32 articles from the existing collection.
The accusation that Pope Pius IX was a Freemason emerged in the 19th century, a period marked by tension between the Catholic Church and various secular movements, including Freemasonry. Freemasonry, with its secretive rituals and Enlightenment-inspired ideals, was perceived by the Church as a threat to Christian doctrine and au…
The Catholic Church’s prohibition of Freemasonry began in the 18th century, with Pope Clement XII’s apostolic constitution In Eminenti in 1738. This document condemned Freemasonry for its secretive nature and its promotion of ideas contrary to Catholic teaching. The Church saw Freemasonry as a potential threat to the spiritual w…
The relationship between Freemasonry and the Catholic Church has been marked by tension for centuries. Freemasonry, as an organized fraternal society, emerged in the early 18th century, promoting principles of brotherhood, morality, and enlightenment ideals. The Catholic Church, however, has consistently viewed Freemasonry with …
Freemasonry, as a formal organization, began in 1717 with the establishment of the Grand Lodge of England. This marked the start of modern speculative Freemasonry, distinct from earlier operative stonemason guilds. The organization quickly spread across Europe, attracting members with its emphasis on fraternity, moral philosophy…
Freemasonry emerged in the late 16th to early 17th centuries, initially as a fraternal organization rooted in the traditions of stonemason guilds. Over time, it evolved into a speculative institution with rituals and teachings drawing from various philosophical and esoteric traditions. By the 18th century, Freemasonry had spread…
Our codes are totally different. I am bound only to safeguard the manifestations of conscience made to me by people in Confession, and to preserve such other natural and committed secrets as involve no injustice to others.
In all the points I have enumerated against Masonry. They do not constitute a secret society of the type condemned by the Church. They are prepared to submit all their affairs to ecclesiastical authority. Every member knows that he will never be asked to violate his conscience or injure other people’s rights in virtue of his mem…
The Independent Order of Odd Fellows, established in 18th-century England, emerged as a fraternal society focused on mutual aid, charity, and personal development. Its origins are traced to working-class communities seeking to provide financial and social support for members. By the 19th century, the organization had spread to t…
The Catholic Church does not condemn any society merely because it is secret in its own transactions of business. Every society may have its lawful secrets. A family is a society, and no family is obliged to call in strangers and exhibit all its affairs to the public gaze. But the Church does condemn those societies whose form o…
Not merely as a secret society, but as one involving a particular kind of secrecy. A member takes a solemn oath to keep secret any matters heard within the Lodge with no previous idea of their nature and with no certainty of the extent to which he is committing himself. Many a man who has taken that oath has refused, because of …
That is merely a foolish superstition. If a man drops Masonry, altogether renounces it, and has nothing more to do with it, he ceases to be a Mason however much his fellow-Masons declare that he still belongs to them. Masonry does not grip a man body and soul for all eternity, with or without his will.
I do not. The Masonic system and the Catholic system are not reconcilable, and no Catholic may join the Lodge without thereby renouncing his Church. But there is no reason why Catholics and Masons, making allowance for each other’s persuasions, should not be personally friendly in this country, observing always true charity towa…
You may know of many. Those who have done so have preferred the benefits of Masonry to the principles of their religion, selling their birthright, as did Esau, for a bowl of temporal porridge. They have cut themselves off from their Church, and deprived themselves of the right to the Sacraments. Law is law. If they want to be Ca…
Not all do. I remember reading in a French Masonic Review these words, “Masonry teaches that there is only one religion—the worship of humanity. God is an erroneous concept of humanity.” However, many Masons believe in a Supreme Architect, just as the pagan Aristotle did.
I have no hatred of Catholics who have become Masons. I am very sorry for the Catholic who does so, and would move heaven and earth to reach him before he died, were such a Catholic to send for me on his death-bed, as indeed has happened.
The Catholic Church’s prohibition of Freemasonry began in the early 18th century, a period marked by growing tensions between the Church and emerging secular movements. Freemasonry, with its roots in medieval stonemason guilds, evolved into a fraternal organization by the early 1700s, emphasizing Enlightenment ideals such as rea…
We do not condemn any good they are able to accomplish. Meantime the Catholic Church has charitable works on a much vaster scale. And she condemns the Masonic system, without casting reflection upon the sincerity of individual Masons or the good works of the Craft
Senator Delpech, President of the Grand Orient in France, said on September 20th, 1902, “The triumph of the Galilean has lasted many centuries, but now He dies in His turn. He passes away to join the dust of the ages with the other divinities of India, Greece, and Rome, who saw so many deceived creatures prostrate before their a…
Who knows? Those who have completely lost their faith may be so. But there are many who have not lost the faith, and who but seem to be content. They are most miserable because they cannot practice their faith as long as they are Masons; and although they have not the courage of their convictions yet, they hope to renounce Mason…
Mackey’s Lexicon of Freemasonry will tell you that “all the ceremonies of our Order begin and terminate with prayer, for Masonry is a religious institution.”
No. The Freemason may have no personal antipathy towards Catholics at all, and even if he had, the law is, “Do good to those who hate you.” If a competent Catholic applies for a position together with a Mason, a Catholic may employ his fellow Catholic by preference because he wants to do a good turn to a fellow Catholic from a m…
Masonry did not exist in ancient times. But if, since the decree of Pope Clement, a renegade Priest did join Masonry, he at once ceased to be a practical member of the Catholic Church by the mere fact of doing so.
God himself would scarcely recognize tne portrait as authentic. God is not merely the author of all things, He is the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, in whose Name we have been baptized. The mere admission of a Great Architect suggests no intimate relations with Him, no knowledge of His intimate and personal life, no recognition of…
Even did Masonry believe that, it would be detrimental to the Catholic Church. For if God reveals a definite religion, it is blasphemy to say that any other religion is as eood as the one He has revealed.
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