"Mr. King is the man who single handedly gave you the Grand Orient of the United States."
Jeff Peace, Creator of this and other groups posing as 'Masonic', posting as Antonius9, on the Golden State Masons forum on December 5, 2007.

With sham Masonry, every day brings something new. The problem is trying to stay up with the twists, turns, and distractions as well as their changing 'explanation' of what they really are can easily become MORE than a full time job. At least a couple of times each week, we'll receive an e-mail asking when our next update on this particular group will be forthcoming. Why? Because the creator and his couple of followers have become Master Obfuscators, trying desperately to create the illusion that a pebble of sand in the Sahara is actually the desert itself. We'll keep this page well lubricated with the truth (something which seems an anathema to this group's adherents - of whom there are, by current estimates, less than a couple of dozen). We've got a little to say about the ostensibly earth-shattering patent they've recently obtained (see "Their Affiliations" below) which is being interpreted by knowledgeable Masons as being FAR less than the GOOFUS crowd wants you to believe. It won't be long before their veil will be pierced - and we'll cover it all right here.

Let's start at the beginning:

A website can make things sound ooooowwwww so appealing. And so, taking the same graphics created for the group he started less than two years ago in another herky-jerky shift, we now find this new organization, based on the internet and at a Starbucks in the Metro Atlanta area, sure to appeal to any lover of humanity. Of course, that wording seems to deliberately hides the truth. Before you go further on this page, though, you might want to look at the shenanigans involving the several groups from which this one evolved, all of which seem to be 'run' by the very same person. (It has been noted that the individual to whom we refer is NOT the leader. Yes, and Putin doesn't run Russia right now either because, after all, he's not the 'leader'.... Indeed!) Click here and a new page will open with information about the United Grand Lodge of America - the group that made internet claims to be garnering all sorts of new members and yet not even two years later was gone, morphing into this bunch.

Here are the facts:

Primarily one person who couldn't seem to get along in regular/recognized Freemasonry wants to prove that he has created something (after several tries) that's better than the 300 year old organization he seeks to supplant. Here's some of the absurdity.

When we're wrong, we're wrong: on December 10, 2007 we found that there's really a (sorta) lodge #7! Sirius Lodge which was once supposedly on the rolls, such as they were, of the United Grand Lodge of America (way back in 2006) and before that was actually the Rose Croix Cross of Gold (but that was AGES ago, back in 2005!). Of course, once you get past the pseudonyms and 'sock puppets', it looks like that "lodge" consists of 3-4 people - the very same coffee-klatch folks! No telling what it will be in 2009 and no word, of course, on all of the others - and now there's a smoke screen being developed to try and co-mingle the five (some apparently not operating) lodges of the co-Masonic George Washington Union into the count. It's easy to do with the creation of a little HTML by the person behind all of these fantasy groups. Simply grab one of your old domain names and - TA DA! - more web presence for something that seems to exist only in the minds of the very, very gullible.

But were we wrong? Well, MAYBE you might call three "several" but the truth is that we just aren't as facile in our imagination as the sole creator of these things. <chuckle> Oh, and we should mention that the address of that Sirius Lodge doesn't seem to appear on any internet map: there are addresses LIKE it but not the specific road they mention, without giving the building's number naturally. See for yourself. What happened to the building that the Rose Croix Cross of Gold, their predecessor name, was supposedly building? What of the many new initiates they were supposedly making? Who knows....

Oh, and wait....

Like to have a good chat about politics? What about going off in your Masonic apron to picket the visit by the Pope, for example or having a rally in all of your finery to protest a certain electoral candidate? Are you ok with that? Oh, and that religious context that you thought Masons said was so important? FORGET IT!

Within hours of the creation of this group, one sock puppet on a blog wrote "What exactly has your Masonry done to defend human rights rights recently? What has it done to promote religious tolerance recently?" The same, obviously, could be asked of them. Railing against others for not having done something that has yet to be done by you is disingenuous at best.

