Philalethes Society Self Destructing

Philalethes SocietyMasonic Leaks reports a major battle with possible purges within The Philalethes Society.  It appears that The Philalethes Society is self destructing in a rush to put itself in allegiance with only the Conference of Grand Masters chartering a similar course as The Masonic Society.  This leaves only Phoenixmasonry as a major contender in the big three as a truly independent Masonic voice.

On Monday January 31st at 1:00pm, only ten days before Bro. Jack Buta was expected to be elected the Society’s President (he was the only person on the ballot and the organization allows for no floor nominations), the President, Terry L. Tilton, issued the following letter as a referendum to remove Bro. Buta from office.

To: The voting members of the Executive Board

In the past day, our First Vice-president Jack Buta has aired private correspondence between Board members without permission, called for a division of the Society based up untrue or unfactual statements, and openly challendge the intergrity of the your President and our Soceity officers. Under any circumstances this constitutes insubordination and derilection of duty.

Ed Halpaus has moved to ask for the immediate resignation of Jack Buta as First Vice-president and I have seconded this motion.  I am asking all Board voting members to respond with a “yes” or “no” vote to this motion.  If and when we have three votes in the affirmative I will correspond with you privately to determine our next action.

I am deeply saddened and chagrined to have to accept this motion two weeks prior to the Annual Meeting.  It was my most fervent hope to have an orderly and peaceful transition.  Jack has obviously chosen to not allow that to happen.

Fraternally yours,

Terry L. Tilton, FPS, President 2009-2011
The Philalethes Society”

He was removed from office by a 3 to 2 vote of the Executive Board of the Philalethes Society. Those voting for Dismissal were Terry Tilton, Ed Halpaus, and John Cooper III. Certainly if the charges alleged by Tilton were factual then the motion had merit, but were they?

See Masonic Leaks for the rest of a rather long story with many attachments.

The Beehive has received a tip from an anonymous source in the know that the Conference of Grand Masters through unknown financial sources is privately picking up the Philalethes’ Society financial shortfall and this is the reason for all the ballyhoo about keeping the books secret.

The conference of Grand Masters has become increasing alarmed of Masonic Leaks and the up and coming Foundation Of Universal Freemasonry.  Derek Gordon ( Masonic Wiki [now archived]) and Stephen Quest have become thorns in the side of Mainstream Masonry and are being taken seriously enough for their organizations to be mentioned in COGM’s annual report. Perhaps Mainstream Masonry feels a bit stronger now that it most likely has finished what the 2007 Philalethes coup failed to accomplish thanks to Nelson King.

Does Mainstream Freemasonry have a psychological problem? Has it grown like the Catholic Church to be too big, too unwieldy, too bureaucratic and top heavy with hierarchy? Is there an explanation for the continuous jockeying for power and never ending horror stories emanating from the Craft?  Perhaps we should put Mainstream Freemasonry on the couch for a moment.

If we take a look at what is of paramount importance to those active in the Craft will we come away with a disappointing conclusion? It seems to this author that what is foremost in the mind of the average Freemason today is title and rank and advancing into the hierarchy into a position of power and therefore prominence. Should not the emphasis be on instruction, learning and then living Freemasonry?  In a previous article the Beehive laid out a formula of what Freemasons should be in pursuit of.  It looks like this:

Education>>>Knowledge>>>Wisdom>>>Soul Enrichment

But in order to achieve the benefits of Freemasonry that we know is a way of life and a society that can further our personal development, we need to place our time and effort into learning and studying the Craft and then applying it into our daily lives. If this, then, is the highest calling of Freemasonry what in the world are we doing with a bloated bureaucracy that is more concerned with money and power? Have we grown so large that our leaders are only proficient in administration, not in teaching and disseminating the philosophy of Freemasonry?

In essence what we are asking here is what is more important, the philosophy or the structure? Once again we are right back to the example of the Catholic Church and how it dealt with the pedophile priest problem. In the beginning the Church covered up and hushed up the problem.  It said that the problem was to be kept in house. And it further iterated that no matter what the Church had done, no matter what evil was within its ranks, that the first and foremost duty was to protect the Institution to ensure it lived another day.  Protecting the institution meant keeping the civil authorities out of church business, telling the abused to just shut up, grin and bear it and to keep the mess out of the media, to avoid all publicity so that the general public would not realize what was going on. That might have worked had the Church actually policed itself and solved the problem itself.  Instead it just transferred the abusers from one post to another, attempted to rehabilitate rather than punish and remove the offenders and in many cases just turned a blind eye to the whole situation.

