There is an article on http://news.bbc.co.uk here - http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/freemasons/default.stm - (sorry, webfu powers zero) about the Freemasons in Britain.
They seem to be desparately trying to convice the general public that they are simply nice people who give money to charity and do good works in the community.
However, it was the three paragraphs below, and aprticularly the direct quote, that made me raise my eyebrows sceptically and snort derisively (sp?).
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Almost every wall, ceiling, door handle and light fitting in Freemasons' Hall bears a symbol drawn from antiquity, the zodiac or the Old Testament.
"Most of it doesn't mean anything, it's just adornment. Of course, people are tempted to read odd things into every decoration," says Provincial Master Chris Connop. Lodges' checked carpets have, for instance, been wrongly linked to a similar design on police hats.
However, symbols taken from construction and stonemasonry are important to freemasons' ceremonies. Ashlars - rough rocks made smooth by a stonemason - are used to represent a member's progression through "the Craft".
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I don't have a problem with Freemasons per se, but I do find this path to "respectability" very amusing. I mean, who are they trying to convince? and Why? and Why should it matter? Or am I missing something? |
