Treat them seriously. I’ve been to degrees where the people on the sidelines congratulated the person delivering the first degree lecture for doing it in record time. Like the lecture was something to endure. Laughing, joking, especially during the 3rd degree completely removes the solemnity of the experience. Know your ritual work. Install a chamber of reflection and know how to use it. I’ve found that the COR instills the proper frame of mind to the candidate, and that frame of mind should be reflected in the actual ritual itself. Finally, make sure the candidate at a minimum learns the posting lecture. This builds the foundation for their masonic career, especially if they decide to take a chair in the line.
Thank you for this Brother! I agree with everything you pointed out.
It does seem that the Lectures are far too often completely monotone, delivered without any feeling, and as you point out, rushed, sometimes horribly so. I've often wondered if instead of sitting the candidate all alone to hear the lecture, with the rest of the brothers behind him, if it wouldn't be better to put a couple brothers right up next to him? Especially if they understand that part of their role would be to show interest.
The Laughing, even talking on the sidelines is what most bothers me when it happens. That and jokes about the goat prior to the Degree. I feel it sets the completely wrong mood.
100% Yes! Chamber of Reflection.
The COR is, in my view, the very best way to place the candidate in the proper state of mind for the Degree. I don't know why we ever got away from using it, but that was a horrible mistake. I am pleased to see that at least some Lodges have brought it back, or are working on bringing it back.
I'm also in complete agreement regarding the Posting Lecture. Memorizing all three of them gave me great confidence in my own abilities when I started moving through the chairs. When I saw that first one, I thought that there was no possible way I could ever memorize such a thing, but after I did it, I knew that I could handle anything ritualistically, with enough time to practice.
You mention knowing the work.
A couple months ago I opened and closed a Lodge that had to hold an actual meeting to take care of an uncommon, huge, and important piece of business. I'd not sat in a Lodge for something like a year, like everyone else.
Frankly, I was shocked at how badly I struggled with the ritual after not performing or seeing it in so long. I thought that I had it in my head so deeply after all these years that I'd never have trouble with it. I was badly wrong.
I know that most of our Lodges have candidates and prospects in waiting, I hope that they all take plenty of time to practice before attempting a degree, for I imagine everyone else will be just as rusty as I was.
Your last point is what I call past master disease. Too many times I’ve seen past masters take a chair to fill in a hole, thinking they still know the work, only to find out that no, they don’t. And a lot of times they refuse to go back and open up their dusty copy of the standard work and study, like it is beneath them. I myself haven’t practiced at all during this past year, and I know that I am seriously lacking in my ritual work now. I relied on our weekly study and practice sessions to keep my ritual work alive. Not being able to sit around a table at the lodge and go over the work is what is the worst part. Our lodge took pride in our ritual, because we spent the time practicing every week, whether we had a degree coming up or not. The sad tragic part is that we had two 2nd degrees scheduled two days after the moratorium was put in place. Those candidates have been waiting a year to progress and we owe it to them to do a good job when we go back. But right now, our current leadership in the state has no plan to let that happen. Everyone seems to be under the illusion that we will be back to normal in a few months. I don’t have that same faith.
Do you find that Lodge standards, and through them peer pressure can help reduce this "Past Master's Disease?"
In other words, I've certainly messed up the Ritual in the past, even ritual I knew perfectly. For whatever reason, I just tripped on it when the time came. The most glaring example of this, not exactly ritual, but close enough, a few years ago I sat in as Senior Deacon. It came time to introduce MW Charles Wood (not MW at that time), and for the life of me I stood there, completely unable to remember his name. This was a guy who was a friend, who I sat in Lodge with every single month at least two times, and who I had introduced more often than I could possibly remember. At that moment though, I went completely blank.
The thing is though, when I do mess up, for whatever reason, it is embarrassing. Embarrassing for a long time.
The Lodge opening and closing I mentioned earlier was embarrassing. Even though there were only five of us, and even though the others were as rusty as I was.
So what I'm wondering is, if high Lodge standards can help function to drive folks with the "Past Master's Disease" to do better, or if it is sometimes a hopeless cause?
What you are describing is the typical brain fart, not PMD. You can practice and practice, but sometimes when the time comes, you suddenly can’t remember a thing. It happens to anyone.
What I am referring to is the PM who volunteers for a seat, one they hadn’t sat in for years, and just assume they will know the ritual. One volunteered for the east when the seat suddenly became vacant right before elections. During his entire year he struggled with the ritual, but never bothered to study to try and get it right.
And it is embarrassing, I would be more worried if someone wasn’t embarrassed, because that means they don’t care enough about their work to be embarrassed when it’s done poorly. If you take pride in your ritual work, then you strive for perfection. Doesn’t always happen, but awesome when it does.
