Freemasonry is Judaism for the Gentiles
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The Scandal of Kabbalah is the first book about the origins of a culture war that began in early modern Europe and continues to this day: the debate between kabbalists and their critics on the nature of Judaism and the meaning of religious tradition. From its medieval beginnings as an esoteric form of Jewish mysticism, Kabbalah spread throughout the early modern world and became a central feature of Jewish life. Scholars have long studied the revolutionary impact of Kabbalah, but, as Yaacob Dweck argues, they have misunderstood the character and timing of opposition to it.
Drawing on a range of previously unexamined sources, this book tells the story of the first criticism of Kabbalah, Ari Nohem, written by Leon Modena in Venice in 1639. In this scathing indictment of Venetian Jews who had embraced Kabbalah as an authentic form of ancient esotericism, Modena proved the recent origins of Kabbalah and sought to convince his readers to return to the spiritualized rationalism of Maimonides.
The Scandal of Kabbalah examines the hallmarks of Jewish modernity displayed by Modena's attack--a critical analysis of sacred texts, skepticism about religious truths, and self-consciousness about the past--and shows how these qualities and the later history of his polemic challenge conventional understandings of the relationship between Kabbalah and modernity. Dweck argues that Kabbalah was the subject of critical inquiry in the very period it came to dominate Jewish life rather than centuries later as most scholars have thought.
Yaacob Dweck is assistant professor of history and Judaic studies at Princeton University.
Reviews:
"In this excellent monograph, Dweck situates Modena's literary activity in the polarity between print and manuscript, paying critical attention to the reading and writing practices informing these polemics. . . . This is a meticulous work of scholarship, from its careful examination of ligatures in handwritten manuscripts to the nuanced ways in which Dweck outlines broader intellectual currents, such as early modern skepticism and the emergence of historical criticism."--Choice
"Dweck's meticulous and illuminating study has itself breathed new life into the Ari Nohem. It gives one reason to hope that it will finally become available in an English translation and that Yaacob Dweck will make the publication of such a volume one of his future projects."--Howard Tzvi Adelman, Jewish Review of Books
"Dweck is to be commended for a sophisticated and readable study that greatly enhances our knowledge of the relationship between mysticism and philosophy, and print and manuscript, in early modern Jewish culture."--Daniel Stein Kokin, Renaissance Quarterly
"The Scandal of Kabbalah is a valuable study. It situates Modena's work in a wide variety of contexts, each of which enriches and challenges our understanding of Ari Nohem. Clearly written and highly readable."--Michela Andreatta, AJS Review
Endorsements:
"The Scandal of Kabbalah is excellent. It is one of the first studies to take cutting-edge scholarship on the history of the book and apply it to a Hebrew text. Yaacob Dweck makes a serious contribution to scholarship on Leon Modena, to Jewish intellectual history of the early modern period, and to the history of the Hebrew book."--Elisheva Carlebach, Columbia University
"An extremely learned and valuable piece of scholarship."--Matt Goldish, Ohio State University
http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9572.html
Drawing on a range of previously unexamined sources, this book tells the story of the first criticism of Kabbalah, Ari Nohem, written by Leon Modena in Venice in 1639. In this scathing indictment of Venetian Jews who had embraced Kabbalah as an authentic form of ancient esotericism, Modena proved the recent origins of Kabbalah and sought to convince his readers to return to the spiritualized rationalism of Maimonides.
The Scandal of Kabbalah examines the hallmarks of Jewish modernity displayed by Modena's attack--a critical analysis of sacred texts, skepticism about religious truths, and self-consciousness about the past--and shows how these qualities and the later history of his polemic challenge conventional understandings of the relationship between Kabbalah and modernity. Dweck argues that Kabbalah was the subject of critical inquiry in the very period it came to dominate Jewish life rather than centuries later as most scholars have thought.
Yaacob Dweck is assistant professor of history and Judaic studies at Princeton University.
Reviews:
"In this excellent monograph, Dweck situates Modena's literary activity in the polarity between print and manuscript, paying critical attention to the reading and writing practices informing these polemics. . . . This is a meticulous work of scholarship, from its careful examination of ligatures in handwritten manuscripts to the nuanced ways in which Dweck outlines broader intellectual currents, such as early modern skepticism and the emergence of historical criticism."--Choice
"Dweck's meticulous and illuminating study has itself breathed new life into the Ari Nohem. It gives one reason to hope that it will finally become available in an English translation and that Yaacob Dweck will make the publication of such a volume one of his future projects."--Howard Tzvi Adelman, Jewish Review of Books
"Dweck is to be commended for a sophisticated and readable study that greatly enhances our knowledge of the relationship between mysticism and philosophy, and print and manuscript, in early modern Jewish culture."--Daniel Stein Kokin, Renaissance Quarterly
"The Scandal of Kabbalah is a valuable study. It situates Modena's work in a wide variety of contexts, each of which enriches and challenges our understanding of Ari Nohem. Clearly written and highly readable."--Michela Andreatta, AJS Review
Endorsements:
"The Scandal of Kabbalah is excellent. It is one of the first studies to take cutting-edge scholarship on the history of the book and apply it to a Hebrew text. Yaacob Dweck makes a serious contribution to scholarship on Leon Modena, to Jewish intellectual history of the early modern period, and to the history of the Hebrew book."--Elisheva Carlebach, Columbia University
"An extremely learned and valuable piece of scholarship."--Matt Goldish, Ohio State University
http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9572.html
The word Kabbalah comes from the Hebrew קַבָּלָה, meaning “to receive”. According to Ben-Yehudah’s Hebrew-English Dictionary, in context it is a received body of knowledge, passed down orally, which serves as an exegesis of the Hebrew Scriptures, particularly the Torah or Pentateuch. A direct experience of God is central to the ideas of Kabbalah.
Albert Mackey’s Encyclopedia of Freemasonry devotes almost three pages to the Kabbalah, noting “It has sometimes been used in an enlarged sense, as comprehending all the explanations, maxims, and ceremonies which have been traditionally handed down to the Jews; but in that more limited acceptation, in which it is intimately connected with the symbolic science of Freemasonry, the Cabala may be defined to be a system of philosophy which embraces certain mystical interpretations of Scripture, and metaphysical and spiritual beings.”
