The first Masonic Lodge in what is now the State of Washington was Chartered in 1853 at Olympia.
The Grand Lodge of Washington was founded by four Lodges in what is now the State of Washington in 1858. Those Lodges were Olympia No. 1, Steilacoom No. 2, Grand Mound No. 3, and Washington No. 4. For those who might be wondering, that is 31 years prior to the founding of the State of Washington.
In 1886 the very first lightbulb was lit west of the Rocky Mountains, in Seattle.
The date of Freemasonry’s founding is lost to the mists of time.
But, we do know that the first permanent Grand Lodge was founded in London in 1717, and that from that founding, Freemasonry exploded across the world.
So, it’s safe to say that millions upon millions of Masonic Degrees were performed, over hundreds of years, all without the benefit of electricity.
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Those early Degrees would have been performed via candle and lantern light. Eventually probably kerosene lanterns, probably whale oil lanterns before that.
Here’s a cool experiment:
Go to the Dollar Store and buy a bunch of cheap candles in glass jars and haul them into your Lodge Room. Light three of them at the Altar, three more in the South. Light five in the West and seven in the East. Turn off all the electricity. Look around and see how cool everything looks.
Or place three kerosene lanterns at the Altar, and one at the South, West, and East. Do the same thing. Experience how great everything feels with such minimal light. Light focused only on those most important parts of the Lodge, with the Altar brightest.
I write this today, because it continually baffles me why so many Lodges, and Masons, think we need so darn much light to do our Degrees.
Far too many times what is supposed to be a mystical and transformative experience for a man, and the Lodge has the florescent lights up on full blast! Why on earth do we do that? Are we in a Temple or an Office Building?
If we know our work, we can do it darn near in the pitch dark. And doing so greatly elevates the experience both for the man receiving the Degree, and the men conferring the Degree. In my opinion.
I’ve found myself arguing, for years now, sometimes successfully, usually unsuccessfully, to turn off the darn lights! Do the Degrees as they were done for hundreds of years, in very dim light. Create a mystical atmosphere geared for personal transformation.
I just don’t understand the obsession with bright lights during Degrees. Unless it is a crutch, in case a part is forgotten and must be read. But, we can overcome that by learning our work.
Taking this just a bit further…
I know that some Lodge Buildings don’t allow open flames in this day and age. OK. I can understand (but not accept) that. (I sure as heck wouldn’t attend any Church that was afraid to burn candles and incense.) In those cases, dim LED candles or lanterns will work as a worthy substitute.
Another worthy substitute that I have seen one Lodge do is create a lighting package that can be varied and changed depending upon the Degree, and even the portion of the Degree. That can be really awesome too, and lighting like that is quite inexpensive today.
But, ultimately, I think that lighting is one of the most important and easiest ways that we can enhance the Degree experience. And I think that the vast majority of Lodges overlook it, the vast majority of the time.
Your opinion and experience might differ from mine, so I’m hopeful that we can discuss it here today!
As you know we had a nice amount of light for our Outdoor Fellowcraft Degree
It was great for that Degree and the only place we should have had a bit more light was in the East , but not bright lights.
And I think the indoor Degrees should be that way with either light dimming switches or using small led's like we used outdoors.
Each Degree and more light but even in the MM Degree we shouldn't have lights like a greenhouse since that won't cause growing into that more light which is what we are here to do with Masonic education.
From your position you couldn't see the WM well because it was too dim? I could see him just fine, but of course I was a lot closer. I couldn't though see you well, and couldn't see VW Scot at all.
At the Lodge in my city we do the FC Lecture in the dark most every time. Not the conferral itself. The EA and MM are generally done with full light. As are the openings and closings. I think we would do well to dim the lights for all of these, but there is resistance.
Under candle light is recommended or use the dimmest light that can be use.
My Lodge use 3 candle for each Warden and 7 for the WM. So in first degree the Wardens will lit only the center one and the WM will lit three. Second degree the one on the left of Warden will be lit keeping the center one lit, of course, and the WM will lit 2 to have 7 candles lit. Same with the third degree, at the end the WM will have all 7 candles lit.
Thank you for this explanation of how you use the candles. That sounds great! When we have worked by candle light we've used 3 at the JW, 5 at the SW, and 7 at the WM. That's not original to us, I've seen the same system used in a Lodge in Mexico.
My Seattle Lodge kills all the lights but the Altar when the Chaplain is there, but that is fairly rare in my Jurisdiction. I do think that lighting can go a long way towards setting the proper mood for a Lodge meeting, and I hope that more Lodges become willing to experiment with it.
