Old Olavians' Lodge No. 5758 - Information about Freemasonry

Old Olavians Lodge No. 5758

Information about Freemasonry

Origins

It is commonly thought that Freemasonry, as practised today, is derived from the Lodges of medieval free stone masons; however while there is a fair amount of evidence for this in Scotland, there is little supporting evidence in England. Nevertheless, it is from the words "free stone mason" that we get today's word "freemason".

We know of ancient operative lodges in Scotland, whose brethren adopted certain secret modes of recognition, which enabled them to identify themselves to each other, and also to distinguish between apprentices and craftsmen. These secrets were communicated to brethren in ritual ceremonies. Between the 16^th and 18^th centuries many such Lodges "accepted" gentlemen members. In Scotland, written records of Lodge meetings had to be kept, by law (Schaw Statutes), since 1598, and these show the gradual transition there of many lodges from being wholly operative, to having eventually only accepted (i.e. non-operative) members by the end of the 18th century.

It is believed that a similar transition may have occurred in England. There are records in London of "Acception fees" being paid, believed to be the equivalent of modern day joining or Initiation fees, going back as far as 1621. In England, this transition is not so well understood by historians, since Lodges did not start keeping records of their proceedings until well into the 18th century.

In 1717, on 24^th June four Lodges in London formed the first Grand Lodge of England, and within the next few years established the present three degree system of Freemasonry: the 1st degree of Entered Apprentice, the 2nd degree of Fellowcraft, and the 3rd degree of Master Mason. Many existing lodges later joined this Grand Lodge, and it Warranted the formation of many new Lodges as Freemasonry gained popularity and spread around the country and the world. The Grand Lodges of Ireland (1725) and Scotland (1736) soon followed.

In 1751, a rival Grand Lodge of England (known as the "ancients") was established, which rapidly expanded - warranting many lodges of its own. This Grand Lodge practised a fourth degree known as the Holy Royal Arch. Eventually, on 27th December 1813, these two Grand Lodges united, having agreed Articles of Union, and formed the present day United Grand Lodge of England.

With the Union of the two Grand Lodges, the Holy Royal Arch was excluded from the ceremonies to be conducted in Lodges, and was no longer termed a "degree". It is now practised in separate Royal Arch Chapters which are associated with but meet separately from Lodges. There is an Old Olavians' Chapter attached to the Old Olavians' Lodge.

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