Index for Freemasonry and Spiritual Alchemy - four books combined

Marketing The SPIRITUAL FREEMASONRY Series

This is a Non-Fiction book on the early beginnings of Freemasonry, 1717-1740. Unlike most books on Freemasonry that are concerned with the “what” of Freemasonry, I have concentrated on the “why.”

The first part of this book has already been published in Japanese. It was divided into two for the Japanese market: history and ritual. The first part on the history of Freemasonry was published last year, and the second part on ritual is being translated for publication in 2020. https://goo.gl/qzYiLV

Originally this was a single book of 540 pages, but I have divided it into four, two of which are now available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Christopher-J.-Earnshaw/e/B07W4VFMV5/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0

In this book I explain:

Why three educated and busy men decided to rewrite the ritual of a stonemasons’ guild, when they were neither stonemasons nor manual workers.
Why the first three Grand Masters give eight years of their life to this cause. Not only that, but why they felt it necessary to add a third degree to the ritual.
Why the literati and aristocracy of Europe were motivated to join these three men, an antiquarian, a Huguenot priest and a possible alchemist, in a room above a tavern to study the new degrees.
Why there is a “key to the rituals” that Desaguliers referred to in the Constitutions of 1723.
Why the first three Grand Masters were interested in “making good men better” even though they were not philanthropists.
Why the first three Grand Masters used steganography to hide secrets in the text, making the Ritual a puzzle for Freemasons to discover.
Why the Lodge at the Horn Tavern was so different from the other three Lodges whose “Constitution is Immemorial.”
Lastly, and probably most importantly, why the English nobility (and later royalty) believed so strongly in what these three men had conceived that they lent their names to the enterprise by becoming its figurehead, Grand Masters.

There was obviously something important that the first three Grand Masters had done to the rituals when they rewrote them, that changed them in some way. The only way to find out was to compare the current ritual to the bits of ritual that exist from before 1717. That was the year modern Freemasonry was reinvented in what the Masonic Scholar Albert Pike called the “Revival.”

The allure of researching the early days of Freemasonry is that we can learn about the objectives of the first three Grand Masters, and thus answer the above questions.

Along the journey we will discover many strange facts about events leading up to the Revival of Freemasonry that have been lost to time:

The secret scroll owned by a librarian at Oxford University that might hold the formula for the Philosopher’s Stone.
The mysterious “figure behind the curtain” that probably guided the first three Grand Masters in rewriting the degrees.
The valuable documents that were destroyed during the early days of the Grand Lodge of England.
The first “black” queen of England whose son was Freemasonry’s first royal Grand Master.
Why the Bishop of London treated Pocahontas as “visiting royalty,” and what became of her
The Chinese mandarin who may hold the secret to one of the degrees.
The rival secret “Chinese” society that tried to bring down Freemasonry.
We will also meet some of the characters who became Grand Masters in the early years, such as:
- the duke who betrayed his country and ended his days in poverty, wandering the streets of Spain drunk
out of his mind
- the Grand Master who killed a person in a duel, but was acquitted by a jury of his peers in the House of Lords
- the Grand Master who had to resign because he was Catholic, even though Catholics had been welcome in Freemasonry from the start of the Revival

Though the book looks like a history of Freemasonry, it is a detailed analysis of the alchemy in the three degrees. This content will be completely new to both the public and Freemasons alike.I also show that a Chinese Mandarin may be indirectly responsible for the structure and content of the First Degree, that the Philosopher’s Stone is “hidden in plain sight” in the Lodge and that a “Leading Light” of the day helped Freemasonry in the early days.

1 What is unique about this book?

It has been written by an “insider,” a Freemason of thirty-five years standing, a 33° Freemason and a Master of two Research Societies, who has responsibility for teaching other Freemasons.

I believe I have not only uncovered the purpose of Freemasonry, but also how and why the Three Degrees came to be written. I will show that Freemasonry is underpinned by alchemy, not theoretical but practical, spiritual alchemy.

2 Who is the target audience?

Mainly Freemasons, but also anyone interested in the history and ritual of Freemasonry. The book does not emphasize morality as many books on Freemasonry do, but rather it sees the ritual of Freemasonry as a puzzle devised to hide certain alchemical secrets.

I have intentionally included information on American Freemasonry, such as concerning George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Pocahontas to make the book interesting for the American market. I give an overview of the history of England prior to the establishment of the Grand Lodge of England as many Americans may not be familiar with it, and I also include some poems and songs that an English audience would know. Also, I have used two American rituals for reference, the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts and Duncan’s.