My home Lodge in Tenino has a dimmer switch for the main lights, and as the Junior Deacon last year, I had control over that dimmer. I didn't completely kill the lights, but I did gradually dim them way down, then slowly restore them once the prayer is completed. I'm now once again the Senior Deacon, but the new Junior Deacon was last year's Chaplain, so I'm thinking the idea will continue.
Centralia has a more primitive dimming method, as you can't dim the old fluorescent lights. Nevertheless, I always dim them when I'm in the West (where the switch is located,) and many others do as well.
The arguments that lighting during a degree doesn’t matter because the candidate is blindfolded for most of it is shortsighted.
The lighting and ambience of the degree is not just for the candidates benefit. It sets the mood for everyone. All senses should be involved with music, incense, and lighting. Everyone should be properly dressed. There should be no joking around, prompting from the sidelines or anything else that would disturb the solemnity of the event.
And I disagree with the seemingly common view that lighting doesn't matter while the candidate is blindfolded. The blindfolds we generally use aren't perfect. Bright lights will certainly shine through. I just received a Rosicrucian Degree recently for which I was blindfolded, but I could see around the edges of the hoodwink.
At an outdoor degree, candles at the JW SW and WM. Tiki style torches for the great lights. A kerosene spotlight lantern suspended above to illuminate the altar.
Indoors the same effect can be had with modern false fire lights and colored and flickering leds.
If we lived in one of those places in the world with sunny weather all the time, I'd be wanting to do all of our Degrees in the out of doors. On a high hill or in a low dale as someone once may have said!
Riverside-Jett #112 in Wenatchee has a great lighting system in the Lodge room. Dimmable and really creates the mood. I tried to use it once but was immediately chastised because some of our members need the light to see where they are walking. I believe the mood, especially for 3rd degree needs to be darker and places more emphasis on the drama.
Our Temple in Enumclaw has a really awesome lighting system too. I've not attended a Degree there, but I presume that they do use it to create a mood, because it was installed within the last handful of years.
for degree work I see the value of dim light, though for the lecture portions, especially when we're using the easel and pointing out things like Euclidian geometry, or for that matter the stairs (which were damn near invisible in our torchlight degree) I think "MORE LIGHT" is of value.
For every day work, especially with older members in attendance I also see the value of more light.
I find some irony in pushing for "less light" in a masonic context.
There’s a lot of perspectives here. So I’ll put in what I’ve learned from degree experiences.
WB Glenn notes: “The arguments that lighting during a degree doesn’t matter because the candidate is blindfolded for most of it is shortsighted.” This is true, and it not only applies to the lighting, but also whether your degree team performs in costume. For the same reasons Glenn mentions. Many of those who decline the costumes usually do it because of the time it takes to get dressed in them – that’s understandable, and sadly a chief reason why the costume MM degrees are much less common than they were before. But I still suggest considering the costumes if your Lodge does a degree at an earlier hour, such as on a special Communication.
Wilson Gonzalez’s note about the number of candles lit per each degree is excellent, and an idea I hadn’t considered until now. Thank you!
To WB Scott over in Wenatchee: Don’t get discouraged. The old-timers in my Lodge were the same way, but when we started doing the torchlight degrees, then the lantern methods in the Lodge room later, and they asked the new Brothers how they liked it, the old-timers’ resistance became assistance! For example, Scuttlebut mentioned not being able to see the staircase. Yep, that was a problem we found, and believe it or not, one of the “old-timers” came up with a solution! We shine another light specifically for the staircase when I come to it. Unfortunately, that didn’t work as well in the Starlight degree, but I am assured that MWB Cameron and VWB Arnie have plans to correct that problem for future Starlight Degrees.
Another key aspect of doing the MCL by the lantern/torch being held by the Lecturer – the light’s focused on the lecturer and the new Fellowcraft. To those two, the only other person they see is each other, and to everyone else, all they see is the two aforementioned Brothers. It forces the focus on the Lecture. If somebody dozes off, nobody else sees it, so it doesn’t become “contagious.” And nobody dares fire up a smartphone – everyone else will see it! Everyone who had attended a MCL in this manner admits it trains their focus on the lecture, and even they note they learn a little more from the contents of the lecture. The idea of a seasoned Master Mason treating a lecture as “been there, done that, nothing additional to see here” is absurd. You can always learn something new.
The bottom line is the newer inquirers and Masons are looking for a Masonic Experience. Our ritual provides the groundwork in the words and floorwork. It is up to us to make the experience even more memorable and important to the new Mason. We can choose to keep the bright fluorescent lights on, don our suit and tie and give a half-hour monologue, or we can choose to set the mood in our lighting, dress, etc. to make the degree experience unforgettable and impressionable, an experience to induce the encouragement of further study in those lessons that are taught in our rituals.
