Secret societies: Part 2
Introduction
In this article we will consider some of the more important secret societies.
Knights Templar
The order of the Knights Templars was established in Jerusalem in 1118 AD. Their mission was to protect pilgrims en route to the Holy Land during the Crusades. Baldwin II, King of Jerusalem, gave them quarters in his palace, built on the site of Solomon’s Temple, hence the name, ‘Knights of the Temple.’
Pilgrims donated funds which the Knights looked after and this developed into one of the first banking systems in Europe. They established offices in every Christian country and gained wealth and favour from many European rulers. By 1170 the order had around 10,000 adherents including 1000 brother knights. In England, the Master of the Temple was the first baron of the realm and in the 13th century it was Master William Marshall who ruled the country as regent for the young King Henry III.
The headquarters moved to Acre when Saladin took Jerusalem in 1187, then to Cyprus in 1291 when Acre fell to the Muslims. By then they were so rich they had become the bankers of Europe and their watchword was to become wealthy in order to buy the world. The order was suppressed as heresy by papal decree and a number of Templars were arrested, tortured and executed. While officially they existed for less than 200 years, their influence afterwards was long and involved.
Many questions have arisen regarding the true motives of the Templars. Some think their headquarters on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem gave them access to the underground ruins and possible treasures of Solomon's Temple. Others believe they excavated and found lost scrolls - perhaps Gnostic gospels calling into question the biblical account of Jesus' life and ministry.
The Knights Templar were strongly influenced by the Gnostics and the Assassins (a ruthless Arabic military order). We know the Assassins joined forces with the Crusaders, including the Templars, for an unsuccessful assault on Damascus. It's possible that they swapped Gnostic teachings, occult mysteries and ancient secrets whilst collaborating on such missions.
Gary H Kah author of 'En Route to Global Occupation' and 'The New World Religion,' says they represented the first wide-scale attempt to organise and mobilise forces of occultism for the purpose of gaining control of the world. Occult historian Edith Starr Miller summarises them thus:
Having embraced Gnosticism while in Palestine, and in touch with the sect of the Assassins, the Templar order degenerated, and some of its members, under the influence of that sect, were said to practise Phallicism or sex-worship and Satanism and to venerate ‘The Baphomet’, the idol of the Luciferians. The crime of sodomy was a rite of Templar initiation.
While ostensibly ‘Christian,' they secretly worshipped the adversary they appeared to hate. In the 1300’s many were martyred or incarcerated, and much of their wealth was confiscated, though their influence continued and they operated covertly from then on.
Many Masonic societies claim decent from the Templars. It is said that from the influence of the Knights Templar, modern Freemasonry grew. Legend has it that those Templars who survived persecution escaped with the mysterious treasure they had procured. They travelled via La Rochelle to Scotland, which was free of papal authority at the time. Prominent amongst the ranks of Scottish Templars were the Sinclair family who it is said maintained the secret traditions for more than a century until William Sinclair supposedly founded the Freemasons to continue the mysterious work of the Templars.
Rosslyn Chapel
William Sinclair built the enigmatic Rosslyn Chapel in 1446 which both encoded the secrets of Masonry and some would say recorded evidence that his ancestor, Templar Henry Sinclair, had used their secret seafaring knowledge to navigate across the Atlantic to America before Columbus. His possible aim was to hide the Templar treasure there; the mysterious Oak Island Money Pit in Nova Scotia is one possible suggested hiding place. Whilst hard evidence for this is flimsy, in the chapel there is carved Indian Corn (never grown here). It predates 1492 when Columbus went to the New World. There are also cacti and trefoil motives, both New World plants. It took 50 years to build the chapel.
It's possible the Knights Templar went to the New World and passed on information to Columbus. He used the Knights Templar cross on the sails of his ships and his wife came from a Knights Templar family. In addition, there is some evidence to show that the Druids were in the New World centuries before Columbus, e.g. in Vermont and New Hampshire.
