Take a tour with Utah's not-so-secret Free Masons

SALT LAKE CITY—

I am walking around inside the Masonic Temple in downtown Salt Lake City and no, I did not sneak in.

I rang the doorbell and they let me in. No secret handshake, no password required, other than "I'm here for the tour."

For a little over a year now, the ornate 85-year-old temple — located appropriately on South Temple Street — has been conducting guided public tours every Tuesday and Thursday at noon and 2 p.m. The tours are free and you can bring your camera and any question you can think of.

The tour guide is James Wilson, a 32-year-old University of Utah graduate in art history and a master Mason. It was Wilson's idea to start the tours, which he does voluntarily, making him a true free Mason.

"I love history and I love masonry and how else is somebody who majored in art history going to put it to use?" the unassuming Wilson shrugs as we start the tour.

It's just him and me. It's been raining off and on all morning and that's kept the crowd down. Besides, the Masons haven't exactly put up billboards advertising the tours. Mostly it's word of mouth. Sometimes nobody shows up.

But Wilson is excited because slowly but surely the general public is making its way to and through the temple, where he has a chance to spew facts and correct misperceptions.

"I get to dispel myths — like we don't worship Satan," he says. "We're a fraternity with a cool clubhouse."

The open door policy isn't new — James explains that the doors to the temple have always been open to non-Masons — but the outreach is new, reflecting a gregariousness that old-school Masons would not recognize and probably not be too crazy about.

There are three requirements to become a Mason: 1) You need to be a male over 18; 2) You need to believe in a Supreme Being; and 3) On your own you need to ask to be considered for membership. Masons do not recruit, period.

But after decades of declining membership, James explains that instead of being totally stoic about it, Masons are now starting to mention to non-Masons that while they can't ask them to join they would like them to know that if they're interested, it's OK if THEY ask.