Thank you VW Clayton! And yes indeed, we will have improved lighting at the next Starlight Degree. I'm given to understand that real torches will be A-OK for us to use.
I will bring those LED bulbs next year that I mentioned
They are shaped just like a typical light bulb and you charge them in a typical lamp and the they screw in this that has a switch and a hook to hang them so you can turn them of and on when you need to https://i80.servimg.com/u/f80/19/36/49/57/scree177.png
Yeah I know you couldn't see VW Scot our Tyler since I could barely see him when I was knocking on that fir tree but it would be great to have us both there again next year MW
Two of those bulbs on the wall behind the WM would be plenty so we all could see him but it would still be dark out there compared to being inside the Lodge.
The Mrs got us several of them so we have them in case the power goes out all over the house.
One other comment, especially the first degree, before the candidate is brought into the lodge for the first time, the lights in the preparation room should be off, to denote from darkness to light. Some lodges do it, most don't.
My Lodge in Centralia has a small room between the Preparation Room, and the Lodge Room. Years ago we painted that baby black. (And got a lot of pushback for doing so, yet it remains) That works well, because even if the Stewards or someone cranks up the light in it, it can't get bright.
Pushback? I still hear pushback from a certain Appendant Body (which shall remain unnamed.)
So they ask, “When are you going to repaint that room a lighter color?” Depending on the member, I’ll say, “We’re holding out – we’re waiting for when you guys surrender your Charter, then we won’t have to worry about getting asked anymore.” I can get away with things like that now; they know I have a liking to yanking their chain, so instead of blowing their stacks, they just give me “the look,” with full knowledge that even that’s not really effective, either. So they just shake their heads… then go find another member of the Lodge and start harping on them.
I wonder if Freemasonry didn't lose some of its essence when it decided to allow the creation of all these sort of related by not really having anything to do with groups? You know the ones I'm talking about, the ones that have no meaningful esoteric or even symbolic instruction. The ones who's primary membership base is not composed of Master Masons.
Not being Master Masons, they will never be able to really understand Freemasonry, and I think that is where complaints like this come from. They can't understand what Freemasonry is attempting to do, and so therefore they object to the trappings of Masonic practice they see.
I recently thought about putting memento mori onto our lodge badges for my term in office. I brought up my idea to several members (old timers) and was met with fierce resistance. It’s not a Masonic symbol, was one retort. It’s a Scottish rite thing was another.
While I did counter their arguments, it fell on deaf ears.
It is even a problem within the craft, not just the appendant bodies, but yes, for that particular paint scheme in a small room, resistance came mostly from the opposite sex.
Yeah, unfortunately, with a lot of people, true arguments do fall upon deaf ears. Memento Mori is a symbol within Craft Masonry, and just because it is prominent in the Scottish and York Rites does not make it any less so. But, convincing the men who joined Freemasonry believing it to be nothing more than a social club is certainly difficult.
When our numbers exploded in the 40's, 50's, and 60's, we took in an awful lot of men all at once, and they were not taught about the transformative work of our Craft.
In my District, most do. Mainly because many of our Lodges keep the lights low for the EA First Section, and having the Prep room lights on at that point shines excessive light into the main room. Dimming the lights in the main room is similar to your idea, only the "Darkness to light" is later. 😉
As you know we had a nice amount of light for our Outdoor Fellowcraft Degree
It was great for that Degree and the only place we should have had a bit more light was in the East , but not bright lights.
And I think the indoor Degrees should be that way with either light dimming switches or using small led's like we used outdoors.
Each Degree and more light but even in the MM Degree we shouldn't have lights like a greenhouse since that won't cause growing into that more light which is what we are here to do with Masonic education.
- Lodge #6
March of 1859
From your position you couldn't see the WM well because it was too dim? I could see him just fine, but of course I was a lot closer. I couldn't though see you well, and couldn't see VW Scot at all.
The only Degree we do in the dark is the 3rd. We open and close with the lights on
At the Lodge in my city we do the FC Lecture in the dark most every time. Not the conferral itself. The EA and MM are generally done with full light. As are the openings and closings. I think we would do well to dim the lights for all of these, but there is resistance.
Under candle light is recommended or use the dimmest light that can be use.
My Lodge use 3 candle for each Warden and 7 for the WM. So in first degree the Wardens will lit only the center one and the WM will lit three. Second degree the one on the left of Warden will be lit keeping the center one lit, of course, and the WM will lit 2 to have 7 candles lit. Same with the third degree, at the end the WM will have all 7 candles lit.