Johannes Buxtorf in his book titled “Lexicon Hebraicum et Chaldaicum*censored*brevi Lexico Rabbinico Philosophico”(Lexicon of the Talmud) defines the Kabbalah to be “a secret science, which treats in a mystical and enigmatical manner of things divine, angelical, theological, celestial, and metaphysical; the subjects being enveloped in striking symbols and secret modes of teaching. Much use is made of it in the advanced degrees, and entire Rites have been constructed on its principles. Hence it demands a place in any general work on Freemasonry.”
https://ehpg.wordpress.com/2008/08/08/freemasonry-is-kabbalah/
Albert Mackey’s Encyclopedia of Freemasonry devotes almost three pages to the Kabbalah, noting “It has sometimes been used in an enlarged sense, as comprehending all the explanations, maxims, and ceremonies which have been traditionally handed down to the Jews; but in that more limited acceptation, in which it is intimately connected with the symbolic science of Freemasonry, the Cabala may be defined to be a system of philosophy which embraces certain mystical interpretations of Scripture, and metaphysical and spiritual beings.”
Johannes Buxtorf in his book titled “Lexicon Hebraicum et Chaldaicum*censored*brevi Lexico Rabbinico Philosophico”(Lexicon of the Talmud) defines the Kabbalah to be “a secret science, which treats in a mystical and enigmatical manner of things divine, angelical, theological, celestial, and metaphysical; the subjects being enveloped in striking symbols and secret modes of teaching. Much use is made of it in the advanced degrees, and entire Rites have been constructed on its principles. Hence it demands a place in any general work on Freemasonry.”
https://ehpg.wordpress.com/2008/08/08/freemasonry-is-kabbalah/
Why is it bothering you? What would you have me do?
After the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem (70 CE), many Jews who relocated to Egypt were influenced by the Alexandrian Pythagoreans. Jewish leaders and intellectuals such as Artapanos, Philon the Alexandrian, the historian Josephus Flavius, the Hasmoneans, Johanan Hurcanus, Alexander Jannean, Hanoch, Hillel, Johanan ben-Zakkai, and others were central figures of this spiritual-scientific development. The esoteric Jewish theosophy, or religious mystic philosophy, developed from about this time. In the absence of a central spiritual leadership, under foreign and hostile rule, some regional Jewish schools developed into sects such as the Essenes, Nazarenes, Pharisees, and Sadducees. The Jewish Kabbalah reached its peak during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, arguably responsible for the development of both science and mysticism in Europe. In the eleventh and twelfth centuries the greatest contributions to science were made by Jewish scholars, especially in Spain. Names known from religious sources as “Rabbis” and “Kabbalists”, are known in history books of mathematics and science as outstanding inventors and developers.
A distinctly Christian Cabala may be said to have started with the work of Ramon Lull (1232-1317) during a period of religious tolerance in Spain. Starting in the late fifteenth century CE, a movement arose among some Jewish converts to Christianity in Spain to ascribe a distinctly Christian context to the hidden meanings of Kabbalistic doctrines. This movement gained momentum from speculation among Florentine Platonists that the Kabbalah contained a lost revelation that explains the secrets of the Catholic faith. This cross-pollination led to the emergence of a distinctly Christian Cabala founded by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463-1494). Pico saw in the Cabala a link to the Greek philosophers as well as a proof of the divinity of Jesus Christ. Pico’s writings, and subsequently those of John Reuchlin (1455-1522), created an interest that spread throughout the intellectual European community.
In the sixteenth century, the appearance of Kabbalistic texts in Latin translation enhanced attempts to draw further parallels between esoteric Jewish doctrines and Christianity. Guillaume Postel translated and published the Zohar and Sefer Yetzirah into Latin even before they were published in Hebrew. Latin texts in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were influential in standardizing “Cabala” as the spelling commonly associated with the Christian perspective on Kabbalistic teachings. In the seventeenth century, the centre of Christian Cabala study moved to England and Germany, where its status was boosted by the theosophical writings of Jacob Boehme and the compendium of Christian Knorr von Rosenroth. Von Rosenroth and Athanasius Kirchner extrapolated the Cabalistic allusion of Adam Kadmon to be a reference to Jesus as the primordial man in Christian theology. In the final phase in the development of the Christian Cabala in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it became permeated with alchemical symbolism and conjoined with the emerging doctrines of theosophy and rosicrucianism. Those who believe Freemasonry’s roots are found in rosicrucian and hermetic teachings will therefore see the influence of the Kabbalah in its development.
Albert Pike’s Morals and Dogma: “all the Masonic associations owe to it their Secrets and their Symbols.” and claim that Freemasonry is divided into two branches. “There is the branch of the Scottish Rite and the branch of the Shriners. Scottish Freemasonry is the Christian branch while the Shriners are actually the Islamic branch.”
The second is composed of Freemasons and kabbalists who promote the theory of Freemasonry’s link to the Kabbalah. They are entitled to their opinions, but it must be stressed that they do not speak for Freemasonry. They are only expressing their opinions. They view the study of both as enhancing their relationship with God. .
https://ehpg.wordpress.com/2008/08/08/freemasonry-is-kabbalah/
A distinctly Christian Cabala may be said to have started with the work of Ramon Lull (1232-1317) during a period of religious tolerance in Spain. Starting in the late fifteenth century CE, a movement arose among some Jewish converts to Christianity in Spain to ascribe a distinctly Christian context to the hidden meanings of Kabbalistic doctrines. This movement gained momentum from speculation among Florentine Platonists that the Kabbalah contained a lost revelation that explains the secrets of the Catholic faith. This cross-pollination led to the emergence of a distinctly Christian Cabala founded by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463-1494). Pico saw in the Cabala a link to the Greek philosophers as well as a proof of the divinity of Jesus Christ. Pico’s writings, and subsequently those of John Reuchlin (1455-1522), created an interest that spread throughout the intellectual European community.
In the sixteenth century, the appearance of Kabbalistic texts in Latin translation enhanced attempts to draw further parallels between esoteric Jewish doctrines and Christianity. Guillaume Postel translated and published the Zohar and Sefer Yetzirah into Latin even before they were published in Hebrew. Latin texts in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were influential in standardizing “Cabala” as the spelling commonly associated with the Christian perspective on Kabbalistic teachings. In the seventeenth century, the centre of Christian Cabala study moved to England and Germany, where its status was boosted by the theosophical writings of Jacob Boehme and the compendium of Christian Knorr von Rosenroth. Von Rosenroth and Athanasius Kirchner extrapolated the Cabalistic allusion of Adam Kadmon to be a reference to Jesus as the primordial man in Christian theology. In the final phase in the development of the Christian Cabala in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it became permeated with alchemical symbolism and conjoined with the emerging doctrines of theosophy and rosicrucianism. Those who believe Freemasonry’s roots are found in rosicrucian and hermetic teachings will therefore see the influence of the Kabbalah in its development.
