Masonry in Men

H. L. Haywood once wrote, Not more men in Masonry, but more Masonry in men.

This has been a topic of discussion between myself and a few Brothers.  I once has a prominent Mason in our area tell me that because he felt cheated by the Blue Lightning experience he went through, it caused him to seek more light in Masonry on his own.  He is unique, as too often, we discussed, the rest of the men get their secret decoder rings and just say "Cool, I'm a Mason!" and off they go.

One of the items brought up by our discussions was the concept of quantity over quality.   We rush guys in, get them degrees as soon as possible so that they don't lose interest, don't focus on education at all between the degrees and rush the experience.  In my case, by the time I was a fellowcraft, I was quite confused.  What word?  huh? grip?  when do I use that? There was no place for me to go to learn and no one offered to help.  Id occasionally get a short paper given to me to read or a regional publication to go through.

I understand the need for members, it is for the financial well being of the Blue Lodge.  We need members, to pay fees and dues so that the lodge can survive.  Each year we lose members due to indifference, death, lack of time, whatever and we need to replace them.  But should we do this at the sacrifice of who we are and what we are all about?

We have been fortunate to have some new members and Entered Apprentices who appreciate the education and have been participating in events.  Still, the discussion led to the possibility that some men may not get involved because they truly do not have Masonry in their hearts.  Long ago, it took long periods of time to advance from Apprentice to Fellowcraft and then to be raised a Master Mason.  Why?  It was to see who was dedicated to the craft, to weed out those who truly didn't have it in themselves to be a true part of the organization.  What did I say earlier?  We move guys through so that they don't lose interest.  Perhaps they lose interest if they truly don't have the craft in their heart?  Some may some may not, we should never say all or never, but it is a possibility.

Could it be that some men dont get too involved because when they were raised, Masonic Education was not a focus or a factor in the process?  They didn't exactly know what they were getting into or what was expected of them?  I revert back to the 24 inch rule.  This particular symbol always sticks out to me as one thing I learned well, equally dividing our time between work, rest and craft.  Sometimes I devote a little more to one than the other, but in the long run it all evens out.  I am devoted to my craft and my devotion is trying to  instill that devotion into others.  To be true to H. L. Haywood's quote and put more Masonry into men.

New Orleans Scottish Rite History & Research Symposium » About the Symposium/Registration

New Orleans Scottish Rite History & Research Symposium » About the Symposium/Registration

This looks like a very cool event. I may have to consider going to this!

The Masonic Calendar - 28 December 6010 A.L.

With Yesterday being the Feast Day of St. John the Evangelist, it signifies the beginning of the Masonic Calendar.  This is a good day to put together a brief explanation of that calendar as put together by Robert Macoy in 1867.

"In affixing dates to official Masonic documents, Freemasons should always use the calendar peculiar to themselves: the common calendar, or vulgar era, may also be used in the same instrument. The dates vary in the different branches of the order.

Masons of the York and French rites, date from the creation of the world, calling it "Anno Lucis," which they abbreviate A.·. L.·. signifying "in the year of Light." Thus with them the present year is A.·. L.·. 5852. Masons of the York rite begin the year on the first January, but in the French rite it commences on the first of March, and instead of the month receiving their usual names, they are designated numerically. as first, second, third, &c. Thus, the "1st day of the 11th Masonic month, Anno Lucis, 5852." The French sometimes, instead of the initials A.·. L.·., use "L'an de la V.·. L.·., or "Vraie Lumiere," that is, "Year of True Light."

Royal Arch Masons commence their era with the year in which Zerubbabel began to build the second temple, which was 530 years before Christ. Their style for the year 1852 is, therefore, A.·. Inv.·., that is, Anno Inventionis, or, in the year of the Discovery, 2382.

Royal and Select Masters very often make use of the common Masonic date, Anno Lucis, but properly they should date from the year in which Solomon's Temple was completed and their style would then be, Anno Depositionis, or, in the Year of the Deposit, and they would date the present year as 2852.

Knights Templars use the era of the organization of their order, in 1118. Their style for the present year is  A.·. O.·., Anna Ordinis, or, in the year of the Order, 734."