Thank you for this explanation of how you use the candles. That sounds great! When we have worked by candle light we've used 3 at the JW, 5 at the SW, and 7 at the WM. That's not original to us, I've seen the same system used in a Lodge in Mexico.
Here we observe lights on except for the “altar work.” I’m not sure how much of that is even “officially adopted” though.
I like that about the SR degrees, lower lighting to set a “mood.” When I observed the Craft EA last month the lights were used sparingly.
My Seattle Lodge kills all the lights but the Altar when the Chaplain is there, but that is fairly rare in my Jurisdiction. I do think that lighting can go a long way towards setting the proper mood for a Lodge meeting, and I hope that more Lodges become willing to experiment with it.
My home Lodge in Tenino has a dimmer switch for the main lights, and as the Junior Deacon last year, I had control over that dimmer. I didn't completely kill the lights, but I did gradually dim them way down, then slowly restore them once the prayer is completed. I'm now once again the Senior Deacon, but the new Junior Deacon was last year's Chaplain, so I'm thinking the idea will continue.
Centralia has a more primitive dimming method, as you can't dim the old fluorescent lights. Nevertheless, I always dim them when I'm in the West (where the switch is located,) and many others do as well.
The arguments that lighting during a degree doesn’t matter because the candidate is blindfolded for most of it is shortsighted.
The lighting and ambience of the degree is not just for the candidates benefit. It sets the mood for everyone. All senses should be involved with music, incense, and lighting. Everyone should be properly dressed. There should be no joking around, prompting from the sidelines or anything else that would disturb the solemnity of the event.
I wholeheartedly agree.
And I disagree with the seemingly common view that lighting doesn't matter while the candidate is blindfolded. The blindfolds we generally use aren't perfect. Bright lights will certainly shine through. I just received a Rosicrucian Degree recently for which I was blindfolded, but I could see around the edges of the hoodwink.
Couple of my lodges will be very active this fall in doing degree work. I think I might try to implore on the WM to try some of these ideas!
Excellent!
I prefer natural lighting
At an outdoor degree, candles at the JW SW and WM. Tiki style torches for the great lights. A kerosene spotlight lantern suspended above to illuminate the altar.
Indoors the same effect can be had with modern false fire lights and colored and flickering leds.
I agree!
If we lived in one of those places in the world with sunny weather all the time, I'd be wanting to do all of our Degrees in the out of doors. On a high hill or in a low dale as someone once may have said!
Riverside-Jett #112 in Wenatchee has a great lighting system in the Lodge room. Dimmable and really creates the mood. I tried to use it once but was immediately chastised because some of our members need the light to see where they are walking. I believe the mood, especially for 3rd degree needs to be darker and places more emphasis on the drama.
Our Temple in Enumclaw has a really awesome lighting system too. I've not attended a Degree there, but I presume that they do use it to create a mood, because it was installed within the last handful of years.
for degree work I see the value of dim light, though for the lecture portions, especially when we're using the easel and pointing out things like Euclidian geometry, or for that matter the stairs (which were damn near invisible in our torchlight degree) I think "MORE LIGHT" is of value.
For every day work, especially with older members in attendance I also see the value of more light.
I find some irony in pushing for "less light" in a masonic context.
>>>I find some irony in pushing for "less light" in a masonic context.
Yeah, I did think of that while writing this post! 😁
There’s a lot of perspectives here. So I’ll put in what I’ve learned from degree experiences.
WB Glenn notes: “The arguments that lighting during a degree doesn’t matter because the candidate is blindfolded for most of it is shortsighted.” This is true, and it not only applies to the lighting, but also whether your degree team performs in costume. For the same reasons Glenn mentions. Many of those who decline the costumes usually do it because of the time it takes to get dressed in them – that’s understandable, and sadly a chief reason why the costume MM degrees are much less common than they were before. But I still suggest considering the costumes if your Lodge does a degree at an earlier hour, such as on a special Communication.
Wilson Gonzalez’s note about the number of candles lit per each degree is excellent, and an idea I hadn’t considered until now. Thank you!
To WB Scott over in Wenatchee: Don’t get discouraged. The old-timers in my Lodge were the same way, but when we started doing the torchlight degrees, then the lantern methods in the Lodge room later, and they asked the new Brothers how they liked it, the old-timers’ resistance became assistance! For example, Scuttlebut mentioned not being able to see the staircase. Yep, that was a problem we found, and believe it or not, one of the “old-timers” came up with a solution! We shine another light specifically for the staircase when I come to it. Unfortunately, that didn’t work as well in the Starlight degree, but I am assured that MWB Cameron and VWB Arnie have plans to correct that problem for future Starlight Degrees.
