• Members of the Daily Caller News Foundation interviewed said Freemasonry, a secret society that is usually insulated from the outside world, finds it difficult to come to terms with transgender ideologies within the all-male Brotherhood. It is said that he is having a hard time.
• In 2018, England’s United Grand Lodge issued a decision to allow transgender individuals to join secret societies, but this year the Texas Grand Lodge issued its own take on the matter. , banned transgender members.
• “[One Texas lodge] “There are some visibly transgender people who either have already taken the oath as male and then changed it, or they have taken the oath that they are non-binary, gender-fluid or something. …and this is considered a great provocation,” he said for many years. Houston resident Scottish Wright Mason told DCNF.

Members of the Daily Caller News Foundation said Freemasonry, an all-male secret society dating back centuries, has expressed support for the transgender movement that has permeated its members in recent years. They are struggling to cope.

In 2018, England’s United Grand Lodge, considered by Masons to be the premier of all lodges, made it mandatory for transgender individuals to maintain lodge membership or if transitioning to male. has announced that it is possible to obtain membership. according to to the BBC. In the United States, the problem is far from resolved, with conservative Masons in states like Texas clashing with more liberal fraternities along the coast, and several Masons who spoke to the DCNF on condition of anonymity. The issue is splitting society, he said. There are real consequences for those who do not act in unison. (Related: Massive left-wing deception about gender is failing utterly, major new study reveals)

“[N]All of these British lodges have forced women’s admission, and the Grand Lodge, mother of the world, is now being asked by its Supreme Court to break its oath and force women’s admission to all its members. there is “America and all other Grand Lodges are in a gray area right now, and you never know what’s going to happen,” Mason, a prominent central Texas man, told DCNF.

In March, the Grand Lodge of Texas, which oversees all Masonic branches in the Lone Star state, opinion The transgender debate is in direct contradiction to the UK’s decision five years ago. The Texas Grand Lodge said it was impossible for a transgender individual to become a Mason, based on the way the Membership Bylaws were originally intended to be interpreted in 1722.

“A biological woman (meaning an individual assigned as female at birth) cannot become a Mason,” the opinion reads. “A transgender man (meaning an individual who is assigned as female at birth and whose gender identity or gender expression is currently male) cannot become a Mason. (meaning an individual whose gender expression is currently female) cannot become or remain a Mason.”

Houston resident Scottish Wright Mason told the DCNF that despite the decision, other lodges in Texas continue to have several openly transgender members.

“The problem is that many lodges in Texas visibly accept transgender people,” Mason told DCNF. “[One lodge] “There are some visibly transgender people who have already taken the oath as male and then either changed or sworn that they were non-binary, gender-fluid or something. …and this is considered a great provocation.”

Moreover, according to Mason and others, the consequences of failing to follow the instructions of the Grand Lodge of England could be disastrous. Branches deemed illegal may be barred from Masonic charities, special dormitories on college campuses, travel and events, and even removed from official lodges.

In light of this, one Freemason told the DCNF that he wouldn’t be surprised if his views were revoked within a year or two after a leadership change to prevent excommunication from other members of the community. Freemasons in Texas are also undergoing a marked demographic shift, with a gradual decline in older, conservative members and the rise of younger, liberal men in their place, according to masons and others who spoke with the DCNF. It is said that there is

“The idea of ​​gay Masons and transgender Masons poses problems that cause confusion and division, much of which comes from diversity within the fraternity, down to religious and political beliefs,” Houston said. A Mason in the area told DCNF.

According to Mason and others who spoke with the DCNF, the tensions behind the transgender issue have been building for years. In May 2022, Mason, an older gay man living in Austin, a noted musician called The Pianist, was charged with making defamatory remarks to the Grand Lodge of Texas, which is expressly prohibited. Documents obtained by the DCNF say he played music during the ceremony.

According to documents, the pianist accused the Grand Lodge of being homophobic, racist and misogynistic hypocrites, enforcing some rules and not enforcing others, and that the riots sparked a number of protests. People have filed lawsuits, and almost all rights as a member have been restricted. To date, the lodge has reportedly not ordered a trial, and Masons and others who spoke with the DCNF said some members were skeptical about whether the secret society should accept gay and transgender members. The trial has been postponed to avoid reigniting the decades-old disagreement.

The accusers who filed the complaint declined the DCNF’s request for comment, and the identity of the pianist was not disclosed.

This, combined with the non-enforcement of the Grand Lodge decision, has left many Conservative Masons feeling disenfranchised and neglected, while some of the more left-wing members believe that the decision will turn people out of Christianity. claims to be evidence of Texas Mason’s intolerance of , conservative lifestyle and worldview.

“There is a group of extremist Christians who have taken over our fraternity and they are trying to turn it into something ecclesiastical…and we are really pushing back against that,” says Central Texas. Freemasons in the department told the DCNF. “I mean, that’s where we are now. And yes, [Pianist] This is part of the larger problem we are experiencing with Freemasonry. He represented exactly everything they hated, and there was a perfect opportunity for certain elements within our fraternity to follow him and pursue him throughout our lodge. ”

“I mean, I’m a conservative Christian,” Mason, a prominent Central Texas man, told DCNF. “I am a member of churches, Boy Scouts, civic groups, etc. So my personal opinion is what the Bible says: homosexuality is a sin and transgender people are still doctors. Defined by the manual, the Merck Manual, to be a mental illness, which is what I see as reality. [and] It’s very controversial.”

One thing the Masons who spoke to the DCNF all agreed on was that gay and transgender issues should be treated separately. They point out that while Masonic law explicitly forbids non-men from being members of a fraternity, it makes no mention of the sexual orientation of male members, pointing out that such men as Oscar Wilde Named a few famous homosexual Masons.

“Transgenderism is trying to infiltrate the gay community, but those are separate issues,” a central Texas Freemason told DCNF. “And they’re trying to hijack the gay movement by making you support transgenderism and saying that if you don’t support transgenderism, you’re not supporting gays. That’s just not true.”

Grand Lodge, Texas did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.

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