Yeah, there’s a Masonic building in Knoxville TN that’s very similar. It’s roughly cubical, fairly large–but I can’t say how many stories tall it is because–it only has one tiny window in the back. If the Masons are in the general practice of building stuff like this it’s little wonder to me that people think they’re complete weirdos. I mean, who the hell builds large buildings with essentially no windows? Is it a secrecy thing? Why isn’t it obviously made of bricks? 
When we were kids rumours went around that they ate babies. So one summer evening we found an open window at the nearby Masonic Lodge and had three kids give a boost to the tallest of our crowd so he could take a peek in and confirm the reports.
Well as we were holding him up there but someone inside saw his little spying eyes and slammed the window shut! Scared the heck out of the rest of us and of course we dropped the kid we were boosting up.
Which just proved to us … what we heard about the Masons was true.
The “Blue Lodge” (so named because the ceiling is blue) is the basic unit of Masonry. Appendant bodies, such as the Scottish and York Rites, Shriners, the Order of the Eastern Star, Job’s Daughter’s, the Order of Rainbow for Girls and the Order of DeMolay for boys, all are associated with Masonry, but the heart of Masonry is the lodge.
Masonic ritual is always performed behind closed doors, with a lodge officer called a tyler standing on the outside of the lodge room, controlling access to the room. Because Masonry is a secret society, they take pains to ensure that no outsiders can see their ceremonials - hence the forbidding construction.
Some of the things an observer might see would, bereft of context, certainly seem strange. For example, candidates to the First Degree (Entered Apprentice) are blindfolded and a leash placed around their neck. To an observer, this might seem the beginning of a bizarre bondage ritual. But at the end of the degree, the newly-made Entered Apprentice is told:
Uh huh. Knights of Columbus have a similar system of degrees, but we don’t put leashes around the necks of our candidates.
- Rick
My grandfather was a Mason, and even had a cool ring for being a member of his lodge for 50 years.
He had been attending a Methodist church when he died, and he had to be buried by them even though he was a Lutheran. This is because the Lutheran church specifically forbids Freemasonry rites at its funerals.
I saw the funeral ritual. Members of the lodge would put a leaf in the coffin, put their hands over their hearts, and then gesture toward heaven.
Didn’t seem like that big a deal to me, although I am a Lutheran. No idea if there was any secret significance to any of it.
Doesn’t seem that wierd to me, after all they are the ‘Masons’,and not the ‘Glaziers’
Shodan,
The ritual involves putting a sprig of evergreen in the coffin,
The Master of the Lodge, or his designate, also places a white leather Mason’s apron into or on the coffin:
- Rick
Ditto for Little Rock, AR except the first floor is a normal floor. It is an absolutely incredible building - very imposing but a great work of architecture.
Many posts ago, somebody asked about the “free” part, and if it meant if we do masonry work for free. Free in freemason means “not a slave.” Often masons who are stone or brick workers will do free work for the lodge or other charities, but the “mason” part of the name has been only figurative for centuries. It may even be completely legendary. There is mention in the rituals of Masons building Solomon’s Temple, but this is almost certainly puffery. Most of us don’t do any construction work at all.
The only parts of the rituals that remain secret are the passwords and the handshakes. Everything else is easy to find out, as is the membership list of every lodge. We are not a secret society. We are a society with a few secrets.
I think even the passwords have been posted on the web - Boaz, for example, in the Entered Apprentice degree, together with the ritual method of exchanging it… “Has it a name?” “It has.” “Will you give it to me?” “I did not so receive it, neither shall I so impart it.” “How will you dispose of it?” “Letter it or halve it.” “Letter it and begin.” “You begin.” “Begin you.” “A.” “B.” “O.” “Z.”
No Mason I, but this material may be found on numerous websites…
- Rick
Sorry, but wrong. The Masons have a VERY active Youth Recruitment program called DiMolay. The DiMolays are girls and boys, some as young as 12 or 13. My nephew was brought into the DiMolay's at that age. For the next 3 or 4 years, he was TOTALLY IMMERSED in it. He refused to allow his parents to attend ( and, like the freaking lemmings they are, they didn't push this....) any "ceremonies". Now and then, they'd all get a medal and promotion. Parents were allowed to go to those. I asked a few pointed questions, and was told to ask the Youth Leader of his Temple's DiMolay. That person spewed Party Line, refusing to answer my questions. That person THEN gave me the name and telephone number of the Pennsylvania Youth Co-Ordinator. I called that person, and had a truly frightening conversation.
I was informed that to inquire too closely was to bring humiliation and banishment to my Nephew. Did I want that?? That was the sum total of his "Information".
What was my one important question? This: What activity are underage boys involved in that their parents cannot be told about. They are taken away for the weekend, almost always out of town. Nobody will talk. What are they doing?
I informed this man that I’d simply call the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, and inform them that I had questions. He hung up on me.
Harmless old men? No fucking way. It took a LOT of work to get my nephew to look carefully at the people in DiMolay, and start asking questions. He quit. Thank god.
CartooniverseTwo additional thoughts that didn’t make it in there.
One: In this country, the safety of minor children is held sacrosanct. Induction of minor children into a cult isn't just distasteful, it's horrifying. I was never EVER offered an honest and direct answer to my questions, and so I did indeed call the PA State Attorney General's Office, and asked them to look into it. I have no idea where that went.
Two: You bet I'm afraid to having posted these answers. Now I'll find out just how secure the Straight Dope servers really are. Any emails I get will be, of course, posted here. :)
CartooniverseI am suprised that nobody mentioned me in this thread, After all I am the resident Illuminati! Ive always wanted to be one actually, my grandparents friend is one, and I am thinking about asking him.
Look, I’ve got a secondhand apron!
Good point! 
I don’t think I want to know what the Fraternal Order of Eagles construct their buildings out of… heehee
Hey, Cartooniverse, the correct spelling (as done by Bricker) is De Molay.
According to the Columbia Encylopedia (5th edition) the lodges of Italy, Austria and Germany “were forcibly eradicated under Fascism and Nazism, and there are now no lodges in Hungary, Poland, Spain, Portugal or Communist China.”
If some of those guys thought the Freemasons were a pain in the philosophy I’m kind of moved to be tolerant.
Confession: this is from a former De Molay Senior Steward (long, long ago).
Cartooniverse’s house will be surrounded after the next lodge meeting.
Asknott: It’s been over 30 years for me, but your last two sentences sound like part of a speech.
Not such a smug shot there, Doug…since they don’t exactly hand out flyers at open meetings, I’d never seen the name IN WRITING.
Still accuracy is the god before which we all bow, so I stand corrected.
Cartooniverse