Freemasonry is not a Christian institution, though it has often been mistaken for such. Rare Book and Special Collections Division/Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.įreemasonry has, almost from its inception, encountered considerable opposition from organized religion, especially from the Roman Catholic Church, and from various states. In 1717 the first Grand Lodge, an association of lodges, was founded in England.Ī group of Freemasons in ceremonial dress, 1902. From a few of these lodges developed modern symbolic or speculative Freemasonry, which particularly in the 17th and 18th centuries adopted the rites and trappings of ancient religious orders and of chivalric brotherhoods. With the decline of cathedral building, some lodges of operative (working) masons began to accept honorary members to bolster their declining membership. Estimates of the worldwide membership of Freemasonry in the early 21st century ranged from about two million to more than six million.įreemasonry evolved from the guilds of stonemasons and cathedral builders of the Middle Ages. Spread by the advance of the British Empire, Freemasonry remains most popular in the British Isles and in other countries originally within the empire.
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English Freemasons are forbidden to affiliate with these quasi-Masonic societies.įreemasonry, the teachings and practices of the fraternal (men-only) order of Free and Accepted Masons, the largest worldwide secret society-an oath-bound society, often devoted to fellowship, moral discipline, and mutual assistance, that conceals at least some of its rituals, customs, or activities from the public (secret societies do not necessarily conceal their membership or existence). There are also special orders for boys and girls. Additionally, there are a number of groups-prevalent especially in the United States-that have no official standing in Freemasonry but draw their membership from the higher degrees of Freemason society. Today there are separate Freemason lodges in Britain for women as well as for men. They have been met with criticism over the years for being elitist men’s clubs. Affirmation of a belief in a higher being is still a requirement to join Masonic lodges, though they are largely secular institutions that serve social networking purposes and often serve as charitable donors. Estimates of the worldwide membership of Freemasonry in the early 21st century ranged from about two million to more than six million. SpaceNext50 Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!įreemasonry remains most popular in the British Isles and countries that were originally within the British Empire.Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them! Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.Britannica Beyond We’ve created a new place where questions are at the center of learning.100 Women Britannica celebrates the centennial of the Nineteenth Amendment, highlighting suffragists and history-making politicians.
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