I’m so very interested in this as my grandfather was a Mason, he was a “Worshipful Master”. I have his gavel with a sterling silver band around the head of the gavel, beautifully engraved with his name and title, date, and some more words I can not remember. I’ll post a picture of it tomorrow for those that may be curious. When I was little, I was playing in his closet and found his regalia, I came down the hall with the whole kit on, right down to the fringed calf skin gloves ( think Dallas cowgirl gloves🤣) the apron etc. I was so proud of myself, he went white as a ghost and looked horrified. Only when I was grown did I understand his reaction of horror 😱
I think that gavel was supposed to go in his coffin! I’m very curious what the rest of the family knew…and thought about his involvement. Wow! Worshipful Master! What town?
I’m fascinated by this story…
I only know one Freemason and he stopped going to meetings.
My father, passed away now, did not follow in his father’s footsteps, he actually mocked the masons. My dad was a fashion photographer in Toronto in the 60s and my grandfather asked if he could come to the lodge to photograph a member as they needed his portrait to go on the wall. I remember my dad telling me that he wandered around while he was waiting to take the photograph and ended up entering some room, where there was a grate in the floor and underneath the grate, there was a skeleton in it. Don’t know if it was a real skeleton or if it was just skeleton for ceremonial purposes, but I do remember him telling me this much. My father thought the whole thing was weird and creepy. I do remember my grandfather revered his position in the lodge and was very devoted to the Masonic Temple. I adored my grandfather so so much, he was a wonderful man just wonderful, so kind and loving. I was so honoured and pleased to get his gavel.
Here is some info on the lodge that he was master of if you know anything about Toronto it’s a beautiful iconic building now used for other purposes, of course. The Simpsons Masonic Lodge in Toronto was part of the city’s rich Masonic history, particularly active from the 1930s to the 1960s. During this period, Freemasonry in Toronto, centered around the Masonic Temple at Yonge and Davenport, flourished, with the building hosting numerous Masonic bodies and lodges. At its peak, the Temple housed around 38 different Masonic groups. By the 1960s, however, financial difficulties led to the space being rented out for music and entertainment events, contributing to its transformation into a cultural hub, famously hosting performances by bands like Led Zeppelin
Construction began November 2, 1916, when the contract was signed and approved by the Board of The Masonic Temple Company for the tearing down of an existing church and excavation. The Masonic ceremony of laying the cornerstone occurring November 17, 1917, with the first Lodge meeting taking place on New Year's Day, 1918.[2] At its peak, the Masonic Temple was home to 38 different Masonic bodies: 27 Craft Lodges, six Chapters (York Rite), two Preceptories (Knights Templar), two Scottish Rite Bodies and Adoniram Council.[2]
The hall functioned as a ballroom in the 1930s and began to host rock acts in the late 1960s.[3]
Yes all the Masonic gear is supposed to go in the coffin. Egyptian much? For the passage thru the underworld? That’s why you don’t see any Masonic paraphernalia in vintage shops or junk stores. Genius.
Maybe there is an exception for a gavel….?
Was he York Rite? Probably Scottish Rite.
The good, or ‘regular Joe’ Mason’s make the perfect cover for the ‘greater lodge’. Which is most of them of course (the good ones). Your grandfather no doubt was too good a dude to get invited to the malevolent levels of the craft.
There was something about all that ritual that had a powerful effect…it seems to have worn off somewhat(makes sense- and is one reason Masonry is shrinking rapidly) not unlike the Catholic Church ritual for so many, of which it Masonry a mimic and and a no doubt hostile alternative.
BTW, according to a broker friend, the best deals in real estate are old Lodges and Churches!
I don’t see a photo icon! ☹️. I’ll check those links. It probably was the biggest Lodge in Canada, sounds like the one in London. Salud-
Glad you are finding this interesting. When you said hostile to the church, I’m not sure if you noticed in the information on the Simpsons Masonic Temple at Yonge and Davenport here’s what it said: truction began November 2, 1916, when the contract was signed and approved by the Board of The Masonic Temple Company for the tearing down of an existing church and excavation. TEARING DOWN OF EXISTING CHURCH to put the Temple on top of it. Yup a bit hostile I’d say 😱
I am also very interested for the same reason. My grandfather was a low level mason in a local lodge but I have recollection of asking my father about it, and why he did not join. My father alluding in his own words that it was a bunch of social strivers doing cringe shit in gay little outfits.. My father was a member of the lions club though which I think morphed out of regular dudes leaving cringe fagmasonry..
