« Sur les rites funéraires de la franc-maçonnerie belge du XIX e siècle »

During the 19 th century, death was a conflict between the Belgian Freemasonry and the Catholic Church. After the episcopal condemnation of 1837, Masons were denied the privilege to receive their last rites and have a religious ceremony at their funeral. As a result, they started to organize civil funerals, an attitude developed in parallel to spirituality, then in relation to the choice between agnosticism and atheism. The funerals that took place in the Masonic lodges accompanied this process. The Masonic funeral ritual simultaneously was identified as a healing ritual and a rite of passage.... Mehr ...