The Church and Freemasonry

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George MillerPM
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

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② ADAM AND EVE CALLED UPON “THE NAME OF THE LORD” AND FROM EDEN THEY WERE GIVEN THE LAW OF SACRIFICE. ADAM OFFERED THE “FIRSTLINGS OF THEIR FLOCK” AS A SACRIFICE. (Moses 5:4-5)
”Moses 5:4-5” wrote:[b[MOS 5:4[/b] And Adam and Eve, his wife, called upon the NAME OF THE LORD, and they heard the voice of the Lord from the way toward the Garden of Eden, speaking unto them, and they saw him not; for they were shut out from his presence.
MOS 5:5 And he GAVE UNTO THEM COMMANDMENTS, that they should worship the Lord their God, and should OFFER THE FIRSTLINGS OF THEIR FLOCKS, for an offering unto the Lord.
Moses 5:4 records that after being “shut out of [God’s] presence” that Adam and Eve “called upon the name of the Lord” The wording, “called upon the name of Lord” is interesting. It does not say that Adam and Eve prayed to the Lord nor that they simply called on the Lord. It specifically says they called up the NAME of the Lord suggesting they are calling for God by his personal name; and when Adam and Eve called out God’s personal name “they heard the voice of the Lord from the way towards the Garden of Eden.”

Within the Hebrew Bible the personal name of God is spelled using the four characters יהוה and this name is often known as the Tetragrammaton. According to Jewish custom when יהוה is read in scripture the sacred name is not pronounced but Adonai (Lord) or HaShem (The Name) is substituted instead. The Old Testament records that the personal name of God was first revealed to Moses at the burning bush (Moses 3:13-15) and later in Egypt Moses is told ”And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name (JEHOVAH ( יהוה ) was I not known to them.” (Exodus 6:3). The claim of Moses 5:4 that Adam and Eve knew the “name of the Lord” is problematic in light of these scriptural passages.

Interestingly, this claim is also made in Antiquities of Freemasonry in its discussion of Moses receiving the name of God. According to Antiquities of Freemasonry the sacred personal name of God ( יהוה ) was part of the Masonic secrets passed on by Adam to his progeny.
”Antiquities of Freemasonry” wrote:In a subsequent revelation, God said to Moses, “I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my JEHOVAH was I not known unto them.” And yet in Jacob’s vision of the ladder God revealed to him his name, as he had before done to his forefathers Abraham and Isaac; “I am JEHOVAH, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac.” And we have the most satisfactory evidence to prove that this was the same name which was revealed to Adam, and afterwards to Enoch. (AoF, 231-2)
Moses 5:5 explains that the Lord “gave unto them commandments” that Adam and Eve should “worship Lord their God” and to “offer the firstlings of their flocks” as burnt offerings. This verse adds several new pieces of information to the Genesis narrative. First, it records Cain and Abel were not unique in offering sacrifices but that this was also the practice of Adam and Eve. Second, the passage asserts that the offering of sacrifices was not a notion conjured up by early biblical figures to appease deity, but instead it was a commandment given by God to Adam and his posterity. Third, the Law of Sacrifice dictated by God to Adam and Eve clarifies the nature of the sacrifice - the firstlings of their flocks. Thus Moses 5 substantially elaborates on the narrative presented in Genesis.

The relevant passage from Antiquities of Freemasonry recorded that, “One grand principle of antient Masonry was the preserve alive in men’s minds the true knowledge of God” and “the great idea of an atonement for sin by animal sacrifice.” Thus according to Antiquities of Freemasonry one of the grand fundamentals principles of Masonry propagated by God to Adam and Eve was the nature of God and law of sacrifice. Thus it recorded that “their first object, on passing from the ineffable light to the temporary darkness” precipitated by the Fall was “clothe themselves with the skins of beasts slain by sacrifice, according to the immediate command of God.”