When Nietzsche initially declared that “God is dead” in The Gay Science, he was of the forlorn belief that the Enlightenment had slain God. Though religion has seemingly flourished since the Enlightenment, I believe that the Enlightenment has incrementally replaced it with the reign of quantification, which is Science with a capital “S.” Denizens of religion may disagree with my surmise, but simply ask them what they watched on Netflix last night or the make of their smart phone.
Mr. Frederick has chronicled an epic, historical narrative whose ultimate destination is the reign of quantification—through a glass darkly. The Knights Templar are the prime movers of his epic. And he, rightfully, concludes that the remnants of the Knights Templar took refuge in Scotland after Phillip the Fair, the King of France, put a contract out on them. Like a Mafia don, after a cost-benefit analysis, Phillip concluded that wiping the Templars from the face of the Earth would be much more cost effective than remuneration, and he coerced the Vatican into his treachery. Mavens of our esoteric history generally concede that many of the Knights morphed into the Masons once they fled to Scotland.
For Mr. Fredrick, the Masons ultimately became the prime mover in the reign of quantification and, for that matter, the sun never setting on the British empire. To borrow a spicy quote from Mr. Frederick: “Great Britain, without a birth certificate, conceived in coitus with modern Freemasonry.” He plumbs from Jessica Harland-Jacobs' Builders of Empire: Freemasons and British Imperialism 1717-1927 to demonstrate that various Masons did, indeed, play a role in the realization of the British Empire. (Builders of Empire: Freemasons and British Imperialism 1717-1927 was published by Princeton, which imbues it with suspicion, but I’ll infer that Mr. Frederick assiduously vetted it.) Moreover, the Masons definitely infiltrated the British gentry, so, as the British built their empire, it’s certainly conceivable that they were integral to its expansion.
But where Mr. Frederick’s diverges far from the madding crowd are his views on Francis Bacon, who enters the narrative figuratively and literally stage right. Many historical mavens who have looked at Bacon’s life with a minimal amount of scrutiny often conclude that he’s an ethical eunuch at best and perhaps an individual with sociopathic tendencies. Like a most notable sociopath, Aleister Crowley, Bacon was conscripted by the Crown’s spy network at an early age.
Though Mr. Frederick attributes the nascent reign of quantification to the Masons, he posits that Bacon was its turbo charge. Bacon coined the term “knowledge is power,” and he also helped to craft the Royal Society of London, which has been shown to have a very short leash on freethinking with regards to science. Bacon also wrote The New Atlantis, which portends a utopian society across the Atlantic where the alter of worship is the reign of quantification. And Bacon was certainly a causal agent in the British settling in the New World
In addition to anointing Bacon as the grand wizard of Science, Mr. Fredrick also postulates that he was Big Bill, the greatest of all bards. But I must admit, I’m out of my depth when attempting to reconcile Bacon as Shakespeare.
His research is certainly fascinating and glistening with pearls.
Would recommend listening to the podcasts on Spotify. All of what you’ve written is waiting for you there, and more. The case for Bacon-as-Shakespeare is overwhelming well-made, cleverly researched, and entertainingly presented. I’m convinced!
My grandfather was a mason (but I’m guessing only at one of the lower levels) where he believed he was involved with a force for good (!!). My dad was inducted as a young man but immediately left and would never talk about it ever after.
My mum, in her youth, along with some friends, headed out to a local dance one night but having mistaken the venue (this was the early ‘50s), stumbled upon a Masonic meeting in full flight. Imagine the consternation. Four gals in their finery interrupting the aproned-ones!! She recalled them being unceremoniously bundled outside amid chaotic scenes and the door slammed in their faces. Presumably locked thereafter. Wonder if anyone’s head rolled for that. Not literally - but you never know with these dudes…
I'm not surprised by the Scottish connection to freemasonry which I suspect has antediluvian roots connected to Druidism which also has clear historical connections to Egypt. This comes back to Plato and Atlantean mythology and I think the title and content of The New Atlantis is a big clue to this. Abraham may even have been a druid (Think oak groves) and there is a well documented connection between the Druids and the masons. This is staring back into the deepest mists of time I appreciate but this is where the occult esoteric knowledge held by the illuminati stems from.
I’m reading through John Mitchel’s ‘Jail Journal’ written in 1848, when he was sent away from Ireland by British on a convict ship. This was during the height of the famine-genocide in Ireland. Mitchel was an educated, Irishman who wrote with searing intellectual honestly and integrity as well as ‘savage indignation’ at the Irish plight. I expect that English was his first language. He rallied often against Bacon and his influence. I will return again to these points in this book that I had previously glossed over.
