Hunting the Lost Symbol Page #7

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to spy on other countries ...

terrorist groups

and drug cartels.

In the process,

Echelon's computers ...

capture almost

every electronic conversation around the world.

Echelon intercepts allegedly

satellite communications ...

communications

using satellites.

Therefore, whether governmental,

corporate, encrypted or not ...

the claim is that Americans,

the Defense Agency ...

accompanies all types

of conversations.

Over the years the Echelon system was

accused of attacking not only the criminals.

During the Vietnam War, the system

Echelon spying on antiwar protests.

In 1990, several European governments

claimed that Echelon ...

was used

for economic espionage.

It is a claim refuted by the CIA.

I say that for my birthday

at the intelligence ...

never received orders

nor would accept ...

to collect information

on a foreign private company ...

to deliver

to a private company here.

Conspiracies arise

of secrecy and suspicion ...

and no one was at the center of the controversy

controversies such as the Freemasons.

In "The Lost Symbol,"

Dan Brown portrays the Freemasons ...

as some of the men

most powerful country.

Is that true?

The fact is that 14 former presidents

Americans were known Masons ...

almost a third of the total.

In addition, at least 35 ministers

the Supreme Court ...

as well as numerous parliamentary

Masonic vows sworn to follow.

Some members of Masonic

in Congress ...

included Senator

Trent Lott of Mississippi ...

Congressman Eric Cantor,

Virginia ...

and Congressman Joe Wilson

of South Carolina

It's amazing how the story

Freemasonry has been driven by ...

and big names

we recognize ...

have been considered

members of the fraternity.

In the book, Brown describes Freemasonry

which is also called "Office" ...

goes back to the Masons who built

the great cathedrals of Europe.

What the book does not address is that for

these architectural building ...

Masons needed to understand

scientific methods of the time ...

including physical,

geometry and mathematics.

This intimate connection

with the power of religious and secular ...

allowed the Masons to develop

a unique perspective as a group.

Freemasonry is not interested

on dogma ...

because it is not

a religious organization.

Do not have a creed of faith.

It is a way for those who have

dogmas and creeds of faith ...

can meet

as human beings and brothers.

The group adopted as symbols ...

instruments

and terminology of his trade.

His universal signal includes

a square and compass.

States are described as apprentices

or Master Masons.

Meetings are held

in a "store" ...

word derived

of the temporary buildings ...

the builders created

in place that would work.

The teacher of the book is taken to

George Washington Masonic Memorial.

Such a place exists?

Yes.

It is a 100m tall building

in Alexandria, Virginia.

It was built in the 20s

to honor George Washington ...

who was the Master Mason

the local store.

In the book, Professor Langdon compares

Masons to a modern ...

in which both keep

their methods and secret rituals.

The Masons are not

a secret society.

They are a society with secrets.

If everyone knew the handshakes

or the secret words ...

everyone would take advantage

Brotherhood of ...

and it pursues the Fraternity

for over 200 years.

In "The Lost Symbol,"

Brown claims that Freemasonry ...

was popular to take many

founders of the United States.

Brown is correct.

These men and their ancestors

came from Europe ...

where society was torn apart

by religious war.

They were determined not to commit

the same mistake in this new country.

For many of the founders,

Freemasonry was ...

an important part

of their lives.

I think it was an extension

ideas of the Enlightenment.

The age of reason.

Basically, trying to take

society of the old methods ...

and put it in what they thought was

a better way for the future.

Today we consider

freedom of expression ...

the cornerstone

of the Constitution ...

but in the eighteenth century,

speak so could result in death.

This forced the Masons to meet

secretly in cellars and taverns.

The Masons speak

in democracy, freedom ...

self--determination

or free expression.

This could be considered a threat

the aristocracy ...

a king, an emperor,

a church that had power.

The book describes what the founders

wanted to establish a new country ...

on the scientific principles of

progress, not on religious dogma.

This is also true.

But most of them were Deist

as the book describes?

The religious beliefs of the founders

was generally deist.

They believed

there was a god ...

but not necessarily supported

any particular religion.

That is why,

as the book portrays ...

this intention turned out to be

one of the basic principles of American ...

the separation of church

and the state.

What is also mentioned in the book

is the pursuit of Masons ...

to build

a new enlightened society ...

was not a simple task.

Other groups, like the Templars

Rosicrucians and ...

had similar ideas ...

but were crushed

by powerful groups in the Church.

The book also describes how

for centuries in Europe ...

church leaders with powerful connections

claimed to speak for God ...

and demanded loyalty

their beliefs and dogmas.

Advanced scientific thinkers

as Isaac Newton and Leonardo da Vinci ...

were forced to hide

much of his work ...

otherwise they would be labeled as heretics.

This is true.

Anyone who argued

various theories in the sciences ...

like what happened

beyond our planet ...

many lost their lives.

Some were burned at the stake.

The book is also right when he describes

Masons reject religious dogma.

All they needed to do was to believe

in a higher power ...

not a specific god.

The purpose of Freemasonry

is to encourage a man and his faith ...

not encourage a man

to impose their faith on others.

What they're saying basically

and that is what the fundamentalists hate ...

is that all paths are different

for the same thing.

This threat

became a reality ...

with the signing of the Declaration

Independence in 1776.

But by declaring its independence,

These men risked everything ...

by a new concept

called freedom.

This time,

the dream became reality ...

and, in 1787, many of

Masonic principles ...

became an integral part

the American Constitution.

Brown says that half of the signatories

of the U.S. Constitution were Masons.

However, estimates Masonic

put this number ...

closer to a third.

"The Lost Symbol" connects the role of

Freemasons in the founding of the American dream.

But we do not know

is that the Masonic influence ...

had a profound effect

beyond politics.

The owner of a baseball team,

Branch Rickey ...

hired the first player

african--american ...

professional baseball,

Jackie Robinson.

The literary icon Mark Twain ...

introduced us to Tom Sawyer

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