Rules for Discovering the Different Dates

1. TO FIND THE ANCIENT CRAFT. - Add 4000 to the vulgar era. Thus 2011 and 4000 are 6011.
2. TO FIND THE DATE OF ROYAL ARCH MASONRY. - Add 530 to the vulgar era .Thus 530 and 2011 are 2541.
3. TO FIND THE ROYAL AND SELECT MASTER'S DATE, - Add 1000 to the vulgar era. Thus 1000 and 2011 are 3011.
4. TO FIND THE KNIGHTS TEMPLARS' DATE, - Subtract 1118 from the vulgar era. Thus 1118 from 2011 is 893.

Information received and quoted from:  http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/masonic_manual/masonic_calendar.htm

Last Night's Feast Day Observance

The Feast Day of St. John was well celebrated at the Evanston Masonic Temple.  We 17 people in attendance and both lodges, Evans and Wayfarers were represented.

We began the evening with a great dinner, compliments of Evans Lodge.  We were fortunate to host our District Deputy Grand Master, Ira Gilbert as well as a few guests.

We opened the presentation with a brief history of who St. John the Evangelist was.  This presentation was posted earlier on this blog.  We then proceeded with a presentation by Worshipful Master David Lanier on the symbolism and allegory that the Saints John represent.  The presentations were followed by a short Question and Answer period and segway into announcing the Evanston Masonic Research Society's schedule and plans, then we adjourned.

Overall a successful night.  thank you Brothers who attended and made this possible!

An Historical Presentation about St. John the Evangelist

First and foremost, who is Saint John the Evangelist? 

He is quite famous actually; he is the author of the Gospel of Saint John in the New Testament of the Christian Bible.  He was the apostle John, a trusted disciple of Jesus Christ and a pillar of the new Christian Church after Christ’s death.  By trade, Saint John was a fisherman who later found his calling as one of Christ’s most trusted disciples.  John was the lone disciple to sit at the foot of the cross on Calvary with the Mother of Jesus, Mary and known as the beloved disciple. 

John together with Peter were the first to see the newly risen Christ and he was the first to believe that Christ was truly raised from the dead.  After the Ascension, John and Peter played a prominent role in the founding of the Christian Church.  Saint John was very active in spreading the word of Christianity; it is believed that he traveled as far as Asia Minor to deliver the word of his Lord.  His acts earned him, along with Peter and James , the title of “Pillar of the Church”.  It refers to the recognition which his Apostolic preaching of a Gospel free from the law received from these three, the most prominent men of the old Mother-Church at Jerusalem (Galatians 2:9).

Traditionally, the Christian church believed that the Gospel, the three epistles and the Book of Revelations (which bears his name) were written by Saint John.  The actuality of that is disputed by historians and some theologians, but no solid evidence supports either claim.  (wikipedia)

The date of his death cannot be established, but it is widely believed that he lived to an old age at Ephesus (modern day Turkey) during the reign of the Roman Emperor Trajan , which is circa 100 A.D.   (Fonck)

Saint John is the patron saint of many things.  It is written that he is the Apostle of Charity and the patron saint of friendships, theologians, writers, and of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee Wisconsin.  (Saints.spqn.com)  But most importantly since the 16^th century, he was adopted as the second patron saint of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons.  “The "Old Charges" of Freemasonry speak of St. John, the Evangelist, as a "Saint of the Craft."  He was constantly admonishing the cultivation of brotherly love.  Of all the gospels, The Gospel of St. John is the most Masonic for the central theme is LIGHT.  It portrays God as "the Light of the World."” (themasonictrowel.com)

The Roman Catholic Church, which calls him Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist, has established his Feast Day on the 27^th of December which is considered one of the most important days of the Masonic calendar (Stevenson)  It was established by many Grand Lodges as the beginning of the Masonic Lodge year.  It is believed that the proximity of 27 December to the beginning of the calendar year made it expedient to do so.  Colonial Masonic records indicate that George Washington and Benjamin Franklin made it a point to visit their Lodges in observance of this feast day.  (Ward)

In conclusion, Saint John played a prominent role in the founding of the Christian church, he was loved by Christ and strived to promote friendship and brotherly love.  His evangelism and teachings has made him a prominent figure in Christian culture has made him a patron saint for those with a love of writing, books, friendship and brotherly love.  All of which played an important part of his becoming our patron saint.

