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Years ago, I mentioned “the Church” once to often to a good Jewish friend. She hesitated before saying it, but then laid on the line. “George,” she said, “You are just another Lodge (she and her husband were active in the Masons). You have temples, clothing, handshakes, secrets. Paying dues are very important, and once a Mormon, always a Mormon ( your name can’t be easily removed). We actually have a lot in common.” I was shocked/offended at the time, but time has a strange way of reminding you of pivotal moments in your life… thank you Audrey for making me think. No. We are a church with very strong historical ties to the Masons and their rituals as a community bonding tool.
We share lots of things with Masonic Lodges, but there are far more things that we don’t share – and just as many things we share with other churches and religions that we don’t share with Masonic Lodges.
The following posts are about the connection, the comparisons and the contrasts between the LDS Church and the Masons. They have 30 & 10 comments, respectively:
http://forum.staylds.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=996&hilit=masons#p11186 http://forum.staylds.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=133&p=1032&hilit=masons#p1022 I think we have very much in common with the Masons, and I see that as a net positive as far as my view of the church. It’s never been an issue for me, and in my crazy view of the church it actually makes a lot of sense that the LDS church and the Masons are “related.” I’m not endowed, and my understanding of this is all second hand (!), but the answer is yes and no. In this part of the world, freemasonry is not particularly elite, as it is in many others. There are a lot of working class masons here.
Actually one of the most Masonic things we do is refer to each other as “Brother”*. (* I don’t think Masons use the term “Sister” much, although there are one or two female lodges.)
I believe that Masons also have certain notions similar to eternal progression, and they have the notion of “good standing”.
On a lighter note, I was visiting a nearby ward for the first time last year, and it was right next to a lodge. All the men were there in their dull suits, and it was difficult to tell who was there going to the meetinghouse, and who was going to the lodge next door!
Quote:it actually makes a lot of sense that the LDS church and the Masons are “related.”
It also puts us in an odd family along with the Orange Order, Ku Klux Klan and Rosicrucians!
SamBee wrote:It also puts us in an odd family along with the Orange Order, Ku Klux Klan and Rosicrucians!
I won’t argue with that.
It’s my understanding that the Grand Lodge of Utah wouldn’t allow Mormons to join them until around 1964. There were hard feelings concerning some issue. I used to have a volume entitled: Masonry and Mormonism, but have not seen it for awhile. Both groups seem to elevate titles as well. Joseph Smith was swiftly promoted to the top of the lodge, but I believe he was kicked out because he was supposed to have stolen the rituals. I have never been through either the LDS endowment or any kind of Masonic ritual, so my knowledge is second hand, but I get the impression that LDS temple rituals are far more religious in their content. Masonic stuff is vaguer, and does not refer directly to God except in unexplicit terms.
Style-wise? Yeah, lots of similarities. The difference are pretty big though. I would say perhaps that temple Mormonism is a lot like a lodge. Chapel Mormonism is much more like a church, and the chapel is where most of Mormonism is experienced on a day-to-day basis.
There is an informative podcast done by John Dehlin of an LDS master mason on mormonstories.org. I thought it was fascinating! (hope this is not an anti site) f4h1
Fatherof4husbandof1 wrote:There is an informative podcast done by John Dehlin of an LDS master mason on mormonstories.org. I thought it was fascinating! (hope this is not an anti site)
No. No. Not an anti site. We link to it from the “Additional Support Resources” tab of our website.
“Greg Kearney, Mormonism and Masonry, Part 1 of 1”
Brian Johnston wrote:I would say perhaps that temple Mormonism is a lot like a lodge. Chapel Mormonism is much more like a church, and the chapel is where most of Mormonism is experienced on a day-to-day basis.
That’s a pretty good summary IMHO.
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