Being true to the principles of Regular Freemasonry implies that we recognize God, the Supreme Being, referred to traditionally in Freemasonry as The Great Architect of the Universe.

Regular Grand Lodges remain consistent to their aim of initiation in requiring of their members, through belief in a Supreme Being, a spiritual choice which is neither defined nor made explicit:  each may apply to The Great Architect of the Universe, in other words God, his own personal concept or one offered by a particular religion.

This basic idea of Freemasonry may not suit materialists who refuse any approach to the sacred, usually confusing it in their minds with dogmatism, theology, sects and churches. However, if you see yourself as a materialist and view mankind and its role in the Universe from this perspective, it goes without saying that traditional Freemasonry – of which initiation as a means to spiritual development is the central theme – is not for you.  It is also obvious that Freemasonry that is authentic cannot have anti-religious motives. On the contrary, it guarantees its members total intellectual freedom in refusing any definition of God and leaving it to each member to decide for himself what The Great Architect of the Universe is or is not. This is quite simply the wisest approach: words such as God, Supreme Being and Great Architect of the Universe, can cover all manner of ideas or perceptions as to the nature of the Deity, individual concepts which in some cases are purely merely intuitive and fail to fit into any definition; and in others based on a precise faith founded on commitment and experience. 

All men of goodwill can feel at home in Regular Freemasonry, provided they have some spiritual conviction, whatever it may be. Some might regret that traditional Freemasonry may thus turn away a great many honourable men of good faith whose ideals are worthy of respect; but these men have chosen another way of thinking which may suit another form of “masonry” corresponding more closely to their ideas: one concerned more with the issues of the outside world and that does not always resist the temptation to get involved; also one that accepts those with spiritual and materialist attitudes on an equal footing. Understandable and in itself laudable, but the term “masonry” has come to be used for very different things and it is not traditional Freemasonry as such. Authentic Freemasonry is neither a religion, nor a substitute for it. It has no creed, announces no revelation of its own, has neither dogma nor spiritual leaders and offers no sacrament. Furthermore, it does not seek to replace religions or the churches. Its ideal is to offer each of its members, through initiation, a more intense approach to his own religion or spiritual search.

R.L. Semper Fidelis, n° 26 – O. Charleroi