Hello everyone and Welcome to our program today Jews Freemasons and a 19th century debate on universality my name is Rachel King I am the executive director of The Weiner family Jewish Heritage Center at American ancestors and I will be your moderator today the Jewish Heritage Center is an archive and educational
Center dedicated to preserving the Jewish history New England connecting people to their Jewish Heritage and Illuminating the American Jewish experience for wide audiences like this one we are located in Boston at American ancestors or as some of you know it New England Historic genealogical Society which is a national Center for history
Heritage and culture today we’ll be learning about Jewish American participation in Freemasonry and a pivotal hisor iCal event that took place in Boston in the 19th century but before we get started I’d just like to make a few notes about this webinar you and the audience uh are
Muted and off camera but we’d love to hear from you uh we hope that you will type in your questions and comments into the Q&A box at the bottom of your screen uh and we will try to get to as many as we can following the presentation I also want to mention that
As we are broadcasting from different locations today we hope you will bear with us if we experience any technical difficulties um and if you miss anything on your end or on ours uh we will be sending you a link to the full recording to watch afterward so now to turn to today’s
Presentation at the Jewish Heritage Center we were first drawn to the connection between Jews and Freemasonry when we discussed overed that our archives contain certificates of masonic membership for several Jewish individuals in Greater Boston from the 19th century onward we wanted to learn more about this connection and so we are
Especially pleased to gain Insight today from Dr Peter lanti who is a foremost authority on the subject Dr lanti is a tenured assistant professor in The Institute of Art history at UTV laurand University in Budapest he earned his PhD in the department of Jewish thought at Boran
University in Israel he also studied art history and Aesthetics at Budapest University and Jewish studies at Stockholm and heidleberg universities his current research focuses on the interface between Freemasonry and cabala in 19th century vision ual material and its historical and cultural contexts he joins us today or tonight really from Budapest where it
Is actually um late this evening thank you so much for joining us Dr Peter lanti and welcome oh thank you for the invitation okay it’s uh so we start right okay uh good evening so let me uh share my screen my presentation and yes okay so here we go
Uh so I will be speaking about Jews Freemasons and the 19th century debate on universality and uh to what extent it’s connected to Boston you’re going to find out very soon so let me uh let me start with the two quotations we the undersigned Master Masons professing the Jewish religion
Respectfully petition your most worshipful body the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts to remove certain disabilities which debar US from uniting with you on the grand level of universal Fellowship and another one Jews may become Masons only that the Jewish brother must reverently bow and respond to Christian prayers he must pretend to venerate
Christian Saints and must submit patiently to be bored by the prating of worshipful Dr kwells or the Reverend brother moror moor’s dissertations about the blood of the lamb in 1851 Jacob Norton a Jewish Freemason in Boston wrote an appeal on behalf of his fellow Jewish Freemasons for a more universalistic understanding of masonic
Identity 15 years later his tone had changed and he complained that Jews were marginalized within the order by explicitly Christian prayers and lectures the difference between Norton’s two statement statements reflects both a personal story and a Comm communal one centering around a sectarian debate which concerned the meaning and of
Religion and universality within Freemasonry the debate pitted Universalist Jewish and non-jewish Brethren against Conservative Christian Masons evolving from a petition authored by Norton and signed by six Jewish Breen in 1851 it signaled the emergence of a Jewish mesonic Consciousness ultimately the Jewish press entered the debate which thereby transcended closed meic
Circles and assumed relevance for Society at large started officially in London in 1717 Freemasonry with its Universal and Cosmopolitan Outlook provided Jews one of the few and by its cultural Prestige and societal prominence the most important platforms for social relations with non-jews while in German lands especially in Prussia Jews were excluded
From Freemasonry in most of Europe and the us as well they were not discriminated against the reason for such Jewish concerns in general for us jewes key interest and involvement in masonry already from the 18th century uh is U clear for many sources in the new world
Just like in Europe mainly in England Freemasonry provided a unique opportunity for for Jews to socialize in a non-jewish environment with people from all walks of life in the hey days of American Freemasonry from the end of the Civil War until the first world war Jews joined the ranks of the fraternity
In increasing numbers Gentile clubs in the main discriminated against Jews hence Jews established not only Jewish clubs modeled on non-jewish ones but a number of masonry inspired fraternities the most most renowned renowned and successful being B Brit a test to their popularity in Jewish circles the following exerpt from a retrospect on
