That religion in which all men agree : freemasonry in American culture

This powerful study weaves the story of Freemasonry into the narrative of American religious history. Freighted with the mythical legacies of stonemasons' guilds and the Newtonian revolution, English Freemasonry arrived in colonial America with a vast array of cultural baggage, which was drawn on, added to, and transformed during its sojourn through American culture. David G. Hackett argues that from the 1730s through the early twentieth century the religious worlds of an evolving American social order broadly appropriated the beliefs and initiatory practices of this all-male society. For much of American history, Freemasonry was both counter and complement to Protestant churches, as well as a forum for collective action among racial and ethnic groups outside the European American Protestant mainstream. Moreover, the cultural template of Freemasonry gave shape and content to the American "public sphere." By including a group not usually seen as a carrier of religious beliefs and rituals, Hackett expands and complicates the terrain of American religious history by showing how Freemasonry has contributed to a broader understanding of the multiple influences that have shaped religion in American culture.;Part 1: European American Freemasonry: -- Colonial freemasonry and polite society, 1733-1776 -- Revolutionary masonry: Republican and Christian, 1757-1825 -- A private world of ritual, 1797-1825 -- Anti-Masonry and the public sphere, 1826-1850 -- Gender, Protestants, and Freemasonry, 1850-1920 -- Part 2: Beyond The White Protestant Middle Class: -- The Prince Hall Masons and the African American church: the labors of Grand Master and Bishop James Walker Hood, 1864-1918 -- Freemasonry and Native Americans, 1776-1920 -- Jews and Catholics, 1723-1920. Content: Cover Contents Acknowledgments Introduction PART ONE. EUROPEAN AMERICAN FREEMASONRY 1. Colonial Freemasonry and Polite Society, 1733-1776 2. Revolutionary Masonry: Republican and Christian, 1757-1825 3. A Private World of Ritual, 1797-1825 4. Anti-Masonry and the Public Sphere, 1826-1850 5. Gender, Protestants, and Freemasonry, 1850-1920 PART TWO. BEYOND THE WHITE PROTESTANT MIDDLE CLASS 6. The Prince Hall Masons and the African American Church: The Labors of Grand Master and Bishop James Walker Hood, 1864-1918 7. Freemasonry and Native Americans, 1776-1920. 8. Jews and Catholics, 1723-1920Epilogue Notes Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z. Hackett weaves the story of Freemasonry into the narrative of American religious history. Coming to colonial America freighted with the mythical legacies of stonemasons' guilds and the Newtonian revolution, English Freemasonry brought with it a vast array of cultural baggage that was drawn upon in different ways, added to, and transformed during the fraternity's sojourn in American culture. This study argues that from the 1730s to the early 20th century, the changing beliefs and initiatory practices of this all-male society were broadly appropriated by the religious worlds of an evolving social order Weaves the story of Freemasonry into the narrative of American religious history. In this book, the author argues that from the 1730s through the early twentieth century the religious worlds of an evolving American social order broadly appropriated the beliefs and initiatory practices of this all-male society.