I would say, in all fairness, i am pretty much exclusively focused on the esoteric. i don't have a personal struggle between Masonry's material and esotetic components, as i am not really drawn to the material side. This orientation brings many challenges of its own, and since 2020 i have been reviewing and exploring what it means for me to be a Freemason, what my goals are, and how i will approach them. i am still not done figuring that out.
I don't really have a struggle wither either side, there's plenty of time for both. I enjoy giving back to the community, but I also love the esoteric side. Unfortunately, all of the lodges in the area are stuck on the material side (and even then, many just barely if at all).
I once had a meeting with the core members of the lodge and asked them three questions. 1) are we a social group? 2) are we an educational/esoteric group? 3) are we a community focused group? The answer to all three was "no". Then the follow up question would be, then what are we? No one could say. Sadly, I would conclude that (in my opinion) 80% of the lodges within Washington probably would answer the same way. They have no direction or purpose. They show up, have a meeting (as quick as possible), parade around everyone that everyone already knows during introductions, gripe about money, and go home.
Looking at my picture of the group that participated in my EA degree, over half no longer attend the lodge I was raised in. While coming up through the chairs I conferred many degrees, and participated in many more. One year our lodge did 22 degrees. Was a lot of fun. Where are all those brothers now? Most never show up anymore.
I would guess that this is not unusual.
Now, there are thriving lodges in the jurisdiction, but those are the exception, not the rule. Those lodges are laser focused on being great at one thing. Joining such a lodge there are no surprises, you are told exactly what to expect, and either you are willing to accept those terms or not. When a lodge dedicates itself to doing something the best they can, chances are they are going to grow. And when those standards start to slip, you'll start to see the eventual decline.
Where did the train tracks go? Seems this one went off the rails as usual.
Personally, I think I have a great balance internally of the material and esoteric. Organizing the Christmas party, sending out dues notices, creating treasurer reports are things I can do and enjoy. Sitting with my brothers and chatting about the news of the day is Fantastic. These are needed to keep lodge fun and entertaining for everyone.
At the same time, I read everything I get my hands on. I hold ritual practice 2x a month, even if I'm the only one who shows up.
Diving into the ritual and truely understanding it helps me with the 1st part. The fraternal side, the fellowship and charity helps me have insights into the esoteric.
Masonry needs both in my humble opinion to truely give way to more light.
This is an article that I wrote for our Lodge newsletter:
The Big Tent of Freemasonry
What attracts you to Freemasonry? Has that attraction remained constant throughout your journey, or has it evolved?
I was attracted to Freemasonry by its rich history and the influence it had on the founding of the great, Constitutional Republic of the United States of America. As I advanced through the degrees and began to practice our craft, I became acquainted with, and enamored by the hidden, or esoteric knowledge contained within the ritual, symbology and allegory found within the degrees of Masonry.
Others who join the Lodge may do so because they desire fellowship and fraternity, want to perform in parades, support hospitals or provide scholarships.
Which is the correct reason? I’ll offer that each of these and many others are right direction to take.
Some will argue that there is no space in Freemasonry for esoteric, or occult studies. Some will say that studying old world texts, ancient mysteries and old ideals is Masonry at its essence.
Who’s right?
It's a fact that Masons are very charitable and expend vast energy contributing to the relief of all those who have a claim upon our kind offices. Do our efforts have to stop with this charitable work? I think not.
Upon reflection, the symbols encountered throughout our rituals are Masonic messengers that, if we are listening intently, will call out to us to study the ancient mysteries of our Craft.
If we were to remove this esoteric aspect of our labor, what then would delineate our labors from the good works performed by the Elks or the Grange? We would be relegated to service organization status. American Masonry seems to be more civic-minded and therefore considered “safe”, inasmuch as “no occult practices here”. Craft Masonry outside of North America seems to be much bolder and more unapologetic with respect to the mystical ties of our institution.
As we preserve the ritualistic traditions of Masonry, do we really know what we are preserving? Whether we know it or not, we are the guardians of this precious, esoteric Craft.
