Freemasonry is a post-collegiate mostly-all male fraternity dedicated to the social development of the member to form a broader sense of the self and their community.
The Master of Dunedin Lodge, W:.Mike Palenik (right), congratulates Deputy Todd Hoddinott. Looking on is the Deputy’s wife, Lisa. Click on photo to enlarge.
DUNEDIN, FL, USA (November 28, 2011) – As has become a tradition for the last seven years, Dunedin Masonic Lodge No. 192 recognized a Pinellas County Sheriff’s Deputy for outstanding service to the community. The 2011 “Deputy of the Year” award was presented to Deputy Tom Hoddinott at a special dinner held at Kally-K’s Restaurant in Dunedin. Making the presentation was W:.Ken Giesow, PM of Dunedin Lodge. Also in attendance was Major Wayne Morris, Deputy Hoddinott’s supervisor, along with fellow officers from the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.
According to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, “Deputy Tom Hoddinott has been a Pinellas County Sheriff’s deputy since July 1985. He started out in the Detention and Corrections Bureau and has served in various capacities with the agency including Patrol Operations and the Criminal Investigations Division where he worked in the Property Crimes Section assigned to the City of Dunedin. He is currently assigned to the Patrol Operations Bureau working out of the North District Station on Dayshift.”
On August 26, 2011 Deputy Hoddinott was on patrol in the City of Dunedin driving north on Pinehurst Road. Deputy Hoddinott noticed a suspicious vehicle backed into the driveway of a residence. Upon investigation, he discovered and broke up a major marijuana farm being grown inside the residence. Based on the Deputy’s intuition, coupled with his many years of experience, resulted in an excellent self-initiated criminal case being made. The male who burglarized the home was arrested for Residential Burglary and Violation of Probation and the owner of the house was arrested for felony Manufacturing/Cultivation of Marijuana. This subject was also currently on probation for a previous charge of Sale, Manufacture and Delivery of Marijuana. The equipment used to grow the marijuana was disabled and 33 marijuana plants were taken off the street. For this self-initiated act which contributed to a valuable law enforcement accomplishment, and for the outstanding work he does every day, Deputy Hoddinott was nominated to be Dunedin Lodge’s Deputy of the Year.
For his efforts, Dunedin Lodge gave Deputy Hoddinott a dinner in his honor, awarded him a plaque, and a gift of $100 which the Deputy immediately donated to the Florida Sheriff’s Youth Ranch which helps to prevent delinquency and develop strong, lawful, resilient, and productive citizens who will make a positive contribution to our communities for years to come.
According to the Master of the Lodge, W:.Mike Palenik, PM“Dunedin Lodge is proud of our long tradition of supporting local law enforcement personnel. On behalf of the Lodge, we congratulate Deputy Hoddinott and thank him for his years of service and dedication. We are proud of the PCSO.”
Freemasonry cannot serve two masters, the world and itself. The biggest mistake it has made is to listen to the whining attacks made by its detractors. Freemasonry just benefits Freemasons they say as if they had some claim on what we are, what we do and what we say. Our critics have embarrassed us, claiming that we are an exclusive, snobbish, selfish group that exists exclusively for the betterment of its members and that we show so much favoritism for each other that the result is a discrimination of the rest of society.
Thus post Vietnam War Freemasonry changed the focus of the Craft. Some of the changes came right after WWII but the Vietnam War era marked the rapid decline in membership that swung the pendulum of modern day Freemasonry squarely into the camp of Masonic revisionism.
What that involved is taking Freemasonry from a contemplative, learning, value orientated society to one of action, action for the betterment of society as a whole. Freemasonry did this partially to appease its critics and partially to adopt the Shrine model of recruitment. But appeasement didn’t work for Chamberlain in dealing with Hitler and it hasn’t worked to appease our detractors. Our critics are as vocal as ever. Meanwhile we have diluted and corrupted our beloved fraternity in order to try to please others or to take the easy way out in the area of growth.