Mitchel writes about things that I had guessed about but had not seen others mention, such as the fact that what we Irish consider the last great stand against the English, 1798, was actually fomented, to urge the settled colonisers to align with the idea of unification with Britain, 1801.
Hoping to attach a YouTube video of Ben McBrady, the last Irish Druid of the Gaelic Order.
I hadn’t realised how important freemasonry was to the spread of the British Empire, but it makes sense as there are lodges everywhere.
To understand the influence of freemasonry it seems important to be able to name the most influential masons in the world through the centuries. Is this already done?
As you say “the hidden life is best” for high level masons so info may be scarce. But likely it is a fascinating gallery of names.
Irrespective of who founded it and when and even if it did have some influence in the rise of the British empire etc, all such “evidence” is at best circumstantial.
Also people who push this line , do not to my knowledge, also document it’s decline (when this started and why) to arrive at it’s present state of decrepitude, which makes their claims of it’s power and influence even further suspect.
Some nutbags evidently think masons still run the world when everyone knows its the Jesuits/ Black Nobility/Rothschilds/
I encourage you to read Harland-Davidson's book to understand why the evidence is very very far from circumstantial. I am not making any claim that it's only Freemason's that run the world.
bravo!
Wow, so much good stuff here. I don’t know where to start. Whatever, I will upgrade to paid as soon as I am able. Dots connecting dots! Bravo, indeed.
Very interesting information, thanks
I’m so very interested in this as my grandfather was a Mason, he was a “Worshipful Master”. I have his gavel with a sterling silver band around the head of the gavel, beautifully engraved with his name and title, date, and some more words I can not remember. I’ll post a picture of it tomorrow for those that may be curious. When I was little, I was playing in his closet and found his regalia, I came down the hall with the whole kit on, right down to the fringed calf skin gloves ( think Dallas cowgirl gloves🤣) the apron etc. I was so proud of myself, he went white as a ghost and looked horrified. Only when I was grown did I understand his reaction of horror 😱
OMG Lauren! What a story!
I think that gavel was supposed to go in his coffin! I’m very curious what the rest of the family knew…and thought about his involvement. Wow! Worshipful Master! What town?
I’m fascinated by this story…
I only know one Freemason and he stopped going to meetings.
Thanks!
In Toronto, I didn’t know the gavel was supposed to be buried with him⁉️ Toronto is where his lodge was
My father, passed away now, did not follow in his father’s footsteps, he actually mocked the masons. My dad was a fashion photographer in Toronto in the 60s and my grandfather asked if he could come to the lodge to photograph a member as they needed his portrait to go on the wall. I remember my dad telling me that he wandered around while he was waiting to take the photograph and ended up entering some room, where there was a grate in the floor and underneath the grate, there was a skeleton in it. Don’t know if it was a real skeleton or if it was just skeleton for ceremonial purposes, but I do remember him telling me this much. My father thought the whole thing was weird and creepy. I do remember my grandfather revered his position in the lodge and was very devoted to the Masonic Temple. I adored my grandfather so so much, he was a wonderful man just wonderful, so kind and loving. I was so honoured and pleased to get his gavel.
Here is some info on the lodge that he was master of if you know anything about Toronto it’s a beautiful iconic building now used for other purposes, of course. The Simpsons Masonic Lodge in Toronto was part of the city’s rich Masonic history, particularly active from the 1930s to the 1960s. During this period, Freemasonry in Toronto, centered around the Masonic Temple at Yonge and Davenport, flourished, with the building hosting numerous Masonic bodies and lodges. At its peak, the Temple housed around 38 different Masonic groups. By the 1960s, however, financial difficulties led to the space being rented out for music and entertainment events, contributing to its transformation into a cultural hub, famously hosting performances by bands like Led Zeppelin
Construction began November 2, 1916, when the contract was signed and approved by the Board of The Masonic Temple Company for the tearing down of an existing church and excavation. The Masonic ceremony of laying the cornerstone occurring November 17, 1917, with the first Lodge meeting taking place on New Year's Day, 1918.[2] At its peak, the Masonic Temple was home to 38 different Masonic bodies: 27 Craft Lodges, six Chapters (York Rite), two Preceptories (Knights Templar), two Scottish Rite Bodies and Adoniram Council.[2]
The hall functioned as a ballroom in the 1930s and began to host rock acts in the late 1960s.[3]
In this thread the icon to add photos doesn’t show up, know how to add a photo of the gavel for you
wow. incredible. fascinating.
