Latter-day Templar

Before delving into this thought, I would like to make a clarifying distinction between the temple endowment  and the temple endowment ceremony . The Church's temple endowment is conferred upon us via a series of covenants which we make with God therein; it also uses doctrine to illustrate the spiritual parent-child relationship that each of us has with God as our Heavenly Father. The ceremony  is the vehicle whereby these covenants are made and the information/doctrine is delivered to us. The temple endowment itself is the same today as it was when Jesus Christ restored[*] it to us via Joseph Smith, Jr. The ceremony, however, has undergone various changes; in other words, we receive the same endowment in a different way today than the early Saints of this dispensation did. I love the Church's temple endowment and see no reason for it to change. With that clarification made, if I could change one thing about the its ceremony, then it would be to bring back the live theatrical...

My lodge held its last regular stated meeting for the year last evening. I was privileged to be able to give an educational. For those of you who do not know, an educational in Masonry is exactly what it sounds like: an educational lecture or presentation. It is typically related to Masonry, having to do with Masonic history or Masonic principles; it is not unheard of and is completely appropriate, however, to have an educational in lodge that has nothing to do with Freemasonry. For example, back in 2019, we had non-Masons come in from a local high school's debate team while our lodge was "at recess." They gave a presentation on the pro's and con's of our local area (Washington County) building a water pipeline from Lake Mead to address our drought (given that we live in a desert area). Both sides of their debate team brought up excellent points and were very impressive. Once their presentation was completed and we thanked them, they left and our lodge "retu...

 Hello everyone! On 4 November 2020, I had the honor of being elected to serve the lodge as Senior Warden for the 2021 calendar year. I am going straight to this office from that Senior Deacon. I am a bit sad that I will not be able to experience that of Junior Warden, but I am excited to be able to serve my lodge regardless. For those who aren't Masons and who may be wondering, here are some of the duties of the Senior Warden (in my lodge, at least): Assist the Worshipful Master in opening and closing the lodge. If, for some reason, the Worshipful Master is unable to attend the meeting, it is then the Senior Warden's responsibility to open it in his place. Be Chairman of the Educational Committee. "Educationals" in Masonry are presentations, speeches, demonstrations, etc. relating to whatever topic (typically related to Masonry, but not always). Though the Chairman may give presentations himself, he is also able to delegate to other committee members or even have non...

The article entitled "Rituals of Freemasonry: Freemasonry Proven to Worship Lucifer - Part 3 of 5" was recently brought to my attention. This one seems like an easy one to address. The whole article relies wholly on the condemnation the use of pentagrams (inverted, five-point stars), focusing on their use in Satanism (which is a relatively recent development). Although the pentagram is not used in Masonry, it is a principal part of the logo of the Order of the Eastern Star, which the article mislabels as "the women's division of Freemasonry." First and foremost, the Order of the Eastern Star does not constitute Masonry in any way, shape, or form. Instead, it is a separate group that is  affiliated  with Freemasonry. It does not confer Masonic degrees on anyone. Second, symbols are finite and ambiguous; there is not a single symbol that is limited to one sole group or interpretation. Do Satanists use the inverted, 5-point star? Sure. That does not take away from ...

My attention was recently turned to an article entitled "The Demonic Roots of Freemasonry," an excerpt taken from "Demonic Deceptions, Booklet #15" by Pastor Win Worley. This excerpt was published on the website of Hegewisch Baptist Church and takes us for quite a spin. Let's get started. Worley states that Masonry claims to be a revival of ancient pagan philosophies (Egyptian, Phoenician, etc.) and that these all secretly worshiped a sun god (Lucifer). Grand lodges speak for themselves and for the lodges under their respective jurisdictions. If a claim is made by one of these entities, it will be published by the grand lodges; grand lodges are the only entities that carry the weight of Masonic authority to make any claims regarding its nature or character. Notice also that Worley does not provide any sources for this claim; no historians are mentioned and no lodges or grand lodges are specified. Worley then states that such secret worship was called "the M...

