Church’s ‘significant concerns’ about Christian Freemasons

 The Church of England has “significant concerns” about Christians being Freemasons, a senior bishop said at the start of the Church’s General Synod.

Stephen Hogg, a lay member, said events to mark the 300th anniversary of the United Grand Lodge of England had taken place in cathedrals, and asked whether they were considered “compatible” with the Church’s “position on Freemasonry and Christianity”.

A motion passed in 1987 endorsed a report which identified “a number of very fundamental reasons to question the compatibility”.

The Bishop of Coventry, Dr Christopher Cocksworth, said that while “significant concerns” had been identified no “formal recommendation” had been made. Among the events last year was a dedication service in Durham Cathedral in September and a thanksgiving service in Canterbury cathedral following a £300,000 restoration donation.