Yes all the Masonic gear is supposed to go in the coffin. Egyptian much? For the passage thru the underworld? That’s why you don’t see any Masonic paraphernalia in vintage shops or junk stores. Genius.
Maybe there is an exception for a gavel….?
Was he York Rite? Probably Scottish Rite.
The good, or ‘regular Joe’ Mason’s make the perfect cover for the ‘greater lodge’. Which is most of them of course (the good ones). Your grandfather no doubt was too good a dude to get invited to the malevolent levels of the craft.
There was something about all that ritual that had a powerful effect…it seems to have worn off somewhat(makes sense- and is one reason Masonry is shrinking rapidly) not unlike the Catholic Church ritual for so many, of which it Masonry a mimic and and a no doubt hostile alternative.
BTW, according to a broker friend, the best deals in real estate are old Lodges and Churches!
I don’t see a photo icon! ☹️. I’ll check those links. It probably was the biggest Lodge in Canada, sounds like the one in London. Salud-
Glad you are finding this interesting. When you said hostile to the church, I’m not sure if you noticed in the information on the Simpsons Masonic Temple at Yonge and Davenport here’s what it said: truction began November 2, 1916, when the contract was signed and approved by the Board of The Masonic Temple Company for the tearing down of an existing church and excavation. TEARING DOWN OF EXISTING CHURCH to put the Temple on top of it. Yup a bit hostile I’d say 😱
I am also very interested for the same reason. My grandfather was a low level mason in a local lodge but I have recollection of asking my father about it, and why he did not join. My father alluding in his own words that it was a bunch of social strivers doing cringe shit in gay little outfits.. My father was a member of the lions club though which I think morphed out of regular dudes leaving cringe fagmasonry..
haha! Freemasonry is dying out. They are pretty much begging for people to join. that was NEVER a thing in the past. It’s used by date has passed.
I’ve heard that my great grandfather was a Mason but that is on very little evidence.
One wonders then, however, what the new club is???
What secret society is Bill Gates in? Maybe it’s all mostly blackmail now?
Bacon for Breakfast
When Nietzsche initially declared that “God is dead” in The Gay Science, he was of the forlorn belief that the Enlightenment had slain God. Though religion has seemingly flourished since the Enlightenment, I believe that the Enlightenment has incrementally replaced it with the reign of quantification, which is Science with a capital “S.” Denizens of religion may disagree with my surmise, but simply ask them what they watched on Netflix last night or the make of their smart phone.
Mr. Frederick has chronicled an epic, historical narrative whose ultimate destination is the reign of quantification—through a glass darkly. The Knights Templar are the prime movers of his epic. And he, rightfully, concludes that the remnants of the Knights Templar took refuge in Scotland after Phillip the Fair, the King of France, put a contract out on them. Like a Mafia don, after a cost-benefit analysis, Phillip concluded that wiping the Templars from the face of the Earth would be much more cost effective than remuneration, and he coerced the Vatican into his treachery. Mavens of our esoteric history generally concede that many of the Knights morphed into the Masons once they fled to Scotland.
For Mr. Fredrick, the Masons ultimately became the prime mover in the reign of quantification and, for that matter, the sun never setting on the British empire. To borrow a spicy quote from Mr. Frederick: “Great Britain, without a birth certificate, conceived in coitus with modern Freemasonry.” He plumbs from Jessica Harland-Jacobs' Builders of Empire: Freemasons and British Imperialism 1717-1927 to demonstrate that various Masons did, indeed, play a role in the realization of the British Empire. (Builders of Empire: Freemasons and British Imperialism 1717-1927 was published by Princeton, which imbues it with suspicion, but I’ll infer that Mr. Frederick assiduously vetted it.) Moreover, the Masons definitely infiltrated the British gentry, so, as the British built their empire, it’s certainly conceivable that they were integral to its expansion.
But where Mr. Frederick’s diverges far from the madding crowd are his views on Francis Bacon, who enters the narrative figuratively and literally stage right. Many historical mavens who have looked at Bacon’s life with a minimal amount of scrutiny often conclude that he’s an ethical eunuch at best and perhaps an individual with sociopathic tendencies. Like a most notable sociopath, Aleister Crowley, Bacon was conscripted by the Crown’s spy network at an early age.
Though Mr. Frederick attributes the nascent reign of quantification to the Masons, he posits that Bacon was its turbo charge. Bacon coined the term “knowledge is power,” and he also helped to craft the Royal Society of London, which has been shown to have a very short leash on freethinking with regards to science. Bacon also wrote The New Atlantis, which portends a utopian society across the Atlantic where the alter of worship is the reign of quantification. And Bacon was certainly a causal agent in the British settling in the New World
In addition to anointing Bacon as the grand wizard of Science, Mr. Fredrick also postulates that he was Big Bill, the greatest of all bards. But I must admit, I’m out of my depth when attempting to reconcile Bacon as Shakespeare.