And the real answer is - from a regular/recognized Freemasonic standpoint - frankly, NOTHING because that is not the work of Freemasonry no matter how righteous it sounds. Freemasonry - the REAL kind - does not take partisan positions in religion or politics. It has been ably noted by all thinkers that, in most cases, defending one person's human rights may rightfully deny another of them. From a strictly rhetorical standpoint, it makes great theatre to claim that this new organization will do that. We should not quickly forget, though, that claims of such lofty accomplishments by a group that was barely 24 hours old when they were made are, to say the least, premature. Even seven months later, they're still nothing but air (and smoke). This is the hyperbole that has become so standard in all of the groups formed by this one individual: can we remember back just a couple of years ago when it was claimed that one of their predecessor groups was going to help the youth of America by supporting DeMolay - except that they LIED! (Oh, one internet identity attempting to discredit this site claims that they were prohibited from doing so. How curious.)

By its very existence, Freemasonry (the regular/recognized kind) practices religious tolerance and thus stands as a beacon to it rather than as an activist in a partisan campaign whereby you might find yourself on the 'wrong side of the tracks' as arguments flair over which religion should be supported over which other.

In the Grand Orient of France, there's no Bible and nothing whatsoever to do with prayers. Secular humanism - or whatever brand of agnosticism you wish -  is what you'll find there...and now, being touted as a 'better kind' of Freemasonry than the one that has existed for some 300 years teaching that faith, hope and charity are essential to a man's life and character. Yes, there are those little problematic things that aren't mentioned on their website. Frankly, we think it's like ordering a rib-eye steak and being told that the tofu placed in front of you is really what you wanted. (And no, we don't have anything against tofu.... well, maybe but that was just an example!....)

And let's not forget - as one chat room moderator has already commented: "Can someone explain how honourable men of integrity last year believed that a recognition of a supreme being was a landmark and that non inclusion of females was another landmark, have this year completely reversed those held and sworn views?"

Let's add one other very important point:

So far, the organizations started by the person who started this one have had the half life of a fruit fly. Do you have ANY reason to believe that this will be any different? In truth, all you're going to see are pseudonyms and claims: never pictures nor any kind of proof whatsoever that this is anything more than just another personal aggrandizement - a website created for what can charitably be referred to as 'smoke and mirrors'.

Self-Identification - Brad and his antics:

Barely 24 hours after their start, ONE individual identified himself publicly as being a member: Brad Cofield of California. Mr. Cofield, if our memory serves, had during 2006 received two of the necessary three degrees in regular/recognized Freemasonry when his progress was halted due to a 'conflict'. From his perspective, he was the victim (of course) of a series of events in which he was endeavoring to serve and help while others found his actions to be.... disingenuous. From the perspective of his lodge, he was disruptive, abrasive, and they had seen enough of him to know that he shouldn't be allowed to proceed and become a Master Mason. We found it intriguing that within 24 hours of the GOFUS formation, a person some 3,000 miles away from where their claimed lodge supposedly existed somehow managed to become a member AND RECEIVE A DEGREE. Mr. Cofield, after previously having been banned from several online forums, returned to tout his membership and the great works of this group (formed just day earlier, remember). With him as a self-appointed pitchman, you'll get a very clear picture of whom you'll wind up associating with should you choose to jump in the deep end of the pool with these folks. It's curious too that NO ONE from this supposedly active group comprised of so many young, technically savvy individuals didn't challenge Mr. Cofield's claims in any way.

A Brad update: WOW! We were advised by another Mason to 'Google' Mr. Cofield and what we found was pretty darn scary. Give it a try yourself and you'll see! In addition, one of the various forums changed their rules regarding online behavior (primarily to avoid the type of conflicts Brad was causing) and he had in response, to put it mildly, a total meltdown.

What's particularly sad is that this individual who has attended TWO (only) "real" Masonic Lodge meetings - and the group that he was trying to support really seems to only exist in the mind of its creator. This rant shown above is not at all unlike ones he'd posted about his (former) Lodge brothers who had stopped him from becoming a Master Mason, finding him unfit for it. For Brad, it seems, every bad situation is of someone else's making but this is also a typical behavioral trait of those few who have so easily succumbed to the Pied Piper who recruits for his never-ending metamorphosis of pseudo-Masonic organizations. There's more about Brad and his claims here and Brad continues to post, pretending to be a Mason (now claiming to be a 96th Degree member of some group and being its head in Washington State even though he lives in California and likely has no ties to Washington whatsoever. He's created a web page trying to impress everyone but has simply superimposed the name of his group on a picture of the Egyptian Room at the regular/recognized Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, a fact soon discovered and for which he is unrepentant. His huge volumes of postings, particularly as of this writing on the pseudo "Masonic Society" discussion list make his compulsive need for attention quite obvious.