Jewish Boston from 1889 within a short space of time following the installation of the first B Brit Lodge in 1856 rival orders such as the three sons of Israel kesel the sons of Ben Benjamin the sons of Abraham and others made their appearance and established their lodges
Also in the city for a number of years LOD uh Lodge matters were the topic of the daily conversation among Boston Israelites and whenever an election of officers took place in any of The Lodges the members were thrown into a fever it is this significance of masonry
To Jews that induced the Jewish brethren in Boston to petish petition the Grand Lodge however even where Jews were not barred from the fraternity Jewish participation in Freemasonry did not always come without its challenges and this is where the sectarian debate starts Jacob Norton the protagonist of
Our story was born in Poland and first immigrated to England where he was initiated into jopa Lodge at London in 1839 in 18 42 he sailed to the US and settled in Boston where he established himself as a successful faer got married in 1844 and became a leading member of
The local Jewish Community he also joined one of the most prestigious and oldest Masonic Lodges of New England The Lodge of St Andrew that was charted by the Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1769 St Andrew’s Lodge had been recommended to North by Charles Whitlock Moore a prominent Masonic journalist best known for his
Freemason monthly magazine which he started in 1841 and edited until his death in 1873 Norton who was well posted in regard to the ritual of the Grand Lodge of England furnished more with more information in regards to the English ritual than he had ever obtained from
Any members of the fraternity from a WR before the two developed an intimate friendship more held rather liberal views when it came to Masonic principles for instance in a defense of masonry against the charges of SEC secrecy a central theme in the an time asonic campaign of the 1820s and 30s he pointed
Out that Freemasonry teaches no religious dogmans I quote it interferes with no man’s religious opinions sectarians have nothing to Hope and nothing to fear from it on this account end of quote the 1851 Petition of Norton was prompted by two Affairs related to mezic prayers in April 1851 the Saint Andrews
Lodge called upon those of its members who had habitually missed meetings either to attend or to resign their membership to this one Jewish Mason replied I must acknowledge that I have not taken as active a part as I would gladly have done but I did so on account of the
Sectarian expressions in your ritual which I cannot repeat consistently with my religious belief furthermore when a Jewish neopit was presented for initiation a prayer was offered by the chaplain suitable to a Christian Church a chaplain is an officer of the lodge in some meic jurisdictions to offer prayers or to read
Scripture the chaplain who brought his Pulpit into the lodge was Reverend George Maxwell Randall an Episcopalian clergyman and the director of the Church of the Messiah in Boston as a Churchman he de devotedly spread the gospel and tirelessly worked for the benevolent causes including the establishment of educational institutions as a Mason
Randall served as the chaplain of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts as well as of St Andrews Lodge and later he also served as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge Randall apparently influenced a shift away from Boston masonry masonry’s earlier Universalist Outlook in his missionary Zeal he made a practice of
Incorporating the name of Christ or Illusion to him in the prayers offered in the lodge his Christian take on masonry made its way into one of the most important Masonic monitors of the time monitors are manuals or guides to rituals developed from early Masonic catechisms this monitor was Moore’s
Masonic Trestle board that Moore was a member of randle’s church and a close friend might explain how Randall’s Christian Illusions ended up in the lodge prayer in Moore’s monitor the most not able sectarian addition to the prayer at opening the lodge was references to the Holy Spirit and th
Song in addition to the prayer issue a customary dedication of lodges uh to Saints was also contested by the Jewish Brethren the Grand Lodge referred the petition to a committee which rejected it whereon Norton and the other petitioners withdrew from St St Andrews Lodge what important factor in the case
Was that Rondo the chief transgressor in the matter complained of was the appointed chairman of the committee as someone put it in fact the lamb was sent for judgment to the wolf though the petition was made in 1851 it was not until 1855 that the public debate on sectarianism started
What made it possible for an internal Affair of a close fraternity to evolve into a public matter discussed widely in the Press was the rise of a masonic public sphere and then the joining of the Jewish press the two most influential mesonic Publications were mors already mentioned the Freemasons
Monthly magazine in Boston and another Moors Cornelius Moors Masonic review in Cincinnati established in the 1840s these two periodicals on questionably of conservative bent constituted the two pillars of mesonic Journalism in the US hence news of the northern Affair reached the Masonic public only through the filters of these two conservative
Organs both printed the commission report on the Northern petition but not the petition itself this was the State of Affairs within which the first petition was presented to the Grand Lodge in 1851 accordingly the efficacy of such an internal document in achieving the desired aim was rather limited to say