According to the United Grand Lodge of England, there are six million Freemasons world-wide, of whom the English-speaking members account for about half that number (USA, UK, India &c). There are 1.7 million Masons in USA, however, in non-English speaking markets such as China or Malaysia, English is often the second language. These members can be easily reached through various Masonic magazines and websites, please see below.

Masons tend to be from a higher economic demographic, in their 40-50s and well educated. They will not shy away from buying an expensive book when the information is pertinent.

3 My platform

I introduce some of the topics from this book (as a teaser for the book) on YouTube: “Spiritual Freemasonry.” I have made about 78 videos, and have had 75,000 visits to the site in a year, and about 3,800 subscribers to date. On Reedsy Discovery, there are 10,100 followers, on FaceBook page "Spiritual Freemasonry" 3,000 followers, Twitter 6,800 followers and on my podcast "Spiritual Freemasonry" (on Spotify, Apple, Google &c) which is in year three, there have been 57,000 downloads (USA 58% and UK 28%).

As my background is in research, I often give lectures to various Masonic bodies on the historical background to the fraternity. I intend to travel to the Far East (especially Taiwan and HongKong), Europe and the States, lecturing and promoting the book.

I also hope to cooperate with Freemasons in the Grand Lodge of China (in Taiwan) as this book covers their Daoist roots, remembering that most ethnic Chinese came to Taiwan after the Fall of the Ming Dynasty, which is exactly the time-frame of my book, so it should appeal to the members there.

4 My background

British Citizen.
BA in Japanese and Chinese, MA in Transpersonal Studies, PhD in Neuroscience.
Past Grand Historian, Grand Lodge of Japan (GLJ) 2002
Past Master of the Research Lodge GLJ, 2007-2009
Scottish Rite 33° IGH, Chairman of Education Committee, 2022
Recipient of the Order of Merit GLJ for educational activities 2009
CEO of a Medical Device manufacturer, living in Tokyo, Japan

To date I have authored ten books, one has been on a small publishing house’s best seller list for thirty years. Please see my website for details: https://earnshaw.jimdo.com/books-in-print/

5 Details about the content

Four books of about 83,000 words each (260 pages of A5 in 10.5pt font, single spaced) including:
40 images B&W, 25 images in colour, an index of 14 pages and 30 pages of references, each book.
Edited to Harbrace College (12^th edition) standards, (though English spellings used).

The MS has been professionally edited twice; once by an American professor of English Literature (his endorsement is attached), and once by a professional British editor.

The reason the index to the book is 14 pages long is because the content has been written in many short sections, with lots of sub-headings (about 480+), as modern readers tend to prefer short sections to long chapters. It makes the content lighter to read, and easy to dip into. https://copyhackers.com/2016/02/short-long-content/ The index can be viewed on my website at http://chris-earnshaw.com

6 Further books and other rights

In the first two books published to date I do not reveal the secret concerning the “Twenty-fifth Signpost” that has “life-altering” implications. So far two books have been published Freemasonry: Spiritual Alchemy and Freemasonry: Quest for Immortality. I have been publishing the books on KDP about six months apart. I am planning to launch Freemasonry: Initiation by Light in April and the last book, Freemasonry: Royal Arch in September 2020

As there is a large percentage of Freemasons living in non-English speaking countries (about 3 million in French, Spanish, German and Chinese speaking countries,) the potential for subsidiary language rights is large.

6 Potential marketing media

Nearly every Grand Lodge publishes a magazine (in USA each state has its own Grand Lodge), and affiliated organizations such as Scottish Rite and York Rite also publish magazines. Pre-publication I will contact all these magazines, perhaps more than eighty, and offer a sneak preview. Post-publication I can syndicate some of the information or give a deeper dive, as I believe all editors are looking for new and interesting content. I am already in contact with the editor of the magazine with the largest readership, Scottish Rite, with 550,000 readers, a review of Freemasonry: Spiritual Alchemy will be published in March, and Freemasonry: Quest for Immortality in May. https://scottishrite.org/about/questions

