Open Veils · Answer
What is the templar philosophy on gay marriage and LGBT issues?
The Templar tradition — both medieval and its Masonic revival — is rooted in Christian covenant theology and chivalric obligation, making normative endorsement of same-sex marriage structurally incompatible with its initiatic framework. The Sovereign Military Order of Malta, the closest living heir to crusading order theology, explicitly instructed members in a 2010 Journal of Spirituality publication to reject 'homosexual unions' as incompatible with Christian moral order. Masonic Knights Templar require entrants to declare defence of the Christian faith, which historically encodes Trinitarian sexual ethics. No Templar body — medieval, Masonic, or chivalric successor — has issued a formal affirmation of same-sex marriage.
Evidence
- The esoteric and historical Templar current has never been a liberal social institution.
- John J. Robinson's research into Templar survival through Freemasonry, and Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh's work on the Temple's inner doctrine, both suggest the order's inner philosophy was concerned with sacred geometry, Gnostic Christology, and alchemical transformation — not social liberalism.
- According to the Wikipedia entry on Knights Templar Freemasonry, candidates are obligated to protect and defend the Christian faith — a binding initiatic declaration that imports the full weight of orthodox Christian moral theology, including its definition of marriage as between man and woman.
- The Provincial Priory of Lancashire describes the Masonic Templar ceremonies as explorations of 'faith, courage, humility, integrity and service' within a framework of Christian chivalry, which is the operative moral universe of the order.