Knight Kadosh
Encyclopedia
The Knight Kadosh is a Freemasonic
degree or ceremony of initiation performed by certain branches of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry. It is the Thirtieth Degree of the Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite
for the United States of America, and the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of Canada. The Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite
, does not currently confer a degree entitled "Knight Kadosh." Instead its thirtieth degree is entitled "Grand Inspector."
The term "Kadosh" is derived from the Hebrew word "קדוש", which means holy or consecrated. "Kadosh" and "Knight Kadosh" is often abbreviated in masonic documents as "K--H.'." and "K.'.K.'.D.'.H".
, France
. The "Knight Kadosh," or originally "Illustrious and Grand Commander of the White and Black Eagle, Grand Elect Kadosh," was part of a full complement of twenty-five degrees or grades governed by this council. The "Knight Kadosh" was the twenty-fourth degree of this complement.
In 1801, the first and oldest Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite
was founded in Charleston, South Carolina
. This body adopted many of the degrees of the Council of Emperors of the East and West, including that of "Knight Kadosh." The "Knight Kadosh" degree was adopted as the thirtieth degree and was simply titled "Knight Kadosh." The degree received a substantial re-write in the 1850s when Albert Pike
was Grand Commander of the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States. It was further revised in 2000.
A different form of the Knight Kadosh degree, using a ritual not authored by Pike, was for many years performed in the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the United States, headquartered at Lexington, Massachusetts. However, that body no longer performs the degree.
for the United States of America's version of the Knight Kadosh Degree is as follows
, purported to have been written by Albert Pike
, the Papal tiara is trampled during the initiation. This allegation does not appear in any subsequent editions of the Catholic Encyclopedia, although it was repeated by Father William Saunders in the Arlington Catholic Herald in 1996.
Neither the Catholic Encyclopedia's nor Father Saunders' account agrees with Pike's ritual, which includes neither trampling or stabbing a skull and no mention of papal tiaras at all.
Pike's book Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry
does mention hostility to the papal tiara by the historical Knights Templar when discussing the Kadosh degree; however, this is Pike's commentary on the degree and is not part of the degree itself.
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
degree or ceremony of initiation performed by certain branches of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry. It is the Thirtieth Degree of the Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite
Scottish Rite
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry , commonly known as simply the Scottish Rite, is one of several Rites of the worldwide fraternity known as Freemasonry...
for the United States of America, and the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of Canada. The Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite
Scottish Rite
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry , commonly known as simply the Scottish Rite, is one of several Rites of the worldwide fraternity known as Freemasonry...
, does not currently confer a degree entitled "Knight Kadosh." Instead its thirtieth degree is entitled "Grand Inspector."
The term "Kadosh" is derived from the Hebrew word "קדוש", which means holy or consecrated. "Kadosh" and "Knight Kadosh" is often abbreviated in masonic documents as "K--H.'." and "K.'.K.'.D.'.H".
History
The earliest recorded portrayal of the "Knight Kadosh" degree can be linked to the Council of Emperors of the East and West in 1758. This council united several Masonic degrees being conducted in eighteenth-century ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The "Knight Kadosh," or originally "Illustrious and Grand Commander of the White and Black Eagle, Grand Elect Kadosh," was part of a full complement of twenty-five degrees or grades governed by this council. The "Knight Kadosh" was the twenty-fourth degree of this complement.
In 1801, the first and oldest Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite
Scottish Rite
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry , commonly known as simply the Scottish Rite, is one of several Rites of the worldwide fraternity known as Freemasonry...
was founded in Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. This body adopted many of the degrees of the Council of Emperors of the East and West, including that of "Knight Kadosh." The "Knight Kadosh" degree was adopted as the thirtieth degree and was simply titled "Knight Kadosh." The degree received a substantial re-write in the 1850s when Albert Pike
Albert Pike
Albert Pike was an attorney, Confederate officer, writer, and Freemason. Pike is the only Confederate military officer or figure to be honored with an outdoor statue in Washington, D.C...
was Grand Commander of the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States. It was further revised in 2000.
A different form of the Knight Kadosh degree, using a ritual not authored by Pike, was for many years performed in the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the United States, headquartered at Lexington, Massachusetts. However, that body no longer performs the degree.
Lesson of the Degree
Like all Masonic Degrees, the Knight Kadosh Degree attempts to teach the initiates a series of moral lessons by the use of allegory and symbolism. The official description of the lesson portrayed in Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish RiteScottish Rite
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry , commonly known as simply the Scottish Rite, is one of several Rites of the worldwide fraternity known as Freemasonry...
for the United States of America's version of the Knight Kadosh Degree is as follows
- "The lesson of this degree is to be true to ourselves, to stand for what is right and just in our lives today. To believe in God, country and ourselves."
Controversy
The Knight Kadosh degree is occasionally accused of being anti-Catholic. The 1918 edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia stated that, in the ceremony in use in the Southern Jurisdiction of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, purported to have been written by Albert Pike
Albert Pike
Albert Pike was an attorney, Confederate officer, writer, and Freemason. Pike is the only Confederate military officer or figure to be honored with an outdoor statue in Washington, D.C...
, the Papal tiara is trampled during the initiation. This allegation does not appear in any subsequent editions of the Catholic Encyclopedia, although it was repeated by Father William Saunders in the Arlington Catholic Herald in 1996.
Neither the Catholic Encyclopedia's nor Father Saunders' account agrees with Pike's ritual, which includes neither trampling or stabbing a skull and no mention of papal tiaras at all.
Pike's book Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry
Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry
Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, or simply Morals and Dogma, is a book of esoteric philosophy published by the Supreme Council, Thirty Third Degree, of the Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction of the United States. It was compiled by Albert Pike, was first...
does mention hostility to the papal tiara by the historical Knights Templar when discussing the Kadosh degree; however, this is Pike's commentary on the degree and is not part of the degree itself.