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BE A FREEMASON

Tuesday, July 12, 2022

Journal of the Masonic Society: The Future of Freemasonry and What We Have to Offer


by Christopher Hodapp

Issue 57 of the Journal of The Masonic Society landed in the mailbox over the July 4th weekend. The cover features a beautiful photo of the steps of Indiana’s Battleground Lodge 313 taken by Wbro. Dave Hosler. Dave continues to make stunning photos of Masonic subjects, along with being an indefatigable Mason who seems to turn up everywhere, and we're lucky to have him here in Indiana.

Editor Michael Poll has once again assembled a fine lineup of articles this issue: 

The Lively Career of Brother William Robinson: a.k.a. Chung Ling Soo by Triston Wilkinson

A Qabalistic Interpretation of Freemasonry by Rodney McGillvary

A Treasure Hunt in the Archives of Lodge 43 by Nathaniel Gilchrist

One and Twenty by M.C. Lee

On the Esoteric Masonic Nature of Psalm 127

But the one article I especially want to point out in this issue is Freemasonry Struggles for Relevance in the Modern World it Helped Create by Wes Regan, Worshipful Master of Vancouver Lodge of Education and Research. The piece is subtitled ‘A Response to Professor John Dickie.’ WB Regan is a Canadian Mason in the Grand Lodge F&AM of British Columbia and Yukon. The article he has written for the Journal is one of the most thought provoking pieces about the future of the fraternity I’ve read since Angel Millar’s article in The Plumbline last year, entitled The Future of Freemasonry and What We Have To Offer. Unlike the doomers and gloomies who continue to predict the end of Freemasonry as we know it within the next two decades, Regan presents a completely different alternative. 


The Craft book cover
Last year, Professor John Dickie published The Craft: How the Freemasons Made the Modern World. Although not a Mason himself, he presents the history and influence of our fraternity partially by examining the roles of noteworthy Masons and the fraternity itself at major turning points in world events. If you haven’t read it, you’ll find that it’s a pretty evenhanded treatment of Freemasonry and a somewhat unique way to explore the role our fraternity has played at major turning points in history. 

Dickie spoke last December at the Vancouver Lodge of Education and Research, and during the Q&A period, he opined that Freemasonry needs to reconsider its real and perceived secrecy, its relationship with religion, and its continued exclusion of women. He warned that ignoring these issues will adversely affect our sustainability in the coming years. It is these remarks that Brother Regan addresses in his article. 

North American Masons have been splitting between the actively social lodges that concentrate on family activities, community outreach and service, breakfasts, fund raising and other similar pursuits, versus a growing number of more philosophical, esoteric-minded, contemplative lodges (that can go by several labels, including traditional observance, observant style, epicurean, European concept, or 'best practices' lodges). 




Recent Pew polls have shown that North American men have been drifting away from the sort of organized, mainstream faith traditions of the mainline churches that their families followed for decades or even centuries. Over the last 15 years, religiously unaffiliated Americans have been steadily growing in number, and currently make up almost one third of the population. (See chart above.)

When such men knock at the door of the lodge, they more and more frequently answer the question concerning a belief in God by saying “I’m spiritual, not religious.” One of Wes’ main points is that the esoteric-minded, observant-styled lodges are exactly the sorts of organizations such men are attracted to, in part to perhaps explore different notions of spirituality and discover their own paths by having such discussions with other Masons without fear of censure or ridicule...

And what’s wrong with that? 

Freemasonry as a fraternal organization has been elastic enough to adapt itself to vastly different societies all around the world for more than three centuries. And a quick glance at a list of the swollen number of appendant groups that require Masonic membership as a prerequisite (Royal Arch, Knights Templar, Scottish Rite, Shriners, Grotto, DeMolay, Rainbow, Job’s Daughters, Eastern Star, Amaranth, Allied Masonic Degrees, High Twelve, National Sojourners, Widow’s Sons, ad infinitum) clearly shows that Freemasonry has the ability to provide comfortable niches for an enormous variety of individual interests.

Central to Regan’s piece are the writings of the late Tom Jackson, Past Grand Secretary of Pennsylvania, who spent the overwhelming majority of his long Masonic career urging the fraternity to actively seek out better leaders, embrace Masonic scholarship (while rejecting sensationalistic fairy tales and conspiracies), and most important, return to our longstanding demands for better standards of conduct, work and achievement that used to demonstrate that the Masons really were worthy of being known as the movers and shakers in their communities. 

In the scores of book reviews Tom Jackson wrote for the Scottish Rite NMJ magazine, The Northern Light, he was always in search of books that that treated Freemasonry (whether written by and for Masons, or not) authentically, that were neither too boastful of Masonry’s accomplishments and position in the past, nor too phantasmagorical about its allegedly secret , magical, mystical powers. Books and TV shows that exaggerate everything about Masonry wind up influencing men to join in search of these things, only to walk away when they don’t find it in reality in the lodge.

Ultimately, the conclusion WB Regan comes to is that to thrive in 21st century society, it’s long past time we stop pretending that Freemasonry is monolithic worldwide (or nationwide, or even statewide), and to embrace the wide variety of lodges and their individual cultures and interests that have been developing. Just as it did in the late 1700s in England, we have room for both the knife & fork (or ‘leg o’ mutton’) lodges that love the pancake breakfasts, the chili and bean suppers, family nights, golf tournaments, Hawaiian shirt nights, etc, as well as the ‘blue stocking’ (tuxedo) lodges that explore the esoteric side of Masonic philosophy, concentrate on Masonic and philosophical scholarship, or who delight in the old fashioned customs of the formal festive boards.

