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                        SECRECY IN FREEMASONRY
                        By Cabell F. Cobbs, MPS

                   "I can't tell you. It's a secret"
                                 . . .

           "Women can't be Masons. They can't keep a secret"

                                 . . .

          "Having thought it needful to warn you of the
          Mischiefs and Evils practiced in the sight of
          God by those called Freed Masons, I say take care
          lest their Ceremonies and secret Swearings take hold of
          you. . . For this devilish sect of men are meeters in
          Secret which swear against all without their Following
          . . .For how should Men meet in secret places and with
          secret Signs taking care that none observe them
          to do the Work of God; are these not the ways of
          Evildoers?
                                 . . .

The above comments, ranging across three centuries, indicate the
ignorance of both profane and Freemason regarding our Craft, the
importance apparently attached to considerations of secrecy in
Freemasonry, and its use both as an anti-Masonic weapon and, perhaps,
as a shield for a Freemason's own lack of knowledge.

Who has not, on expressing an interest in joining the Craft, sought to
obtain information from an older member and had him seriously reply
that he could not give him any information. It is all secret! Who has
not heard the ancient sexist joke related above, as a totally false
explanation for our membership being limited to men? Who has not even
more recently heard vicious condemnations of our Fraternity by Dr.
James Holly, before the Southern Baptist Convention, in part because
of its reliance on secrecy?

At the outset, let us immediately refute the concept that the Craft
today is so secret that no member can discuss any part of Freemasonry
with a non-Mason. As the Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of
England, the Duke of Kent, recently remarked, there is in fact very
little secret about it. Indeed, with the publication of the commonly
used Emulation Ritual in the clear, English Freemasonry holds
confidential little more than the modes of recognition between
brethren. If our membership would only learn this simple fact---that
except for ritualistic matters, including modes of recognition, there
are few "secrets of Freemasonry", then perhaps they would no longer
have to cloak their ignorance of their own Fraternity with pretensions
of secrecy, when questioned by an interested person. At the least,
they should be taught to say, "I don't know the answer to your
question, but will refer you to one who does."

As for limitation of our membership to males, such has nothing to do
with secrecy, but is based on our origins in the operative Craft and a
thousand years of tradition. Attacks by religious bigots on
Freemasonry, as well as established religious bodies have, as
evidenced by the above quotation, gone on for three hundred years or
more, and, have, at one time or another, involved almost every
denomination. These critics look, among many other things, to our
secrecy and say that, were we honest men, we would open our
deliberations and activities to daylight, I. e., to our critics. To
the public, , who have come in late years to equate secrecy with
conspiracy and dark behavior, I fear it is a potent weapon.

If this secrecy is apparently so damaging to us, why do we continue to
burden ourselves with it? To understand, we must travel back in our
history.

Freemasonry's written and traditional history begins with the Old
Charges, or medieval documents, which set forth the origins of the
Craft. The oldest of these is the Regius Manuscript, written about
1390, which traces its foundations as an operative Craft to Euclid and
Egypt. As to the Craft in England, it declares that rules and
regulations were laid down at a General Assembly of Masons in York,
held in 926 A. D. by decree of King Athelstan. There, certain Articles
and Points were adopted, and later approved by the King, for the
Government of the Craft. Among these was the following:

The third point must be several
Among the apprentices it should be known well
That his master's counsel he keeps close,
And his fellow's with his good purpose;
The privatenesses of the chamber he shall tell no man,
Nor whatever they do in the lodge;
Whatsoever thou here or see them do,
Tell it to no man, wherever thou go;
The counsel of the hall and also of the bower,

Keep it well to [your] great honor,
Lest it should bring you to blame,
And bring the craft into great shame.

Thus, came secrecy into the Craft. Why? Probably to protect the
mathematical and engineering formulae by which a particular lodge was
enabled to construct the magnificent cathedrals, abbeys, and castles,
whose present day survival testifies to their great skill as builders
in stone and to be enabled, through modes of recognition, to identify
a legitimate craftsman during the hiring process. One may also suggest
that deliberations over an individual's skill and faults in lodge were
likewise held confidential, as are modern lodge deliberations on
petitions, ritual and related matters. Secrecy was not altogether a
benefit during the early days of the Craft. Henry VI ordered an
investigation of Freemasonry as a secret society and finding that it
was of an innocent nature, confirmed its charges by decree of King and
Council. Similarly, it is recorded by Preston that Queen Elizabeth
sent Sir Thomas Sackville to York to disperse the Masons there, but he
was initiated and became their Master. Even as late as 1799, an Act of
Parliament requiring registration of all secret societies and aimed at
bodies which intended to disrupt government caused problems to the
Craft until exemption was obtained.

After the formation of the Premier Grand Lodge in 1717, its
Constitutions, taken from the Old Charges, provided as well for
secrecy, deeming it a virtue among all people. That it was not always
present or respected is shown by the numerous exposures of ritual that
began around 1730 and, in 1738, led to modification of the
Constitutions of 1723 and changes in the modes of recognition to
prevent further impositions by pretenders.

