They’re pretty common in the US, and not very secretive - mason lodges are right there in public!
In fact, searching for “Mason Lodge Berlin” on Google Maps gives 3 results:
The Great National Lodge of Freemasons of Germany (seems like their HQ)
The Grand National Mother Lodge, “The Three Globes” (no idea what a mother Lodge is or why they get a subtitle in quotation marks - it appears that way on Google Maps)
And Berlin Outpost 46 e.V. (might just be a local lodge? I’m unsure).
I wonder if this is a regional thing. Any mason I’ve ever met has been black. The predominantly white lodges seem to have died out. Also in the Army the older black NCO with mason stickers all over his car is a stereotype for a reason.
Thanks for the explanation. In my 56 years, I’ve never seen anybody advertising his Freemasonry this way in Germany. I (and probably 99% of the population) wouldn’t know what a mason ring looks like or what to make of the symbols. If I saw a car sticker with the mason symbol, I’d probably think that the driver is a real, working stone mason, roofer or otherwise working in the building business.
ETA: I just made a search for the official logo of the German roofers, and it indeed looks much like the Freemason’s:
So what I’m about to say is about 35 years out of date and applies primarily to the South, but was accurate back then:
The original Masonry in the US was called “Free & Accepted Masons” (F&AM). These lodges were all-white. The no drinking, no recruiting rules apply to them. Local Lodges are organized under the auspices of a Grand Lodge which is the overall governing body and is state-based. Grand Lodge of Florida, etc…
Way back in the 1700s, a black man named Prince Hall founded a blacks-only branch called “Prince Hall Masons” under authority from the Grand Lodge of England.
After some time passed, the Grand Lodges of F&AM generally recognized Prince Hall masons as regular Masons and, in some jurisdictions allowed intervisitation between the Lodges. Some recognized PH but either banned or discourage intervisitation. Nevertheless, most F&AM Mason consider regularly-constituted PH Lodges as valid and their members as Masons. There are other branches of Prince Hall masonry that are not granted such recognition because they don’t report to the recognized Prince Hall Grand Lodge for that jurisdiction. They are generally considered “clandestine” by both F&AM and PH Masons. The Florida Grand Lodge had the PH Grand Master in Florida as a guest speaker one year when I was still going.
I have no idea of the state of affairs today as I quit going a solid 25 years ago. I know that some of the more Northern F&AM Grand Lodges either passed or were considering by-laws to allow black men to join F&AM directly.
That makes sense. I have definitely heard the name Prince Hall but I don’t remember the context.
Here in New England, they run radio ads narrated by Benjamin Franklin, encouraging you to ask a member about it. There’s a website too, but the URL escapes me.
Would you say that it was… jarring?
They have adapted very well, e.V. meaning “eingetragener Verein”, that is, registered association. From their website:
As a proud member of the American Canadian Grand Lodge (ACGL), Berlin Outpost 46 Lodge 895 upholds the esteemed traditions and values of Freemasonry while embracing the dynamic spirit of our vibrant city. Our lodge serves as a hub for individuals seeking enlightenment, camaraderie, and personal growth within the esteemed brotherhood of Freemasonry – all in English.
So if one of the three hits you found is an American/Canadian outpost it seems to me that shows how uncommon freemasonry is in Germany compared to North America. I’ll peruse their website a while, looks well made and interesting, then I’ll see what the others you found are.
Indeed. Well-put.
It’s the LOYAL Order of Water Buffaloes.
How you ever expect to get in if you get the name wrong?
Can it, will you!
I honor your correction of my off-hand snark in timeless tradition of the the Dope!
To be honest, I only remembered the name (incorrectly) at all because of frequent play of Weird Al’s music, including Bedrock Anthem rather than fond memories of the Flintstones.
And of course, I knew someone could be bothered to know it and correct me if needed, so saved myself the effort of looking it up!
Heh. My father was a mason, but we only found out after he died, when we were clearing out the house and came across his apron. Judging from its pristine condition, I don’t think he could have been a regular - we were never aware of anything growing up. I think my brother still has the apron.
And my late cousin’s husband is a mason, and jovially suggested that I might like to join (on the occasion of my cousin’s funeral, held in the local masonic hall*). We’re talking Cumbria here, and I think 2011 or 12. My impression was that masons were a (lower?) middle class version of the old-boy network. Back in the day it was generally believed that (for example) if you were up for a job against a mason, and the guy interviewing was also a mason, then you stood no chance - that sort of thing. There was therefore a general low-level dislike and mistrust of them - whether this is still the case (or indeed, whether beliefs about them were actually founded in fact), I don’t know.
j
* - In my cousin’s husband’s defense, my cousin died of a ghastly neurological condition which meant she spent her last five or so years alive but not detectably sentient. There was thus a general feeling of “Thank Christ for that!” when she died, and it was quite the jolliest funeral I have ever been to.
Well, Trump has promised to eliminate all the incentives for electric cars that were passed under Biden. So does mean Trump is doing the Mason’s bidding?
That’s sort of how it worked in the US. The Masons were the middle-class version of the Ivy League aristocrats. The Elks and Moose were the blue-collar version of the Masons.
And a large percentage of blue collar people joined the lodges because it put them into large risk pools, which made medical insurance a lot cheaper.
Being a mason made health insurance cheaper? 
I would never have guessed!
Back before WWII US health insurance wasn’t connected to your employer. You bought it as an individual on the private market, or as part of a some social club, or you did without.
The nearly ironclad connection between health insurance and employment was a post-WWII recruiting phenomenon boosted by favorable tax treatment designed to get the working public insured not on the Fed’s (direct) dime.
It’s the “part of a social club” bit that matters for Masons. It isn’t that Masons are better health risks than e.g. Elks.
I don’t understand it either. Maybe because most of your fellow masons are insurance agents and peddle among each other for the best conditions for you?
If you live in a small town, and work for a small company, and belong to a couple of small clubs, insurance will be expensive.
But if you are a member of a nationwide organization with millions of members, insurance companies will be eager to offer lower rates to members of that organization.
The whole point of insurance is to offer coverage to a huge number of people. In any given year, the vast majority of them will never need it, but they all pay premiums into a large pool of money, which is enough to pay for the small number of people who do need it.
Another reason not to get involved. It’s getting stranger and stranger.