. The only thing that come of this is that more of your “members” are led into confusion about where you stand–it’s clear where we stand.”

    Prelate: “Yes. Yes. If their consciences tell them that the confusing signals being sent by the Church hierarchy are confused in an authentic way that leads to ambiguous encounter than it’s a blessing.”.

    Jerkface: “Uh….listen….I can’t believe I’m saying this but….urgh….I’m worried about you and…uh…the…the Church. This is bizarre. Does anybody else know that you’re trying to set this up? This is weird?”

    Prelate: “Dialogue with us. Please. Please.”

    Jerkface: “Yeah, sure. Just name a time and place and we’ll send some people. Hopefully we sign up a bunch of new Masons who leave the Church”.

    Prelate: “That would be great. I mean it wouldn’t be. But it would be if that’s where dialogue leads them. If their consciences lead them there. But it won’t be my fault: I’m just trying to dialogue.”

    Jerkface: “Okay, I’m gonna go before I change my mind….”

    Reply
  7. It is also worth noting that Bishop Staglianò lashed out at those
    Catholics who were perplexed by his participation in the conference. He
    stigmatized them as Catholics who consider themselves “true” and “pure”
    and who are instead abysmally “distant.” (From whom? From the Church?
    From Christ?) Staglianò scolded them for having problems with their
    Catholic identity. He then said to the Masons in attendance that if
    there are “urgent, shall we say, anthropological matters” (matters
    Masons could address in union with Catholics) and if they also want to
    raise their voice to defend human dignity and religious liberty, then
    they ought to “show” their true face (as people concerned for the true
    good of humanity) so that those who have excommunicated them (the Holy
    See) may come to realize that they have excommunicated “something that
    does not exist.” He exhorted the Masons: “Let’s walk together in that
    direction.”
    ====================================================================================

    Um so, this man is saying those who questioned this meeting are “distant” meaning wrong, while those who willingly belong to some occultist type group deserve to walk with him?

    These prelate types should all be drug tested.

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  8. The man wearing a white zucchetto would be pleased to work with Freemasons, as they have praised him, the first time ever for a pope. Freemasonry gives the appearance of doing good by “charitable works” like feeding the hungry.

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  9. The question has been asked: what is the purpose of this? The only answer can be a softening of faith in the Catholic participants. Anthropology? What the heck does that mean? What is the anthropology of the Catholic? This is so mushy it’s incomprehensible and reprehensible.

    Freemasons of the world: we invite you to join the Holy Roman Catholic Church where you will find all the esoteric ritual, pomp and ceremonies, the mysteries, the good works, the fellowship you could possibly want.

    Staying with Freemasonary and denying truths that are reasonable and true will damn your soul to Hell.

    We can only conclude that Italy has gone to the dark side when this sort of thing is allowed to happen. Shame.

    Reply
  10. This past weekend I bought a dead man’s certificate of his achieving the 33rd degree at a flea market.
    Dated 1946, of Mobile, Alabama. It struck me as a grand attempt at trying to appear ecclesial, written completely in Latin, dated in Aerae Vulgaris (Common Era), and not, of course, Anno Domine. I have seen other documents, gravestones, and buildings dated in Anno Lucis, but this one wasn’t.
    At least I can offer prayers for the man’s soul. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6dc41ef6962e88e22cfe7a1840204bf423f06246769fcc0119d3d726f2fd147d.jpg

    Reply
      • You are right tallorder, it’s the duty of all us to pray for everyone.
        We should pray particularly the Holy Rosary but also the Divine Mercy chaplet for souls, asking especially for the graces of Final Perserverance and Contrition and for the true conversion of the person’ soul, after all we have been told that we can obtain everything via the Rosary and the Divine Mercy.

        I don’t think the fact that we may be praying even a long time after someone’s death would be any problem as God is beyond time
        as St Padre Pio said
        “For the Lord, the past does not exist; the future does not exist.
        Everything is an eternal present…even now I can pray for the happy death of my great- grandfather!”

        God bless

        Reply
        • I understand the concept Padre Pio was making but from the Church’s perspective, does the Catechism or Canon Law… or anything in the Magistereum actually say some benefit can be given to those after death? Purgatory, perhaps, but those clearly condemned? I only ask because our Priest said a few weeks back that we should pray for muslims who were recently killed by other “more extreme” muslims. It was a very weird thing to contemplate. This was coming from a ‘squishy priest’ in an accommodating parish. Why issue prayers for those who have already found judgment? That God might reverse his condemnation?

          Reply
          • FeOtter:

            Good catch.

            This has bothered me for some time, that is, the common praying for the souls of the dead” who are not known to have died in grace. We may certainly pray for those in Purgatory, and simply in human frailty pour out our hearts to God in ignorance for those about whom we have no knowledge of salvation, but to pray for the soul of a dead person as if by our prayers we may alter their eternal place from damnation to salvation seems a false doctrine and potentially one full of the development of mischievous potential. In fact, I think personally that it leads to the notion of religious indifference. That is, since I can “pray for the souls of a Christ denier” with some hope of saving him after death, the importance of decision in this life is thereby lessened or even nullified, thus, all religions and states of belief are potentially salvific based on the prayers of the living for the souls of the dead.