The ancient mystery schools of Egypt, Greece and Rome, on which Freemasonry is modeled, did not try to be something to everybody. Rather they concentrated their efforts on improving their members through knowledge, instruction, brotherhood and spirituality.
Does that mean Freemasons should be a cloistered sect of Monks having no dealings with the outside world and no right to comment on anything civil or spiritual? The answer is No! We, as Freemasons, can get behind ideas but not policies. No marching in the streets or sponsorship of legislative bills for Freemasonry. Instead we can seek to educate the public on the ideals of political freedom and democratic government, public education, religious freedom with the separation of church and state and the worthiness of the individual. These were ideals imbued into Freemasonry from the Enlightenment from which Freemasonry arose.
Three main corruptions have come out of post Vietnam War Freemasonry.
Increased power of Grand Lodges at the expense of local Lodges
The marketing of Freemasonry
Charity to all mankind
In the modern era Grand Lodges and Grand Masters have assumed powers never before granted to them. Some Grand Lodges are running wild squashing dissent, stifling creativity and purging the ranks of any and all who do not toe the line. In the process they have, in order to save the fraternity they tell us, foisted upon Freemasonry the evils of marketing Freemasonry which removes from Freemasonry the ability to practice Freemasonry and extensive Self Perpetuating Institutionalized giveaways to civil society that is bankrupting the fraternity. The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts is a prime example of a Grand Lodge so into Institutionalized charity and running a complex health system out of multiple locations that it has had to drastically increase Grand Lodge dues and assessments to its charted Lodges in order to pay for its excesses. See Massachusetts to Double Dues?
Do we have to beg the community to notice us and in the process try to market Freemasonry or do we create a better Order internally and let membership grow by word of mouth? Do we have to try to convince someone to become a Mason or do we create such a good product that the worthy uninitiated will come in large numbers knocking on our door of their own free will and accord? Do we have to try to save the world or can we be content with taking care of our own without being made to feel guilty? Do we exist to march in parades, raise funds for the Cancer Society or the Heart Fund and run CHIP programs for civil society or are we here for Brothers in need, our widows and orphans and scholarships for our young? Do we intend, forever, to let our critics portray us as a religion? Do we intend to let non Masons set the agenda for Master Masons? Can we learn how to survive as we downsize?
Plainly we are not an action society; we are a self improvement brotherhood. The road to sustainable growth is returning Freemasonry into a sharing Brotherhood who cares for itself and revives itself by doing a better job of inculcating its ideals, virtues and tenets into its membership, by decentralizing its governance, by stop trying to sell Freemasonry as one sells used cars and by leaving the saving of the world to others.
The 1930 DeMoulin Bros. & Co. Fraternal Supply Catalog No. 439 Burlesque and Side Degree Specialties; Paraphenalia and Costumes
Stunt Props, Tricks, Pranks, Practical Jokes, Humor, Magic, Goat Riding Carts, Paddling Machines, Electric Carpets and much, much, more!!!
Pictured at left is the cover of the 1930 edition of the DeMoulin Bros. & Co. catalog titled “Burlesque and Side Degree Specialties, Paraphernalia and Costumes.”
We believe that this was the best and last “side degree” catalog the DeMoulin Bros. produced, as this company suffered the same fate that many businesses did with the onset of the Great Depression. Today, they are one of the largest suppliers of marching band uniforms in the country. In the broken economy of the 1930’s, the fraternalism items this company produced and sold were not considered a high priority on the “need or necessity” list of many Lodges. Yet, the side degree specialties that they sold were the very items that increased Lodge membership, their donations to charities and interest in “Lodge Life” itself. These side degrees added to the “degree of laughter” early Lodge Brethren engaged in when initiating new members! We have reproduced the DeMoulin Catalog here in its entirety. Pay particular attention to the various testimonials at the bottom on some of the below catalog pages. These testimonials were sent in by the Woodmen and Odd Fellow Lodges who purchased this paraphernalia and they described how it worked for them. (Note: Although Freemasons joke about “Riding the Goat” with their new initiates they never engaged in this activity inside of any Masonic Lodge.) In the end you’ll see that the wholesome fun… “light hazing,” endured by the candidates made them feel more apart of the Lodge and fostered Brotherly Love and Affection.
