Despite all the garbage about Masonry on youtube, every once and a while you come across something worth sharing.  This one is from the Missouri Grand Lodge of Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons.

On my last article, The Allegories, Symbolism and Metaphors of the Entered Apprentice Degree, Brother Carter left a comment asking where I've gained my insight into Masonry thus far.  His question is as follows:

Bro, you are no ordinary [FC]. Where did you gain your insight? Looks like you did lots of studying prior to taking the journey. Do tell.

I believe that is a valid question for anyone who reads my blog to have so I will do my best to try and answer it.

The long and short of it is that I am lucky enough to have an excellent instructor who is very thoughtful and well versed in the more esoteric aspects of Masonry.  Not only do we have our regular weekly instructional sessions for the proficiency, but we also set some time aside to expand upon the teachings of the degree (for instance referring to passages in the bible which relate to the degree work).  I also do a lot of reading on my own; I read every blog I can get my hands on, I browse through the various Masonic forums daily and I've read a lot of books on Masonry. My Lodge, for instance, gives out a copy of the Claudy book corresponding to the degree being conferred that evening.  Truth be told, I read Bro. Hodapp's "Freemasons for Dummies", Bro. S. Brent Morris' "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Freemasonry", Bro. Robert's "The Craft and its Symbols" and Bro. MacNulty's "Freemasonry: Symbols, Secrets, Significance" (which, despite its title, does not reveal any of the secrets of Freemasonry) before I was even initiated as an Entered Apprentice. I'm also a musician so I tend to look for a deeper meaning within words and I contemplate very deeply on what I read.

That being said, I've been very careful not to expose myself to any of the materials which claim to expose the secrets of Freemasonry or the degree rituals (which is easier said than done with all the garbage posted on the Internet!) - I have no desire to ruin those for myself.  Every single one of those books I listed above, in addition to the others I have in my "to read" pile, are written by active Masons who honor their obligations not to reveal any of the fraternity's secrets.  I couldn't tell you a thing about the 3rd degree yet (grips, words, signs, ritual, etc) and I have made it a point not to watch the TV special which reportedly shows a Master Mason ritual being performed.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the role my recommenders and those who signed my petition play in my Masonic pursuits.  I feel indebted to those people who went out on a limb to recommend me, signed my petition, dropped the white ball on me, participated in my degrees and who spend their time teaching me what I need to know to find light.  I don't want to let them down in any way and, in the case of my Cousin who made his final journey to the Lodge on High shortly after recommending me, I feel a duty to honor his memory by not only being a Mason in name, but by living as one too.

Greetings Brethren!

I found a great article over at aedifico42's MasonicMinute.com while cruising the Masonic blogosphere.  In it, aedifico42 brings up some excellent points regarding the divisiveness of our present-day society and suggests Masonry as a cure for an ailing nation.   Take a look when you have a few minutes to read it over; it's well worth the time.

I just came across some really good videos on youtube, one from Tennessee and another from Massachusetts.  Its really nice seeing the ever increasing numbers of accurate and informative videos popping up to combat all the filth that's out there.  It's high time the Craft starts putting out some quality materials to dispel all the misinformation, half-truths and outright lies that have propagated through the Internet.

Without further adieu....

While I was sifting through the loads of absolute crap about Freemasonry on Youtube, I came across this promotional video from the Grand Lodge of Indiana.  I think it has some good content though, unfortunately, the comments section is littered with typical new world order garbage imploring people to think for themselves instead of becoming Masons.  I think it is they who really need to do a little contemplation - they aren't individuals or free thinkers - they are just sheeple who take sites like freemasonwatch as gospel.  Profane, indeed...

Anyway, I also managed to find the same video listed here - Not only are the comments much more amicable on this version, but the quality is a bit better as well.  Enjoy!

Just a little poem I came across today...   Though the message is quite obvious, it's still a poignant reminder.

Emblems of the Craft

 Dr. Robert Morris

You wear the Square! but have you got
That thing the Square denotes?
Is there within your inmost soul
That principle which should control
Your actions, words and thoughts?
The Square of virtue,--is it there,
Oh, you who wear the Mason's Square?

You wear the Compass! Do you keep
With that circle due
That's circumscribed by law divine
Excluding hatred, envy, sin,--
Including all that's true?
The Moral Compass draws the line,
And lets no evil passion in!

You wear the Trowel! have you got
That mortar, old and pure,
Made on the recipe of God
Divulged within His ancient Word,
Indissoluble, sure?
And do you spread, `twixt man and man,
That precious mixture as you can?

You wear the oriental G!
Ah, Brother, have a care!
He whose All-seeing Eye surveys
Your inmost heart, with open gaze,
Knows well what thoughts are there!
Let no profane, irreverent word
Go up t' insult th' avenging God!

Dear Brother! if you will display
These emblems of our Art,
Let the great morals that they teach
Be deeply graven, each for each,
Upon an honest heart!
Then they will tell, to God and man,
Freemasonry's all perfect plan!

