There is something about the end of a century that seems to spur on writers of fantasy and conspiracy theory. The writers of The Hiram Key are proud that it is all their own work and that they consulted no experts in any of the fields that their book covers - theology, early church history, Egyptology and Freemasonry. Had they done so, they might have produced a good case for discussion rather than a conspiracy theory which will upset Christians as well as Freemasons.
    The authors claim to have proved that Freemasonry originated in ancient Egyptian Kingship rituals; that these rituals were taken by Moses out of Egypt and passed down through the royal line of David; that Hiram Abif not only existed but his mummified body is in Egypt; that the rituals were preserved as the rituals of the early Christian church and the Essenes; that the texts were buried under the ruins of Herod’s Temple and lost until excavated by the Knights Templar in 1120 AD; that the persecution of the Templars was a result of their having the true history and rituals of the Christian church; that the Templars took the “secrets” to Scotland, turned themselves into Freemasons to protect the “secrets”, and that the “Jesus Scrolls” are buried under Rosslyn Chapel.
    A major problem is that the authors have treated masonic rituals as factual and historical texts. They are not. They are allegorical tales replete with symbolism. As there is no bibliography and few notes, it is difficult to know what sources they have used. What is clear is that they have ignored masonic scholarship over the last hundred years. There are numerous factual errors, the most important - and often repeated as it is central to their thesis - being that the Master Mason degree is a “resurrection rite”. It is not. The builder dies - to protect the genuine secrets - and remains dead.
    The Hiram Key is entertaining but it is not history. Indeed, as a popular text it may set back the search for the true origins of Freemasonry.
    John Heron