The least in Consequence the sectarian controversy was a domestic Affair confined to the fraternity and this is exactly the point where the issue of public sphere assumes significance for the public opinion to form the most important prerequisite was the emergence of the public sphere the most fundamental platform for it was
Thepress informing the public of the existence of topical issues and the presentation of opinions that is the possibility of open discussion for an informed audience was the most decisive factor in turning the sectarian issue into a poic the public sphere created a completely new reality and affected a
Change in the mentality of both Jew Jewish and non-jewish Brethren and that over the wider non-masonic audience this new reality arrived with with the appearance of the liberal voice in the public sphere the 1850s so a Spate of new Masonic Publications indeed the 1850s and 60s were the first Heyday of masonic
Journalism during these decades about 70 new Masonic periodicals emerged compared to the fewer than 20 in the previous two decades in the context of the sectarian debate the most important new mesonic periodical was The Acacia started In 1855 this Pioneer Universalist organ was a forum where the cosmopolitans could
First have their voice heard the ashler another Universalist mesonic periodical started that same year and also joined the debate its mission statement proclaiming openly its liberal stance and universally Universalist character is worth quoting here it has been our constant Endeavor from the commencement of the ashler to exert an influence
Against the introduction into the work and lectures of masonry or the practices of the lodge anything which will tend to contract our institution and deprive it of its universality the engagement of the Jewish press brought the debate to an entirely different level more specifically the entree of the Israelite
Into the exchange was a game Cher by the way Isaac mayor wise the editor of the Israelite the flagship organ of Jewish egalitarian movement in the US was himself a Freemason this was large part due to the fact that of All American Jewish periodicals the Israelite had the widest
Circulation in the seven Anabell years of its existence from 1854 to 61 the Israelite reached most of the settlement points contained in the Total distribution of subscriptions of all Jewish newspapers it was distributed in 860 of the 986 Jewish locals hence it played a major role in spreading awareness about the sectarian debate
Beyond the ranks of Freemason in fact it was the e reli that printed Norton’s petition for the first time more than four years after its submission in doing so the Israelite labeled the committee’s report a document that would that would do honor to the followers of ignasius
Loyola once the affair became a matter of public controversy more and more articles appeared on the topic and got reprinted in a growing number of periodicals these periodicals not only monitored the Masonic press but customarily for the Times also reprinted from each other articles appearing often in three four or five different journals
Like-minded organs um claimed and promoted each other for instance the Israelite wrote I quote we have many good mesonic periodicals which Advocate the true principles of masonry among which is the m mirror and Keystone an able paper edited edited by one of our cor religionists this cor religionist was
None other than Leon Heineman a prominent Freemason in Philadelphia and Masonic journalist author and editor highly acclaimed publications of heinan included the mezic library which made reprints of the fundamental works of Freemasonry readily available to any brother at an affordable price the universal Masonic record and the world’s Masonic
Register however he is mostly remembered for his weekly mesonic journal the mesonic mirror which was started at Philadelphia in 1852 and subsequently absorbed the American Keystone and continued through 1860 it was acclaimed as one of the most influential weeklys ever given to the craft the Articles were bold and
Incisive and to them is due much of the passing away of masonic Superstition the Israelite however was not always in good terms with all maic journals as was the case with the likeminded Masonic mirror and Keystone a heated debate developed between the liberal Jewish weekly and one of the
Leading Masonic journals namely the conservative Masonic review in Cincinnati which was home to both journals after the first articles on sectarianism appeared in the Israelite the Masonic review rebuked the Israelite for in interfering with Masonic matters of late the Israelite seems to have assumed the guardianship of masonry
In addition to Judaism and and has been reading the craft meaning Freemasonry some Earnest lectures upon certain improprieties which the Israelite Israel claims they have been guilty of the mesonic review also accused Jewish Brethren of wanting to compel Christians to pray like Jews a Jewish
Mason by the name dexler who is no doubt Rabbi Juda backler replied in the Israelite that I have often been surprised when visiting lodges to see how the great principles of masonry were forgotten the lodge being more like a church and I am of the opinion that
Brother Moore knows better but as most of his readers are Christians he thought to give a decis decision to please them to my Jewish Brethren of the fraternity I would suggest you should not support such a journal any longer the fight became increasingly personal and the mesonic review
Qualified vexler article too low to Merit a reply as its author is unworthy the notice of a gentleman or the regard of a Mason waxler retorted that as Moore is the editor of the meic paper he must have came to the conclusion that nobody but him knows about masonry and its