For your final question, it depends on the individual. As my dad used to say, you can lead a horse to water... A lodge can have high standards, but sometimes you have to play the cards you’re dealt.
Brother, I couldn't agree more in regards to the posting lectures! Giving all three in open lodge was a very important part of my Masonic journey, one I will always treasure.
I agree. I thought it was a superb experience, and I feel that when a Lodge doesn't require it, the candidate is being cheated.
I visited a Lodge not all that long ago. After the meeting we all went into the dining room and talked about Masonry. We were there quite a long time, and it was a truly excellent discussion. These are the things that build a Lodge in my opinion, so I thought it was exceptional.
One disturbing thing came out though.
One of the members, a fellow who had been a Master Mason for awhile, told me that he had never visited another Lodge. I asked him why, and he said that it was because he did not feel confident enough in his knowledge of the work to actually successfully make it through whatever test the other Lodge put him through in order to get in.
In other words, he didn't feel that he knew the signs, grips, and words well enough to visit another Lodge.
His Lodge clearly cheated him by not even requiring the most basic of knowledge through the course of his degrees.
I think Lodges need to understand that by lowering standards they are actually making things more difficult, not easier, for their candidates.
For me personally the inculcation of ritual until it transcends a mere intellectual recitation of information, to the point of becoming visceral and empowering the ritualist to emote while visualizing the symbols related to the words and actions involved, utilizes certain non-verbal forms of communication which enhances the candidates experience of what is being imparted.
With the COR and why lodges don’t use them anymore, I have a few ideas.
When I was pushing to get a COR in our lodge, I got a lot of push back from many directions, mainly due to ignorance of the symbology within it. For some people, as soon as they see a skull, they automatically think devil worship, evil, and non masonic. Apparently they slept through the degrees. I even had to install a lock on the door, because the concordant bodies freaked out.
I also think that the masons themselves have lost in translation a lot of what masonry is about. There was an old star trek episode where the enterprise came across a primitive culture that were quoting fragments of something as their guiding text, but had no clue what the text meant. If I remember correctly, kirk finally figured out it was the constitution. I think we as a fraternity are in the same situation. Not using the COR is part of that.
Two hundred years ago we were not a charity. We didn’t file taxes or declare ourselves non profits. We didn’t do fund raisers. We didn’t spend our business meetings arguing about what kind of pancakes we served at our monthly breakfasts. The COR encapsulates what we are supposed to be, yet people don’t bother to learn what it is about. Here in the states, death used to be treated as part of life. At some point, it became a dirty subject. We leave it to the funeral home to sanitize and dispose of our loved ones. Its a subject we don’t like to talk about, but it is part of the human condition. I guess some people don’t like to be reminded of that.
Three things jump out at me right away from what you say.
One of my Lodges also worked at building a COR. It's not done yet, but it is well on the way, and can function as such now, if desired. We too had the same issue with our concordant bodies. A complete freak out.
It will probably anger some, but I have to say that I think allowing the creation of all these non-masonic groups, and letting them either declare themselves somehow Masonic or accepting them as somehow Masonic was a very bad mistake in the past.
Blue Lodge Masonry, the Scottish Rite, these things are Masonry. So many of the other groups that Masons spend time on may be great organizations and may do great things, but they aren't Freemasonry. That's my opinion anyway, for what it is worth.
Growing off of that, I think if we are to return Freemasonry to glory, we must focus our efforts on the Blue Lodge. Doing so will actually help these other organizations too, for without the Blue Lodge they can not exist.
Your post hints at what I consider the spiritual aspects of Masonry. I have strong opinions on that, opinions that I imagine are quite close to your own. I too think that we have largely lost that, and I plan on exploring that in detail in this space as time goes on.
I spend a lot of time in Mexico. Not in resorts, in Mexico, where American's don't tour, and I've done this for a lot of years. I do this because members of my family have moved there, including my Mother and my brother.
One thing that has struck me is that the average Mexican citizen has a radically different view of death than the average United States citizen. It is to me, a much better view of death, similar to what your post is touching upon.
My wife and I have tried to bring some of that back to our own family and close friends. That has been extremely well received.
I agree completely. We have a brother from South Africa in our lodge, and I've talked with him about it as well. In the rituals he's seen, well, let's just say that the props used are all too real. That would never fly here in the US (but it should).
