Famous   Freemasons who Changed the World

But surely, only important people can join a Masonic lodge? There has certainly been a myth, historically, along these lines. As this book will clearly demonstrate, it is true that many men of ‘rank and importance’ have been Freemasons, including many kings of England, presidents of the United States, and great men of science, the arts, music and letters. However, it needs to be quickly added that, historically, hundreds of thousands of ‘ordinary’ men worldwide have also become Masons. The purpose of this book is set out a selection of those Freemasons who, in their life-long endeavours, have effected change. For some, the change they created was   localised; for others it was profound and widespread – but in every case, the   individuals I deal with are all famous to varying degrees and have made an   outstanding contribution to our human destiny. The extent that applies in   individual cases is for the reader himself to decide.

There are 110   biographical entries in the book. Did you know that Nelson Mandela was a   Freemason? Smokin’ Joe Fraser? Jesse Jackson? Irving Berlin? Simón Bolívar?   Kemal Ataturk? Beethoven? Lord Nelson? Many surprises await you!!

The Masonic   story as a universal fraternity can be encapsulated in its stated core aims   of Brotherly love, Relief and Truth. Many thousands of individuals have, over   time, contributed to the Masonic destiny; the ideals it wishes to share with   the world – of which in this book I have dealt with only a small selection of   the most prominent; bearing in mind that in a Masonic lodge all men are   equal, ‘meeting on the level and parting on the square’. Consider in your   mind, for a moment – what if history had been different? What if Nelson had   lost at Trafalgar; Wellington was defeated by Napoleon at Waterloo;   Washington and La Fayette lost the Battle of Yorktown; Watt had not developed   the Steam Engine; Jenner had not discovered the vaccine for Smallpox and   Fleming not discovered Penicillin; Bolivar had failed in South America; Montesquieu   had never written a sentence – his writings being so influential on the   American Declaration of Independence; Churchill had led Britain to defeat in   World War II, Raffles had not founded Singapore; even if Professor Naismith   had not invented basketball! The list is a long one... Clearly, without these   many individuals, in a myriad of ways, large and small, the world today would   be a very different place and we would be much the poorer as a result. One   would like to muse, and I think we can, that the principles of Freemasonry   made a difference to each of my subjects, personally, as they undoubtedly   have for many, many thousands of men over past centuries... These then, are   indeed the Freemasons who have changed the world!

You can get a copy of the book: https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/famous-freemasons-who-changed-the-world.htm

Aiming at spreading the Light further around the world and promoting   acquisition of Gnosis through dedicated reading, Sapere Aude and Lewis   Masonic, under the mutual Initiative “Legere Aude – Dare to Read”, have   the honor to host Bro.   Kevin L. Gest who is the acclaimed author of 4 books, each of which deals with a   different aspect of Freemasonry. To ensure revelations and conclusions are   factually verifiable, each contains background material and historical notes   that make the books equally appealing to non-masons as well.

Kevin started his working life associated with   design engineering in the aerospace industry, an environment that demanded   accuracy, and tried and tested proofs, before materials could be used. He has   applied those same rigours to his masonic research and investigation. His   later working life was in corporate management, instigating change and   innovation – never afraid to challenge the status quo - which again shows   through in the unexpected conclusions that have materialised by comparison   with the fable and speculation that has pervaded areas of freemasonry over   many decades.

In the Secrets of Solomon’s Temple, Kevin has drawn   on some of the most recent archaeological information, and diagrammatically   illustrates each stage of the investigation to show how the conclusion is   derived.

The Secrets of Solomon's Temple

Discover the hidden secret that lies at the heart of   Freemasonry. The Secrets of Solomon's Temple explores the background of   Freemasonry and presents it in a new and fascinating context as it relates to   our modern world. It also reveals the true identity of King Solomon and shows   his Temple in a way it's never been explored before.

You can get a copy of the book: https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/esoteric/the-secrets-of-solomons-temple_1.htm

Aiming at spreading the Light further around the world and promoting   acquisition of Gnosis through dedicated reading, Sapere Aude and Lewis   Masonic, under the mutual Initiative “Legere Aude – Dare to Read”, have   the honour to host Bro.  Richard Gan who is a senior Freemason and a Grand Officer in all   the major Orders of Freemasonry. He retired in June 2010 as Deputy Grand   Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons. Born in 1950, he was   educated at the Becket School, Nottingham, and is a graduate of London   University where he took an Honours Degree in Geology and subsequently   studied part-time for a Master’s Degree in Education. He is also a graduate   of the Open University, where he took a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Management   Studies. Whilst at the Institute of Education he combined winning a double   distinction in the Post Graduate Certificate of Education whilst also serving   as President of the Students' Union. He has enjoyed a number of successful   careers in education, Masonic administration and as the Editor of The Square, an independent magazine   for Freemasons, from which he retired in 2014. He is a full member of Quatuor   Coronati Lodge No. 2076, the premier Lodge of Masonic research, and the   author of a number of books about Freemasonry.

