Shriners
Shriners International, formally known as the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, is an American Masonic society. Founded in 1872 in New York City, it is headquartered in Tampa, Florida, and has over 200 chapters across nine countries, with a global membership of nearly 1.7 million "Shriners". The organization is known for its colorful Middle Eastern theme, elaborate participation in parades and festivals, and the Shriners Children's network of nonprofit pediatric medical facilities.
Shriners International describes itself as a global fraternity "based on fun, fellowship, and the Masonic principles of brotherly love, relief, and truth". As an appendant body within Freemasonry, membership is open to men who have been raised to the degree of Master Masons in a Masonic rite; various partner organizations accept women and youth. Shriners are obliged to uphold the fraternity's mission and values, which include self-improvement, service and leadership to the community, and active involvement in social and philanthropic causes.
Shriners International is recognizable for its Middle Eastern-inspired iconography, ceremonies, and motif: Shriners wear distinctive red fezzes as their official headgear, while fraternal regalia often features camels, pyramids, the Sphinx and other ancient Egyptian and Arabian symbols. The headquarters of local chapters, formally known as Shrine Centers, are sometimes called "Temples" or even "Mosques"; most have names such as Egypt, Sahara, Morocco, and Oasis, and many are built in the Moorish Revival style. The organization is governed by the "Imperial Divan"—referring to the traditional government councils of the Near East—composed of 12 "Imperial Officers" who serve as a board of directors. However, Shriners International has no connection with the region nor with Islam.
Previously known as Shriners North America, the fraternity adopted its current name in 2010 in recognition of its increasingly global membership; as of 2024, there are Shrine Centers in Canada, Mexico, Panama, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, Germany, Brazil and Bolivia.
Notable American Shriners include FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, actors Mel Blanc, John Wayne, Ernest Borgnine, and Roy Rogers, Supreme Court chief justice Earl Warren, General Douglas MacArthur, and presidents Gerald Ford and Harry Truman.
History
In 1870, there were several thousand Freemasons in Manhattan, many of whom lunched at the Knickerbocker Cottage at a special table on the second floor. There, the idea of a new fraternity for Masons, stressing fun and fellowship, was discussed. Together, Walter M. Fleming and William J. Florence established a separate fellowship to fulfill those ideals.While on tour in Marseille, Florence, an actor, was invited to a party given by an Arab diplomat. The entertainment was a musical comedy. At its conclusion, the guests became members of a secret society. Florence took notes and drawings at his initial viewing and on two other occasions, once in Algiers and once in Cairo. When he returned to New York in 1870, he showed his material to Fleming.
Fleming created the ritual, emblem and costumes. Florence and Fleming were initiated August 13, 1870, and they initiated 11 men on June 16, 1871.
The group adopted a Middle Eastern theme and soon established Temple, although the term Temple has now been replaced by Shrine Auditorium or Shrine Center. The first Temple established was Mecca Temple, established at the New York City Masonic Hall on September 26, 1872. Fleming was the first potentate.
In 1875, there were 43 Shriners in the organization. To encourage membership, the Imperial Grand Council of the Ancient Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine for North America was created at the June 6, 1876 meeting of Mecca Temple. Fleming was elected the first imperial potentate. By 1878, there were 425 members in 13 temples in eight states, and by 1888, there were 7,210 members in 48 temples in the United States and Canada. By the Imperial Session held in Washington, D.C., in 1900, there were 55,000 members and 82 Temples.
Prince Hall Shrinedom
Historically, the Shrine was open to only White men. In 1893, an African American counterpart to the Shriners movement was initiated by John G. Jones and 13 other Prince Hall masons, known as the "Imperial Grand Council of Prince Hall Shriners, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles Mystic Shrine". In 1900, the name was changed to the "Ancient Egyptian Arabic Order Nobles Mystic Shrine of North and South America and its Jurisdiction, Incorporate".Beginning in 1919, there were legal conflicts between the White and African American orders, with a White only order from Texas filing a lawsuit against a local African American order for infringement of White Shriners regalia and traditions. The White order was initially successful in quashing the predominantly African American temple until the ruling was overturned in appeals in 1929; protecting the right of the African American Prince Hall Shriners to continue calling themselves Shriners; using its emblems; practicing its rituals; and fundraising nationwide.
