I-Thou and the Promise of Masonry

May 18, 2023 | Masonic History

MASONIC RITUAL

I-Thou and the Promise of Masonry

Invoking Deity in Masonic Ritual

It has previously appeared on Craftsmen Online that the Opening Ritual consists of three primary functions: Purging the Lodge, Aligning the Officers and Invoking Deity, and that the last of those three is the most important. It is my intent with this piece to not only heartily support the sentiment that the Invocation of Deity is the most important core function of the Opening Ritual, but to also briefly make the case that the Opening Prayer, as written in the ritual, reveals the keystone upon which our great Fraternity lays its lofty promise.

Martin Buber: February 8, 1878 – June 13, 1965

In his 1923 book “I and Thou”, the philosopher Martin Buber outlined the two primary ways in which we relate to people and the world around us. The first is the impersonal way that a person (the subject or “I”) interacts with the people or things around them (the object or “It”) as objects to be used. This type of relationship is referred to by Buber as “I-It” and it focuses on how an object can be used to benefit the subject. For example, a car is an “It” and its purpose is to enable the subject, the “I”, to get from one place to the other. Likewise, a soccer ball is also an “It” that is used as a piece of sporting equipment by the “I”. Conversely, there is the personal way that a person (the subject or “I”) interacts with the people or things around them, in which these people or things are unique and valued (the object or “Thou” or “You”). This is referred to by Buber as the “I-Thou” or “I-You” relationship. It acknowledges that the other subject in the relationship is to be interacted with rather than to be used. In this relationship, when the “I” interacts with the “You” in a mutually beneficial and respectful way, we allow for a blurring or dissolution of the boundaries between us, and, for that moment, essentially exist as that relationship rather than two individual “I’s”.

To Buber, the word “Thou” refers specifically to God. It can then be proposed, for our Masonic purposes, that we have “I-You” relationships with each other, but rely upon a mutual “I-Thou” relationship with God to set the Plumb, Square, and Level for our meetings. Thus the last action taken before the greatest Light in Masonry shines is the Chaplain’s prayer: “Thou hast promised that where two or three are gathered together in Thy name, Thou wilt be in their midst and bless them.”

This is an example of an “I-Thou” relationship between individuals (two or three people) and the divine (God), where there is a mutual recognition and respect for each other’s unique individuality. The promise in this sentence suggests that when people come together in the name of God, they are engaging in a relationship that is characterized by openness, vulnerability and empathy. It implies that there is a deep connection between individuals and the divine, and that this connection is strengthened when people come together in community (or “dwell together in unity”, if you will). This explains the great significance to the first question asked of a potential candidate before his acceptance into the Fraternity. Before he may be considered eligible to receive Masonic degrees, the candidate must first profess a belief in the existence of one ever-living and true God. Without that essential belief, we would be unable to form that relationship necessary for our work. When two or three of us invoke Him and perform our work in His holy name, we unite the brethren and activate the strength in our diversity. Furthermore, as we practice collectively in good faith and intention inside of our meetings, the better we are able to carry this strength with us when abroad in the world.

Written by: WB Ryan Toner Chaplain, Oriental-Faxton Lodge #224, Utica, NY Worshipful Ryan Toner is a Past Master and the current Chaplain of Oriental-Faxton Lodge No. 224, Oneida District, Utica, NY. He is also a 32° Scottish Rite Mason, Valley of Utica.

← Masonic ritual - Are all present in possession of the secrets? Masonic ritual - Why do Brothers sometimes say that “the Ritual is for the Candidate”? →

My Grandfather’s Jewel

Mar 9, 2023 | Masonic History

MASONIC HISTORY

My Grandfather’s Jewel

A family legacy within the Craft

My family has a long history in Philadelphia, going as far back as the late 1600s. My sisters and I know more about our mother’s side of the family than our father’s side, but I have begun looking into things. Recently, I sought out some information on my paternal grandfather whom I had never met. Shortly after I became a Master Mason, my father gave me various Masonic jewelry belonging to his father – including some Scottish Rite pieces. As the Grand Lodge of New York started to highlight the use of the Lewis Jewel, I already had my father’s information on hand, so I reached out to the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania to see what information it had on my grandfather.

Image: The Past Master’s Jewel of HGCW

My grandfather, Harry G. C. Williams was 21 years, 2 months and 10 days old when he was initiated into Olivet Lodge No. 607 in Philadelphia in 1910. He was the Junior Warden in 1920, Senior Warden in 1921 and Worshipful Master in 1922. I discovered evidence that he had been a member of the Knights Templar and LuLu Shrine and I am aware that he was in the Scottish Rite. I do not suspect that my paternal great-grandfather was a Mason. My grandfather had been mostly estranged from his family for unknown reasons. Olivet Lodge was constituted in 1895 and had only been chartered for 15 years when my grandfather joined in 1910. Along with Oriental Lodge No. 385 and Crescent Lodge No. 493, Olivet Lodge No. 607 merged with Concordia Lodge No. 67 on December 9, 2000. I never met my paternal grandfather. He passed away on December 30, 1937 – three days before his 49th birthday, and almost 20 years before I was born. I also never knew much about him, but I’ve gathered bits and pieces: He was a veteran of the 315th Infantry Regiment. He helped to start the American Legion in Pennsylvania. He was President of the Philadelphia Real Estate Board in 1933-1934.

