On the European mainland, after 50 years of fighting, the Concordat of Worms provided a similar, but longer lasting, compromise when signed on September 23, 1122. It eliminated lay investiture, while leaving secular leaders some room for unofficial but significant influence in the appointment process.
The Freemasons is a fraternal organization formed in the late 16th or early 17th century, which permits men of any religion to join.
late 14c., originally a traveling guild of masons with a secret code; in the early 17c. they began accepting honorary members and teaching them the secrets and lore, which by 1717 had developed into the fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons. The exact origin of the free- is a subject of dispute.