Hollywood’s Disinformation on Freemasonry by Margaret Galitzin

Movie Reviews

Hollywood’s Disinformation on Freemasonry

National Treasure reviewed by Margaret C. Galitzin

Perhaps some readers were surprised – as I was – by the open references to Masonic ‘secrets’ in the movie National Treasure, which I recently viewed. This simply never used to happen in Hollywood films. For decades we have heard every dirty secret – real and imagined – about the Mafia, Egyptians, Aztecs, Indians, etc, but virtually nothing about the initiation rites and brotherhood of Freemasonry. For all practical purposes, the secret rites and purposes of Masonry simply did not exist for Hollywood, although everyone knows they do.

The movie propaganda boasts of opening the secrets of Freemasonry

Is Freemasonry experiencing a ‘rapprochement’ to the modern world, a coming-out-of-the-closet to reveal all their long-hidden occult customs and practices? I could not understand the new trend in blockbuster films like National Treasure and Angels and Demons.

Recently I came across a blog called ‘Vigilant Citizen’ that supplied a satisfactory answer in a review of the two above-named firms. Unfortunately, our ‘vigilant citizen’ has no name to which I can credit the excerpts from his article I will cite below, so I will simply refer to him as VC from now on. Since VC has not fallen for the new amicable face of Masonry, perhaps he wants to remain anonymous to avoid any retaliation.

I do not agree with his whole analysis; for example, he wrongly supports the notion of the Knights Templar, a great crusading order, as followers of an occult Gnostic doctrine. But I thought I would share several of his more interesting points to shed light on the new road Hollywood is treading, so that our vigilant Catholic public does not naively follow along.

A calculated openesss

Why are secret societies suddenly at the center of movie intrigues, VC asks, especially since many people in the movie industry are notoriously part of those secret societies? Why are those societies exposing themselves to the normal movie-goer, who for the most part is hardly aware of their existence? Isn’t secrecy an important requisite for the survival of those clandestine organizations?

This is his answer:

I believe an important change is taking place in the communication strategies of these elite societies. The advent of the digital age, where any individual can create and publish content has rendered the secrecy of such organizations impossible. Self-published websites, books, documentaries, DVDs and other media outlets have exposed many secrets of Masonry and other secret organizations.

Nicholas Cage carries Lucifer's torch on the quest for illumination

Information which could only be found in rare and exclusive books is now a Google search away. I heard of some Masons who were astonished by the level of knowledge possessed by the ‘profane.’ Those types of Masonic scholars, who aren’t actually initiated into the Brotherhood, were very rare not too long ago. Since the digital switch is irreversible (and completed), occult orders have adapted their strategy to this new context (they probably saw this coming years ago). The strategy is: “If they have to know about us, we’ll tell them what to know.”

Through Hollywood and best-selling books, secret societies are being introduced to the average Joe but with one big condition: The public is given a distorted, caricatured and romantic portrayal of secret societies. We are introducing in pop culture a mythical lore around secret societies, associating them with fascinating symbols, treasures hunts and exotic adventures. The viewers believe they are actually learning facts about Freemasonry or the Illuminati, and they leave the movies with a sense of wonder, fascination and admiration.

Those feelings are, however, based on totally erroneous facts, dubious explanations and fairy tale story telling. After viewing those movies, the viewer has a positive predisposition concerning those orders and will be less inclined to believe and research conspiracies related to them.

National Treasure – a disinformation session

National Treasure - produced by Walt Disney Pictures – is perhaps one of the best known efforts to offer the whole family a “nice, wholesome, Masonic disinformation session.” The movie revolves around a treasure hunt based on clues left by prominent Masons on the Declaration of Independence. VC explains:

As the grandfather tells his story his eye is transposed over the Pyramid of Gizeh

The movie starts with the main character (played by Nicholas Cage) as a little boy, searching for information about his family history. The boy’s grandfather comes in and gives the boy (and the audience) a totally false and distorted story of the Knights Templars and the Freemasons.

These are some of the claims: The Knights Templars found under the Temple of Solomon a great treasure of [ancient manuscripts, gold coins, art works and artifacts] which was lost for a thousand years. They’ve brought the treasure back to Europe.

Let me insert here an observation that this supposed treasure is a legend probably spread by the Masons themselves, never supported by any historical facts.

The Templars decided to smuggle the treasure into the United States and changed their name to the Freemasons.

Again, this is not objective. The Templars never changed their name to the Freemasons, and the order was closed by Pope Clement V in 1311, more than 400 years before the U.S. was founded.

The Freemasons are not an all-American institution, as the movie insinuates. It is a European secret society dating from the Middle-Ages, who opened lodges in North America to expand its reach. The goal of Masonry is not to “protect a great Templar treasure,” it is an ancient order of builders who incorporated into its rites, over the years, teachings of the Templars, Rosicrucians and the Illuminati.

As Catholics know, the real goal of these occult societies is establishing a universal republic, a new society that lives in peace indifferent to God. For this reason, they hate and fight the One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church, the major obstacle that stood in the way of their plan.

The hero of the movie is on a quest for illumination and the riddles he must solve represent the initiations one must pass before accessing higher knowledge. This all-important treasure is symbolically buried under Trinity Church in Philadelphia, in a hidden cave which is dark and cavernous.

Ben Gates has to light up the torch of illumination to find his way to the hidden knowledge. The torch represents the Luciferian doctrine of American Freemasonry instituted by Albert Pike. In the highest degrees, Lucifer is taught to be the “light bearer,” the god of Good who shows to path to illumination.

“Its [high degrees of Scottish Rite] religion is Manichean Neo-Gnosticism, teaching that the divinity is dual and that Lucifer is the equal of Adonay, with Lucifer, the God of Light and Goodness struggling for humanity against Adonay the God of Darkness and Evil” (Domenico Margiotta 33°, Adriano Lemmi).

“When the Mason learns that the key to the warrior on the block is the proper application of the dynamo of living power, he has learned the mystery of his craft. The seething energies of Lucifer are in his hands and before he may step onwards and upwards he must prove his ability to properly apply (this) energy” (Manly P. Hall, Lost Keys of Freemasonry).

Let us return to the story. Ben Gates, with his Luciferian torch finds the path to illumination and obtains access to an infinite source of knowledge. During the scene where the heroes look around the treasure room, they find very significant items: Scrolls from the Library of Alexandria, Egyptian statues and other artifacts from the Antiquity. All of those objects refer to the occult knowledge that has been communicated through the ages through secret societies.

Masonic ring of FBI inspector

At the end of the movie, Ben Gates speaks with the FBI inspector and begs him not to send him to jail. Flashing his Masonic ring, the representative of the law says “someone has to go to jail” for the stealing of the Declaration of Independence. The next scene shows the “bad guys” (the non-Masons) getting arrested, even if they did not actually steal the Declaration. We see here a blatant example of the Masonic oath superseding the law. The FBI agent willfully ignored the law to help his Masonic brother.

The movie had a Hollywood ending – the heroes fall in love (I’m not sure they marry since that isn’t necessarily part of the modern happy ending) and get rich from their part of the found National Treasure. As VC points, “There’s no esoteric meaning to this, it is just a sappy Disney ending.” The plot does not really matter anyway. It was just a window dressing for the disinformation that is being spread about Secret Societies.

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Posted June 4, 2010

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