            See below, and elsewhere:

            “Dogma of particular judgment”

            “The Catholic doctrine of the particular judgment is this: that immediately after death the eternal destiny of each separated soul is decided by the just judgment of God. Although there has been no formal definition on this point, the dogma is clearly implied in the Union Decree of Eugene IV (1439), which declares that souls leaving their bodies in a state of grace, but in need of purification are cleansed in Purgatory, whereas souls that are perfectly pure are at once admitted to the beatific vision of the Godhead (ipsum Deum unum et trinum) and those who depart in actual mortal sin, or merely with original sin, are at once consigned to eternal punishment, the quality of which corresponds to their sin (paenis tamen disparibus). The doctrine is also in the profession of faith of Michael Palaeologus in 1274, in the Bull “Benedictus Deus” of Benedict XII, in 1336, and in the professions of faith of Gregory XIII and Benedict XIV.”

            From the Catholic Encyclopedia: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08550a.htm

          • You are welcome.

            I failed to post above:

            Balt. Cat 37:

            Q. 1375. Will the sentence given at the particular judgment be changed at the general judgment?
            A. The sentence given at the particular judgment will not be changed at the general judgment, but it will be repeated and made public to all.

            That seems to seal the deal for me.

          • Rod, many members of my extended family and friends passed away- many of whom did not belong to the Catholic Church nor profess Her Faith. Did I pray for their souls? You bet. Can I know for a fact that any of them made it to Heaven? No, I cannot anymore than I can know for a fact that they went to Hell. However, many of my deceased friends and family who remained non-Catholics but Christians of one Protestant persuasion or another, certainly needed my prayers. I can only hope that when Jesus said that “For man it is impossible, but for God, all things are possible” that, perhaps, outside the Catholic Church, in God’s Wisdom, He would save them too from eternal damnation. I keep that in mind as I offer up my Rosary intentions for the dead and reparation for my sins and theirs. If any of my non-Catholic friends and relatives did not make it to Purgatory in the afterlife, that is for God’s Justice and Mercy to decide- not mine. I have often wondered about Invincible Ignorance. However, I hope that my prayers for the dead do make a difference in order that those in Purgatory eventually enjoy the full Beatific Vision of the Most Holy Trinity and the Blessed Virgin Mary.

  11. According to the author, Fr. Paolo M. Siano; “To what extent is it possible to publicly co-operate in works of social justice and solidarity with those who practice esoteric and Gnostic rituals, which are very probably open to superhuman or preternatural influences? This, obviously is a rhetorical question which answers itself. “Social justice” issues fall within the sphere of corporal works of mercy, for which, primarily, the Catholic Church has the mandate, though not, in this highly secularised world, the monopoly. But we cannot throw in the Church’s lot, to any degree whatsoever, with a secret society, the ultimate objective of which is the destruction of the Catholic Church. And one which is, in the higher degrees of membership, up to its neck in occultism.

    Reply
  12. Is the Bishop? in the photograph intentionally ‘cutting’ a Masonic Recognition Gesture like so many Masonic Politicians do during Grand Photographed Entrances? Or is it just some other unfortunate Satanic ‘Co-Incidence’. Anyone know, perhaps the article author?

    Reply
  13. Charitable works are worthless without the True Faith. Period.
    Cooperation with the freemasonry will be possible when all the freemasons will have acknowledged that there is a God whose son Jesus is their Savior.
    Not so difficult in my opinion…

    Reply
    • Exactly.

      This applies also and similarly to the Rotary and Kiwanis and all other secular organizations that such away Catholics and their resources to be placed on alternative altars.

      Reply
      • Well, that says it all right there. You share the same blinkered ideology with the Islamic fundamentalists, who also regard the Rotary and Kiwanis along with Freemasonry as nefarious forces in the world (though they paint all three as Jewish plots). The truth is that you simply see them as competition for total Roman Catholic hegemony in all things, period. Hearts, mind, spirit, body, pocketbook. Not only in the religious world, but the secular one, as well.

        Got it. Creepier than I thought.

        Reply
  14. The Roman Catholic Church has had a variety of justifications for opposing Freemasonry over the last 280 years or so, some doctrinal, some ideological, some political, some delusional, and even once or twice just as a personal papal case of vengeance. Catholics who join the fraternity who subsequently choose to remain Masons in defiance of Church policy do so for very important reasons: they actually see for themselves that Freemasonry does NOT conflict with the Church; that Masonry inspires them to strengthen their faith, not weaken it; that lodges actively hope their members participate in their own churches; and that the Freemasonry they see and live with daily has nothing to do with the way the Church characterizes it in Canon law. Which is why every few years a couple of Masons and a couple of clerics get together and delude themselves into believing they can convince the Vatican to stop niggling at this same tooth, which never happens.