The concordant bodies are fine, but the lodge is the fraternities lodge, we just let them rent space there. And you're right, masons first and foremost should be masons. I don't tell brothers how they should live their lives, but some never miss an Eastern Star meeting, and never attend any blue lodge meetings. Same with other groups. A few years ago, I watched a MM degree out at Granite Falls (always a joy) and the brother being raised was only getting his degree so he could wear the Widows Sons vest (or so I was told) and ride with them.
As an aside, I attended the lodge leadership retreat a number of years ago. It was the saturday night dinner, and seated at our table was a brother and his wife. The discussion took a turn about allowing women to become masons. The wife said "If they allowed women to join the masons, I'd be the first to join". I replied "If they started letting in women into our lodges, I'd be the first one to quit". That didn't go over too well.
I have one that has been beautifully carved into a representation of what we are discussing. I think that as we can't utilize real props, it is good if we can ensure that what we do use is an excellent representation.
I have no objection if women want to perform the Masonic Degrees, we couldn't stop it from happening anyway, but I do feel that a male space is needed. I think that many potential points for growth could not happen in a mixed group. In any event, I'm lucky in that regard, Melinda would be horrified at the idea of ever becoming a Freemason. She spends an extraordinary amount of time with Masons, but she views it as a 100% male endeavor. My daughters all feel the same.
We hear all the time that we need good lectures, but the reality is that very few brothers can provide that lecture and it is fewer every year. Some of us, myself included, need to learn those lectures. It takes work, and we have to be willing to put in the work.
I agree with Brother Glenn that the two things we can do is to make sure everyone knows their ritual and the degrees are presented with the solemnity the candidates deserve. We are also putting together a Chamber of Reflection in our Lodge. I will be honest and say I don’t know a lot about the COR but several newer brothers brought it up and we’re moving forward with the project.
There are several things I would like to mention that haven't been touched on here yet.
First, Music to accompany the ritual makes a huge difference in any Degree. While some Lodges don't have anyone capable of providing appropriate music or and instrument to play it on, technology again comes to the rescue.
I have a huge collection of music downloaded from Spotify which consists in large part of piano instrumentals on my smart phone. Bluetooth can transfer this music to a speaker.
Second would be Lodge lighting. We did one Degree in Lodge with just the altar light on with the SD having having an electric light to his rod. It was well received. I would also recommend every Brother to attend at least one Torchlight Degree at night under the actual starry decked heavens at Granite Falls.
Making an effort to commit the Lectures to memory makes it so that every time one is given it is like listening to one's favorite music. Make no mistake, the candidate will notice if the Brothers seem to regard the Lecture as IMPORTANT and they will thereby regard the Lecture as important to themselves.
Lighting is huge. Some argue, well, if someone is wearing a blindfold, who cares? Well, the candidate may not notice, but for everyone else, it sets the proper mood.
I agree, music is important. As you say, with modern technology it can be provided easily and well. I fear that bad music doesn't have the same positive impact, but that is no longer something that a Lodge has to accept.
I know that you have done a lot of work convincing Lodges to incorporate music, and view that as an excellent thing.
I also agree with your thoughts about lighting. The Torchlight Degree you mention is the finest possible example of this (Saturday, August 21 this year.) But as you mention, this is something that any Lodge can do. Candle light is a superb thing. Florescent lights are not.
I hope that we will see you there again this year! As always, I'll be the SD with a torch in hand. Haven't lit anyone on fire yet!
I attended a Lodge once in another country that was lit 100% by candle light. The three candles around the altar, three candles at the JW, five at the SW, seven at the WM. It was superb. That wasn't for a degree, that was for the regular Stated.
To be completely honest, I'm not sure that anyone there actually cares. In that Jurisdiction they are much more casual about the rules than we are in Washington. Strikingly more casual.
I don't want to repeat the words already voiced in these responses. I agree with all of them. One of the things I struggle with is having more than one candidate during a degree.
I know that when more than one candidate is ready to receive a degree they are lumped together out of necessity or to minimize the effort required to organize and put on the degree. Its difficult enough to find enough Brethren who are capable or willing to perform all the parts let alone organizing the date with the candidates, all the players and the Lodge Temple itself.
However in my experience and prior to joining Freemasonry I was looking for the initatory rites and the moment itself to impact me, to speak to me, to change me in that moment toward something new and to change my life.
I have found through my own as well as other's degrees that having more than one candidate lessens that unique and deeply personal moment. Obligating together, circumambulations together, etc. When the SD takes the candidate by the arm and conducts him while communicating the ritual the others follow with a silent assistant SD. There isn't the same mystic connection between them.
When a man stands alone he feels the moment, is in the moment, is unsure, nervous and maybe even a little scared. This is when he is most vulnerable. This is when the ritual speaks to his soul. This is when we, through our ritual performed well and with sincerety, show him he is safe. That this moment is about him and his journey on the path to light through self improvement and how we are there to support and assist him on that path.