Claims and accusations or is it reality?
Albert Pike’s Morals and Dogma: “all the Masonic associations owe to it their Secrets and their Symbols.” and claim that Freemasonry is divided into two branches. “There is the branch of the Scottish Rite and the branch of the Shriners. Scottish Freemasonry is the Christian branch while the Shriners are actually the Islamic branch.”
The second is composed of Freemasons and kabbalists who promote the theory of Freemasonry’s link to the Kabbalah. They are entitled to their opinions, but it must be stressed that they do not speak for Freemasonry. They are only expressing their opinions. They view the study of both as enhancing their relationship with God. .
https://ehpg.wordpress.com/2008/08/08/freemasonry-is-kabbalah/
I hope you can find a way to resolve your issues as for me, I'm going to continue to speak me peace whether it makes you feel uncomfortable or not.
Besides I'm putting information out to benifit others, that's why I Copy and paste & provide the links, my intentions are sincere and for the overall good for mankind. If the most high allows these seeds to blossom that I'm planting, may he be praised if not may he still be praised.
Olmert Shaking hands with Aabbas
Interesting Quotes from Kabbalah Sources
1. “… the Zohar suggests that souls are “patterned” like bodies. It says: ‘as the body is formed in this world from the combination of four elements, the spirit is formed in the garden [of Eden] from the combination of the four winds. The spirit is enveloped there in the impress of the body’s shape. If it were not for the four winds, which are the heirs of the garden, the spirit would not have been clothed (given shape) at all.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 113, brackets are in the original)
2. “…we are connected via our souls to the source of creation, and we can transform the flow of creation.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 121.)
3. “Cabalists teaches at the moon is the mystical vessel in which souls are gathered before they are released to the world. The moon in Kabbalah represents receptivity… the mystical implication is that souls are influenced by the phase of the moon when they become associated with bodies, each having different levels of expansiveness or contracted this… we would say that this describes why some of us are more extroverted while others are more introverted…”(Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 113, 128.
4. “The cabalists teach that everything we do stirs up a corresponding energy in other realms of reality. Actions, words, or thoughts set up reverberations in the universe.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 132.)
5. “In physical reality, every move we make is dependent upon electromagnetic energy. In the metaphysical realm, rather than call this energy electromagnetic, we could call it angelic- demonic. Every move they make is supported by an angel or demon. Moreover, everything we do creates new angels and demons… the metaphysical magnets associated with the God realms are called angels, and those with the satanic realms are called demons.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 134.)
6. “From noon until midnight, the sun appears to be declining, which means that the power of loving kindness is waning. When the sun reaches its lowest ebb, the time in which the energy of darkness is strongest, accusing angels have their greatest power. The Kabbalist says that this point is the darkest of the night, the moment when restriction and judgment are at their full power. If we were abandoned in the mystical midnight of creation, we would disappear.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 142.)
7. “Angelic and demonic energies are not independent and self-sufficient, but are parts of the system of the universal ebb and flow.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 143.)8. “When we call upon angels to be with us, we And two on infinite resource of goodwill. It is as if we plugged into the magnetic core of the earth to keep ourselves centered. Archangels represent the God-center of the universe they draw nourishment from Its infinite supply.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 144.)
9. “the lower, earthly human being and the upper, mystical human being, in which the Godhead is manifested as shape, belong together and are unthinkable without one another.” (secret doctrine, p. 66)
10. “This manual [of Kabbalah] will prepare one to hear the words of G-d, see authentic visions, smell the Supernal beauty, touch his/her Grace, and taste the delights of Eden.” http://home.utah.edu/~rfs4/jkm.htm
11. “As Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berdicheve said, ‘At every instant, all universes received existence and sustenance from God. It is human beings, however, who motivate this sustenance and transmit it to all worlds. When a person nullifies the sense of self completely and thereby attaches Thought to Nothingness, then a new sustenance flows to all universes.” (Cooper, David A., God is a Verb. New York, New York: Riverhead Brooks, 1997, p. 224.)
12. “our day-to-day actions, words, and thoughts continuously affect our sense of harmony with the universe.” (God is a verb, p 248)
13. “…there are five levels of the soul. The higher levels, neshama, chayah, and yehida, function in a way that they cannot be directly affected by what a person does to his or her consciousness. however, they are indirectly affected by the states of the nefesh and ruach. after death, the higher levels of the soul will return to their home “regions,” but they must await the redemption of the nefesh before finally resting in their natural state. If the nefesh does not get redeemed, the ruach cannot be “crown” in the lower Garden of Eden. (God is a verb, p. 262)
14. “The teachings of reincarnation are of value when we have nowhere else to turn in the tragedy of the death.” (God is a verb, p. 266)
https://ehpg.wordpress.com/2008/08/08/freemasonry-is-kabbalah/
14. “The teachings of reincarnation are of value when we have nowhere else to turn in the tragedy of the death.” (God is a verb, p. 266)
The Zohar
The Zohar is one of the most important texts, if not the most important in Kabbalah. The Zohar is not a single book. Instead it is allegedly a 2nd century A.D. collection of Aramaic writings from various Kabbalists that is a commentary on the Torah: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy with some commentary on the song of songs, also known as the song of Solomon. Its interpretations of the Torah are highly mystical and subjective and often in contradiction to what the Torah reveals. it seeks to explain as well as the video the relationship between God and man. But, the book is generally believed to have been authored by a 13th Century Jewish mystic named Moses De Leon (1250-1305) partly because it was never mentioned in the Talmud (a collection of commentaries used to explain the the oral law concerning the first five books of the Old Testament). Additions were added to the Zohar in the 14th century. The Zohar is also said to have special powers which followers can benefit from by running a finger over the text as if reading Braille.1 Of course, Christians reject such a claim and recognized the Zohar as a non-biblical, mystical piece of literature often in contradiction to the Bible. Please consider this quote.