But like a pressure cooker where the heat is never reduced, sooner or later the lid blows off and then it becomes a nationwide scandal. In the end that hurt the Church the most as the full blown scandal cost the Church the respect of the public never mind millions of dollars. Church property had to be sold to pay for huge court verdicts. All because the Church put the institution ahead of human beings.

And in the end the Church had to change its ways. It realized that it must cooperate with civil authorities, that it must institute programs within the Church to screen for abusers, that generally it must seriously alter its approach to the problem.

The Beehive has received much criticism from past stories exposing the wrong doings of Mainstream Freemasonry. Why do you keep writing about Freemasonry’s problems, exposing its faults? Are you trying to destroy Freemasonry, they wail? Masonic problems should be kept in house and dealt with internally. Letting the public know our shortcomings is traitorous.

Sound familiar? It is the same approach that the Catholic Church took initially with its pedophile problem. Bury it, hush it up, keep it in house and let Freemasonry solve its own problems without involving the courts and civil authorities. And once again it might work if Freemasonry was really serious about policing itself and getting rid of those who are ruining the good name of the Craft.  But alas, like the church, it refuses to act.  We cannot even criticize other jurisdictions never mind mess in their affairs to correct their wrong doings. You see the rules count more than people.  And the institution of Freemasonry must, above all mans, be protected.  The abused Masons? You see they need to just grin and bear it for the good of the Craft.

I have a good Canadian friend very active in the Craft. He has risen to eminence in Blue Lodge, York Rite and elsewhere.  I run a lot of thoughts and concerns by him for his view. It is helpful to solicit the opinion of one who is on the outside looking in.  Early on he seemed to be on the side of Grand Lodges and handling problems internally.  But upon further investigation and the proliferation of one horror story after another he changed his view. It seems as if Freemasonry in the States is becoming dysfunctional, he says. Maybe the answer is to do away with the Grand Lodge system altogether, he advises. And that is a very radical solution coming from a very Conservative Mason. But when you think about it, where are most of the horror stories coming from – individual Craft Lodges or Grand Lodges? And couldn’t a Masonic Lodge function very well without being a member of a Grand Lodge? Perhaps, then, we could return the emphasis on the practice of Freemasonry to its philosophy not its politics.

And as to the question of whether publicly exposing Freemasonry’s faults will lead to the decline of Freemasonry, the answer is quite evident. If Freemasonry will solve its own problems internally there is no need for an expose. But since it refuses to do so then the scenario will follow the path of the Catholic Church. The failure to police itself will lead to problems becoming worse and worse and more frequent. One day the lid will blow off and the civil courts will mandate reforms Freemasonry will not do on its own. And then the person to blame is not he who speaks the truth but he who covers it up and turns a blind eye.  Freemasonry has only itself to blame for the mess it is in.

Still More Responses To Missing The Boat

Another response to Missing the Boat.

Keep them coming Brothers & Sisters. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

A Mason’s Obligation to Freedom

By Chris Williams
Davy Crockett Lodge # 1225 A.F. & A. M.
Grand Lodge of Texas

Brothers, I want to talk to you about something that I sincerely believe and feel deep within my soul and I think is as important as anything in any of our lives. I want to talk about the word free. When you say the word free as in Freemason it refers to free men, free to think as you please, free to speak as you please, and free to worship as you please. But I sincerely ask you, where does each man’s basic freedom come from? How and when does a man become free? Who gives us our freedom? Brothers, our freedom is given to us by God. There are many who will tell you that our freedom comes from our Constitution. Our freedom is given to us by The Supreme Architect of the Universe, our Constitution guarantees our freedom. I am sure you recognize this from our Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” This Country and our constitution since our very beginnings has been the world’s beacon of freedom. Over the last two hundred and thirty four years many of our original freedoms given to us by God and guaranteed by our Constitution have little by little been taken away by those who would seek to change our country from a country “of the people, by the people, and for the people” to a country of the government, by the government, and for the government, This is not what our founding fathers intended nor is it the country described in our Constitution.

Some of you are thinking right now, “Chris, you need to stop talking this way.” You are talking about politics and you know that we are not supposed to discuss politics or religion in the Lodge.  What that rule really means is that we should not discuss specific religions and we should not discuss differences in political points of view in the Lodge. Now I am sure no one is against being free.  I am talking about our freedom, not politics. Just as in our Lodges invoking God’s blessing and reciting Holy Scripture, does not constitute talking about religion.

