The ''Letter to U.S. Bishops Concerning Masonry'' was a letter sent on April 19, 1985, by Bernard Francis Cardinal Law,

Archbishop of Boston The Archdiocese of Boston ( la, Archidiœcesis Bostoniensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in the New England region of the United States. Its territorial remit encompasses the whole of ...

and chairman of the Committee on Pastoral Research and Practices of the

United States Catholic Conference The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

. The letter was intended to answer confusion about the admissibility of

Masonic Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...

membership. In 1974 a letter was written from the

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from Heresy in Christianity, heresy and is ...

(CDF) leading to some Catholics claiming that certain Masonic lodges were open to

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. The confusion lasted after the publication of the CDF document Declaration on Masonic Associations which reiterated the ban on joining any Masonic lodge. The ''Letter to U.S. Bishops'' reiterated the Church's ban on all types of Freemasonry,"principles of Masonry are incompatible with Christian faith and practice whether or not a specific Masonic organization happens to be engaging in activity against the church." From Introduction t
Letter of April 19, 1985, to U.S. Bishops Concerning Masonry
/ref> attaching reports analyzing the religious compatibility of Masonic and Catholic theologies. It is notable that it concentrated on the "naturalistic" beliefs of Freemasons rather than their alleged

anti-clerical Anti-clericalism is opposition to religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historical anti-clericalism has mainly been opposed to the influence of Roman Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secularism, which seeks to ...

activities.{{Citation needed, date=December 2018

External resources

Letter from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to all U.S. Bishops on the Clarification of the Status of Catholics becoming Freemasons - Catholic Culture

References

Catholicism and Freemasonry Catholic Church in the United States Freemasonry in the United States United States Conference of Catholic Bishops 1985 documents Anti-Masonry 1985 in Christianity