Via EDP 24
Freemasons have been shrouded in secrecy for centuries. The international network of many thousands of men, linked by strange handshakes and solemn vows, has intrigued, and sometimes incensed, outsiders.
And until now, even their own wives were often outsiders.
But when Philippa Faulks' husband decided to become a mason, she wanted to know more.
“A lot of the wives I spoke to either had no idea what it was all about, or didn't want to know,” said Philippa, known as Pip.
Pip, of Bungay, very definitely did want to know. She was already fascinated by the history of magic and when her husband, Martin, began finding out more about freemasonry she became more and more interested. “I was quite jealous really,” she admitted.
Every time Martin returned home from a meeting she quizzed him about what he had seen and done, intrigued by the rituals, the costumes, the philosophy - and the myths and misconceptions.
Now she has written a book about freemasonry - aimed at other wives.
“It's for wives, partners, friends, family, potential freemasons…It's a very basic outline of what freemasonry involves,” said 40-year-old Pip, who has previously written books on meditation and magic.
I think it was the history that drew me in first,” she said. “Over the last century there was a heck of a lot of persecution of freemasons, which reached a peak with Hitler. The majority of people don't know that Hitler hated freemasons as much as he hated Jews and gypsies.”
Then, as Martin progressed through the various stages of initiation she gleaned as much as she could of modern day masonry. “I must admit, it was like 'go on, go on…' whenever he was talking about it!” she said.
And Pip found she liked what she was learning. “It's about teaching men to be better men,” she said. “It's not some kind of sinister gathering where they conspire to rule the world. The truth is that they sometimes find it hard enough to run a meeting!”(To continue)
