Now let’s move on to some issues and Freemasons have long been seen by many as a secret society and they’ve also been the subject of many conspiracy theories around the world on the activities but some people even reading meanings into your signs and symbols and
Well yeah rituals if I can call it and some Freemason say those negative views about the activities are largely because they’ve not been open about what they stand for they are something you know to force a to the second and former president journey to conquer for I build
To be present for the book launch of a book titled the Freemasons of the British Council later today and join his Maxwell Papa had a rare access of the Freemasons Hall here in Accra where he has been interacting with the author of the book Abraham you see the bases were
Responsible for building all these big cathedrals and castles and rules and everything including the white White House of America was built my business so in order to spread the needed discipline they needed people to trust each other they needed people to be honest and they needed people to be
Qualified to perform tasks and therefore they decided that they will utilize the principles of the building trades enhance the basis to expand upon a philosophy of life that could be seen to be a way of life one of clean three messages you can be a
Muslim you can be a Hindu you can be a Buddhist you can be a Pharisee you can be a Christian and we have various denominations of Christianity that is not what Freemasonry consensus about three messages we are the children of God under the fatherhood of mine and
For as long as you believe in God you believe in your Becca your religion could be what you want that’s your private matter three machine does not offer a way to heaven we don’t promise heaven we don’t proselytize we have no doctrine ours is that men should learn to live together
In peace and harmony so that they can develop their inner potential and improve towards making this place a better place what are you a Catholic whatever it is it’s a private matter Freemasonry does not interfere but no one can ever be made a freemason who does not believe in God and who should
Not make a public pronouncement of it you must believe in God because before anybody can ever become it with Freemasonry we would ask you in our cases of difficulty and danger in whom do you put your trust and if you can your trust is not in God that will be
The end of any dealings between Felicia menu you can never become a freemason unless you believe in God whatever your religion is private you with the mission does not interfere but Freemasonry especially to continue to be a good member of your church and work believe ask the church or the mosque or the
Religion teaches you we don’t interfere those things we teach there is nothing in it incompatible with anyone’s religion affiliation it is not incompatible with your political affiliation now that is it incompatible with Civic moral or social duties so anyone can become a freemason as long as he professes
And says publicly and knows God is the architect and the giver of all good things without him nothing has happened for example I have heard from some people in there there’s a one one of the members there they were able to raise the person and they will ask him what
Happened to him who killed him so that you can show the person or all kinds of things all these are not true even playing criminals who want to do people will do anything and say we are lost people so the word large people have been used purely in its negative
Sense to represent all manner of wrongdoings that is try today and we had made part of the four towers we didn’t talk to people about what we do this is the reason why I’ve written this book three hundred years ago when modern Freemasonry as we know it came into
Being our forefathers they never usually will talk to those who are not religious about a profitable opportunity even here in Ghana as I was growing up you will find that our old men in a village a signal in the communities they will talk to their families about Freemasonry they
Will talk to their children and therefore they applied a certain aura of mysticism around them somehow the old people enjoyed it it made him feel very important where I’m standing is called the Western masters share one will meet the first portion of our meetings may be described as business meeting like any
Other organization who this is the place where the chairman of the managing director or in our case the master of the Lord’s who’s in charge of the Lord when we are in session this is where he sits so the first part is to talk about normal things minutes of
Reversibility deliberations on the minis and matters that are meant to be discussed and a few other what you may call administrative or regular affairs of the Lord we see and for us this is excellent training ground management training for our members in for some this is only place where they may have
Actually received sound business and management training then after the first portion of the meeting then the second portion then details the business of the day why we have come to meet for that day when we talk about how a man is born and if the responsibilities that was sadly
His responsibility to his suffering of his native land the responsibilities to his family the responsibilities to his children the responsibilities to the society in which lives and how they can contribute its own quota towards making the nation the community the family and how it can also improve upon himself one
Man at the time meets people on the street a lot of things I don’t want to object yeah you know yeah yeah I’m sure you want to share some of those perceptions first I’d like to say that I am the first in my family to be a member of the
Free Masons fraternity my laid-back sister was a member of the Odd Fellows we have common ideals but we do things slightly differently so I didn’t know anything about it probably at some point in time I also had misgivings about what people who appeared to be meeting in
Private and hidden chambers do but I was meant to join so as much as I try to keep away I was found out and brought in and when I got in I began to understand what masonry is about and it’s been since 1976 that have been in a craft for
Some time after being a public servant we were told during the revolution of the young soldiers that we shouldn’t belong to the order so I stayed away for some time but the edge was so I came back I think about 1987 I returned and I’ve been very active in a crowd so
Understand those who say that the craft is made up of people who against Christ or against true religion do so out of ignorance they haven’t been tried to get some of our people to join so they could report back it is just right ourselves I
Think it’s a pity because a crowd as we call it means much better than they ascribe to us so how do you feel when here are some of those negative having is a pity like I’ve said I feel a sense of pity for those who accuse us from the position of
Ignorance they don’t even know what we are doing and they conclude that they might be evil why must they be evil because they meet behind closed doors they must be evil because they don’t allow women to join they must be evil because they don’t allow any every time
They can heritage or they haven’t bothered to find out why we make sure that those who join have certain qualifications why don’t you love women to join sure a lot of people I must say that we are not the only group that says it’s a men’s club
Perhaps we are different in the sense that people think that we are behaving as if we were doing a religion and you know women like religion very much so if there was something good that we’re doing they also want to be a part historically we’ve tried to do it
Without women and you know why certain institutions were run by men without a woman for at the moment some countries including England as making it possible are making possible for women who are interested in our teachings to form their own lodges we help them the instructions that we give to our men
Fold we are willing to give to the women that they should do it again the things that we do in masonry Cannot be described as religion but at best we are religious you think because in the past you’ve not been able to if always maintained some formula we’ve got really done an open door policy sort of allowing people is coming soon to them so that’s why some of this perception is continued to
Fester we historically the coming into being or grand lodges was was the effort of some individuals in society where place who didn’t like the cheating that were going on slavery and people being kept subjugated and and and they own inequality in life so the essence of the
Trap was a try and being some equality among men to remove religious hatred really religious fanaticism and and bring us on to a common human approach to life and so if you want to do that then you do not just bring anybody you select the people who have what it takes
To be leaders to influence society to what good nature place to do good things you are not bringing people in because they want to come and see somebody they look up to as a big man so they can go and rub shoulders and start asking for favors that that’s what we’re doing we
Want people who have what it takes to help society at large to influence people’s behavior towards goodness so we look carefully at who we might great finally the message to to the people out there to the working Freemasonry has been here with us for many years in its organized form
Structured as grand lodges has been here for 300 years from that time to today we’ve had we’ve had our ups and downs people have come they have enjoyed what we do and they really taking part along the line they do have social problems here they’re scioscia polls here in
There and some would say right I don’t miss me because I thought I would see something perhaps some thought it’s a magical society where you join and we we give the word and we become rich overnight and some people since president Kapoor was announced at having
Become a senior warden of Grand Lodge of England have knocked at our doors wanting to become a bit how they think like Sakawa as soon as we become amazing yeah we become rich this is not it so they should come because we want to take them from their
Natural habitat in the society and try and polish them some more
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