How does one knows he/she is a mason?

How does one knows that he/she is a mason?
is it run in a family, or you should discover it, just like you discover anything else?

Peace
Lena

You have to join the group. When you do, and you're accepted, you become a mason, and then you know you're a mason.

yes, but where the decision is coming from??
I heard that all decisions are already made, we just have to become aware of it.

The question you ask is not a silly as it sounds.
No doubt the "Official Line" will be that you choose to join on your own free will.
My experience with Masonry (which was in no way pleasant) was that you are basically "picked" by a lodge due to you being deemed "a like minded individual."
They generally recruit their friends and relatives in a covert way that is intended to educate you to �their ways.�
Lodges spend an astonishing amount of time surrounding an individual and setting up what seem like strange coincidences and staged events to drop hints to you and test your psychological willingness to join.
The hints will get heavier as you become more and more receptive to the ideologies of their Lodge, both from the Masonic Degree sense as well as the individual Lodge�s collective interests (they try to place people they think will get along together in the same Lodge, for instance if you are a biker you will generally end up in a Lodge predominantly comprised of motorcyclists)
After a while it will become obvious what is going on around you in any case and if at that point you pull your �friends� to account and declare even politely to them you not interested in becoming a Mason then it gets ugly.
I am speaking from experience.

'rolls eyes' ... They're the ones carrying Mason Jars.

If you ever have the experience of being foreced or talked into freemasonry, then that is not a way or reason to join. i would never recommend to join a clodge like that. Some may have bad experiences, but that is not even at the heart of Freemasonry. Make sure the lodge is Free and Accepted Freemasonry. Yes, there are some offshoots and not all are recognized. 2nd, to see if you are a free mason at heart, go to a lodge in your area and talk with them about their ideas and what they feel it takes to be a free mason. Then go home and think about it. I do not mean for a day or two, but think about yourself, your path and if you are interested. Then when you are ready, then move on to the next step. You will have to be sponsored by two people, so you will hae to talk with them about yourself. When you have two sponsors, then you will have to have an official interview. You will need to talk about yourself again. So, just be ready in your heart and mind based on what you heard and know, then the process is simple. The requirements are you must have sound morals and virtues, be of legal age, and believe in a supreme being. This does not mean God only, it can mean any supreme being, Allah etc. and you will not be asked to state your religion either.
If you have a bad experience or do not feel comfortable, then do not join. If someone is forcing you to join, then they themselves are going against masonry in general. You should also never feel rushed. My father was a mason and told me IF or WHEN I am ready he will be more than happy to sponsor me. I joined in japan and it took about 3 months for me to decide to join. But, I am happy that I did.

Jon,

Don't sweat it. "Mr. Necros" is an impostor, as I've shown in previous threads; it is blatantly obvious by his lack of knowledge concerning how Freemasonry actually operates, and his reliance upon the misinformation found at the Freemasonry Watch website.

For Lena:

Men become Masons by first requesting to join our fraternity, secondly having his request approved by the Lodge through the ballot, and lastly by being initiated.

Fiat Lvx.

How does one knows that he/she is a mason?
[/quote


This is a very funny experience my husband had with a co-worker that he knows for 5 years, my husband like to aproach friends and say something in another language when one day he aproached this co-worker and in arabic he grated him inmeadiatly he turned around and stated reciting the strangest thing like a trance and then called my husband fellow mason, to my husband surprise he said to him that he wasnot a mason and he asked him how did he knew that greating and my husband told him that he spended time un Saudi Arabia and had to learn the language. Well muy husband said that he will never imagined that this person was a mason. He is just a regular Joe. they never talk about the incident ever again so anybody could be a mason around you and you will never know.

Masons don't speak Arabic unless they actually are Arabs.

Whoever your husband was talking to, they were not what we would call recognised freemasons. Freemasonry only uses the language of the country that it is based in.

French speak French, English speak English etc. There are no foreign passages of words that are spoken for freemasons to recognise each other.

Originally posted by Leveller
Masons don't speak Arabic unless they actually are Arabs.
Whoever your husband was talking to, they were not what we would call recognised freemasons. Freemasonry only uses the language of the country that it is based in.
French speak French, English speak English etc. There are no foreign passages of words that are spoken for freemasons to recognise each other.

It used to be customary for Shriners to greet each other with a traditional Arabic "hello", but this isn't as common as it used to be. This may be what her husband was referring to.

Fiat Lvx.

whilst no one can be certain of these things , it is generally accepted that if you answer yes to 3 or more of the following questions then you proberly are a mason .