The nature of the burnt animal sacrifice is also delineated in Antiquities of Freemasonry. The burnt animal sacrifice was to be “typical of the one sacrifice of the lamb without spot” and offering was to be given “as a propitiation for sin”. It then notes that animal sacrifice was the “animating idea which increased man's faith, wheresoever Masonry was practiced.”
”Antiquities of Freemasonry” wrote:ONE GRAND PRINCIPLE OF ANTIENT MASONRY was to preserve alive in men’s minds the TRUE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, and the great idea of an ATONEMENT FOR SIN BY ANIMAL SACRIFICES; typical of the one SACRIFICE OF THE LAMB WITHOUT SPOT, as a propitiation from the sins of the world. This was the ANIMATING IDEA WHICH INCREASED MAN’S FAITH, WHERESOEVER MASONRY WAS PRACTICED; and idea which was never entirely obliterated, even amongst the idolatrous nations, by whom our science was most deplorably prostituted, and reduced to something worse than the shadow of its image. (AoF, 44-5)
Moses 5:4-5 echoes Antiquities of Freemasonry in this passage in five aspects. First, both make the potentially anachronistic claim that Adam and Eve knew the personal name of God. Second, both passages record God issued a commandment to Adam and Eve to give burnt offerings as means of worshiping the Lord their God. Third, in both texts the nature of the burnt sacrifice is specifically commanded to be an animal sacrifice. Fourth, both discuss how, by the time that Cain conspired to murder Abel, that Adam’s family had become numerous upon the earth. Fifth, Antiquities of Freemasonry describes this commandment - The Law of Sacrifice - to be part of Masonic teachings given to Adam. While this is not specifically described in Moses, it was a notable part of Joseph Smith’s Nauvoo endowment. The use of Antiquities of Freemasonry in the revision of Genesis 4 opens the possibility, even the probability, that Joseph Smith was thinking about Adam as a Mason in 1830 - 12 years before he would officially teach this doctrine in Nauvoo in 1842. As we shall see, a further exploration of Moses 5 demonstrates that Joseph Smith was in fact aware of this idea in 1830 as the book of Moses was dictated.
Last edited by George MillerPM on Mon Jun 20, 2022 5:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

Post by Philo Sofee »

latterdaytemplar wrote:
Mon Jun 20, 2022 12:23 am
George MillerPM wrote:
Fri Jun 17, 2022 3:52 pm
However, before doing that, let me give a plug for a book that is coming out this year - Method Infinite.
I am aware of Method Infinite; I've been waiting for it for years. I am a bit wary of it; there have been a few times that I have come across a small handful of claims here and there that Cheryl has made on Facebook and elsewhere with which I've very much disagreed (though she has always been very friendly in our disagreements together). But I am still excited for it and look forward to having a full copy of it.

I am aware that some of the revisions that led to the JST (including the Book of Moses) have overlap with Clarke's Commentary, but I had not heard about any concerning Oliver's Antiquities. I'll certainly have to study out the overlaps that you've pointed out and demonstrated here.
Dear brother,
I'm not piling on you because it is so cool having a few knowledgable Masons in this thread with me, and I have so appreciated Brother George's insights through the years on Mormon Mystic as well. I simply want to reiterate his acknowledgment and support of Joe Swick, Nick Literski, and Cheryl Bruno. I know all three and second George's confirmation of their integrity of knowledge and desire to be on the level with Joseph Smith. I have had hundreds upon hundreds of hours of instruction through the years with Joe Swick and became a Mason because of his knowledge, love, support, and enthusiasm for knowing.
Perhaps the book Method Infinite will shake things up in our knowledge and assumptions. Joe ALWAYS did that with me in order to get me off dead center and learn deeper. He did so gently, with great love and adroit amounts of information which I gathered in literally dozens of books which he recommended to me and I was just barely smart enough to buy them, consume them, and to this day I am still re-reading them as I have time! In other words, I expect nothing less than this book to be a bombshell. I will be very sorely disappointed if it isn't. I myself am looking very forward to it. I assure you of one thing as a personal experience, all three authors are people of love of knowledge and integrity to the historical materials. If they aren't in this book, we shall ferret out what is wrong and correct it - on the level - as George says. I am so glad you have come here and reside, sharing information and your experience. I am looking forward to having many years of interactions, fun, dizzying puzzles and working together through it all with you and George and all others!
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

Post by Philo Sofee »

I just want to add a brief note of the moment, in getting into Oliver's Antiquities of Freemasonry, p.28, his comment utterly popped my eyes! "Our science [Freemasonry] existed before the creation of this globe, and was diffused amidst the numerous systems with which the grand empyreum of universal space is furnished. The Great Architect of the Universe was the founder of Masonry." And then he discusses the plurality of worlds! And he notes that Masonry on them and practiced by their inhabitants. "In such pure Masonic employment were the angels engaged before the creation of the world." (p. 32).