(Legal Notice: Be advised that Phoenixmasonry, Inc. will not be held responsible for any accidental property damage, injury or loss of life due to any irresponsible manufacture or use of the items listed in or made as a replica shown in this catalog or pictured on this website.)
Now you can get a reprinted copy of this catalog when you purchase
A Novel Way to Introduce the Goat – Trick or Surprise Chair – De Stink or Bad Egg Test – Courage Test, or Meat Test – The Trick Camera – The Devil’s Slide – The Cannon
The Spikey Stool – The Mutoscope – Trick Coffee Urn – Treadmill – The Guillotine – Trip Through a Stormy Desert – Moral Athletics – The Electric Wheel Barrow – Electric Carpet – The Tack Test
The Electric Carpet (another way) – The Electric Spiked Pathway – A Current Affair – Crossing The Swinging Bridge – Rocky Road to Dublin – Electric Razor – The Jag Producer – Invisible Paddle Machine – Improved Lifting and Spanking Machine – Lifting Machine – The Muscular Test – DeMoulin’s Patent Lung Tester
Traitor’s Judgment Stand – Tunnel of Trouble – Baby Doll – Striking Maul – “Upward, Onward, Downward” – The Wireless Trick Telephone – Pillow Fight – The Toss Up – Pillory – Throne of Honor – Liquid Air Tank – Zig Zag Road – Cleanliness is Next to Godliness – The Coin Test – Electric Fountain
Every once in awhile you come across a book that is so out of the ordinary, in the subject field that your are studying, that it intrigues your fancy. Such is the book that Julia Suits has written about fraternal society initiation equipment. And equipment in this context covers a lot of ground.
Now before all you stiff and proper Freemasons get your knickers in a twist, you will be happy to know that most of this “foolishness” was never sanctioned by Freemasonry or by the Odd Fellows either.
So if Freemasonry, by and large, was not using all this prank paraphernalia, who was? The most notable organizations who succumbed to the prank phase were:
Then there were the “Spoof Orders” who ridiculed all Fraternal Societies. The Clampers (E Clampus Vitus) and the Hoo-Hoos (The International Concatenated Order of Hoo-Hoo Inc.) were two of the most well known.
The heyday of fraternal orders were the years from 1890-1920. During that stretch of time even medium sized towns could boast of approximately 15 different fraternal orders meeting in various places. It was not unheard of for a member of one order to belong to several others also. To spike interest in an era of stiff competition for membership between fraternal societies, many fraternal orders, other than Freemasonry, decided that the way to go was “to spice things up a bit” and have some fun, at the expense of others of course.
David Copperfield in his foreword to the book tells us:
They (The DeMoulin Brothers) were subversive, the brothers, in the way artists are subversive. They satirized sobriety and high seriousness; they tossed pomp on its ass and made dignity pee in its pants. They were Lords of Misrule, and their marvelous devices were tools available to anyone who wanted to have fun at someone else’s expense, one of the finest forms of fun there is. Screw ’em if they can’t take a joke (I don’t know who said it first. I know it’s not in the Torah). Every oversized ego is in need of deflation. Every overly solemn occasion is in need of someone willing to fart. This stuff is more than just fancy pranks. It’s Americana.
And that is precisely what Suits does in her book – offer us a tongue-in-cheek look at America a hundred or so years ago, a time that was the heyday of fraternal societies that abounded in every city and town from coast to coast. These societies were the centers of help, aid and assistance for those in need as well as social and entertainment centers. Most of them are long gone and the manner in which Americans associate and entertain themselves became far different with the advent of the Great Depression and WWII, so different that DeMoulin printed its last prank catalog in 1930.