I obviously can’t do justice to his piece here, and for the time being, it’s only available to members of the Masonic Society in its Journal. If you aren’t a member or subscriber, visit masonicsociety.com
  • US Membership is US$45.00/yr
  • Canadian Membership (Canadian mailing addresses): US$49.00/yr
  • Overseas Membership (non-US/Canada): US$67.00/yr. 
  • Lodges, libraries and institutions, as well as Masons unrecognized by COGMMNA lodges may subscribe to the magazine alone for the same price.


Masonic Society certificate


5 comments:

  1. Perhaps using the term "wiped out" is too drastic, but the number of Masons with academic ties has shrunk drastically. The overwhelming number these days are those who earlier would have been Elks, Eagles, Moose, and other animal crackers. The quality of lodge programs would have caused a decline in the local Lions club. Bright exceptions, which Chris often helpfully mentions are only a miniscule percentage of the dreary scene. The leadership of the grand bodies is usually those who rather than captains of industry would barely make seamen second class.generally. A partial solution is insisting on offering mixed, men, and women lodges under the same umbrella. Also incorporating degrees like the Royal Arch into blue lodge scenarios. Nobody in a t shirt or sneakers should get past the tyler. And banishing paper cups.

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  2. (Better edited version)
    [from Jeffrey Turnbull, mauispirit@yahoo.com]
    Hereby suggesting that whenever we find any particular institution in danger of becoming irrelevant, that we return to a consideration of basic primary perennial principle(s) of Reality.
    In other words, we might first ask of ourselves to clarify 'What is Really Real?' or, 'What is the nature of Reality?' Upon returning this Reality nature to the fore of awareness, we may then ask ourselves, "How much of our identity and activity is a clear reflection of this universal Reality? I.e., How much are we centered in, and moving from, awareness, remembrance, and honor of the ultimate absolute supreme bottom line of this ever-present/timeless/birthless/deathless, all-pervasive, pure/empty/open omni-conscious awareness, this whole-y Unicity/Indivisible Oneness Reality, of which we are always in the central midst?
    This Reality is not supported by use of any outer or conceptual symbologies, aka, 'idols' or idolatry. In honoring the pure, timeless EverHereNow essence of this Reality/Presence, we are no longer either divided nor distracted by loyalties or obeisances to minor illusory symbolic "gods" of conceptual fabrication.
    In this Age of the ever-fresh whole-y Moment, we find ourselves finally of sufficiently evolved/refined intelligence to recognize and discard the historically genocidal error of worshiping merely symbolic conceptual "gods" of external and culturally diverse name & form, and always resulting inevitably in ongoing divisiveness, and wasteful destructiveness of life and time that could be utilized instead for harmonious co-creation from the Field of infinite possibilities, rather than in endless limited ego-projected conceptual boundaries and stupidities.
    Here are some mental/conceptual principles that may aid us in returning our attention to the essential Primary Principle:
    "The truest form of worship is stillness." (Anandamayi Ma)
    "When thy vision is single/unified, there exists naught but One Field of unbroken Light pervading everywhere."
    "There exists not an atom of space, nor a moment of time, nor a single thought where this sublime whole-y Presence is not." (Mata Amritanandamayi)
    "Be STILL, and KNOW thy inherent whole-y-ness of
    Being."
    "Beware, lest ye lose the essential substance by grasping at fleeting form & shadow."
    "The greatest masterwork of the devil is to create the illusion of separateness, of "other"ness, of duality...and to direct one's innermost sense of devotion *outward* to an external sensory-perceived symbol of the Real, rather than awakening to the inherent Reality of whole-y Conscious Being which, upon awakening, will also then include all that before had been perceived as external and separate."
    If we intend to become truly relevant---and no longer be willing, unconsciously, to utilize false ego-projected symbols & appearances of relevance---i.e., when we become finally capable of honesty---this will preclude and conclude our continuous creation of separative ego-based problems, divisions, and distractions...without any further ego gaslighting requirement of wading/waiting through 33 degrees of time-space process in order to attain THIS Ever-present Reality Awareness.

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  3. According to some of the latest polls, Generation Z or those born after 1996 are highly intelligent/educated, racially and ethnically diverse, and is on track to becoming the most acceptably gay generation, ever.

    So, if true, some of us old timers can expect the current social, religious, and political pushback to continue. Some Masonic leaders may want to develop short or long range planning to attract worthy men of Generation Z or we may lose this valuable resource of men to the Orders of Aleister Crowley.

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  4. Thanks for the kind words Bro. Hodapp! You never know how articles are going to go over with readers and it means the world to me that it resonated with you Brother. I much appreciate you promoting the issue and my piece S&F Wes

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  5. This is my opinion and we all know the saying everyone has one. We need to understand that man is both human and animal with both parts needing feed. The best example I can give is we seek the protection like how animals have packs for protection. That is what we do by caring for each other and accepting each other for our internal and not external, both the high and low, rich and poor. The whole idea that masonry has been too cheap does have some merit and maybe can go up a little. However, it shouldn’t be used as an excuse for lack of leadership to draw new members. If our leaders have a negative outlook. Then how can growth happen? Have we have already cursed ourselves? We need leaders with the power of positive thinking PERIOD. Men who are Men not someone who gets to helm through being a good little boy because those who are in charge only appoint those who are like minded (yet say we unit men of every country, opinion etc.) When this happens then we have clicks in the background pulling the strings that really ties the hands of its current leader if be chance a different minded person get a role of leadership. So think positive, be a man and be real LEADER!

    ReplyDelete

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