Freemasonry, Greek Philosophy, The Prince Hall Fraternity and the Egyptian (African) World Connection

It has been my experience that the world‘s view of Freemasonry has always been observed from a western society perspective. Meaning that all the rituals degree work and philosophies were designed to reveal certain truths and these truths were hidden in the form of an allegory. Anyone who has ever studied Freemasonry must first learn that there is always a mystery behind an existing mystery and this will be the basis for writing this research.

            When Freemasonry as we know it was created in Europe, it did not reveal to its members the true origins of its existence. Instead the founders made it a European art made for Europeans by Europeans and they spread this teaching throughout the world never revealing its original origins. At this moment it would be correct for me to dwell deeper into the truth of Freemasonry’s origins. And to find this answer I looked deeper into the ancient world. More in particular I began to study the Nile Valley Civilizations of Egypt and Ancient Ethiopia and discovered that a similar society existed before Freemasonry.

            The Egyptians were one of the first inventors of secret societies and they existed for thousands of yeas. Once these societies had reached a level of understanding they spread throughout the ancient world existing under numerous different names. Europe’s first exposure to the societies wee the Ancient Greeks who in turned were the students of the Egyptian priest. The Greeks were trained in the mysteries so that they could establish their own society. We know this for a fact because the Egyptians were dedicated teachers who felt that knowledge is something that should be given to those who are deemed worthy of it. Once the Greeks received the knowledge of the Egyptians they began teaching Egyptian knowledge under the veil of Greek philosophy. While in Greece the well known philosophies created institutions of learning in order to spread what they learned to the masses. This served as a beginning foundation to modern day Freemasonry. The reason for this is that Freemasonry depends so heavily on Greek philosophy that without it could not function properly.

            The works of all the Greek philosophers can be seen in the ritualistic works of Freemasonry. One example is the study of Mathematics. In Freemasonry Mathematics is the very core and more notably the use of Geometry. In structured building, Geometry was invented by the Egyptians who then taught it to the Greeks. These facts therefore prove that we cannot have a “today’s world” and even a “today’s Europe” without Africa’s “Egypt of yesterday”.   However the question is, since the Greeks confess in their own Hellenic language that they received their learning from the original Africans; why then do world European scholars deny any African contributions to civilization.

            The second section of this chapter deals with Brother Prince Hall and his establishment of African Lodge 459. This is the first recognized Masonic lodge of African origins in America. Hall’s major concern was the establishment of slavery in the colonies. Prince Hall and other influential African American Freemasons wrote passionately against the harshness of slavery and sought  an end to it. However the major impact of Hall’s contribution was his nationalist views. It was Hall who instructed his brethren that African people came from a great civilization that was filled with numerous contributions to the world. In his charge, Hall stresses an African history as well as an African unity. Next Hall influences spread to the modern day Afrocentric movement. What sprung from Hall’s teachings were individuals who impacted African history as a whole. Individuals like Martin Delaney, Arthur Shomburg and W.E.B. Dubois and countless others have written for the advancement of Africa and her people. What was brought forth was the Afrocentric movement-a response to the dominate European world view.