The Jews and Masonry in the United States Before 1810

The Jewish role in the formation and leadership of Scottish Rite Masonry
-- by: Samuel Oppenheim, 1910-02, source: American Jewish Historical Quarterly, Vol 19
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MHP Editor's Preface

About this article

This article, written by a Jewish historian, describes the role of prominent Jews and their congregations in the formation and leadership of Masonic lodges prior to, during and after the American revolution.

During the war, several of them retreated from the coastal cities of New York and Charleston to the relative safety of Philadelphia, meeting place of the Continental Congress and the first capital of the United States.

After the war, leading Jewish Masons including Moses M. Hays and his deputies founded the "Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite" at Charleston, the largest Masonic order in America, under charter from their European colleagues (see chapter 9).

Rabbi Issac M. Wise, himself a Mason, was the leader of "Reform Judaism" which is now the largest Jewish sect in America. In his newsletter The Israelite, he wrote:

"Masonry is a Jewish institution whose history, degrees, charges, passwords, and explanations are Jewish from the beginning to the end, with the exception of only one by-degree and a few words in the obligation... It is impossible to be well posted in Masonry without having a Jewish teacher…”

-- Isaac M. Wise, The Israelite, 03-Aug-1855, pg. 28

The article is divided geographically rather than chronologically, and is somewhat difficult to follow since many of the players mentioned appear in several places. It contains copious footnotes and detail, and has been reproduced here in its entirety. For easier online reading, section headings have been added that do not appear in the original text, which is available at the source listed above.