The emergence of Freemasons is inextricably linked with the emergence of artisan guilds. The first adherents of this social movement appeared in England. Masonic lodges became the center for uniting the elite of the bourgeoisie, the purpose of which was to transfer power from one generation to another by peaceful means. For this, representatives of this trend even entered the government. The Freemasons' movement is no less popular today than it was 10 centuries ago. However, not everyone knows exactly who can become a member of the brotherhood of Freemasons.
Despite the fact that the Masonic structure is quite ancient, it has a very, very large number of followers. So, for example, according to statistics, at the beginning of the twentieth century the number of Freemasons doubled and began to amount to 4.4 million people. And by the end of the last century, the number of adherents of this movement increased to 10 million people. Naturally, most of them are in America, as in the country with the most tolerant attitude towards any social and religious movement.
Although traditionalism is strong in Russia, there are also representatives of Masonic lodges here. And their number is not that small. Among the Masons there are not only elderly people, but also quite young people. In Russia, the fraternity is accepted from the age of 18, and the average age of the participants is not more than 30 years. The task of the brotherhood is to look for a person's place in the world and before God.
Modern Masons take as the basis of their movement not only the slogan presented by the French Revolution: freedom, equality and fraternity, but also such a fashionable word today as solidarity. That is, this means that any adult person can be a Freemason, regardless of what gender and race he is.
Freemasonry itself is not a religion. Moreover, it requires its adherents to strictly observe all the commandments of God. And this is the principled position of the leadership of the lodge. Freemasons must observe a number of provisions of the brotherhood, which include serving the Lord, the spiritual development of each person, which presupposes moral development, and there must also be concern for neighbors and loyalty to the family and state. Since not many can meet these requirements, and even more so are unable to comply with them, the Masonic movement can be called elite, designed for people of strong spirit.
It is often believed that, thanks to its slogans, Freemasonry is an ideal platform for running a joint large-scale business or bringing people together to work in a common direction. Therefore, very often among the modern Freemasons one can find famous businessmen or politicians. However, information about them is far from always open, the members of the brotherhood should not be too visible. After all, good must be done disinterestedly, without emphasizing its importance.
