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Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social groups & communities > Associations, clubs, societies > Freemasonry & secret societies
Freemasonry was a major cultural and social phenomenon and a key
element of the Enlightenment. It was to have an international
influence across the globe. This primary resource collection charts
a key period in the development of organized Freemasonry
culminating in the formation of a single United Grand Lodge of
England. The secrecy that has surrounded Freemasonry has made it
difficult to access information and documents about the
organization and its adherents in the past. This collection is the
result of extensive archival research and transcription and
highlights the most significant themes associated with Freemasonry.
The documents are drawn from masonic collections, private archives
and libraries worldwide. The majority of these texts have never
before been republished. Documents include rituals (some written in
code), funeral services, sermons, songs, certificates, an engraved
list of lodges, letters, pamphlets, theatrical prologues and
epilogues, and articles from newspapers and periodicals. This
collection will enable researchers to identify many key masons for
the first time. It will be of interest to students of Freemasonry,
the Enlightenment and researchers in eighteenth-century studies.
Freemasonry was a major cultural and social phenomenon and a key
element of the Enlightenment. It was to have an international
influence across the globe. This primary resource collection charts
a key period in the development of organized Freemasonry
culminating in the formation of a single United Grand Lodge of
England. The secrecy that has surrounded Freemasonry has made it
difficult to access information and documents about the
organization and its adherents in the past. This collection is the
result of extensive archival research and transcription and
highlights the most significant themes associated with Freemasonry.
The documents are drawn from masonic collections, private archives
and libraries worldwide. The majority of these texts have never
before been republished. Documents include rituals (some written in
code), funeral services, sermons, songs, certificates, an engraved
list of lodges, letters, pamphlets, theatrical prologues and
epilogues, and articles from newspapers and periodicals. This
collection will enable researchers to identify many key masons for
the first time. It will be of interest to students of Freemasonry,
the Enlightenment and researchers in eighteenth-century studies.
Includes more than 550 texts - Many texts are published here by
special arrangement with the Library and Museum of Freemasonry,
London - Contains over 260 pages of newly transcribed manuscript
material - Documents are organized thematically - Full editorial
apparatus including general introduction, volume introductions,
headnotes and explanatory endnotes - A consolidated index appears
in the final volume
Identify Fraternal Groups and Their Emblems. A look at the rich and
diverse heritage of American fraternal societies from the late
1800s through present times. Focusing upon larger organizations of
the golden age, this book covers the basic symbols and emblems of
groups as diverse as the Freemasons, Odd Fellows, Redmen, Knights
of Columbus, Elks, Knights of Pythias, and even the Ku Klux Klan.
Usually couched in mystical symbolism, here find images of actual
medals and regalia along with period photographs and imagery from
trade catalogs. Fraternally Yours opens the secretive door of
fraternal societies to everyone.
Unravel the mysteries of the Masons All the myths and rumors about
Masonic organizations probably have you wondering "what do Masons
really do?" Questions like this one are a natural by-product of
being the oldest and largest "secret society" in the world. This
book is an ideal starting place to find answers to your questions
about the secret and not-so-secret things about Freemasonry. Now in
its third edition, this international best-seller peeks behind the
door of your local Masonic lodge and explains the meanings behind
the rituals, rites, and symbols of the organization. Along the way
the book covers nearly 3,000 years of Masonic history, introduces
you to some famous Freemasons you already know from history books,
and explains the relationship with related groups like Knights
Templar, Scottish Rite, Order of Eastern Star, and the beloved
fez-wearing Shriners. Look inside the book to learn: What it takes
to become a member of the Freemasons, and what you can expect when
you join How Lodges are organized and what really goes on during
Masonic ceremonies The basic beliefs and philosophies of
Freemasonry, including how Masons contribute to charity, and
society in general The origins behind some of the wild myths and
conspiracy theories surrounding Freemasonry and how to debunk (most
of) them Written by a 33rd degree Scottish Rite Mason and the
Public Relations and Marketing Director for the Grand Lodge
F&AM of Indiana, Freemasons For Dummies is a must-read guide
for anyone interested in this ancient fraternal order, whether
you're looking to join or are just curious about some of the more
mysterious aspects of Freemasonry.