Suits puts it this way:
It (this book) is a lens, or if you prefer, a kind of time machine. Its wiring may zap you; its eccentric wheels may cause you to catch your bearings – but get in. You’ll enjoy the ride.
The DeMoulin Brothers were the leaders in the field of prank devices. Yet fraternal prank machines were only part or their business. They also made furniture, church furniture and pews as well as Lodge furniture. They did upholstering, iron machine work and iron forgings, iron, brass and aluminum castings, art and scenic painting. They made swords, jewelry, uniforms, caps and gowns, head gear of all kinds, costumes, regalia, badges and button novelties and much more. To promote their business they followed the Montgomery Ward model of marketing later adopted by Sears & Roebuck – print and distribute sophisticated, professionally designed, artistic and detailed catalogs. Instead of the radio, TV and Internet advertising of today, DeMoulin sent out catalogs everywhere. For the most popular fraternal societies there were specific catalogs for each Order. Then there was the “Burlesque and Side Degree Specialties, Paraphernalia and Costume” catalog for everybody. The first catalog was printed in 1895 for the Modern Woodmen of America. The last prank catalog was printed in 1930.
The first prank was devised by Ed Demoulin, a Woodman, for the Greenville, Illinois Woodmen Fraternal Lodge. It was called “The Molten Lead Test” and involved forcing the hands of a candidate into a cauldron of fake molten lead.
From there the DeMoulin Brothers produced a ton more of prank paraphernalia, some of which were quite intricate.
Suits classifies them into a few different categories. There was the Side Degree fun work equipment, Factory Goats, The Shockers, The Mechanicals and The Wearables.
SIDE DEGREE FUN WORK
In this category some of what you could find was:
The Throne of Honor
The Whirling Elevator
The Tunnel of Trouble
The Striking Maul
The Greased Pole
FACTORY GOATS Freemasons would often tease their candidates with a threat of having to “ride the goat.” However, other fraternities actually used goat riding in their initiations.
The DeMoulins, Suits tells us, patented and manufactured at least thirteen varieties of mechanical goats. So famous were they for their goats that the DeMoulin enterprise was often referred to as “The Goat Factory.”
Many of these mechanical goats sat astride wheels with their hubs off center. This made for a bouncy ride. A few goats ran on a track that could be tipped up and down. Then there was the Ferris wheel goat. A double hump camel was sneaked in amongst all these goats for variety. It worked on the DeMoulin goat principle. Suits blends into equipment description a healthy amount of “goat stories” that will tickle your fancy.
SHOCKERS
Here the gag is juiced up with electrical current.
Just some of the devices are:
The Glad Hand
The Electric Branding Iron
The Electric Wrench
The Treadmill
Electric Carpets
Electric Tunnels
The Electric Cane
The Electric Teeter Totter
The Human Centipede
The Electric Bench
The Electric Hammock
Electricity was just coming into wide use at this time and it was the “in thing” to experiment with.
MECHANICALS These included:
The Bomb Stunt
The Saw Mill
The Sliding Stairs
The Ocean Wave Boat
The Wireless Trick Telephone
The Lung Tester
The Pie Table
The Guillotine
The Flying Machine
The Submarine
The Mutoscope
Abundant in this category were a number of trick chairs and spanking machines
THE WEARABLES
This category deals heavily with regalia and costumes. You will find masks, wigs, and beards, papermache human heads, animal heads, animal masks, nationality masks, animal costumes, burlesque costumes, Indian costumes, Zouave uniforms (see below), race costumes, and assortment of hoodwinks, handcuffs, cowbells, outlaw costumes and the DeMoulin famous Smoking Camel.