Rosslyn Chapel gives a key to understanding the relationship between the Knights Templar, Freemasonry and paganism. It was believed that the blending of religions may have been a way of avoiding wars. The Freemasons who built the chapel put in pagan and Freemasonry elements along with Christian symbols.
Stories and slanders about the Templars abounded, fuelled by confessions under torture. We do know, however, that unlike the Freemasons, ranking in the Templars was dependent on rank in the wider world; only nobles could become brother knights. They were governed by their monastic rule, based on the Cistercian order, and each region had its own Master or Commander. All members had to give up all their possessions to the order. It's commonly believed that they worshipped a demon named Baphomet, depicted as an idolatrous head.
Legends of perpetuation
Knights Templar has survived in some form up to the present. For example, the Ordo Supremus Miltaris Templi Hierosolymitani (Sovereign Military Order of the Temple of Jerusalem or OSMTH) claims to have official recognition by the UN and to have members from over 40 nations. There is little or no evidence that the new forms of Templar are directly physically linked to the original order and the legends making such links are known as legends of perpetuation. For example, Andrew Ramsay, an 18th century Jacobite, saw Freemasonry as a tool for gaining support for a Jacobite rebellion. He claimed that Freemasonry was a continuation of the chivalry associated with the knightly orders of the Crusades. Partly because of this, one of the higher degrees in Freemasonry was named Knight of the Temple.
More recently there have been occult Neo-Templar groups, such as the Ordo Novi Templi (Order of the New Temple or ONT), a proto-Nazi group founded in 1903 which helped shape Nazi ideology. Conversely, the Ordo Templi Orientis (Order of Oriental Templars, or OTO) was established in 1906 to practise a system of sex magic. The OTO was strongly influenced by Alesteir Crowley. Currently, Knights Templar is a name associated with many aspects of New Age, occult, esoteric and alternative beliefs. Here at Christian Spectrum we believe that the demonic spirit behind the original Templars is still active. It manifests itself in the neo-Templar organisations and is still rampant today.
The Rosicrucians
The Knights Templar also either founded or merged with an existing secret order in the early 1300’s, the Order of the Rose-Croix, or Rosicrucians. Rosicrucians had as their goal to establish a society wholly given over to esoteric goals.
It holds a doctrine of theology built on esoteric truths of the ancient past which concealed from the average man, provide insight into nature, the physical universe and the spiritual realm. Rosicrucians trace their religion back to ancient Egypt.
Rosicrucianism is based on the Rose and the Cross with roots going back through other secret societies. All of them have the Rose as the symbol of secrecy. 'Sub-Rosa' means under the rose, or secrecy. The roses connotation of secrecy dates back to Greek mythology. In the Middle Ages a rose suspended from the ceiling of a council chamber similarly pledged all those present (under the rose) to secrecy.
The rose was the emblem of the god Horus in Egypt. Later the Greeks and Romans translated the god's Egyptian name to Harpocrates (the god of science). The cross indicates Christianity. There is therefore a fusion and confusion of different religions, particularly Persian and Eastern religions with Christianity.
In the 1600’s, the Rosicrucians lifted their heads ‘above the parapet’ to see how the public would respond to their occult philosophies. To win public support they devised an allegory about a mythical character, Christian Rosenkreuz, which traced the history of the Templars. Support was forthcoming, but they chose to wait another century before publicly enlisting initiates. They were the first of the secret societies to establish a beach head in America.
The rise of Freemasonry
Freemasonry, also known as the Masons and the Craft, is a major historical movement which many believe has roots stretching back to Babylon. It is claimed to be a fraternal order dedicated to spiritual and moral improvement and self-exploration, fostering brotherly love and philanthropy. Freemasons are widely known for their social and charity work and at one level they appear to be just another secret society, with a number of strange practices.
Current Masons are quick to deny any higher religious aims; emphasising the social advantages of Lodge membership and claiming that Freemasonry is no more than an international secret society based on good works. Former Masons and those who have carried out research into Freemasonry however, tell a different story.
