A Violation of Masonic Law

Reading the recent post at Audi, Vide, Tace has raised some interesting questions in my mind concerning how Masonic law applies to people who hold Dual Membership between Grand Lodge jurisdictions.

In the post, a Mason from Kentucky holding dual membership in a New York Lodge was charged with visiting a clandestine body when he attended a PHA meeting in Iraq.

In the eyes of Kentucky (or at least one individual from Kentucky) their rules of recognition supersede the rules of the Grand Lodge of New York, when the Mason concerned is outside the territory of both Grand Lodges, and presumably even within the territory of the GL of New York. I think on the surface it would seem somewhat reasonable to expect the Brother to hold the most conservative practice between the two sets of constitutions and edicts from the Grand Lodges. However, upon deeper consideration, I see a grave problem:

In my state it is a violation of Masonic law to intentionally deviate from the ritual adopted by the Grand Lodge. If I held dual membership between states, I would likely be a member of a Lodge under a Grand Lodge whose rules also include some similar stipulation. If I were then assisting in opening, closing, or degree conferral at my "new Lodge" I would undoubtedly be deviating from the ritual as specified by my home GL, in order to accommodate the ritual put out by the second GL. The most conservative interpretation of the law, where I would not be in violation of either rule would require me to abstain from all ritual entirely. Obviously, this would not be acceptable. The real answer is that when in the jurisdiction of a Grand Lodge, do the ritual as that Grand Lodge does. It is so obvious what the correct interpretation is in the case of ritual, why is visitation any different?

In my Masonic obligations I promised (I paraphrase, here) to uphold the laws and rules of the Lodge of which I am a member, and also to support the constitution and edicts of the Grand Lodge under whose jurisdiction I reside, so far as they come to my knowledge. This is a curious situation indeed. It means that I am to uphold the laws of my Lodge (or Lodges? It's left ambiguous in the case of plural membership), but more explicitly, that I am to support the constitution--not of the Grand Lodge from whom my Lodge received its charter--but rather, the one under whose jurisdiction I reside. This would seem to imply that as I move from place to place, I am obligated to the rules of the (regular) Grand Lodge in that area, and explicitly not to the rules of any other Grand Lodge -- unless the laws of the Lodge of which I am a member require me to do so.

I am aware that in other jurisdictions the obligation has a slightly different connotation in relation to which Grand Lodge is given allegiance.

Moving to a different imaginary example, what if Speculative Lodge #1 was in an area that didn't recognize PHA, and John Q. Mason, who was raised in Speculative Lodge #1, received dual membership in Example Lodge #2 which made him an officer, and Example Lodge #2 had an annual visitation, mandatory for officers, to their "sister Lodge", PHA Lodge #3. Would John Q. Mason be neglecting his duties as an officer of Example Lodge #2 if he did not attend PHA Lodge #3 with his brethren? Further, what if he received a summons to appear at PHA Lodge #3?

"In Ancient times no Master could be absent from the lodge, especially when warned to appear at it, without incurring a severe censure."

I think it is most important, that when we are put in a situation where we may pass judgment on another brother, that we do not wrong him out of the value of his Masonic membership by making harsh judgments. The American York Rite has, in fact, more than one degree where the legend involves this very lesson of not being too hasty or quick to judge, which we would do well to take to heart.

A Dilemma of Politics

Brethren, I seek advice.

As many of you may know, I run KingSolomonsLodge.org. In order to help support the site, I have advertising on the site in the form of Google AdSense. Usually these advertisements are for things such as Masonic regalia, jewelry, or books, and many of them are actually helpful to visitors since they are on-topic. Today I went online to see what articles were listed, and I was confronted with a political advertisement for a presidential candidate. This was not an innocuous three line text ad, either, but a full block animated graphical advertisement. It doesn't matter to me which candidate or party, but rather the fact that a political advertisement is being propagated onto the website at all, when I view our brotherhood as a great place of unity between members of various political parties and religions. I am distressed, and I don't know what to do. Part of me says it is free speech, and if they pay for an ad, they should be able to show it there. Part of me says its a conflict of interest, or it may drive away certain visitors. It probably won't be there forever. Must I resort to turning off advertisements during election years? On the other hand, maybe my Brethren have enough understanding and tolerance to "put up with" the ad, even if it doesn't suit their fancy. I seek advice, my Brethren. If you were in this situation, what would you do?