Yes to all the previous comments. These and the deeply personal uniqueness of the moment can make a lifelong lasting impression that a man may take outside the walls of the Lodge and start to change the world around him.
We don't do many double degrees, but at the bare minimum we will do each degree conferral separately. The first brother goes through the entrance, circumambulation, obligation, working tools, etc. then is seated on the sidelines, and the second candidate is brought in, and the same thing applies. Then, after the conferral, they both receive the lecture together. The first candidate gets the benefit of being able to watch the degree from the sidelines, and perhaps enforces it a bit better now that he could actually see it.
Where I draw the line is the 3rd, it should never be done with multiple candidates. I've seen it done, and wasn't a fan. It's the most important degree of all three, and should be for one candidate's benefit alone.
When I received my EA Degree, I received it along with one other fellow. I was the one off at the side of the Altar for the Obligation, he was the one where the candidate is supposed to be. I distinctly remember that bothering me at the time.
Maybe the guy in the proper position is just the first guy at the door who the SD reaches for, or maybe the guy in the proper position is the candidate that the Lodge feels is the better of the two. How is the candidate to know, or to feel about that?
I received the FC and MM all by myself. Much better.
I've been honored to plan the last few 1st degree's we've held. Since we do not have a lodge building, the location where we hold our degrees is as flexible and as interesting as our imagination. For the 1st degree, we found a location in our area that allows us to provide a truly impactful and substantial experience to the candidate. We deliver the candidate to the location where they experience a COR prior to getting down to business. We’re constantly looking to refine the experience, keeping the candidate at the center of our discussions.
Interestingly, this December I was initiated into another, much older order that was created a long time ago, far far away where I was dubbed a knight and given a weapon to use how I see fit. While in Disney World I went through their lightsaber building experience. After I paid my fee 😉 I was brought by characters into a secret vault where the experience began. I instantly began taking mental notes. It wasn’t just about the end result. Rather, each of the senses were considered and indulged. Visually, stunning. Sounds, intellectual and engaging. The experience has increased my interest in examining every facet of the candidate experience.
It sounds awesome that you are able to use a location that offers a superb experience. Two of my Lodges occasionally do outdoor degrees, and I think that adds a great deal to those degrees. Of course, being located in Western Washington, we are very limited to the non wet time of year, and I do remember a time that it started raining half way through the Third Degree drama. That was less than ideal as you can imagine, but I still think it turned out to be a superb degree.
Another thing one Lodge I frequent uses to great effect is costumes. They do that for both the Fellowcraft and Master degrees. Old York Rite costumes are used, those are quite fitting for the Degrees, and I imagine that many of our Lodges have things like that stored away.
Delivering the candidate is a superb touch too. That drive is a tremendous opportunity to begin building friendship, which is truly vital.
I love that you are going to be able to take the Disney experience, and adapt the concepts that made it great into your Lodge's Degrees! I can easily see where that could greatly enhance the candidate's experience!
Make degrees a personal experience for the candidate. COR's, ask the necessary questions at the beginning of the conferral, not before lodge. When they go to each station, the officers need to place their hand on the candidates shoulder etc... Don't take short cuts.....degrees should not be given as a convenience to the brethren....that takes away from the candidate. Make the degree special....such as the Torchlight FC degree at the Masonic Family Park or the Open Air MM degree.
I think that the outdoor EA Degree at Quilcene-Jefferson Lodge, the outdoor FC Degree at the McMillin Mausoleum in Roche Harbor, and both the Torchlight FC and outdoor MM Degrees at the Masonic Park can and should serve as inspiration for our Lodges to think outside of the box when considering locations.
For example, very close to Centralia Lodge we have a Brother who owns a large, extremely private set of woods behind his home. That would be a superb place for the Lodge to perform degrees in the summer months, either in daylight or by torchlight.
I also think that as in the Torchlight FC at the Masonic Park, Lodges should consider using costumes. Many of our Lodges own costumes, they should be put to use.
I don't think that I've seen the necessary questions propounded as a part of the conferral, only prior to. I could very well have missed that though, as I'm often trying to go through my own memory work in my head to make sure that I get it right at the start of degree nights.
Treat them seriously. I’ve been to degrees where the people on the sidelines congratulated the person delivering the first degree lecture for doing it in record time. Like the lecture was something to endure. Laughing, joking, especially during the 3rd degree completely removes the solemnity of the experience. Know your ritual work. Install a chamber of reflection and know how to use it. I’ve found that the COR instills the proper frame of mind to the candidate, and that frame of mind should be reflected in the actual ritual itself. Finally, make sure the candidate at a minimum learns the posting lecture. This builds the foundation for their masonic career, especially if they decide to take a chair in the line.