It is clearly mystical and esoteric in nature and all its members have to believe in a supreme being or divine principle of some sort (Supreme Architect of the Universe). It is deist at heart believing that all religions express the same truth. It has millions of members worldwide.
Here at Christian Spectrum we believe that Freemasonry is Luciferian in nature and a significant player in the implementation of the coming economic. political and religious New World Order.
Origins of Freemasonry
The history of Freemasonry is the history of secret societies, which in turn is the history of organised occultism, particularly in the West. Albert Pike, leading Freemason from 1859-1891, in his Freemasonry manual usually referred to as ‘Morals and Dogma,' traces the origins back to ancient Babylon. He said:
By whatever name it was known in this or the other country, Masonry existed as it now exists, the same in spirit and at heart . . . before even the first colonies emigrated into Southern India, Persia, and Egypt, from the cradle of the human race . . . We reproduce the speculations of the Philosophers, the Kabbalists, the Mystagogues and the Gnostics.
Libraries of books on the origins of Freemasonry are housed in London, Iowa and Washington DC. It seems that the history of the occult was documented by ancient priests, who passed it on by word of mouth, then later, in manuscript form. The Greek and Roman philosophers may have been responsible for recording it, after which it was handed down via occult priests through the generations.
Thus occult priests in the West were forced underground in order to keep their secrets and rituals alive. The secret societies in the West have been purveyors of these, since they are a continuation of ancient occult priesthoods.
Following the example of the Templars, European occultists decided to keep a benevolent public image while undertaking occult activities secretly. They merged with and controlled the stone mason guilds of Europe, adopting much of the symbolism of the stone mason trade. Operative masons were employed in the trade; speculative masons took over the guilds in order to progress their New World agenda. It may well be that the stone mason trade was chosen for this because the Knights Templar were great builders of castles and monuments.
Within decades the operative masons had been taken over completely by the esoteric speculative masons, and in 1717 the world’s first Grand Lodge was established in London. The Rosicrucians were engulfed in the structure and hierarchy of Freemasonry. A century later, they had a good public reputation and it seemed a good time to put in place the hierarchy required to implement the Luciferian agenda of a New World Order. For this, a new ultra-secret society from within Freemasonry was required.
The Illuminati
In 1798, historian John Robison wrote of the Illuminati:
The express aim of the Order was to abolish Christianity, and overturn all civil government.
The order had Lodges in many European nations by 1782 and in the same year it was recognised amongst Europe’s occultists that it was the undisputed leader of the occult one-world movement. Weishaupt, the founder of the Illuminati, forged a deal with the growing Rothschild banking empire, thus financing the Order’s ambitions. Freemasons soon had the banking pre-eminence of their predecessors, the Templars, and the Illuminati grew, attracting royals, nobles and Jesuits across Europe. Under cover of pursuing worldwide Christian unity, the new world order plan progressed very fast in the guise of the Illuminati. After its exposure and official demise, the Grand Orient Lodge of France and the Masonic leaders of Italy and the US carried the burden.
Freemasonry in the US
By the late 1700’s, Freemasonry and the Illuminati had a strong foothold in the US. The first Supreme Council of Scottish Rite Freemasonry was established in Charlestown, South Carolina in 1801. It was later relocated in Washington DC and is today the Mother Supreme Council of the World. As the US grew as a world power, the focus of the New World Order proponents moved from Europe to America.
Masonically inspired religious cults flourished during the 19th century, for example, the Theosophical Society, Christian Science and Unitarianism, Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Mormon Church. The two prominent early leaders of the Mormons, Joseph Smith and Brigham Young were both significant Freemasons.
The New Super-Rite
With Freemasonry making an impact in US politics and economics, and growing rapidly all the time, it was becoming unwieldy. So a new ultra-secret governing body was established in 1870 – the first major restructure of illumined Freemasonry, devised by Albert Pike.
