Freemasonry and the Archbishop of Canterbury

Sir,
    Soon after his comments on Freemasonry were reported in the national press, I wrote to the Archbishop of Canterbury pointing out that I am a committed Christian and also a Freemason of 35 years standing and that, in the latter, I have encountered nothing but companionship, kindness and help in times of adversity deeply in accord with the principles of Christian fellowship. I assured the Archbishop that if I had encountered anything remotely satanic, I would have left without any hesitation whatsoever.
    I reminded the Archbishop that, although strictly secular, the Craft has always been a good friend and supporter of religion, notably the Christian Church and the Anglican Church in particular. I gave as just one example the very tasteful and caring restoration of the crypt in St. Alban’s Cathedral by the Hertfordshire Freeemasons.
    I then wrote ‘Adverse comments on Freemasonry from Christians cause deep sadness and pain to the many thousands of their fellow Christians who are members of the Craft for several reasons. First, we totally fail to understand why such comments should be aimed at a secular institution dedicated to the Christian principles of brotherly love, relief of suffering and truth. Secondly, we fail to comprehend why we are constantly singled out for such adverse comments, rather than the Rotarians, the Townswomen’s Guild or any other of the several secular and charitable institutions in this country. Thirdly, we are perplexed by the fact that our critics never offer evidence that would substantiate their criticisms and never agree to enter into a round table dialogue with us. I very much hope that you will use your authority to initiate such a dialogue so that the air can be cleared once and for all.’
    ‘At this point, however, I feel obliged to request you, for the sake of the thousands of Christian Freemasons who might otherwise innocently be led into danger, to reveal any concrete and irrefutable evidence you have of satanic practices or influences within the Craft. If you do not have any such evidence, then I hope you will feel honour-bound to publicly withdraw your assertions.’
    I had hoped, that as part of the Archbishop’s pastoral duty to one of his ‘flock’, I would have received a caring and considerate reply. In fact, I received a most unhelpful letter from the Archbishop’s Deputy Secretary for Public Affairs which read
    ‘On behalf of Archbishop Rowan Williams I am writing to thank you for your recent letter in which you disagree with his reported remarks on freemasonry.
    ‘The Archbishop expressed his personal views in a private letter and his position is that there are difficulties in reconciling some of the expressions of belief and practice of Freemasonry with those of Christianity. He recognises, however, that there is a variety of opinions within the Anglican Church.’
    I will leave my readers to guess what impression this response has made on me.
    John M. Grange Middlesex Hospital Lodge no. 2843

Sir,
    I was interested to learn that the new Archbishop of Canterbury has questioned the compatibility of Freemasonry with Christianity and that a spokesman for him, in an aside, introduced the fear of some that parts of our ritual might be satanically inspired.
    I have, for over fifty years, been a member of Cantuarian Lodge, No. 5733. During his lifetime one of our Honorary Members was Lord Fisher of Lambeth who will be remembered as one of the finest Archbishops of Canterbury.
    Based on the concerns of the new man in Canterbury Cathedral and his spokesman, do we now take it that this W. Bro. Geoffrey Fisher got it all terribly wrong? And if so, why? Could Dr. Rowan Williams please advise Freemasonry Today for our information?
    Keith Lewis, Cantuarian Lodge, No. 5733, London.

Sir,
    Our new Archbishop of Canterbury reveals himself as fanatically opposed to Freemasonry yet in his ‘Desert Island Discs’ broadcast he selected as one of his eight records an exerpt from Mozart’s masonically-influenced work, The Magic Flute. One deduces from this that his knowledge of opera is as woefully lacking as is unquestionably his knowledge of Freemasonry. That aside, how dare he, as an Archbishop, write off so publicly and arrogantly the numerous Anglican clergymen who are also Freemasons.
    Many would say that by his knock to the world-wide unifying good fellowship that Freemasonry embraces, Dr. Williams has made a disastrous start to his leadership of the Church of England.
    E. C. Caple, Yeovil, Somerset.