Thank you for this Brother! I agree with everything you pointed out.
It does seem that the Lectures are far too often completely monotone, delivered without any feeling, and as you point out, rushed, sometimes horribly so. I've often wondered if instead of sitting the candidate all alone to hear the lecture, with the rest of the brothers behind him, if it wouldn't be better to put a couple brothers right up next to him? Especially if they understand that part of their role would be to show interest.
The Laughing, even talking on the sidelines is what most bothers me when it happens. That and jokes about the goat prior to the Degree. I feel it sets the completely wrong mood.
100% Yes! Chamber of Reflection.
The COR is, in my view, the very best way to place the candidate in the proper state of mind for the Degree. I don't know why we ever got away from using it, but that was a horrible mistake. I am pleased to see that at least some Lodges have brought it back, or are working on bringing it back.
I'm also in complete agreement regarding the Posting Lecture. Memorizing all three of them gave me great confidence in my own abilities when I started moving through the chairs. When I saw that first one, I thought that there was no possible way I could ever memorize such a thing, but after I did it, I knew that I could handle anything ritualistically, with enough time to practice.
You mention knowing the work.
A couple months ago I opened and closed a Lodge that had to hold an actual meeting to take care of an uncommon, huge, and important piece of business. I'd not sat in a Lodge for something like a year, like everyone else.
Frankly, I was shocked at how badly I struggled with the ritual after not performing or seeing it in so long. I thought that I had it in my head so deeply after all these years that I'd never have trouble with it. I was badly wrong.
I know that most of our Lodges have candidates and prospects in waiting, I hope that they all take plenty of time to practice before attempting a degree, for I imagine everyone else will be just as rusty as I was.
Your last point is what I call past master disease. Too many times I’ve seen past masters take a chair to fill in a hole, thinking they still know the work, only to find out that no, they don’t. And a lot of times they refuse to go back and open up their dusty copy of the standard work and study, like it is beneath them. I myself haven’t practiced at all during this past year, and I know that I am seriously lacking in my ritual work now. I relied on our weekly study and practice sessions to keep my ritual work alive. Not being able to sit around a table at the lodge and go over the work is what is the worst part. Our lodge took pride in our ritual, because we spent the time practicing every week, whether we had a degree coming up or not. The sad tragic part is that we had two 2nd degrees scheduled two days after the moratorium was put in place. Those candidates have been waiting a year to progress and we owe it to them to do a good job when we go back. But right now, our current leadership in the state has no plan to let that happen. Everyone seems to be under the illusion that we will be back to normal in a few months. I don’t have that same faith.
Do you find that Lodge standards, and through them peer pressure can help reduce this "Past Master's Disease?"
In other words, I've certainly messed up the Ritual in the past, even ritual I knew perfectly. For whatever reason, I just tripped on it when the time came. The most glaring example of this, not exactly ritual, but close enough, a few years ago I sat in as Senior Deacon. It came time to introduce MW Charles Wood (not MW at that time), and for the life of me I stood there, completely unable to remember his name. This was a guy who was a friend, who I sat in Lodge with every single month at least two times, and who I had introduced more often than I could possibly remember. At that moment though, I went completely blank.
The thing is though, when I do mess up, for whatever reason, it is embarrassing. Embarrassing for a long time.
The Lodge opening and closing I mentioned earlier was embarrassing. Even though there were only five of us, and even though the others were as rusty as I was.
So what I'm wondering is, if high Lodge standards can help function to drive folks with the "Past Master's Disease" to do better, or if it is sometimes a hopeless cause?
What you are describing is the typical brain fart, not PMD. You can practice and practice, but sometimes when the time comes, you suddenly can’t remember a thing. It happens to anyone.
What I am referring to is the PM who volunteers for a seat, one they hadn’t sat in for years, and just assume they will know the ritual. One volunteered for the east when the seat suddenly became vacant right before elections. During his entire year he struggled with the ritual, but never bothered to study to try and get it right.
And it is embarrassing, I would be more worried if someone wasn’t embarrassed, because that means they don’t care enough about their work to be embarrassed when it’s done poorly. If you take pride in your ritual work, then you strive for perfection. Doesn’t always happen, but awesome when it does.
For your final question, it depends on the individual. As my dad used to say, you can lead a horse to water... A lodge can have high standards, but sometimes you have to play the cards you’re dealt.
Brother, I couldn't agree more in regards to the posting lectures! Giving all three in open lodge was a very important part of my Masonic journey, one I will always treasure.