Their Affiliations....

When you first read that they had achieved 'fraternal relations' and a 'patent' from the Grand Orient of France and the George Washington Union of Freemasons in North America (although often coyly phrased as if they might not want to publicize it too widely and actually have one or both of those organizations officially deny it), it seemed hard to believe. In one of the two instances it was - and in the other, there seems to have been quite a lot added in the translation.

The Grand Orient of France has a long history indeed. Because of France's proximity to England, Freemasonry arrived there very shortly after the formation of the first Grand Lodge in England in 1717. While originally very democratic in terms of membership (as documented by Professor Margaret C. Jacob in her seminal work in this area), it soon became the playground for French nobility with the common man being forced from the scene nearly completely. Records of histories are either absent or contradictory and anyone who claims full and complete understanding of the many issues of French Freemasonry's first century is a pretender. Suffice it to say that in 1877, the Grand Orient decided that freedom of conscience meant that a lodge should not ask whether a person held a belief in God. Thus atheists, agnostics, and basically anyone could join if they said they felt they could lead a good life. This flew in the face of western beliefs that having faith in God (regardless of how defined) was a crucial element to keeping one's bond. There followed also acceptance of policies which allowed inter-visitation with mixed gender lodges etc. which is FAR different from the esoteric-initiatic path that the founder of GOOFUS seems to hawk. This affiliation - if, in fact, it's anything more than a lie - comes at a time when the Grand Orient of France has been embroiled in some heated political matters in France and when many non-recognized groups are making moves to position themselves as being 'strong by association' with two other groups from England. Perhaps those in France don't realize that the Grand Orient of the United States of America will only add a handful (if that) of members to their stable or perhaps this is all part of a complex scheme to 'stick it in the eye' of regular/recognized Freemasonry!

And while we've always tried to be non-political here at masonicinfo.com, are there really big groups of Americans thinking that the French way of doing things is a great example to adopt? Now we mean NO disrespect here whatsoever and we're not like the crazy US congress-critters who wanted to ban the 'French Fry' a few years ago. However, we just don't quite see the synchronicity that would make this attractive. Why would young, ostensibly upward-mobile, American males - regardless of their ancestry - want to look to France for guidance in the way to run an organization - ANY organization? Why would anyone look first to the French for their approval, regardless of how wonderful they might feel about the French Revolution a couple of centuries ago? Perhaps the couple of members, not examining the full implications of political dabbling, finds the very political stances of the Grand Orient of France attractive. Perhaps the founder, as has been suggested for several years, wants to use Freemasonry for political clout in pursuing his goals of self-aggrandizement. Perhaps it's the lack of any religious base in French Grand Orient Freemasonry that they now find attractive (or convenient). We think, though, that most men who come to regular/recognized Freemasonry would, when there's a comparison between the policies of the GOF and regular/recognized Grand Lodges would nearly always choose the later.