Sir,
    Reading Mark Wheatley’s letter regarding Dr. Williams, the new Archbishop of Canterbury, in the last issue of Freemasonry Today, has prompted me to write to you.
    Any openness is to be applauded, of course, in an attempt to clear away some of the fog surrounding our Order; although I have my doubts as to the interest it may hold with non-masons, in general, probably too busy with their lives to even think about it.
    What occurred to me is that, here we are - after some considerable effort by many masons, senior and not so, and a vast amount of time spent on various projects culminating in ‘Freemasonry in the Community’ - finding ourselves in a situation where we are still being discriminated against by a man with a huge following and who is obviously intelligent and listened to. One wonders whether the effort is justified.
    Further to this, the Executive of the Province of Essex has decided to support in a big way – and in a way which initially threatened to be at the expense of other charities until certain misgivings were voiced from the ‘mason on the block’ – the Cathedral at Chelmsford. I cannot help smiling at the irony of this. Again, lots of time and energy put into the project, publicised at every opportunity, seeming almost to be a case of ‘Please Mr and Mrs Public love us masons – we are a benign lot and wish only good for the community’ only to find that the head of the Church puts us down as ‘Satanic’.
    Lastly, if Dr. Williams had renounced the right of appointment within his Church to people who are, say, over sixty, what would the Press and Human Rights activists say about this? I would ask our masonic rulers to challenge Dr. William’s instructions on the grounds of discrimination. It is not unlawful to be a Freemason, so what right has he to bar us from his enclaves? One would assume that Dr. Williams will be Archbishop for quite a long time and it would take a huge effort on his part to take notice of further efforts to promote ‘openness in masonry’, for him to climb down and concede that we are not that bad after all. In an ideal world, perhaps it can happen, but…?
    Richard Hollier, Basildon, Essex

Sir,
    As well as being a Freemason, I am a Church-Warden and recently have been commissioned by our Bishop as a Lay Leader. Prior to the commissioning service I re-affirmed my Freemasonry to our Vicar in case there were any objections.
    I was emphatically assured that there was no objection nor was there any conflict of interest. I wonder how many of the clergy agree with the new Archbishop’s stance; and those past masonic Archbishops.
    Name and address supplied.

Sir,
    The October 2002 issue of a rival masonic journal, MQ, was passed to me by my late neighbour – we often swapped our respective journals. Sadly now in the Grand Lodge above, he was a devoted Freemason and a devout Christian, and a member of the Salvation Army who, like the vast majority of such Brethren, clearly perceived no incompatibility between his Freemasonry and his religion.
    The issue of MQ in question contained, commencing on page 46, a verbatim account of the sermon of the Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral – the V. Revd. Dr. John Moses – at the Service of Celebration and Thanksgiving for the United Grand Lodge of England on 18 June 2002. How does the new Archbishop of Canterbury reconcile his bizarre and totally unfounded pronouncements and provocative behaviour, in regard to Freemasonry, with the thoughtful and constructive views of the Dean?
    Chris A Hutchins, Dibden Purlieu, Hampshire.

University of Aston Lodge

Sir,
    When I became a Freemason, and indeed while I was a student at Aston University, I was not aware that the University of Aston Lodge existed. It was only by the good fortune of renewing a friendship from college days through Freemasonry that I first learned of its existence. I became a joining member soon after my first visit to the Lodge. Given the thousands of students who have graduated from the University of Aston over the years. I believe that there must be, by now, hundreds of Freemasons amongst their number in a similar ‘state of darkness’. May I, therefore, through your letters page, invite any Freemason who has had a connection with the University whether as a student, as a lecturer, as a member of the ancillary staff, or in any capacity whatsoever to please contact me on 07831 849345 or by email to qv02@dial.pipex.com. We would warmly welcome any such Brethren as visitors, and we would particularly welcome prospective joining members of candidates. I should be especially pleased to hear from any former members or founders of the University of Aston Lodge who found it necessary to resign in the past for whatever reason.
    Stanley Wills, University of Aston Lodge, No. 8305, Handsworth, Warwickshire.