The freedoms that you and I enjoy today were made possible when the settlers of the original colonies decided that they had had enough of being taxed without recourse or representation. They decided that their freedoms were not going to be taken away further by the British king and they revolted. What I am going to tell you now has been debated over and over again by Masons and non-Masons alike for years and years. It is an argument whose truth is confirmed by a serious study of history. What I am alluding to is the debate over what, if any was the Freemasons involvement in the revolt of the colonies that led to the revolutionary war and the creation of the United States of America. For those of you who are not sure, let me set your mind at ease and put this debate to rest once and for all. The United States of America was conceived and created based upon the principals of Freemasonry, by Freemasons and other men who were influenced by Freemasons and their Masonic principals. Many of you sit there right now with your mouths open trying to count how many violations of my obligations I have just committed. While you are counting allow me to continue. The seeds of revolution were not sown within a Masonic Lodge. But it is true that a large number of the most influential men of that time in America were Freemasons. Being Freemasons and knowing Masonic principals to be freedom of speech, religion, and thought, it is easy to imagine the atmosphere of discontent at that time. Masonry and Masons will always rebel against a smothering of freedom. It is no wonder and easy to understand that our early American Brethren were in the thick of the organization as well as the fight that secured our freedom and our way of life. When it came time to create our new government who else but Freemasons would be there to help organize and build a democratic republic. And why not? We had been running a democracy within our Lodges for centuries. So yes, our great fraternity was very instrumental in the creation of our country and we should all be very proud of that. It is important that we make sure that their efforts were not in vain. We must speak freely when our freedoms are infringed upon. We must speak the truth – for being a Mason is all about the truth.

We must not worry about being politically correct. It is said by some misguided souls that if you are not being what is deemed politically correct then you are being divisive and not inclusive. I say being politically correct is really being afraid.  It’s being afraid of speaking up and standing up for the truth and for the freedoms that are guaranteed all of us as free men and Americans. It is not enough to just think it. We must say it and act it!

In Masonry we are told that religion and politics are never to be discussed in Lodge in order that peace and harmony may always prevail. But I say that we should always be involved deeply, passionately and completely in the making sure our freedoms are protected. If we don’t speak out, if we stay silent and ……… afraid…… little by little all of our rights and freedoms will go away.  Even the most innocuous or insignificant challenge to our basic freedoms needs to be challenged vigorously.  Every time we give up some small freedom or right that seems on the surface to be pretty unimportant, a chip is cut out of the solid rock that is our guaranteed freedom. Chip by chip our rights and freedoms are taken away and taken away and one day soon there will only be a pile of dust that remains of that rock. We will wake up to the realization that our freedoms are gone and we will look around at each other and wonder what happened.

In one of the charges in the first degree we are charged to be beyond reproach in the discharge of our civil duties by never being involved in or performing any act which might tend to subvert the peace and good order of society, but to obey the laws of any state in which we reside. This admonition is a clear message to all who are members that they must be loyal citizens always alert to the needs of the local community, State and Federal Government; and ready to do anything or make any sacrifice to maintain its integrity and further its development in any manner as will best preserve our democratic way of life.

Masons are forever charged to lead their lives and make their decisions as examples to all whom they come in contact with.  By virtue of our example we are constantly influencing those around us. Why is it I wonder, that considering that more than seventy  percent of the population consider themselves to be patriotic and constitutionalist in their thinking, that our Lodges are not bursting to capacity with the membership of all those who agree with our principals and way of life? Could it be that we are not espousing our Masonic principals and vocal support of our country loud enough, or are we not living the life that Masonry desires us to live that others will see and want to emulate us? Why are we afraid?  Is not truth and right upon our side?  Let’s see, there are 1.5 million Masons in North America. If every Mason’s life and words influenced ten people and they in turn influenced ten and so on it would serve to insure forever our democratic way of life.

The turbulent state of affairs today only emphasizes and reinforces the fact that a Mason has no right to be idle and it is the duty of the Master of his Lodge to give light and instruction and to show him how to practice outside of the Lodge the great moral lessons which are taught him within it. We are constantly faced with the ongoing dangers due to the deeds of those who have become leaders of groups by force and brutality, refusing any acknowledgment of the existence of God and eliminating anyone who does believe, including Freemasons, knowing that they would openly oppose the vicious practices they force upon their people. By an open denial of God, they are not obligated to the truth nor to the moral teachings outlined in the Holy Bible and the people exist solely for the benefit of the Sate instead of the State existing for the benefit “of the people, by the people and for the people.” There are some who are taken in by this Godless manifesto. These gullible individuals are encouraged to infiltrate the society of our Country to wreak havoc and spread propaganda. Freemasons should be ever alert and never idle in upholding the precepts of the fraternity, by endeavoring to reclaim the faltering and aiding to stamp out the evil, thus preserving the harmony and good fellowship of our democratic and God-loving way of life. I shudder to consider this alternative.

