Freemasonry in Lebanon

Freemasonry in Lebanon started with the charter of a Lodge by the Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1861, and has expanded to include Lodges working in multiple languages (including Arabic and French) and chartered under multiple jurisdictions and streams.

History

The first Masonic Lodge to be erected in Lebanon was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1861 and was given the name Palestine Lodge No. 415. This lodge was operating in Beirut but then it became dormant in 1895.[1] Four other Scottish lodges were chartered in Lebanon prior to the First World War. The Grand Orient of France chartered a lodge in 1869, working in Arabic. Two further lodges followed, but none survived the First World War.

Other new lodges formed prior to World War I were a lodge at Beirut under the Ottoman Grand Lodge (later the Grand Lodge of Turkey), and a lodge under the National Grand Lodge of Egypt, erected about 1914. A number of other Egyptian-warranted lodges were chartered thereafter, and after the First World War these were formed into a District Grand Lodge. By the end of World War Two, these lodges were extinct, merged, or had changed jurisdictional authority.

The first Grand Lodge of New York-chartered lodge was the Syrio-American Lodge #1, formed in 1924 by returning American-Lebanese immigrants. Several further lodges were erected prior to World War II, and subsequently. With the exception of one lodge originally erected in Syria, all New York chartered lodges in its Syria-Lebanon District (twelve in total) have operated in recent times. During the Lebanese Civil War, most lodges became dormant, although at least Syrio-American lodge No. 1 continued to meet intermittently and still exists today and is considered among the most active Lodges in the country. Since the cessation of the civil war, five of the five Scottish lodges have re-commenced work. All the New York lodges revived subsequent to the civil war and currently twelve lodges are operating in Lebanon. It is worth noting, that at one time, one additional mainstream lodge was chartered in Lebanon under the Grand Orient of Italy called Fraternità Italo-Libanse, erected at Jounieh in 1989, but this lodge lost its charter in the 1990s.

In October 2010, the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia chartered their first lodge in Lebanon, Phoenix Lodge 1001 in Al Fanar, Beirut, and on June 2014, the newest Lodge under the Grand Lodge of Scotland was chartered, Lodge Pythagoras 1841, raising the number of regular Masonic Lodges in Lebanon to 18 Lodges divided among three Grand Lodges: The Grand Lodge of NY (10 Lodges) Grand Lodge of Scotland (7 Lodges) and Grand Lodge of DC (1 Lodge).

The Grand Lodge of Scotland, District of Lebanon

The first Masonic Lodge to be erected in Lebanon was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1861 and was given the name Palestine Lodge No. 415. This lodge was operating in Beirut but then it became dormant in 1895. The District of Lebanon itself was consecrated on 27th June 2013 with the appointment of a District Grand Master. The newest Lodge chartered in the District is Lodge Pythagoras No. 1841, which was consecrated in July 2014 and is dedicated to Masonic research.

The 7 Lodges operating today under the District Grand Lodge of Lebanon are: [2][3]

Peace Lodge No. 908, Beirut Kadisha Lodge No. 1002, Beirut Zahle Lodge No. 1047, Zahle El-Mizab Lodge No. 1130, Tripoli Mount Lebanon Lodge No. 1312, Tripoli Harmony Lodge No. 1830, Zahle Lodge Pythagoras No. 1841, Beirut

The Grand Lodge of New York, District of Syria-Lebanon

It has 10 Lodges operating in Lebanon.[4][5]

The first Grand Lodge of New York-chartered lodge was Syrio-American Lodge #1, formed in 1924 by returning American-Lebanese immigrants. With the exception of one Lodge originally erected in Syria, all New York chartered lodges in its Syria-Lebanon District have operated in recent times. During the Lebanese Civil War, most lodges became dormant, although at least Syrio-American lodge No. 1 continued to meet intermittently and still exists today and is considered among the most active Lodges in the country. All the New York lodges revived subsequent to the civil war and currently ten lodges are operating in Lebanon.

Syrio-American Lodge No. 1 operates in English, in Beirut. New York Lodge No. 2 operates in Arabic, in Beirut. Fakhruddin Lodge No. 3 operates in Arabic, in Beirut. Souleiman Lodge No. 5 operates in Arabic, in Amioun. El Berdawni Lodge No. 7 operates in Arabic, in Zahle. El Marj Lodge No. 8 operates in Arabic, in Beirut. Turbol Lodge No. 9 operates in Arabic, in Tripoli. Lebanon Lodge No. 10 operates in English, in Beirut. Ani Lodge No. 11 operates in Armenian, in Beirut. Three Pillars Lodge No. 12 operates in French, in Beirut.

The Grand Lodge of Washington, D.C.

It has one Lodge working in Lebanon, Phoenix Lodge No. 1001 in Beirut.[6][7]

References

  1. ↑ Lebanon, EyeWatch. "The Masonic Regularity Watch in Lebanon". Freemasonry. Retrieved 22 October 2011.
  2. ↑ http://grandlodgescotland.com/grand-lodge-171/structure/district-grand-lodges/534-district-grand-lodge-of-lebonan
  3. ↑ http://www.grandlodgescotland.com/
  4. ↑ http://nymasons.org/districts-lodges/district-grand-lodge-syria-lebanon/
  5. ↑ http://nymasons.org/
  6. ↑ http://www.dcgrandlodge.org/
  7. ↑ http://www.dcgrandlodge.org/lodge-locator.html