Principles and strange to say his writings show that he has not yet comprehended its first principles the universality of the order the years following the Civil War brought a new wave of liberal Masonic journals for instance the Masonic monthly and the national Freemason which magnified attention to the question of
Sectarianism significantly the former was published in Boston the stronghold of Massachusetts Mason the Cosmopolitan attitude of the Masonic monthly transpires from the words of its editor and I quote uh I quot and they also quote a bring a letter of Jacob Norton so it says brother Jacob Norton’s letter in
Our last have opened the discussion of a broad question we might have called it the Jewish question but that would have been too unwisely and unjustly discriminate where the Jews is no more concerned than the Christian the Protestant the Catholic or the members of any any of the sects of Christianity
Or the professors of any among the num numerous religions and Creeds which divide mankind the ideological stance of the post Civil War liberal Masonic periodical the national fism is well illustrated by a long imaginary court case that it ran in the 12 in installments in 1866 and 1867 essentially it was an extended
Presentation of the issues at stake in the northern Affair judging from the author’s aurbic style his fness for fictitious characters his conversance with Masonic topics and his clear interests with the sectarian question in general and the Norton case in particular the author was likely none other than Norton
Himself the title itself says it all low intell low intelligence Supreme Court of mesonic public opinion before chief justice Common Sense Jewish Brethren versus American Freemasonry the mocking and ridiculing of his adversaries in a sharp and forthright style had been uh by then became uh become the trademark of Norton’s pical Style
The peace well illustrates his predilection for nicknames too most of the jurors cons consisted of Brethren whose names are most honorably known brother Leo love brother R Leaf brother truth but I cannot help suspecting that there were at least two of them who being church members who are
Apt to be fanatically disposed I mean Brothers Faith and Hope the fictitional case cas’s illustrious Witnesses included many of those involved in the Norton case such as Moore Randall or Norton himself the Witnesses were chosen carefully so that through their testimonies not only the particularities
Of the Norton case and the issues of the sector and debate could be presented but it gave him the opportunity to Embark upon historical and theoretical foray into the main of masonic science and thus to educate his audience about the correct understanding of original masonry it is of great importance that
The whole series was reprinted both in the mesonic monthly and in the Israelite the Israelite remarked that the author of these articles perfectly coincides with us on the spirit of Freemasonry and emphatically added that the editor of the national Freemason is a liberal and Excellent Man as there is in the land
Mezic Israelites should not fail to subscribe subscribe to the National Freemason The increased interest in Masonic matters among Jews is aptly demonstrated by the fact that the sectarian debate appeared on the radar of the leading organ of American conservative jury the prestigious Jewish messenger although the we started in 57
It was not until 1866 that Masonic sectarianism appeared in its columns but what is more the Jewish messenger even launched a mesonic department a column that covered all sorts of masonic Matters from elected officers to addressing ladies and from IM memorian pieces to anecdotes as Jewish meic Consciousness
Rose Jewish Brethren were more willing to to agitate for their rights in the order the Israelite in explaining why it republished Norton’s fictitious court case from the national Freemason declared and I quote we copy these articles for Jewish Freemasons to afford them the opportunity in case of
Need to make proper use thereof in their respective lodges now let me give you a short overview of some of the main lines of Christian and Jewish arguments when it comes to large prayers the 1852 report on the Jewish petition claimed that and I quote to permit a Jew
To pray as he pleases and to compel the Christian to pray as the Jew does and only as the Jew does would be wrong and oppressive facing such accusations Jews attempted to clarify their position Vis A the prayers by providing definitions for a Christian a Hebrew and a universal
Prayer a Christian prayer besides God has references to Jesus Christ while a Hebrew prayer has only reference to God although such is based on a Hebrew Foundation yet it it has at the same time the character of a universal prayer because all Masons believe in the
Existence of a God and there is nothing which interferes with the religion of anyone concerning Lodge dedications to Saints the debates centered around the question whether the dedications were made with religious motivations in mind or were made to them as bright exemplars of all those virtues which Masons are
Thought to thought to reverence and practice theological questions also made in Rose into the debate another way of rejecting the pleas of Jew Jewish Brethren was to point out that and I quote if Mason be Universal it can only be applied to a universal religion which Judaism confessedly is
Not in contrast to Jewish particularism the Catholic nature of Christianity was accentuated Christian triumphalism was met with Jewish triumphalism which as it was argued was warranted by its pristine values on which stood Christianity a Common Thread running through the reasoning on both sides was Reliance on historical arguments which