Pike, an orator and literary genius, wrote the ‘Scottish Rite Bible’ – ‘Morals and Dogmas of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry.’ He linked with Mazzini, an Italian revolutionary leader and worldwide director of illumined Freemasonry to create ‘The New and Reformed Palladian Rite.' Historian Edith Starr Miller, mentioned above, describes it as neo-Gnosticism:
Teaching that the divinity is dual and that Lucifer is the equal of Adonay (Occult Theocrasy)
The centres for this new super-rite were located in Charlestown, Rome and Berlin. Pike and Mazzini also established four Grand Central Directories in order to accumulate material crucial to political and propaganda efforts. These were located in North America (Washington), South America (Montevideo), Europe (Naples) and Oceania (Calcutta).
The New Atlantis
Pike’s efforts resulted in the New World Order plans being well and truly laid. World power was shifting from France and Europe to the US by the 1880’s and the US was increasingly seen by New Agers as the power that would usher in the ‘New Atlantis.' According to occultists, the world before the Flood had become unified under a system of government based on ten regions. The global civilisation was known as Atlantis and was the most advanced occult society ever.
The Scottish Rite and the York Rite
Once a person becomes a third degree Mason, he may advance in one of two directions. The Scottish Rite, the more powerful, has 29 more degrees. The final, 33rd degree, has to be bestowed not earned; in this way the inner circle is restricted to those chosen by the Supreme Council.
The York Rite has ten more degrees, the final one being that of Knight Templar. On reaching this level in the York Rite, or the 32nd degree in the Scottish Rite, members have the option of joining the Shrine, known as The Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.
There are many groups affiliated to Freemasonry, including the Grotto (formerly The Mystic Order of the Veiled Prophets of the Enchanted Realm) and the Tall Cedars of Lebanon. Womens’ groups include the Order of the Eastern Star, the Order of the Amaranth, and the Order of the True Kindred. Boys can join the Order of DeMolay (a notorious Knight Templar) and the Order of Builders. Girls can join the Order of Job’s Daughters and the Order of Rainbow. Many, if not most, secret societies worldwide claim that Freemasonry is the mother organisation from which their rituals and beliefs have emanated.
Freemasonry is a doctrine of universalism, pushing to eradicate biblical Christianity with its unique claims. Throughout history man has pushed for a universal religion.
More to come . . .
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Impact of Freemasonry
Introduction
There are indications of Masonic influence in towns and cities across the UK, and Masonic symbolism can be found, sadly, in many church establishments.
Why is an understanding of Freemasonry important?
Here at Christian Spectrum we believe that opening oneself to demonic spiritual influences not only affects one’s own life adversely, but also impacts relatives, family lines, communities and nations. Since the Lord began to show us the destructive effects of the demonic spiritual power behind Freemasonry many of us have experienced freedom for ourselves and our families through prayer and spiritual warfare. We’ve also undertaken prayer trips to pray for freedom through Jesus Christ in buildings and towns where Freemasonry has a significant influence.
Because of the secrecy surrounding it, the way Freemasonry can affect individuals and families comes by concerted prayer, revelation and words of knowledge. For example, one of the negative effects we've recognised is infertility in families and infant mortality. A good friend of ours who had a powerful anointing to set people free from Masonic influences throughout his lifetime testified to praying for people who were aware that there was Freemasonry in their family, and for wives of Freemasons who were unable to conceive. After releasing prayer, the majority of these fell pregnant within months.
Spiritual mapping in Harlow, Essex
Harlow New Town was designed by a Master Mason, Sir Frank Gibberd in 1947 to house 80,000 people, mostly Londoners. We undertook a research and prayer trip to the town some time ago, which revealed that a cult statue of Minerva survives (on display in the local museum) which was found at the site of the local Roman Temple, indicating that Minerva was worshipped there. Curses and prayers to Mercury and Bacchus were also left on the site.