I depart with this, the Prayer to Saint John the Evangelist, “O Glorious Saint John, you were so loved by Jesus that you merited to rest your head upon his breast, and to be left in his place as a son to Mary. Obtain for us an ardent love for Jesus and Mary. Let me be united with them now on earth and forever after in heaven.”

So Mote it be

Functions of a Masonic Lodge « DeKalb, Illinois Masonic Organizations Blog

Functions of a Masonic Lodge « DeKalb, Illinois Masonic Organizations Blog

An Excellent posting by a local lodge on their blog.

"...to train its members to an understanding of the truths which its rituals and its ceremonies are calculated to inculcate, to develop its members as benevolent men, to cultivate the social virtues among men, and to propagate the knowledge of the art."

This totally moves along the lines of my original post and the post that was done by the Masonic Traveller.  It is our duty as Master Masons to instill the devotion to our craft into those Entered Apprentices and Fellowcraft by setting the proper example and actually working to better ourselves as men. 

It is our duty as Brothers to behave in a manner so as to exemplify ourselves to others so that they do not become disillusioned or disinterested.  We need to maintain our devotion, even if we ourselves become disillusioned. 

"The beauty of our ritual, and the good fellowship among the members of our Lodges cannot be conserved when the chief aim is to make Masons and money — “for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of things which he possesseth” — and a Lodge’s life does not consist in its acquisitions, but in the contribution which it makes to civilization and society through the influence to those whom it has helped to train to what we call Masonic character." 

This is all to true.  Quality versus quantity, it is understood that many lodges are fiscally challenged and need the quantity to ensure the lodge can meet their responsibilities.  Out of that quantity, they hope to gain some quality men out of the quantity they accept.  Is this the way to go?  Does this not dilute the pool?  Like I indicated in my earlier post, all too often I see many men on the sidelines, watching the game, but are too busy in their lives to do any more than the once or twice a month meeting.  The same five of six guys are always supporting the events that are often put on by that same five or six guys, out of a hundred or so members on the rolls. 

Would that sort of apathy cause those active few to become disillusioned or to become "burnt out" of doing things that others seem not to have any interest in?  How does that look to our Entered Apprentices and fellowcraft who seem to know us only for our reputation until they truly get a taste of what we are all about. 

"Therefore, it should be the duty of every Masonic Lodge to put in action a plan for the education of its members in Masonic history, symbolism and philosophy, devoting more of its meetings to this much neglected function. "

This is one reason why my Brother Lanier and I decided to start the Evanston Masonic Research Society.  to bring back academic pursuits in local Masonry.  We need to give an understanding of the symbolism and allegory to those who truly seek the Light of Masonry rather than just use this as a network of fellows. 

This was truly an inspirational post by our Brothers in DeKalb.  Cheers to you!  This post truly inspired. 

The Misguided Expectations of Freemasonry | FmI - Masonic Traveler

The Misguided Expectations of Freemasonry FmI - Masonic Traveler

I wrote about this the other day in my post which quotes the Scottish Rite. It seems I am not alone. Another well known Masonic Blogger has picked up on this same subject, in a different scenario and wrote a piece on it. Good work on his part, I though I would share this with you .

The Holidays are Here!

To all my friends and Brothers, I wish you all a happy holiday, whatever that holiday is.  That is the great part about my life!  You all are in it and bring great diversity to me and my life.  I have great friends that are Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Buddhists.  I even have friends that are not into any of the organized religions. 

The important part is that we are all friends and Brothers and I wish you all peace and prosperity in the comming new year! 

So Mote it be!

A quote from the Scottish Rite

“… the square and the compasses, the gavel and the rule.  They are emblems of his virtues and authority; and let everyone who wears or uses them remember that he will become an imposter in the ranks of honor, if he dishonors them by any act of baseness, or by sloth becomes unworthy of them.”  5^th Degree Perfect Master.

