For a change. How do you really feel about them? Why hasn’t this been a topic of discussion if they are found in every corner of the globe? As a typology, what is interesting about them? Contextually, the only thing they mimic are their own architectural orders.
Could you give more insight on some of their principles; for example, “necessary evil”, or this idea that what they do is for “the greater good”? Who are these people that are considered the “greater good”? Are we included in that group?
Sounds like you have a fond appreciation for the Masonic temple. I’m trying to get to the cultural significance of these Masonic temples that are found globally...enlighten me Senjohnblutarsky
Yeah I think you might get more useful responses if you tell us more about your interest in masonic lodges - is it academic, professional research, some sort of grudge against or suspicion of the organization? The way you keep bumping the question reminds me of a woman who was here asking about a particular no-longer-standing weird New England building months ago - she turned out to be a small-town newspaper columnist who took the collected forum responses and mishmashed and paraphrased them into an article. I think she would have gotten more useful information if she'd just been upfront about what she was trying to do. What is it you're up to? In any case I'm confused by your statement that "contextually the only thing they mimic are their own architectural orders", because they tend to be very imitative. In the US most of the ones that get much notice for their architecture are textbook richardsonian romanesque. Some others copy classical greek buildings very literally, some put Egyptian temple or pyramid elements on otherwise run of the mill limestone office buildings, but I can't think of anything that I'd consider architecturally specific to masonic lodges at all.
Masonic architecture is full of very specific symbolism unique to its culture. For instance, the Broken Column is a repeated motif symbolizing mortality and that every person's life work will be unfinished. You can find lots of information about this stuff online. Like here: https://freemasoninformation.com/masonic-symbols
ThreeSleeve. You bring up a few good points. One of which I keep bringing up new questions about the Masonic order and it’s relation to its cultural significance. The other point will come to you and I hope to others that the methodology of questioning things over and over can lead one to connect several dots and see the bigger picture.
You are confused about my question, as I am confused how you answered it. You seem knowledgeable about their uniqueness on how they repeat things over and over again.
Gwharton,
Thank you for the link but for a “brotherhood” that is known for their cult-like secrecy, it becomes obvious that one shouldn’t believe in their truths.
Let’s keep this conversation going. I’m sure there are more people out there that have something to say about it.
There isn't much "conversation" to keep going here. A few people have provided a little information and their impressions, and you've dismissed whatever they've said. Do you want people to keep responding so you can refute them? Or are you hoping someone will parrot you in your apparent suspicion and disdain. And is that suspicion and disdain for the freemasons on the whole, or is it specifically their architecture that worries you?
You might want to discuss this with that poster from last week who thinks his former professor and 3 successive employers are tracking him with malware. You seem to be on similar wavelengths.
Eeayeeayo,
Who are these people that I have dismissed?
Who said anything about refute? I’m adding on to the conversation and not simply accepting what is thrown at me. No one should just take their word on it. Just like I’m sure no one else takes some strangers word on many other “current” issues.
I wasn’t taught that way or trained as an architect in that same sense. How am I one of the few see the global influence these Masonic temples have? This can’t be an intellectual conversation where some say, “hey, you are being too suspicious of something, go somewhere else to have these discussions”... -_-
Is there nothing that you question and simply go on with your lives accepting the way things are going?
This is that conversation. One where, as trained architectural thinkers, begin to see the contemporary issues and address the problem? I can’t keep the conversation going if someone is always trying to kill it.
These Masonic temples have been traced back thousands of years and are even directly linked to Egyptian cultic rituals. Can someone else please see the correlation between these Masonic temples and all the political, social and economic power that is handling our current pandemic?
Is it the influence of the masonic organization that you see as the problem to be addressed? Or is it the influence of their architecture? If it's about the architecture, then it has already been pointed out above, both by Threesleeve and throughout the link that gwharton provided, that the architecture and its symbolism is largely appropriated from bits of many historical mythologies and styles. If you're trying to distill something about unique ways of assembling these styles and symbols in order to exert political, social, and economic power, just compare it to the architecture of any institution throughout history and your thesis, or whatever this is, pretty much writes itself. But I don't want to do it for you.
