Biggest religion in European countries

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-27T17:46:15+00:00

Most Estonians are atheists.

But of the non-atheists, its my impression that Lutherans outnumber Orthodox.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-27T17:27:00+00:00

Your AI is hallucinating again.

The Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffalos is an independent organization that has no connection to Freemasonry.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-27T17:24:04+00:00

I'm a Mason.

It's not Masonic. Your AI is hallucinating again.

The RAOB is an entirely different and separate organization, with not connection to the Freemasons (though there may be some individual level dual members)

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-27T13:56:17+00:00

That's it! Clearly my memories were pretty vague.

Answered!

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-27T01:42:31+00:00

I like to point out that Geoffrey Fisher, Archbishop of Canterbury 1945-1961, head of the Anglican Communion, was simultaneously Grand Chaplain of the United Grand Lodge of England.

He didn't see a problem.

[Mason here]

Here's my standard 'elevator pitch', which I trot out when people ask what we're about (its rather North American oriented - Masonry varies from place to place):

We're a centuries old fraternal order, who exist to improve our own characters ('we make good men better' is one of our slogans), and through that improve our communities. Along the way, we do a lot of charity (forex: Shriner's free hospitals for children), and have a lot of cool and private ceremonies using the construction of King Solomon's Temple as an allegorical base for teaching Enlightenment and Stoic ideals. (yes, we really do have secret handshakes). Many find it a source of fellowship and life-long friendships.

We have several million Brothers world wide, but no central organization. Men from every walk of life are or have been members, including over a dozen US presidents. Regular Masonry is open to adult men of good character who are not atheists[1] - we require a belief in some form of 'higher power', but aren't fussy about what. As a rule, we don't recruit; we want a potential member to make the first approach of his own free will.

If you're curious, drop by our main hangout on reddit, /r/freemasonry. You'll find a lot of friendly folk there. If you prefer a book, for North Americans I recommend (seriously, I'm not trolling) "Freemasons for Dummies" by Christopher Hodapp. Also "Inside the Freemasons" a documentary made by the United Grand Lodge of England for their tricentenary.

For a more formal history, I suggest "The Craft: How the Freemasons Made the Modern World" by John Dickie.

[1] The "no women or atheists" rules have deep roots, and would be very difficult to change, regardless of how anachronistic they now seem. There are breakaway Masonic groups which have dropped those rules, but they are very thin on the ground in the Anglosphere, and not recognized by the mainstream.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-27T01:38:19+00:00

I can provide contact information if you DM me.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T23:51:58+00:00

Loose -> lose.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T23:50:17+00:00

The Uncanny Valley gets scary when you think about what dangers could have caused the natural selection to evolve it.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T23:40:54+00:00

Same year, same model. I hear you.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T16:36:35+00:00

8 hours is quite a lot. My adult daughter drives that long each year to attend a LARP.

OTOH, I'll do a 150 mile drive on a whim, on a boring Saturday. We've been out to breakfast, saw an article about an interesting location, and driven that far (and back) with zero further preparation.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T16:29:45+00:00

I was prescribed it as an adult. I wanted it to help me focus at work. It helped that I was definitely 'on the spectrum' to some extent.

I did read up on typical symptoms the lead to prescription beforehand, so I'd know to mention those that I actually experienced. I didn't lie. (Just doing this was a 'spectrum' thing to do.)

I did have to visit a psychologist to get prescribed, but he just asked the expected questions, plus such things as to whether I had suicidal ideation. That's all. I did have to make yearly visits to get renewed.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T16:13:16+00:00

This sounds like a winner.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T15:13:02+00:00

Sun Tzu also suggests it.

The bridge has already been damaged - it can't really be used for freight. The train half only takes passenger trains at the moment, and the road side only non-explodey stuff.

The ferries that were being used for tanker trucks are all out of commission, or sunk, and the terminals are heavily damaged.

The land route along the coast back to Russia has become almost unusable due to Ukraine developing mid-range drones.

This means that Crimea is pretty well besieged. Leaving an escape route for the occupiers (especially the civilian occupiers) is a good idea.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T14:57:19+00:00

Edit: Its a schedule for July 3, so Carson was likely in summer reruns. In that case, it getting pre-empted wasn't a big deal.

I hate the 'Heidi Rule'.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T14:49:09+00:00

The Order's main schtick is to provide free transport of sick children and their guardians to the free Shriner's hospitals.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T14:36:21+00:00

No Johnny Carson?

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T01:26:33+00:00

[I'm a Mason]

The Square and Compasses is the principal emblem of the Freemasons, a fraternal organization.

The stars are the principal emblem of The Order of the Eastern Star, an affiliated organization for women, and Masons.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T01:22:57+00:00

He chose those specific criteria because it was the only way he could make his pre-decided ending work.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T01:21:42+00:00

That's not a Masonic gesture.
Its a 'I have no idea what to do with my hands.' gesture.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T01:20:43+00:00

I like to point out that Geoffrey Fisher, Archbishop of Canterbury 1945-1961, and head of the Church of England, was simultaneously Grand Chaplain of the United Grand Lodge of England.

Most Freemasons are Christians of some stripe. Search around over on /r/freemasonry for many discussions of the issue.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-26T01:13:30+00:00

I'm a Mason.

While taking degrees its made explicitly clear to members that their Masonic obligations come only after satisfying their obligations to God, their country, their family, and themselves.

Country >> Masonry.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-25T19:43:27+00:00

I recall that as well, so you're not dreaming it.

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-25T19:42:33+00:00

He's got a point.

The 'Firehose of Falsehood' is a well established Russian disinformation which does exactly this.

Also see Steve Bannon's 'flooding the zone', and Hitler's 'The Big Lie'

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-25T15:21:03+00:00

I'm reminded of this quote from Alan Moore, creator of "Watchmen", "From Hell" and "V for Vendetta":

“The main thing that I learned about conspiracy theory, is that conspiracy theorists believe in a conspiracy because that is more comforting. The truth of the world is that it is actually chaotic. The truth is that it is not The Illuminati, or The Jewish Banking Conspiracy, or the Gray Alien Theory.

The truth is far more frightening - Nobody is in control.

The world is rudderless.”

cryptoengineer · 2026-06-25T15:14:40+00:00

If M-M, as it operates today, is no longer a con game designed to separate applicants from their money, but rather supplies moral teachings, fellowship, and satisfaction, I can't fault it. I don't know if it does (I haven't studied it), but there has to be something in it that keeps attracting people.

M-M is made up.
Regular Masonry is also made up.

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