The document summarizes and compares excerpts from two literary works that describe Masonic initiation ceremonies: an excerpt from War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy describing Pierre's initiation, and a passage presented as describing an initiation ceremony of the secret Masonic lodge Propaganda Due (P2) in Italy. It explains that Tolstoy researched actual Masonic rituals for his novel, while the P2 passage was described to the author Luigi DiFonzo by former members. The document aims to show how depictions of Freemasonry rituals can be found in literature.

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Initiations
by Bro.Nelson King,FPS
Editor and Vice President The Philalethes Society
This evening I want to present to you two Literary Initiations, or more correctly,
portions of two Masonic Initiation Ceremonies. One was written in the1860's and first
published in February of 1865, the other was written in the 1980's and first published
in January of 1983, 118 years later. One is epic novel, the other a exposé of
international intrigue, fraud, and dishonour. Which is which? What are their Titles?
Who where the Authors? Where did their information come from?
Let us begin.
In the meeting room, twelve members of the Lodge, dressed in satin ceremonial
robes and wearing black hoods reminiscent of those worm by members of the Klu
Klux Klan, sit in leather chairs at a red marble conference table. None of the black-clad
disciples, or wolf pack as they are also known, knows the identity of any of his
eleven brothers. The grand master is the only one who bares his face. In addition to
the twelve disciples, two masons stand post at the entrance to the meeting room,
their faces covered, each carries an axe.
The ceremony begins.
There is a uneven series of knocks at the door. "Your Worshipful," a disciple
announces. "A pagan wishes to enter."
The grand master strikes the table with one blow of his axe. Immediately the
oversized door swings open and slams against the inner wall. Two guards escort the
initiate to the center of the room where he faces twelve masons with his back to the
grand master's throne. The pagan as he is called, is wearing a plain black hood and
a blindfold. His identity is known to the grand master, but to no one else. He is asked
one question by each of the disciples, but the pagan does not answer; instead one of
the guards speaks for him.
Once all of the ritual questions about purpose and belief and reason for wanting to
become a member of this lodge are answered, the pagan is turned to face the grand
master, who asks. "Pagan, are you prepared to die in order to preserve the secrets of
this lodge?"
The initiate now answers for himself; "I am."

2. "Do you have the necessary quality of contempt for danger?"
"I do."
"Do you have the necessary quality of courage?"
"I am courageous."
"And, pagan, are you prepared to fight and perhaps face shame, even death, so that
we, who may become your brothers, may destroy this government and form a
presidency?"
"I am."
Then the blindfold is removed. It takes a moment for the initiate's vision to become
clear, because this is the first time since entering the compound that he has been
allowed to see light. The blindfold serves a purpose other than security. It also
represents the power of the lodge. "For without membership one is blind; with the
help of the order, however, the way is clear."
There follows three more pages, including an obligation, and then the initiate is
admitted, into the Order.
Now to the next book.
Having entered the courtyard of a large house where the lodge habits headquarters,
and having ascended a darken staircase, they entered a small well-lit anteroom
where they took off their cloaks without the aid of a servant. From there they passed
into another room. A man in strange attire appeared at the door. Willarski, stepping
toward him, said something to him in French, in an undertone and then went up toad
small wardrobe in which Pierre noticed garments such as he had never seen before.
Having taken a kerchief from the cupboard, Willarski bound Pierre's eyes with it and
tied it in a knot behind, catching some hairs painfully in the knot. Then he drew his
face down, kissed him, and taking him by the hand led him forward. The hairs tied in
the knot hurt Pierreand there were lines of pain on his face and a shamefaced smile.
His huge figure, with arms hanging down and with a puckered though smiling face
moved after Willarski with uncertain, timid steps.
Having led him about ten paces, Willarski stopped.
"Whatever happens to you," he said, "you must bear it all manfully if you have firmly
resolved to join our Brotherhood." Pierre nodded affirmatively. "When you hear a
knock at the door, you will uncover your eyes,” added Willarski. "I wish you courage
and success," and, pressing Pierre's hand he went out.
Left alone, Pierre went on smiling in the same way. Once or twice he shrugged his
shoulders and raised his hand to the kerchief, as if wishing to take it off, but let it
drop. The five minutes spent with his eyes bandaged seemed to him a hour. His
arms felt numb, his legs almost gave way, it seemed to him that he was tired out. He
experienced a variety of most complex sensations. He felt afraid of what would