How the Degrees Came to Exist

In this article I am presenting a very complicated subject, but it shall be put forth as simply as possible. Each degree deserves multiple chapters in a book, but will only get here a brief description. Masonic Lodges originally worked a Two-Degree system:

The Entered Apprentice degree is the most obvious. It is the foundation of our Masonic journey, and while its lecture contains allusions to Solomon's Temple, its other content is almost entirely "operative." It obligates us, teaches us to behave in a proper manner, and gives us secrets whereby to recognize one another. In its simplicity, it represents the pure Masonry of time immemorial, having received very little amendment.

The Fellowcraft Degree is the original reward for being able to demonstrate quality Masonic work. The medieval guilds also used the name "Journeyman" for Fellowcrafts. They (originally) could begin to travel, work, and receive wages for their labors. We see in the Fellowcraft degree, the introduction of a complex system of symbolism, the birth of speculative Masonry, which most of all exhorts us to study the various arts an sciences and to make our life a well-spent one.

The Mark Man, or first section of York Rite's fourth degree, "Mark Master Mason" has elements which were originally taught to Fellowcraft Masons, including selecting a distinctive mark and learning to mark your work accordingly, and how to receiving the wages of an operative Fellowcraft Mason. Its lessons, from an operative point of view, seem particularly suited towards how to get along while working with a large groups of other Masons.

Lodges originally consisted of a number of Apprentices and Fellowcrafts, presided over by an elected Master. The positions of Master and the two Wardens were originally able to be held by Fellowcraft Masons, and the Mark Master, or second section of York Rite's "Mark Master Mason" degree probably at one time constituted the ceremonies given to a Fellowcraft upon becoming the Master of a Fellowcraft Lodge. The "Installation Ceremony" of a Worshipful Master was probably also used at this time, and is essentially a set of oaths and an investment with various items pertaining to the government and operation of the Lodge.

The first Grand Lodge was formed in 1717, and the Master Mason Degree was probably developed somewhere close to this time as a way of making the process of becoming Master of a Lodge more meaningful, beautiful and instructive. The ceremonies of Installation were probably moved from bing given with the Mark Master to the Master Mason. Eventually, probably owing to the growing membership in lodges, it was determined that the Master Mason Degree be given to all worthy brethren, rather than only one a year who was being installed. At this time, the Installation Ceremony itself became divorced from the Master Mason degree. The Installation ceremony is still used for annual installations in Blue Lodge, and has also developed into the fifth, or "Past Master" degree of York Rite.

But, at this time, the Master Mason Degree included the communication of the true Master's word. Soon, for some mysterious reason, the Hiramic Legend was introduced, and the concept of the Loss of the word, and its subsequent Recovery, was placed into the degree. My speculation is that this may have reflected genuine feelings of the loss and recovery of traditions relating to the reasoning behind many (particularly Irish) masons banding together to form the Antients Grand Lodge of England.

Upon the union of 1813, the recovery of the word was removed from the degree (it being already gone in the work of the "Moderns") , and the ceremony explaining its recovery was moved into what would become the Royal Arch Degree. The part of the degree which remained became the Master Mason Degree, being in essentially the same form as we know it today.

The Irish masons conferred a degree called Excellent Master as a preparation for the Royal Arch. This was a veil-working ceremony involving blue, purple, scarlet, and white veils and an allegory of the return from the Babylonian Captivity, which has been incorporated into the Royal Arch Degree itself as it is worked in the USA.

Meanwhile, Masonry had also traveled to France, and many degrees both spurious and valuable had arisen. Two of these eventually found their way to the United States as side-degrees of the Scottish Rite. They were Royal Master and Select Master. They were recognized to bee particularly applicable to explanation of the York Rite's Royal Arch Degree, and so the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite had no argument with letting these degrees become organized independently and become a fixture within the York Rite system. (However, the Supreme Council technically still possesses the authority to confer them if they choose to do so.)

Thomas Smith Webb later wrote the Most Excellent Master Degree to fill a remaining gap in the legend by celebrating the completion of the Temple. This degree fits chronologically between the Master Mason and Royal Arch Degree.

In summary:

• 1° Entered Apprentice - Remains Intact.
• 2° Fellow Craft - Today it is missing pieces.
• 3° Master Mason - Today it is missing pieces.
• 4a° Mark Man - Completes the Fellowcraft Degree.
• 4b° Mark Master - Is itself an older type of "Master Mason" Degree.
• 5° Past Master - Installation was probably the oldest form of the Master Mason Degree.
• 6° Most Excellent Master - A modern innovation by T.S.Webb.
• 7° Royal Arch Mason - Completes the Master Mason Degree.
• 8° Royal Master - Developed in France.
  
• 9° Select Master - Developed in France.