Masonry from the pre-earth and pre-material creation and practiced by the angels?! I have never before heard of this before, and it was taught in the early 1820's. This is pure dynamite.
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

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Philo Sofee wrote:
Tue Jun 21, 2022 12:52 am
I just want to add a brief note of the moment, in getting into Oliver's Antiquities of Freemasonry, p.28, his comment utterly popped my eyes! "Our science [Freemasonry] existed before the creation of this globe, and was diffused amidst the numerous systems with which the grand empyreum of universal space is furnished. The Great Architect of the Universe was the founder of Masonry." And then he discusses the plurality of worlds! And he notes that Masonry on them and practiced by their inhabitants. "In such pure Masonic employment were the angels engaged before the creation of the world." (p. 32).

Masonry from the pre-earth and pre-material creation and practiced by the angels?! I have never before heard of this before, and it was taught in the early 1820's. This is pure dynamite.
Dear Brother Philo Sofee- I am glad you are enjoying your reading of Antiquities of Freemasonry. I too was a bit astonished when I read this section of the book. In the past, I have shared Antiquities of Freemasonry with a few others; and they too were especially taken by this particular passage. Since there are several fruitful aspects of this passage for both our past, present, and future discussions in that particular portion of the text, I hope our readers will not complain if I share the fuller passage at this time.
Antiquities of Freemasonry wrote: But ancient Masonic traditions say, and I think justly, that OUR SCIENCE EXISTED BEFORE THE CREATION OF THIS GLOBE, and was diffused amidst the NUMEROUS SYSTEMS with which the grand empyreum of universal space is furnished. THE GREAT ARCHITECT OF THE UNIVERSE WAS THE FOUNDER OF MASONRY; and it would be the province of bigotry alone to confine His beneficent revelations to a so small a portion of created things as the limited dimensions of our earth contains. BUT THERE EXISTED IN INFINTE SPACE NUMBERLESS WORLDS, before our earth was formed OUR OF CHAOS; for it would derogate from the attributes of an eternal and self-existent God, to conceive that this great and glorious Being had remained inanimate, and in an useless and dormant state, until the commencement of our history, about 5,800 years ago. Now though we cannot comprehend the nature of that eternity which existed prior to the creation of this globe, yet are certain that our system does not comprehend the whole of God's created works. With him a thousand years are but as one day; what then is the short and contracted period which forms the bound of our insignificant ball? If we open our capacities, and take an enlarged view of space, beyond the reach of our actual investigation, CAN WE BE SO BLIND AND FAITHLESS AS TO ADMIT THAT ALL VACANT AND UNEMPLOYED, WHEN ALMOST EVERY OPTICAL IMPROVEMENT DEMONSTRATES, BY NEW DISCOVERIES, THE EXISTENCE OF WORLDS PILED UPON WORLDS, to far remote for human art to measure?

There orbs were surely not made for ornament alone, but for use; and as they POSSESS EVERY REQUISITE FOR THE SUPPORT OF ANIMAL LIFE, THERE CAN BE NO DOUBT BUT THEY HAVE BEEN CREATED FOR THE RESIDENCE OF INTELLIGENT BEINGS, of the same capacities perhaps as ourselves; probably of the same nature, and CERTAINELY FOR THE IMMORTAL DESTINATION. On these, or some of them, the Creator has bestowed his blessings from all eternity. THEY HAVE BEEN POSSESSED OF ALL THE PRIVILEGES WE ENJOY, MILLIONS OF AGES BEFROE THIS GLOBE which we inhabit was reduced from nothing into its solid form: privileges perhaps superior to any we can boast, for who can limit the power of God to confer gifts upon his creatures? AMONGST THE MOST VALUABLE OF THESE WAS SPECULATIVE MASONRY: for there where there exists created beings, the there must exist some knowledge of a Creator, and some principle of reverence for Hi who can save and who can destroy. And speculative Masonry is nothing else but a system ethics, founded on on the belief of a God, the creator, preserver, and redeemer; which inculcates a strict observance of the duties we owe to each other, inspires in the soul a veneration for the author of its being, and incites to the worship of the incomprehensible Trinity in Unity.

