Fast Facts on the Masonic Lodge (Fast Facts

by John Ankerberg, John Weldon

Are Masonry and Christianity truly compatible? Using their concise question-and-answer style, noted researchers John Ankerberg and John Weldon look at the basics of the issue, examining Masons' claims and terminology and asking such critical questions as-- Easy to follow and practical, this thought-provoking resource will help readers understand one of North America's most widespread organizations--and the beliefs of people belonging to it--in light of the clear teaching of the Bible.

160 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2004

About the author

John F. Ankerberg (born Dec 1945) is the host of a nationally syndicated evangelical Christian television talk show. The show is broadcast from Chattanooga, Tennessee via satellite and highlights contemporary Christian viewpoints and debates among well known Christian scholars.

Ankerberg holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Luther Rice Seminary and is an ordained Baptist minister. He is the author or co-author of numerous books including Darwin's Leap of Faith: Exposing the False Religion of Evolution (Harvest House, 1998), and The Secret Teachings of the Masonic Lodge: A Christian Perspective (Moody, 1990).

He is married and has one daughter.

Reviews

[Jacob Aitken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good. You never can tell with pop apologetics tracks. It doesn't get into the hermetic issues of Freemasonry. It focuses on the "Blue Lodge," as most Masons are there. It mainly stays with standard Masonic texts and is fair. Instead of quoting the actual text, I am going to quote from the Masonic manuals from which they quote.

They argue that Masonry is a religion because a) some of its key texts say it is; b) it requires specific religious beliefs (immortality of the soul; belief in a supreme being), and c) promises an eternal reward. And koinonia. This is exactly what the church offers (Henry Wilson Coil, Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia 1961:512). And since they require belief in these, that fits the definition of a Creed.

Since this religion disagrees with Christianity in key aspects, Christians can't be Masons. We will focus on some of these aspects:

Jahbulon. This name of God is a combination of Jehovah, Baal, and Osiris. By definition this isn't the God that Christians worship. We worship the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Freemasonry teaches that a man is in darkness prior to becoming a freemason (Albert Mackey, Manual of the Lodge, 520). The Bible, on the other hand, says that before Christ we were in darkness (Galatians 1:4).
Freemasonry openly mocks the biblical God, calling him "a partisan tribal god" (Coil 516-517). And they aren't nearly as apophatic as they claim. They make a number of positive assertions about God: he is unitarian, deistic (Martin Wagner, Freemasonry: An Interpretation, 284). Even on Masonic principles there is no way they can reconcile these disparate claims (and that's not even mentioning Islamic theology or Judaism). We don't have the same view of God, as both Pike and Coil admit.
This is a good primer. I read it in under an hour. It doesn't get into the occultic darkness aspects, which is just as well. It ends with an evangelistic appeal to those Christians who are caught in Freemasonry.

[Robert Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent reference book. I know several current and former Masons, and this helps me understand a little more about the organization and their beliefs. It also helps explain why those former Masons left the organization and their claim that these teachings are not compatible with Christianity.

[Greg Van Vorhis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book raises some thought-provoking questions. But one has to question the accuracy of this book. If you have never been a Mason; if you have never studied and received any degrees; if you have never DONE Masonry, how would you know? Sure, you can ask some former members who quit for some reason or another who have bad things to say about the lodge, but how accurate is that? Why were they thrown out? Is there bitterness by the person quoted toward the lodge? Have you ever read a business review by someone you later find out is a disgruntled employee? It makes you question the truthfulness of his or her statements. Yet we are never told about the exact circumstances under which the people quoted here were asked to leave.

Another problem I found with this book is that it is titled "Fast Facts on the Masonic Lodge." The Masonic Lodge only has 3 degrees of membership. Period. Yet this book talks about higher degrees.....30, 32, 33rd degree Masonry. Be assured those degrees exist, but they don't exist in the Masonic Lodge. Those degrees are part of the Scottish and York rites, which are an extension of but separate from the Masonic Lodge. To pile those degrees into a book about the lodge seems misleading to me.

[Summer Lane]

I periodically pick up random conspiracy theory stuff to read, because I think it makes GREAT story material, haha. This one I picked up off a dusty shelf somewhere in the garage...written a long time ago. **cue spooky music**

[Antony Paul Maina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Insightful. Great as research or reference book.