Were to land legitimacy to the con contending parties the pair of Concepts through which mesonic historical questions were approached was the landmark and Innovation landmarks are key elements and traditional characteristics of Freemasonry accordingly what is not a landmark it is an innovation which became something equivalent of a curse
Word no official definition or list of landmarks existed and hence there was no agreement between the mean authors on the nature and content of this concept in the like manner the meaning of innovation the flip side of landmark was equally difficult to ass certain however every writer and commentator on meic
Issue issues had a great amount of confidence talking about them given the elusive nature of this Central concept landmarks were standard points of references in debates for all sides by which the validity of claims and arguments were thought to be secured historical inquiries at the end boiled down to the question of the
Origin of Freemasonry as is well known Solomon’s Temple lies at the heart of the fraternity’s own founding me the story of the construction of the temple was fundamental to the mesonic tradition from its earliest years the temple itself its stones and the working tools of the Masons all have multifaceted
Symbolical meanings in masonry and symbolical and allegorical references to them are prevalent equally in the oral and written Traditions the rituals and the entire material culture of Freemasonry in the architecture Lodge Furnishing regalia visual material and so on this solomonic Heritage CED as history was an important asset in the
Hands of Jewish bretan in proving the Jewish origin of Freemasonry and hence in discredit in the authenticity and legitimacy of Christian Illusions in masonry the question of the Jewish origin of masonry was customarily addressed by the Christian poist by going around the problem with the help of a classic theological argument namely
That every reference to the temple or Judaism is merely symbolical Jewish Brethren thought otherwise for instance the Israelite declared in a in an assertive manner that masonry is a Jewish institution whose history degrees charges passwords and explanations are Jewish from the beginning to the end it is impossible to
Be well posted in masonry without having a Jewish teacher or as a Jew we cannot learn anything in the lodge that we did not know before the San Francisco Hebrew dedicated a three-part article to the subject asserting that Freemasonry was instituted by the Jews and was and I
Quote framed shaped and modeled after the custom customs and manners of the Jewish mode of worship end of quote the auor mentioned uh Leon heinan editor of the Masonic periodical the meic miror and Keystone dedicated a whole book to the subject his origin of Freemasonry was a
177 page effort to prove the Jewish origin of the fraternity in connection to the Jewish origin of freemen narrative I want to present a tool in the hands of the Jewish Freemasons that takes us to the visual dimension of the debate and importantly it is connected to
Boston the story however began in Paris the David Rosenberg a Freemason Rabbi acquired a name for himself with his cabalistic Masonic lithographs that he made in the Paris of the July monarchy that is in the 1830s and 40s the rabbi who was born in toai the famous Hungarian wine region combined in his
Artworks Jewish and Masonic symbols in an original way in 1841 the rabbi published a grandio lithograph the the title the origin of the rights and worship of the Hebrews the print which came with a 70 page expiatory volume was conceived as a pical piece in an ongoing debate and Jewish religious reform that
Kept French jury busy in those years Rosenberg took a conservative stand in the in the debate and to bolster his position he tied the rights and worship of the Hebrews to to the Natural and supernatural phenomena with the help of cabala he argued that Jewish rights and worship existed from time immemorial and
Are engraved in nature and hence they not only should not but cannot be changed this content is presented in a carefully calculated and didactic way on the litograph the visual and conceptual foundation of the print is the a s the infinite God surrounded by the Shem the 72 hidden names of
God in the focus of the litograph we see a balcony with the view of creation the terrestrial Globe is emerging from the clouds below the cabalistic pre the planets and the Zodiac shed light on the celestial sphere the upper section of the table is where the correspondences between the
Heavenly order in nature and Judaism is summarized we see four concentric semicircles spanning across the facade dedicated to four themes the letters of the Hebrew alphabet the elements planets and the Zodiac the days of the week and the month and the fourth considers the parts of the human
Body their harmony with the celestial sphere is demonstrated by the division of the semicircles into three cross-sections correlating to the numbers 3 7 and 12 these numbers bring to light the core correlations that hold the Divine and the mundane worlds together as revealed in the an ancient Jewish book important for
Cabalists that explains how God created the world with the 10 numbers and the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet the entire text of the is inscribed into the 12 frames on the Lal transforming it thereby into a connecting element between the universal Heavenly order in our created World The Narrative scenes provide
