The World\'s Most Dangerous Secret Societies: The Illuminati, Freemasons, Bilderberg Group, Knights Templar, The Jesuits, Skull And Bones And Others pdfdrive com

The Origins of Freemasonry
The origins of Freemasonry, as Masonic apologists and authors are so fond of 
repeating, are forever lost to the sands of time; thereby grafting a highly dubious 
insinuation of ancient legacy upon the history of Masonic Craft. How and why 
these mysterious legacies of ancient pedigree are so integral to Freemasonry may 
be largely a result of an unconscious need to equate longevity with relevance (a 
notion discarded with the sudden rise of success of institutions such as 
McDonald’s or science fiction movies in the immediate years following WWII.)
Whatever the case may be, the first organized Masonic activity is generally
held to be founded on June 24, 1717 with the assembly of the first United Grand
Lodge of England. Prior to this, there were loosely organized guilds of what has
come to be known as “Speculative Masonry”; that is, loose affiliates of like-
minded individuals forming a mutual aid society modeled after the stonemason
guilds of the 13th and 14th centuries, in whom they found an ideal allegory for

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non-denominational religious beliefs and the interpretation of biblical parables
as metaphors for both the “universal brotherhood of man” (an idea none too
popular in still pre-Enlightenment times) and historic allusions. Some of these
guilds have been proven to be in existence as early as the 16th century (during
which time the stonemason guilds had been officially abolished by Archbishop
Thomas Cranmer, leader of the English Reformation, in 1548), but it wasn’t
until at least 150 years later that these guilds met to form a unified front.
Over the next 70 years, Freemasonry began to grow considerably among all
walks of life throughout Europe, petitioning as it did a relatively egalitarian
ethos of brotherhood, justice and labor. As the popularity of Freemasonry grew,
so did the need to formalize established constitutions, dictates and most
famously, their degree structure and rituals. Space permits us from delving at all
into the structure of these ritual or degrees, other than to state that they are
rooted in biblical, classical and cabalistic symbolism and historical allegory
(including the introduction of the myth of the Knights Templar as introduced in
Chapter Two), the meaning of which is revealed through successive degrees.
As the popularity of Freemasonry migrated throughout both Europe and the
New World, many of the leading ideologues of the time became enamored of its
tenets, which held that the equality of all men was indeed a demonstrable fact (a
parallel with the Hermetic axiom of “As above, so below” alluded to in this
book’s introduction.) Frenchmen such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire and
Montesquieu—all leading figures of the Enlightenment whose philosophies
would have an inestimable influence on the formation of the American
Constitution—were confirmed Freemasons, as were American founding fathers
such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington.
In order to place the popularity of such secretive organizations in context, we
should take into account that such movements served a two-fold purpose: the
first is to provide a relative harbor where such ideals could be championed and
discussed openly without fear of reprisal from reigning political ideologies who
saw egalitarianism as inimical to their very structure. The second is that of a 
social mechanism. Much like today, even intellectuals needed a place free of
judgment where they could relax and enjoy the fellowship and camaraderie of 
like-minded individuals. One drastic, if relevant, example would be the 
infamous Hellfire Club of Sir Francis Dashwood (of which Benjamin Franklin
was known to be a member of)—a libertine society in the 18th century,

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consisting of both British aristocrats and commoners alike that was said to
harbor secret services of devil worship; although in all likelihood, this was just a
colorful and poetic metaphor for perpetual drunkenness, as opposed to legitimate
Satanic practices.
As both the ideals and the popularity of Freemasonry continued to filter 
throughout both continents, so did its interaction with both increasingly 
progressive thought as well as existing Hermetic and Rosicrucian organizations
—both of which shared common philosophical backgrounds. The need for a 
more inclusive attitude as well as allowance for diversity of opinion and ritual 
faced the various Grand Lodges throughout Europe and the Americas. Their 
decision was to establish a strict guideline of observance, practices and ritual 
lore in which those outside of its pale—such as lodges which chose to allow
female participation—bore the stigma of being known as Irregular, or Illicit
Masonry. Some customs, such as those of Prince Hall Masonry (which
developed among freed slaves in the late 18th and early 19th centuries) were
permitted as separate but recognized Masonic entities by Grand Lodge edicts.
However, those who continued to operate—at times clandestinely—as Illicit
Masonic observances were the subject of outright hostility and vilification. And
it is to these illicit chapters that we must observe if we wish to see the shadow
side of Masonry in action.