“The Zohar discusses the universe, as a whole, in far broader terms than merely the physical universe. Indeed, the physical universe, as vast as it may be, is dwarfed in comparison with the mystical universe that embraces angelic and demonic realms. Whereas the physical universe is measured in time and distance, the mystical universe is measured in terms of levels of awareness. These levels should not be viewed as separate boundaries, for awareness is a continuum.”
Notice the ambiguity and non-falsifiability of a the comments. How do you verify what is said about the mystical universe? You can’t. But that doesn’t stop the Zohar from saying even more about creation.
“The Zohar says,’ to create the world, It (Ein Sof, Infinite Nothingness) emanated a secret spark (awareness) from which emerged and radiated all light. The upper world was constituted of this light. Then a [different dimension of] light, a light without brightness (lower consciousness), was fashioned into the lower world. As it is composed of unilluminated light, the lower world is attracted to the upper world.”
Its scope of teaching seems to include predictions of the coming Messiah. Apparently, the Zohar predicted the return of the Messiah in 1648 which was fulfilled in Shabbetai Zvi from Smyrna in Asia Minor. He gathered many followers, so much so that the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire thought that he must be stopped. He captured Sabbettai and subsequently He converted to Islam. like other Donma Jews (the Donma Jewish Sect:Jewish converts who pretended to be Muslims and carried Turkish names and formed the “Committee of Union and Progress ”, also known as the “Young Turks”.) later on spawned Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Founder of the Turkish Republic
Consider these representative quotes from the Zohar.
* “Zohar I 51b-52a: “the beings on high are all of the same illumination, being of celestial essence, whereas the beings below are of a different essence. They (the lower) are to this illumination (the higher) as the candle is to the flame….The light and the shadows are the only elements which form air and water…On leaving its source, the light divides into 75 channels directed toward the material world…Below these channels there are 375 trenches…These trenches are divided into 17 classes, of which each presents the shape of a chain-net…Such is the vision of this area of space which forms seven different colors. These seven colors constitute the supreme mystery…Seven other lights are divided into seven seas, which together amount to one giant sea. This last is the supreme sea where seven others are concentrated….” *
“This end of heaven is called Who. There is another below, called What. What distinguishes the two? The first, concealed one-called Who-can be questioned. Once a human being questions and searches, contemplating and knowing rung after rung to the very last rung – once one reaches there: What? What do you know? What have you contemplated? Or what have you searched? All this concealed, as before.” *
“When Concealed of all Concealed emerged on being revealed, it produced at first a single point, which ascended to become thought. within, it drew all drawings, grave to all and ravings, carving within the conceal the holy lamp a graving of one hidden design, only of holies, a deep structure emerging from fat, called Mi, Who, origin of structure. existent and nonexistent, deep and hidden, called by no name but Who. Seekng to be revealed, to be named, it garbed itself in a splendid, radiant garment and created (elleh), these. Elleh attained the name: these letters joined with those, culimnating in the name Elohim.”
The ZoharThe Zohar is one of the most important texts, if not the most important in Kabbalah. The Zohar is not a single book. Instead it is allegedly a 2nd century A.D. collection of Aramaic writings from various Kabbalists that is a commentary on the Torah: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy with some commentary on the song of songs, also known as the song of Solomon. Its interpretations of the Torah are highly mystical and subjective and often in contradiction to what the Torah reveals. it seeks to explain as well as the video the relationship between God and man. But, the book is generally believed to have been authored by a 13th Century Jewish mystic named Moses De Leon (1250-1305) partly because it was never mentioned in the Talmud (a collection of commentaries used to explain the the oral law concerning the first five books of the Old Testament). Additions were added to the Zohar in the 14th century. The Zohar is also said to have special powers which followers can benefit from by running a finger over the text as if reading Braille.1 Of course, Christians reject such a claim and recognized the Zohar as a non-biblical, mystical piece of literature often in contradiction to the Bible. Please consider this quote.
“The Zohar discusses the universe, as a whole, in far broader terms than merely the physical universe. Indeed, the physical universe, as vast as it may be, is dwarfed in comparison with the mystical universe that embraces angelic and demonic realms. Whereas the physical universe is measured in time and distance, the mystical universe is measured in terms of levels of awareness. These levels should not be viewed as separate boundaries, for awareness is a continuum.”
Notice the ambiguity and non-falsifiability of a the comments. How do you verify what is said about the mystical universe? You can’t. But that doesn’t stop the Zohar from saying even more about creation.
“The Zohar says,’ to create the world, It (Ein Sof, Infinite Nothingness) emanated a secret spark (awareness) from which emerged and radiated all light. The upper world was constituted of this light. Then a [different dimension of] light, a light without brightness (lower consciousness), was fashioned into the lower world. As it is composed of unilluminated light, the lower world is attracted to the upper world.”
Its scope of teaching seems to include predictions of the coming Messiah. Apparently, the Zohar predicted the return of the Messiah in 1648 which was fulfilled in Shabbetai Zvi from Smyrna in Asia Minor. He gathered many followers, so much so that the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire thought that he must be stopped. He captured Sabbettai and subsequently He converted to Islam. like other Donma Jews (the Donma Jewish Sect:Jewish converts who pretended to be Muslims and carried Turkish names and formed the “Committee of Union and Progress ”, also known as the “Young Turks”.) later on spawned Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Founder of the Turkish Republic
Consider these representative quotes from the Zohar.
* “Zohar I 51b-52a: “the beings on high are all of the same illumination, being of celestial essence, whereas the beings below are of a different essence. They (the lower) are to this illumination (the higher) as the candle is to the flame….The light and the shadows are the only elements which form air and water…On leaving its source, the light divides into 75 channels directed toward the material world…Below these channels there are 375 trenches…These trenches are divided into 17 classes, of which each presents the shape of a chain-net…Such is the vision of this area of space which forms seven different colors. These seven colors constitute the supreme mystery…Seven other lights are divided into seven seas, which together amount to one giant sea. This last is the supreme sea where seven others are concentrated….” *
“This end of heaven is called Who. There is another below, called What. What distinguishes the two? The first, concealed one-called Who-can be questioned. Once a human being questions and searches, contemplating and knowing rung after rung to the very last rung – once one reaches there: What? What do you know? What have you contemplated? Or what have you searched? All this concealed, as before.” *
“When Concealed of all Concealed emerged on being revealed, it produced at first a single point, which ascended to become thought. within, it drew all drawings, grave to all and ravings, carving within the conceal the holy lamp a graving of one hidden design, only of holies, a deep structure emerging from fat, called Mi, Who, origin of structure. existent and nonexistent, deep and hidden, called by no name but Who. Seekng to be revealed, to be named, it garbed itself in a splendid, radiant garment and created (elleh), these. Elleh attained the name: these letters joined with those, culimnating in the name Elohim.”