Further confirmation to the overall organizing principle we see the Passover dinner on the right on the other side sukot in the door right corner the marriage ceremony and on the opposite side religious articles filin talit and sit although there is nothing explicitly Masonic on the lithograph or in the explication
Rosenberg 70 page booklet that Rosenberg wrote uh Rosenberg did provide a meic interpretation of this artwork in 1842 he published a supplementary explication to his lithograph in London in the Freemason quarterly review it came with the title explanation of an engraving on the origin of the Jewish religion as
Connected with the mysteries of Freemason here the rabbi spelled out at length just how the print in general and its cabalistic content and the Jewish rituals in particular are actually the allegorical depictions of the Masonic symbols and degrees and the ceremonies held by the Masons the litograph and its Masonic
Explication reached Boston already in the same year 1842 it was there that a Jewish minister at the ohab Shalom Synagogue Max wolf obtained an impression of the logra which attracted General attention and therefore he republished the work in 1859 in New York accompanied by the explicatory booklet in his English translation
The artwork was relog graphed by none other than Julius ban the renowned cartographer and log grapher who is remembered not only for his countless Maps but also for his chromal lographic edition of O banss birds of America he was also the long ascending president of play Brit and his first
Historian the American Edition had a double life as well besides being a popularizer of Judaism by offering a panoramic view of Jewish rights and worship it had a mesonic career as well it was advertised in hinman’s Masonic mirror and Keystone was sold in a as a masonic work in mesonic retail shops was
On display in the Grand Lodge of New York and mesonic lectures were delivered on it among others by Thomas Star King the Universalist and Unitarian Minister and Os Church wheeler the father of Baptist Church in California the lithograph was quickly mobilized mobilized to serve as a justification for the Jewish origin of
Freemen narrative and with the help of the artwor the lecturers were I’m tracing uh I’m quoting tracing the origin working and symbols of masonic science to their biblical and ancient sources quote the Jewish periodical the San Francisco weekly Gleaner reported that and I quote again the expositions
Of masonic symbols of MX wolf gives to the whole sphere of Masonic emblems a deep sense and a freshness which we never thought them able to receive the intelligent Mason will by these expositions profit considerably and view masonry from a much higher standing Point than is a common among the
Craft in conclusion I would like to situate the debate in The Wider historical context which may be of particular interest to the audience the events of both US mezan history and that of reformed Judaism followed the general Trends both in time and in development the christianization of masonry corresponds in time with that
Of the Second Great Awakening likewise the quests for the de christianization of masonry coincided with the Jewish anti- missionary struggles led by Isaac mayor Vice it comes a little surprise then that the Israelite took its share in the Masonic sectarian debate illustrative of the embeddedness of the sectarian debate in
The broader historical context are the main lines of arguments in the pmic the parallel with the general narratives of Jewish Christian relations in the US are Salient on both sides masonry was pronounced to be Christian faith in the Bible and even the question of oath came
Up regularly in as in context it seemed self-evident to many that the religion in which all men agree cannot be anything else but Christianity the only religion with a Universal Character Jewish Brethren counter these claims by showing how and why Judaism was the origin of Freemasonry and hence all the
Ritual symbols and first and foremost the moral volumes of Mason were all Jewish Masonic prayers were claimed to have Hebrew Foundation and were yet Universal the noble institution of Freemasonry according to this narrative was only but one example of how the Jews contributed to the progress of civilization that is the Jew struggle
Within American Freemasonry mirrored both the contentious issues and the opposing positions that characterized the wider Jewish Christian relations in America this hid to overlook chapter of both mesonic and American Jewish history not only accentuates these historical findings but also the importance of Freemasonry to American Jews furthermore it highlights the
Central characteristic of Jewish americanism the full internalization of the democratic principles of the Republic in finishing my talk I would like to give an illustrative example for this namely a rejoiner of the Israelite to the sectarian opinion According to which Massachusetts masonry is Christian and hence it merely tolerates
Jews they tolerate the Jew we say this is false Ood we tolerate the Massachusetts episcopalians or any other sect we have the same right to speak and think of them as they do of us and treat them as they treat us hence we tolerate them there is no Toleration in the u United
States because there is no ruling Church there is a constitution made by the people and for the people hence none can say who is tolera and who tolerates we consider this a republican principle if Massachusetts Masons are at variance with Republican republicanism we would advise them to immigrate to Russia thank you very
Much thank you so much Peter um that was fascinating and Rich and um deep and answered a number of my questions um before we get to questions from the audience and as a remember um reminder to folks um please type your questions and comments into the Q&A panel at the
