by Midnight Freemason Contributor
WB Darin A. Lahners
This article is not for everyone. If you are not interested in the topic, then read no further. The purpose of the article is to make you think about how Freemasonry is impacted or could be impacted by the recent acknowledgment of the United States Government that UAP's are a real phenomenon or the possibility of an announcement that extraterrestrial life is visiting Earth. There are no right or wrong answers to the questions I am asking. These are my own thoughts and opinions, and they do not reflect any official doctrine or opinion of the Grand Lodge of Illinois or any other Masonic body that I am affiliated with. Also, if you came here via a google search looking for a conspiracy about Freemasons being shape-shifting reptilians, how we are hiding knowledge of UAP's, extraterrestrials, or any other conspiracy Freemasonry is accused of; I am afraid you will not find anything of the sort in the below article.
UAP’s or Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon (Commonly known as UFO’s or Unidentified Flying Objects) have been in the news recently culminating in a 60 minutes segment where the two naval aviators that encountered a white tic-tac looking object while on maneuvers off the coast of San Diego went on camera to discuss the encounter. This incident, better known as the Nimitz Incident, occurred in 2004. Subsequently, Forward-Looking Infrared Camera footage, radar data, and other corroborating data has been declassified regarding military encounters with these strange craft in both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. While many that study the phenomenon believe that disclosure by our government regarding the existence of extraterrestrial life is right around the corner, A report that is due to be presented to congress by the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force seems to only confirm that we know that what we are encountering is not a top-secret American Military project. Otherwise, we do not know what they are. According to the former head of the Pentagon's Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP), Luis "Lou" Elizondo; these craft exhibit five key observables or characteristics.
1. Anti-Gravity Lift - They are able to hover in one place or travel with no visible means of propulsion. They also have no visible flight surfaces like wings. They are able to stay aloft without the apparent need to refuel.
2. Sudden and Instantaneous Acceleration - The objects accelerate or change direction so quickly that no human pilot could survive the G-Forces associated with the movements. Most of our most advanced aircraft could survive 15 G's before disintegrating. The UAP in the Nimitz Incident was observed making erratic turns (One of the pilots involved in the incident, Commander Dave Fravor, has stated that its side to side movements reminded him of a ping pong ball) and tracked by radar operators on the USS Princeton, which was part of the Nimitz taskforce, at speeds of 3600 mph (60 miles per minute). As a frame of reference, that is over twice the maximum speed of the F/A - 18 Super Hornet jet that Commander Fravor was flying. (12o0 mph).
3. Hypersonic Velocities without signatures - These objects do not cause sonic booms or leave any vapor trails even though they are able to travel at incredible speeds.
4. Low Observability or Cloaking - Observation of the craft is difficult either visually, through radar, or other means. One of the Navy Pilots who was involved in an encounter off the East Coast in the summer of 2014 stated that he could not see the object through his helmet camera even though his radar told him it was there and he was able to lock onto the object.
5. Trans-Medium Travel - These objects have been observed traveling through different mediums like space, the atmosphere, underwater; sometimes all three during one encounter.
Obviously, this causes a lot of concerns from a national security standpoint. If there is a foreign adversary with this technology, then it stands to reason that the United States Military is behind the proverbial eight-ball when it comes to a potential confrontation because by all accounts, the UAPs can outperform our top of the line aircraft. For the sake of argument, let us assume that UAPs are not from a foreign adversary. From all accounts, based upon some of the documents that were released by the Kremlin at the end of the cold war, we know that the Russians have been encountering these craft as well. We also know that our allies have also encountered them, so it stands to reason that this is a worldwide phenomenon. If these objects are not man-made, then who made them, and what are they?
There are quite a few theories about where these craft come from assuming that they are not man-made. Some think that in the future humanity discovers time travel and that these are time machines coming from the future to visit the past. Others hypothesize that these are from another dimension or space in between dimensions. There is another belief that these objects are piloted by the fallen angels/demons/djinn which are referenced in many of the various world's religions volumes of sacred law. There are some that believe that these are part of a breakaway civilization that originated on earth. The most common belief is that these craft are extraterrestrial.