The Grand Lodge of England reviewed the book in December, Issue 48 page 60. It can be found here: https://www.freemasonrytoday.com/magazine

http://chris-earnshaw.com Twitter: @AuthorEarnshaw

Index for Freemasonry and Spiritual Alchemy - four books combined


Table of Contents
Index	1-14
Distinguished Preface	15
Prologos	17
A New Theory on the Rituals of Freemasonry	20
John Wilkins 1614-1672	20
The Challenges that Wilkins' Book Faced	22
What are the Secrets of Freemasonry?	23
The Scope of this Book	25
Education	25
For the Brethren	26
References	27
The Ritual	28
The Bible	29
Chinese	29
Consistency	30
Four-dimensional Chess	30
References	31
Ch. 1: Templars, Guilds and the Reconquista	34
The Knights Templar	34
Rosslyn Chapel and the Templars	35
The English Reformation	37
Dissolution of the Monasteries	38
Guilds in England	40
The Workings of a Guild	42
Sacred Mysteries	45
Miracle Plays, Mystery Plays and Morality Plays	45
Was Operative Masonry a Guild?	47
The Old Charges	49
Reconquista	50
Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity	52
Five Hundred Years of Change	53
References	54
Ch. 2 The House of Stuart: Gunpowder, Treason and Plot	55
History of the House of Stuart	55
James VI of Scotland and I of England, reigned 1603 -1625	56
Plot inside a Plot	56
The Gunpowder Plot	57
The Divine Right of Kings	58
Patriarchalism	60
Witchcraft	60
Charles l, reigned 1625-1649	61
The Wars of the Three Kingdoms	63
Execution or Regicide?	64
Two Religious Treaties	65
Fifth Monarchy	66
The Commonwealth of England 1649-1653	66
The Protectorate 1653-1658	67
Richard Cromwell	68
Levellers	68
John Milton 1608-1674	69
Charles Il, reigned 1660-1685	70
Rats	71
The Father of English Medicine: Thomas Sydenham 1624-1689	73
Out of the Frying Pan into the Fire	74
Anti-Catholic Sentiments	76
War with the Netherlands	77
England Bankrupt	77
More Resistance	77
James Il, reigned 1685-1688	79
The Glorious Revolution	81
References	82
Ch. 3 The End of the House of Stuart and the End of the World	84
William Ill, reigned 1688-1702 & Mary Il, 1688-1694	84
Pretenders	85
New Laws	86
The Right to Bear Arms	86
The Gin Craze	87
Censorship	90
Freethinkers	91
John Locke, 1632-1704	91
John Toland, 1670-1722	91
Anne, reigned 1702-1714	92
A Thorn in Her Side	93
Problem Palaces	94
Longitude	94
William Coward	95
Pamphleteering	96
The Legacy of the House of Stuart	96
The End of the World: Catastrophes	98
Comets	99
William Whiston and the Deluge	100
Astrologers in Opposition	101
The Knighting of a Pirate	101
The Second Coming of Christ	102
The House of Hanover	103
George l, reigned 1714-1727	103
Indemnity	103
Further Penal Laws	104
The Forty-five	104
Capitulation	105
Summary	105
Ch. 4 Religious Turmoil	108
The Interregnum and Religious Freedom	109
High Church	110
Three Sets of Articles	110
The Abrahamic Faiths	110
Protestantism	110
Lollards: 1382	111
Arianism: 1517	111
Anabaptists: 1534	111
Puritans: 1559	111
Calvinism: 1640	112
Socinians 1680	112
Jews in England	112
The Expulsion	113
The Wandering Jew	113
Catholics	113
Anti-Catholicism	114
Islam	114
Dissenters	115
Home-Grown Dissension	116
Baptists	116
Brownists	116
Seekers	116
Quakers	116
Ranters	116
Grindletonians	117
Muggletonians	117
Philadelphians	117
Levellers	117
Diggers	117
Enthusiasts	118
Imported Dissension	118
Familists	118
Behmenists	119
Camisards	119
Controversies	119
Millennialism	119
Unitarianism	120
Atheism	120
Deism	121
The Assembly of the Divines	121
Predestination	122
Purgatory	123
Immortality	123
Mortalism	124
Heaven and the Afterlife	125
Prayer Book	126
A Touch Piece	126
Summary	127
References	137
Ch. 5 The Enlightenment: from Bacon and Fludd to Newton and Leibniz	138