It’s a good bet that nobody else will write a book such as Suits has penned. Her book will be a very distinctive one of a kind. The Extraordinary Catalog of Peculiar Inventions: The Curious World of the Demoulin Brothers and Their Fraternal Lodge Prank Machines – from Human Centipedes and Revolving Goats to ElectricCarpets and is a well presented, well organized and thoroughly entertaining piece of work. It is heavily illustrated while at the same time interwoven with human interest stories. This book is a showcase of a bygone era. It is history and a peek into American culture of a hundred years ago. Suits has the distinctive knack of not saying too much. This lets the readers create their own vision of how this material might affect them. She doesn’t try to structure the imagination of the reader; rather she just whets their appetite and then leaves it up to the reader’s mind to do the rest. That’s good writing. And this is a book you will want prominently displayed on your bookshelf.
I picked this up through one of the channels that buzz on the internet about Freemasonry.
It seems a radicalized line of Evangelical Christianity is putting thought to action in a November 11th, 2011 call to action to liberate Michigan, the United States, and the rest of the world, from the demons of Baal.
This isn’t something just hatched out of a moments thought. It comes from an effort that has been on the drawing board for more than a year with this idea being the intense topic of discussion and prayer within their precincts under the religious organization Transformation Michigan.
Their aim is to mobilize churches, people, and ministries on 11/11/11 to bring a Great Awakening of America by reaching Muslims with the love of Christ, Raise up the Black Prayer Movement, bring to light Pro-life and Family Issues with Biblical Social Justice. Also on their prayer agenda is the hope to raise Economic Conditions in Michigan and Returning our Nation to a Biblical Worldview and Preservation and Safety of America.
Oh, and they want to do it, explicitly, with the eradication of Freemasonry and Islam in mind.
Rachel Tabachnick on Talk to Action has a synopsis of the planned attack from Transformation Michigan on November 11th.
This last aspect comes out of the West Michigan Prayer Center which bills itself as a trans-denominational Kingdom Building Ministry dedicated to preparing the way of the Lord Jesus Christ, and they aim to achieve their goals by trespassing with teams in Michigan intercessors at Mosques and Masonic lodges in the state to perform a “divorce” ritual from Baal.
Luckily, the organization has a website that talks about their plan, and they’ve made a video about it too.
What really strikes a cord is their reason for doing this and how they came upon their logic for it. It’s disagreeable enough that any group sees the need to impose their religious ideology on other faiths, but to take it to others houses of worship to impose their ideology seems more a bully provocation than a sweet welcome to the neighborhood greeting.
Freemasonry gets wrapped into the equation through a series of conference calls on the subject hosted by Transformation Michigan, the group behind the November 11th call to action. In the audio call below, from 4.11.2011, deals specifically with their supposed connection of Freemasonry and Islam in a talk given by Pastor Bill Suddeth.
[podcast]http://newsite.transformmi.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Bill-Suddeth-Free-Masonry-and-Islam-41111.mp3[/podcast]
Suddeth comes out of R.A.M. Ministries which is a branch of the International Society of Deliverance Ministers, a denomination of Apostolic Pentecostal Evangelism, which is itself a fairly young line of Christianity. What Suddeth believes, and tells this audio audience, is that as Islam is big in Dearborn Michigan, it is in fact the Shriners who have opened the door for radical Islam with their logos (Scimitar, Star, and Isis) and rituals held in their temples. Given that Masonry is the path to Shriners, the Masons are therefore the target for his consternation, aka witch-hunt. Listen for yourself to the audio recording and judge their ideas and actions for yourself, and correct me if I’ve missed anything.
The sad thing is that no one among Suddeth’s, Warzywak’s, or Christopher’s ministries have EVER taken the time to reach out to local Freemasons or Shriners to ask them about it, at least in any way within which they make claim. Suddeth says as much explaining with Rick Warzywak the need for spiritual Special Forces to eradicate these demonic influences.
Suddeth has an interesting webpage dedicated to the subject of Tearing down the Strongman Freemasonry and his 50 state tour, for which he takes a love offering to come out and give an 8 hour lecture on the links between Freemasonry and Islam.