Published in 1914, The Builders by Brother Joseph Fort Newton contains one of the most eloquent and thoughtful answers to the question which has, no doubt, existed since the birth of speculative Freemasonry, "What is a mason?".  Because of the oratory skill and passion with which he wrote and ministered, one doesn't have to do much searching to find this passage from the end of section III, chapter 3 - The Spirit of Masonry quoted heavily throughout the Internet: 

When is a man a Mason? When he can look out over the rivers, the hills, and the far horizon with a profound sense of his own littleness in the vast scheme of things, and yet have faith, hope, and courage--which is the root of every virtue. When he knows that down in his heart every man is as noble, as vile, as divine, as diabolic, and as lonely as himself, and seeks to know, to forgive, and to love his fellow man. When he knows how to sympathize with men in their sorrows, yea, even in their sins - knowing that each man fights a hard fight against many odds. When he has learned how to make friends and to keep them, and above all how to keep friends with himself. When he loves flowers, can hunt the birds without a gun, and feels the thrill of an old forgotten joy when he hears the laugh of a little child. When he can be happy and high-minded amid the meaner drudgeries of life. When star-crowned trees, and the glint of sunlight on flowing waters, subdue him like the thought of one much loved and long dead. When no voice of distress reaches his ears in vain, and no hand seeks his aid without response. When he finds good in every faith that helps any man to lay hold of divine things and sees majestic meanings in life, whatever the name of that faith may be. When he can look into a wayside puddle and see something beyond mud, and into the face of the most forlorn fellow mortal and see something beyond sin. When he knows how to pray, how to love, how to hope. When he has kept faith with himself, with his fellow man, with his God; in his hand a sword for evil, in his heart a bit of a song - glad to live, but not afraid to die! Such a man has found the only real secret of Masonry, and the one which it is trying to give to all the world.

It is obvious that Brother Newton had great skill with his pen and a way with words that few possess.  It is for this reason that I offer you the rest of the chapter from which this quote is taken;  I promise you, it is equally as profound and reading it would be time well spent.

OUTSIDE of the home and the house of God there is nothing in this world more beautiful than the Spirit of Masonry. Gentle, gracious, and wise, its mission is to form mankind into a great redemptive Brotherhood; a league of noble and free men enlisted in the radiant enterprise of working out in time the love and will of the Eternal. Who is sufficient to describe a spirit so benign? With what words may one ever hope to capture and detain that which belongs of right to the genius of poetry and song, by whose magic those elusive and impalpable realities find embodiment and voice?

With picture, parable, and stately drama, Masonry appeals to lovers of beauty, bringing poetry and symbol to the aid of philosophy, and art to the service of character. Broad and tolerant in its teaching, it appeals to men of intellect, equally by the depth of its faith and its plea for liberty of thought--helping them to think things through to a more satisfying and hopeful vision of the meaning of life and the mystery of the world. But its profoundest appeal, more eloquent than all others, is to the deep heart of man, out of which are the issues of life and destiny. When all is said, it is as a man thinketh in his heart whether life be worth while or not, and whether he is a help or a curse to his race.

Here lies the tragedy of our race:
Not that men are poor;
All men know something of poverty.
Not that men are wicked;
Who can claim to be good?
Not that men are ignorant;
Who can boast that he is wise?
But that men are strangers!

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Unfortunately, whenever one comes across an article on Freemasonry, they are more often than not presented with grand stories of occult activities, devil worshipping, government subversion and a new world order ruled by 33° super-masons.  In spite of this, I recently came across an article published in the U.S. News & World Report which actually sheds some good light on the fraternity while providing a factual glimpse into the history of Masonry in America.

Inside the Masons
By Jay Tolson
Posted 8/28/05

The 1820s looked as though they would be the best of times for the special relationship between the fraternal order of Freemasonry and the young American nation. It wasn't just because so many prominent members of the founding generation--George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and indeed 13 of the 39 signers of the Constitution--had been members. It was also because the rapidly growing republic and the fraternal society still held so many ideals in common. American republican values looked like Masonic values writ large: honorable civic-mindedness, a high regard for learning and progress, and what might be called a broad and tolerant religiosity. Indeed, says Steven Bullock, a historian at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and a leading scholar of the Masonic fraternity in America, Freemasons "helped to give the new nation a symbolic core."

Not for nothing were the compass, square, and other emblems associated with Freemasonry emblazoned everywhere, even on jewelry, furniture, and table settings belonging to Masons and many non-Masons as well. Nor was it insignificant that a goodly number of Americans thought--erroneously but justifiably--that the Great Seal of the United States itself contained Masonic symbols. It was both a tribute and a liability to the brotherhood that people saw the influence of Freemasonry even where it didn't exist.

Since the Revolution, Freemasons had become the semiofficial celebrants of American civic culture. Wearing their distinctive aprons and wielding the trowels of their craft--the original Masons were in fact stonemasons--they routinely laid the cornerstones of important government buildings and churches and participated prominently in parades and other public ceremonies. When the aging Lafayette made his return tour of the United States in 1824-25, members of the "craft" (as Masonry is called) conspicuously greeted their fellow Mason, often inviting him to stay at the local lodge. That tour further boosted Masonic membership, which had grown from 16,000 in 1800 to about 80,000 in 1822, or roughly 5 percent of America's eligible male population.

Click to read more ...

Well, I just added a new link to the rapidly expanding Educational Materials --> Library section of my blog.  This newly added site, masonicdictionary.com, seems to be an excellent research tool for those who need a refresher on their Masonic terms or those who are receiving their degrees.  According to their homepage:

The Masonic Dictionary has been designed to provide Freemasons with electronic access to information on Freemasonry from a variety of sources arranged alphabetically by subject matter. The purpose of the site is to assist Masons in understanding their fraternity and to provide those who would like to research the craft an opportunity to do so online.

Take a couple of minutes to check it out, you may find it to be useful!

In truth and knowledge,
--Scott

I recently came across this youtube video after it was posted to a thread on the Freemason Pride message board by a member named Maverick.  The video was produced by the Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts as a promotional tool but I think it contains some very good information that will benefit those aspiring to become a Mason no matter what their location.