Under this tent of Masonry, there are many activities. These activities are both necessary and important to the continued well-being of our esteemed organization.
A recent epiphany of mine caused me to look at my path as just one of many. Any path taken with the blessing of Deity is equally as beneficial to our collective well-being and each will serve to make a man a better version of himself.
One tent, many compartments.
Brother Robert Lougee – Junior Warden, Kennewick Lodge #153
As I mentioned, I do struggle with this, and I think in a number of different directions.
-I really enjoy some of the material aspects of our craft. For example, I truly enjoy the fact that our Masonic Temple is the second largest building in our small city, and I'm one of the very few Masons I know who enjoys serving on the Temple Board.
-But I also truly enjoy learning about the esoteric side of our craft, creating my own theories, and practicing it. But I've never felt myself particularly good at communicating about it. Give me Temple Board Governance, and I can get Masons to help me get things done. I don't have that same confidence when it comes to esoterica.
-The other bit of struggle I feel is that the needs of the material side of Masonry can and often do, overwhelm the more gentle esoteric side. I think that this is likely a result of declining membership numbers. Less people to take care of the building, to plan educational program, to learn the work, to serve as an officer. So the men who remain have more to do. This problem will likely lessen when our membership numbers and the number of our Lodges reach a better balance, but for now I think that the imbalance is impacting Masons everywhere.
-The final thing that I think about often is a difference between rural and urban Lodges. In an urban area a Lodge can easily specialize if that is what the members want to do, and in so doing, attract men with specific interests. In rural areas however a Lodge needs to strike a balance. As the only game in town, it needs to offer something for everyone. I've watched good Lodge leaders struggle with this through the years, but I think that the struggle is growing more intense as our older members continue to age, and our younger members are looking to put their own imprints on their Lodge.
I see a bigger problem in lodges that do neither. No fundraising efforts for charity works. No outside lodge socializing. No effort toward quality degree work. No esoteric or mystical education. Nothing at all.
I would say, in all fairness, i am pretty much exclusively focused on the esoteric. i don't have a personal struggle between Masonry's material and esotetic components, as i am not really drawn to the material side. This orientation brings many challenges of its own, and since 2020 i have been reviewing and exploring what it means for me to be a Freemason, what my goals are, and how i will approach them. i am still not done figuring that out.
I don't really have a struggle wither either side, there's plenty of time for both. I enjoy giving back to the community, but I also love the esoteric side. Unfortunately, all of the lodges in the area are stuck on the material side (and even then, many just barely if at all).
I once had a meeting with the core members of the lodge and asked them three questions. 1) are we a social group? 2) are we an educational/esoteric group? 3) are we a community focused group? The answer to all three was "no". Then the follow up question would be, then what are we? No one could say. Sadly, I would conclude that (in my opinion) 80% of the lodges within Washington probably would answer the same way. They have no direction or purpose. They show up, have a meeting (as quick as possible), parade around everyone that everyone already knows during introductions, gripe about money, and go home.
Looking at my picture of the group that participated in my EA degree, over half no longer attend the lodge I was raised in. While coming up through the chairs I conferred many degrees, and participated in many more. One year our lodge did 22 degrees. Was a lot of fun. Where are all those brothers now? Most never show up anymore.
I would guess that this is not unusual.
Now, there are thriving lodges in the jurisdiction, but those are the exception, not the rule. Those lodges are laser focused on being great at one thing. Joining such a lodge there are no surprises, you are told exactly what to expect, and either you are willing to accept those terms or not. When a lodge dedicates itself to doing something the best they can, chances are they are going to grow. And when those standards start to slip, you'll start to see the eventual decline.
Where did the train tracks go? Seems this one went off the rails as usual.
Personally, I think I have a great balance internally of the material and esoteric. Organizing the Christmas party, sending out dues notices, creating treasurer reports are things I can do and enjoy. Sitting with my brothers and chatting about the news of the day is Fantastic. These are needed to keep lodge fun and entertaining for everyone.