I have just found his Past Master jewel inside of a box. I can make out the “HGCW” monogram on the jewel. As he was only 48 years old when he passed away, I feel for my father who had been just a boy at the time. I’m grateful for the time I had with my father and will treasure my Masonic lineage.

Written by: Bro. Harry Williams Bro. Williams was raised in 1993 and is a member of three symbolic lodges in New York – Geneva-Ark No. 33, Warren No. 32, and Adonai No. 718. He helped to consolidate the Columbia, Dutchess and Greene-Ulster District into the Majestic Mid-Hudson District and bring about a new, revitalized district.

← Masonic Ritual - Deacons and Taking the Password Masonic ritual - Empty Warden Chair →

Benjamin Franklin

Jan 17, 2022 | Birthdays, Masonic History

MASONIC BIRTHDAY

Benjamin Franklin

January 17, 1706: Writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and political philosopher

Writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and political philosopher, Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 in Boston, Massachusetts. One of the most famous Founding Fathers of the United States, Franklin was the fifteenth of seventeen children, his parents desired for him to join the clergy. Financial difficulties prevented his parents to support his education for only two years, Franklin self-educated from the age of 10. When he was 12 years old, he became an apprentice to his older brother James, the publisher of the first independent newspaper in the American colonies.

By the time he was 24 years old, Franklin started writing columns in the Pennsylvania Gazette, when in the December 3-8, 1730 edition, it was reported that several Lodges of Free-Masons were meeting in the province. This early account of Freemasonry in the Americas has some historians debating Franklin’s true intent on publishing articles about the fraternity prior to his initiation. It is likely the future Brother’s writings were to promote himself to nearby St. John’s Lodge in Philadelphia, to familiarize the Masonic brothers with him and his writings. Other historians believe the witty articles were penned by an ignorant man, not familiar with the fraternity.

Franklin was raised a Master Mason a few months later in St. John’s Lodge in 1731 and was elected Secretary (1735-1738). Once he was a member, his style of writing changed in the Gazette, where his tone shifted towards tremendous praise about Freemasonry in America, especially in Pennsylvania. We often refer to these writings when learning about the beginnings of Freemasonry in the United States.

Within a year after his raising, Brother Franklin was part of the by-laws committee of St. John’s Lodge. Active in the fraternity for over fifty years, serving as Grand Junior Warden in 1732 and Grand Master of Pennsylvania in 1734 and Provincial Grand Master of Pennsylvania in 1749. In 1734, Brother Franklin edited and published the first Masonic book in the Americas, The Constitutions of the Freemasons, a reprint of James Anderson’s Constitutions of the Free-Masons in England.

Brother Franklin was a traveling man in the true sense, visiting several lodges on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Elected a Provincial Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of England in 1760, his Masonic passport was in full use during his time as ambassador to France. He was a conductor with Antoine Court de Gébelin in the initiation of French Enlightenment writer Voltaire into the “Loge des Neuf Soeurs” in Paris just one month before the philosopher’s death in 1778. The “Loge des Neuf Soeurs” was a prominent Masonic Lodge of the Grand Orient de France chartered in 1776, its name references the nine Muses, the daughters of Mnemosyne/Memory, an important part of French culture representing the arts and sciences of Greek mythology. Franklin joined the lodge along with U.S. Naval Captain John Paul Jones in 1778 and was elected Venerable Master of The Lodge of Nine Sisters, serving from 1779 to 1781. He was succeeded in the East by the Marquis de La Salle.

The Lodge of the Nine Sisters were very influential in organizing French support for the American Revolution, counting among its members that included some of the world’s greatest minds. Franklin’s membership in this important lodge enabled him to promote the ideals behind American Revolution, increasing French support for the Revolution but inspired somewhat the French Revolution later. Brother Frankin was also a member and elected elected Venerable d’Honneur of Respectable Lodge de Saint Jean de Jerusalem and an honorary member of Lodge des Bons Amis, Rouen.

Franklin passed away on April 17th, 1790, at the age of 85; 60 of those years as a Freemason. He lived, wrote and practiced the principles of the Fraternity and was not merely an observant sideliner, but a Brother intensely interested in the Craft, practicing the principles of the Freemasonry.

