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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 exposs. 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.