DO MASONS HAVE ONE GOD FOR ALL RELIGIONS?
"You can't have one God for all religions."
Freemasonry isn't trying to have one God for everyone, but rather is seeking a means by which all men who believe in a monotheistic God can join together. "God" in the Masonic sense refers to God as perceived and worshiped by the individual Mason. No man is asked to alter his beliefs to meet some Masonic standard, and that is entirely appropriate for a fraternal body that has no desire to be a separate religion.
The Masonic approach is much the same as the approach of the U.S. government and the Founding fathers. The Declaration of Independence justifies the actions of the revolutionaries, who want 'the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them." A century and a half after the new country was established, the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag called for a belief in "one nation under God." This was clearly a reference to God as perceived by each individual citizen, since there was no state religion and no legal definition of one perception of God to the exclusion of all others.
Perhaps "clearly" is too strong a term. In a debate with a
fundamentalist, I proposed a hypothetical federal courtroom in which the
plaintiff is Christian, the defendant is Muslim, and the presiding judge is
Jewish. Every federal court is opened with the words "May God bless the
united States of America and this honorable court.."
Each of the parties in the room is satisfied that his God has been asked to
bless the proceedings and the attempt to discover the truth. My question to the
evangelist was. "Tell me, which God is the court official asking to bless
the court?" His reply was, "The God of Jesus Christ. of course. No other God has a right to be in the United
States." So much for freedom of religion
By John J. Robinson
"A Pilgrim's Path"