IT MAY INDEED BE REPLIED, "IF THIS BE TRUE, WHY IS IT NOT RECORDED IN THE HOLY SCRIPTURES?" THESE BOOKS WERE WRITTEN, AFTER THE APOSTACY OF MAN, with no other view than to promote his salvation, by explaining the nature of that transgression which introduced death into the world, and made all the posterity of Adam obnoxious to divine wrath; and pointing out the remedy for sin in the person of Jesus Christ. This being the chief end of Revelation; it would have added little to the furtherance of that grand object to have entered into metaphysical disquisitions on the nature and extent of God's works before the creation of man. The scriptures, however, are not wholly silent on this head. They proclaim the existence of God before the worlds were made; and that Great Being himself declares, that "when the foundations of this globe were laid, the morning stars sang together, and all the Sons of God shouted for joy." The stars referred to in this passage are the pre-existent worlds, and the sons of God are the angels of heaven. But to admit that our globe was the first fruits of God's power, is to blast and destroy our most valuable expectations: for this admission would deny God the attributes of eternity; for a Being could not be worshipped, with full confidence in his power to save to the uttermost, if possessed any trait of imperfection.

There existed another ORDER OF BEINGS before the earth was created, who had once been ANGELS OF LIGHT, and were expelled the society of heaven for disobedience. And this is a great and undeniable testimony of the pure existence of LIGHT and truth, and their determined opposition to darkness and error, in times to far remote for human calculation. The angels, who KEPT THEIR FIRST ESTATE, continually offer up their praises to the eternal I AM, in an unrestrained melody of "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God Almighty, which WAS and IS and IS TO COME." IN THIS PURE MASONIC EMPLOYMENT were the angels engaged before the creation of the world; in such employment will they be engaged to all eternity, augmented by that glorious assembly, who, having worshipped God on earth, shall be placed on the right hand of the Judge, in the great and terrible day of the Lord. AoF 28-32
As my dear brother Philo Sofee has noted, the multiplicity of inhabited worlds is clearly argued for here in Antiquities of Freemasonry. For those familiar with Mormon cosmological claims this passage is striking. In addition, I want to point out that in the first and final paragraphs, that both God and angels that "kept their first estate" are described as being Masons with the angels occupying their time in "pure Masonic employment". These good angels are contrasted with the "angels of light" like Satan who were "expelled [from] the society of heaven for disobedience". In addition, the bad angels too, before they were expelled, would have been initiated in and familiar with Masonic practices. This passage has two interesting aspects when considering the Mormon-Masonic connection which I will elucidate below.

First, the text here describes the good angels as part of a Masonic fraternity. As such, it would be a logical surmise by the reader of this passage that the members of this heavenly brotherhood of angels would identify each other through such things as Masonic keywords, signs, tokens, passwords, and grips. Joseph Smith clearly believed that such signs and tokens were necessary to differentiate between good and bad angels as explained in the endowment and even before Joseph Smith officially became a Freemason in Nauvoo. The knowledge of this idea before Joseph Smith became a Freemason is explainable when you consider that Joseph Smith would have come across this information in 1830 while using Antiquities of Freemasonry to revise the text of Genesis as we have been showing in this thread.

