Guest Editorial: Culture Shock

This is the first guest editorial for the Beacon of Masonic Light. The author, Br. Peterson is a member of the Grand Lodge of North Carolina.

Culture Shock: a state of bewilderment and distress experienced by an individual who is suddenly exposed to a new, strange, or foreign social and cultural environment.

When I was in the military we would have to attend long periods of instruction before deploying to a foreign land. The instruction covered the customs, traditions, languages and other aspects of the cultures we were sent to destroy... I mean sent to operate in. This was done to prepare the military members in a way that reduced culture shock.

Culture shock is a very powerful mental state. It causes unwarranted aggression, depression, and a host of other illnesses. Awhile back I realised I was suffering from this state of mind from an unlikely source, the internet. Logging on to the internet I traveled to foreign lands where Masonry is conducted a bit differently than in the comfort of my home land. I witnessed Masonic cultures that did not fit into my limited world view.

No one gave me a class to be prepared for this new and challenging environment. No one hinted that there were other ways of doing things. I jumped in unprepared and under the effects of this illness I lashed out at the very foreigners I chose to interact with. I have since regained control of my own mind, and now happily speak the language eat some of the food (some I can't stomach, but I won't judge them for enjoying it), and join in their activities.

By conquering my culture shock I gained a greater appreciation for the wonderful differences the world has to offer. So the next time you see a Newbe, fresh from his third degree and rampaging through our village, remember that he may be ill and in need of assistance. This assistance may mean forcefully restraining him, but more especially it means he needs education of OUR culture and time to adjust to it.

Br. Arthur Peterson
Lodgeroom US

May the Blessings of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

The Masonic Temple

I recently had the opportunity to visit with Bill McElligott and Giovanni Lombardo just outside London. I was on my way home from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a 24 hour flight, and I decided to kill two birds with one stone. Give myself a break in the long flight and visit with two brothers whom I cherish dearly.

While I was there, Bill took Giovanni and I to Saxon Hall. This building is a former industrial building that was purchased, gutted, and renovated as a masonic edifice. I write edifice deliberately, because it is not a single lodge, or even lodgeroom. This edifice houses over 50 masonic lodges in two big lodgerooms and two smaller lodgerooms.

It is a beautiful renovation, with two full bars, two lounges, a two full dinning rooms, an awesome kitchen facility, and all the accouterments you would expect to find in a class operation. You will find pictures below.

So, why do I mention this? Well, in American Masonry, there is a tendency for every single lodge to try to have its own building. In the masonic district where I live, there are four lodges. Two of them are within 3 kilometers (just over two miles) apart, and both of these two are struggling with membership issues and to keep their officer lines complete.

These two lodges would, in my opinion, be better served by, if not consolidating into a single lodge, at least sharing the facilities in one of the buildings. I have my own opinion about which building, but that is not relative here, so I will keep it to myself.

This is not a rare case. Most US lodges seem to want to have their own buildings, and that is a good thing. In California, most gold towns had a Masonic lodge, which often served as the city center/city hall/town hall/meeting hall... and often tavern. You can still travel the length and breadth of California and see these grand buildings with the square and compass on them and a cornerstone set proudly.

The cost of living, the spread of cities, urban sprawl and the population flight from downtown to suburbia has wrought many changes, and as a result of those changes and the temporary decline in masonic membership (which is even now turning around) have resulted in many of these buildings being sold.

Another result of these changes is it is very expensive to maintain a lodge in the downtown areas. One lodge in my district was in downtown Riverside until the early 1970's, until the county of Riverside, in its infinite wisdom, decided to condemn the masonic lodge so they could build a new courthouse complex. And so the lodge moved out of the downtown and out into the fringes of the city and into a new building.

The Face of Freemasonry is changing. The members are younger, more mobile, and less tied to the city centers. Yet we still have many masonic buildings with but a single lodge in them. Worse, these lodges NEED to be large lodges, that is, with memberships in excess of 200 men to support the building and taxes and utilities and...

The challenge is, lodges of over 20 men bring their own problems. No man can know 200 men well, and when there are so many men in a lodge, there is less reason for each man to participate in lodge. There always seems to be another brother willing to take up the glove and sit a station, and the others... just drift away. This is, of course, an extreme simplification of the issue, but the larger the lodge, the less each brother seems to feel he is needed.

It seems to me, after seeing Saxon Hall and its 50 lodges, each with around 50-75 members, working so well in a single building, sharing brotherly love and labor in the quarries so well, that perhaps we might consider breaking these monster lodges, with over 200 members, into two, three or four other lodges. In fact, with the aging population, a wise master might want to consider attempting a charter for a Daylight Lodge, for the older brothers who can no longer drive.

Another option, which a grand master described to me, involved a consortium of doctors who needed facilities for medical offices. They approached the lodge in their town, that was renting facilities though they owned a large plot of land. Together, they cobbled together a unique solution to both their issues. The doctors built a three story hospital building and offices with underground parking on the land owned by the lodge.

The first floor was medical offices and hospital facilities. The second floor was a cafeteria and lodgeroom facilities, and the third floor business offices. The lodge had the use of the lodgeroom and cafeteria facilities at no cost for 99 years, and the doctor's consortium took care of all costs of the building except the lodge's telephone, and at the end of the 99 years, the building would become vested in the lodge.

Perhaps its time, as demographics change, that masonic lodges and grand lodges begin looking at more... creative solutions. Not necessarily the solution noted above, but there are many situations like this where a commercial and a lodge can co-exist to the benefit of both.

There is a solution to every problem, if we are willing to think outside the box.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

Saxon Hall:

Masonic Formation

I am fortunate to be a member of Moreno Valley #804, where I am welcomed every time I show up as if I were the prodigal son... and where we greet every brother that crosses the threshold as the prodigal son returned. I mention this as, since returning from the Hot Sands of Saudi Arabia, I have been privileged to attend a number of degrees.

I mention this because since I have been gone, the master, Wr. John Cover Spear, has instituted what I think is an awesome bit of masonic education for the candidate, and I want to share it with you... because I think it is a great idea.

First, a little background. In California lodges, the installed master sits as Master in the degree work only for the third degree conferrals and stated (business) meetings. In the First Degree, the Junior Warden sits as master and confers the degree upon the candidate. In the Second Degree, the Senior Warden confers the degree upon the candidate.

In both these cases, the master is present, and usually sits as the Junior in the first and the Senior in the second, but that is not ritual, just tradition. I mention this because it will help explain what follows.

After the ceremonials of the degree are completed and the candidate is seated among the brethren, the master rises (in the first and second degrees) and asks the master for permission to meet the candidate west of the altar. As a side note, in California ritual, the altar is equidistant between the Master and Senior Warden and the Junior Warden and the North.

West of the Altar, the Master shows the candidate the step, due guard and sign, the grip, the word, and explains the various officers duties and masonic terms that are used in the degree. He does this in plain speech, in his own words, slowly, making sure he explains it to the candidate.

He does this in each degree excepting the third degree. After the third degree is conferred, he steps down from the east and makes the same type of explanations to the candidate just before closing.

You can see the light come on in the candidate's eyes as he makes this explanation and shows the candidate the things he was told in the ritual. These lessons take no more than five minutes, and have made a lasting impression on the candidate, not only of the material being presented, but in the friendliness and brotherhood in which it is offered.

We all know that the candidates are often overwhelmed with the ritual, the movements, the material they are being presented... heck, as masons, we have all been there. I still remember vividly how it felt to kneel at that altar and take my obligations, and have seen hundreds of degrees conferred since then and have seen the deer in the headlights look on most candidates.

