how does Anderson's 1723 Constitution frame the requirement regarding religion compared to later charges

The 1723 Book of Constitutions replaced traditional Christian invocations in the Craft with the First Charge, titled "Concerning God and Religion," establishing a non-denominational framework 2. Under this initial charge, a Mason was obligated by his tenure to obey the moral law as a "true Noachida" and observe "that Religion in which all Men agree," leaving particular opinions to himself and requiring members only to be good men and true 12. As a paper read before Quatuor Coronati Lodge notes, this replaced older Masonic charges that had required candidates to maintain the Christian usages of the countries where they lived and worked.

In the 1738 edition of the Constitutions, James Anderson modified the First Charge to state that while Masons were charged in ancient times to comply with Christian usages, modern Masons were obligated only to observe the moral law 12. Anderson adjusted the phrasing from "whatever Denominations or Persuasions" to "whatever Names, Religions, or Persuasions" 2, while inserting stronger orthodox Christian references into the legendary history of the Craft 2.

This revision caused a split in usage within Craft Masonry. Laurence Dermott incorporated Anderson's 1738 wording into Ahiman Rezon for the Antients Grand Lodge, whereas the Moderns reverted to reprinting the 1723 text of the First Charge 12. The two jurisdictions preserved these differing versions until the 1813 Union, after which the United Grand Lodge of England issued a consolidated Book of Constitutions in 1815 2.

Laurence Dermott’s Ahiman Rezon framed religion using the revised First Charge from James Anderson’s 1738 edition of the Constitutions, rather than the original 1723 text 12.

The 1723 First Charge established a broad, non-denominational standard requiring Masons only to observe "that Religion in which all Men agree," leaving specific private opinions to individual conscience 1. In contrast, the 1738 edition—which Dermott adopted as the basis for the Old Charges in the Ahiman Rezon—reintroduced explicit Christian references, stating that in ancient times Christian Masons were charged to comply with the Christian usages of each country where they traveled or worked 12. Anderson had placed greater emphasis on the figure of Christ in the 1738 text, reflecting a more orthodox Christian stance compared to his earlier, Deistic-leaning 1723 version 2.

While the Premier Grand Lodge (the "Moderns") reverted to reprinting the 1723 version of the First Charge in its subsequent editions, Dermott and the Antients Grand Lodge retained the 1738 version as published in the Ahiman Rezon 12. As a result, the Antients maintained a more traditional, Christian-oriented framing of the First Charge throughout the eighteenth century, serving as their statute book until the two Grand Lodges united in 1813 and accepted a comprehensive First Charge 212.

Mackey treats the religious qualifications and charges of the Craft in his jurisprudence writings and encyclopedia entries, framing the matter around the debate between the "Christian School" and the "Universal School" of Masonic thought 1. He adopts the view of Past Grand Chaplain A. F. A. Woodford that these two antagonistic interpretations can co-exist in peace, giving Freemasonry a twofold teaching 1.

While asserting that Freemasonry is not a substitute for Christianity or "the way, the truth, and the life," Mackey maintains that it is fundamentally a religious institution that acts as a handmaid to religion 1. His entry highlights the work of Henry Josiah Whymper, who argued that original Masonic charges were grounded in Christian catholicity, countering the view that all distinct Christian profession was abandoned at the formation of the Premier Grand Lodge in 1717 1.

This tension between universalism and Christian tradition directly affected lodge practice in multi-religious jurisdictions like India 1. The entries record inquiries from Indian lodges regarding whether candidates of non-Christian faiths could be obligated on their own scriptures—such as the Koran or Shastras—under the English Constitution 1. The rationale presented for adapting the Volume of the Sacred Law to each candidate's creed was that Masonry's universality requires an obligation to carry binding moral force, provided the candidate maintains the essential landmark of belief in the Supreme Being 1. Mackey notes that while chartering separate lodges for particular faiths had been suggested to resolve these difficulties, doing so would introduce religious classification and weaken the institution's unsectarian character 1.