I agree. I thought it was a superb experience, and I feel that when a Lodge doesn't require it, the candidate is being cheated.
I visited a Lodge not all that long ago. After the meeting we all went into the dining room and talked about Masonry. We were there quite a long time, and it was a truly excellent discussion. These are the things that build a Lodge in my opinion, so I thought it was exceptional.
One disturbing thing came out though.
One of the members, a fellow who had been a Master Mason for awhile, told me that he had never visited another Lodge. I asked him why, and he said that it was because he did not feel confident enough in his knowledge of the work to actually successfully make it through whatever test the other Lodge put him through in order to get in.
In other words, he didn't feel that he knew the signs, grips, and words well enough to visit another Lodge.
His Lodge clearly cheated him by not even requiring the most basic of knowledge through the course of his degrees.
I think Lodges need to understand that by lowering standards they are actually making things more difficult, not easier, for their candidates.
For me personally the inculcation of ritual until it transcends a mere intellectual recitation of information, to the point of becoming visceral and empowering the ritualist to emote while visualizing the symbols related to the words and actions involved, utilizes certain non-verbal forms of communication which enhances the candidates experience of what is being imparted.
With the COR and why lodges don’t use them anymore, I have a few ideas.
When I was pushing to get a COR in our lodge, I got a lot of push back from many directions, mainly due to ignorance of the symbology within it. For some people, as soon as they see a skull, they automatically think devil worship, evil, and non masonic. Apparently they slept through the degrees. I even had to install a lock on the door, because the concordant bodies freaked out.
I also think that the masons themselves have lost in translation a lot of what masonry is about. There was an old star trek episode where the enterprise came across a primitive culture that were quoting fragments of something as their guiding text, but had no clue what the text meant. If I remember correctly, kirk finally figured out it was the constitution. I think we as a fraternity are in the same situation. Not using the COR is part of that.
Two hundred years ago we were not a charity. We didn’t file taxes or declare ourselves non profits. We didn’t do fund raisers. We didn’t spend our business meetings arguing about what kind of pancakes we served at our monthly breakfasts. The COR encapsulates what we are supposed to be, yet people don’t bother to learn what it is about. Here in the states, death used to be treated as part of life. At some point, it became a dirty subject. We leave it to the funeral home to sanitize and dispose of our loved ones. Its a subject we don’t like to talk about, but it is part of the human condition. I guess some people don’t like to be reminded of that.
as an aside, the star trek episode i refer to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Omega_Glory
Thanks! I'll check it out!
Three things jump out at me right away from what you say.
One of my Lodges also worked at building a COR. It's not done yet, but it is well on the way, and can function as such now, if desired. We too had the same issue with our concordant bodies. A complete freak out.
It will probably anger some, but I have to say that I think allowing the creation of all these non-masonic groups, and letting them either declare themselves somehow Masonic or accepting them as somehow Masonic was a very bad mistake in the past.
Blue Lodge Masonry, the Scottish Rite, these things are Masonry. So many of the other groups that Masons spend time on may be great organizations and may do great things, but they aren't Freemasonry. That's my opinion anyway, for what it is worth.
Growing off of that, I think if we are to return Freemasonry to glory, we must focus our efforts on the Blue Lodge. Doing so will actually help these other organizations too, for without the Blue Lodge they can not exist.
Your post hints at what I consider the spiritual aspects of Masonry. I have strong opinions on that, opinions that I imagine are quite close to your own. I too think that we have largely lost that, and I plan on exploring that in detail in this space as time goes on.
I spend a lot of time in Mexico. Not in resorts, in Mexico, where American's don't tour, and I've done this for a lot of years. I do this because members of my family have moved there, including my Mother and my brother.
One thing that has struck me is that the average Mexican citizen has a radically different view of death than the average United States citizen. It is to me, a much better view of death, similar to what your post is touching upon.
My wife and I have tried to bring some of that back to our own family and close friends. That has been extremely well received.
I agree completely. We have a brother from South Africa in our lodge, and I've talked with him about it as well. In the rituals he's seen, well, let's just say that the props used are all too real. That would never fly here in the US (but it should).
The concordant bodies are fine, but the lodge is the fraternities lodge, we just let them rent space there. And you're right, masons first and foremost should be masons. I don't tell brothers how they should live their lives, but some never miss an Eastern Star meeting, and never attend any blue lodge meetings. Same with other groups. A few years ago, I watched a MM degree out at Granite Falls (always a joy) and the brother being raised was only getting his degree so he could wear the Widows Sons vest (or so I was told) and ride with them.