Secret Societies in one form or another have existed throughout the
history of human culture. But what is their appeal? What is it that
makes so-called respectable people indulge in peculiar ceremonies,
dressed in fanciful costumes uttering blood-curdling oaths of
loyalty with the threat of death hanging over them should they
reveal the inner workings of the cult? Are these organisations
simply a way for like-minded followers to get together in a
convivial atmosphere for purely social reasons or is there really a
dark side to their activities. Are they really trying, as some have
suggested, to control world affairs for their own nefarious ends?
Are the secret societies' claims that they are in the possession of
great knowledge or valuable secrets also true? Are they really
trying to engineer history or keep hidden that which may bring
about the fall of a religion or a country? In Secret Societies,
Nick Harding describes some of the best known organisations along
with some of their least known counterparts. He highlights the
similarities that all these cults have - they all work to a similar
pattern and that basic human psychology plays a far more important
role in their continued existence and their enduring appeal than
any hidden wisdom, knowledge or world-shattering secret.
The international media has traditionally reported on the triad secret societies in terms of a mythic Chinese Mafia, and accounts of their criminal activities have often been sensationalised. Academic historians, sinologists and sociologists in the last twenty years have taken a different view of the development of such societies in South China and Southeast Asia. Some saw them as primitive revolutionaries who played an indirect, yet important, role in the 1911 revolution of China. Others tended to conceptualise Chinese triads in terms of brotherhood associations and mutual aid societies. This collection assembles for the first time a highly interesting mixture of scholarly studies and field reports.
The world of Freemasonry exerts a powerful influence on the modern
imagination. In an age when perceived notions of history are being
increasingly questioned and re-examined it is perhaps inevitable
that secretive societies such as the Freemasons find themselves at
the centre of considerable speculation and conjecture. To some they
represent a powerful and shadowy elite who have manipulated world
history throughout the ages, whilst to others they are an
altogether more mundane and benign fraternal organisation. Giles
Morgan begins by exploring the obscure and uncertain origins of
Freemasonry. It has been variously argued that it derives from the
practices of medieval stonemasons, that it dates to events
surrounding the construction of the Temple of Solomon and that it
is connected to ancient Mystery Cults. One of the major and often
disputed claims made for Freemasonry is that it is directly
attributable to the Knights Templar, generating a wealth of
best-selling publications such as 'The Holy Blood and the Holy
Grail' and more recently Dan Brown's 'The Da Vinci Code', linking
Freemasonry to a supposed secret order known as the Priory of Sion
who are the guardians of the true nature of the Holy Grail.
Freemasonry today is a worldwide phenomenon that accepts membership
from a diverse ethnic and religious range of backgrounds. Entry to
Freemasonry requires a belief in a Supreme Being although it
insists it does not constitute a religion in itself. The rituals
and practices of Freemasonry have been viewed as variously obscure,
pointless, baffling, sinister and frightening. An intensely
stratified and hierarchical structure underpins most Masonic orders
whose activities are focussed within meeting points usually termed
as Lodges. Giles Morgan examines its historical significance
(George Washington and Benjamin Franklin were both Masons) and its
position and role in contemporary society.
This is the first in-depth study of the secret society called CUP (Committee of Union and Progress), based on their own papers. It pays special attention to the Young Turks as an intellectual movement which continues to influence the thinking of Turkish intellectuals in the 1990s. It also provides important insights into diplomatic relations between the Ottoman Empire and the so-called Great Powers of Europe at the turn of the century.
Who were Tubalcain, Aholiab and Zabud and what is their
significance for the Freemason? There is a general interest in the
rituals of Freemasonry, generated in part by the apparently obscure
references they contain. This is the only book that offers a guide
to the stories used in Masonic ritual and their links to the Bible
and Christianity. The new Mason is directed to a 'serious
contemplation of the Volume of the Sacred Law' - but that is easier
said than done without a grounding in the Scriptures, something
that fewer and fewer people have. The historical and geographical
setting of the Bible is explained here, making such contemplation
easier for Mason and non-Mason alike. Mike Neville has
systematically cross-referenced the most influential Chapters of
the Bible to the ceremonies. It is his intention to get Freemasons
to understand the ritual - not just to memorise and regurgitate -
as well as to elucidate for the non-Mason. Sacred Secrets will aid
the clergy, theologians and any other person interested in
Freemasonry to see the links between ritual and scripture.
