Can a Catholic become a mason?

Yes, a Catholic can become a mason; however, there have been tensions between the Catholic church and Freemasons for centuries now. The reasons for the friction between the institutions are complex and varied and date back to 1738 when Pope Clement XII issued a papal call, Eminenti Apostolatus. This papal explicitly forbade any Catholic from joining a freemason lodge. This decree was upheld by Popes and the Catholic church for over 200 years.

How To Become A Mason: What It Is and Career Path

What is a mason and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Masons use stones, bricks, or concrete blocks to create new structures such as walls, fences, walkways, and other masonry structures. Basically, masons use building materials to carry out construction. As a mason, some of your responsibilities include maintaining your tools and making sure they are in good shape, reading and following technical drawings for construction, and ensuring that your work area is clean and safe. Furthermore, your clients will want to have a budget for any construction before it starts; hence, you are expected to do an estimation of how much the construction will cost and how long it will take.

As a mason, you must be a team player, you must be physically fit, you must be able to read blueprints, you must have dexterity skills, and you must be creative. Most masons have a high school diploma degree; however, degrees are not a huge factor. Instead, it is important that you are experienced, and you are very good at your job. On average, you will earn $39,328 per year as a mason.

ScoreMasonUS Average

Salary

3.4

Avg. Salary $43,974

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.2

Growth rate -2%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.83%

Asian 2.14%

Black or African American 9.47%

Hispanic or Latino 19.08%

Unknown 4.33%

White 64.15%

Gender

female 21.29%

male 78.71%

Age - 44

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 44

Stress level

5.2

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a mason

Explore mason education requirements

Most common mason degrees

Bachelor's

39.4 %

High School Diploma

28.1 %

Associate

14.9 %

Start to develop specific mason skills

Skills	Percentages
Masonry	32.78%
Scaffolding	13.95%
Safety Regulations	9.08%
Dump Truck	4.81%
Retaining Walls	3.94%

Complete relevant mason training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 2-4 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New masons learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a mason based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real mason resumes.

Research mason duties and responsibilities

Manage and run small crew to complete jobs.
Perform masonry functions associate with constructing residential and commercial buildings in the Philadelphia area.
Mix mortar, cut stone, laid pavers, dig drainage, plant trees, etc ....
Build retaining, residential walls with CMU (concrete blocks), stone, brick, pave and slate.

Prepare your mason resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your mason resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a mason resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable mason resume templates

Build a professional mason resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your mason resume.