Another key aspect of doing the MCL by the lantern/torch being held by the Lecturer – the light’s focused on the lecturer and the new Fellowcraft. To those two, the only other person they see is each other, and to everyone else, all they see is the two aforementioned Brothers. It forces the focus on the Lecture. If somebody dozes off, nobody else sees it, so it doesn’t become “contagious.” And nobody dares fire up a smartphone – everyone else will see it! Everyone who had attended a MCL in this manner admits it trains their focus on the lecture, and even they note they learn a little more from the contents of the lecture. The idea of a seasoned Master Mason treating a lecture as “been there, done that, nothing additional to see here” is absurd. You can always learn something new.
The bottom line is the newer inquirers and Masons are looking for a Masonic Experience. Our ritual provides the groundwork in the words and floorwork. It is up to us to make the experience even more memorable and important to the new Mason. We can choose to keep the bright fluorescent lights on, don our suit and tie and give a half-hour monologue, or we can choose to set the mood in our lighting, dress, etc. to make the degree experience unforgettable and impressionable, an experience to induce the encouragement of further study in those lessons that are taught in our rituals.
Thank you VW Clayton! And yes indeed, we will have improved lighting at the next Starlight Degree. I'm given to understand that real torches will be A-OK for us to use.
I will bring those LED bulbs next year that I mentioned
They are shaped just like a typical light bulb and you charge them in a typical lamp and the they screw in this that has a switch and a hook to hang them so you can turn them of and on when you need to https://i80.servimg.com/u/f80/19/36/49/57/scree177.png
Yeah I know you couldn't see VW Scot our Tyler since I could barely see him when I was knocking on that fir tree but it would be great to have us both there again next year MW
Two of those bulbs on the wall behind the WM would be plenty so we all could see him but it would still be dark out there compared to being inside the Lodge.
The Mrs got us several of them so we have them in case the power goes out all over the house.
One other comment, especially the first degree, before the candidate is brought into the lodge for the first time, the lights in the preparation room should be off, to denote from darkness to light. Some lodges do it, most don't.
My Lodge in Centralia has a small room between the Preparation Room, and the Lodge Room. Years ago we painted that baby black. (And got a lot of pushback for doing so, yet it remains) That works well, because even if the Stewards or someone cranks up the light in it, it can't get bright.
Pushback? I still hear pushback from a certain Appendant Body (which shall remain unnamed.)
So they ask, “When are you going to repaint that room a lighter color?” Depending on the member, I’ll say, “We’re holding out – we’re waiting for when you guys surrender your Charter, then we won’t have to worry about getting asked anymore.” I can get away with things like that now; they know I have a liking to yanking their chain, so instead of blowing their stacks, they just give me “the look,” with full knowledge that even that’s not really effective, either. So they just shake their heads… then go find another member of the Lodge and start harping on them.
I wonder if Freemasonry didn't lose some of its essence when it decided to allow the creation of all these sort of related by not really having anything to do with groups? You know the ones I'm talking about, the ones that have no meaningful esoteric or even symbolic instruction. The ones who's primary membership base is not composed of Master Masons.
Not being Master Masons, they will never be able to really understand Freemasonry, and I think that is where complaints like this come from. They can't understand what Freemasonry is attempting to do, and so therefore they object to the trappings of Masonic practice they see.
100% yes.
I recently thought about putting memento mori onto our lodge badges for my term in office. I brought up my idea to several members (old timers) and was met with fierce resistance. It’s not a Masonic symbol, was one retort. It’s a Scottish rite thing was another.
While I did counter their arguments, it fell on deaf ears.
It is even a problem within the craft, not just the appendant bodies, but yes, for that particular paint scheme in a small room, resistance came mostly from the opposite sex.
Yeah, unfortunately, with a lot of people, true arguments do fall upon deaf ears. Memento Mori is a symbol within Craft Masonry, and just because it is prominent in the Scottish and York Rites does not make it any less so. But, convincing the men who joined Freemasonry believing it to be nothing more than a social club is certainly difficult.
When our numbers exploded in the 40's, 50's, and 60's, we took in an awful lot of men all at once, and they were not taught about the transformative work of our Craft.
In my District, most do. Mainly because many of our Lodges keep the lights low for the EA First Section, and having the Prep room lights on at that point shines excessive light into the main room. Dimming the lights in the main room is similar to your idea, only the "Darkness to light" is later. 😉
I have to agree 100%......