We also gleaned that the town was laid out as a Masonic grid, with buildings displaying Freemasonry symbols at strategic points. In the 1940’s, John Fisher, a local Anglican minister and Freemason, was enthusiastic about the planned New Town and hoped his church, together with several new ones, would play an important part in its development. Addressing a congregation of fifty Freemasons in 1948 he urged them to contribute to a fund for building new churches in the town and the bombed areas in Essex. He concluded:
The matter is urgent. For a whole mile around this church at present there are open fields and woods but in a few short years there will be thousands of people. A great population will be growing up around it. We want them to learn the value of those great guiding principles which are dear to the heart of Freemasons.
The church where his address took place became redundant in 1983 and by 1989 it was part of the Harlow Visitors and Study Centre.
We’ve found Masonic elements in several churches in our own locality (Romford) as well as in Harlow, London, Strasbourg and elsewhere. Churchyards bear witness to frequent child deaths (over and above the average, bearing in mind the higher infant mortality in previous decades). Often the churches in areas affected by Freemasonry find it hard to evangelise and new life through conversions often fizzles. We’ve prayed and interceded in these buildings in the certain knowledge that only the saving power of Jesus can set the people free and give them the abundant life the spirit behind Freemasonry seeks to stifle and destroy.
Egyptian mythology
Whilst it appears to have become popular in London in late medieval times, the spiritual roots of Freemasonry go back much further, to the time of Solomon, and further still, to Ancient Egypt and even before that.
Isis and Osiris
We only have to look at the experiences of Christians in parts of the world where demon worship is practised, to know that demonic forces are strong and grow stronger as people .submit to them. Whilst they are nothing compared to the power of God they nevertheless exert great influence on their worshippers.
Ancient Egyptian life was dominated by idol worship and appeasing the gods, particularly Osiris, grandson of Ra or Re, who became the sun god and inherited some of Re’s characteristics such as the all-seeing eye and the secret name of god. Osiris was also the god of the underworld; his wife Isis was the moon goddess. Because the Egyptians believed in apotheosis they believed their Pharaoh became Osiris at the moment of his death.
Sun and moon worship
Whilst the names for the gods may have been different, a study of the Old Testament reveals that worship of the sun and moon was common among the nations and amongst Israel/Judah’s ungodly monarchs. For example, the sin of Manasseh, considered to be Judah’s most evil king, was to build altars to ‘all the starry host.' Archaeology reveals that in ancient sun temples the symbol of the god, an obelisk, was placed in the holiest place. The obelisk is a relic from the myths surrounding Isis and Osiris, as is the all-seeing eye, another common element in Freemasonry symbolism.
Whilst the idols themselves have no power at all, devotees fail to recognise that they are worshipping demonic powers behind the idols and that artifacts associated with idol worship can house demonic power.
Obelisks
In 1830 obelisks were taken from the sun temple in Egypt to various parts of the world. In the UK we placed ours, Cleopatra’s Needle, on the Embankment in London. Similar artifacts can be found in France, in the Vatican and in Central Park, NY. Obelisks are often an indication of Masonic influence.
The spirit behind Freemasonry
All ungodly spirits are after veneration and a throne. The demonic power in Ancient Egypt found a throne through worship of the Pharaoh. In Canaan the same spirit manifested itself as Baal, the sun god. In the Greco/Roman world, Osiris was known as Bacchus or Dionysus, whilst Isis was known as Venus. Equally, in ancient mythology, the bull represented Osiris. This goes some way to explain God’s wrath when the Israelites resorted to bull worship (the golden calf) while waiting for Moses as Mount Sinai.
Solomon and Hiram Abib
There were 60,000 Masons involved in the building of Solomon’s Temple. According to Freemasonry rhetoric, Solomon’s right-hand man was Hiram Abib, who features strongly in their writings. He, and Freemasonry ever since, was after a throne.
The legend of Hiram Abib tells that he was involved in the building of Solomon’s Temple. He knew part of the secret name of God, as did Solomon and Hiram of Tyre (mentioned in the Bible). If all three got together and pooled their information, they would know the whole name which would give the owner of the information supreme power. One day, Hiram Abib was attacked and killed. He was taken to a hill and buried. Later his grave was found and his body exhumed and resurrected so the secret would not be lost.