Suddeth, a self described former drug addict and alcoholic, is dubbed the foremost expert of what Freemasonry is doing to America, and has his teaching on the web, which you can watch here.
It’s long, but you must watch the video above.
The sad thing is that Suddeth had a father who was a Mason and took him to Shrine parades.
Somewhere in this miasma these groups have directly linked Freemasonry with Islam as conduits by which Baal has been allowed into America. Their goal is to dismantle the idolatrous worship structures, which includes the Masonic lodge. Using biblical references of destroying idolaters, which is in a manner a religious hate speech, they admittedly have maps to locations and teams of prayer warriors ready to intercede for you. Throughout the speakers us military terms to refer to their prayer intercessors and use innuendo of “striking first” to drive out
This is like a Jack Chick cartoon book made manifest. What strikes me is that this kind of activity is a violating act of religious in toleration and really only a step or two away from inciting some act of violence against those who don’t see faith in the same way that they do especially when using language that is a clear reference to violence.
As a side note, much of the call to action for this intolerance comes from John Benefiel and Cindy Jacobs who were both endorsers of Republican Presidential hopeful Rick Perry and his prayer event in Houston a few months back.
So, on 11/11/11 and you’re in Michigan, keep your eyes out for TheCall prayer warriors trespassing intercessors at your lodge to offer up a prayer. And, if anyone has a lead for where and when Suddeth is going to be in So Cal, I’d love to get wind of it to sit in and have a chat with him.
In a stunning reversal by Georgia Scottish Rite, Brothers Victor Marshall and Zeithlin Waters of Gate City Lodge No. 2 have been approved to receive the Degrees. The SGIG set aside the ballots of two weeks ago and approved Marshall and waters for membership. They are being accorded the ritual of the Scottish Rite at Friday and Saturday’s Reunion 11/4/11 & 11/5/11.
A big thank you to Georgia Masons who spoke out and by the force of their will to stand up for the principles of Freemasonry convinced the Scottish Rite leadership to reverse the unwarranted initial decision to exclude Marshall & Waters. A big thank you to all those Masons outside of Georgia who spoke out and dared to criticize the actions of a jurisdiction outside their own.
By the will of the people justice has been done. Long live the virtues of our beloved fraternity!
As I sat by the window looking up on high
Trying to see the figures in the darken skies
My imagination creating forms of pleasure
As the clouds moved east, geometric measures
Now the clouds got thick, heavy they became
when the winds picked up, followed heavy rains
as the waters clashed against the window ledge
the leaves off trees blew away the hedge
The scenery was furious like a hurricane
Throwing all its might like a cargo train
But in one quick second everything just stopped
Everything was calmer, not even one raindrop
From the skies above came the brighten SUN
The magnificent rays broke the clouds of heaven
I understood why darkness compliments the day
I understood why man was molded out of clay
And so I saw creation right before my eyes
How it all appeared, from within it lies
There’re no shadows cast on an opened mind
The no-limit space where there is no time
I can just recall when I joined the Lodge
Holy Book on Altar, checkered floor mirage
Remember the window I looked out to see
It was not outside but inside of me
So as we shape the ashlar , that is made of stone
A long road is traveled, pass the borne unknown
You’ll one day lay down- your flesh and your bones
Rejoicing soul ascends, the flesh dies alone.
Georgia Masons had the opportunity in their 2009 Grand Session to come out firmly and clearly on the record against anti discriminatory practices. These resolutions were proposed to be added to the Masonic code after the persecution of Gate City Lodge #2 and were proposed by many different Brothers in the hopes that a situation of this kind would never happen again, it being emphatically addressed in the Masonic code of the Grand Lodge.
These actions were also undertaken because of the code that was used to bring the Worshipful Master of Gate City Lodge No. 2, Michael J. Bjelajac to trial. He was charged with allowing the raising of a non-white man. This you can see in the previous article here on Freemason Information – Georgia Gate City Lodge Persecutor Honored By Scottish Rite.