The Full Spectrum of Freemasonry

The book reflects the author’s research interests in   Victorian Freemasonry, and the Orders beyond the Craft. The fact that the   other Orders of Freemasonry in England have a combined membership greater   than that of the United Grand Lodge of England, is perhaps not as well-known   as it should be, nor the fact that the period 1845-1880 saw an unprecedented   expansion in Freemasonry in general and the other Orders of Freemasonry in   particular. In bringing together into one publication a set of six previously   published essays and lectures the author hopes to provide a better   understanding of the importance of the other Orders of Freemasonry. He is of   the firm belief that, within what he terms, the Full Spectrum of Freemasonry,   the Craft is but one facet; and all the various Orders have an equal and   important part to play in Freemasonry as a whole.

You can get a copy of the book: https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/forthcoming/the-full-spectrum-of-freemasonry.htm

Aiming at spreading the Light further around the world and promoting   acquisition of Gnosis through dedicated reading, Sapere Aude and Lewis   Masonic, under the mutual Initiative “Legere Aude – Dare to Read”, have   the honor to host Bro.  Mike Lawrence born and raised in Hackney, London   in the early fifties, he followed in his father’s footsteps and joined the   London Borough of Hackney having studied Municipal Administration and British   Constitution at Tottenham Technical College. He spent much of his work career   in Local Government, pioneering self-help programmes for the long-term   unemployed and those experiencing mental and physical illness, working   alongside central government policies which initiated the employment Training   and Community Action programmes. Again, following in his father’s footsteps,   he was initiated into Freemasonry in 1994. When his contract came to an end,   he spent the next twenty years as the Manager of the Folkestone Masonic   Centre pursuing his hobby of writing. His first Masonic articles were   published in Freemasonry Today in the late 1990s and since that date he has   written and lectured about Freemasonry, in his own unique style, throughout   Southeast England. His lectures have raised over £10,000 for Charity. A PM   and PZ, he has received Provincial appointments and promotions and other   prestigious awards. His non-masonic   writings have also been published in various magazines and periodicals.

English Accepted Masonry Vs Scottish Non-Operative   Masonry

1)     Introduction

2) Evidence     of Scottish Non-Operative admissions

3) Evidence     of English Accepted admissions

4) The     collapse of the Mason’s trade

5) Possible     reasons why Masonry needed a Non-Operative and Accepted membership

6) Reasons     why men might want to join a society

7) The number     of Grades (Degrees) practiced in those early days.

You can get a copy of the book:  https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/michael-lawrence

Freemasonry Decoded - Rebuilding the Royal Arch 

Secrets and mysteries veiled in allegory - an ancient code - a means of cunning deception that hides one thing behind something else. In Masonry things are not always what they appear to be! The key to understanding the secrets of Freemasonry lies in a mysterious ritual known as the Royal Arch, believed to have existed for 300 years - at least. Masonic regalia, plain and decorative, contain allegories that reveal the works of ancient philosophers, or record momentous events in British history. Decoding the allegory of the Royal Arch Legend reveals the story of a momentous discovery in an ancient monastery at the heart of Europe in the 15th century, a revelation that changed the world. Images displayed in the Chapter room allegorically link to the historic Irish manuscript known as The Book of Kells, and furnishings that reveal the solving of an age-old problem by Sir Isaac Newton. Why has the prestigious role of the Master of the Lodge been virtually side-lined? It is not a degree or part of a degree. Who were the two men, their memory overshadowed by others of title and ancestral position, that 200 years ago had a significant influence on modern Freemasonry? Why does the apprentice apron have its unusual shape? After 20 years of research and problem solving, the internationally acclaimed author, Kevin L. Gest, in this his fourth groundbreaking book, reveals how Freemasonry and the shape of its ceremonies developed against the backdrop of religious conflict; the influence of dynastic families of great power and wealth and wars and revolution in Europe and America. This book is - Freemasonry Decoded. 

