In essence it's the same as Mormons, JW's. Interestingly all these cults were formed in the same time period in the US and each can be traced back to the freemasons.
God bless
That is true. I posted this photo in another thread but I will post it again here.This is the older temple wear. You can also see the masonic sign. Notice the apron.
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A significant number of leaders in the early Latter Day Saint movement were Masons prior to their involvement in the movement. Notable examples include
Brigham Young,
Heber C. Kimball,
John C. Bennett,
Hyrum Smith and
Joseph Smith, Sr.
In the early 1840s, a
Masonic Lodge was formed by Latter Day Saints who were Freemasons. Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum became members of the newly formed Nauvoo lodge. It appears that John C. Bennett had a particularly strong influence in the spread of
Freemasonry among the Mormons, and soon over 1,500 Mormon men in the city of Nauvoo were practicing Masons. Mormon historian
Reed Durham writes:
"By 1840, John Cook Bennett, a former active leader in Masonry had arrived in
Commerce and rapidly exerted his persuasive leadership in all facets of the Church, including Mormon Masonry. ... Joseph and Sidney [Rigdon] were inducted into formal Masonry ... on the same day..." being made "Masons on Sight" by the Illinois Grandmaster.("Is There No Help for the Widow's Son?" by Dr. Reed C. Durham, Jr., as printed in "Joseph Smith and Masonry: No Help for the Widow's Son", Martin Pub. Co., Nauvoo, Ill., 1980, p. 17.) (This freed Joseph from having to complete the ritual and memorization necessary to work one's way through the first three degrees.) Making one "A Mason on Sight" is generally reserved as an honor and is a rarity in occurrence.
In 1842 Smith became a
Master Mason, as indicated by in the
History of the Church:
Tuesday, [March] 15. — I officiated as grand chaplain at the installation of the Nauvoo Lodge of Free Masons, at the Grove near the Temple. Grand Master Jonas, of Columbus, being present, a large number of people assembled on the occasion. The day was exceedingly fine; all things were done in order, and universal satisfaction was manifested. In the evening I received the first degree in Freemasonry in the Nauvoo Lodge, assembled in my general business office.
History of the Church, by Joseph Smith,
Deseret Book, 1978, Vol.4, Ch.32, p.550–1.)
Smith was raised to the third degree of master mason "on sight" by Grand Master Jonas of the Grand Lodge of Illinois. This was fully within Jonas' right of office, but was a fairly rare procedure.
[1]
Wednesday, March 16. — I was with the Masonic Lodge and rose to the sublime degree. (
History of the Church, Vol. 4, Ch.32, p. 552)
In
The Mormon Church and Freemasonry (2001), Terry Chateau writes:
[The Joseph Smith family] was a Masonic family which lived by and practiced the estimable and admirable tenets of Freemasonry. The father, Joseph Smith, Sr., was a documented member in upstate New York. He was raised to the degree of Master Mason on May 7, 1818 in Ontario Lodge No. 23 of Canandaigua, New York. An older son, Hyrum Smith, was a member of Mount Moriah Lodge No. 112, Palmyra New York.
Taken from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mormonism_and_Freemasonry
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