TO GABONESE FREEMASONS WHO ARE ALSO FOLLOWERS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH! AUX GABONAIS FRANC-MAÇONS ET ADEPTES DE L’ÉGLISE CATHOLIQUE!
English version A reader asked us if, as we see in Gabon every Sunday, one could be inveterate Freemason and practicing Catholic. We answer him that the question of the conflict between Freemasonry and the Church (particularly the Catholic Church) is historical, doctrinal and still relevant. The relationship between these two institutions is based on several fundamental points of tension. The Catholic Church officially condemned Freemasonry in 1738 with the papal bull In eminenti of Clement XII. This position has been reaffirmed many times. The most recent document is the Declaration on Masonic Associations of 1983 (signed by Cardinal Ratzinger, future Benedict XVI). It stipulates that the principles of Freemasonry are irreconcilable with the doctrine of the Church. A Catholic who belongs to a Masonic lodge is considered to be in a state of serious sin and cannot receive communion. The conflict is not only political, it is philosophical. The Church considers that it holds the Tru...