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A few words on Freemasonry or Masonry by Prof. Dr. Luca Scotto di Tella de’ Douglas di Castel di Ripa

Edited by

The Orthodox Catholic Review

In its centuries of life, since the time of King Solomon and the time of the Noble

Knight Templars survived the shameful persecution, Freemasonry fought for

equality, freedom, brotherhood, the dignity of all men, ecumenism, interreligious

dialogue, research of the God’s Wisdom; in the lodges (a true example of Civil

Democracy) there were thinkers, poets, artists, writers, patriots, politicians, kings,

musicians, actors, film makers, medical doctors, scientists, philanthropists and the

presence of the team and the symbol of Square and Compasses was and still is a

guarantee of real democracy in a Country. Despite these indisputable social and

human merits from the beginning, Freemasonry has been accused of all kinds of

misdeeds and persecuted in many ways and centuries, for example, when the Pope

was also a King, Master Masons were arrested, tortured and sometime not only jailed

for a lifetime but killed, “in the name of God”. All kinds of plots, planetary plots,

economic crises, illicit trafficking, satanic rites, assassinations, attacks, blasphemy

and immorality have been attributed to Freemasons. Few people knows that it is

estimated that between 80,000 and 200,000 Freemasons were killed under the Nazi

regime (source: Freemasons for Dummies, by Christopher Hodapp, Wiley Publishing

Inc., Indianapolis, 2005, p. 85, sec. Hitler and the Nazi).

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Today Charity is wonderfully practised, for example in the United States of America,

normally a Lodge is offering to the Community an Ambulance and can happen that a

National Grand Lodge is creating a Pediatric Hospital for the Community.

A banner dated 1886 and the symbol of Freemasonry, square and compasses, many times with the G inside, for God, Good, Geometry and so on.

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Among the condemnations of Freemasonry, in addition to that of "Adoring Satan", which is based on the fanciful and defamatory false slanderers of the writer and journalist Léo Taxil who finally declared that he had invented everything written in the text, is that of being fiercely anticlerical.

A masonic symbol for God, Great Architect of the Universe

In order to be clear and honest, the greatest, real, effective and raw anticlericalism occurred at the time of Carbonária (1822 and after), which often merged with Freemasonry and sometimes coincided with liberal ideals, the anticlericalism found in various Masonic currents today is absolutely not against the Sacred, sui generis, at first, but against the scandal given, offered by the Temporal Power of the Church of Rome (which is based as every historiographer knows well on the so-called false

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“Donation of Constantine”1 - the Great) clear, antithesis of that poor Church of the origins desired by Jesus Christ the Redeemer.

The symbol of God behind the place for the Right Worshipful Master, in a Masonic Lodge

What is fought and even despises is not the authentic and valid theological and philosophical message erga omnes of the Church ("God is Love") but the hierocracy and theocracy those forms of power of the sacred that have brought so many people begging for a true, authentic Gospel message, to be persecuted, incarcerated, tortured, burned or otherwise killed, remember the Pope-King of the times of Mastro Titta (1779–1869) the Rome's official executioner for the Papal States from 1796 to 1865 and it happens more and more often that many people, born Catholic, who would

1 Donation of Constantine. By Wikipedia: “The Donation of Constantine (Latin: Donatio Constantini) is a forged Roman Imperial Decree by which the 4th century Emperor Constantine the Great supposedly transferred authority over Rome and the western part of the Roman Empire to the Pope. Composed probably in the 8th century, it was used, especially in the 13th century, in support of claims of political authority by the papacy. Lorenzo Valla, an Italian Catholic Priest and Renaissance Humanist, is credited with first exposing the forgery with solid philological arguments in 1439–1440, although the document's authenticity had been repeatedly contested since 1001. In many of the existing manuscripts (handwritten copies of the document), including the oldest one, the document bears the title Constitutum domini Constantini Imperatoris. The Donation of Constantine was included in the 9th century Pseudo-Isidorean Decretals collection”. See, on the Web, the following u.r.l.: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donation_of_Constantine

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strongly and sincerely a Church at the origins, evangelical, disappointed by the Magisterium of the Church of Rome, Roman Catholic and disappointed by the behavior, by the modus operandi of Its Clergy Members and by the often too tight bond with the Vatican State, becomes Orthodox, Protestant, Buddhist, to return to be considered "sonship" and not "subjection". Freemasonry does not exclude any Spiritual Way, on the contrary, it draws on that common and universal spiritual heritage which reveals and distinguishes the true Religion, Love, Compassion, Mercy, Mercy, Empathy, Solidarity, Philanthropy, etc..

Ritual work is performed in a Temple (precisely “To the Glory Of The Grand/Great Architect Of The Universe”, that is to Glory of God, and for the benefit of all Humanity, all people). Freemasonry has never preached, nor ever preached, to abandon its Religion, its Creed, its own Ideology, its own Philosophy, everything is done to the Glory of God, referred to as the "Great Architect of the Universe" (G.A.D.U.). Freemasonry could be considered as a universal and interreligious, multireligious confraternity overcoat or coat that does not replace the dress (the Religion of the Member) but completes it, integrates it and improves it. Rev. Prof. Dr. Albert Schweitzer MD, Lutheran Pastor, Professor of Theology and Music and Saviour of the sick with Leprosy, Nobel Prize for Peace, William Booth, Founder of the Salvation Army, Jean Henry Dunant, Founder of the Red Cross Society, Alexander Fleming, Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine they are magnificent examples of Master Masons who have dedicated Their lives to the service of their neighbor.

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ARTICLE FOR THE RELIGIOUS MAGAZINE

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Text made the 5 of December 2017: Rome, Italy, for the

“The Orthodox Catholic Review”