The History of Rosicrucianism	142
Christian Cabala	143
Robert Moray 1608-1673	144
Francis Bacon 1561-1626	146
New Atlantis	147
Shakespeare	147
Spear-Shakers	148
The Faked Death Theory	148
The Invisible College	149
The Hartlib Circle	149
The Philosophical Society of Oxford	150
Gresham College	151
Robert Boyle 1627-1691	152
Isaac Newton 1642-1727	153
Robert Hooke 1635-1703	154
Small Fortunes	154
The Royal Society	155
The Chelsea College Failure 1662-1678	156
Difficult Years	158
Some of The First Presidents of the Royal Society	159
Antiquarian Presidents and Masonic Members	160
Natural Philosophy	161
Natural Magic	162
Greatrakes' Magic	162
A Mechanical View of the World	163
The Enlightenment	164
Gottfried Leibniz 1646-1716	165
Esoterica	166
The Swedish Bishop, the Czar and the Freemason	166
The Book	167
Leibniz's Theology	167
The City of God	168
Two Kingdoms	168
Leibniz's Binary Numeral System	170
The Chinese Rites Controversy	171
Chinese as the Universal Language	171
The Silk Road	172
Arabic	173
Freethinkers	173
The Society of Antiquaries of London	175
Troubled Waters	175
The Darien Scheme	176
The South Sea Bubble	179
Summary	180
References	183
Ch. 6 Alchemy and Three Important Alchemical Texts	184
Alchemy's Secrecy	185
Occult Studies	186
Hermeticism	186
The Emerald Tablet	187
Picatrix	187
Alchemy - a brief history	193
Chinese Alchemy	194
Elixir	194
Christian Alchemy	197
Resurrection as Alchemy	198
The Alchemical Bible	199
The Alchemy of Prayer	200
The Works of God	202
Experimental Alchemy - The Alchemy of Puffers	202
The Great Work	203
Sulphur, Mercury and Magnesium - then Salt	205
Vitriol	205
Birds as a Metaphor	205
The Philosopher's Stone	206
Dew	207
Dew and Resurrection.	208
Codes and Cyphers	208
The Death of Alchemy	209
Early Practitioners of the Royal Art	209
Alchemists in Seventeenth Century England	210
Robert Fludd 1574-1637	211
Kenelm Digby 1603-1665	211
Thomas Browne 1605-1682	212
George Starkey 1628-1665	213
Robert Boyle	214
Isaac Newton	216
Elias Ashmole 1617-1692	216
Three Important Texts	216
Book of Lambspring	217
Mutus Liber	218
The Twelve Keys of Basil Valentine	219
Secrets Disclos'd	220
Christianity challenged	221
A Modern Alchemist - Fulcanelli c.1920s	221
Alchemy the Foundation of Freemasonry	222
References	225
Ch. 7 Freemasonry, the Revival and Exposés	226
A Short History of Freemasonry	227
Scottish Freemasonry	229
The Connection between Rosslyn Chapel and Freemasonry	230
Operative Masonry	231
The Acception	232
Old Charges	233
Operative Free-Masons "do much mischeif"	235
Freemasonry in London	237
Princess Pocahontas 1596-1617	238
The New Jerusalem	239
Sir Christopher Wren, Architect, 1632-1723	240
London as 'The New Jerusalem'	240
The Tree of Life and the Axis Mundi	241
Four Original Lodges whose Constitution is Immemorial	243
Speculation	243
Sudden Growth	244
The Horn's Interesting Membership	248
The Goings-on at the Lodge at the Horn Tavern	249
A Tale of Two Cities	252
Queen Sophia Charlotte	252
Other Points of Interest	253
The Four Lodges	255
The Premier Grand Lodge	257
The Growth of the Grand Lodge	257
The First Three Grand Masters	257
Anthony Sayer, c. 1672-1741	258
George Payne, 1685-1757	258
John Theophilus Desaguliers, 1683-1744	261
Rewriting the Degrees	262
Exposés	262
Free Masonry according to the Scriptures, c1690	263
Edinburgh Register House Manuscript, 1696	264
A Mason's Examination, 1723	265
The Grand Mystery of Free Masons Discover'd, 1724	265
Masonry Dissected, 1730	266
A Successor	267
References	271
Ch 8 The Nobility and Modern Freemasonry	271
Noble Grand Masters	272
1st Noble Grand Master: John, Duke of Montagu, 1690-1749	275
The First Constitutions	277
Valuable Manuscripts Destroyed 1720	277
