I know that on the Presidents' Day we celebrate the great leaders that our country has known and well we should. Our nation has received a great amount of common grace through their lives and at times exceptional leadership and vision to make and keep our country one of the greatest expressions of freedom in human history.
However, like all great leaders, each one had their identifying flaws. Our first, and perhaps our greatest president, George Washington was no exception. He was not only a model military general, but a profound statesman and self-effacing leader. Not only was his leadership admired by those he commanded but it was the model for the great Liberators of Latin America as well, Simon Bolivar and Jose San Martin fancied Washington as the model and first great "Liberator" from the "old world powers". Their great admiration of him can easily be seen in their "General's" attire and uniform dress. But one little know fact also held in common by these famous leaders of the "new world" was their participation in the mysteries of "Free Masonry" of which George Washington historically remains their most famous member and advocate.
You may not know what "Free Masonry" is. Historically, it's origins are vague, but most think that they began around the 16th and 17th centuries. According to Wikipedia,
"
Freemasonry uses the metaphors of operative stonemasons' tools and implements, against the allegorical backdrop of the building of King Solomon's Temple, to convey what has been described by both Masons and critics as "a system of morality veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols."
To understand the spiritual teaching of what may at best be classified, as a "spiritualistic mystery religion" you need to understand something of its basic tenets. Let me link you to an article by Dr. Peter Jones, who is an expert on the first century mystery religion called "Gnosticism" and its impact on Christianity, in an article on the Freemasonry at his website called
"TruthXchange". The article I refer you to is taken from a larger series called
"Partakers of the Divine Nature" an examination of the pagan influence on Christian thought and its' implications.
Furthermore if you are interested in reading about George Washington and his connection to Free Masonry, you will want to read the article entitled
"George Washington's Masonic Connection" taken from a larger series of articles on the same site entitled, "The Mystical George Washington".
It is not my intent to dampen anyone's appreciation for our first and most famous president on Presidents' Day, but to illustrate just how indebted we are as a nation, to the grace of God in His providential care for us. It can never be overlooked that our nation was formed from the fires of the greatest outpouring of spiritual awakening that the western world has ever seen in the revivals of Whitfield, Wesley and Edwards in the 1740's. In less than 20 years the desire for a free nation, independence from tyranny and justice for all spread, mixed with the courage of personal sacrifice to produce the "United States of America". We must wonder and praise the Divine purposes God ordained in the use of frail men to bring His own Name glory through the establishment of our still, great nation.