For a moment let's return to a previous discussion between myself and Brother LatterDayTemplar. Previously in this thread I posted the following passage by George Oliver from the end of the introduction of Antiquities of Freemasonry which should be compared with a strikingly similar quote from Brigham Young.
Antiquities of Freemasonry wrote: This indeed is the true cement and intention of Masonry, which embraces all the graces and perfection of holiness; UNITES ALL MANKIND IN THE STRICTEST BONDS OF AMITY, AS CHILDREN OF A COMMON PARENT; and incessantly urges them to ASK THAT THEY MAY HAVE, TO SEEK AND THEY SHALL FIND, AND TO KNOCK THAT THE DOOR MAY BE OPENED TO THEM. And this is conclusion that Masonry draws from all her illustrations: he who practices all the virtues thus recommended by FAITH, will rejoice in HOPE, be in perfect CHARITY with all mankind, and finally receive a PASS WORD in the GRAND LODGE ABOVE, where peace, order, and harmony eternally preside. (AoF xvi)

Your endowment is, to receive all those ordinance in the House of the Lord, which are necessary for you, after you have departed this life, to enable you to walk to the presence of the Father, passing the angels who stand as sentinels, being enabled to give the the key words, and signs and tokens, pertaining to the Holy Priesthood, and gain your eternal exaltation in spite of earth and hell. (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses 2:31)
In response to this, Brother LatterDayTemplar responded in part with the following.
latterdaytemplar wrote:
Tue Jun 07, 2022 8:18 pm
Concerning George Oliver's quote, it seems to me that he is speaking to values that happen to be shared between Masonry and any of the Abrahamic faiths (given that a common parentage, the virtues of faith, hope, and charity, etc. would have been the prevailing values of society at that time in the first place) and speaks only metaphorically concerning the "password into the Grand Lodge above."

That all stated, if I am wrong, then I am wrong. That's not a problem for me; but, as of right now, I still do not see any similarities in subject matter (doctrine/tenets, covenants/obligations), context, or purpose between the ceremonies of the two institutions themselves, even going back to the ceremonies used in the 1800s.
This response is cautious in it's response noting that "if I am wrong, then I am wrong" but suggests that Oliver speaks "only metaphorically concerning the 'password into the Grand Lodge above.' " I would point out that it is, perhaps, inconsequential if George Oliver is saying this metaphorically or literally since what really is in question is how a person such as Joseph Smith would have interpreted this statement by George Oliver. However, given what we just read, that George Oliver suggested that both God and his angels were Masons, I think it probable that George Oliver would have thought of his statement as literal and not metaphorical. At the minimum, a reader of Antiquities of Freemasonry like Joseph Smith could have easily interpreted this passage from George Oliver as literal based on his argument that both God as the Grand Masonic Architect of the Universe held the Angels in his Masonic employ while Masonry was taught in the innumerable worlds of his creation.

Second, this passage suggests that some of the angels of light apostatized from the Celestial Masonic practices as they kept not their first estate. The idea that the diabolical angels/demons were familiar with Masonic rituals including oaths and penalties is fascinating in light of both the endowment and our current discussion of Cain and Satan's interaction as contained in Joseph Smith's 1830 narrative of Adam after the fall in Moses 5. In coming posts I will elaborate on this topic more.
Last edited by George MillerPM on Tue Jun 21, 2022 5:43 pm, edited 5 times in total.
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

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latterdaytemplar wrote: Also adopted from the Bible (and from European culture; for example, being drawn and quartered for going AWOL from the British military) was the concept of penalties; however, in Masonry, these were only ever symbolic, being a measure of how much they valued being honest men of their word.
The murdered corpse of William Morgan provides a counterpoint to this assertion.
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

Post by George MillerPM »

Equality wrote:
Tue Jun 21, 2022 3:34 pm
latterdaytemplar wrote: Also adopted from the Bible (and from European culture; for example, being drawn and quartered for going AWOL from the British military) was the concept of penalties; however, in Masonry, these were only ever symbolic, being a measure of how much they valued being honest men of their word.
The murdered corpse of William Morgan provides a counterpoint to this assertion.
Equality- Thanks for pointing out the discrepancy in the response above. The likely murder of William Morgan due to Morgan's plans to expose the Royal Arch rituals was extremely disturbing to both non-Masons and most Masons in New York and beyond. While there are still large questions as to the identify of the corpse found, the disappearance of William Morgan was shocking and the talk of the town for years.