Wr. Cover Spear demonstrates a care, concern, and brotherly love for the candidates, while imparting information all candidates have questions about after the degree. More, in doing so, he sets the tone for the lodge, for the degrees, and for the brotherly relationship between us all.

I was impressed when I first saw Wr. Cover Spear first do this, and since then, I have been more impressed at the effect it has, not only for the candidate, but for the lodge. I am a member of the Masonic Formation Task Force... and I am proud to say that Wr. Cover Spear doesn't just confer degrees in the lodge, he forms masons. Its awesome to be a part of that... even a small part on the right hand of the Senior Warden...

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

Masonic Malcontents?

There has been a lot written of late by a small group of malcontents in freemasonry. These brothers seem to feel that if only freemasonry would change, lock, stock and barrel to THEIR vision, that everything would be cool beans and freemasonry would grow.

The Problem is, their "suggestions" for change involve throwing away pretty much everything that makes Freemasonry, well, Masonic. This includes the Grand Lodge system, the lodges, the ritual, the tenets, how we meet, who we recognize... if all their plans were implemented, we would be something else, but not freemasonry.

They go on constantly about Grand Lodges being "monolithic" and "unresponsive". One of these brothers even recently wrote: Monolithic systems such as Grand Lodges are well suited for mass production operations where everything is the same, but poorly suited to address individual needs. This, I believe, is the true nature of the problem. It's not about the needs of the ego but the spirit of the human being.

The problem is, this is incorrect, a sand foundation for all proceeding arguments, and in itself an ego driven position. These few brothers, and by few I mean less than a hundred (though they are quite vocal) out of, what, 4 million plus Freemasons worldwide, seem to hold the position that they are not bound by their obligation to Freemasonry, that they do not have to work within the system to effect change.

They do not seem to care that the MAJORITY, and by majority, I mean over 99% of all regular masons, do not agree with them and their methods. In one case recently, a lodge voted to surrender its charter, and is attempting to take all the assets of the lodge with them in the process, and have now formed a NEW lodge, without a charter.

This action was handled by less than a third of the members of the lodge who were present to vote, out of the entire membership of the lodge. More disturbing is their actions in moving the building and other valuable assets into an outside charity (in contravention to the bylaws of the law and the constitution of the grand lodge under which they HELD their charter.

The fact that they took this action after having their charter placed on probationary status because of actions they had been, or had not been taking, and the concern of the Grand Lodge over their actions. These men also, at the same time they voted to "surrender" their charter, also surrendered their dues cards and formed a new lodge, without a charter. Of course, these three actions meant that these brothers, less than a hundred of them according to reports, were no longer regular masons.

Ego is the prime cause of this problem, and others like it. In masonic ritual, we are taught that we were first PREPARED to be made a mason in our hearts, then taught to circumscribe our desires, and "wait a time with patience". A lack of patience, and an over riding ego are the prime cause of these types of actions.

They did not attempt anything through gentle acts. I have been following the actions there, and they have been, as far as I can tell, rightly reined in by the grand lodge.

Now they have done what I recommended, vote with their feet. Good for them. The issue I take umbrage with is what appears to be their moving the assets of the Lodge out of the "lodge", illegally by their own bylaws and the constitution of the grand lodge under which charter the assets were assembled, THEN surrendering their charter and taking over the assets to form a "new" lodge.

Sorry, that is not good. If they were honest in their actions, they would all have simply demited from that lodge and gone to form a new lodge and left the charter in place. After all, there are over 300 members of that lodge.

But no, they wanted to have their cake and eat it to (yes, I know, silly saying but there you are). Myself, I have no problem with their objecting to... whatever it was they objected to... following the rules of their grand lodge in not extending even honorary membership to an expelled mason, and not moving the assets of the lodge, wasn't it?

If they had simply done the honorable thing, demitted and gone off to get a charter from somewhere else, or even just forming their own new lodge, I would have lauded and honored them. After all, that is following the dictates of their conscience.

That is NOT what they did, however. They had to make a show, by "giving back their charter", and taking the assets of the lodge WITH them. Not masonic at all, in my estimation.

They should have simply demitted and left the lodge without officers, for the GM to fix however he decided to fix it. That is not what they did, and it is the... other things they did, in association with a rather... untraditional manner of demitting that I object to...

By the way, no one really seems to know what was so egregious about their grand lodge that they just HAD to demit, do they? And no one seems to see anything that they are doing that is different from regular masons the world over... except claiming to be the best masons there are, I mean.

So, lets go back to the "monolithic" comment. In the United States alone, there are over 90 REGULAR Grand Lodges. I do not follow the actions or philosophies of other obediences, so I will not include them in this discussions, or speculate on them. These 90 REGULAR grand lodges follow a tradition that goes back to at least 1717, a set of traditions, tenets, rituals and philosophy.

Now, all men see things in different lights. That is the essence of working together, and is most masonic when we can set our differences aside and work together. If a brother sees, or thinks he sees a need for change in masonry, whatever it is, it is most masonic that he discuss it with his brethren and either convince them he is correct, or, recognize that his vision is not shared and move on.

If one cannot convince the majority of the correctness of his belief, then it strikes me as the height of chutzpah, ego and hubris when he turns around and claims that the GL is therefore wrong, evil, corrupt etc etc etc, when the fact is, if the majority of his brothers do not agree with him, that HE might be out of step.

Freemasonry is a democracy, at its core, and modern freemasonry is no different. Convince the majority of anything, and you, and they, will prevail. The only MONOLITH in freemasonry is the brethren.

Then we have comments like: If one truly believes in Freemasonry, but the monolithic structure inhibits their spiritual growth, they will become deeply unhappy and confused as to the nature of their unhappiness. Eventually the realization will come to them that it is the limitations of the monolithic structure that holds them back morally and spiritually in their quest for self-discovery.

This type of comment confuses me, because every brother, EVERY brother, can work to effect change in Freemasonry, IF the change is really necessary; AND, more importantly, every man is free to demit from Freemasonry if it does not fulfill his "spiritual" needs. NO MAN, however, is free to stand back, as the antimasonic elements do, and throw rocks at freemasonry because it does not exactly match their "needs".

Some of these brothers use unmasonic, antithetical methods in their efforts to effect change. Some start new "masonic" bodies, clubs, rites, etc., that are not in keeping with true freemasonry. Sometimes, these brothers are even removed from the body masonic because their actions are so disruptive, negative, and unmasonic. Its a sad thing, but it happens.

Fortunately, the number of men that so violate their obligations, masonic teachings, masonic philosophy and masonic tolerance are few. As with any organization, some men join with a misunderstanding of what Freemasonry is... and isn't. When they find out that Freemasonry isn't a bowling club, or a pool hall, or a gym, or a bar with a club grafted on, they become unhappy.

The majority of masons worldwide find the craft to be what it claims and holds itself out as: An ancient and honorable fraternity of men, with a faith in the supreme being, however they define him, a sense of community, of brotherhood, and a need, a hunger, for more light. As one who has traveled the world and seen lodges across the face of it, met and worked with brothers of all races, nationalities and creeds, the glory and beauty of freemasonry is clear.

With the RARE exceptions noted above, the universal experience has been one of friendship, support, study, contemplation, charity and brotherhood. The philosophy of freemasonry is intact, as are the fraternal, social and moral ethos for the taking. Is all sunshine and light? No, Freemasonry, like all organizations, reflects the society in which it grows.

