THE GRAND LODGE OF 
Dr. Ivan Voinov has lived in Germany since 1942.
A lawyer, he worked in the American Military Administration,
in "Voice of America" and Radio "Free Europe".
(The interview with him was published in 1992 in Pogled magazine.)
In the eighth grade, quite by chance, I discovered a brochure with the addresses and surnames of Bulgarian Freemasons. And as usually happens in such cases, one first looks for one's own name. I looked and was shocked: Krum Voinov, dentist. And our address. I was so scared that my bag fell off. I immediately got on the tram and went to my father's office at the corner of "Kaloyan" and "Dondukov" Blvd. I entered him:
- Is it true?
- True. Didn't you know?
– How will I know, you are as silent as graves.
- And you, knowing that I am a legionnaire, why do you let me speak against you?
My father started laughing:
- This has never bothered us. Someday you will become sensible too.
I knew my father and decided that what we were talking about the Freemasons could not be true. Because he was a good-natured, virtuous person, every Thursday he worked without money, they came with carts all the way from Dupnitsa - we are from there - to have their teeth done by Dr. Voinov. And he even gave them gold.
I began to break away little by little from the legionnaires, and when I came to Germany and saw some things that I did not like at all, I decided that I was on a wrong path. I wrote to my friends and we haven't seen each other since. They were patriots, believing people, we thought we were doing something good for Bulgaria, we criticized the government, we thought it was very soft, that it was giving way and not protecting Bulgarian interests enough.
I considered patriotism to be the greatest virtue. While now as a Freemason I share what Lessing said, that one must know when patriotism ceases to be a virtue. And that's why, as far as Bulgaria is concerned, I can't, in fact I can understand my friends who think: outside the communists. No communist anywhere. You can't do without them. They are the only competent people under the circumstances. Those who deserve punishment under the law without being forgiven, yes, but not revenge. All others should be given the green light to live and act as normal citizens. First, you cannot punish without a prior law, and there is none, they acted according to their own laws. An extremely complex task — both for the former GDR and for Bulgaria. Revenge? God forbid!
To some extent, the brother vows not to retaliate.
It is very easy to say this, but to know how difficult it is to put it into practice, to overcome this desire, this thirst. I have experienced it myself. Therefore, in Freemasonry, this oath is given in one of the last, highest degrees. By the way, that is why I want to establish the first lodge in Bulgaria - before 1941 there were three.
On May 28-29, ten Bulgarians will be accepted here in my "Lessing" lodge. Different people, around 50 and a little younger, educated, intelligent. It is difficult to enter the lodge, first at least one year you have to come to see you, see them too, whether they like you, whether you like them... After that, when you have already decided - you submit an application, someone must vouch for you. A commission is appointed to investigate your life, so that they know what you are like, because with us it is accepted according to the old formula: free people with a good reputation, financially independent - your father cannot support you, and you can enter the lodge... Professional abilities are personal business to each. One is required to be able to participate in the life of the lodge with time and means. In my lodge, the membership fee is 50 marks per month.
The Bulgarians are in a completely special situation, we will receive them here, and in the fall the light will be brought to Sofia. Such is the ritual, then the Grand Master of Germany will come, and to these brothers, who are the nucleus, the light will be brought.
Even when you are accepted into the lodge, however, your development does not end there. First you are an apprentice, after a year or two, by participating in the life of the fraternity, after proven interest and willingness to help, you become a journeyman. And then a master. The top of the ladder is not reached except by the steps. This is normal Freemasonry. Then come the high degrees - there are 32. The thirty-third is the highest, but there are very few people there, there are approximately 60 people in all of Germany. Because the number of places is limited, you have to wait for someone to die to get another in the slot. But the Masonic organization is democratic - everything happens with elections. At the reception, no one asks who he is, what his religion is, the color of his skin, the laws of our union forbid asking about this. One condition is that one believes in some divine principle, that it is not the product of a random mechanism. The Supreme Power that guides the world we call the Great Architect of the Universe. Anyone can imagine under that what they want. The Turk - Allah, the Jew - Jehovah, the Christian - God the Father. Arguments on religious or political topics are prohibited in the lodge. Especially for propaganda purposes. The lodge is a group, a system of education and self-education.