1 .is your bathroom tiled in a black and white chessboard design ?

2 is your favourite necktie a noose ?

3 do your pants have one long leg and one short leg?

4 when at work do people call you 'officer'?

5 have you ever agreed with prince philip ?

whilst not conclusive , one should be suspicious if middle aged white men address you as brother whilst squeezing your knuckle or you have never got a speeding ticket .

I don't think a woman would know is she were a Mason, unless she were a he in a previous life. Masons don't allow women.

Originally posted by DontTreadOnMe
I don't think a woman would know is she were a Mason, unless she were a he in a previous life. Masons don't allow women.

True. However there are several irregular organizations that admit women. These organizations are recognized as being Masonic by orthodox Freemasonry, but are interesting nevetheless.
These organizations are called "Co-Masonry"; they can be found here:
www.co-masonry.org...

and

www.comasonic.org...

Brother Albert Pike attempted to introduce a regular Masonic Rite for women called the Rite of Adoption, which was of French origin, and celebrated the Mysteries of Isis (Napoleon's wife Josephine was once Grand Mistress). However, the Rite was never firmly established in the U.S., and succumbed to the somewhat less interesting Order of the Eastern Star, founded by Bro. Rob Morris, which gained popularity quickly.
Since that time in the 19th century, women have become as educated as their male counterparts, and certainly now possess the intelligence to appreciate a philosophical Rite such as that of Adoption. Perhaps in the not-too-distant future, the Rite could be revived.

Fiat Lvx.

Seems to me that about 85% of masons are simply that: Masons. They do community outreach and go out drinking, not much different than an Elks lodge.

However, like the ol' conspiracy theory states: There is much below the surface. The higher degree Masons are much more versed in the under-lurkings of the "society."

Came across a book from the 1940s called "Freemasonry in NY" recently. It's sitting in my family room, and if I find anything of note in it, I will be sure to post it.

I find it interesting that they are such deists, that is - they believe in a divine creator as a "Great architect" and the reasoning behind their logos (Tri-Square, compass, et al) is representative of the logic behind creation and existance.

Do the Masons still hold much of a "grudge" against Catholicism? Everything recent that I've raed just says that you have to believe in a higher power, whether you're Jewish, Protestant or Catholic.

side note:
at the local large-stain bookretailor (Rhymes with "Quarters") there are about a dozen books on Masonry/Freemasonry. Additionally, there are descriptions in these books of how fellow masons greet one another, some of the various rites, etc. I suggest poking your nose around in a bookstore for books on Freemasonry, if you're interested. I'm not sure how "true" they are, but they are definitely pretty interesting.

Originally posted by mauskov
Do the Masons still hold much of a "grudge" against Catholicism? Everything recent that I've raed just says that you have to believe in a higher power, whether you're Jewish, Protestant or Catholic.

No, at least modern Catholicism. Our beef with the Church was that it set itself up as the ultimate authority on everything, and persecuted, tortured, and murdered those who disagreed with them.
The Church no longer does this, but I still can't help to wonder if they would still do this if they had the power to.
In any case, as long as the Church isn't bullying anyone anymore, Masonry doesn't consider it an enemy, although, of course, many Masons strongly disagree with Rome on practically everything.

Fiat Lvx.

I once heard something about...

Having been tried
Never been denied
And ready to be tried again.

Originally posted by Masonic Light
The Church no longer does this, but I still can't help to wonder if they would still do this if they had the power to.

Of course they would. I would not be surprised if the Catholic Church (not average Catholics, mind you) are the REAL conspiracy. They're probably plotting their return to world domination as we speak.

Masonic Light - I'm intrigued by the allegation that I am an imposter, who am I supposed to be impersonating?
I most certainly am not claiming to be a 33rd degree Freemason like someone else on this board who doesn�t seem to know the details of the 32nd Degree.

My brother was asked by his boss if he was interested in becoming a Mason. Others I know have contacted their local lodge and asked to join. For others its a family thing, Grandfather, father, son etc.



[Edited on 1-5-2004 by Pisky]

Originally posted by dahei
1 .is your bathroom tiled in a black and white chessboard design ?

2 is your favourite necktie a noose ?

3 do your pants have one long leg and one short leg?

4 when at work do people call you 'officer'?

5 have you ever agreed with prince philip ?

I couldn't say yes to any of these. I even stay silent during toasts to the Queen of England, who has no relevance to my life or goals at all.

But I seem to be known for my S., T., and the P.P. of my E. !