One of the landmarks of Freemasonry is the belief in a supreme being. As we all know, there is no Masonic God. A Freemason remains committed to the God of the religion he professes. We meet with a common respect for the idea of a supreme being, but that the definition of that being is a part of each individual’s religious belief, and we do not attempt to join religions together as a part of Freemasonry. Instead, we use the term Great or Supreme Architect of the Universe to recognize the concept of God in a non-denominational way. As part of this thought exercise, let us assume that there is an acknowledgment by the United States Government sometime in the not too distant future that what is being observed is not of this earth. Would the acknowledgment or discovery of extraterrestrial life impact Freemasonry? Many religions already have accepted the idea of life not just existing on earth. If the Great Architect allowed life to blossom on our planet, then it stands to reason that given the enormity of the universe, that the Great Architect would be capable of allowing it to do so throughout the universe. I do not see how Freemasonry is impacted by the discovery or acknowledgment of extraterrestrial life.
For the sake of this thought experiment, let me take this a step further. Let us assume that we make contact with an extraterrestrial race and communication with them is established. Taking it one step further, let us also assume that this race communicates that it has no knowledge of the Supreme Architect. The extraterrestrials do not believe in a supreme being, they have no religious dogma in their civilization, and they are adamant that during their vast travels throughout the universe, they have never encountered any other civilization that has a belief in a supreme being. Would this impact Freemasonry? We currently practice Freemasonry in and live in a world where there are many individuals that are atheists. I do not see how a technologically advanced atheistic civilization would impact Freemasonry. However, from my own personal perspective, my faith in a supreme being does not change just because another form of life tells me it should. If my faith is or my belief in the Supreme Architect is strong, then it does not matter if Mr. Gray the alien, or Mr. Grey my next-door neighbor tells me something contrary? Who is to say what the extraterrestrials are stating is the truth? Just because an extraterrestrial race is technologically superior does not mean that they are ethically or morally superior. It also could also mean that for some reason, the Great Architect has decided not to make itself known to them.
As we finish our thought experiment, let us assume that this extraterrestrial race that has made contact with us does believe in a supreme being, religious dogma and they have a volume of sacred law. However, their religion is completely foreign to humanity. Let us suppose that being a technologically advanced civilization, they have been observing humanity, our beliefs, our social structures, our governments, and our technological advances. Let us also suppose, for the sake of argument, that they have knowledge of Freemasonry through this awareness. Let us suppose that at least one of them might be interested enough in Freemasonry to petition a lodge for membership. Let me suggest that we do not understand much about our new extraterrestrial visitors. We do not know much about their history, their customs, or their society in general. If the individual entity in question has a belief in a supreme being, is of lawful age, and joins of their own free will and accord, and they prove themselves to be of good repute, would you allow them to join your lodge?
I am interested in your answers to that last question. Please comment below, email me or comment on social media. If you are interested in the UAP subject or similar high strangeness, I will shamelessly plug a project I do on the side with the other editor of The Midnight Freemasons blog and host of the Whence Came You podcast, Robert Johnson, called Beyond the 4th Veil. Robert and I discuss our encounters with UAP's in the first episode. The link to our YouTube channel is below:
~DAL
WB Darin A. Lahners is our co-managing Editor. He is a Past Master of St. Joseph Lodge No.970 in St. Joseph. He is also a plural member of Homer Lodge No. 199 (IL), where he is also a Past Master. He’s a member of the Scottish Rite Valley of Danville, a charter member of Illinois Royal Arch Chapter, Admiration Chapter No. 282 and is the current Secretary of the Illini High Twelve Club No. 768 in Champaign – Urbana (IL). You can reach him by email at darin.lahners@gmail.com.
Again we ignore the elephant in the room. We still have outdated gender landmarks and we're talking about the qualifications of beings that may not even have gender as we know it? Even asking these sort of questions will force us to grow up on some of the things we take for granted as human beings.
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