The spread across Europe
As the Roman Empire spread, so worship of this spirit spread. The ancient gods and goddesses may have been largely abandoned, but the cult of Mithras (a blood cult centred on sacrifice of a bull) was adopted by the Roman Army. Thus it spread across Europe to France and England, then to the USA. Later, the Knights Templar were responsible for carrying their version across Europe also. Cultic practices included building temples dedicated to Dionysus, and undergoing an initiation ceremony which included bloodletting and which symbolised death and resurrection.
Freemasonry in the UK and the US
Officially, Freemasonry started in 1717 in the UK, when a Grand Lodge was formed. Speculative Masons have nothing to do with the building of edifices, they are organised groups of people invited to be Freemasons. Speculative Masonry arrived in the US with the founding fathers.
Initiation to the Freemasons
There are 33 degrees in Freemasonry; the Third Degree is that of a Master Mason. The other degrees are not hierarchical but each reveals more secret mysteries. Initiation, in which the initiate confesses that they are seeking Light, is always by invitation and is undertaken blindfolded.
Two prerequisites
To become a Mason there are two prerequisites: the initiate must believe in a god and they must believe in death and resurrection. Beyond that, Freemasonry is tolerant of all religions. A square and compass is placed on their chosen holy scriptures on the altar. The square measures base things (representing earth and Isis); the compass measures heavenly things (representing Osiris).
The third degree
In the rituals of the Third Degree, the legend of Hiram Abib is enacted. The initiate is laid out in an East/West position in the Lodge facing the Worshipful Master, then the initiate is symbolically resurrected.
The significance of the initiation
By entering a secret society by a symbolic death and resurrection, in the spiritual realm Masons buy into the influence of the demonic spirit which fuelled worship of Pharaoh and Mithras, etc. When a Mason is ‘resurrected’ they believe they become a building block in the building the Great Architect Of The Universe (their ‘god’) is constructing. Most Masons consider their actions to be benign, but they have opened themselves up to demonic spiritual influences who are ultimately working for Satan (Lucifer) who is seeking the ultimate throne and demands to be worshipped.
Washington DC
Like Harlow on a grand scale, the city of Washington DC was designed by a Freemason, Pierre Charles L’Enfant. Indeed, the majority of US Presidents have been high ranking Freemasons. L’Enfant made the city exactly ten miles square with points at north, south, east and west. The foundation stones were placed at the points, and corn, wine and oil were placed on them. We’re told in Hosea 2:8 that corn, wine and oil were used in Canaanite Baal worship. The four-square represents eternity in Masonic symbolism, and the boundary stones, it appears, were dedicated to ancient gods. The city as a whole was dedicated to the Great Architect Of The Universe, whom Freemasons venerate.
At the centre of the square, where the axes meet, is the Washington monument, an impressive obelisk, again dedicated using corn, wine and oil. The area around the Capitol is a stylised coffin shape, making the outline identical to a 3rd degree tracing board. Within the Capitol itself is a picture of George Washington with angels, entitled ‘The Apotheosis of George Washington’. The Freemason responsible for dedicating the Washington monument believed Washington would be the centre of global government.
One World Religion
Within Freemasonry there is a ‘mystic tie’ uniting all Masons, which supersedes religion, family ties, ethnicity, etc. Because there is a network of some six million Freemasons worldwide, all of whom are people with a degree of authority in normal life, linked by the mystic tie, they are demonstrating one world religion in practice. They are giving Lucifer (whom they call The Great Architect Of The Universe) a throne.
Lucifer was close to having the ultimate throne back at the time of the Tower of Babel when man attempted to achieve equality with God. Through Freemasonry, the same spirit at work at the Tower of Babel is being released again. Lucifer still yearns for the throne which only Jesus Christ has a right to, and a global spiritual battle is waging. The outcome is not in doubt, but the lives and welfare of individuals, towns and cities, are in jeopardy while this strong demonic spirit is at work distorting and corrupting God’s good and perfect plans for them.
More to follow . .