Why are they referring to the Kabah.
Dan Brown, the creator of The Da Vinci Code literary empire, has made a career out of spinning fictional tales revolving around secretive fraternal organizations. After writing about The Knights’ Templar, the Priory of Sion and the Illuminati, Brown turns his attention to the Freemasons in his latest book, The Lost Symbol. Set in Washington, DC, the novel follows Brown’s recurrent character, famed “symbologist” Robert Langdon, as dramatic events propel the Harvard professor into the enigmatic world of Freemason legend and ritual.
Freemasons, also known as Masons, have long been subjected to persecution—and linked to the Jews. Most infamously, the 20th-century anti-Semitic Russian forgery, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, claimed that Freemasons were in league with Jews in a quest for world domination. While few take these claims seriously, the secrecy of the Freemasons has fed centuries of suspicion: Are they a brotherhood of men who wear funny aprons, partake in quaint ceremonies and raise money for good causes or, as Brown suggests, an intellectual and enlightened cabal whose members extend to the upper echelons of political power?
Legend has it that their forefathers were the stonemasons of King Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem. More likely, Freemasonry evolved from a medieval trade guild of skilled stone carvers in England, Scotland and France that in the 1700s grew into a civic fraternity that met in buildings called lodges all over the world. Masonic philosophy drew on ideas from many religious traditions, and its adherents were remarkable—with the occasional exception—for welcoming members of all creeds, affording them a path of social mobility. This was the case for many Jews in Western Europe. The first Jewish Mason was recorded in England in 1732 and by 1793, an entire Jewish lodge was established in London.
Freemasonry became popular in colonial America, where the Freemasons’ self-described mission to “make good men better” resonated, and Masons played a vital role in the founding of the United States. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and other Founding Fathers were Masons, as were prominent Jewish figures such as Haym Salomon, the prime financier of the American Revolution, and merchant Moses Michael Hayes, who was the Grand Master of the lodge where Paul Revere served as Deputy Grand Master. Other notable Jewish Masons range from British philanthropist Moses Montefiore and Hungarian-born illusionist Harry Houdini to American composer Irving Berlin and Samuel Gompers, founder of the American Federation of Labor (AFL). There have been 51 Jewish Grand Masters in the United States, and Israel itself is home to 60 Masonic lodges.
Moment talks with Paul Bessel, author of Masonic Questions & Answersand a former Senior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of Washington, DC, about Jews in Freemasonry, The Lost Symbol and what he can share about the group’s secrets.—Sarah BregerWhy did Jews become Freemasons?
In the 1600s and 1700s, Jews weren’t allowed to be citizens; they were prohibited from certain occupations; they were pushed into ghettos. And yet, one institution existed that from its very beginning welcomed them. We take this for granted now but back then the idea of people of different religions working together—the fundamental principle of Freemasonry—was uncommon and revolutionary.
Do Freemasons believe in God?
Once you state that you believe in a Supreme Being or God, you are welcome in Masonry and no further questions are asked. There are a few exceptions: In France, there is one Grand Lodge that is well-known for allowing people in whether they believe in God or not.
Has Judaism influenced Freemasonry?
A lot of Masonic ritual is derived from the Jewish Bible or Old Testament. The rituals are based on the story of King Solomon’s Temple.
What elements of the initiation ritual are Jewish?
I’m not supposed to say exactly what the ritual is, but when you go through it, you feel you are at home because you are hearing stories and learning lessons from the Temple of Solomon.
Do Freemasons have one leader?
Freemasonry, like Judaism, doesn’t have one supreme authority. There is no such thing as a Pope for Freemasonry.
Can Catholics be Freemasons?
Since the early 1700s, the Catholic Church has issued successive papal bulls prohibiting Catholics from joining Freemasonry. The current Pope, when he was a cardinal, reaffirmed the decree that it is incompatible with Catholicism to be a Freemason. In reality, I know many Freemasons who are Catholics. A few Protestant sects have also formally prohibited members from becoming Freemasons.
How many Freemasons are there?
There are about three to four million worldwide, including roughly one and a half million in the United States. Freemasonry’s inclusiveness appeals to both Jews and non-Jews and you are just as likely to find an Asian or an African American in a group of Freemasons as a white Protestant.
When was the peak of contemporary Jewish involvement in Freemasonry?
Many American lodges reached their peak after World War II, which is true of Freemasonry in general. Jews who fought in the war had spent four years with men in the closest circumstances and they wanted to continue the camaraderie. Many joined when they came home. That’s when my father joined.
When did you join the Freemasons?
In 1987, on the 10th anniversary of my father’s death. A lot of men become Masons because they want to maintain a connection to a grandfather or a father.
Has the number of Jews involved in Freemasonry declined in recent years?
The issue isn’t so much Jews dropping out but that the majority of people are less likely nowadays to be joiners. But there is still large Jewish participation; probably the proportion of Jews involved in Freemasonry exceeds the proportion of Jews in the U.S. population, and this is also true in other countries.
Are women allowed to be Freemasons?
Women have been Masons ever since the beginning of Freemasonry. There is an auxiliary group called the Order of the Eastern Star that is for women. There are also women’s Masonic lodges and a few co-ed lodges. There must be, however, only a couple hundred female Freemasons. Many [male] Freemasons don’t like to think that women are performing the same rituals but that is exactly what they are doing.
Why is secrecy so important?
It is considered a test of your character that if you promise to keep something a secret, you do.
What is actually secret and what isn’t?
In general, anything that is written you can discuss with a non-Mason and anything that is not written you can’t. For example, the words of the ritual aren’t written down so I can’t tell you those words. In contrast, information about our membership requirements, philosophy, history and locations of lodges is public, and there are some ceremonies in which certain parts of the ritual are shown to anyone who walks in.
What do you think of the portrayal of Freemasonry in The Lost Symbol?
It is maybe 90 percent accurate. There are a couple of things Brown exaggerated in terms of ritual.
Was Brown’s depiction of the Masonic initiation ceremony correct?