You will observe that it is only the 6, 8, and 9° that do not have a claim to be part of Ancient Craft Masonry, as defined in the 1813 Articles of Union, "that pure Ancient Masonry consists of three degrees, and no more, viz., those of the Entered Apprentice, the Fellow Craft, and the Master Mason, including the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch."

These other "degrees" are merely portions or different versions of the authentic three degrees which have become fragmented into pieces. It is unclear, however, which parts, if any, of the Royal Arch Degree constitute the "Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch" (the original conclusion ofo the Master Maso Degre, beyond the short exaltation ceremony itself.

Masonic Logos - Updated

Today seems to have been a very interesting day in terms of logos, as Brother M.M.M. over at The North Eastern Corner has also updated his logo. Meanwhile, I was busy updating my high resolution Masonic Logos. There are now .eps versions of each one available for download, and the Knights Templar Cross and Crown logo has been significantly improved.

Enjoy!

Aprons in all their Varieties

Ben and I have been having quite a back and forth about Aprons, and I'm glad to see so many others join in. Here are some pictures out of a book from 1866. Our laps are pointed, not round, and our corner tucks in not at the center of the top, but on the opposite side, making a right triangle.

Master Masons wear their apron in the ordinary fashion, but I notice this same book depicts a blue bordered apron with the all seeing eye on the flap for the Master Mason. Like I said before, thats what our officers aprons look like, except that they also have the emblem of the particular office embroidered on the front.

AMD: X - Knight of Constantinople

If you haven't done so yet, read my Introduction to the Allied Masonic Degrees, to which this post is a follow-up.

This Degree shows the way in which Emperor Constantine taught a lesson in humility and equality to the arrogant nobles of his time.

Aside from the Red Branch of Eri (awarded to AMD brethren in recognition of their service) this is the only Chivalric Order under control of AMD. Brethren of this order are addressed “Sir Knight.”

This ceremony reinforces in a very strong manner the great moral lesson taught by the Level, one of the principal Working Tools of the Symbolic Lodge’s Fellowcraft Degree.

This post concludes my original series on the Degrees controlled by the Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees in the USA. If you haven't done so yet, go back to the beginning and read the whole series. I will be doing follow up posts on a few related topics in the near future.

A Masonic Funeral

Today I had my first experience at a Masonic Funeral. There have been a few other opportunities since I've been a Mason, but I never seemed to be around at the time they came up. This one was held at our Lodge room for brother Bob Dove.

I learned a few new things about Masonic practice. First, at a Funeral, none of the officers wear their usual Aprons, and every brother in attendance instead wears a white apron only, also lapel pins and other emblems of the craft were subtly discouraged (although permitted), to help emphasize the important symbols at the Funeral: The white lambskin apron, and the sprig of Acacia, and to show deference and honor to the deceased.

At first I was a little surprised by this, but then I found beauty in it, as it sets the "Lodge of Sorrow" apart from our regular Lodge meetings. Ironically, this coincides with Brother Ben Rowe's blog article for Today, which is partially in response to a comment I left on another post of his. I guess Ben and I seem to be playing like a tennis match, hitting the ball back and forth.

I took the opportunity to wear my original Lambskin apron, which I received as an Apprentice, and which has been tucked away in the closet since that time. It is typical for Brethren in Oregon to wear their original Apron only during their EA, FC, and MM degrees, then save it "to be placed upon the coffin which encloses their lifeless remains." We are not forbidden to wear it again, but the Lodge provides a stack of white linen aprons in the Tyler's room, which are for use during our regular meetings. I made the decision a while back that I wanted to wear my lambskin one instead of the linen because it would mean more to me. But, alas! It was too late, or so I thought, for I had become an officer, and one day I will wear a Past Masters apron, never again to wear the plain white Apron. But now I found a chance, in this Lodge of Sorrow, so I wore my lambskin Apron. I like to think that my Apron appreciated it too, as it got to say goodbye to one of its dear friends, and get a preview of what will some day be its own ultimate destiny. (I don't believe that my apron can really see and think, just for the record.)

In closing, Brother Dove was a good man and Mason. I did not know him as well as I should have liked to, but he has always been there in the Lodge, setting a good example of friendship and helpfulness. He will be missed.

The Ingredients of a Masonic Degree

There are a lot of places to learn about Masonic ritual. One can experience it first hand (which is the recommended course, in my opinion), or read an exposure of the ritual either in print or on the Internet. Sometimes people are curious what is involved, but don't want to read something so shady to find out. Well, this is the right place! Here's an overview of what a Masonic Degree entails, without spoiling the experience or giving away any secrets. I will give an outline first, then details.

