To wonder what the Masons actually do?

[Usererror1999]

I hear various ideas from “they go for piss ups and fancy dinners” to “ they are a shadowy organisation with bloodthirsty rituals”

but what, do they actually get up to? Anyone know?

Have you never seen Hot Fuzz? It’s basically that isn’t it? Oh and Charidee, they do a lot for Charidee.

Not just in the 50s.

You shouldn't mention the charity work.

Didn't realise nicey & smashey were masons.

The alien bit would explain a lot about my ex 🤔

My Dad is a Mason, has been all my life (I'm 35) now I'm older my husband and I have been invited to Ladies nights and been given a tour of the masonic temple. It is all very ritual heavy but mainly it's about networking and meeting like-minded people. The waitressing staff at my Dad's lodge are incredibly valued. At every event a jug is passed around and all the masons fill it with notes to tip the staff. You're talking at least a few hundred pounds tip per event. Charity is incredibly important to them & they look after each other outside of meetings. My now elderly Dad was diagnosed with skin cancer earlier this year, one of his fellow members who was a Dr checked up on him every step of the way.

I've seen National Treasure and read that Dan Brown book! They know the secrets of the universe!

Not just a load of old retired bobbies and bin men talking shite at all.

Loads for charity. My uncle was Worshipful Master in a lodge up north. When a member died, the wife was then supported with housing etc. He was in charge of a high end car manufacturer factory back in the day.

DH and my mum's "friend" were/are masons. Seems to be a lot of fannying about from what I have heard. A bit of charity work but not enough to be considered worthwhile. My mum is in the WI, it's hilarious to listen to the difference. Her "friend" became increasingly disenchanted with the Mason nonsense as she got more active.

Thankfully DH has forgotten about it... for now.... urgh.

They make sure their mates get the best jobs.

Is it true it’s ‘jobs for the boys’. A few male staff in our leadership are supposedly Mason’s and they are always promoted despite being bloody inept 🤣🤣🤣🤣

My DH was invited to join the Freemasons…think that is what you mean by “masons”. They do a lot of charity work. The lodge meeting he went to as a taster (his sponsor took him along) had alot of business items like fundraising for the childrens wing at the local hospital, buying a property to be a rent free house for 18yr olds leaving foster care, then there was a bit of political talk about who to vote for as next MP. They were also planning a trip to visit some Shriners? Who I think are an American subgroup within the masons. He was just put off by the secret, mystical aspects of it and so politely declined to join.

Networking.

It’s a very white middle-class male thing with a bit of arcane liturgy to make it feel exclusive. They are basically sad middle-England conservative minded old farts who keep an old boy network going and hide behind the respectability of their fund raising for charity.

They go in suits, put on an apron and then recite words from a book of rituals to get promoted from one gimpy role to another within their lodge (club). Then they do some social chit chat. Imagine all the boys at school who wanted to be part of a secret society and then add 40 years to them and that's what they are like.

My dads in it and got my brother to go. He hated it and said hes still not sure what it was about but felt like the scouts for grown ups..I read one of my dads booklets and it was absolute bullshit. Went something like "x is to the y, what z is to the p, where for art thou z"

It's a tricky one, this. The press is oddly quite about it all - though The Guardian ran a front-page story about how the Masons had infiltrated the Met so it was hard to reform - it went out on New Year's Day 2017 so perhaps not likely to be picked up as a narrative given not many buy a paper on that day, a bit like the adult abuse in social care report went out on the same day Liz Truss resigned, so it got buried.

The Masons get laughed off a bit. Prince Charles seemed to be sporting a masonic handkerchief in the first 24 hours of his becoming King. MPs are not required to reveal masonic links. Women are said to be banned, but catch the 418 bus to Kingston and you pass a lodge that welcomes women as well as men. Conspiracy theorists bang on about how they are behind all the world's greatest, sickest crimes. I don't know, I mean your local Church is probably alright but no question much of it both Catholic and CoE harboured extensive paedophile rings - it's a matter of public record, see the Oscar-winning film Spotlight. The Times ran a story a few years ago about how in France one Masonic lodge went after a woman as a rival business and tried to have her killed, this sort of thing is right up the alley of most local Councils, and it does seem to work along those lines.

It's all very odd and frankly I don't know.

DH was a Mason until he committed a criminal offence, so he had to leave his Lodge. Its not true that they "cover up" crimes that Brothers commit - quite the opposite.

It's mainly Charitable Works, Commonwealth of Man, Philanthropy etc.

There's a very strong Spriritual ethos - you have to declare a belief in a Superior Being, but you can be a member of any religion.

There was a very interesting short series a few years ago about different Lodges and their characters. Rick Wakeman is a Mason and his Lodge leans towards Music and the Arts.

There are women’s lodges, my mum was a worshipful master a few years ago

They donated teddies to our urgent treatment walk in for the kids to take home, that's the totality of my Mason knowledge. Oh and that my friends granddad was one 🤷‍♀️ 😅

I don't really know what it's like now but not so long ago the concern was about members being promoted because of their association and wrongdoing being overlooked because senior police officers sorted things out for fellow masons.

Neither of those are harmless if true.

Add to that the fact that women weren't allowed to be members. It's hardly an enlightened organisation

When I was younger I waitressed at a Masonic Lodge a few times (through an events catering company) and I can say that they were always extremely generous with tipping and I often made more in tips that what I was being paid for the shift!

Rubbish

I once dated a mason who turned out to be an abusive arsehole, a low-rent wannabe Tinder swindler. It all sounded like a load of bollocks (pp who said scouts for grown ups is right), my read was that he was in it for the money - he somehow swindled them into paying for his kids private school after he divorced - and powerful networking opportunities with senior members of the police and local business (he was in the c london chapter). I wish I'd contacted them after reading how intolerant to law breakers they are on this thread, he stole a large amount of money from me and the police were involved, anything to stop that arsehole swindling any more innocent people.

For those saying it's business opportunities and networking... What you mean is cronyism jobs for the boys culture.

And the loyalty of your brother's to get away with any behaviour. Totally corrupt.

Do people not wonder why they need purpose built lodges, and what money paid for them?