The book makes a big deal over a videotape of the initiation ceremony, which, if made public, would bring down the government. My fellow Masons laughed at this part of the book. Brown’s description of the ritual is not tremendously wrong, but the idea that it would be inflammatory is way off. If you saw the ritual, you would think it quaint, perhaps kind of silly and not at all dangerous. What makes the ceremony interesting is that it is based on old-fashioned language and ritual, and that it is the same initiation that George Washington went through.
What about his description of Washington as a city of Masonic symbols?
In my opinion, Brown has stretched the truth. There is no basis to the assertion that the city’s streets are laid out to look like Masonic symbols. You can take any city based on a grid system and add a couple of diagonal streets, and see a lion, a tiger or a Masonic symbol. There is also some question as to whether Pierre Charles L’Enfant, who laid out Washington, DC, was a Mason. Even if he was, I don’t believe he tried to shape the streets into Masonic symbols.
Brown says that Freemasons were involved in the construction of the Washington Monument, U.S. Capitol and other federal buildings. Is this true?
The Washington Monument was dedicated in a Masonic ceremony, as were the White House and U.S. Capitol. George Washington himself put on a Masonic apron and led a Masonic service while laying the cornerstone of the Capitol. Masons are very interested in architecture and in the laying of cornerstones. Even now you can call a local lodge and ask them to perform a cornerstone ceremony that everyone can watch. It is somewhat similar to our initiation ceremony, so it will give you an idea of how exciting—or unexciting—our initiation ceremony is.
Is it true that the painting at the Capitol, the “Apotheosis of Washington,” that depicts George Washington becoming a god, has Masonic significance?
The painting of George Washington on the dome of the rotunda of the Capitol, which is highlighted in Dan Brown’s book, appears to have some Masonic symbolism in it. It could be that the painter knew the symbolism or it could just be a coincidence.
How did it come about that so much of 20th century “hate literature” associates Freemasonry and Judaism?
Adolf Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf that Freemasonry and Judaism were two sides of the same coin—both were trying to take over the world—and that Jews used Masonry to hide that they were trying to take over the world. Hitler put Freemasons into concentration camps as well as Jews. Hitler was not the first; during the Dreyfus affair, French anti-Semites who were attacking Dreyfus also attacked Freemasonry. I have never been able to find evidence that Dreyfus was a Mason but the Freemasons of France strongly supported him.
Are there lodges in Muslim countries?
In most Muslim countries, Masonry is prohibited by law because it is considered to be part of the so-called worldwide Jewish conspiracy. In Saudi Arabia, for example, a Mason will be put in jail. There are reports of secret Masonic lodges in Muslim countries, but I don’t know if they’re true. There were rumors that King Hussein of Jordan was a Mason, but in the same way he kept his contacts with Israel a secret for so many years, there is no telling whether it is true or not. Turkey is the one Muslim country where there are no restrictions on Masonry.
Is there anti-Masonic sentiment today in America?
I am sorry to say a little bit of anti-Masonic feeling exists in the United States, too. Pat Robertson of the Christian Broadcasting Network, for example, has written books that say Freemasonry is an evil institution.
Why be a Jewish Freemason today?
I joined for the connection with my father, but the more I read about Masonry, the more I see that, throughout history, Masons have always been supportive of justice and equality for all people. I feel very proud to be a part of that tradition.
Discovering Science in the Zohar
Throughout The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown extols the importance of the Zohar, the classic book of Kabbalah, as an incredible source of knowledge from which modern science can draw. As one scientist explains to another in the beginning of novel, “Human beings are poised on the threshold of a new age when they will begin turning their eyes back to nature and to the old ways…..back to the ideas in books like the Zohar and other ancient texts from around the world.” Shafir Lobb, rabbi of Congregation Ner Tamid in Tucson, Arizona, a teacher of Kabbalah and member of the Order of the Eastern Star, the auxiliary women’s group of Freemasons, discusses the use of the Zohar in The Lost Symbol.
In The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown suggests that all knowledge can be found in books on ancient teachings, and that science is just trying to catch up. Have you found that in your study of the Zohar?
The Zohar would certainly say that. Moshe de Leon, the Zohar’s redactor, would argue that there is nothing else and that the Zohar contains everything.
What is an example of the Zohar’s value to modern scientific thought?
Dan Brown didn’t have to go far in the Zohar to find something scientific. The Zohar states: “Deep within the spark gushed a flow, imbuing colors below, concealed within the the mystery of the Infinite. The flow broke through and did not break through its aura. It was not known at all until, under the impact of their breaking through, one high and hidden point shone. Beyond that point, nothing is known. So it is called the Beginning.” It struck Brown that this sounds like String Theory.
Is this the first time such scientific thought has been connected back to ancient thought?
No, indeed one of the things that Einstein said helped him formulate his thoughts on the universe was to think about the Creation story.
Are there other overt Jewish references in Dan Brown’s book?
The evil character is named “Malach,” which in Hebrew means angel. I see this as a Christian concept that the Devil is a fallen angel. Brown may be exploring the role of an angel of God. When is an angel doing good and when is it a Malach Hamavet [an angel of death]?
How do Freemasons react to your being a rabbi?
The Masonic community is not surprised at all, since a good part of the Masonic community cuts across Jewish lines. If you were a macher or “big-shot” in the Jewish community in Arizona and wanted to be part of a service organization you would look to be part of something like the Masons. And on the altar in the Masonic lodge there is a Christian scripture, a Koran and a Tanakh. The one at our local lodge is an Orthodox Birnbaum Tanakh. I actually teach a Kabbalah class that takes place at a Masonic temple and a few Masons come to the class. All the members of the Masonic group are very interested in my Jewishness.
What is the Order of the Eastern Star?
It is an independent body made up of females who have a connection to a Mason. It can be a father, a brother or even a more tenuous connection. Eastern Star draws on the Biblical stories of Jephtah’s daughter, Ruth, and Esther, as well as Christian stories, such as the story of Martha. It uses them as a way of teaching traits to which one should aspire—like Esther’s bravery and Ruth’s fidelity.
What does your congregation think about the fact that you are a member of a Masonic group?
It’s not an issue. In our congregation we have two widows of Masons and a woman who is in the Eastern Star.
How does Judaism inform your choice to be in the Eastern Star? And how does being a member of the Eastern Star inform your Judaism? Do they share anything?