The warmth of masonic light is there, the brotherhood, the family and the knowledge. We are taught as Masons to be tolerant, to be gentle, and to work as brothers to achieve our noble ends. These few men, these errant brothers, are not the cure for Freemasonry's "ills", they ARE an ill, for they have set aside the trowel for the setting maul... and we Masons all know who wields the setting maul, and what the result of one fellowcraft's use of it resulted in.

As masons, we are called to tolerance, fraternity, and to whisper good counsel to our brothers when they have fallen from the path. There comes a time, however, when all good masons must, failing to bring about a reformation through kind, gentle remonstrations and whispered good counsel, must turn our backs on their antics and say, this far, and no further.

A good lodge has been destroyed by following the pied piper, and it seems another is on the brink of the same foolishness. Ego, thy name is NOT Freemasonry. The TRUE name of Freemasonry is FRATERNITAS, and the true secret of freemasonry is brotherhood.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

Further Light in Masonry…

In lodge, we speak of traveling from west to east in search of further light in Freemasonry. We speak of it so often that it almost become cliché. In fact, when we meet a brother on the street, we may ask him: Are you a traveling man? and Of what are you in search? Our dating system begins 4000 BC (the purported year when the earth was created by g-d’s fiat. We note that the Masonic date is AL, Anno Lumis, the year of light.

So, given that we speak of it so often… have you ever stopped to think: What they heck does “seeking more light” actually mean?

Until recently, I hadn’t really either. Russell Holland posted, in response to my article about the Masonic Pencil as post #4: It may be useful to consider what it is you mean by Light and how your Beacon of Masonic Light connects to that source or sources.

Now, Russell and I don’t see eye to eye on a lot of things, he is given to tossing out one-liners and walking away, but for the first time in, oh, six years, what he wrote struck me, differently than I think he intended, to be sure, but it made me stop and ask, so what IS this “Further Light In Masonry” we are all seeking. I had an answer, one I had formed over the years, but I thought I would look at what other brothers had said, rather than reinvent the wheel:

WHAT IS LIGHT? At first glance it would appear that we should begin by asking "What is Light?" Over the seven years that I have lived in Alberta, I have come to love the Ancient York Rite. I will strive to the utmost to defend it for I believe that it contains the last existing vestiges of the work of our ancient Operative brethren. Nevertheless, I have to concede that it does have one glaring omission. One that our Canadian Rite brethren will instantly recognize. Every other ritual for the High and Sublime degree that I have ever read or seen worked, contains the statement: "I beg you to observe that the Light of a Master Mason is Darkness Visible." The Light of a Master Mason is Darkness visible. I put it to you, Brethren, that this is the most accurate description of Masonic Light that you will ever find.(1)

As I searched for… well, light, on this subject, I came across the above, written by Wr. John W. Alexander of Britania Lodge #18. At first, I was appalled, but in keeping with my search, I finished reading his article, and began to realize… he was right. Later in his article, he goes on to say:

For primitive man, the absence of light, by impairing his ability to see, seemed to plunge the world into nothingness. Thus, even from the earliest times, we find darkness, as the negation of light, regarded as a cause of fear and, therefore, of evil. The Ancient Mysteries, which coexisted with and underlay the conventional religions of those far-off times, developed the idea of Light as a symbol of Knowledge and Truth. Thus we find that they all regarded its opposite as representative of Ignorance and Error. It is in this form that Freemasonry, the heiress of all the Systems of Initiation, has received the concept. Our candidate, like those of the Ancient Mysteries, enters the lodge room enshrouded in darkness. This is not to hide anything from him. After all, once he has assumed the necessary obligations, he will be shown everything. No, it is to impress him with the idea that he is blind in spirit, that he lacks knowledge, that he is in a State of Darkness. Hopefully he comes to understand that it was not the lodge which was darkened but he himself and will realize the truth that he brought his own darkness in with him! The item that we use to blindfold him is called, Masonically, a hoodwink. But a hoodwink means more than a simple blindfold. The Peerage Reference Dictionary defines the verb 'to hoodwink' as 'to deceive' thus the candidate's condition on entry is considered to be that of a man deceived. Deceived by Ignorance.(1)

I had always considered the “light” to be that of discovery, of knowledge, of ignorance dispelled. To seek further light in Masonry is to seek further understanding, of ourselves, of our brothers, of our society, of our place in the universe, and last, but certainly not least, in our g-d. After all, the source, The Fount Of All Knowledge Is The Deity, The Godhead, The Supreme Being, The Grand Artificer Of The Universe… in a word, g-d.

After all, we have the “Great Lights of Masonry” open in front of the candidate when we announce to him that he is seeing the light by which masons see… the Holy Writings, the Square and Compass. The three (there is that three thing again!) together form a single symbol for the godhead… a direct connection between Freemasonry and the light… dispelling ignorance.

As a mason advances in his degrees, he is shown more and more light, and in the third degree, is told that he is about to receive all the light that can be conferred upon him in a lodge of master masons. Once he is raised, it becomes incumbent upon the master mason to SEEK OUT THE LIGHT, to educate himself, to seek g-d, within and without. Receiving the light, the master mason cannot help but shine WITH that light, to spread the light, as he becomes a veritable Beacon of Masonic Light.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

(1) FIAT LUX - SOME THOUGHTS ON MASONIC LIGHT, by John W. Alexander, WM (Britannia Lodge No. 18) http://www.masonicworld.com/education/files/mlight.htm

The Masonic Pencil

In some Masonic Jurisdictions, the Pencil is an instrument used by operative Masons to mark and layout their work, but it is used for more noble and glorious purposes by speculative Masons to remind them not to write, indict, print, carve, hack, hew, etch, letter or engrave any of the secrets of Freemasonry whereby they may be unlawfully communicated.

I mention this because I have had two communications with men I respect and admire since returning to the United States, and their comments on this blog have been, well, eye opening. One noted that I tend to drift too often into the negative (which really surprised me, to say the least), and used my article on Failings of a Brother and Is it Time for Freemasonry and Shrine to Separate as examples of negativity.

This, to say the least, surprised me, and lead me to review my posts. The next day, I spoke to my godfather about a reference for my new job (I am being considered for a security clearance, and I need to provide references, and I wanted to ask him first if he minded) and we spoke about this blog. He mentioned that he had read it, and that it was well written, well researched, and well considered, but that like all things that I write, it was controversial.

Wow, controversial... I never considered what I wrote to be controversial. He said that was not necessarily a bad thing, because stirring up the pot gets people to think, but that if you mix in a negative tone (and there was that negativity thing again) that it could be misread, misconstrued, and misunderstood.

These two comments, wildly diverging from the comments I have received on the blog and via email have pulled me up short. My intention here is to educate, to spread the light a bit, and to seek out how others think about freemasonry, not to spread negativity.

I have been exposed to much lately to the nabobs of negativity, who constantly try to tell us that Freemasonry needs to change, that the grand lodges are evil, that the men populating the leadership are "bad men" and so on, all the while violating their obligations and spreading not light, but arrogance and darkness. It has been my sincere intention NOT to spread negativity, but the opposite.

I love Freemasonry, I love my lodges, my brothers in Freemasonry, the ritual, the philosophy, and yes, even the brothers who are negative. with the exception of the race issue in the southern lodges, I have yet to find anything in regular Freemasonry with which I do not wholeheartedly agree. I can't imagine my life without my lodge and my brothers.

I have been a very fortunate mason, and I know that. I have good men around me, my godfather for instance, my uncle, my father, Manny, John, Bill, Giovanni and hundreds more. I have traveled the world, literally, and visited many lodges, and the atmosphere, the brotherly love,the light in these lodges has been awesome, and made such a positive influence in my life that I only want to pass on that light.