Aug 20, 20 6:31 pm ·
·
ahhhhh
They're just self-help clubs for old guys who wanna dress up. Chill
Again, i don’t know where you are getting these assumptions? I feel like I’m in the movie “The Truman Show” ???? It’s wild.
I must be making all this up in my head.
Where we have so much FAITH in the current political, economic and technological system, even the world health organization, that we all just bow down and accept our realities being manipulated right before our eyes. I am telling you, even you said it yourself, that all these powers that have control the social agency can be traced right back to ANY MASONIC LODGE, in every corner of the GLOBE!
I’m trying to grasp your attention and see how well any and all can read between the lines. It just seems most of us are being conditioned on how to think and speak. SneakyPete keeps asking shallow questions and Eeayeeayo keeps regurgitating the same thing hoping I say something along the lines of “I’m sorry” or “you are right”.
Open the discussion, share valuable information. Are there alternatives other than accepting these Masonic temples and their 66 rules as our way of living?
I once (actually, more than once) drank a beer and smoked a pipe on the roof of an old masonic temple. It had been converted to apartments and I knew the guy who rented the top floor... which conveniently was just a large ceremony space that someone had built a cheap plywood platform inside to serve as sleeping loft. Those 20' ceilings were sweet tho.
In most places I've lived the original masonic temples are huge things from the late 1800s that have long ago been repurposed. The one in my current city is a near duplicate of an older building by the same architect on a university campus. The earlier university building is one of those heavy old imposing academic tombs on the edge of a large open quad, but the masonic temple is on a downtown street where it's difficult to get far enough back to get the overall view so it lost the power of the original. It has several national chain retail stores in it now, plus a paint your own pottery thing and a couple local restaurants, and a lot of small offices. I've been to an eye doctor there, and I took a sweater to be repaired by a woman who has a little workshop on an upper floor.
The place where the masons have their meetings now is in a strip mall, next to a dog daycare. It doesn't instill mystery or awe. It seems like their architectural moment passed 100+ years ago.
If you could put in a word for me I'd love to be a Mason. Masonry opens doors. I'd be very quiet, I was a bit on edge just now but if I were a mason I'd sit at the back and not get in anyone's way.
The women have their own Freemason organization, the Eastern Star. They play around with various depictions of the five-pointed star in their rituals which are quite harmless unless.......
I'm only familiar with a handful of them based around where I've lived.... but it is an interesting typology... that in my experience is actually pretty varied in design.
The one in Detroit is kinda magnificent. It's in a weird location like everything else in Detroit, where context is kinda pointless. It's huge and to me looks like a Gothic cathedral had a child with a factory, which is fitting for Detroit. I'd honestly recommend making a point of seeing it if you're ever in Detroit. An impressive 8/10.
The one in LA is weird.There are no windows, and it's a big rectangle. If you like mysterious buildings with statues and cryptic writing on the walls... Its nice... but it feels out of place, which is saying something for a building in LA. It's set on a street with a bunch of fairly impressive churches and some nice modern buildings, it's just not really that interesting once you get past any sense of mystery. I appreciate that they didn't go full neo-classical on it considering it's not even that old of a building. It's way too close to the street too for how imposing it is for sure..... It's actually an art museum now, so that's cool. A confusing 4/10
The one in my home town is basically every other building in the city from 100 years ago, but with engaged ionic columns... Historic 4/10.
The one in Pasadena is basically the LA one without any of the mid century influences, but ionic columns.... a hideous 1/10.
There is one in north LA that I ran across one time... I do not know which it is. Was just a plain brick building with a portal opening and very minimal design beyond that. Looked like an old school without windows. I actually rather enjoyed the simplicity of it, and the scale was not overpowering. A not-unpleasant 4/10
here's my hometown one. looks like a georgian house wrapped in a portico, which probably is what it is. sits between the town hall and library, maximizing access to the unwitting general public. also, they sell christmas trees.
