Secret societies in the true sense began with symbolic Freemasonry about the year 1717 in London (see MASONRY). The fantastic Rosicrucians are credited with something of the nature of a modern secret society, but the association, if such it was, can scarcely be said to have emerged into the clear light of history. Originally, the various guilds of the Middle Ages were in no sense secret societies in the modern acceptation of the term, though some have supposed that symbolic Freemasonry was gradually developed in those organizations. Likewise, the enemies of the religious order of Knights Templars maintained that the brothers of the Temple, while externally professing Christianity, were in reality pagans who veiled their impiety under orthodox terms to which an entirely different meaning was given by the initiated. In Christian times, such heresies as the Gnostic and Manichaean also claimed to possess a knowledge known only to the illuminated and not to be shared with the vulgar. The Eleusinian Mysteries, the secret teachings of Egyptian and Druid hierarchies, the esoteric doctrines of the Magian and Mithraic worshippers furnished material for such secret organizations. Some date societies of this kind back to Pythagoras (582-507 B.C.). Though secret societies, in the modern and technical sense, did not exist in antiquity, yet there were various organizations which boasted an esoteric doctrine known only to their members, and carefully concealed from the profane. Narrowing the definition still more to the technical meaning of secret societies ( societates clandestinae) in ecclesiastical documents, Archbishop Katzer in a Pastoral (20 Jan., 1895) says: "The Catholic Church has declared that she considers those societies illicit and forbidden which (1) unite their members for the purpose of conspiring against the State or Church (2) demand the observance of secrecy to such an extent that it must be maintained even before the rightful ecclesiastical authority (3) exact an oath from their members or a promise of blind and absolute obedience (4) make use of a ritual and ceremonies that constitute them sects." Origin Secret societies may be religious, scientific, political or social" (Kirchenlex., V, p. By this, they are distinguished from conspiracies and secret plots which are formed to attain a particular object through violent means. Secret societies were founded to promote certain ideal aims, to be obtained not by violent but by moral measures. In certain secret societies, the members are not allowed to know even the names of their highest officers. If such secret society has higher and lower degrees, the members of the higher degree must be equally careful to conceal their secrets from their brethren of a lower degree. Raich gives a more elaborate description: "Secret societies are those organizations which completely conceal their rules, corporate activity, the names of their members, their signs, passwords and usages from outsiders or the 'profane.' As a rule, the members of these societies are bound to the strictest secrecy concerning all the business of the association by oath or promise or word of honour, and often under the threat of severe punishment in case of its violation. Today, we understand by a secret society, a society with secrets, having a ritual demanding an oath of allegiance and secrecy, prescribing ceremonies of a religious character, such as the use of the Bible, either by extracts therefrom, or by its being placed an altar within a lodge-room, by the use of prayers, of hymns, of religious signs and symbols, special funeral services, etc." (Rosen, "The Catholic Church and Secret Societies," p. "By a secret society was formerly meant a society which was known to exist, but whose members and places of meetings were not publicly known. Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more all for only $19.99.Ī designation of which the exact meaning has varied at different times. Please help support the mission of New Advent and get the full contents of this website as an instant download.
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