The Worldwide Fraternal Shrine Family is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, and counts 25,000 members in 270 shrines; with its own women's auxiliary organizations. Their primary recipients of charitable donations are the Legal Defense Fund, the NAACP, the National Urban League, the UNCF, and various hospitals and universities.
Syria Mosque
In 1911, the Syria Mosque was completed in Pittsburgh and inaugurated in 1916. This 3,700-seat performance venue, originally for Shriners, later became significant as the "birthplace of network television". An example of Exotic Revival architecture, it was never used as a mosque but featured religious Arabic iconography and inscriptions, partly based on the Alhambra. Architect Gulzar Haider was "fascinated" by its design, but criticized the "insensitive and callous misuse of another religion’s artistic vocabulary and symbolic grammar," claiming it was part of the "'oriental obsession' of the otherwise 'puritanical' Europeans and Americans".Musicians who have performed at the Syria Mosque include Bruce Springsteen, Louis Armstrong, Bob Dylan, Pink Floyd, Jimmy Buffett, and The Beach Boys. Political event hosts included Reagan, Nixon, Truman, and Kennedy. Despite efforts to conserve the building as a historic landmark, the Syria Mosque was torn down in 1991.
Women's auxiliaries
The Ladies Oriental Shrine of North America was founded in 1903 in Wheeling, West Virginia, and the Daughters of the Nile was founded in 1913 in Seattle, Washington. Both are for women only and they support the Shriners Hospitals and promote sociability. Membership in either organization is open to any woman 18 years of age and older who is related to a Shriner or Master Mason by birth or marriage. The latter organization has local branches called "Temples," and there were ten of these in 1922. Among the famous members of the Daughters of the Nile was First Lady Florence Harding, wife of Warren G. Harding.Growth
By 1938 there were about 340,000 members in the United States. That year, Life published photographs of the Shriners' rites. It described the Shriners as being the first in prestige, wealth and show among secret societies, and that Shriners organizations typically include a town's most prominent citizens.Organizational rebranding
In 2002, following the September 11 attacks, the "faux-Middle Eastern practices and trappings" led Shriners to be "mistaken for a Muslim organization, leading to harassment and vandalism". This included threatening phone calls and harassment of Rhode Island Shriners driving a Shriners van to transport sick children to Shriner hospitals.By 2011, Shriners removed much of the Middle Eastern theming, both locally and within the broader organization. This was in continued response to "the events of Sept. 11, 2001 and subsequent military conflicts". Changes included renaming the organization from "Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine" to "Shriners International;" renaming the "Arabic Patrol" to "The Patrol" and removing the word Syria from Syria Shriners vanity plates. Despite these changes, the Illustrious Potentate of Pittsburgh's Syria Shrine chapter stated that "pretty much all non-atheists are welcome, including Muslims".Membership
Historically, a Mason had to complete either the Scottish Rite or York Rite systems to be eligible for membership in the Shrine.In 1991, brick-mason Michael G. Vaughan filed a lawsuit against the Oleika Shrine Temple in Lexington, Kentucky, for hazing practices to which he said he was subjected in his efforts to become a Shriner. In court, Vaughan told jurors that in June 1989, he was blindfolded and received a jolt of electricity that was applied to his bare buttocks as part of the Shriners' initiation rites. He said he was forced to walk on an electric mat that was meant to simulate the hot sands of the Sahara, and that he was knocked unconscious and received other injuries during his initiation. Vaughan said the initiation left him humiliated and embarrassed, and caused him to suffer anxiety, nightmares, and a sleep disorder. After two hours of deliberation, the jury rejected the claim.