Life is too short to waste carping and complaining, and anyone can find something to complain about if they look hard enough. When I was a young man, my father always used to say: There are some people that would complain about being hung with a new rope. Now, I always thought that was silly, of COURSE you would complain about being hung... period. But that was not the point, and as I grew older (and hopefully wiser) I now understand what he meant... and of course, he was right.

The same holds true of the lodges. There are some men that join and immediately start complaining about the obligation, about keeping their word, and trying to weasel out of their given word. There will ALWAYS be men like this, men who would complain about that new rope, blinding themselves to the reason, rationale, meaning and symbolism because they do not care about... well, their word, or anything else other than their ego.

These men did not learn the lessons of the three degrees, and most especially the one about working together for a common goal. Yet, I have allowed myself to be dragged into their controversy, to be drawn into opposing them, and thus, drawn into their negativity. That association has tinged my thinking, unconsciously, to the point where I was opposing them and defending the craft against them... and thus on a certain level, spreading their negativity.

It took these two good men whispering good counsel for me to realize that my fundamental motto is all the more true:

Its not about me changing them, its about me changing me.

I can't change them, they are who they are, and their punishment is that they have to live with themselves and the consequences of their actions. They can blame their lives on others, but the plain fact is, as they say: They have made their beds, and now they have to lie in them, or, as the bible says more prosaically in Hosea 8:7: For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind...

I have not posted here for two weeks, partly because I was in transit from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to the United States via London, England, and in part, because I have been in lodge several times in the past few days, renewing my spirit in the warmth and brotherly love of my two lodges.

Now these two brothers have given me something more to think about... they have whispered good counsel. Now it is time for me to think about their words and how to inculcate their good advice into my life, my outlook, and my posts here and elsewhere. Be patient with me brothers, I am but a poor rough ashlar.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us!

A Broom Named Harmony

There is a brother on one of the few Masonic Forums I do not post on who is always on about his “broom named Harmony”. He wields this “broom” to sweep away any discussion that in his opinion, creates discord or “disharmony”. The fact is, the use of this “broom” actually creates dissention, and drives away good men.

The “broom” he uses is intimidation, censorship, and outright banning of people who do not toe his line in the sand. The fact is, he uses this “broom” to sweep away any opinion at variance with his own about what is “ok” to talk about. It is this “Conformity or Coventry” and that is why I am writing today about his broom.

I will not name the brother, or the forum, as it is really unimportant. I use his “broom” only as a metaphor for what seems to be a challenge today. Masonry is about freedom, to think, to talk, to act, to chose, yet there are those who, in favor of something they call harmony, are willing to shut down conversations.

Why and how did this come about? How can a fraternity, dedicated to freedom, come to a place where that very freedom is curtailed in the name of something called harmony? There is but a single word to describe it, and it is, unfortunately, simply fear. Fear of having your cherished world view challenged, fear of different thought, fear of other facts, fear of change.

Yet, as freemasons, we should be able to examine any issue, thought or problem, openly, as intelligent men. Benjamin Franklin wrote that intelligent men should approach issues with an open mind. That means we should hear out all sides, weigh the facts, then make a rational decision.

Unfortunately, that does not seem to be the American way these past few decades. “Debate” seems to have gone from rational examination to demonization. The process no longer seems to be one of the exchange of ideas, but one of demolishing your opponent, of crushing them, not only on the merits of the argument to hand, but also personally, and often professionally.

Masonry, fortunately, gives us a way to learn from each other, to exchanges points of view, to discuss issues on their merits, as brothers, circumscribing our desires so that we can meet on the level and act by the plumb. When we meet on this basis, as masons, we should be able to discuss any issue, no matter how contentious, without resorting to the tactics of personal destruction.

Experience demonstrates that most people that have opinions about issues, but if we act as brothers, as adults, as men and of course, as masons, we can share and learn from each other. When we act as masons, there is no reason to use the broom named harmony, because real harmony exists, and there is no need to sweep things under the carpet.

Instead of a broom named harmony, freemasonic principles offer us the methodologies to work together.

Keeping Charity in mind, we can remember that our brothers are never villains, by keeping brother love in mind, we can remember that our brothers are our friends, and that they have only our best interests at heart, even when we view the world differently. Keeping prudence in mind, we can chose our words carefully, and remember that our brothers are doing the same.

Keeping all the tenets of Freemasonry clearly in mind, we can speak openly and freely, so that even as we disagree, because men of good will can and will disagree in a most friendly manner, we can remain brothers. Most of all, we should recall Masonic tolerance, so that as we deal with our brothers, we listen to what they are saying.

It is our differences that make us whole, not our similarities. If we keep that in mind, we will have no need of false harmony, created only by sweeping our differences under the carpet. We can join of differences, and by understanding each other, understand ourselves. To use a Masonic metaphor:

When polishing a stone, we do not use a smooth stone, but a rough stone, that by rubbing the two together we end up with a smooth surface, a perfect ashlar.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

Chain Of Union

Freemasonry is a peculiar system of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols. Symbols are something that stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention, or accidental resemblance. In Freemasonry, we have the Compass, the Square, the Level, the Plumb and so on, visible, physical symbols of philosophical principles and elements.

There are also symbols that are enacted, for instance the due guards and signs by which we can recognize each other. There is another type of enacted symbol, the Chain of Union.

Generally, it is formed at closing a lodge, and usually only in the first-degree. Some do it immediately before the closing, others after, and some as a part of the ritual of initiation where is it done in an evocative manner: Immediately after closing the works, the novice is placed “between the pillars” where he is able to see the formation of the chain. After it is formed, by order of the master, the circle is opened towards the West so the candidate, crossing the threshold, is welcomed into and becomes an integral part of it. The chain is closed, locked “with force and vigor,” having assimilated the new ring in an almost organic way.(1)

To form the chain, the brethren descend to the level, and assemble in a circular shape around the altar or tracing board in the center of the lodge. If the lodge wears gloves, the brethren should remove them, then standing shoulder to shoulder, they should stand with heels together, their feet forming the angle of a square, their toe tips touching that of the brother on each side.

The brethren should cross their arms over their chest, right arm over the left joining hands with those of his neighbors so the right hand takes the neighbors left, with the right hand covering and the left hand supporting.

The brethren should rest their chin on their chest, close their eyes and concentrate on the intent of the Worshipful Master, remaining silent and meditative. The master says: so mote it be, and the brethren raise and drop their arms in unison three times, then release the hands to break the chain and release the joined will of the brethren.

The chain of union reminds us of the indissoluble chain of sincere affection which unites us all, the high and low, the rich and the poor into one society or band of brothers. The Chain of Union also represents the knotted cord that runs around the temple walls. It indicates that we are all links belonging to the same chain.

This practice has seemingly fallen into disuse in many jurisdictions, and is one that symbolically unites us, physically, psychically, morally, and masonically.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us!

References:

(1) Chain of Union, Giovanni Lombardo, Lodgeroom International Magazine, June 2006, pp 7

The Middle Chamber

Warning: The following discusses non-ritual symbolic issues related to the second degree of masonry.

Brethren, friends all;

The second degree of Freemasonry speaks of the Middle Chamber of King Solomon’s Temple, how a Mason gets there, and what is done with him when he arrives. Allegorically, this is on the second floor of King Solomon’s Temple, where a brother arrives after ascending flights of stairs. The surface symbolism of these stairs is explained to the candidate… at length.