After the dramatic events of the last few weeks, Greer Macdonald is
trying to concentrate on her A levels. Stuck for a play to direct for
her drama exam, she gets help from an unexpected quarter . . .
A priceless lost play, buried by time, is pushed under her door. It is
Ben Jonson's The Isle of Dogs, a play considered so dangerous in
Elizabethan times that every copy was burned . . . except one. As the
students begin to rehearse, events become increasingly dark and
strange, and they lead Greer back to where she never thought she would
return - Longcross Hall.
There she discovers that not only is the Order of the Stag alive and
well, but that a ghost from the past might be too . . .
Although on the face of it the Federal Bureau of Investigation and
the Ku Klux Klan seem to be very different organizations, they have
more in common than one might imagine. In fact, the Bureau and the
Klan share a long and complicated history.Beginning with their
first confrontation in 1922, this book examines the similarities,
covert collaborations and common goals of the FBI and the KKK.
After briefly describing the history of each, it explores the
development of their association and the specific ways in which
each organization furthered the other's goals.The book traces
eighty years of parallel development and the conservative attitudes
that drew the FBI and the KKK together, especially in the area of
civil rights. Political, societal and historical contributions to
the atmosphere that encouraged this complicity are explored in
detail. Statistics regarding Klan membership, racial violence and a
suspicious lack of federal involvement lend support to the author's
analysis of events. Special emphasis is placed on the leaders of
each group, especially J. Edgar Hoover, who shaped the very
foundation of the FBI. The final chapters cover more recent events,
up-to and including those following the 1995 bombing of the federal
building in Oklahoma City.
The Hermetic Brotherhood of Luxor, active in the last decades of
the 19th century, was the only order of its time that taught
practical occultism in the Western Mystery Tradition. This is the
first complete and undistorted account, tracing the origins,
founders, and practices of this very secretive order, which counted
among its members many of the well-known figures of late
19th-century occultism, spiritualism, and Theosophy, including Max
Theon, Peter Davidson, Thomas Henry Burgoyne and Paschal Beverly
Randolph. This scholarly work provides all the materials for
revisioning the history, assigning the Hermetic Brotherhood of
Luxor its rightful place as one of the most influential esoteric
orders of its time.
A surprisingly large number of English poets have either belonged
to a secret society, or been strongly influenced by its tenets. One
of the best known examples is Christopher Smart's membership of the
Freemasons, and the resulting influence of Masonic doctrines on A
Song to David. However, many other poets have belonged to, or been
influenced by not only the Freemasons, but the Rosicrucians,
Gormogons and Hell-Fire Clubs. First published in 1986, this study
concentrates on five major examples: Smart, Burns, William Blake,
William Butler Yeats and Rudyard Kipling, as well as a number of
other poets. Marie Roberts questions why so many poets have been
powerfully attracted to the secret societies, and considers the
effectiveness of poetry as a medium for conveying secret emblems
and ritual. She shows how some poets believed that poetry would
prove a hidden symbolic language in which to reveal great truths.
The beliefs of these poets are as diverse as their practice, and
this book sheds fascinating light on several major writers.
From supreme president to forgotten enemy, John W. Talbot lived a
remarkable life. Charismatic, energetic, and powerful, he founded a
national fraternal organization, the Order of Owls, and counted
senators, congressmen, and business leaders among his friends. He
wielded his influence to help causes close to his heart but also to
bring down those who stood against him. In So Much Bad in the Best
of Us, Greta Fisher's careful research reveals that Talbot was
capable of great evil, causing one woman to describe him as "the
Devil Incarnate." His string of very public affairs revealed his
strange sexual preferences and violent tendencies, and charges
leveled against him included perjury, blackmail, jury tampering,
slander, libel, misuse of the mail, assault with intent to kill,
and White slavery. Ultimately convicted on the slavery charge, he
spent several years in Leavenworth penitentiary and eventually lost
everything, including control of the Order of Owls. His descent
into alcoholism and death by fire was a fitting end to a tumultuous
and dramatic life. After 50 years of newspaper headlines and court
battles, Talbot's death made national news, but with more enemies
than friends and estranged from his family, he was ultimately
forgotten. A gripping true crime story, So Much Bad in the Best of
Us offers a mesmerizing account of the life of John W. Talbot, the
Order of Owls, and how quickly the powerful can fall.
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