You can get a copy of the book: https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/general/freemasonry-decoded-rebuilding-the-royal-arch.htm

The Tracing Board is a picture that encloses the quintessence of the ritual of the Degree and transmits it through symbols and images. Being an integral part of Masonic works, the Tracing Board is well known to every Freemason; yet very few of them dwell on its real meaning and on that of the symbols contained therein. The book is divided into two parts. In the first, the author analyzes the Tracing Board of the First Degree of the Emulation ritual: in it a precise plan for the spiritual improvement of man is traced. Each symbol contained in the Tracing Board is described, analyzed and explained under the historical, moral and esoteric profile. The second part provides an overview of the Tracing Boards and their associated symbolism through the analysis of images relating to jewels, drawings, Lodge cloths and First-Degree Tracing Boards, coming from different parts of the world.

Aiming at spreading the Light further around the world and promoting acquisition of Gnosis through dedicated reading, Sapere Aude and Lewis Masonic, under the mutual Initiative “Legere Aude – Dare to Read”, have the honor to host Bro. Jonti Marks who was born in London and grew up partly in England and partly in Kenya and thus, is the product of many cultures: some of them innate, some imposed, some adopted willingly and gratefully. He taught for over 27 years, working in Zambia, Kenya and the UK as an English and Drama teacher and also as a Head. His educational philosophy and approach is encapsulated in the meditations he wrote as a farewell to a long and happy career. His interest in world religions has led him to temples, mosques, synagogues and churches; to teachers and teachings of East and West and to a profound love for the world and all who inhabit it. It was this quest for meaning that also led him to become a Freemason in Nairobi in 1990. 

Hiram’s Way 

When starting a journey, it’s very important to have a clear idea of the destination you seek. When building a superstructure first, plans must be made to have a clear idea of the final form. How important then must it be for a Freemason when embarking on his path of self-perfection to have a clear vision of the total goal of his craft? When an operative mason became a master of his art, we have a fairly good idea of what that might have meant, but what of speculative masons? When we become Masters, what is it that we are masters of? What skills do we acquire on our path to becoming? If you were to read through the Masonic ritual and the lectures that accompany them with this as a focus, a very distinct picture starts to form of what a true Master Mason would embody. This book imagines that Master Mason, crafted by the ritual he follows and visualizes him perfected and complete, a shining example to others: an embodiment of the true godliness of which our ritual speaks. This book consists of a series of contemplations based on the teachings of pure and ancient Masonry, which if undertaken with dedication will lead the practitioner to something very special. The craftsman will be able to imagine himself as a true Master Mason, a perfected builder, and connect with this future self on all levels. He will have a clear vision of the goal to act as a guide for him on his ongoing Masonic journey. You can get a copy of the book on Lewis Masonic: https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/esoteric/hirams-way.htm

Aiming at spreading the Light further around the world and promoting acquisition of Gnosis through dedicated reading, Sapere Aude and Lewis Masonic, under the mutual Initiative “Legere Aude – Dare to Read”, have the honor to host Bro. Tony Baker who was born in Welshpool, Powys in 1953, and educated at Shrewsbury School, Cambridge University, and St. Thomas’ Hospital. After training in Leicester, where he gained an M.D., he moved to Bristol and practised as a consultant vascular and general surgeon, until he retired in November 2015.

He was initiated   in Powis Lodge (No. 7355), in Welshpool in 1984 and was exalted in Welchpool   Chapter (No. 998) in 1986. He was W.M. of The Saint Vincent Lodge (No. 1404)   in Bristol in 1999, and First Principal of Jerusalem Chapter, again in   Bristol, in 2004. He is a great admirer of the Bristol ritual in both the   Craft and the Royal Arch. In the Craft, he served as Pr.S.G.W. in 2008, and   was honoured with the rank of P.A.G.D.C. in 2011 and P.J.G.D. in 2018. In the   Royal Arch, he was Third Provincial Grand Principal in 2013-14, Second   Provincial Grand Principal in 2016-17, and was awarded the rank of P.G.Std.B.   in 2015. He is currently Provincial Grand Orator in Bristol.

He also holds   Grand Rank in Royal and Select Masters, Knights Templar Priests and the Order   of the Secret Monitor. He has occupied the Chair in the following Degrees and   Orders: Mark, Knights Templar, Rose Croix, Red Cross of Constantine, Royal   Ark Mariners, and the Allied Masonic Degrees. He has also reached the Fifth   Degree in the Operatives and Sixth Degree in the S.R.I.A. In the Royal Order   of Scotland, he was Founding Pr.S.G.W. of the Province of Gloucestershire   (now Gloucestershire & Herefordshire) and was promoted to Substitute   Provincial Grand Master in 2009 and Deputy Provincial Grand Master in 2015.