So if these words were used to charge a Brother, the Grand Lodge code must have an article in it that prohibits the raising of a Black Man. Even if the Grand Master or a committee or by vote of the Grand Lodge removed this provision it was still very disconcerting to many Georgia Masons that it was used to charge a Brother with. So those so concerned wished to make doubly sure that a statute of this nature buried in the fine print of Grand Lodge code would never be used again to persecute a Georgia Mason.
I have picked four of these proposed additions to the Georgia Grand Lodge Constitution to give you an idea of what these Brothers were aiming at.
No. 7 DENYING OR ADVOCATING DENIAL OF PETITION FOR IMPERMISSIBLE REASONS.
“Racism and racial discrimination being antithetical to the principles of Freemasonry it is unmasonic conduct for any Mason to exclude, reject or deny or to solicit, advocate or encourage any other Mason to exclude, reject or deny the petition of any otherwise qualified applicant for the degrees of Freemasonry on the basis of race, ethnicity or national origin.”
No. 8 RACE, ETHNICITY, SOCIAL CLASS, NATIONAL ORIGIN OR RELIGIOUS PERSUASION
“Any man, otherwise qualified, is eligible as an applicant for the degree of Freemasonry without regard to race, ethnicity, social class, national origin or religious persuasion.”
N0 15 ADVOCATING DENIAL OF PETITION FOR IMPERMISSIBLE REASONS
“It is gross un-Masonic conduct for a Mason to advocate the denial of, or to encourage any other Mason to deny the petition of an applicant for the mysteries of Freemasonry because the applicant is of a particular social class, ethncity, nationality, race or religion.”
No. 16 REQUIRING OR ENCOURAGING IMPERMISSIBLE PLEDGES OR OATHS
“It is gross un-Masonic conduct for a Mason to require or to encourage any other Mason to pledge or swear not to elect, initiate, pass, or raise a candidate for the mysteries of Freemasonry because the candidate is of a particular social class, ethnicity, nationality, race or religion.”
Presented with the opportunity to put the race question behind them the Grand Lodge in Grand Session VOTED DOWN ALL THESE RESOLUTIONS OVERWHELMINGLY!
Some Masons have said that these resolutions are superfluous and not needed. The Grand Lodge already has such provisions in its code. Well, it also had a statute against the raising of a non white. What is the harm in these additions? What’s wrong with being a little superfluous in the name of justice? Maybe the current code is not clear. Perhaps it is a bit ambiguous. Maybe these additions would close any loopholes. Why not err in the name of justice for all?
Have you not heard of couples later in their marriage renewing their marriage vows? Have you not heard of Christians renewing their baptismal vows? Let’s not make excuses to deny, let us have reasons to permit.
The voting down of these resolutions in Grand Session points to the Grand Master who supposedly healed the Gate City Lodge No. 2 mess. Any Grand Master in Grand Session holds an enormous influence over the voting body. It would be hard to believe that if the Grand Master was solidly and emphatically behind these additions to the Georgia Masonic code that they would have been defeated. And even if… Not by an overwhelming rejection.
It leads one to believe that the Grand Lodge of Georgia yielded to outside pressure and public opinion in 2009, only to come back strong again to reassert itself as anti Black African American.
Are you, Brethren willing to accept Georgia’s decision without protest?
.
is a well presented, well organized and thoroughly entertaining piece of work. It is heavily illustrated while at the same time interwoven with human interest stories. This book is a showcase of a bygone era. It is history and a peek into American culture of a hundred years ago. Suits has the distinctive knack of not saying too much. This lets the readers create their own vision of how this material might affect them. She doesn’t try to structure the imagination of the reader; rather she just whets their appetite and then leaves it up to the reader’s mind to do the rest. That’s good writing. And this is a book you will want prominently displayed on your bookshelf.
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