The symbols of the second degree, especially the description of the symbolism of the stair, is highly allegorical, bearing only a very surface resemblance to what the candidate is told. In this short article, the author is not going to dissect the symbols and explanations given to the candidate on his journey. Instead, we will focus our attention on the destination.

The Middle Chamber of King Solomon’s Temple

The candidate is told that the middle chamber is on the second floor of the temple, and is a place where the Fellows of the Craft met and held their lodges. He is told that is where they had their names recorded, and received their wages. This is the first time a candidate is told about receiving wages, and it is an important step for him.

What is the Middle Chamber though? To understand, we need to look at what King Solomon’s Temple Symbolizes. In the Entered Apprentice Degree, that candidate is told that

“…on your return to the temple, you are placed in the north-east corner thereof, that you might be near the worshipful master, to receive instruction from him, whereby you may be able to erect your future, moral Masonic superstructure.”

The candidate is also told that by the use of the common gavel, he is to work on perfecting his imperfect ashlar, himself, that he might remove all the rough and superfluous parts of the stone, thereby fitting our minds (spirits) as LIVING STONES, in that spiritual building, that house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

The symbolic temple we are building, perfecting, is ourselves. WE are King Solomon’s Temple, that perfect structure ready to house the spirit of g-d. The middle chamber is therefore within US.

Why do we make an ascent from the outer portico, though a long aisle or porch, up a set of stairs to the middle chamber? Lets look at the symbology of the degrees again.

The Entered Apprentice symbolizes youth, infancy, entry. This degree is also the material, the base, the foundation of Freemasonry. It is the doorway… the portico INTO the temple.

As we enter the temple, we begin to learn. We expand the mind by experience and study. The first two flights of stairs introduce us to fundamental concepts, expanding on what we received in the first degree. Note that there are THREE flights of stairs, and the first concept we are introduced to on our way UP the stairs is the number three.

When we arrive at the third set of stairs, we are faced with the Quadrivium: Grammar, Rhetoric, Logic and Arithmetic; and the Trivium: Geometry, Music, and Astronomy. These are intellectual pursuits, the pursuits of the maturing mind. This makes sense, as the Fellowcraft degree is the degree of maturing, of developing skill.

Where the Entered Apprentice is the material, the foundation, the Fellowcraft is the mind, rising above the material, between the material and the spiritual. The fellowcraft IS the middle chamber, between the ethereal and the material.

As we ascend the stairs, we ascend, symbolically, Jacobs Ladder, the three principle rounds of which are faith, hope and charity. As an aside, we speak of charity in the first degree, but the more correct translation of the Aramaic is actually LOVE, as in Agape Love. Charity is, more accurately, disinterested fellowship, or the spiritual love of one’s fellows.

As we consider the THREE principle rounds of the staircase in the fellowcraft degree, we should also consider that as Jacobs ladder is a symbol of this staircase, a more accurate translation of the Aramaic story of Jacob’s Ladder is that of a STAIR. The angels were ascending and descending a stairway whose foot was on the earth, and whose head was in the heavens.

In ancient times, the heart was seen as the seat of the mind, the soul or spirit, not the brain. When the ritual speaks of the middle chamber, it speaks of the mind, of the soul of the man.

When we start off at the foot of the stairs, we are reminded of the significance of three, and on the second landing, the symbolism of the second degree is emphasized, and on the third landing, we are shown the importance of learning, maturity, cogent thought. Then, after the symbolism is well set in our minds, we are admitted to the middle chamber of King Solomon’s (OUR) Temple.

Upon our first admission (!!) to the middle chamber, we are presented two very important new symbols: Wages of a Fellowcraft Mason and the three precious Jewels of a Fellowcraft Mason. Again, this paper is not the place for a lengthy dissertation on those symbols, suffice it to say that they emphasize and expand on what we have already been presented.

As Fellowcrafts, we have ascended Jacob’s Ladder, from the material level to the middle, or mental level of our lives, and more importantly, our way of thinking and viewing the world. We are yet one material step away from opening our minds to the true secrets of a Master Mason, and after due contemplation of the lessons of this degree, we will be considered as candidates for the Sublime Degree of Master Mason.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons, may brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

Masonic Principles, Morals and Ethics

Freemasonry teaches us we must walk uprightly before g-d and man, acting upon the square and on the level.

In the first degree, we are reminded of those principles, as the foundation of a Masonic life. They are the mission statement of the fraternity. This is the statement of what we are, what we stand for, and what we will and will not do.

Principles are like lighthouses. They are natural laws that cannot be broken. As Cecil B. deMille observed: “It is impossible for us to break the law. We can only break ourselves against the law."

Principles are not practices. A practice is a specific activity or action. A practice that works in one circumstance will not necessarily work in another, as parents who have tried to raise a second child exactly like they did the first can readily attest.

While practices are situationally specific, principles are DEEP, fundamental truths that have universal application. They apply to individuals, to marriages, to families, to private and public organizations of every kind. When these truths are internalized into habits, they empower people to create a wide variety of practices to deal with different situations.

~ The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People ~ by Stephen R. Covey

Our principles are the foundation of our actions, they define us as men. The set of principles that we live by are the touchstones of our lives. Freemasonry offers a set of principles in the first degree, and expands on them in the following two degrees. The principles I am referring to are NOT esoteric, mysterious, or “religious” ideas. There is not one principle taught (in Freemasonry) unique to any specific faith or religion…

Masonic principles are a part of most every major enduring religion, as well as enduring social philosophies and ethical systems. They are self-evident and can easily be validated by any individual. It’s almost as if these principles or natural laws are part of the human condition, part of the human consciousness, part of the human conscience.

They seem to exist in all human beings, regardless of social conditioning and loyalty to them, even though they might be submerged or numbed by such conditions or disloyalty. These principles are, for instance:

Fairness, Integrity, Honesty, Service, Quality, Excellence, Potential, Patience, Human dignity, Encouragement, Nurturance (brotherhood), and Growth (personal and spiritual).

Principles are the territory. Values are the maps. When we value correct principles, we have truth – a knowledge of things as they are. So, lets take a look at the principles as they are taught in the very first degree of masonry:

Temperance, Fortitude, Prudence, Justice, Integrity, Silence, Brotherly Love, Relief, Truth, Hope, Faith, Charity, Freedom, Fervency, and Zeal.

The principles enumerated above are fundamental to human life, regardless of where or how the humans live, or what understanding they have of g-d. These principles are like the very air we breathe, the food we eat. They are essential to any human society. One way to quickly grasp the self-evident nature of the principles is to simply consider the absurdity of attempting to live an effective life based on their opposites.

These fundamental principles, like all great fundamentals, are really self evident to all men who pause for just a moment to consider what they expect from their fellow men. They spring from what is the basis of divine law. To quote Rabbi Hillel (c20 BCE):

That which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. That is the whole of the law. The rest is commentary.

Therefore a little commentary: Freemasonry teaches us principles to inculcate in our morality, as our morality is rooted in those principles. As masons, we are enjoined to act upon the square, as the square is a symbol of morality.

Lets look at what Merriam-Webster has to say about morality:

Morality:
a. of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior : ethical (moral judgments)
b: expressing or teaching a conception of right behavior (a moral poem)
c: conforming to a standard of right behavior
d: sanctioned by or operative on one’s conscience or ethical judgment (a moral obligation)
e: capable of right and wrong action (a moral agent)

So, principles of right and wrong behavior define our morals. Inculcation of Masonic principles therefore informs our morals. By the inculcation of these principles, we improve our morals, or rather, reinforce our morals, and become better men. I write reinforce our morals deliberately, because to become a mason, you must already be a good and upright person.