Masonic organizations are very involved in charity or tzedakah. Masons run hospitals and help take care of families who are ill. All traditions care about some of the same things. I wear the ring with the 5-pointed star from Eastern Star that my mother-in-law gave to me, and on my other hand I wear the six-pointed Star of David. —Sarah Breger
https://ehpg.wordpress.com/2010/03/03/damage-control-jews-freemasons/
Freemasons, also known as Masons, have long been subjected to persecution—and linked to the Jews. Most infamously, the 20th-century anti-Semitic Russian forgery, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, claimed that Freemasons were in league with Jews in a quest for world domination. While few take these claims seriously, the secrecy of the Freemasons has fed centuries of suspicion: Are they a brotherhood of men who wear funny aprons, partake in quaint ceremonies and raise money for good causes or, as Brown suggests, an intellectual and enlightened cabal whose members extend to the upper echelons of political power?
Legend has it that their forefathers were the stonemasons of King Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem. More likely, Freemasonry evolved from a medieval trade guild of skilled stone carvers in England, Scotland and France that in the 1700s grew into a civic fraternity that met in buildings called lodges all over the world. Masonic philosophy drew on ideas from many religious traditions, and its adherents were remarkable—with the occasional exception—for welcoming members of all creeds, affording them a path of social mobility. This was the case for many Jews in Western Europe. The first Jewish Mason was recorded in England in 1732 and by 1793, an entire Jewish lodge was established in London.
Freemasonry became popular in colonial America, where the Freemasons’ self-described mission to “make good men better” resonated, and Masons played a vital role in the founding of the United States. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and other Founding Fathers were Masons, as were prominent Jewish figures such as Haym Salomon, the prime financier of the American Revolution, and merchant Moses Michael Hayes, who was the Grand Master of the lodge where Paul Revere served as Deputy Grand Master. Other notable Jewish Masons range from British philanthropist Moses Montefiore and Hungarian-born illusionist Harry Houdini to American composer Irving Berlin and Samuel Gompers, founder of the American Federation of Labor (AFL). There have been 51 Jewish Grand Masters in the United States, and Israel itself is home to 60 Masonic lodges.
Moment talks with Paul Bessel, author of Masonic Questions & Answersand a former Senior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of Washington, DC, about Jews in Freemasonry, The Lost Symbol and what he can share about the group’s secrets.—Sarah BregerWhy did Jews become Freemasons?
In the 1600s and 1700s, Jews weren’t allowed to be citizens; they were prohibited from certain occupations; they were pushed into ghettos. And yet, one institution existed that from its very beginning welcomed them. We take this for granted now but back then the idea of people of different religions working together—the fundamental principle of Freemasonry—was uncommon and revolutionary.
Do Freemasons believe in God?
Once you state that you believe in a Supreme Being or God, you are welcome in Masonry and no further questions are asked. There are a few exceptions: In France, there is one Grand Lodge that is well-known for allowing people in whether they believe in God or not.
Has Judaism influenced Freemasonry?
A lot of Masonic ritual is derived from the Jewish Bible or Old Testament. The rituals are based on the story of King Solomon’s Temple.
What elements of the initiation ritual are Jewish?
I’m not supposed to say exactly what the ritual is, but when you go through it, you feel you are at home because you are hearing stories and learning lessons from the Temple of Solomon.
Do Freemasons have one leader?
Freemasonry, like Judaism, doesn’t have one supreme authority. There is no such thing as a Pope for Freemasonry.
Can Catholics be Freemasons?
Since the early 1700s, the Catholic Church has issued successive papal bulls prohibiting Catholics from joining Freemasonry. The current Pope, when he was a cardinal, reaffirmed the decree that it is incompatible with Catholicism to be a Freemason. In reality, I know many Freemasons who are Catholics. A few Protestant sects have also formally prohibited members from becoming Freemasons.
How many Freemasons are there?
There are about three to four million worldwide, including roughly one and a half million in the United States. Freemasonry’s inclusiveness appeals to both Jews and non-Jews and you are just as likely to find an Asian or an African American in a group of Freemasons as a white Protestant.
When was the peak of contemporary Jewish involvement in Freemasonry?
Many American lodges reached their peak after World War II, which is true of Freemasonry in general. Jews who fought in the war had spent four years with men in the closest circumstances and they wanted to continue the camaraderie. Many joined when they came home. That’s when my father joined.
When did you join the Freemasons?
In 1987, on the 10th anniversary of my father’s death. A lot of men become Masons because they want to maintain a connection to a grandfather or a father.
Has the number of Jews involved in Freemasonry declined in recent years?
The issue isn’t so much Jews dropping out but that the majority of people are less likely nowadays to be joiners. But there is still large Jewish participation; probably the proportion of Jews involved in Freemasonry exceeds the proportion of Jews in the U.S. population, and this is also true in other countries.
Are women allowed to be Freemasons?
Women have been Masons ever since the beginning of Freemasonry. There is an auxiliary group called the Order of the Eastern Star that is for women. There are also women’s Masonic lodges and a few co-ed lodges. There must be, however, only a couple hundred female Freemasons. Many [male] Freemasons don’t like to think that women are performing the same rituals but that is exactly what they are doing.
Why is secrecy so important?
It is considered a test of your character that if you promise to keep something a secret, you do.
What is actually secret and what isn’t?
In general, anything that is written you can discuss with a non-Mason and anything that is not written you can’t. For example, the words of the ritual aren’t written down so I can’t tell you those words. In contrast, information about our membership requirements, philosophy, history and locations of lodges is public, and there are some ceremonies in which certain parts of the ritual are shown to anyone who walks in.
What do you think of the portrayal of Freemasonry in The Lost Symbol?
It is maybe 90 percent accurate. There are a couple of things Brown exaggerated in terms of ritual.
Was Brown’s depiction of the Masonic initiation ceremony correct?
The book makes a big deal over a videotape of the initiation ceremony, which, if made public, would bring down the government. My fellow Masons laughed at this part of the book. Brown’s description of the ritual is not tremendously wrong, but the idea that it would be inflammatory is way off. If you saw the ritual, you would think it quaint, perhaps kind of silly and not at all dangerous. What makes the ceremony interesting is that it is based on old-fashioned language and ritual, and that it is the same initiation that George Washington went through.
What about his description of Washington as a city of Masonic symbols?