Bottom of your screen um I did just want to let you know about a couple of up upcoming programs with the Jewish Heritage Center um on April 1 we had a uh program about Jewish languages their commonality and diversity with Dr Sarah bu and Bor and on Sunday May May 5th we
Are uh presenting an author talk with um Elizabeth white and Joanne SLA about uh a book hot off the presses the counterfeit Countess um you can learn about these and register at Jewish Heritage center.org events I will also note for those of you in the Boston area um please save the
Date for June 18th when we honor um we have a special benefit event honoring shoe designer entrepreneur and philanthropist Stuart whitesman okay let’s turn to your questions um please submit them in the Q&A panel uh I will start uh with a comment from Annie who says thank you
Your talk is explaining how my ancestors hid their Jewish Heritage they fled Europe for Generations my male ancestors were devoted to Freemasonry over time I suspect they lost the connection this explains so very much um I did want to ask you you mentioned the the context the greater context of sort Jewish
Christian um relations conversations in this period in America uh what was going on in other parts of the world masonry Freemasonry was very strong in in Europe and in Great Britain um was any of this kind of debate around sectarianism versus univers it happening in other um in other areas or was this
Sort of a uniquely American phenomenon at this time U no it wasn’t uh This was um happening also in uh in Russia where Jews were not allowed to join the the ranks of Freemasons and there was a big protest in um reverberating throughout Europe and even reaching America so French
U Holland in the Netherlands and in also in England meic lodges were protesting and sending letters and also the American lodges were sending letters to the German lodges so that was um it was uh also I mean happening in in in Europe um when it comes to the this
Christian content of uh of prayers of or Freemasonry Freemasonry of course was a Christian phenomena so it was born in uh in England or and or Scotland and there was there were several decades earlier there were similar Trends in in England so it was de christianized and it was more un
Became more Universal especially under the u u uh the Duke of s sex the Grand Lodge of uh of uh the Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of England uh and but then there was also trends of re christianization and so these uh Trends it was fluctuating uh between these
Poles and really depending on the where we are historically in time and space and geographically you could have very different Freemason Ries in fact there is no no such thing as the Freemasonry or a Freemasonry there are many kind of Freemason Ries with many opposing Trends
In in both in in Toleration or their religious Outlook or whether they are have mystical bends or more rational so you have many kind of freem masonries thank you um we have a question here from Ben how does the fact that Massachusetts had a Grandmaster who
Was Jewish by this point in history play into the acceptance of Jewish persons by Freemasonry well in the US uh uh to the best of my knowledge there was no U Jews are not excluded from Freemasonry I mean this the whole debate grew out of the fact that actually Jews were members in
In the f eternity and but then these uh they had uh uh these Consciousness or conscious issues about uh with prayers but uh they were just in England I mean obviously Freemason arrived to the US from England and even there already in the seven uh 700 uh
1730s we know uh that Jews were members in lodges and we also know by name one Jewish Master Mason so Jews were members of the lodes in England and of course um with the military uh it it arrived to the US and then Jews also joined the ranks so uh
And especially later on in the hey days there were many Jewish um um Master Mason or even in had positions in Grand lodges and there were many many uh rabbis who were Freemasons so if I don’t know if that was exactly the question but if you can repeat I I
Hope I I answered the question I think so that that um that Jewish individuals were allowed to have leadership positions and you know this was a um a place and a segment of society where they were accepted and could play um pretty full role unlike other parts of
American society so that that did give us um oh that did answer the question um and help uh very much um I guess I’d love to ask you um you you’ve written extensively on this subject uh both Jacob Norton specifically and the larger context um and sweep of uh Freemasonry and and
Intersection with um Jews uh can you tell us a little bit about your research I’m I’m aware that you did a lot of research in um specific Masonic lodges um tell us tell us where this information lives and and how you’ve got about finding
It uh yes so my U my PhD was on that the French Hungarian Freemason this Rabbi David Rose ber and uh I was sort of following his artwork the reception history and then this uh big artwork the origin of the rights and worship of the Hebrews that I showed in the
Presentation that uh I found uh they was in the US and but it was a bit different version so there were as it was realog graphed two other scenes were at it and so there was something weird going on so I started to do research on this aspect
Or this reception history so in fact I did quite a lot of research in the US Al in San Francisco in U in Los Angeles in Washington Washington DC New York Philadelphia Boston Lexington in mesonic archives in general archives University archives Yale and Princeton and uh as I dang more and more