    Freemasonry deserves at least as much latitude within the policies of the Church as other religious denominations or service organizations do—namely, respect for its devotion to its mission of a worldwide brotherhood of toleration, mutual respect, charity, and support for its members that seeks to unite men who would have otherwise remained at a perpetual distance. Masonry is a attempt to tear down barriers, not erect them. Ascribing some sort of nefarious, evil subtext to Freemasonry is an infantile judgement based on either ignorance or deliberate perfidy. Far too many men of impeccable character for more than three centuries have embraced Freemasonry, while being models of faithfully religious belief and practice. And many of them have been Catholics on the quiet. A recent survey about the 1.5 million Masons in the U.S. alone estimated that at least 20% of the members in this country are currently Catholics. Make of that what you will.

    Reply
    • “Far too many men of impeccable character for more than three centuries have embraced Freemasonry, while being models of faithfully religious belief and practice.”

      That’s just it: Membership in Freemasonry defines one’s character in the denial of God’s One Way through Jesus Christ and Him Alone. It is a denial of the unique message of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and it is a denial of the unique place He has granted to His Church.

      A Catholic who joins the Masons by definition is NO “model of faithfully religious belief and practice.”

      He is a denier of Catholic truth and Catholic religious practice.

      He is a denier of the One Truth Faith.

      Freemasonry and the Catholic Faith are mutually exclusive, just as the Church has always taught.

      Reply
      • RodH wrote:

        “Membership in Freemasonry defines one’s character in the denial of God’s One Way through Jesus Christ and Him Alone. It is a denial of the unique message of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and it is a denial of the unique place He has granted to His Church.”

        It does NOTHING of the kind. Freemasonry “denies” nothing concerning faith. It simply is a neutral territory that regards a man’s religious beliefs as his own personal business between himself and God. The fraternity simply requires that a man HAS a religious belief as a requirement for membership, that’s all.

        A Lodge is NOT a Church, nor is a lodge meeting a religious service. Nor is a lodge room a suitable place for unbridled evangelism. The world is filled with other places that are likewise not appropriate to carry out passionate appeals for religious conversion. However, that does not prevent any member from standing up in the dining room after a meeting and inviting brethren to visit his church (even though some members would chafe at that, regardless of whose church was being promoted). All a lodge meeting does is provide a sanctuary from the world where the two major topics of contention between men are prohibited: politics and religion. The modern fraternity was formed at a turbulent period in time when religious wars were slaughtering Christians all across Europe in the name of whose denomination would be dominant. Masonry was designed to be a haven from those kinds of deadly arguments at a time when the wrong profession of faith could get a man killed.

        So, how does Freemasonry “deny” what you regard as the “One True Faith”? (And bear in mind that the Lutherans, Episcopalians, Jews, Muslims, Baptists, Calvinists, and just about every other denomination you can name feels a similar passion for theirs.) We simply use generic, not ecclesiastical, language when referring to God that is specifically designed NOT to enflame religious arguments.

        Reply
        • Frumious wrote: “…[what] a lodge meeting does is provide a sanctuary from the world where the two major topics of contention between men are prohibited: politics and religion.”

          Oh, but here is a book of religion, swear an Oath upon it that 1.) you don’t have to actually keep and 2.) religious iconography and discussion shall be banned henceforth. Except when it isn’t…

          Another conundrum about free masonry that is akin to scientology (they make the exact same claims dear friend– “our practice is compatible, trust us”).

          Good will toward fellow man is not the problem. Empty words and trivializing Faith (through conflation) is. You require religious based oaths and then say, don’t discuss religion? How absurd (unless the point is to diminish all faiths).

          Reply
    • It has been observed, by credible witnesses in unique positions to know, that some of the community’s most “upstanding” and exemplary professionals are active in Satanic Worship.

      Reply
    • Wow, thx for that link.

      I recall (IINM) that Fr. Malachi Martin considered Globalists and Masons to be fellow travelers and saw their agenda as quite a looming threat even 25 years ago.

      Reply
  15. Look at the photos of the funeral of Johnny Halliday in the dailymail.co.uk and you will see a grand master stood next to two catholic priests at the moment the coffin arrives. I think this is a prime example of cooperation and sadly shows that there is no longer a fear of the one true faith.

    Reply
  16. ‘“You are totally thrown out, truly out,” the bishop said, directly addressing the Masons who were present.’

    Well, you can’t be much less ambiguous than that. What’s the issue here, besides the extremely subtle bit incrementalism that this conference probably represents? The fact that it’s red meat for the ever-Catholicism-spinning media? That probably is an issue.

    Reply
  17. The first papal condemnation of Masonry was in 1738 by Pope Clement XII who wrote ” that persons must stay completely clear of such societies, companies, assemblies, meetings, congregations or conventicals under pain of excommunication….which is incurred by the very deed without any declaration being required.” Pope Leo XIII wrote a number of encylicals condeming Free Masonry and as noted, Benedict XVI affirmed Church teaching in this matter. Pope Leo XIII in a letter of December 8, 1892 called Freemasonry “the synagogue of Satan.”

    Reply

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