THE YORK RITE OF FREEMASONRY
Joey A. Villegas
Did you know that the form of Freemasonry we have here in the Philippines is that of the American York Rite system? That’s right. The York Rite is not just an appendant body that one optionally joins after becoming a Master Mason. It is actually the type
and form of Freemasonry that we all have come to know in our jurisdiction to be regular.
Many people mistake the York Rite to mean only those degrees that succeed the first three degrees of Freemasonry. That is because the first three, also called Symbolic or Ancient Craft degrees, are controlled by the governing body called the Grand Lodge. The succeeding degrees of the York Rite system, however, are controlled by separate individual governing bodies of their own.
Many Master Masons choose to continue their York Rite journey by eventually applying for the degrees officially under the umbrella of these separate York Rite bodies, the primary intent of which is to broaden their Masonic knowledge and understanding…
To read more, download the primer below.