Let’s talk about Masonic Lodges Globally
I like their funny hats, and secret handshake.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Masonic_Party
rumor is they'll be back for more soon
I'm a Freemason. I was made a Mason in St. Alban Lodge #529 in Philadelphia, PA in the Gothic Room.
So does that mean you always have to draw the mortar between brickwork?
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2hwqok
Doesn't sound like you want to know about the buildings. Sounds like you want the mickey mouse club secret handshake.
Yeah I think you might get more useful responses if you tell us more about your interest in masonic lodges - is it academic, professional research, some sort of grudge against or suspicion of the organization? The way you keep bumping the question reminds me of a woman who was here asking about a particular no-longer-standing weird New England building months ago - she turned out to be a small-town newspaper columnist who took the collected forum responses and mishmashed and paraphrased them into an article. I think she would have gotten more useful information if she'd just been upfront about what she was trying to do. What is it you're up to? In any case I'm confused by your statement that "contextually the only thing they mimic are their own architectural orders", because they tend to be very imitative. In the US most of the ones that get much notice for their architecture are textbook richardsonian romanesque. Some others copy classical greek buildings very literally, some put Egyptian temple or pyramid elements on otherwise run of the mill limestone office buildings, but I can't think of anything that I'd consider architecturally specific to masonic lodges at all.
Masonic architecture is full of very specific symbolism unique to its culture. For instance, the Broken Column is a repeated motif symbolizing mortality and that every person's life work will be unfinished. You can find lots of information about this stuff online. Like here: https://freemasoninformation.com/masonic-symbols
You are confused about my question, as I am confused how you answered it. You seem knowledgeable about their uniqueness on how they repeat things over and over again.
Gwharton,
Thank you for the link but for a “brotherhood” that is known for their cult-like secrecy, it becomes obvious that one shouldn’t believe in their truths.
Let’s keep this conversation going. I’m sure there are more people out there that have something to say about it.
Good Lord.
There isn't much "conversation" to keep going here. A few people have provided a little information and their impressions, and you've dismissed whatever they've said. Do you want people to keep responding so you can refute them? Or are you hoping someone will parrot you in your apparent suspicion and disdain. And is that suspicion and disdain for the freemasons on the whole, or is it specifically their architecture that worries you?
You might want to discuss this with that poster from last week who thinks his former professor and 3 successive employers are tracking him with malware. You seem to be on similar wavelengths.
Who are these people that I have dismissed?
Who said anything about refute? I’m adding on to the conversation and not simply accepting what is thrown at me. No one should just take their word on it. Just like I’m sure no one else takes some strangers word on many other “current” issues.
I wasn’t taught that way or trained as an architect in that same sense. How am I one of the few see the global influence these Masonic temples have? This can’t be an intellectual conversation where some say, “hey, you are being too suspicious of something, go somewhere else to have these discussions”... -_-
Is there nothing that you question and simply go on with your lives accepting the way things are going?
This is that conversation. One where, as trained architectural thinkers, begin to see the contemporary issues and address the problem? I can’t keep the conversation going if someone is always trying to kill it.
These Masonic temples have been traced back thousands of years and are even directly linked to Egyptian cultic rituals. Can someone else please see the correlation between these Masonic temples and all the political, social and economic power that is handling our current pandemic?
Is it the influence of the masonic organization that you see as the problem to be addressed? Or is it the influence of their architecture? If it's about the architecture, then it has already been pointed out above, both by Threesleeve and throughout the link that gwharton provided, that the architecture and its symbolism is largely appropriated from bits of many historical mythologies and styles. If you're trying to distill something about unique ways of assembling these styles and symbols in order to exert political, social, and economic power, just compare it to the architecture of any institution throughout history and your thesis, or whatever this is, pretty much writes itself. But I don't want to do it for you.
They're just self-help clubs for old guys who wanna dress up. Chill
When is your paper and/or thesis due?
I must be making all this up in my head.
