Ask ten people what Freemasonry is and you will get ten different answers, most of them wrong in interesting ways. The honest answer is simpler than the folklore: Freemasonry is one of the world’s oldest social and charitable organisations—a society of men who meet as equals, try to live by a shared set of moral principles, raise a great deal of money for good causes, and enjoy one another’s company while doing it. This page explains what that means in practice, where the order came from, and what it is not.
A society of friends, built on three principles
At its heart a Masonic lodge is a group of men—of every age, trade, faith and background—who meet a few times a year for a formal meeting followed by dinner. The ceremonies use the customs and tools of the medieval stonemason as allegories: the square to teach honesty in one’s dealings, the compasses to teach self-restraint. Beneath the ritual, the whole enterprise rests on three principles that have not changed in three centuries:
Brotherly Love
Tolerance and respect for the opinions of others, and kindness to all—meeting men of every background as equals.
Relief
Practical charity: giving both money and time, to Masonic and non-Masonic causes alike.
Truth
High moral standards in public and private life—striving to be a man of honesty and integrity.
Charity is not a footnote to this. Through the Masonic Charitable Foundation, one of the largest grant-making charities in England and Wales, Freemasons have given around £50 million to local and national good causes since 2016—and at lodge level the giving is constant, local and usually rather more fun: our own Lodge has raised money with casino nights, clay shoots and, once, a walk across hot coals.
Where it came from
Freemasonry grew out of the guilds of working stonemasons who built the medieval cathedrals and castles, and whose lodges gradually began admitting men who were not masons by trade. Its organised, modern form dates from 24 June 1717, when four London lodges met at the Goose and Gridiron alehouse near St Paul’s and formed the first Grand Lodge in the world. In 1813 two rival English Grand Lodges united to form the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE), which governs the Craft in England and Wales to this day.
Today UGLE has over 200,000 members meeting in more than 6,800 lodges, organised into Provinces that follow the historic county boundaries. Wythall Lodge No. 5665, consecrated in 1937, is one of them—a lodge of the Province of Worcestershire meeting at Knowle Masonic Centre near Solihull, with members from Birmingham, Solihull and north Worcestershire.
What happens at a lodge meeting
Less than you might imagine, and more enjoyably. A meeting has two parts. The first is ordinary business, conducted with a certain formality: minutes, accounts, ballots for new members, arrangements for charity. The second is ceremonial—the ritual dramas by which the order teaches its principles, learned by heart and performed by the members themselves. A man joining Freemasonry passes through three such ceremonies, called degrees, over a period of months.
Then comes the part every Mason will tell you about: the festive board, the dinner that follows the meeting, with its toasts, its speeches and its laughter. Many members would say, only half-joking, that the meeting is the price of admission to the dinner.
What Freemasonry is not
It is not a religion. Freemasonry asks its members to profess a belief in a Supreme Being, but it offers no doctrine, no worship and no path to salvation, and it is open to men of every faith. The discussion of religion at lodge meetings is forbidden.
It is not political. The discussion of politics is forbidden at meetings for the same reason—which is one reason men of very different convictions have remained friends within it for three hundred years.
It is not a secret society. It is better described as a society with a few secrets—the traditional modes of recognition used in ceremony. Its rules and constitutions are published, its halls are listed in the telephone book, and its members are free to say they are Freemasons. This website is, after all, not much of a secret.
You do not need to be invited. The idea that one must wait to be asked is a relic of an older etiquette. Today the order welcomes enquiries, and the first move belongs to anyone curious enough to make it—our guide to becoming a Freemason explains exactly how.
It is not only for men everywhere. Freemasonry under UGLE is for men, but two long-established Grand Lodges—the Order of Women Freemasons and the Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons—offer women the same ceremonies and the same fellowship.
Questions often asked
What is Freemasonry in simple terms?
A social and charitable society of men who meet as equals, learn a shared set of moral principles through traditional ceremonies, raise money for good causes, and dine together afterwards. Beneath the ritual it is, quite simply, a society of friends.
Is Freemasonry a religion?
No. Freemasonry requires a belief in a Supreme Being but offers no doctrine or worship and is open to men of all faiths. The discussion of religion and politics at lodge meetings is forbidden.
Is Freemasonry a secret society?
No—it is a society with a few traditional secrets, used only in its ceremonies. Its constitutions are published, its meeting places are public, and members are free to say they are Freemasons.
How old is Freemasonry?
The first Grand Lodge was formed in London on 24 June 1717, and the United Grand Lodge of England followed in 1813. The order’s roots go back further still, to the lodges of the medieval stonemasons.
Curious to learn more?
If this has answered the question and raised a better one—could this be for me?—our guide to becoming a Freemason in Birmingham & Solihull sets out who can join and how, and the Secretary is always glad to hear from you.
See also: Freemasons in Birmingham · Freemasons in Solihull · Freemasons at Knowle