ACI Prensa Staff, Feb 27, 2024 / 18:00 pm (CNA).

The president of the Pontifical Academy of Theology, Bishop Antonio Staglianò, has reiterated the incompatibility of Catholics belonging to the Masons days after participating in an event organized by the Italian Grand Orient lodge in Milan.

Staglianò told Vatican News that “Freemasonry is a heresy that is fundamentally aligned with the Arian heresy” since it was Arius “who imagined that Jesus was a great architect of the universe” — the way Freemasons refer to God — “denying the divinity of Christ.”

This idea of the “Architect of the Universe” is incompatible with the Catholic faith because “it is the fruit of human reasoning that tries to imagine a god, while the God of Catholics is the fruit of the very revelation of God in Christ Jesus!”

“In essence,” the prelate continued, the Catholic faith “is the result of a historical event in which God became flesh, drew near to men, spoke to all human beings, and destined them for his salvation.”

In explaining the total incompatibility between being a Catholic and a Mason, Staglianò pointed out that “within Freemasonry, plots involving secret powers develop that are in contradiction with Christian action.”

“In short,” he added, “when we talk about incompatibility we are referring to profound contradictions.”

Freemasonry vs. the Catholic Church

Staglianò noted some of the most obvious differences between Masonic and Catholic doctrine. For example, in reference to the concept of fraternity, the president of the Pontifical Academy of Theology stated that “our fraternity is established on the sacrament of the love of God in Jesus; it is founded on the Eucharist, not only on the generic idea of being brothers.”

The Italian bishop pointed out that Christian charity “has nothing to do with Masonic philanthropy” because “Christian charity is based on the historical event of a God who died and rose again for us and asks his children not to be merely philanthropic but to be, finally, crucified for love.”

In addition, Freemasonry and Catholicism differ regarding the concept of mystery. While esotericism permeates Masonic teachings (such that they are only given to the initiated), in Catholic doctrine the mystery “hidden throughout the centuries does not cease to be a mystery but rather ceases to be hidden, because the mystery hidden throughout the centuries has been revealed,” Staglianò explained.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.