It is, of course, in the aftermath of the Morgan Affair and the environment of the Masonic and Anti-Masonic response to the atrocity in which Joseph Smith wrote scripture. As you will see in later posts on the use of Antiquities of Freemasonry in the revision of the Adam narrative in Joseph Smith's revision of Genesis 4, the aftermath of Morgan Affair is the backdrop which connects Joseph's revision to couple of events in the life of Joseph Smith.

Of course the disappearance of William Morgan would have struck the Smith family especially hard. After all, Joseph Smith Sr. was initiated, passed, and raised to the degree of Master Mason in Ontario Lodge #23 located in Canandaigua, NY where Morgan was arrested on trumped up charges and then subsequently kidnapped. Joseph Smith Sr. would have known personally the Royal Arch Masons in Canandaigua, NY who orchestrated the kidnapping of William Morgan as they held many of the leadership positions in his own mother lodge.

When accusations that the actions of his own Masonic brothers had precipitated the accused murder of another Masonic brother, how would Joseph Smith Sr. have reacted? How would the members of the Smith family have mentally and emotionally handled accusations that the symbolic Masonic penalties had likely been made literal by their Masonic brethren?

If you are interesting in further reading on this the Morgan Affair and its effects on Freemasonry then I can highly recommend the following books.
(1) The Bright Mason: An American Mystery by Robert Berry.
(2) Morgan: The Scandal That Shook Freemasonry by Stephen Dafoe.
(3) Revolutionary Brotherhood by Steven C. Bullock
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

Post by Philo Sofee »

George MillerPM wrote:
Tue Jun 21, 2022 4:19 pm
Equality wrote:
Tue Jun 21, 2022 3:34 pm


The murdered corpse of William Morgan provides a counterpoint to this assertion.
Equality- Thanks for pointing out the discrepancy in the response above. The likely murder of William Morgan due to Morgan's plans to expose the Royal Arch rituals was extremely disturbing to both non-Masons and most Masons in New York and beyond. While there are still large questions as to the identify of the corpse found, the disappearance of William Morgan was shocking and the talk of the town for years.

It is, of course, in the aftermath of the Morgan Affair and the environment of the Masonic and Anti-Masonic response to the atrocity in which Joseph Smith wrote scripture. As you will see in later posts on the use of Antiquities of Freemasonry in the revision of the Adam narrative in Joseph Smith's revision of Genesis 4, the aftermath of Morgan Affair is the backdrop which connects Joseph's revision to couple of events in the life of Joseph Smith.

Of course the disappearance of William Morgan would have struck the Smith family especially hard. After all, Joseph Smith Sr. was initiated, passed, and raised to the degree of Master Mason in Ontario Lodge #23 located in Canandaigua, NY where Morgan was arrested on trumped up charges and then subsequently kidnapped. Joseph Smith Sr. would have known personally the Royal Arch Masons in Canandaigua, NY who orchestrated the kidnapping of William Morgan as they held many of the leadership positions in his own mother lodge.

When accusations that the actions of his own Masonic brothers had precipitated the accused murder of another Masonic brother, how would Joseph Smith Sr. have reacted? How would the members of the Smith family have mentally and emotionally handled accusations that the symbolic Masonic penalties had likely been made literal by their Masonic brethren?

If you are interesting in further reading on this the Morgan Affair and its effects on Freemasonry then I can highly recommend the following books.
(1) The Bright Mason: An American Mystery by Robert Berry.
(2) Morgan: The Scandal That Shook Freemasonry by Stephen Dafoe.
(3) Revolutionary Brotherhood by Steven C. Bullock
Oh I can see you are going to cost me more money now....THANKS for the recommendations!
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

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Philo Sofee wrote:
Tue Jun 21, 2022 12:52 am
Masonry from the pre-earth and pre-material creation and practiced by the angels?! I have never before heard of this before, and it was taught in the early 1820's. This is pure dynamite.
But you don’t actually believe it though, . . . do you?
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