There is nothing in freemasonry, hopefully, that does not already exist in your heart and conduct, hence the inference that a person is first prepared to be made a mason in his heart. To become a mason, you must already BE an upright, moral person.

Initiation simply reteaches you, reinforces in you, those great moral principles that you have already learned from your parents and from, hopefully, society. Freemasons are, or should be, moral people, acting upon the level and by the square, upright before god and mankind, circumscribing their desires and keeping their passions within dues bounds.

From morals proceeds, or ought to proceed, ethics. Again, from Merriam-Webster:

Ethics:
1. plural but sing or plural in constr : the discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation
2 a: a set of moral principles : a theory or system of moral values (the present-day materialistic ethic) (an old-fashioned work ethic) — often used in plural but singular or plural in construction (an elaborate ethics) (Christian ethics)
b: plural but sing or plural in constr : the principles of conduct governing an individual or a group (professional ethics)
c: a guiding philosophy
d: a consciousness of moral importance (forge a conservation ethic)
3 plural : a set of moral issues or aspects (as rightness) (debated the ethics of human cloning)

From Principles proceeds morals and from a set of morals proceeds our ethics. Once again, the trinity, the triad which is really a monad, three sides of the same thing, each supporting and defining the other.

Principles to Morals to Ethics. Each dependent upon the other as none can stand alone.

The principles of freemasonry are much the same. No one principle stands alone, but works in conjunction, each supporting the other into a pleasing and unified whole. By the influence of brotherly love we are more charitable toward our brothers failings (and strengths). By being prudent, and speaking only that which is appropriate to be spoken (Maintaining silence), acting in a brotherly manner with charity, we avoid the pitfall of gossip.

An extended case can be made that acting on the principles in all our lawful activities we will be moral and upright men, acting with ethics than none can reproach. In fact, it is quintessentially Masonic TO act by these principles, and do nothing that will cast a cloud upon our ancient and honorable fraternity.

As always, I look forward to your comments.

“May the blessing of heaven rest upon us and all regular masons, may brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.”

A Beacon of Morality in a Sea of Moral Relativism

There are few institutions in the world more misunderstood that that of the Freemasons. There is much incorrect, deliberately misleading and false information posted about the fellowship of Freemasons. Let’s take a few moments here to discuss what Freemasonry actually is and what it is not, what it stands for, and what it does NOT stand for.

First of all, Freemasonry is an ancient and venerable institution, with a stated purpose of Brotherly Love, Relief, Charity, with the basic tenets of Faith, Hope, Charity, temperance, fortitude, justice and truth. Freemasonry is a fraternity of religious men, dedicated to the goal of making good men into better men.

Freemasonry teaches men that there are no moral relatives. In a culture that offers classes in moral relativism, Freemasonry stands as an almost lone beacon in worldwide culture as a fraternity dedicated to the promulgation of morality. Freemasonry teaches its members moral lessons using allegorical tales (as the bible does, and as did the Christ), using symbols to illustrate the lessons.

There are many things that Freemasonry is NOT. Freemasonry is not a religion, or a substitute thereto, nor is it a secret society, or not part of a secret world government. The truth is that many famous men have been Masons, among them George Washington, Paul Revere, Benjamin Franklin, Albert Einstein, nine signers of the Declaration of Independence and thirteen signers of the Constitution of the United States.

Freemasonry is not a religion, or a substitute for the religious duty of honoring God and his works and praising Him in fellowship. Freemasonry is open to all MEN of ALL Faiths who profess a belief in God and life beyond this one, regardless of race. Freemasonry claims as its sons Christians of all brands, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Taoists, and Hindus.

All lodges open with a prayer to God, and close with a prayer to God. God is acknowledged in all our undertakings. In fact, when a candidate is initiated, he is told that "? No man should ever enter upon any great or important undertaking without first invoking the blessing of God?"

Freemasonry is not a secret world government. Freemasons are janitors and presidents, ditch diggers and lawyers, funeral directors and doctors. We are your brothers, your uncles, your fathers and grandfathers. Freemasons are ordinary, good men who believe in the word of God, and seek to make themselves more serviceable to their God, their country, their neighbors, their families and themselves.

It is ridiculous in the extreme, however, to infer that the world is ruled by Freemasons because some famous politicians and powerful men have been Freemasons. This belief is the mental equivalent of saying that since all Heroin users drink milk that milk leads to Heroin. This type of mental self-abuse is not intellectually honest or demonstrative of mental excellence. Great men CHOOSE to be Freemasons because Freemasons are honorable men, God-fearing men, men who are dedicated to moral honesty and integrity.

So, so, we have discussed what Freemasonry is, let us now turn our attention to what it is not. I will start with an admission the Freemasonry has erred over the last fifty years in not responding to those few critics that exist, ignoring them as irrelevant. By not responding to our critics and ignoring them, we have allowed their voices to be the only voices heard on the subject, and therefore harmed ourselves.

By being secretive, and withdrawing from the community of discussion about the fraternity and what we stand for, the moral stand we take, the moral teachings of the fraternity, and the services we provide to the community, we have inadvertently caused this paranoid concern. Masonry requires that a man come to the fraternity of his own free will and accord, and we do not solicit members.

Since we do not solicit members, some have assumed us to be a secret society, so lets examine what a secret society is and why Freemasonry is NOT a secret society. Freemasons identify themselves by the symbol of the Square and Compass, the square of virtue and the compass which is used to symbolically circumscribe our desires to keep our passions within due bounds toward all of society.

We wear this symbol on our suits, on our vehicles, on our homes. We are proud to be Freemasons. Our lodges are listed in the phone books in all towns across America under Masonic Lodge, and in the classified directories under Fraternities. Our lodge buildings are marked clearly and distinctly with the square and compass, and can also be seen in nearly every city in the world.

The only exception to this is in dictatorial countries. For instance, in Germany during the Nazi reign, Hitler suppressed Freemasons, and as a result, we hid, using the Blue Forget Me Not flower to show ourselves to other Freemasons. After the fall of the communists in Russia, thousands of Freemasons came out of hiding to rejoin the worldwide fraternity. Masonry is NOT a secret society.

Freemasons do have secrets, but not the ones you would be led to believe. The secrets are passwords, signs, tokens by which one brother mason may know another and show himself to be a Mason. These "secrets" are ancient, and a historical legacy that is imparted to each Mason as he moves through the three degrees. Our meetings are closed to non-masons, though any man, who can assert a belief in God and in the afterlife, can come into the meetings. This is hardly secret.

Freemasonry is not satanic, and has no agenda to push any religious beliefs. In fact, there are two things that are not allowed in lodge, proselytizing for any religion and politics. Not that our members don’t have opinions about both, but since these are the two subjects that are most divisive and most likely to cause disharmony in the lodge, they are forbidden.

Some few, dishonest men, claim that Freemasonry is satanic worship. This claim can be found in the writings of a pornographer and Vatican tool named Leo Taxil. This man, to curry Vatican favor and make money from the Catholic Church, admitted after a number of years that he had made it all up to make a fool of the pope, but that does not get the press that the lies do.

The second reason Freemasons have been accused of devil worship is less clear, and more rooted in the fanaticism of the evangelist. They teach that if you do not 100% support the Christ and denounce any other faith, you are a Satan worshipper. Southern Baptists have accused Roman Catholics of Satan worship for the same reason, yet no thinking man considers the Catholic Church a hotbed of Satanism, despite its recent setbacks due to child molesting priests.