Into the materials it’s it’s really a wealth of uh materials uh and I started reading these hundreds of meic journals I I just uh started scanning uh articles in meing journals anything on Jews and also I then I checked the Jewish journals whether what do they have to say about Freemason
And then I I actually I wanted to write to myself a little bit of background of you know Jews and Freemasons in in in the US just as a background for this litograph and I originally I I was planning to have maybe three or four pages and uh it just kept growing and
Growing and I was already at like something like 50 or 60 pages I remember and uh so I I I just bumped upon this huge debate so the Whole New World opened up to me and it was fascinating and it’s also it was fascinating to find how this actually artwork became part of
This whole debate on Freemasonry and how it was uh used and mobilized uh by Jews who simply wanted to you know put forward their own agenda this Jewish origin of Freemasonry so it was really fascinating so this is how I uh I uh I got into this uh this question
But certainly there it could could be should be continued it’s very interesting it is very interesting and you mentioned that you you thought you’d go look in in the Jewish press or media to see if there were any mentions of Freemasonry well um from what you told
Us earlier there were many the the Jewish press uh really took this up it sounds like um so fascinating um we have a question uh from marleene um is there um actually before I get to that uh we’ll we’ll take another couple of questions um was was Freemasonry one way to be
Included in modern upper class Society um Jews did have their own groups of mutual support so why were they joining Freemasonry that’s I mean you’ve you’ve mentioned the connection but um it it you know is it is it all about sort of a place the whole point of
Uh joining Freemason especially in the 18th century was to be able to socialize with non-jews and people from all walks of life life so this uh this mingling with other uh people that’s the the really the unique thing about the Masonic Lodge was that it uh cut across
Traditional boundaries in society so an aristocrat could sit next to a cobbler a Jew next to a Christian so it was really unique and they of they called them each other Breen and so it was a it was something really unique and they were
Trying uh to um you know not only uh as they say it to make good men better so to work on their cells but also of course on society and this is the whole symbolism of um you have the rough ashler the the stone and then you you work on the stone which
Means you work on yourself and then putting these perfect ashlers together this is how you build the temple which is basically the the society itself so this was a common ground so they found in these principles the the the minimum common denominator in society so you can have
Your own views and religion and politics actually originally by the Constitution of Freemasonry religion and politics cannot be um talked about in the lodge uh of course but apparently outside it was very topical issue but anyway I mean you can you can have your own views on this uh
But there’s many things that much more that connects us and so based on this we can build a society like together so I think this was a very U it had an appeal for uh Jews but of course not only Jews and uh this was the the main reason why
Jews joined uh The Lodges in the 18th century and later on it was um it was also in in Vogue and it was uh uh it was uh really the U like little like a laboratory for Democratic ideas and uh and Republican ideas so um I’ll wrap up with one question um
I’m actually going to tag on a a quick second um question we do know that the connection between you know Jews and Freemasonry took a darker turn um a lot of conspiracy theories kind of grew up around this the Nazis um you know had a thing um against Freemasons um because of that
Connection um so marleene asks is there more or less prejudice against Freemasons today compared to you know say the 20th century uh I don’t think so it’s a quite constant so anti-masonry is a phenomenal more or less uh of the same uh more or less Ted at
The same time as Freemason a little bit after but it’s it’s constantly there uh so uh no there’s no less and then it’s going to stay with us I mean you can just if you Google Freemasonry probably most of the hits what you’re going to get is some kind of murky
Nonsensical um conspiracy theory I personally I do not uh research those I mean of course I read about them and I bump into them all the time but I’m I’m more interested in what Freemasonry was and not in what Freemasonry was not so yeah great answer
And the last very last question which I think you predicted might be asked is are you a Freemason oh no I’m not uh for a very simple reason uh I as a researcher I think it’s a bit better to keep a a little bit of distance from the you know subject of your
Research uh but that’s all otherwise I have of course nothing against Freemasonry and you know at some point in the future I might even join but for the time being I I’m still uh just a curious Outsider and historian well thank you for that thank thank you for enlightening us today um
We learned a lot from you um and we so appreciate your time and insights um we are a little bit past the hour so um I do want to thank Dr lanti um and all of you in the audience uh for joining us as you leave this program you’ll be asked
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Work I wish you a good evening and I hope you’ll join us again soon thanks so much and goodbye until next time thank you bye-bye
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