At the same time, I read everything I get my hands on. I hold ritual practice 2x a month, even if I'm the only one who shows up.
Diving into the ritual and truely understanding it helps me with the 1st part. The fraternal side, the fellowship and charity helps me have insights into the esoteric.
Masonry needs both in my humble opinion to truely give way to more light.
This is an article that I wrote for our Lodge newsletter:
The Big Tent of Freemasonry
What attracts you to Freemasonry? Has that attraction remained constant throughout your journey, or has it evolved?
I was attracted to Freemasonry by its rich history and the influence it had on the founding of the great, Constitutional Republic of the United States of America. As I advanced through the degrees and began to practice our craft, I became acquainted with, and enamored by the hidden, or esoteric knowledge contained within the ritual, symbology and allegory found within the degrees of Masonry.
Others who join the Lodge may do so because they desire fellowship and fraternity, want to perform in parades, support hospitals or provide scholarships.
Which is the correct reason? I’ll offer that each of these and many others are right direction to take.
Some will argue that there is no space in Freemasonry for esoteric, or occult studies. Some will say that studying old world texts, ancient mysteries and old ideals is Masonry at its essence.
Who’s right?
It's a fact that Masons are very charitable and expend vast energy contributing to the relief of all those who have a claim upon our kind offices. Do our efforts have to stop with this charitable work? I think not.
Upon reflection, the symbols encountered throughout our rituals are Masonic messengers that, if we are listening intently, will call out to us to study the ancient mysteries of our Craft.
If we were to remove this esoteric aspect of our labor, what then would delineate our labors from the good works performed by the Elks or the Grange? We would be relegated to service organization status. American Masonry seems to be more civic-minded and therefore considered “safe”, inasmuch as “no occult practices here”. Craft Masonry outside of North America seems to be much bolder and more unapologetic with respect to the mystical ties of our institution.
As we preserve the ritualistic traditions of Masonry, do we really know what we are preserving? Whether we know it or not, we are the guardians of this precious, esoteric Craft.
Under this tent of Masonry, there are many activities. These activities are both necessary and important to the continued well-being of our esteemed organization.
A recent epiphany of mine caused me to look at my path as just one of many. Any path taken with the blessing of Deity is equally as beneficial to our collective well-being and each will serve to make a man a better version of himself.
One tent, many compartments.
Brother Robert Lougee – Junior Warden, Kennewick Lodge #153
As I mentioned, I do struggle with this, and I think in a number of different directions.
-I really enjoy some of the material aspects of our craft. For example, I truly enjoy the fact that our Masonic Temple is the second largest building in our small city, and I'm one of the very few Masons I know who enjoys serving on the Temple Board.
-But I also truly enjoy learning about the esoteric side of our craft, creating my own theories, and practicing it. But I've never felt myself particularly good at communicating about it. Give me Temple Board Governance, and I can get Masons to help me get things done. I don't have that same confidence when it comes to esoterica.
-The other bit of struggle I feel is that the needs of the material side of Masonry can and often do, overwhelm the more gentle esoteric side. I think that this is likely a result of declining membership numbers. Less people to take care of the building, to plan educational program, to learn the work, to serve as an officer. So the men who remain have more to do. This problem will likely lessen when our membership numbers and the number of our Lodges reach a better balance, but for now I think that the imbalance is impacting Masons everywhere.
-The final thing that I think about often is a difference between rural and urban Lodges. In an urban area a Lodge can easily specialize if that is what the members want to do, and in so doing, attract men with specific interests. In rural areas however a Lodge needs to strike a balance. As the only game in town, it needs to offer something for everyone. I've watched good Lodge leaders struggle with this through the years, but I think that the struggle is growing more intense as our older members continue to age, and our younger members are looking to put their own imprints on their Lodge.
I see a bigger problem in lodges that do neither. No fundraising efforts for charity works. No outside lodge socializing. No effort toward quality degree work. No esoteric or mystical education. Nothing at all.