Sorting out the lies takes intellectual energy, and the few opponents of Freemasonry are not interested in the truth, but are interested in controlling you through fear of the unknown. The truth is that Freemasonry is erected to God and dedicated to the Holy Saints John, and all lodges have the great book of Law open on the altar, either a Holy Bible, a Torah or the Koran, or whatever other Holy Writings are used in the country.

Now, when I assure you that Freemasons do not worship the devil, some person with a lack of understanding will claim "Well, you think that because you are not a 33rd degree or 32nd degree Freemason, so lets take a moment to dispel that bit of nonsense. A moments serious consideration by a person with an IQ above that of his shoe size will realize this is patently impossible and inane.

To wit: A religious man joins the fraternity, watches religiously based moral lessons, works for the benefit of his community in the name of God, and attends lodge meetings, opened in the name of God and conducted in the name of God, and finally attends the 32nd Degree of Freemasonry in the Scottish Rite or York Rite, given in the name of God. Then after additional hard work and labor for the community and the fraternity, is AWARDED the 33rd degree, is told that this honorary degree is dedicated to the service of Satan? That is so patently ridiculous that even the most hateful and ignorant savage can see it cannot be true.

George W. Bush, Colin Powell, Dick Cheney, Al Gore, Ariel Sharon, Henry Kissinger etc etc are not Freemasons. Many famous men are Freemasons, and if these men were Freemasons, the fellowship would be enriched therefrom, as among these men, George W. Bush is a most religious, pious, honorable and respectable man! However, President Bush is a "Bonesman", a member of the college fraternity, the Skull and bones, but this fraternity is NOT Masonic in nature.

Oh, sure, it was started by a Mason, but so were many organizations in the world. However, being founded by a Freemason does not make these organizations Masonic. I will give you three examples: the Boy Scouts of America, was founded by Lord Baden Powell, a Mason; Ford Motor Corporation was founded by Henry Ford, a mason, and J.C. Penny’s was founded by J.C. Penney. None of these organizations are Masonic.

There are all kinds of absurd claims made against Freemasons, none of which have a basis in truth, however, someone makes a claim, the Fraternity does not respond, and there it hangs. In intelligence circles, this is referred to as Disinformation. Ignored, it takes on a life of its own. So let’s take a look at the claim. Freemasonry teaches her sons to act by the square, a symbol of truth and morality, by the plumb, walking uprightly before God and men in our various stations, and on the level, open and honest between men.

It is the intent of the Fraternity to no longer sit back passively and allow lies to be promulgated about our fraternity. Freemasonry does not practice magic, worship goats, practice human sacrifice, abuse children or any of the other ridiculous claims made against it. So, one man says "where there is smoke there is fire." We all know that this is not true, and a famous example of this is the McCarthy Hearings. Tons of smoke, created by a man trying to further his career, no substance.

An even greater example of this is the Nazi regime, which needed a scapegoat, and chose the Jews. All manner of hateful lies were created to justify the pogroms to further the career of a little failed painter turned politician. Folks that publish lies about the fraternity, either knowingly or through a lack of a willingness to actually research the issue, are acting in much the same manner.

Freemasons are good men, servants to the community, and reverent, religious men, whose goal in the fraternity is the fellowship with other good men and service to the community. For a more in-depth examination and refutation of the lies and frauds perpetrated against the fraternity, I recommend a visit to http://www.masonicinfo.com.

"...the network, from the intimate connections of its several parts, denotes unity..."

Glad to meet you thus…

One of the joys and privileges of Freemasonry is that of traveling and visitation. There are regular lodges around the world where any brother from a recognized jurisdiction might sojourn among brothers, culture, and make new friends who he has never known before.

I have been traveling, this last year, far, far to the east. I traveled so far to the east, in fact, that I found myself in a typical police state, where Freemasonry is illegal. Not only is it illegal to be a Freemason, or practice Masonry here, but if any of the natives were caught, it would cost them their lives.

Puts a whole new spin maintaining secrecy, doesn’t it?

As a result, I have been a lodge of one… I have although had the pleasure of working with two brothers, also world travelers, veterans of military careers and sojourners in this place. For obvious reasons, I will say no more of them, other than their presence has been a sanity saver for me.

Now, we have all had the pleasure, I am sure, of recognizing, and being recognized as Freemasons by brothers we have never met. We make ourselves known by certain signs, phrases, turns of speech, and in America, by rings, pins, necklaces, bumper stickers, license plates, plaques, and so on.

Here, there is none of that for obvious reasons, so it is all the more rare, pleasant and surprising to meet a brother! As Freemasons, we instill in our speech certain phrases from ritual. We do this without thinking, as often as not. There are of course the tried and true phrases as well, questions and responses that indicate a man is indeed upright, on the level and acting on the square.

There are other ways we know each other as well. Not words, gestures, questions, or signs, but the manner a man expresses and carries himself that identifies him as a Mason. The first brother I met, I knew before I asked him that I was a brother. When I did ask him obliquely, he looked at me and said: “I wondered how long it was going to be before you asked me.”

You see, he had recognized me as a Mason long before I recognized him, or said anything directly to identify myself. Masonry does change us, it does make us into different, better men, and we can see that in others.

Why do I mention this now? Well, in a short time, I am on my way home. Back to my family, my friends, my brothers, and my lodges. This, because I have found a new and better job.

I have spent so much time here in the east, I literally feel as if I should be proclaimed a past master again. Why? Because here, I was a lodge of one.

I was required to master myself, live by the square, on the level, in an upright manner before g-d and man. This has been a dangerous place, where exposure, for me at least, would result in, at best, expulsion from the country.

Even now, I will not name the country, though there are a number in the east where Freemasonry is illegal. Wherever tyranny stands, there you will find Freemasonry held as illegal. Tyrants cannot abide freedom, no matter how it appears. This place is no different.

But, for all of that, this has still been a good experience. This sojourn has forced me to focus on my Freemasonry in a manner I would never have experienced at home in the United States. You see, it’s easy to be a Mason in the US and in the UK where we have our detractors. At least in free countries we have freedom from persecution, though even there can be found pinheaded hatemongers.

It is sad that, in some countries, Masons must still conceal themselves, must still keep their Masonry only in their hearts. A few political divisions in England recently tried to create rules and laws requiring Masons to declare themselves before taking certain jobs, and in Italy Masons must conceal themselves or face prejudice, job loss, and other unpleasantries.

There is no reason to require someone to register themselves, as a particular religion, or member of an organization, other than to create the same type of harassment the Jews underwent in Germany in the 1930s, and all of our forefathers gave to stop that horrific event will be lost as history repeats itself.

This trip has given me a new view of my Masonry, has enlightened me, made me appreciate it all the more, and forced me to focus internally on Masonry. I have had time for quiet contemplation and for study. In a sense, this blog is itself a result of my time in the east.

Take the time to examine your Freemasonry. What is it, what does it mean, how has it affected and transformed your life? Not everyone can be blessed with the time in this place as I have been, surrounded by hostile forces.

And next time you meet a brother, remember how wonderful it is to meet on the level!

G-d bless!

On tolerance and Intolerance

One of the principle teachings of Freemasonry is tolerance. We don’t speak of it in lodge much, but it is inherent in the way a lodge operates, it is custom. The most “visible” evidence of tolerance in lodge is the unwritten custom of not allowing proselytizing or the discussion of politics.

