FREEMASONRY IN FRANCE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VII, Issue 1887, 13 January 1885, Page 2

FREEMASONRY IN FRANCE.

Thedecision of the Grand Lodge of England not to admit to their - meetings Free- ; masons belonging to the Grand Orient of. Prance, has been recently under the consideration of the Conseil Supreme of the ■lattercbody, and a determination has been arrived- at to tender full explanation of their exact position to-the'Grand Lodge o£ England, It will be remembered that the Pope'sEnoyclicalagainst Freemasonry. on the Ground of Atheism and irreligion was directed against the craft generally. The Grand Lodge of England, however repudiated the charge as far as they were concerned, and proceeded to show their earnestness in the matter by their declaration against the Grand Orient, who, it was alleged, by the change in their constitution, had really made themselves an irreligious body. The Grand Orient submit that a great injustice has been done them by their English brethern, inasmuch as they do not intend to be in any 'sense an irreligious association. The omission from their reformed constitution of words the repetition or acceptance of which would imply a religious test is, they co'h-' tend, not a declaration against religion, but simply an attempt to make the Masonic Temple what, as tljey say, it lias always been in real Freemasonry—open to everyone without inquiry as to what is his religion pr . whether he has any,' In reference 'to :-the recently-expres. edopinions of the Prinoe'of Wales and Lord Carnarvon that Freemasonry is based upon the Bible, the Grand Orient points outr that the ' Mahommedans, Parsees, Buddists, and Jews are Freemasons in great numbers. The fact that the change in the constitution of the Grand Orient was proposed by one Protestant minister and seconded by another, is instanced as a proof that it was not initiated in favor of irreligion. In the event of the explanations not being accepted by the Grand Lodge of England,- it is probable that immediate action .will be taken, in. the nature of an appeal tq English public opinion on the subject, This 'will probably be 4pne by a pijblic meeting, at 'which oral explanations will be given, and by official publications on behalf of the Grand Orient,