Anderson's Constitutions of 1723	279
The Debut of Hiram Abif	279
Other Constitutions	280
The Constitutions of 1738	281
The "Self-Appointed" Noble Grand Master	281
2nd Noble Grand Master: Philip, Duke of Wharton, 1698-1731	285
3rd Noble Grand Master: Francis, Earl of Dalkeith, 1695-1751	286
Since Then	286
Contributing Factors to the Premier Grand Lodge's Success	287
Masonic Presidents of the Royal Society	287
Knights of the Garter	287
The Order of the Bath	288
Gentlemen of the Bedchamber	288
Foundling Hospital	289
Spalding Gentlemen's Society	290
The Leisured Classes	290
Catholicism	291
Challenges to the Premier Grand Lodge	292
The Royal Arch Rite	292
The Great Schism	293
Coats of Arms	295
The Act of Union	296
The Substitute for the Lost Word	296
Modern Freemasonry	297
The Monitor	298
Summary	300
References	303
Ch. 9 Jesuits - The West meets China and the Dao	303
The Silk Road	304
Chinese Dynasties	305
The First Dynasty	305
The Ming Dynasty	306
The Fall of the Ming Dynasty	308
Han Synthesis	309
Confucianism	310
Chinese Emigration	311
Heaven and Earth Societies	311
TianDiHui and Freemasonry	315
Jesuits and China	320
Martino Martini 1614-1661	321
Jesuit Scholarship	322
Philippe Couplet 1623-1693	323
Persecution of the Jesuits	324
Candida Xu 1607-1680	325
Chinese Rites Controversy	327
The Needham Question	328
Leibniz	329
Dao	332
The Dao Lineage	333
Immortality	334
Yin-Yang	335
YiJing	336
The Teachings of the DaoDeJing	337
The Great Daoist Mountains	338
The Dao Alchemist	338
TianMing and the Divine Right of Kings	339
Daoist Light	340
Anno Huang-Di	340
The Philosophical Language Again	341
Summary	342
References	347
Ch. 10 The Mandarin, the Gormogons and the Philosopher's Stone	347
Shen FuZong 沈福宗 c1660-1691	348
Flanders and Paris	348
Rome	349
Paris again, then London	350
Shen's Legacy	351
Shen's Connection with the Dao Temple	351
Godfrey Kneller Kt	355
The Chain of Transmission	355
Thomas Hyde's Later Career	357
The Mystery of Hyde's portraits	358
Others of Hyde's Antiquarian Acquaintances	359
The Gormogons	362
Who was Chin-Quaw KY-pop	362
Origin of the Name Gormogon	363
Gormogons in Popular Culture	365
The Mystery of Masonry brought to Light by ye Gormogons	367
Summary	369
References	372
Ch. 11 Steganography and Twenty-four Signposts	372
Hidden Secrets	375
The History of Steganography	377
The Practice of Steganography	378
Double Associations	378
Masonic Ciphers	378
The Baconian Cipher	378
Mercury, or the Secret and Swift Messenger	379
The Signposts	379
The Secret Key to the Signposts	380
Clovis ad Mysterium	381
Twenty-Four Signposts	381
1st Degree	382
2nd Degree	384
3rd Degree	386
Layering in the Ritual	386
The Union of 1813	387
De-Christianizing the Ritual	387
The Prayers and Lessons	387
Prayers	388
Lessons	389
Other Interesting Correspondences	390
The Conundrum	390
Summary	390
References	392
Ch. 12 Alchemy by Degrees	393
Initiation	393
Soft and Hard Aspects of Freemasonry	394
How the Signposts Tie In	394
Eureka!	394
Coded Text	395
Three Alchemical Books	396
The Soft Aspect of Freemasonry - Ritual	396
First Degree	396
Initiation by Light	397
A Dao Initiation	399
The Dao Initiation and the First Degree	401
The Ritual and Dao Correspondences	402
Concerning Light	403
The Lesser Lights	404
The Great Books	405
The Tenets and Cardinal Virtues	405
Obligation of the First Degree	406
The Book of Lambspring	406
Alchemical Lesson in Psalm 133	407
The Apron of the Degree	407
Summary	407
Second Degree	408
Mutus Liber	408
The Alchemical Effect of Mutus Liber	408
Duegard	409
Obligation	409
The Apron of the Degree	410
Summary	410
Third Degree	410
A Second "Key to the Secrets"?	411
The Mystic Christian Resurrection	413