The teachings on prudence, justice and temperance, though, it could be argued, are directly related to tolerance, as is brotherly love. But the most definitive discussion on tolerance can be found in Morals and Dogma by Wr. Br. Albert Pike, Sovereign Grand Commander of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction.

…it (toleration) inculcates in the strongest manner that great leading idea of the Ancient Art, that a belief in the one True God, and a moral and virtuous life, constitute the only religious requisites needed to enable a man to be a Mason.

Masonry has ever the most vivid remembrance of the terrible and artificial torments that were used to put down new forms of religion or extinguish the old. It sees with the eye of memory the ruthless extermination of all the people of all sexes and ages, because it was their misfortune not to know the God of the Hebrews, or to worship Him under the wrong name, by the savage troops of Moses and Joshua. It sees the thumb-screws and the racks, the whip, the gallows, and the stake, the victims of Diocletian and Alva, the miserable Covenanters, the Non-Conformists, Servetus burned, and the unoffending Quaker hung. It sees Cranmer hold his arm, now no longer erring, in the flame until the hand drops off in the consuming heat. It sees the persecutions of Peter and Paul, the martyrdom of Stephen, the trials of Ignatius, Polycarp, Justin, and Irenæus; and then in turn the sufferings of the wretched Pagans under the Christian Emperors, as of the Papists in Ireland and under Elizabeth and the bloated Henry. The Roman Virgin naked before the hungry lions; young Margaret Graham tied to a stake at low-water mark, and there left to drown, singing hymns to God until the savage waters broke over her head; and all that in all ages have suffered by hunger and nakedness, peril and prison, the rack, the stake, and the sword, - it sees them all, and shudders at the long roll of human atrocities. And it sees also the oppression still practiced in the name of religion - men shot in a Christian jail in Christian Italy for reading the Christian Bible; in almost every Christian State, laws forbidding freedom of speech on matters relating to Christianity; and the gallows reaching its arm over the pulpit.

No man truly obeys the Masonic law who merely tolerates those whose religious opinions are opposed to his own. Every man's opinions are his own private property, and the rights of all men to maintain each his own are perfectly equal. Merely to tolerate, to bear with an opposing opinion, is to assume it to be heretical; and assert the right to persecute, if we would; and claim our toleration of it as a merit. The Mason's creed goes further than that. No man, it holds, has any right in any way to, interfere with the religious belief of another.

It appears that, in Wr. Pike’s opinion, we are called upon as Masons to demonstrate more than simple toleration. But, what does that mean?

Merriam-Webster defines To Tolerate as:
… to endure, to put up with; akin to Old English tholian to bear, Latin tollere to lift up, latus carried (suppletive past participle of ferre), Greek tlEnai to bear
1 : to exhibit physiological tolerance for (as a drug)
2 a : to suffer to be or to be done without prohibition, hindrance, or contradiction b : to put up with
To endure… to put up with… to suffer it to be done without prohibition… so, in essence, to simply tolerate something is to endure it in silence. That is brotherly?

But what is the next level? If we go beyond simple toleration, where are we? Acceptance? Well, that certainly seems correct, so let’s examine acceptance for a moment.

Merriam-Webster defines to Accept as:

1 a : to receive willingly b : to be able or designed to take or hold (something applied or added)
2 : to give admittance or approval to
3 a : to endure without protest or reaction b : to regard as proper, normal, or inevitable c : to recognize as true : BELIEVE
4 a : to make a favorable response to b : to agree to undertake (a responsibility)
5 : to assume an obligation to pay; also : to take in payment
6 : to receive (a legislative report) officially intransitive senses : to receive favorably something offered.

To give admittance or approval to… to endure without protest or reaction… neither separately is the correct Masonic position, but together, these two might suffice. Two brothers may vehemently disagree on a subject, but if each brother accepts the other’s right to that opinion and the brother’s right to believe differently, then we are closer to the Masonic ideal.

This is not to say that we must each accept the others POSITION, for we do have right to our own thoughts, and it could be argued that it is quintessentially Masonic for brothers to work out for themselves that which is right, fit, mete and proper. It is, however, entirely unmasonic to try to suppress a brother for having a differing opinion. It is wrong to go out and try to change a brother’s opinion, or to convert him.

Discussion of issues and the exchange of positions, while it may seem contradictory, is not intolerant of non accepting, for it is by the exchange of ideas and thoughts that we all grow. However, pushing your onto a brother is intolerant… for instance, the prohibition against proselytizing in lodge is quintessentially a Masonic virtue, for if a brother is interested in your position on religion, he will ask… outside of lodge.

But the whole issue of religion and tolerance is a thorny one. I recently made the point to a brother that preaching to someone, going door to door, bracing them in the workplace or in the street, or sending “missionaries” to another country is, on its face, intolerant. Masonically, it is intolerant, for it is a failure to accept the other person’s beliefs (or lack thereof), and a pushing of one person’s opinion onto another.

If group A sends people door to door to “share” their version of faith, those folks going door to door are intruding (literally trespassing) to push their views, and are, by definition, being intolerant of the views held by the people they are intruding upon. If a group sends people to another country to “feed and clothe the poor”, and of course, share their faith with them, those people are being intolerant of the beliefs and customs of the people they are feeding and clothing.

If they were truly interested in just feeding and clothing, they wouldn’t take as many holy books with them as potatoes…

The difference between mere toleration and acceptance of another’s right to his views is a simple matter of intent. If you go to a man and ask him his opinion on a subject, be it religion or politics or the shape of the clouds in the sky with the intent of sharing with him your own view then you are not being tolerant of his views.

This is an extreme interpretation to make a point, but it is no less true for that. Some feel it is the nature of their religion, the call of their faith, to share with everyone the nature of that faith. Wonderful, however, doing that is a manifest demonstration of intolerance… done with the best of intentions.

Another example of this is the War Between the North and the South here in the United States in the 1860’s. Examples abound of Masons on each side of the war, stopping to hold joint funeral services for fallen brothers, to hold out a Masonic lodge from being burned or looted, to give shelter or forbearance to a brother… during a shooting war. THAT was true Masonry.

Today, we see a definite lack of tolerance in the lodge. There are issues that have come up, changes in process and procedures of varying natures. As usual, there is one group championing the change, and as usual, there is a group the opposes the change, and there is always they third group that really don’t care and just want to get to the coffee and donuts.

Under true Masonic tolerance, we would accept each other’s right to have the opinion(s) and move on. Unfortunately, we see one side or the other trying to shut up the dissenters. There are claims of divisiveness, “Masonic Civil War”, splitting the craft etc etc as rhetoric to stop one side from holding their own opinions.

Masonic teaching would have us accept the other opinion, and the each other’s right to have those opinions, and seek common ground, but that is not happening. Instead, we see retrenchment, and, frankly, resentment. The issue doesn’t matter, there are several of them facing us today. The Masonic way would be to work together instead of trying to win at all costs. As one man wrote, it is better to have half a pie than no pie at all… that is acceptance.

Masonically, it is not about winning, or shouldn’t be… oh, we have elections, and we have moderated debate in lodge over issues, decorous and brotherly… mostly. Then we vote, and the vote should end the discussion… but it often turns into more than that after the election is done.

So, what is Masonic tolerance? In reality, it should be, in this mason’s opinion about brothers seeking how best to work and best agree. It should be about accepting our brothers for who they are and what their faith is, and how we can best learn to be better men before g-d and our fellow men.

No man truly obeys the Masonic law who merely tolerates those whose opinions are opposed to his own.

As always, I look forward to seeing your comments.

G-d bless