3. happen to him and still more afraid of showing his fear. He felt curious to know what
was going to happen and what would be revealed to him; but most of all he felt joyful
that the moment had come when he would at last start on that path of regeneration
and the actively virtuous life of which he had been dreaming since he met Joseph
Alexeevich. Loud knocks were heard at the door. Pierre took the bandage off his
eyes and glanced around him. The room was in black darkness, only a small lamp
was burning inside something white. Pierre went nearer and saw that the lamp stood
on a black table on which lay an open book. The book was the Gospel, and the white
thing with the lamp inside was a human skull with its cavities and teeth. After reading
the first words of the Gospel: "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was
God," Pierre went around the table and saw a large open box filled with something. It
was a coffin with bones inside. He was not at all surprised by what he saw. Hoping to
enter on an entirely new life quite unlike the old one, he expected everything to be
unusual, even more unusual that what he was seeing. A skull, coffin, the Gospel -- it
seemed to him that he had expected all this and even more. Trying to stimulate his
emotions he looked around. "God, death, love, the brotherhood of man," he kept
saying to himself, associating these words with vague yet joyful ideas. The door
opened and someone came in.
By the dim light, to which Pierre had already become accustomed, he saw a rather
short man. Having evidently come from the light into the darkness, the man paused,
then moved with cautious steps toward the table, and placed on it his small leather-gloved
hands.
The short man had on a white leather apron which covered his chest and part of his
legs; he had on a kind of necklace above which rose a high white ruffle, outlining his
rather long face which was lit up from below.
"For what have you come hither?" Asked the newcomer, turning in Pierre's direction
at a slight rustle made by the latter. "Why have you, who do not believe in the truth of
the light and who have not seen the light, come here? What do you seek from us?
Wisdom, virtue, enlightenment?"
Further on in the ceremony Pierre is informed of the seven virtues, corresponding to
the seven steps of Solomon's Temple, which every Freemason, should cultivate in
himself. These virtues were;
1. Discretion, the keeping of the secrets of the Order.
2. Obedience to those of higher ranks in the Order.
3. Morality.
4. Love of mankind.
5. Courage.
6. Generosity.
7. The love of death.

4. "In the seventh place, try, by the frequent thought of death," the Rhetor said, "to bring
yourself to regard it not as a dreaded foe, but as a friend that frees the soul grown
weary in the labours of virtue from this distressful life, and leads it to its place of
recompense and peace."
There follows about eight more pages of the initiation ceremony, and Pierre is
admitted in to the Order.
Do you know from which books these two passages where taken?
The first may surprise you, as it is the initiation ceremony of Propaganda Due, better
know as P-2 the clandestine lodge of freemasons in Italy. And misquoted from the
book "St. Peter's Banker: Michele Sindona," written by, LuigiDiFonzo, who says that
the ceremony, and obligation, which are in his book where described to him by two
former members of P-2, including Lieutenant Colonel Luciano Rossi, one-time
member of P-2's execution squad, who committed suicide six weeks after being
interviewed.
The second passage comes from Book Five of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace. Tolstoy
took the ceremonies of the Freemasons from his study of books and manuscripts in
the rich collection at the Rumyantsev Museum in Moscow. In a letter to his wife in the
autumn of 1866 he wrote. "After drinking my coffee I went to the Rumyantsev
Museum and sat there till three o'clock reading very interesting Masonic manuscripts.
I can't describe to you why the reading produced on me a depression I have-not been
able to get rid of all day. What is distressing is that all those Masons where fools."
"You may wonder why Tolstoy was so interested in the Masonic movement and
what connection it has with the main thread of the novel. In reality he was profoundly
sensitive to the fundamental wrongness and consequent rottenness of the system
under which everything depended on the wish and whim of an autocrat, and he felt a
keen interest in the group which -- through often rashly and with mixed motives --
aimed at overthrowing the established order and replacing it by a better one. That
this is not clearly expressed in the novel, was no doubt, due to the censor."
Brethren, the forgoing statement was made by Aylmer Maude in the Translator’s
Preface, to War and Peace.
Brethren, this evening I have presented to you two Literary Initiations, I am sure that
there are many more to be found. These two books can be founding any Public
Library or any book store, and maybe one of the many reasons, why the general
public gets so confused as to what is, or is not Freemasonry, just as you and I
understand that these two stories do not contain our Ritual and that we do not
recognize the participants as Freemasons. But that is another topic for an other time.
Tonight I just wanted to show that Masonic Education does not have to be dull or
boring, and that it can be found in great literature or even in the comics, for as Little
Orphan Annie, said about Daddy Warbucks, "With all his mines an' oil wells in the
orient -- Daddy's been out there hunnerts o' times -- but he says one time he travelled

5. to the East, but didn’t make a dime, meant more to him than all th'other trips he'll ever
make -- I don't get --do you?"
Copyright by The Philalethes Society. All rights reserved.