He is a Past   Master of the Lodge of Living Stones (No. 4957) in the Province of Yorkshire   West Riding, which was founded by W.L. Wilmshurst; and is also a member of   The Masonic Study Society, which was founded by J.S.M. Ward and still meets   in London.

His main interest is in the interpretation of what the Masonic ceremonies might mean, what they might be intended to teach us, rather than the history of the origins and administration of Freemasonry. Nonetheless, he was elected a member of Quatuor Coronati Lodge (No. 2076) in 2006 and occupied the Chair during 2012. He was President of the Bristol Masonic Society for two years, 2004-6, during which time he began the publication of Annual Transactions, of which he remains the editor. In 2020, he published a book, entitled Freemasonry: Material, Moral, and Mystical which was distilled out of the many talks he has given to Lodges and Chapters in Bristol and other Provinces over a period of fifteen years.

For so long there has been an ongoing cyclical debate within Freemasonry as to the true nature of the Order. Is the Order here to bring about practical and charitable help to the world? Is the goal of the Craft to cultivate virtue, or does Freemasonry have a deeper hidden purpose that should be focused on? Anyone who reads of the philosophical schools that were of great influence during the development of Speculative Freemasonry, will be aware how these teachings all have their own ways of overcoming such pigeon-holing and false dichotomy by encouraging a unified vision of things.

‘As above so below’ say the Hermeticists; ‘Nowhere in nature exists a vacuum’, declare the Rosicrucian’s; ‘all things are real’, write the Eleatics. Masonry, material, moral and mystical is one; this is the message of this book.

Aiming at spreading the Light further around the world and promoting acquisition of Gnosis through dedicated reading, Sapere Aude and Lewis Masonic, under the mutual Initiative “Legere Aude – Dare to Read”, have the honor to host Bro. Dr. David Harrison, who is a UK-based Masonic historian and has written many best-selling books on the history of English Freemasonry. He has contributed articles on the subject to various magazines which deal with the topic of Freemasonry around the world, such as the UK based Freemasonry Today, MQ Magazine, the Square, the US based Knight Templar Magazine, Philalethes and the Australian based New Dawn Magazine. Harrison has also appeared on TV and radio discussing his work. He can be contacted at [email protected]. More academic material from Dr. David Harrison is available freely here: 1. Academia - http://tiny.cc/i5ypqz, 2. YouTube - http://tiny.cc/f6ypqz, 3. Twitter - https://twitter.com/DrDavidHarrison

The Rite   of Seven Degrees

The book will   examine the deeply esoteric XVIII century Rite of Seven Degrees, a Masonic   Rite that was practiced in London, but was led by a French engraver and ex-soldier   Pierre Lambert de Lintot. The work will not only present the story of de   Lintot and his Rite, but for the first time will display the translated   ritual and the minute book from the late eighteenth century French, which not   only reveals the workings of the lost Rite but adds to our historical   understanding of the development of high degree rituals in a wider context.

You can get a   copy of the book on Lewis Masonic:  https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/forthcoming/the-rite-of-seven-degrees.htm

Aiming at spreading the Light further around the world and promoting acquisition of Gnosis through dedicated reading, Sapere Aude and Lewis Masonic, under the mutual Initiative “Legere Aude – Dare to Read”, have the honor to host Bro. Jedediah French who is a founding member of Templum Rosae Lodge, N° 863 in Oakland, California. His articles have been published in Masonic books and periodicals, including Philalethes: The Journal of Masonic Research and Letters, The Plumbline, and The Square. He won the Award of Literature for 2016 for his article in Philalethes. He blogs occasionally at “Esoteric Freemasonry and the Western Mystery Tradition".

The Art   and Science of Initiation

Freemasonry is   the largest and most public of the philosophical fraternal orders, and at its   heart lies the process of initiation for instructing new members. What   exactly is the process of initiation? How did it originate? What changes does   it seek to bring about in the candidate? How does it work? More importantly,   why is it so integral to Freemasonry?

The Art and   Science of Initiation illuminates the theory and practice of various   mystical/philosophical traditions and their processes of initiation. This   book takes the reader into the heart of the initiatic experience. The method   by which to enter into communion with spiritual worlds and reach higher   levels of consciousness and soul maturation i.e., initiation remains as   relevant for us today as it was for the people of antiquity.

You can get a copy of the book on Lewis Masonic:  https://www.lewismasonic.co.uk/esoteric/the-art-and-science-of-initiation.htm