This week my attention was directed to the article "The Roots of Freemasonry: Satanism and Occultism" by Heath Henning over at Truth Watchers. To my knowledge, Mr. Henning is not nor has ever been a Freemason; if this is incorrect, the corrections are welcome (with the name of the lodge where his was initiated as well as the dates of his initiation, passing, and raising). Let's get right into it. Evaluating the relations with the mystery religions, as well as those involved with the modern revival of the satanically inspired movement, there is no reason to assume anything but an attempt to infiltrate the local church. Right off the bat, Henning compares Freemasonry to religion. However, we know from grand lodge publications that Freemasonry is neither a religion nor a substitute for one, making Henning's comparison an apples-to-oranges logical fallacy. Given that grand lodges are the only entities that carry weight of authority in Masonry in regard to what it consists...

LDS Discussions Blog wrote a response  to the Church's video on Joseph Smith and Freemasonry, which may be viewed here . In my opinion, the video itself was accurate and very well done, if not a bit watered-down (which can be expected, given that the target audience likely will not know much about either the Church or Freemasonry and given that it is a brief video). There are a few claims that LDS Discussions has made in this response that do not sit right with me, so I thought that I'd respond to them here. (Please keep in mind that quotes from LDS Discussions are indented once, while transcribed quotes from the Church's video are indented twice). Video "Was Joseph Smith a Mason? And if so, what connection does it have to temple worship practiced by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Well, there could be some confusion between the similarities with and the differences between Masonic ritual and the way Latter day Saints worship in the temple o...

For those of you who have never heard of grand lodge communications, here is a brief summary of what they are and what they entail. A grand lodge communication is a meeting for all Freemasons within a grand lodge's jurisdiction. Depending on the jurisdiction, it can be divided into multiple consecutive days; in Utah, for example, it typically is held over the course of a Friday and Saturday towards the beginning of the year. During this meeting, the following can be expected: Introductions of grand lodge officers from other jurisdictions. New or modified legislation to be voted upon. Examples include: Changes in ritual. Recognition or suspension of recognition of another grand lodge. Changes in grand lodge by-laws, rules, and regulations. Changes in the by-laws, rules, and regulations for local lodges as required by the grand lodge. Educational lectures and presentations. Elections of grand lodge officers for the ensuing year. Grand Master Deputy Grand Master Gr...

The last time that I attended a stated business meeting at my lodge, I believe, was the first Wednesday evening of February 2020. Since then, all Masonic buildings in Utah have been ordered closed by the Grand Master of Utah. As I recall, it has been tentatively  planned that lodges will open back up in September 2020. I commend the Grand Master in his efforts and desires to keep us, our loved ones, and our communities safe; he made a very difficult decision at the beginning of his year in the office of Grand Master and it has been quite a sacrifice for all of us (especially including him) to have much of our Masonic activity suspended. That's not to say that we are just taking the year off, however; we are all just doing what we can however we safely can. We have also been informed that those who do attend lodge once it reopens will be required to wear masks and gloves. Social distancing during the meeting will still occur, and it will be recommended for a long time that our elder...

This is a response to the YouTube video  LDS SECRETS: Freemasonry, the Occult and Satanist Symbols  by user It’s Me Jessie . I'll just dive right in. Jessie states that the ceremonies found in Freemasonry could not have come from Solomon’s time. I personally agree with this statement, as Freemasonry only traces back to 1598 Edinburgh, Scotland (although it is hypothesized that it is at least a few centuries older due to the Regius Poem in the Haliwell Manuscript). However, it should be noted that there is no primary source indicating when the very first Masonic meeting was held; however unlikely it is that Freemasonry does trace back to Solomon’s time, it is still a remote possibility. Jessie also states that, by extension, there is no connection between the Church’s temple ceremonies and the temple ceremonies performed in King Solomon’s Temple. I am willing to agree concerning the endowment ceremony, given that the Lord Jesus Christ indicated to Joseph Smith that t...