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Masonry Unmasked: An Insider Reveals the Secrets of the Lodge, by John Salza





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Freemasonry Watch
http://www.freemasonrywatch.org/masonryunmasked.html

New Books

September 13, 2006

Masonry Unmasked: An Insider Reveals the Secrets of the Lodge
$14.95 / Inventory No. T278, paperback, 222 pages
By John Salza

A lifelong Catholic, John Salza was initiated into Wisconsin’s Masonic Lodge, lured by the group’s camaraderie and philanthropies. Yet, as he rose through the ranks, he became increasingly troubled by its dangerous teachings, mysterious rituals, and complete incompatibility with the Catholic Faith.

Now, former Freemason, Shriner, and Lodge officer, John Salza reveals the astounding truths about what’s really going on behind the Lodge door. For the first time, get a surprising, inside look at the group’s controversial rituals, practices and philosophies, from one of their own - secrets sworn to be upheld under the threat of death!

Essential for anyone affiliated with or considering the Lodge, their families, and their friends, this eye-opening book presents evidence on:

· The deception in recruitment, initiation, and covenant oaths
· The problematic ideology of Freemasonry and relativism
· How their spiritual beliefs contradict Catholicism in particular - and Christianity in general
· Masonic conspiracies in the judicial system, schools, and government, and more!

Complete with a discussion of symbolism, relevant Church documents, papal decrees, extensive references and a comprehensive glossary, Masonry Unmasked: An Insider Reveals the Secrets of the Lodge is the definitive resource for understanding American Freemasonry from a Catholic perspective. Step inside the Masonic Temple, and unlock the secrets of the Lodge!

To order, call Our Sunday Visitor at 1.800.348.2440 or visit their website at www.osv.com.

About the Author

With the same thorough, engaging and convincing style John Salza uses as an attorney, his books provide answers and insights to the core of our faith that anyone can understand. A popular Catholic apologist, Salza is the author of The Biblical Basis for the Catholic Faith and creator of www.ScriptureCatholic.com, an apologetics website.

John Salza

Catholic Apologist, Author and Creator of www.ScriptureCatholic.com

==========

John was born into a Catholic family on 30 November 1967 and reborn in the waters of baptism on 7 January 1968. John attended Catholic grade school and high school and grew up having a strong relationship with God.

During his college years, John began to pursue secular interests and grew lukewarm in his faith. While he always believed the Roman Catholic Church was Christ’s true Church, John fell away in his practice of the faith. Like so many in his generation, John was the product of poor catechetical formation during the years following the close of the Second Vatican Council.

After he graduated from law school, a family member introduced John to Freemasonry. The Masonic Lodge was presented to John as a means of establishing special contacts in the business world. As a young attorney, such an idea appealed to John. John also had no idea that the Catholic Church opposed his membership in the Lodge.

Because John was a professing Catholic, the Masons who recruited John told him that the Church had once opposed Freemasonry for political reasons, but had since changed its position. Seeking to resolve this potential controversy, John contacted his parish priest about joining the Masons. The priest told John that the Church had no objection to Catholic membership in Freemasonry. Given the priest’s advice and John’s perception of Masonry as a harmless, fraternal order, John believed that there was no need to further investigate the question.

For the next three years, Freemasonry became a significant part of John’s life. John became a member of two Masonic lodges and served one of them as a lodge officer. John also became a 32nd degree Freemason in the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry and a member of the Shriners. John’s Grand Lodge also conferred upon him the “Proficiency Card.” This is a rare credential that designated John as an expert in Masonic ritual and authorized him to teach the rituals to Masons and Masonic lodges. John received this credential faster than anyone in the history of his State of Wisconsin.

Admittedly, John had some lingering concerns about his Masonic membership while he was a Mason. The Lodge’s rituals would use strange names for God, require its members to pray aloud around a common altar, swear secret oaths with blood-curdling penalties, and make repeated references to resurrection and eternal life without any mention of Jesus Christ. These were all troubling to John. In fact, John specifically prayed before every Lodge meeting that his participation would not be offensive to God. Nevertheless, the friendships and camaraderie John enjoyed in the Lodge temporarily dulled his spiritual misgivings, and John was able to suppress his concerns for a period of time.

During this time, John began to fervently pray the Rosary on a daily basis. Being troubled in his soul about Freemasonry, John asked the Blessed Mother to intercede for him and show him the way of truth. Illumined with the desire for truth, John began to research the Catholic Church’s teachings on Freemasonry. John soon discovered nearly 300 years of papal condemnations of Masonry. He also discovered that the Church’s most recent condemnation of Masonry was issued during the pontificate of Pope John Paul II.

In this declaration, the Church stated that Catholic membership in Freemasonry is a mortal sin. Further, John learned that the Church’s opposition was based on theological (not political) reasons to which John could immediately relate. (The fruits of John’s research are in his best-selling book, Masonry Unmasked, the leading resource on the question of Catholic membership in Freemasonry.)

During his research, John would also encounter Protestant objections to Freemasonry. As he studied the Protestant position, he also discovered much opposition to Catholicism as well. This troubled John as he continued his research. Finally, John realized that he needed to expand his search for truth. He was no longer trying to uncover only the truth about Freemasonry; John was seeking to understand the truth about his Catholic faith as well.

John began to study both Catholic and Protestant theology in depth. This included the study of Scripture, the early Church Fathers, and the medieval theologians. John also studied both Catholic and Protestant apologetics dealing with the major areas of disagreement (the Church, the papacy, sola Scriptura, the sacraments, Mary and the saints, justification, salvation, purgatory, etc.). John read book after book.

The more John studied both sides with an open mind, the more he began to see the truth of the Catholic faith and rejoice in the gift his parents had given him in baptism. In 1999, John renounced his membership in Freemasonry. Further, in thanksgiving to God, John devoted himself to Catholic apologetics so that he could share with others what he had discovered.

Since 1999, John has been a well-respected and highly-skilled Catholic apologist. He is the author of the following books by Our Sunday Visitor: The Biblical Basis for the Catholic Faith (2005); Masonry Unmasked: An Insider Reveals the Secrets of the Lodge (2006); The Biblical Basis for the Papacy (2007); and, The Biblical Basis for the Eucharist (2008).

John is a frequent speaker on Catholic radio, appearing on such shows as Catholic Answers Live, Kresta in the Afternoon, and The Drew Mariani Show. John also has his own radio show on Relevant Radio called “Relevant Answers,” a daily apologetics spot on how to explain and defend the Catholic faith using the Bible. John is the creator of www.ScriptureCatholic.com, one of the most popular Catholic apologetics sites on the Internet. John is a strong proponent of restoring the ecclesiastical traditions of the Church, including the Traditional Latin Mass which he and his family attend regularly.

John holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (Magna Cum Laude) from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, and a Doctor of Law degree (Cum Laude) from the University of Wisconsin Law School. John is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, the American Catholic Lawyers Association, the National Italian-American Bar Association, the Justinian Society of Lawyers and the Saint Joseph’s Society.


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