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③ AN “ANGEL OF THE LORD” APPEARED UNTO ADAM AND EXPLAINED THE SECRET MEANING OF THESE SACRIFICES DONE IN THE NAME OF THE SON.” (Moses 5:6-9)
”Moses 5:6-9” wrote:[b[MOS 5:6[/b] And after many days an angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying: Why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him: I know not, save the Lord commanded me.
MOS 5:7 And then the angel spake, saying: This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth.
MOS 5:8 Wherefore, thou shalt do all that thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent and call upon God in the name of the Son forevermore.
MOS 5:9 And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam, which beareth record of the Father and the Son, saying: I am the Only Begotten of the Father from the beginning, henceforth and forever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed, and all mankind, even as many as will.
Moses 5:6-9 records how, after giving sacrifice, an “angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam” to ask Adam “Why does thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord?” The appearance of an angel, instead of God himself, highlights how Adam’s communication with the divine diminished by the fall. While in the Garden of Eden, Adam had immediate and direct communication with God. However, after the fall Adam and Eve only “heard the voice of the Lord” but that “they saw him not” (Moses 5:4). Instead of God directly asking Adam about the sacrifice, God instead sends an angel to indirectly communicate with Adam.

After being asked by the angel about why he offered sacrifice, Adam responds, “I know not, save the Lord commanded me.” The angel explains to Adam that sacrifices were to be offered in “similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father” and humanity should perform sacrifice in the “name of the Son” and to “repent and call upon the God in the name of the Son forevermore.” Then the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam and bore record of the Father and the Son saying, “I am the Only Begotten of the Father from the beginning” through divine inspiration Adam learned of the Son’s role redeeming all mankind.

Most academic theologians would acknowledge that interpreting Adam’s sacrifice as being presciently preformed as symbolically pointing to the Savior would be an anachronistic interpretation. Joseph Smith’s inspired translation, although anachronistically, harmonizes (like the Book of Mormon) the Old and New Testament theologies by suggesting that the ancient prophets, like Adam, knew about Jesus Christ and his salvific mission before Christ was born. This, of course, creates a theological problem- If the ancient patriarch knew the specifics about the mission of Jesus Christ, why does this information not appear in the Old Testament in anything other than opaque symbols? If the ancient prophets knew so much about Jesus Christ, why did this knowledge not become common knowledge? This conundrum can, at least in part, be explained by parallel passages in Antiquities of Freemasonry.

Antiquities of Freemasonry notes that the “perfection in which Adam was created has been disputed by many authors, both ancient and modern; and some have ventured to pronounce that he, and his earliest posterity, were absolute savages, unendowed even with the gift of speech.” The text then explains that this view is directly contradicted by the Masonic view. “But Adam’s knowledge was not of the confined nature which has been imagined” it states because “Adam was the work of God, and God’s works cannot be charged with imperfection.” Not only was the body of Adam made with perfection, “but the mind is the noblest part of man, and it will scarcely be assumed that God would exhaust his gifts upon the body, and leave the mind barren and desolate.” It acknowledges that the fall would have caused Adam to “lose a portion of that knowledge which he enjoyed in the immediate communication with Gods and angels. The text thus acknowledges that in the Garden of Eden that Adam was in direct communication with both Gods and angels. While this “immediate communication” would decrease after the fall, Adam “would certainly retain a recollection of those degrees of knowledge which are within the compass of human capacity. Thus even after the fall, Adam “retained a perfect recollection of that speculative science which is now termed Masonry.” Thus Adam retained the secrets of Masonry, potentially including esoteric Masonic secrets that aided in the communication between earth and the divine.

According to Antiquities of Freemasonry one of the Masonic secrets held by Adam was the nature and meaning of the sacrifices Adam was commanded to perform. “One grand principle of antient Masonry was ro preserve in men’s mind the true knowledge of God, and the great idea of an atonement for sin by animal sacrifice” was discussed before. It then goes on say that the sacrifice “typical of the one sacrifice of the Lamb without spot, as a propitiation for the sins of the whole world.” The reference to the “one sacrifice” of the “Lamb without spot” which would redeem, not just the individual performing the sacrifice, but the “sins of the would world” is a direct reference to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The direct linkage of animal sacrifice to the crucifixion of Jesus is made clear when it says the “offering conformable to the divine appointment” only if it contained “reference to the the atonement of Christ” and without this reference “all sacrifices and offerings were unacceptable to God."