In my opinion, Brown has stretched the truth. There is no basis to the assertion that the city’s streets are laid out to look like Masonic symbols. You can take any city based on a grid system and add a couple of diagonal streets, and see a lion, a tiger or a Masonic symbol. There is also some question as to whether Pierre Charles L’Enfant, who laid out Washington, DC, was a Mason. Even if he was, I don’t believe he tried to shape the streets into Masonic symbols.
Brown says that Freemasons were involved in the construction of the Washington Monument, U.S. Capitol and other federal buildings. Is this true?
The Washington Monument was dedicated in a Masonic ceremony, as were the White House and U.S. Capitol. George Washington himself put on a Masonic apron and led a Masonic service while laying the cornerstone of the Capitol. Masons are very interested in architecture and in the laying of cornerstones. Even now you can call a local lodge and ask them to perform a cornerstone ceremony that everyone can watch. It is somewhat similar to our initiation ceremony, so it will give you an idea of how exciting—or unexciting—our initiation ceremony is.
Is it true that the painting at the Capitol, the “Apotheosis of Washington,” that depicts George Washington becoming a god, has Masonic significance?
The painting of George Washington on the dome of the rotunda of the Capitol, which is highlighted in Dan Brown’s book, appears to have some Masonic symbolism in it. It could be that the painter knew the symbolism or it could just be a coincidence.
How did it come about that so much of 20th century “hate literature” associates Freemasonry and Judaism?
Adolf Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf that Freemasonry and Judaism were two sides of the same coin—both were trying to take over the world—and that Jews used Masonry to hide that they were trying to take over the world. Hitler put Freemasons into concentration camps as well as Jews. Hitler was not the first; during the Dreyfus affair, French anti-Semites who were attacking Dreyfus also attacked Freemasonry. I have never been able to find evidence that Dreyfus was a Mason but the Freemasons of France strongly supported him.
Are there lodges in Muslim countries?
In most Muslim countries, Masonry is prohibited by law because it is considered to be part of the so-called worldwide Jewish conspiracy. In Saudi Arabia, for example, a Mason will be put in jail. There are reports of secret Masonic lodges in Muslim countries, but I don’t know if they’re true. There were rumors that King Hussein of Jordan was a Mason, but in the same way he kept his contacts with Israel a secret for so many years, there is no telling whether it is true or not. Turkey is the one Muslim country where there are no restrictions on Masonry.
Is there anti-Masonic sentiment today in America?
I am sorry to say a little bit of anti-Masonic feeling exists in the United States, too. Pat Robertson of the Christian Broadcasting Network, for example, has written books that say Freemasonry is an evil institution.
Why be a Jewish Freemason today?
I joined for the connection with my father, but the more I read about Masonry, the more I see that, throughout history, Masons have always been supportive of justice and equality for all people. I feel very proud to be a part of that tradition.
Discovering Science in the Zohar
Throughout The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown extols the importance of the Zohar, the classic book of Kabbalah, as an incredible source of knowledge from which modern science can draw. As one scientist explains to another in the beginning of novel, “Human beings are poised on the threshold of a new age when they will begin turning their eyes back to nature and to the old ways…..back to the ideas in books like the Zohar and other ancient texts from around the world.” Shafir Lobb, rabbi of Congregation Ner Tamid in Tucson, Arizona, a teacher of Kabbalah and member of the Order of the Eastern Star, the auxiliary women’s group of Freemasons, discusses the use of the Zohar in The Lost Symbol.
In The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown suggests that all knowledge can be found in books on ancient teachings, and that science is just trying to catch up. Have you found that in your study of the Zohar?
The Zohar would certainly say that. Moshe de Leon, the Zohar’s redactor, would argue that there is nothing else and that the Zohar contains everything.
What is an example of the Zohar’s value to modern scientific thought?
Dan Brown didn’t have to go far in the Zohar to find something scientific. The Zohar states: “Deep within the spark gushed a flow, imbuing colors below, concealed within the the mystery of the Infinite. The flow broke through and did not break through its aura. It was not known at all until, under the impact of their breaking through, one high and hidden point shone. Beyond that point, nothing is known. So it is called the Beginning.” It struck Brown that this sounds like String Theory.
Is this the first time such scientific thought has been connected back to ancient thought?
No, indeed one of the things that Einstein said helped him formulate his thoughts on the universe was to think about the Creation story.
Are there other overt Jewish references in Dan Brown’s book?
The evil character is named “Malach,” which in Hebrew means angel. I see this as a Christian concept that the Devil is a fallen angel. Brown may be exploring the role of an angel of God. When is an angel doing good and when is it a Malach Hamavet [an angel of death]?
How do Freemasons react to your being a rabbi?
The Masonic community is not surprised at all, since a good part of the Masonic community cuts across Jewish lines. If you were a macher or “big-shot” in the Jewish community in Arizona and wanted to be part of a service organization you would look to be part of something like the Masons. And on the altar in the Masonic lodge there is a Christian scripture, a Koran and a Tanakh. The one at our local lodge is an Orthodox Birnbaum Tanakh. I actually teach a Kabbalah class that takes place at a Masonic temple and a few Masons come to the class. All the members of the Masonic group are very interested in my Jewishness.
What is the Order of the Eastern Star?
It is an independent body made up of females who have a connection to a Mason. It can be a father, a brother or even a more tenuous connection. Eastern Star draws on the Biblical stories of Jephtah’s daughter, Ruth, and Esther, as well as Christian stories, such as the story of Martha. It uses them as a way of teaching traits to which one should aspire—like Esther’s bravery and Ruth’s fidelity.
What does your congregation think about the fact that you are a member of a Masonic group?
It’s not an issue. In our congregation we have two widows of Masons and a woman who is in the Eastern Star.
How does Judaism inform your choice to be in the Eastern Star? And how does being a member of the Eastern Star inform your Judaism? Do they share anything?
Masonic organizations are very involved in charity or tzedakah. Masons run hospitals and help take care of families who are ill. All traditions care about some of the same things. I wear the ring with the 5-pointed star from Eastern Star that my mother-in-law gave to me, and on my other hand I wear the six-pointed Star of David. —Sarah Breger
https://ehpg.wordpress.com/2010/03/03/damage-control-jews-freemasons/
Many cabalist & Orthodox Jews place a graeat significance on that cube, it's also linked to Saturn worship, many Orthodox Jews wear it round their head during prayers & they linked it to Makkah cause it's shaped like a cube, they were pointing out the similarities. Unlike them we don't worship the cube rather we place more significant on the Blessed stone from Allah which is not shaped like a cube.
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