The goal is more and more human.
Do I think that there is ground for the restoration of Freemasonry in Bulgaria? If we don't try, we have no one to learn from. The first condition is that the people of the lodge believe in themselves, that by working on themselves they can improve themselves and thereby contribute to the improvement of all humanity. In the only sense of democracy now in Bulgaria - tolerance. Not to see the political opponent as an enemy. The creation of the first lodge is part of the task, then to build two more - when there are three lodges in the country, they can now form a Grand Lodge.
One becomes a Mason to love, not to be loved. However, to love does not only mean to help materially, but to create around you an atmosphere of humanity, tolerance, love for others, to help as much as you can. The impression of the reception ritual is very strong - you enter blindfolded, lean on the one who leads you, pass through fire and water (symbolically, of course) and the teachings keep coming: your conscience, your hands, your deeds to be clean . Beware of the fire of your own passions, be suspicious of yourself, because no one is a saint when interests lie...
I have been in Freemasonry for 43 years, it has played a big role in my life - I have become a completely different person. I'm not in love with myself like I used to be. I have ambitions, of course, but they are of a different kind. I am not conceited - if I can get work done, if I can help and not be understood - the best. Now I want this to happen in Bulgaria - for Bulgarians to feel like brothers.
Freemasonry has no dogma. It never claimed to hold the truth in its hands. We work with symbols, not dogmas. The most important thing in Freemasonry is not the goal, but the path. Even when we know the goal is unattainable, the pursuit itself is worth supporting.
Freemasons were tortured by the Inquisitions in Spain and Portugal to tell the secret. They couldn't say it because there is no secret. Your only secret is your own experience. The Catholic Church immediately excommunicates anyone who is a member of the lodge. We were negotiating with her for a while, supposedly for rapprochement, I was afraid that we would get along, because they could separate us in this way. Those who listen to them are the good Masons, those who disobey are the bad ones. And so we are all bad, thank God!
The worst thing anyone can do is give away what is going on in the lodge. Not because it is illegal or dangerous, but because we want to be protected against any outside influences. The greatest punishment is for the brothers to withdraw their respect from a person.
Bulgaria has no lobbies in the world, and Masonic lodges are large, almost always connected with each other. Bulgaria was accepted into the League of Nations only thanks to the Bulgarian Freemasons. Germany - due to the same connections. And if after years the Grand Lodge of Bulgaria is established and it has the connections for which we will all try to help, however fragile they may be at the beginning, they cannot remain without consequences.
As long as it is good for Bulgaria - I say - good. The important thing is that we will not remain a closed society, a brotherhood that exists only for itself. To think we are happy because we are? No! Still, we don't want to become a mass organization.
WILLI DRACH - DISTRICT MASTER OF BAVARIA:
The Grand Lodge to which my Munich Lodge "Lessing" belongs is known by the initials AFAM, which means Grand Lodge of Old Free and Recognized Masons. Honorary Master in it is Doctor Ivan Voinov - a hereditary Freemason, a person with outstanding merits to the development of Freemasonry in Germany, who held high positions in it for decades. For almost half a century, brother Voinov dreamed of seeing the movement of recognized Freemasons revived in his homeland. In May 1992, at his suggestion, seven Bulgarians were admitted to our Munich lodge. Two more later. In the same year, we brought Light to the first recognized Bulgarian lodge in Sofia, ZORA. She began her work independently, recruited new members, and in June 1994, Grand Master Hornefer brought Light into two more lodges - "LIGHT" and "SERDIKA". And in August 1996, I had the good fortune to be present in the composition of a large German group, led by Grand Master Hornefer, at the introduction of Light into two more Bulgarian lodges. One again in Sofia, and the second in Varna. The birth of this fifth lodge is especially gratifying, as it marks the beginning of the movement's spread beyond the capital. The lighting of two more lodges in two other large provincial cities is also being prepared.