According to Antiquities of Freemasonry, “It was the object, therefore, of our ancient brethren to preserve, through the medium of our institution, a lively remembrance of the great object of our faith and hope, that result might be pleasing to God, and produce unfeigned charity to all mankind.” While many observing the animal sacrifice and subsequent burning of the offering to God may have not understood the symbolic sacrifice, the initiated Masons performing the sacrifice had a “lively remembrance of the great object” of the sacrifice - Jesus Christ. Through the “medium of [the Masonic] institution” the secret meaning of the sacrifice was kept and not known by the uninitiated. In addition, these Masonic mysteries would not have appeared in the scriptural record because the Masons were under covenant not to write the secrets of Masonry so that this secret would become legible or intelligible and the secrets of Masonry become unlawfully obtained by the unworthy.
”Antiquities of Freemasonry” wrote:In Paradise he was the perfection of God’s created works, because he was the perfection of God’s created works, because every thing was placed under his dominion; but it may be conjectured that after the Fall, when the whole creation became deformed with sin, he might be changed from his original state, and a portion of that knowledge which he enjoyed in the IMMEDIATE COMMUNICATION WITH GOD AND ANGELS. He might, indeed, forfeit, with his purity, the INESTIMABLE GIFT OF DIVINE INSPIRATION, but he would CERTAINLY RETAIN A RECOLLECTION OF THOSE DEGREES OF KNOWLEDGE which are within the degrees of human capacity. Amongst the rest, or as a general designation, common to them all, HE RETAINED A PERFECT RECOLLECTION of that SPECULATIVE SCIENCE which is now termed MASONRY. (AoF 42)

One grand principle of antient masonry was to preserve alive in men’s minds the TRUE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, and the great idea of an ATONEMENT FOR SIN by animal sacrifices; typical of the one SACRIFICE OF THE LAMB WITHOUT SPOT, as a propitiation from the sins of the world. … This was the ANIMATING IDEA WHICH INCREASED MAN’S FAITH, WHERESOEVER MASONRY WAS PRACTICED …

Abel’s sacrifice was more acceptable than that of Cain, because it was an ANIMAL SACRIFICE, and OFFERED CONFORMABLY TO THE DIVINE APPOINTMENT; while that of Cain, being unbloody, was an abomination, because it did not CONTAIN ANY REFERENCE THE ATONEMENT OF CHRIST, without which all sacrifices and offerings were unacceptable to God: for “without shedding of the blood there could be no remission,” (Hebrews 9:22) “for it is the blood that maketh atonement for the soul.” (Leviticus 27:11). It was the object, therefore, of our ANTIENT BRETHREN TO PRESERVE, THROUGH THE MEDIUM OF OUR INSTITUTION, A LIVELY REMEMBRANCE OF THE GREAT OBJECT OF THEIR FAITH AND HOPE, that the result might be pleasing to God, and produce an unfeigned charity to all mankind. (AoF 44-5)
Moses 5:6-9 echoes Antiquities of Freemasonry in that both express the anachronistic idea that Adam knowingly performed animal sacrifice as symbolic of the future sacrifice of Jesus Christ to redeem all mankind. In addition, reading the two texts in tandem brings further light to the text in Moses by explaining how the symbolic meaning of sacrifice was conveyed from prophet to prophet and explains why these esoteric secrets were never recorded in scriptures. It may also explain the admonition given in Moses 4:32 concerning the content that, “see thou show them unto no man, except to them that believe.” Thus the esoteric secrets in Moses were only meant for those that were duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualified, and who had made suitable proficiency in the basics of the gospel.
Philo Sofee
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Re: The Church and Freemasonry

Post by Philo Sofee »

Dr. Shades wrote:
Wed Jun 22, 2022 4:22 am
Philo Sofee wrote:
Tue Jun 21, 2022 12:52 am
Masonry from the pre-earth and pre-material creation and practiced by the angels?! I have never before heard of this before, and it was taught in the early 1820's. This is pure dynamite.
But you don’t actually believe it though, . . . do you?
What I believe is irrelevant to what was being taught in early Mormonism days for Joseph Smith to use...
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