His research is certainly fascinating and glistening with pearls.
Would recommend listening to the podcasts on Spotify. All of what you’ve written is waiting for you there, and more. The case for Bacon-as-Shakespeare is overwhelming well-made, cleverly researched, and entertainingly presented. I’m convinced!
Great to see you here! Have loved your podcasts since I discovered them last year via The Delingpod (thanks James!) and recommended them to others.
Great detective work - and thanks for the laughs along the way too! Much-needed in a dark world.
My grandfather was a mason (but I’m guessing only at one of the lower levels) where he believed he was involved with a force for good (!!). My dad was inducted as a young man but immediately left and would never talk about it ever after.
My mum, in her youth, along with some friends, headed out to a local dance one night but having mistaken the venue (this was the early ‘50s), stumbled upon a Masonic meeting in full flight. Imagine the consternation. Four gals in their finery interrupting the aproned-ones!! She recalled them being unceremoniously bundled outside amid chaotic scenes and the door slammed in their faces. Presumably locked thereafter. Wonder if anyone’s head rolled for that. Not literally - but you never know with these dudes…
I'm not surprised by the Scottish connection to freemasonry which I suspect has antediluvian roots connected to Druidism which also has clear historical connections to Egypt. This comes back to Plato and Atlantean mythology and I think the title and content of The New Atlantis is a big clue to this. Abraham may even have been a druid (Think oak groves) and there is a well documented connection between the Druids and the masons. This is staring back into the deepest mists of time I appreciate but this is where the occult esoteric knowledge held by the illuminati stems from.
I’m reading through John Mitchel’s ‘Jail Journal’ written in 1848, when he was sent away from Ireland by British on a convict ship. This was during the height of the famine-genocide in Ireland. Mitchel was an educated, Irishman who wrote with searing intellectual honestly and integrity as well as ‘savage indignation’ at the Irish plight. I expect that English was his first language. He rallied often against Bacon and his influence. I will return again to these points in this book that I had previously glossed over.
Mitchel writes about things that I had guessed about but had not seen others mention, such as the fact that what we Irish consider the last great stand against the English, 1798, was actually fomented, to urge the settled colonisers to align with the idea of unification with Britain, 1801.
Hoping to attach a YouTube video of Ben McBrady, the last Irish Druid of the Gaelic Order.
https://youtu.be/FIrYD7djFH8?feature=shared
Outstanding!
"Templars originated in France. Just sayin’."
Look forward to more 😁👍
Cheers
Thanks Mick!
I hadn’t realised how important freemasonry was to the spread of the British Empire, but it makes sense as there are lodges everywhere.
To understand the influence of freemasonry it seems important to be able to name the most influential masons in the world through the centuries. Is this already done?
As you say “the hidden life is best” for high level masons so info may be scarce. But likely it is a fascinating gallery of names.
John J Robinson found a connection to the Templars and the English Peasants Revolt of 1381: https://www.amazon.com/Born-Blood-Lost-Secrets-Freemasonry/dp/1590771486/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?sr=8-1
Historian Marty Sieff makes a strong argument for Marlow being Shakespeare: https://youtu.be/cqO4dsICS3Q
I'm a huge fan of the Robinson book. He makes a couple mistakes (imagine that!) and has no footnotes...but it's awesome. https://robertfrederick.substack.com/p/how-and-why-the-knights-templar-became?r=1iqqju
"How (And Why) The Knights Templar Became The Freemasons"
I'll check that Marlowe piece out thanks.
Irrespective of who founded it and when and even if it did have some influence in the rise of the British empire etc, all such “evidence” is at best circumstantial.
Also people who push this line , do not to my knowledge, also document it’s decline (when this started and why) to arrive at it’s present state of decrepitude, which makes their claims of it’s power and influence even further suspect.
Some nutbags evidently think masons still run the world when everyone knows its the Jesuits/ Black Nobility/Rothschilds/
I encourage you to read Harland-Davidson's book to understand why the evidence is very very far from circumstantial. I am not making any claim that it's only Freemason's that run the world.
The Robinson book is great. Marlowe died in 1594. How could he have written the plays? Kind of a. Stretch. No one ever saw him again.
Great piece! Bailey said the Masons would execute the one world religion:
https://substack.com/@courtenayturner/note/c-114439071?r=lphy5&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action