Changes in the Royal Arch

Sir,
    The Pro Grand Master has set up a committee to look into the Royal Arch and its future. I am wondering if this committee has taken note of the opinions of grass root members. As a Companion of twenty-five years experience, Scribe E of one Chapter, First Principal elect of a second and a founding member of a third, I feel that I can speak with considerable insight.
    Two members of my mother Chapter are resigning as I write this letter, not from the Chapter wherein they are perfectly happy, but from Royal Arch Masonry. Their reason is the ritual: one described it to me as ‘far too long’ and the other as ‘far too complicated’.
    Both are very keen Craft masons, one being a Master and the other a Past Master, and Preceptor of a Lodge of Instruction. I am inclined to agree with them on this and am now going to infuriate the traditionalists. As far as complexity is concerned one needn’t look further than the Symbolical Lecture. I had a Grammar School education but, frankly, I do not understand it and therefore find it boring. Then we come to the secret signs of which only two out of the five given are ever used – a pointless waste of time. The Exaltation ceremony is far too long and complicated; the Scripture readings in the Installation ceremonies drone on and on and could easily be shortened. I could go on. Even those who stay the course moan about it.
    Working Freemasons today simply do not have eons of time to spend learning ritual, especially the married ones.
    Lewis J. Holmes, London

Egyptomania

Sir,
    Professor Curl is to be congratulated on his article which was fascinating (Freemasonry Today, Issue 23). However, it included a stage-set design for The Magic Flute, 1816, implying that this unique operatic work had something to do with Egypt which it certainly does not and which was never intended.
    The original documentation describes the opera as being set in Egypt, but this was never intended to be taken literally. Its ‘Egypt’ was the pseudonym used by the Illuminati to describe the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Hence the staging of The Magic Flute, all actions and messages that it includes, refers to Freemasonry and the social situation in the Empire during the late 1780s. It has no connection with the real or mythological Egypt.
    This rather strange way of setting The Magic Flute was necessary to prevent the interference of the strict censorship laws that applied at that time which would otherwise have made the production illegal. Without knowing that The Magic Flute’s Egypt is actually the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the liberal, if not socially revolutionary ideas that it expresses, will never be understood. I refer to a research document written by Professor Walther Brauneis entitled The Magic Flute and the Relationship to Freemasonry, of which there is an English translation in the library of Grand Lodge.
    Noel A. French, Mozart lodge, No. 1929, Surrey.

Police Masonic Display Team

Sir,
    My wife and I spent three months in Canada, during which time I had the opportunity to visit various masonic Lodges. In particular, I visited Lodge Composite, No. 667, in the Province of Ontario. After the opening and conducting of the regular business the sound of Bagpipes echoed from outside the Lodge. We were about to witness the initiation of a serving police officer. The ceremony was to be carried out by the visiting Toronto Police Degree Team.
    The doors of the Lodge opened and, led by a resplendent piper, the team entered wearing Full Dress Police uniforms together with masonic regalia. The director of the team, Barry Gyton, called each member onto the floor of the Lodge. They reported their name, Police division and job status, ranging from retired Police administrators, serving Police Inspectors, Traffic Police, Detectives and Patrol Officers. The principal officers in the Lodge gave up their positions to the Degree Team and the Entered Apprentice Degree ceremony was commenced. Each member played his part within the ceremony, word-perfect, as you would expect, and with expert precision.
    The Degree Team carry out many visits throughout the province of Ontario, raising money for various charities.
    Ray C. Croft, Iceni Lodge, No. 5975, Hertfordshire.

Sir,
    There seems to be a growing interest in mentoring schemes, and as a society concerned with masonic education we are interested in taking up this challenge. We feel there is a need for some research in this area as to exactly what is required. We would be very interested to hear from Lodges who already have such a scheme in place, or are planning one for the future, and in return of course we would pass on to them the fruits of our labours.
    May we ask any Lodge which has something to contribute in this area to let us know, either by email to workingtools@aol.com or by post to:
    The Cornerstone Society, 68 Foxley Lane, Purley, Surrey CR8 3EE.