Freemasonry
A kind of secret society which came to the Americas via England and is rumored to have roots in the Templar Knights or in the builders of Solomon's Temple. Apart from secretiveness, the freemasons are also known for their heavy use of symbolism.
Due to the secretiveness of the freemasons, they have been attacked, as an organization, by many individuals who have been either suspicious of their doings or desirous to take advantage of the opportunity to create suspicion.
Freemasonry becomes a subject of interest in connection with the Mormon Church due to the membership of Joseph Smith and other prominent figures in Mormon church history.
More generally, many important historical figures are known to have been freemasons, including many of the founders of the United States of America. This fact both garners respect for the organization and feeds the imagination of conspiracy theorists, some of whom believe freemasons have acted as a kind of shadow government.