The concept came with Masonry to America, where publishers copied
Anderson's Constitutions verbatim and aided the spread of English-
style Freemasonry throughout the Colonies. Thus, as late as 1791, we
see the Grand Lodge of Virginia officially adopt the concept of
secrecy:

"The last quality and virtue which I shall mention, as absolutely
requisite in all those who would be Masons is that of secrecy, which
indeed, from its importance, ought to have held the first place in
this chapter, if it had not been intended to treat of it more fully,
as a conclusion of the whole." The discussion in this early Masonic
law book, The Ahiman Rezon, goes on to explain the philosophic aspects
of secrecy, particularly as an exercise of self-control. It considers
maintenance of secrecy not only as a protection for the Craft but also
as a teaching method for individual advancement.

Secrecy over the centuries has gained the status of a landmark in the
eyes of the Craft--something that is essential as a foundation stone
of the Freemasonry, and without which the true nature of our
Institution cannot survive. Indeed, our Mother Grand Lodge, as a
condition of recognition, requires all Grand Lodges strictly to
observe "the Ancient Landmarks, customs and usages of the Craft".

Not surprisingly, the Landmark of Secrecy has been adopted, or is
followed by every American Grand Lodge. From this beginning, it can be
seen that Freemasonry was a secret society, from its inception. In
defense of this, many, notably leaders of our appendant bodies,
attempt to say that we are only a "society with secrets" and not a
secret society; these argue our members proudly wear the Square and
Compass, our lodge locations are known, and most of our Craft
deliberations are published in annual proceedings. But this is little
more than verbal legerdemain, as the leading definition of a secret
society includes "an organization, such as a lodge, that requires its
members to conceal certain activities, such as its rites of
initiation, from outsiders." In the modern world, what can we derive
from the continued insistence on secrecy in our lodges--when all the
world can see our temples and, particularly in small communities,
identify those who enter their portals. And with regard to our
ceremonies, anyone is able to find them quite well exposed in volumes
stocked by large bookstores, complete with the modes of recognition.
In these circumstances, is secrecy so important?

First, as from the beginning, the confidentiality of our means of
identifying impostors is essential, even if it can be presently
discovered through available exposs. Lodges still are bound to render
assistance to Masons visiting or passing through their communities,
and there are still those who seek to impose upon our generosity.
There is little advantage in making it easier for fraud to be
perpetrated.

Secondly, the entire fabric of Freemasonry rests upon the need to
create a strong bond between the new Mason and his brethren. The
foundation on which this threefold tie of brotherhood is built rests
largely upon the ceremonies of initiation, passing and raising, which
have existed for centuries, largely unchanged, and which are of such a
nature as to create an unforgettable connection between those who have
undergone the rites. Much of the aura of these ceremonies depends upon
their confidential nature, which tends to create in the mind of the
candidate, a sense of value not to be found in procedures generally
known to the public. In short, secrecy itself tends to reinforce the
moral imperatives we share.

Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, our brethren must not only bond
with each other, but they must recognize the need to keep private
exchanges confidential. Frequently, and in accordance with their
obligations one to another, a Mason is called to counsel a brother or
to share his burden of care regarding his daily life. It is essential
that he know, perhaps above all other things, to regard a brother's
communications as inviolable and, in giving him assistance, to do so
in perfect confidence. He learns this by the constant injunction to
keep silent about Masonic matters.

And, finally, why must we always give way to our critics? Several
years ago, the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania led a rush to eliminate the
traditional penalties from our several obligations, because of
criticism emanating from the National Council of Catholic Bishops. A
number of Grand Lodges have eliminated Masonic catechisms, because a
few postulants complained that memory work was too time consuming.
More recently, the suggestion has been made to eliminate our use of
titles such as "Worshipful", etc., and the terms"altar",and "temple"
because they offend or mislead religious critics.

These changes are largely motivated by the desire of certain leaders
seeking to attract more petitioners. In fact they have no such effect
and merely encourage our enemies to redouble their efforts to destroy
the Craft. The elimination of our limited secrecy and adoption of
public exposure of our rites is in itself destructive and is certainly
unlikely to attract petitioners. There is little profit to giving aid
and comfort to those who know not whereof they speak and whose real
objection to Freemasonry is grounded in religious bigotry. In sum,
then, there is no real reason to eliminate the confidential nature of
our meetings and ritual. To do so will merely harm the Craft in order
to gratify the curious and cede another point to those who have
opposed us for centuries. Lifting the curtain on all we do will, in my
view, do us irreparable damage. It will lessen the strength of the
bonding process in our rites; it will lessen the confidentiality which
now exists, or should exist, between brethren; and it will discourage
honest expression in Lodge of one's views considering the fitness of a
particular candidate, his background and character. The fact of the
matter is that our business should remain our business. In the words
of the old ballad:

"The world is in pain
Our secrets to gain,
And still let them wonder and gaze on;
They ne'r can divine
The Word or the Sign
Of a Free and Accepted Mason.

'Tis this and 'tis that,
They cannot tell what,
Nor why the great men of the Nation,
Should aprons put on,
And make themselves one
With a Free and Accepted Mason.

So mote it be.