Where we have so much FAITH in the current political, economic and technological system, even the world health organization, that we all just bow down and accept our realities being manipulated right before our eyes. I am telling you, even you said it yourself, that all these powers that have control the social agency can be traced right back to ANY MASONIC LODGE, in every corner of the GLOBE!
I’m trying to grasp your attention and see how well any and all can read between the lines. It just seems most of us are being conditioned on how to think and speak. SneakyPete keeps asking shallow questions and Eeayeeayo keeps regurgitating the same thing hoping I say something along the lines of “I’m sorry” or “you are right”.
Open the discussion, share valuable information. Are there alternatives other than accepting these Masonic temples and their 66 rules as our way of living?
Everything is possible if you squint hard enough.
I have a Q for you, anon. Where do you come up with your theories? And where you go by yourself, do others go along with you? Everyone?
I once (actually, more than once) drank a beer and smoked a pipe on the roof of an old masonic temple. It had been converted to apartments and I knew the guy who rented the top floor... which conveniently was just a large ceremony space that someone had built a cheap plywood platform inside to serve as sleeping loft. Those 20' ceilings were sweet tho.
Lots of old clubs based on ancient stuff around the country. They're secretive because it's cool, same as "No girls allowed" when idiots were kids.
https://www.abandonedamerica.us/irem-shrine
In most places I've lived the original masonic temples are huge things from the late 1800s that have long ago been repurposed. The one in my current city is a near duplicate of an older building by the same architect on a university campus. The earlier university building is one of those heavy old imposing academic tombs on the edge of a large open quad, but the masonic temple is on a downtown street where it's difficult to get far enough back to get the overall view so it lost the power of the original. It has several national chain retail stores in it now, plus a paint your own pottery thing and a couple local restaurants, and a lot of small offices. I've been to an eye doctor there, and I took a sweater to be repaired by a woman who has a little workshop on an upper floor.
The place where the masons have their meetings now is in a strip mall, next to a dog daycare. It doesn't instill mystery or awe. It seems like their architectural moment passed 100+ years ago.
As a Freemason, these conspiracy theories crack me up.
If you could put in a word for me I'd love to be a Mason. Masonry opens doors. I'd be very quiet, I was a bit on edge just now but if I were a mason I'd sit at the back and not get in anyone's way.
The women have their own Freemason organization, the Eastern Star. They play around with various depictions of the five-pointed star in their rituals which are quite harmless unless.......
Oh this sounds fun.
I'm only familiar with a handful of them based around where I've lived.... but it is an interesting typology... that in my experience is actually pretty varied in design.
The one in Detroit is kinda magnificent. It's in a weird location like everything else in Detroit, where context is kinda pointless. It's huge and to me looks like a Gothic cathedral had a child with a factory, which is fitting for Detroit. I'd honestly recommend making a point of seeing it if you're ever in Detroit. An impressive 8/10.
The one in LA is weird.There are no windows, and it's a big rectangle. If you like mysterious buildings with statues and cryptic writing on the walls... Its nice... but it feels out of place, which is saying something for a building in LA. It's set on a street with a bunch of fairly impressive churches and some nice modern buildings, it's just not really that interesting once you get past any sense of mystery. I appreciate that they didn't go full neo-classical on it considering it's not even that old of a building. It's way too close to the street too for how imposing it is for sure..... It's actually an art museum now, so that's cool. A confusing 4/10
The one in my home town is basically every other building in the city from 100 years ago, but with engaged ionic columns... Historic 4/10.
The one in Pasadena is basically the LA one without any of the mid century influences, but ionic columns.... a hideous 1/10.
There is one in north LA that I ran across one time... I do not know which it is. Was just a plain brick building with a portal opening and very minimal design beyond that. Looked like an old school without windows. I actually rather enjoyed the simplicity of it, and the scale was not overpowering. A not-unpleasant 4/10
here's my hometown one. looks like a georgian house wrapped in a portico, which probably is what it is. sits between the town hall and library, maximizing access to the unwitting general public. also, they sell christmas trees.
Gross....
Makes me think frat house.
Here are the ones from my post... I figured out that the last was the Elysian Masonic lodge.
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