"So, your ceremonials make no mention of God, and draw no moral lessons?"
Tell me, do you think the Boy Scouts is a religion?
It requires an oath to GOD! The teaching of Boy Scouts draws moral lessons! THE HORROR!
The masons are like the Boy Scouts, but for grown ups.
Dear MeanWestTexan,
"Tell me, do you think the Boy Scouts is a religion?"
I don't know. I was never a Boy Scout. ;-)
However, I've never asserted that Masonry IS a religion, only that its ceremonials have religious and moral content. And that the expression of that religious and moral content is done in a way not to give offense to anyone of any particular religious confession. The Church believes that this content is communicated primarily through aspects of natural revelation.
From my own reading, although the York rite (I think I'm getting that right - pun unintended) uses Christian imagery, I think it's a fair statement.
I'll invite MarkBsnr, someone who has been a Mason, to comment further.
In the meanwhile, when I've spoken with my favorite Mason about this topic, he doesn't deny that the moral lessons given by Masonry rest on natural revelation rather than Divine revelation. That's one of the strengths of the organization, in his mind, as it emphasizes what is universally held by all believers in the Deity, while ignoring the particular beliefs of different groups of believers that separate one from another.
sitetest