1. Prologue
   
   
2. Preparation
3. Reception
4. Circumambulation and Scripture Reading
5. Approaching the Altar
6. Obligation
7. Instruction
8. Apron
9. Working Tools
10. Return and Revestment
    
    
11. Drama
    
12. Lecture
13. Charge

This list of events constitutes the degree proper. There are also opening and closing ceremonies that bookend the degree, with the potential for Lodge business to be conducted either after the opening ceremonies or before the closing ceremonies. Now for the details:

1. Prologue

In the Three Symbolic Degrees, the Prologue is found in the Entered Apprentice Degree and consists of a series of questions propounded to the candidate who has been patiently waiting during the opening ceremonies. These questions establish the man's eligibility to proceed with the degree. In York Rite's Chapter and Council the Prologue of a Degree sometimes takes on a dramatic character of its own, serving a purpose similar to "Act I" of a three-act play.

2. Preparation

The candidate is changed into certain symbolic clothing and/or given some basic instructions. He is then led to the door of the Lodge where he knocks to gain admission.

3. Reception

After some questions at the door to establish the purpose of the alarm, and the qualifications of the candidate, he is admitted and "received" into the Lodge by a symbolic act accompanied by a short explanation of this symbolism, which varies in each degree.

4. Circumambulation and Scripture Reading

Depending on the degree, and particularly in the Entered Apprentice Degree, an additional prayer may be offered at this point (in addition to the one at opening.) Next, the candidate is led clockwise around the Lodge a certain number of times, while a passage of Scripture is recited appropriate to the degree being conferred.

5. Approaching the Altar

After more questions with the Junior Warden, Senior Warden, and Worshipful Master, the candidate is conducted to the altar where he will receive his obligation.

6. Obligation

This is the heart of the degree. It is what makes the man a Mason. The candidate is informed that his Masonic obligation can never conflict with his duty to God, to his country, his neighbor or himself. He is also given the opportunity to "back out" at this point, if unwilling to proceed. Once he proceeds, he takes the full obligation, which varies in each degree.

7. Instruction

Now that he is obligated, the Brother learns the secrets pertaining to the degree to which he has just attained. These secrets are much discussed elsewhere, and I can only say with propriety that they typically consist of a password, a grip ("secret handshake") and a couple of signs. His knowledge of these signs is then demonstrated to the Junior Warden, Senior Warden, and Worshipful Master.

8. Apron

The candidate is given an Apron and/or taught how to wear his existing one, according to his particular degree. A short history or explanation of the symbolism of the Apron is given.

9. Working Tools

Now that he is wearing his Apron properly, the Brother is ready to be presented with the Working Tools of the degree. These are regular builder's tools with which the world is already acquainted, but they are presented with an explanation of their moral symbolism. For example, the plumb-line teaches us to walk uprightly before God and man.

10. Return and Revestment

The Brother is conducted out of the Lodge, where he changes back into his ordinary clothing (continuing to wear the Apron, however, as taught in the degree) and he is returned to the Lodge room.

11. Drama

The drama varies greatly with each degree. For the Entered Apprentice, it is nothing more than a short admonition from the Master (we're talking two sentences.) For the Fellow-craft the Drama is integrated with the Lecture itself (which will be explained next). For the Master Mason Degree, and many of the York Rite Degrees, it is an elaborate and beautiful performance in which the Candidate takes an active role (with his conductor guiding him and sometimes speaking on his behalf.) The drama section of the degree is often done in costume with great effect. If the obligation (although short in duration) is the main course of the Degree, the drama is like a fine dessert, without which the meal would be incomplete.

12. Lecture

The lecture recounts the ceremonies of the degree which have been performed, endeavoring to explain some of their meaning and inspiring contemplation upon the rites and symbols by the candidate. It often contains a commentary of philosophical and moral value, along with additional historic material pertaining to the degree. These Lectures can range from a half hour to an hour long and are, today, memorized word-for-word (quite an impressive feat!) A portion of this lecture includes a Question and Answer examination about what the candidate has passed through and a test of his knowledge of the passwords, grips, and so forth. This portion of the lecture becomes the Candidate's duty to learn and present before the Lodge before he may be advanced to the next degree.

13. Charge

The charge is a short statement given to the Mason outlining the particular type of moral behavior and refinements of character expected by a Brother of this degree. (A historical side note: After reading The New Masonic Trestle-board, a product of the National Masonic Convention of 1843 held in Baltimore, I believe all the charges used in the USA were written wholly by brother Thomas Smith Webb, which accounts for the slightly different ring to their vocabulary as compared to the rest of the degree work and lectures.)

I hope this post has been enjoyable. I'm also curious how accurately it reflects the order of the degree work as it is conducted by other Masons around the world.