Unfinished Temple	413
The Death of Hiram Abif	415
Three Inconsistencies	416
Three Blows	416
The Broken Column Lecture	416
The Lost Word	417
Resurrection, Reincarnation and Rebirth	418
The Twelve Keys of Basil Valentine	418
The Philosopher's Stone	419
The Apron of the Degree	420
The Hidden Story in the 3rd Degree	422
The Two Anomalies	422
Fitting It Together	426
Other Soft Aspects	423
Oaths and Penalties	424
Secrecy	424
The Sign of Fire	425
The Holy Saints John	425
The Level and the Tau	426
What is a Tau Cross?	426
Why is the Triple Tau in a Blue Lodge?	426
The Triple Tau	427
The Tau in Geometry	428
The Past Master's Apron	428
The Left Side	429
Slippers and Gloves	429
Working Tools	430
Circumambulation	430
Seven Liberal Arts and Sciences	432
Regularity of Lodges	433
Etiquette	433
Summary	433
References	435
Ch. 13 Lodge, Laboratory and Temple	435
Conjunction	436
The Hard Function of Freemasonry	437
The Form of the Lodge	427
Da Yu大禹c.2,200-2,100 BC	437
Three Great Pillars	437
The Brazen Pillars	438
The Covering of a Lodge - the Starry Decked Heavens	438
The Altar	438
The Furniture of the Lodge	439
The Volume of Sacred Law	439
Square and Compasses	439
Western	440
Leibniz	441
Chinese	442
Chinese Mythology	443
The Alchemical use of the Square and Compasses	443
Squaring the Circle	445
Rebis	446
The Ornaments of a Lodge	446
The Mosaic Pavement and the Indented Tessel	447
The Blazing Star	448
The Three Lesser Lights	448
The Three Movable Jewels	448
The Rough Ashlar - Pu	449
The Perfect Ashlar - Yu	449
The Trestle Board	450
The Immovable Jewels	450
The Situation of a Lodge - Four Cardinal Directions	451
The Lodge and Dao Correspondences	452
Kabbalah - Stage Directions	452
The Tree of Life	454
The Hiramic Tragedy on the Tree of Life	455
Other Points	455
Squaring Stones for the Construction of King Solomon's Temple	455
Francis Bacon's New Atlantis	456
Salomon's House	456
Masons - the "Sons of Light"	457
Summary	457
References	459
Ch. 14 The Quest for Immortality and the Twenty-Fifth Signpost	459
The Valley of Dry Bones	460
The Soul	461
Christianity: Immortality and Mortalism	461
Luther's Protest	462
Tyndale's Bible	463
Mortalism	464
The Protestant Response to Mortalism	465
Pre-Revival Mortalism	466
The Three William Cowards	466
Post-Revival Mortalism	467
The Importance of Mortalism to Freemasonry	467
Immortality in the Degrees of Freemasonry	468
Resurrection in Freemasonry	470
Desaguliers' Immortality	471
Symbols of Immortality	471
The Tau Cross	471
Acacia	472
Forget-me-not	473
Other Images of Immortality in Freemasonry	473
Symbolism in Paintings	474
Dao and Immortality	474
Ge Hong	474
Qi, Jing, Shen	475
The DaoDeJing on Immortality	475
Denkoroku	476
Alchemy and Immortality	476
The Lesson of the Three Alchemical Books	477
The Alchemy of Death	478
Long Livers	479
21 grams	479
Immortality Nowadays	480
The Twenty-fifth Signpost	481
Summary	482
References	485
Epilogos	485
A Summary of the Book	486
Concerns and Fears	488
Aspirations: A New Jerusalem	489
Axis Mundi	490
A Peculiar System of Morality	490
The Philosopher's Stone is Broken	490
Then and Now	491
Fraternization	492
Challenges Facing Freemasonry	492
The Major Challenge	494
Misunderstanding Freemasonry	494
The Craft & The Cross	496
Is Membership Declining Worldwide?	496
Does Freemasonry Conceal Secrets from Members?	497
Are Standards Dropping?	497
A Masonic Dress Code	498
Memory Work	499
The Ancient Landmarks	501
Anti-Masonry	502
Masons and the Goat	503
Devil Worship!	504
Freemasonry's Relationship with Catholicism	505
The Spiritual Temple	505
The Bible	505
Hidden secrets	506
Opportunity	509
The Fourth Era of Freemasonry	510
Yes, butters	510
Conclusion	512
References