Confederation of Grand Lodges / Brazil
CMSB State Grand Lodges
CMSB is the confederation of Brazil's twenty-seven regular state Grand Lodges. It is not a national Grand Lodge above them; the state Grand Lodges remain the bodies that warrant Lodges and control candidate rules in their own jurisdictions.
This is chiefly a guide to constitutional position in Brazil: what CMSB State Grand Lodges in Brazil governs, how its local bodies are warranted and where recognition questions need an official answer. By Beyond the Craft Editorial Team · Published 14 June 2026 · Last reviewed 21 June 2026 · 8 min read.
What it is
CMSB State Grand Lodges is a governing or coordinating body rather than a degree to be collected. The useful local questions concern its warranted Lodges, recognition relationships, territorial authority and candidate process.
Why people explore it
Men seeking a sovereign state-based Brazilian Craft route and locally governed Lodge life.
What not to assume
CMSB State Grand Lodges is not a degree above another Masonic body. It is a governing or coordinating structure, and its authority and recognition cannot be inferred from size, age or a familiar emblem.
Documented chronology
CMSB's history links the first Brazilian Grand Lodges to charters issued from 1927 after the Mario Behring manifesto. [1]
The cycle of national round tables began as state Grand Lodges sought a common Brazilian forum. [1]
CMSB says it was installed in Sao Paulo during the fourteenth and final Round Table of the Grand Lodges. [1]
A confederation, not a super-Grand Lodge
CMSB describes itself as formed by the twenty-seven regular Masonic Grand Lodges of Brazil. That sentence matters: CMSB is a national confederation, while the member Grand Lodges retain their own jurisdictional authority. [1]
A candidate therefore does not join CMSB directly. He joins a Lodge warranted by the relevant state Grand Lodge, under that Grand Lodge's rules, recognition relationships and local process. [1]
Why 1927 and 1966 both matter
CMSB's public history links the first Grand Lodges to the 1927 movement after Mario Behring, then separately dates CMSB's own installation to 27 July 1966. Those are different institutional milestones. [1]
The distinction prevents a common error: treating every Brazilian Craft structure as though it began in 1822 with GOB or as though CMSB erased earlier state sovereignty. [1] [2]
How it differs from GOB and COMAB
GOB is an older national obedience with its own state Orients. COMAB is a confederation of Grand Orients formed from a different historical path. CMSB is the confederation associated with state Grand Lodges. [1] [2] [3]
Those three families may coexist, recognise or not recognise one another in particular ways, but they should never be drawn as three degrees on one progression ladder. [1] [3]
Who may value it
CMSB Grand Lodges may suit candidates seeking regular state Grand Lodge Masonry in Brazil, especially where the local Lodge is warranted by the state Grand Lodge rather than GOB or a COMAB body. [1]
The practical first step is local: identify the warranted Lodge and its Grand Lodge, then verify recognition and visiting rules before assuming wider access. [1]
Key distinction
CMSB coordinates sovereign state Grand Lodges; it is a confederative structure, not a degree, rite or single Craft authority for every Brazilian Mason.
Key questions
Frequently asked questions
What most distinguishes CMSB State Grand Lodges?
CMSB coordinates sovereign state Grand Lodges; it is a confederative structure, not a degree, rite or single Craft authority for every Brazilian Mason.
Who may join CMSB State Grand Lodges?
A candidate joins through a Lodge warranted by the relevant state Grand Lodge. Recognition and visitation should be checked through that jurisdiction. Check the current Lodge or district directory and ask the named constitutional office for advice relevant to Brazil.
How should its history be understood?
CMSB's history links the first Brazilian Grand Lodges to charters issued from 1927 after the Mario Behring manifesto. The useful chronology is the record of warrants, unions and constitutional authority, not the age claimed by a local tradition.
What should I compare with CMSB State Grand Lodges?
Start with Grande Oriente do Brasil and COMAB Grand Orients. Compare what each authority warrants, recognises and administers before comparing ritual labels.
- CMSB: sobre ↗Confederacao da Maconaria Simbolica do Brasil · Official organisational source · Retrieved 21 June 2026 · Supports: 27 Grand Lodges, governance, 1966 installation, history.
- GOB: institutional history ↗Grande Oriente do Brasil · Official organisational source · Retrieved 21 June 2026 · Supports: Brazilian Masonic comparison, GOB chronology, separate obedience.
- COMAB: history ↗Confederacao Maconica do Brasil · Official organisational source · Retrieved 21 June 2026 · Supports: COMAB comparison, 1973 Grand Orients, confederative distinction.
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Related Reading
Brazil's oldest national Masonic obedience, operating through a federal structure of State and Federal District Grand Orients.
Brazil guideCOMAB Grand OrientsA confederation of independent Brazilian Grand Orients with their own Lodges and recognition relationships.
Brazil guideAncient and Accepted Scottish Rite in BrazilOne of Brazil's most widespread ritual systems, practised under multiple Craft obediences and philosophical-degree authorities.