As an aside, I attended the lodge leadership retreat a number of years ago. It was the saturday night dinner, and seated at our table was a brother and his wife. The discussion took a turn about allowing women to become masons. The wife said "If they allowed women to join the masons, I'd be the first to join". I replied "If they started letting in women into our lodges, I'd be the first one to quit". That didn't go over too well.
I'm with you re: real props, but as you say, such will not happen here.
There is a sacred stone in India:
https://www.healing-crystals-for-you.com/shiva-lingam.html
I have one that has been beautifully carved into a representation of what we are discussing. I think that as we can't utilize real props, it is good if we can ensure that what we do use is an excellent representation.
I have no objection if women want to perform the Masonic Degrees, we couldn't stop it from happening anyway, but I do feel that a male space is needed. I think that many potential points for growth could not happen in a mixed group. In any event, I'm lucky in that regard, Melinda would be horrified at the idea of ever becoming a Freemason. She spends an extraordinary amount of time with Masons, but she views it as a 100% male endeavor. My daughters all feel the same.
We hear all the time that we need good lectures, but the reality is that very few brothers can provide that lecture and it is fewer every year. Some of us, myself included, need to learn those lectures. It takes work, and we have to be willing to put in the work.
You are exactly right my Brother. Me too.
I agree with Brother Glenn that the two things we can do is to make sure everyone knows their ritual and the degrees are presented with the solemnity the candidates deserve. We are also putting together a Chamber of Reflection in our Lodge. I will be honest and say I don’t know a lot about the COR but several newer brothers brought it up and we’re moving forward with the project.
Best of luck. Done right, it's a terrific tool. If you need some help, let me know.
Thank you
Excellent! I think you will find it to be a superb addition for your candidates.
There are several things I would like to mention that haven't been touched on here yet.
First, Music to accompany the ritual makes a huge difference in any Degree. While some Lodges don't have anyone capable of providing appropriate music or and instrument to play it on, technology again comes to the rescue.
I have a huge collection of music downloaded from Spotify which consists in large part of piano instrumentals on my smart phone. Bluetooth can transfer this music to a speaker.
Second would be Lodge lighting. We did one Degree in Lodge with just the altar light on with the SD having having an electric light to his rod. It was well received. I would also recommend every Brother to attend at least one Torchlight Degree at night under the actual starry decked heavens at Granite Falls.
Making an effort to commit the Lectures to memory makes it so that every time one is given it is like listening to one's favorite music. Make no mistake, the candidate will notice if the Brothers seem to regard the Lecture as IMPORTANT and they will thereby regard the Lecture as important to themselves.
Lighting is huge. Some argue, well, if someone is wearing a blindfold, who cares? Well, the candidate may not notice, but for everyone else, it sets the proper mood.
I agree, music is important. As you say, with modern technology it can be provided easily and well. I fear that bad music doesn't have the same positive impact, but that is no longer something that a Lodge has to accept.
I know that you have done a lot of work convincing Lodges to incorporate music, and view that as an excellent thing.
I also agree with your thoughts about lighting. The Torchlight Degree you mention is the finest possible example of this (Saturday, August 21 this year.) But as you mention, this is something that any Lodge can do. Candle light is a superb thing. Florescent lights are not.
I hope that we will see you there again this year! As always, I'll be the SD with a torch in hand. Haven't lit anyone on fire yet!
I attended a Lodge once in another country that was lit 100% by candle light. The three candles around the altar, three candles at the JW, five at the SW, seven at the WM. It was superb. That wasn't for a degree, that was for the regular Stated.
Stop giving me good ideas. I had a hard enough time with the COR lol. How did the secretary manage to do his minutes?
Don't know.
To be completely honest, I'm not sure that anyone there actually cares. In that Jurisdiction they are much more casual about the rules than we are in Washington. Strikingly more casual.
I don't want to repeat the words already voiced in these responses. I agree with all of them. One of the things I struggle with is having more than one candidate during a degree.
I know that when more than one candidate is ready to receive a degree they are lumped together out of necessity or to minimize the effort required to organize and put on the degree. Its difficult enough to find enough Brethren who are capable or willing to perform all the parts let alone organizing the date with the candidates, all the players and the Lodge Temple itself.
However in my experience and prior to joining Freemasonry I was looking for the initatory rites and the moment itself to impact me, to speak to me, to change me in that moment toward something new and to change my life.
I have found through my own as well as other's degrees that having more than one candidate lessens that unique and deeply personal moment. Obligating together, circumambulations together, etc. When the SD takes the candidate by the arm and conducts him while communicating the ritual the others follow with a silent assistant SD. There isn't the same mystic connection between them.
