LLOYD Barnett Jr has alluded that widespread misunderstanding of what Freemasonry is has caused many people to link it with various secret societies that have rituals and are frequently accused of carrying out activities shrouded in evil and devil worshiping.

However, that is not what Freemasonry is about, according to Barnett who presented on the topic recently at an open forum entitled, Demystifying Freemasonry. The forum was held by Lodge St John at its McGregor Square Temple in St Andrew.

Among the topics discussed were an overview of Freemasonry, the role of the chaplain in Freemasonry, as well as inconsistencies associated with Freemasonry, family and religion.

Barnett explained that just as in every other organisation, Freemasonry has secrets, but not the evil and sinister kind many uninformed people associate it with. He gave a few examples of what some of the various kinds of lodges practise, which have given rise to a lot of myths in the public sphere about Freemasonry.

“Lodgemen is something you would hear on the streets. It covers a wide umbrella of persons. We are just one set of lodgemen. I want to differentiate them because there is a big difference. The United Order of Mechanics is an order that broke away from traditional Masonry in about 1787. It is a separate and completely different group from us. They have different practises and rituals and are mostly found in the rural parts of Jamaica. This is why many individuals in rural Jamaica will talk to you about lodgemen because they are used to the Mechanics, who parade on the streets in their regalia. I don’t know it as a fact, but it is rumoured that they are not able to look behind them and when they exit a room they exit backways. There are a lot of things with the Mechanics that are different from us. One stark difference is that they admit women as members of their Lodges; Freemasonry that we practise is a male organisation,” Barnett explained.

Barnett then touched on Illuminati, a word that is widely used in society especially by people without concrete knowledge of what it is.

“Illuminati is another society that is often spoken about. It was founded in the 1700s and which has proposed superstition, prejudice, and religious influence over public life. The Illuminati, from my research, has nothing to do with Freemasonry. The only link I found with Freemasonry and Illuminati is that they model their system off ours. They have vows of secrecy and they have degrees through which members must pass. Any organisation has vows of secrecy. If you work for a company there are certain secrets you cannot share on the outside.”

The Shriners, Barnett said, is another Masonic organisation — mostly found in the United States — and is an attendant body to Freemasonry, established in 1870. It is a fraternity of Freemasonry centred on having fun and fellowship. They sponsor the Shriners Hospital for Children and they wear a red hat. All Shriners are Freemasons but not all Freemasons are Shriners, he said.

Rosicrucian is one of many order or groups that people confuse with Freemasonry.

Barnett told the forum that the Rosicrucian Order are men and women around the world who study the laws of nature.

“Their lessons include subjects such as the nature of the soul, developing intuition, Greek philosophy, energy centres in the body, and self-healing techniques. They have a doctrine built on esoteric truths of the ancient past. I see no real connection between Freemasonry and this order. The Rosicrucianan Order is [an] association of scientific research and experimental investigation of nature.”

Barnett shared that Freemasons are often teased about having to have to ride a goat. According to the senior Freemason, there is no such practise as goat riding.

“Most initiates are teased at one point or another about riding a goat. I thought it was a local phenomena but I went to the United States to Washington, DC and I heard sounds that they were making to tease the brethren. I found out that in the old days the goat was a symbol of the devil, and old-time people used to think that Satan would ride the goat and come into town under witchcraft. Because Freemasonry was so secretive in the old days they associated us with witchcraft and so they associated the goat with Masonry from those days.

“To make matters worse, G.O.A.T. as an acronym in witchcraft means God of all things. This is why Freemasonry has changed that to GAOTU which means Great Architect of the Universe, because we are a pluralistic organisation that has Christians, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists. Candidates for Freemasonry must not necessarily embrace the Christian concept of the Trinity, but they must believe in a supreme being. We are pluralistic, so we do not interfere with a member’s religion as long he believes in a supreme being. Most churches have no problem with Freemasonry because it doesn’t require you to compromise your belief.

“Freemasonry seeks not to replace man’s relationship with God but deal with man’s relationship with his fellow man. We call the holy books the volume of the sacred laws. As you would imagine, because we are pluralistic we have to declare books of all religions. If a Jewish gentleman is being admitted to Freemasonry he has to take an oath, and he will take that on the book he deems to be the book if his faith — the Torah. We call it the volume of the sacred law as opposed to any one way to describe it,” Barnett Jr said.