The Freemasons Conspiracy - Masters of the New World Order?

Debate rages about how far back the "original Freemasons" can trace their roots, but the modern day group appear to have been founded around the 16th century.
Organised in a series of semi-autonomous grand lodges, the Masons have developed a series of handshakes, greetings and symbols to signify their membership of the shadowy organisation.
Ostensibly a charitable group, the Freemasons were initially founded as a fraternity for working men in urban areas of Britain, with the movement later spreading to the US.
The first grand lodge was started in London in 1717, though many texts and smaller lodges pre-date the meeting of the Grand Lodge of England that took place that year.
Often painted as evil and corrupt the group has grown more open in recent years, and while its meetings and rituals remain secret, Masonic organisations have taken an active role in voluntary education, health care and housing projects.
Wannabe members must be introduced and supported by an existing Mason, and declare a belief in a "supreme being" before they are allowed to join.
The ambiguity over the identity of this supreme being has opened the organisation up to members from all religious backgrounds, but also placed it at odds with the Christian church which for generations feared the Freemasons were a form of cult, brainwashing members into believing in a separate God.
Ever since the Taxil Hoax in the late 19th century, where a French author wrote a fictitious account of Masons being involved in Satanism, relations between the Freemasons and religious groups have been strained.
What started as a small union of workers has grown into a huge and influential group spanning the globe, but the secrets, the rumours and the suspicion remain as strong today as ever they were.

The Freemasons are linked by many theorists to the New World Order and Illuminati conspiracies.
In fact the three theories overlap so much that the Masons are thought to form the upper echelons of both groups, with the powerful elite who secretly control our world linked through their membership of Masonic lodges.
The conspiracy states that many of the millions of Masons around the world are blissfully unaware that their leaders are in fact bent on world domination.
Controlling everything from war to oil prices as well as creating economic misfortune and social uprisings to further their own interests, these men have allegedly banded themselves together for centuries to dominate global events.
The use of religious imagery, so-called "satanic rites", secret handshakes and covert ceremonies, are pointed to as clear indicators that the Masons are far more than a fraternity of working men.
Their tentacles extend to many of the plots that have made up the bulk of this blog to date.
Anywhere that the Illuminati, Skull and Bones or the New World Order are thought to have been at work, so to the hand of the Freemasons is said to have operated.
Responsibility has been laid at their door for the JFK assassination, the faked moon landings, even 9/11, allegedly part of an ancient war between Islam and the Masons.
In America, many theorists link the founding fathers, some of whom are believed to have been part of the order, to the Masons and see the line of succession of US Presidents reflecting the power and influence of the group. Even the nation's greatest modern leader, Franklin Roosevelt, was said to have been a master Mason.
And it is not just American conspiracy theorists who fear the Freemasons. Islamist group Hamas believes them to be part of a global Jewish conspiracy, and linked to the Israeli government and their oppression of the Palestinian people.
In Britain, many religious groups reject the order for fear that they worship a separate "Masonic God", and they have been linked to various conspiracies, including the Jack the Ripper murders, said to have been carried out by senior Masons.
Perhaps more worrying are claims of institutionalised sexual abuse and violence practised by modern day Masons who remain above the law thanks to their connections in high places.
In many ways the Masons have become a catch all group, responsible for every shady deal, every conspiracy, every catastrophe, and are said to wield almost unimaginable power.
It seems far fetched, but their links to senior levels of government and their influence in society suggest the Masons are a force to be reckoned with.

- British and US history is littered with Masons occupying senior positions in both elected offices and the civil service.

- While they may have opened up in recent years, the Masons remain a highly secretive organisation, and the religious nature of their symbols and rituals adds weight to the arguments of those who see them as occultists.

- The Masons sign up new members dependent on a declaration that they believe in a "supreme being". This suggests some quasi-religious element to the group, and explains the church's hostility towards them.

- In common with other shadowy groups, the Masons are fiercely protective of their reputation and their right to secrecy. Several websites have sprung up exposing organisations and individuals who are considered "anti-Masonic".

- No link from the Masons to any of the specific "conspiracies" they are charged with orchestrating has ever been proved.

- While they do request belief in a supreme being from their members, there is no evidence of rituals praising a separate Masonic God.

- Some former Presidents and senior government figures may have been Masons, but it would take more than a handful of men in senior positions to shape world events in the way the Masons are accused of doing.

- Many of the so-called conspiracies that the Masons are accused of involvement with are short of credible evidence. The idea of a global Jewish conspiracy, as expounded by various Islamist groups, has been widely discredited.

- The Taxil Hoax, as its name suggests, is a piece of anti-masonic fiction rather than a credible basis for accusations of occultism and evil.

Secret societies are nothing new, and while many remain harmless escapes for bored middle-aged men, some do have the whiff of something a little more sinister. As with almost all conspiracy theories surrounding the so-called New World Order, the Masonic theory lacks concrete evidence. However, they play into the hands of conspiracists with their secrecy, their religious imagery and their influential membership. With so little in the way of hard facts available, it is impossible to say for sure what exactly goes on behind the doors of those Grand Lodge meetings. Can being a part of the Masons get you out of a parking fine or help you beat the rap for a drunken punch up? Almost certainly. Can those same Masons guarantee you a role in the global power elite that secretly shapes world events based on its own twisted agenda? Almost certainly not.