Mormonism and Freemasonry


The relationship between Mormonism and Freemasonry began early in the life Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, as his older brother Hyrum and possibly his father were Freemasons while the family lived near Palmyra, New York. In the late 1820s, the western New York region was swept with anti-Masonic fervor.
Nevertheless, by the 1840s, Smith and several prominent Latter Day Saints had become Freemasons and founded a lodge in Nauvoo, Illinois, in March 1842. Soon after joining Freemasonry, Smith introduced a temple endowment ceremony including a number of symbolic elements that were very similar to those in Freemasonry. Smith remained a Freemason until his death; however, later leaders in the movement have distanced themselves from Freemasonry. In modern times, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, holds no position for or against the compatibility of Masonry with LDS Church doctrine.

Historical connections

A significant number of leaders in the early Latter Day Saint movement were Masons prior to their involvement in the movement. Notable examples include Heber C. Kimball, John C. Bennett, Hyrum Smith and Joseph Smith, Sr.
In the early 1840s, a Masonic Lodge was formed by Latter Day Saints who were Freemasons. Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum became members of the newly-formed Nauvoo lodge. It appears that John C. Bennett had a particularly strong influence in the spread of Freemasonry among the Mormons, and soon over 1,500 Mormon men in the city of Nauvoo were practicing Masons.
In 1842 Smith became a Master Mason, inducted by Abraham Jonas.
Smith was raised to the third degree of master mason "on sight" by Grand Master Jonas of the Grand Lodge of Illinois. This was within Jonas' right of office, but a fairly rare procedure.
Hyrum Smith was not only Joseph's older brother, but succeeded their father as Presiding Patriarch and Oliver Cowdery as Assistant President of the Church.
Problems arose concerning the special dispensation granted to the Nauvoo Lodge, said problems brought by Bodley Lodge No. 1, and on August 11, 1842, the special dispensation was suspended by the Grand Master until the annual Communication of the Illinois Grand Lodge. "During the short period covering its activities, this Lodge initiated 286 candidates and raised almost as many. John C. Bennett reports an instance in which sixty-three persons were elected on a single ballot." This suspension was later lifted and the Mormon Lodges resumed work although several irregularities in their practice were noted. The irregularities centered on mass balloting and not requiring proficiency in each degree before proceeding to the next degree. In 1844, the Mormon Lodges were ordered to cease work by the Grand Lodge, but they ignored the order and continued to function as clandestine lodges. The Nauvoo lodge continued its activities until April 10, 1845, when Brigham Young advised Lucius Scovil to suspend the work of the Masons in Nauvoo. Only a few additional meetings were held prior to the Latter-day Saints' departure for the Great Basin in 1846.

Similarities in symbolism and ritual in the LDS Church

LDS Church temple worship shares an extensive commonality of symbols, signs, vocabulary and clothing with Freemasonry, including robes, aprons, handshakes, ritualistic raising of the arms, etc. The interpretation of many of these symbols has been adapted to the Mormon narrative from their original meanings in Freemasonry. For example, whereas Masons exchange secret handshakes to identify fellow Freemasons, Mormonism teaches that these handshakes must be given to sentinel angels so that Mormons may be admitted into the highest kingdom of heaven. LDS temple garments also bear the Masonic symbols of the Square and Compass, although the LDS Church has imbued these symbols with religious meaning that exceeds the meaning of the symbols as intended by Freemasonry. Additionally, the square and compass symbol exists in other ancient traditions far older than Masonry such as the Chinese legend Fuxi and Nuwa.
Brigham Young is quoted as describing the origin of the temple rituals in a fashion that directly relates to the story of Hiram Abiff from Masonic folklore. Although Young changed some of the key masonic aspects about Abiff to fit better with LDS Church's view of the temple, the story is the same:
Although disputed by some scholars today, The Encyclopedia of Freemasonry states that their craft originated with Adam and Eve, was passed down over time, and bears remarkable resemblance to ancient Jewish temple customs.
Preparation of the Candidate: Great  care was taken of the personal condition of  every Israelite who entered the Temple for  Divine worship. The Talmudic treatise entitled Baracoth, which contains instructions  as to the ritual worship among the Jews,  lays down the following rules for the prepara-  tion of all who visit the Temple: "No man  shall go into the Temple with his staff, nor  with shoes on his feet, nor with his outer  garment, nor with money tied up in his  purse." There are certain ceremonial usages  m Freemasonry which furnish what may he  called at least very remarkable coincidences  with this old Jewish custom.
Some also suggest that Freemasonry is a descendant of Mithraism due to their similar rituals and general nature, while Mithraism in turn was derived from Zoroastrianism.
When Smith was in Carthage Jail in 1844, after he fired his last round in a small pepper-box pistol, he ran to the window and held up his arms in what may have been a Masonic call of distress, hoping Masons in the contingent would honor this call and not fire on him. It is recorded that he ran towards the open window with uplifted hands, and proclaimed, "Oh Lord my God." Most people see this as only a plea to God for aid, although others suspect otherwise.

Modern official LDS Church policy

From 1925 to 1984, the Grand Lodge of Utah prohibited members of the LDS Church from joining, but no other Grand Lodge followed this ban and Latter-day Saints were free to join Lodges outside Utah. In 1984, the Grand Lodge of Utah officially dropped its anti-Mormon position and allowed Latter-day Saints to join. Today there is no formal obstacle in Utah or in any other Grand Lodge preventing Latter-day Saints from becoming Freemasons.
The presidency of the LDS Church has not made an official statement as to whether Freemasonry is compatible with church membership. However, Don LeFevre, a past spokesman for the church has said the church "strongly advises its members not to affiliate with organizations that are secret, oath-bound, or would cause them to lose interest in church activities." A more tolerant statement is found in a book written by members of the church Encyclopedia of Mormonism, stating, "The philosophy and major tenets of Freemasonry are not fundamentally incompatible with the teaching, theology, and doctrines of the Latter-day Saints. Both emphasize morality, sacrifice, consecration, and service, and both condemn selfishness, sin, and greed. Furthermore, the aim of Masonic ritual is to instruct-to make truth available so that man can follow it."
On December 18, 2019 the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints created a video entitled Joseph Smith and Masonry. In the video it states that "the policy is simple, members of the Church...are not prohibited from becoming Freemasons. Nor are Masons prohibited from becoming members of the Church. Latter-day Saints believe that good can be found in many places."
Since 1984, there have been many LDS Masons in Utah and other Grand Lodges who serve and have served in various leadership positions, including Grand Masters, other Grand Officers, and Worshipful Masters. Outside of Utah, there have been many LDS Masons continuously since the early days of the Church.

Recent explorations of the issue