2004-10-29 An Interesting Masonic View on Astrology and Modern Science

I found Lomas's review of the astrologers who made up the early Masonic lodges in Republican London, just after the Civil War fascinating. I hadn't realised that the slide rule was invented to make it easier to cast horoscopes. His summary of Ashmole's motives and links with William Lilly, the man who wrote the best known text book on Astrology in the seventeenth century was an interesting insight into the politics of this period.
All in all I found this a really good read and it made me think very hard about how Freemasonry has contributed to modern science.
The change in attitude which led to Newton sweeping away astrology as a respectable academic subject would not have happened without the formation and success of the Royal Society.
I enjoyed the book immensely. And many of my Masonic brethren, with whom I have discussed it, said they were surprised just how much Sir Robert Moray contributed to early Freemasonry. He turns out to be a far more interesting and far-sighted visionary than astrologer Elias Ashmole.