The George Washington Union was formed some thirty years ago. Pretty impressive, you're thinking: they're still going strong so what's the problem? Well, while it was formed thirty years ago, there are only FIVE (count 'em) lodges in their whole stable. They are as follows: Franklin Roosevelt - Chicago (which doesn't seem to be meeting and there's no information on their web page), Golden journey - San francisco, Liberty - Washington which claims to be meeting in Bethesda, Maryland at an undisclosed location, Raoul Zetler - Montreal (which is in a very run-down part of town and is in a building used by various New Age groups and societies) and New Isis- Los Angeles which ostensibly meets in the (real) Masonic building of a California Lodge in Van Nuys that can be rented for weddings, receptions, parties, etc. In California it is not uncommon for many groups of varying kinds to use Masonic buildings for their meetings. This, of course, may give this particular "lodge" group the appearance of Masonic regularity but should you try to visit any one of the four lodges which make up the ownership of the building and are part of the Grand Lodge of California, you'd find yourself rejected. But, despite their small number of lodges, their membership in the 2006 World Masonic Report show at a staggering - hold on for this - THIRTY SEVEN. Yes, folks: 37. Not 37,000. Not 3,700. Not even 370. Thirty seven. With five lodges that means they've got an average membership throughout the United States & Canada of less than 8 members per lodge. While it could be argued that there are lodges in regular/recognized Freemasonry where attendance might be lower than this, they're few and far between - and the rest of the lodges in the jurisdiction are there also. This is 5 lodges & 37 members - in total. We won't belabor it further: we've done the math for you so you can mull over what a tour de force you'll be joining up with should you go with these folks.

Tortured Tracings - On December 10, 2007 we discovered a NEW website - at the domain of Mr. Peace's old tracingboard.com where he had excoriated various Grand Masters in Georgia, this site and its owner, and more - done up more neatly for the George Washington Union group. It made them look FAR more hip than their 1990s site (never updated) but, of course, one wonders on what authority this was done. No matter. By March, 2008 it was changed yet again to be "A place supporting a dialogue among Traditional Cosmopolitan Freemasonry in North America, the Anglo-American tradition of Freemasonry and wider civil society." Yeah, if there were any such thing! It really is to laugh. And in early 2008, the site was redesigned yet again to be the mouthpiece for the GOOFUS group. Don't blink: it may be something else tomorrow  and tough break for the George Washington Union folks who're tossed aside as is typically the case with this group when things aren't convenient for them.

If you do go to visit, be sure to look in on their discussion forums. It's pretty interesting. Not long ago, they were they're busy railing against US President George Bush with some considerable invective. (Curiously, no discussion of the riots in France to whom they're ostensibly tied so closely.) One wonders how comfortable a person who supports the US President would feel amongst them - but it's quite likely they don't care about those little things like keeping Freemasonry separate from politics. They're just following their French Grand Orient heroes in that regard. You'll be fine as long as you agree with them philosophically. if you don't, who knows.... <shrug>

Watch the cards - If you think a group which has a one imperial leader (that's NOT the Grand Master) who changes things at his whim, which has more internet sock puppets than actual members, and which will be another sub-page on this site two years from now is the thing you want to join, GO FOR IT! Let us know, using a REAL name and address please, how it's working out for you.  (Masonicinfo Note: We made this offer in November, 2007 and we're still waiting....)

Even better: you can claim - like other anonymous posters on a particular blog which touts this group but whose creator, curiously, doesn't have the faith in them to leave his membership in the Grand Lodge of Georgia behind to jump on board - that you too are going to be part. Don't forget: you can post the same message several times with different screen names so that it'll look like there's LOTS of folks doing it - and only the blog's owner will know that it's really one person, perhaps one person who's also the Grand Poobah!

Oh, and please say a prayer of remembrance for the many, many poor members who were left behind when the now completely gone from the internet (and everywhere else, it seems) United Grand Lodge of America went away. <sniffle></sarcasm>

Start one yourself! A common argument used by this group and similar ones created 'via internet' is to parse actions taken by Freemasonry and Grand Lodges hundreds of years ago. They're quick to cite specific actions without any explanation of surrounding circumstances which justified them. Further, though, if they're convinced that things should be the way they were when those decisions were made, there'd be no such thing as the 'progressive liberalism' they're promoting, we'd have public floggings, and a lot of other interesting things. If you want to join a group similar to this, why bother to pay them? Simply go to Amazon, get a copy of Duncan's ritual (under $8 at the time of this writing - and they even show drawings from a couple of hundred years ago too!), grab a couple of your best friends, and start your own group. Make up your own rules, just like they did, and set up some web sites. Heck: you too can be a Grand Master or more. 

Created 26 November 2007
Updated 10 December 2007 and a little more added January 2008, April 2008  and July 2008.

OH! And check here for some 'factual information' from the Grand Master of the Grand Orient of the United States, formerly known as the Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of America. Ain't it GRAND?
 

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