“If a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest. Masonic labor is purely a labor of love. He who seeks to draw Masonic wages in silver and gold will be disappointed. The wages of a Mason are earned and paid in their dealings with one another; sympathy begets sympathy, kindness begets kindness, helpfulness begets helpfulness, and these are the wages of a Mason.”
Brother Benjamin Franklin

Written by Wor. Bro. Ronald J. Seifried, DSA
Trustee Chairman and Historian, Jephtha Lodge No. 494 F. & A.M.
Area 1 Historian, Nassau and Suffolk Masonic Districts
Co-Editor, Craftsmen Online NY Masonic History column
32° Scottish Rite, Valley of Rockville Centre
Companion of Asharokan Chapter No. 288, Royal Arch Masons
Member of Suffolk Council No. 76, Cryptic Masons
Author, “Long Island Freemasons,” Arcadia Publishing, 2020

Content is property of Craftsmen Online and cannot be used, copied, or quoted in any manner without the express, written permission of Craftsmen Online.

Benedict Arnold

Jan 14, 2022 | Birthdays, Masonic History

MASONIC BIRTHDAY

Benedict Arnold

January 14, 1740: American soldier, British soldier and traitor to the American Revolution

On January 14, 1741, in Norwich, Connecticut a future brother was born whose name later became synonymous with the diabolic deeds he committed against his country and fraternity. Forever labeled traitor, the name Benedict Arnold is not to be mentioned in many open lodges in the United States to this day.

Born to a wealthy family, the young Arnold started out as a bookseller and retailer of medicine in New Haven, Connecticut. After a series of questionable real estate transactions, he expanded his merchant business by purchasing three cargo ships to trade goods in the West Indies. Appointing himself Captain on several voyages in the islands, he was initiated in Freemasonry and later affiliated with Hiram Lodge No. 1 in New Haven, Connecticut in 1765. Two years later, Arnold married Margaret Mansfield, the daughter of Brother Samuel Mansfield, member of Hiram No. 1 and the local sheriff.

Arnold’s duplicity and traitorous actions against the Colonies are well documented and have afforded him the permanent title of “traitor,” an insult commonly used from school-aged children to senior citizens since his despicable actions in 1780 when he attempted to surrender West Point to the British Army. It is believed while Arnold was betraying West Point, he gained the trust of various officers using Masonic modes of recognition to gain their trust.

Brother Benjamin Franklin later wrote that “Judas sold only one man, Arnold three million.” In his hometown of Norwich, the words “the traitor” were scrawled next to his record of birth and all the family gravestones were destroyed with the exception of his mother’s.

After his exile in Canada, Benedict Arnold loaned money to British loyalists and fellow Freemasons, fully understanding he would never be paid back. His actions led Hiram Lodge No. 1 to remove all mention of his name from their records. Later, Solomon Lodge No. 1 in Poughkeepsie, New York, passed a resolution, stating “Ordered that the Name of Benedict Arnold be considered as obliterated from the Minutes of this Lodge, a Traitor.” Arnold visited Solomon No. 1 on June 12, 1771, but his signature in the visitor’s records were later crossed out with a drawing of a finger pointing to the word “Traitor.”

His unpopularity spread to England where he lived out his last years. After his death in 1801, “the bones” of Benedict Arnold were entombed in the basement of St. Mary’s Church in Battersea, London. If one was to visit the unpopular tourist attraction, the plain marker without a Masonic symbol resides in a church basement next to a fish tank.

For more information on Benedict Arnold, read this informative post from Freemasons for Dummies.

Content is property of Craftsmen Online and cannot be used, copied, or quoted in any manner without the express, written permission of Craftsmen Online.

Tim Horton

Jan 12, 2022 | Birthdays, Masonic History

MASONIC BIRTHDAY

Tim Horton

January 12, 1930: Toronto Maple Leafs NHL defenseman and co-founder of the Tim Hortons coffee restaurant

Tim Horton was born in Cochrane, Ontario on January 12, 1930 and became one of the greatest defensemen in NHL history. Growing up in Cochrane and a mining community near Timmis Ontario, Horton was signed by the Toronto Maple Leafs organization in 1948 and moved to Toronto to play junior hockey while attending St. Michael’s College School.

Overcoming severe career-threatening injuries in 1955 when he was checked into the boards and suffered a broken leg and broken jaw, Horton appeared in 486 consecutive games between 1961 and 1968. In his almost two-decade career with the Maple Leafs as a 7-time all-star, Horton was instrumental in helping Toronto 4 Stanley Cups. Horton later played with the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres, who he played with when he was killed in a tragic automobile accident in 1974.

Horton had a reputation for enveloping players fighting him in a crushing bear hug.

While playing, Horton was generally acknowledged as the strongest man in the game; injuries and age were little more than minor inconveniences. Chicago Black Hawks left wing Bobby Hull declared, “There were defencemen you had to fear because they were vicious and would slam you into the boards from behind…but you respected Tim Horton because he didn’t need that type of intimidation. He used his tremendous strength and talent to keep you in check.”

In 1964 Horton opened his first Tim Horton Doughnut Shop in Hamilton, Ontario. By 1967 Tim Horton Doughnut Shop had become a multi-million dollar franchise, Tim Hortons.

Horton was a member of Kroy Lodge No. 676 in Toronto, Ontario.

Content is property of Craftsmen Online and cannot be used, copied, or quoted in any manner without the express, written permission of Craftsmen Online.

« Older Entries

Next Entries »