I became a Mason for a reason.  To me it isnt just a fraternity or a place to sit and hang out with guys a couple times a month.  True, the fraternal aspect is an important part of my experience, but the aspect of working together with these brothers to achieve a common goal is even more so.

In the first degree we learn that Charity is a major part of the Masonic experience.  In the fouth degree we learn that one of the Nine Great Masonic Virtues is Devotion.  As a Mason, I believe that I am bound to be devoted to my craft.  Devoted to one of the most important aspects of our Masonic life, Charity.  Charity to me isnt just putting on one big fund raiser a year or a couple small ones, just to say we did something.  Charity is a way of life that we must live on a daily basis.  Devotion to our craft doesn’t mean we neglect our responsibilities to be an active part of the Lodge, but it means we strike a perfect balance, as per the 24 inch rule.  8 hours to rest and relaxation, 8 hours to our vocation and 8 hours to our craft.

I personally do not wish to become that Mason who has allowed sloth to make me unworthy of my emblems.  Nor do I strive to be that Mason whose devotion to the craft has removed me from my other responsibilities and pursuits in life.  But if I see an event planned out in advance and it doesn't conflict with anything other than me sitting around and watching TV or hanging out, I will choose to attend it.  It serves to do what I joined the Masons for, to take a man and make him better.  If I choose to attend it, I attend it.  I don’t use some lame excuse not to show up or to cancel at the last minute, I gave my word that I would go by virtue of my RSVP or promise.  I know that others, who worked hard to put on an event or set up a meeting or prepare a presentation are counting on me to attend.  I know that the charitable effort needs my attendance to succeed.  I know that my promise to volunteer will have a positive impact on someone’s life.

All too often I see men become masons and sit on the sidelines and just let others do the work.  I personally can not do that.  I want to make a difference for my craft or those who my craft supports.  I know that my devotion may be contagious and that other men may see that and strive to match my efforts.  I know that the new Entered Apprentices will see my devotion and believe that we still stand true to our reputation.  They will know that we are not just a network of men, but a network of men that mean action.  Movers and shakers who really do affect the pulse of the world.

I am a Mason and that means something to me.  It means something to others outside of our craft and I want them to see the truth in that reputation.  That we are all good men, working on making ourselves and the world better. 

St. John the Evangelist Day

We have decided to hold an observance of the Feast Day for St. John the Evangelist.  It will be at 7pm on the 27^th of December at the Evanston Masonic Temple.  I have been asked to give a presentation on the historical aspect of who St. John the Evangelist was.  I wrote a short 2 pages on the topic and will post it here on the feast day.  WM David Lanier will give a presentation on what St. John represented allegorically to the Masons.

We chose to do this for two reasons.  First, 12/27/2010 is regarded as one of the most important days on the Masonic calendar and in times past was often observed in Lodge or at a Church service attended by members.  This wouldn’t normally motivate us to put this together, there obviously had to be some incentive!  Well, there was.

The Grand Lodge of Illinois has an Award of Excellence program and each lodge can qualify for a point toward the award if they can manage to pull together the Worshipful Master and 8 Officers/members to attend.  Evans Lodge managed to pull together 8 brothers on short notice, 2 days after Christmas.  Wayfarers is working on getting together their members so that they can qualify for a point as well.

It was short notice, but I hope we can pull this off.  It will be nice to see if we can make it happen.

Cup of Brotherly Love

I have been asked to become the custodian of the Cup of Brotherly Love for Evans Lodge #524 in Evanston, IL. As a historian, I think that this is a great opportunity and I look forward to taking on this new challenge. I hope to bring some light to the program and get the word out about the cup and the presentations available.

http://www.evanslodge524.org/cup.html

http://freemasonsfordummies.blogspot.com/2009/05/cup-of-brotherly-love-in-evanston.html

I will post more info about the cup once it becomes available to me.


Care to book a presentation?  contact me!

Research Begins

The Evanston Masonic Research Society will begin in 2011. We will have a first meeting in December to plan out some details. We have a space set up for use and will eventually begin providing funds to the temple, once our membership is up. Until then, perhaps some small donations.

We will be putting out more info on this group. There will be oportunities for research, discussion, guest speakers, catechism work, education, etc. We hope for a successful start up, we shall see.