When a man stands alone he feels the moment, is in the moment, is unsure, nervous and maybe even a little scared. This is when he is most vulnerable. This is when the ritual speaks to his soul. This is when we, through our ritual performed well and with sincerety, show him he is safe. That this moment is about him and his journey on the path to light through self improvement and how we are there to support and assist him on that path.
Yes to all the previous comments. These and the deeply personal uniqueness of the moment can make a lifelong lasting impression that a man may take outside the walls of the Lodge and start to change the world around him.
We don't do many double degrees, but at the bare minimum we will do each degree conferral separately. The first brother goes through the entrance, circumambulation, obligation, working tools, etc. then is seated on the sidelines, and the second candidate is brought in, and the same thing applies. Then, after the conferral, they both receive the lecture together. The first candidate gets the benefit of being able to watch the degree from the sidelines, and perhaps enforces it a bit better now that he could actually see it.
Where I draw the line is the 3rd, it should never be done with multiple candidates. I've seen it done, and wasn't a fan. It's the most important degree of all three, and should be for one candidate's benefit alone.
Yes, I've seen it done that way, with each conferral separate and just the lecture and charge together. I think that is a much better way to do it.
Point well taken Brother.
When I received my EA Degree, I received it along with one other fellow. I was the one off at the side of the Altar for the Obligation, he was the one where the candidate is supposed to be. I distinctly remember that bothering me at the time.
Maybe the guy in the proper position is just the first guy at the door who the SD reaches for, or maybe the guy in the proper position is the candidate that the Lodge feels is the better of the two. How is the candidate to know, or to feel about that?
I received the FC and MM all by myself. Much better.
I've been honored to plan the last few 1st degree's we've held. Since we do not have a lodge building, the location where we hold our degrees is as flexible and as interesting as our imagination. For the 1st degree, we found a location in our area that allows us to provide a truly impactful and substantial experience to the candidate. We deliver the candidate to the location where they experience a COR prior to getting down to business. We’re constantly looking to refine the experience, keeping the candidate at the center of our discussions.
Interestingly, this December I was initiated into another, much older order that was created a long time ago, far far away where I was dubbed a knight and given a weapon to use how I see fit. While in Disney World I went through their lightsaber building experience. After I paid my fee 😉 I was brought by characters into a secret vault where the experience began. I instantly began taking mental notes. It wasn’t just about the end result. Rather, each of the senses were considered and indulged. Visually, stunning. Sounds, intellectual and engaging. The experience has increased my interest in examining every facet of the candidate experience.
It sounds awesome that you are able to use a location that offers a superb experience. Two of my Lodges occasionally do outdoor degrees, and I think that adds a great deal to those degrees. Of course, being located in Western Washington, we are very limited to the non wet time of year, and I do remember a time that it started raining half way through the Third Degree drama. That was less than ideal as you can imagine, but I still think it turned out to be a superb degree.
Another thing one Lodge I frequent uses to great effect is costumes. They do that for both the Fellowcraft and Master degrees. Old York Rite costumes are used, those are quite fitting for the Degrees, and I imagine that many of our Lodges have things like that stored away.
Delivering the candidate is a superb touch too. That drive is a tremendous opportunity to begin building friendship, which is truly vital.
I love that you are going to be able to take the Disney experience, and adapt the concepts that made it great into your Lodge's Degrees! I can easily see where that could greatly enhance the candidate's experience!
Make degrees a personal experience for the candidate. COR's, ask the necessary questions at the beginning of the conferral, not before lodge. When they go to each station, the officers need to place their hand on the candidates shoulder etc... Don't take short cuts.....degrees should not be given as a convenience to the brethren....that takes away from the candidate. Make the degree special....such as the Torchlight FC degree at the Masonic Family Park or the Open Air MM degree.
I think that the outdoor EA Degree at Quilcene-Jefferson Lodge, the outdoor FC Degree at the McMillin Mausoleum in Roche Harbor, and both the Torchlight FC and outdoor MM Degrees at the Masonic Park can and should serve as inspiration for our Lodges to think outside of the box when considering locations.
For example, very close to Centralia Lodge we have a Brother who owns a large, extremely private set of woods behind his home. That would be a superb place for the Lodge to perform degrees in the summer months, either in daylight or by torchlight.
I also think that as in the Torchlight FC at the Masonic Park, Lodges should consider using costumes. Many of our Lodges own costumes, they should be put to use.
I don't think that I've seen the necessary questions propounded as a part of the conferral, only prior to. I could very well have missed that though, as I'm often trying to go through my own memory work in my head to make sure that I get it right at the start of degree nights.