Freemasonry has for the last 300 years suffered from misconceptions, rumors, misinformation and conspiracy theories. Conspiracy theories have primarily come from those who know little to nothing about Freemasonry. A majority of misconceptions about Freemasonry stem from the notion that it is a secret society (we are a fraternity with secrets and NOT a secret society).
The perceptions about Freemasonry as a nefarious secret society can be traced back to the 14th century. Historically there weren’t any Masonic lodges during this period however, the use of tropes and innuendo toppled two well respected organizations. During the middle ages, the Hospitallers and the Knights Templar were well known in Europe as the defenders of Christians seeking armed assistance when traveling to and from Jerusalem. Debt owed to the Knights Templar by King Philip IV attributed to their demise. Conspiracies and false allegations by King Philip IV aided by Pope Clement V led to the torture and killing of Jacques de Moley the Grand Master of the Knights Templar near Notre Dame in 1307 and caused its members to flee France and go underground.
Most conspiracy theories used today to discredit Freemasonry derived from the uncovering of a secret society called the Bavarian Illuminati started by a college professor in 1776 named Adam Weishaupt. Known simply as the “Illuminati”, it was formed as a secret society with the goal of attracting socialites and the wealthy (It must be noted that Freemasons during that time were involved in the recruiting and formation of the Illuminati in Bavaria). Replacing Christianity with reason became its aim. Weishaupt recruited heavily among the elites of society. The Illuminati lasted roughly ten years before it was banned. In fact, as a result of the discovery and banning of this secret society by the Bavarian government in 1785, Adam Weishaupt lost his professorship and members of the group were arrested.
Repetition of age-old conspiracy theories about the Freemasons would continue for centuries long after the short lived Illuminati. Nefarious characters in the future will spend no time embellishing tall-tales in an effort to brand Freemasonry as a secret society in the shadows of the Illuminati. One such character went by the name of Léo Taxil.
Léo Taxil, whose real name was Marie Joseph Gabriel Antoine Jogand-Pagès, was a French writer and journalist who became famous for his elaborate hoax against the Freemasons in the late 19th century. Taxil’s works initially revolved around anti-clerical writings before he devised one of the most notorious hoaxes involving the Freemasons, which garnered significant attention and controversy.
In the 1880s, Léo Taxil orchestrated an elaborate hoax aimed at discrediting Freemasonry by linking it to devil worship and other sinister practices. He published numerous books and articles detailing supposed Masonic rituals and secret doctrines, which he claimed revealed their true nature. The hoax lasted twelve years. A central character in his intricate hoax featured a fictional character by the name of Diana Vaughan. Vaughan was a supposed ex-Satanist turned whistleblower against the Freemasons.
Taxil alleged that high-ranking Freemasons engaged in devil worship and other blasphemous rites. His stories were filled with sensational claims of demonic apparitions, sinister conspiracies, and immoral acts purportedly committed by members of the fraternity.
The Catholic Church, which had long viewed Freemasonry with suspicion, found Taxil’s revelations compelling and began to lend credence to his claims. This was a period marked by intense antagonism between the Catholic Church and Freemasonry, particularly in Europe. As a result, Taxil’s writings gained significant traction among Catholic audiences and were even used by church officials as evidence of the purported evils of Freemasonry.
Pope Leo XIII was the head of the Catholic Church during the time of Léo Taxil’s hoax. He reigned the Holy See from 1878 to 1903. Pope Leo XIII was known for his firm stance against Freemasonry, which he viewed as incompatible with Catholic doctrine. In 1884, he issued his Bull entitled “Humanum Genus” which condemned Freemasonry and reiterated the Catholic Church’s prohibition against its members joining the Masonic order.
The Taxil hoax continued to gain momentum and provided the French society with the ammunition it needed to oppose Freemasonry. The hoax came crashing down on April 19, 1897, when Léo Taxil publicly confessed that his entire anti-Masonic campaign had been a fabrication. He admitted that Diana Vaughan was a fictional character and that all his sensational claims about the Freemasons were invented. Taxil’s confession shocked many and embarrassed those who had taken his writings at face value, including significant segments of the Catholic Church.
Troupes about Freemasonry continue today on the scale of the Leo Taxil hoax. People unaffiliated with the fraternity don’t realize that they are using Taxil’s methods to discredit Freemasonry. With the advent of social media, conspiracy theories by those with the same ulterior motives as Taxil have spread false claims about Freemasonry to the uninformed.
If you are not a Freemason or are interested in understanding more about the fraternity, feel free to reach out to any Master Mason. They will be happy to explain to you what Freemasonry is all about. You may also find the summary of the book “Freemasons for Dummies” series produced on our website https://fatemasoniclodge802.com also helpful in helping you to understand our organization.
The summary of the book “Freemasonry for Dummies” can be found here: https://fatemasoniclodge802.com/freemasonry_for_dumm/series-freemasons-for-dummies/