No, we are not to, as the ritual tells us, countenance disloyalty or rebellion but patiently submit to legal authority.” But it is our duty as citizens and Masons to right any wrongs, correct injustice and to freely speak the truth whenever and where ever it becomes necessary. We cannot stand by and let our freedoms be taken away. We must not be afraid. We must do what is right. In the words of our celebrated Brother John Wayne “courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway.” Brethren, It’s time to saddle up. And don’t ever forget, we are Texans. We are Americans, and we are Masons. We must see that our way of life is preserved.

God Bless you all; God Bless our Great Fraternity; God Bless Texas; and God Bless America!!!

Reply from Garry Bonner

Having read the latest article, How Freemasonry is Missing the Boat, I am moved to respond to it, because I see first of all the truth and sense in the understanding of what can be achieved by applying it , and indeed practicing it, not only to the benefit of Freemasonry, but indeed to our nation and country. The reason from my perspective is twofold.

As you know I am a mason however, I am original from Austria, where Masonry was founded in 1784, a time where, the Empress Maria Theresa had been married to Franz of Lothringen, who also was a mason, coming from area of Holland at the time and was the first place where Masonry was brought from London, England. The reason why this came about was that in Austria the was no male Heir to the Throne at the time and a Women, being a Habsburger, was able to function as a Empress.

Because of this, eventually, Masonry was allowed to be freely practiced, and for about 15 years. At this time many social achievement, where brought to bear, much to the many benefits of the general public, which are still available to this day. As this is another story to much to write at this time, but it relates to your  present article. Masonry eventually was again forced into secrecy for many years missing the boat again. Well this is another story, but I think the relationship of my thoughts is.

Fred Milliken,Freemason Information,The Beehive

Lodge Renewal – Part 2

In Lodge Renewal – Part 1 

we saw how Craft Lodge performance and membership deteriorated after 1960. We also took a brief look at the Grand Lodge response (when they woke up) of increased mandates, centralized control, relaxed standards, Institutional charity and One Day Classes which differed drastically from the response of individual Masons, that being the formation of TO Lodges.

One of the reasons that Masons themselves resorted to starting new TO Lodges is that they could get none of their reforms approved by a majority vote of the Lodges they belonged to. Senior citizens on fixed incomes comprised the bulk of Lodge membership and they refused to vote for anything that cost money or change anything from the way it was always done. They possessed this power as we have seen because Mainstream Masonry skipped a generation resulting in a disproportionate number of elderly Masons.

Starting a new TO Lodge is not as easy as it sounds. First of all many jurisdictions prohibit them as being an illegal altering of Freemasonry – “You agree to make no changes in the body of Freemasonry.” Even when approved some provisions a TO Lodge might want to adopt would violate Grand Lodge By-Laws, such as meeting less than once per month. Then there is the sheer volume of work involved, petitioning Grand Lodge, drawing up By-Laws, finding a place to meet etc.

So if much of what the reformers and the young enthusiasts hope to accomplish could be implemented within current Lodge structure and if it was not only sanctioned by the Grand Lodge but was enthusiastically encouraged by the Grand Master, would that not be a viable alternative? Such a program exists now. It is called the Lodge of the Year program and exists in many jurisdictions under many different names. Let’s take a look at the Grand Lodge of Iowa’s program.

Brother Gerald Edgar of Mosaic #125 AF&AM @ Dubuque, IA, Grand Lodge of Iowa has supplied The Beehive with the following information.

 The Iowa Grand Lodge “Lodge of the Year” program can be a truly rewarding program for those Lodges that compete.  As one can see from the application form, a successful lodge must not only engage its Master & Wardens but many other members as well if it hopes to achieve the variety of goals set out.  Not only do the Officers need to fulfill their duties, but they truly must put the Craft to work, engage the public, be charitable and in general use as many “tools” as possible to be a successful lodge.  A hallmark of the competition is the planning beginning with the WM’s vision for his term followed by the planning of individuals and committees to identify goals, the means to achieve them and implementation.

One measure of the success of the competition is that those Lodges that compete have fewer SNPD’s & demits and more Raisings.  One might conjecture that ‘good’ lodges would be successful regardless but the competition provides a measuring tool and a roadmap.  Ideally as soon as a Brother is elected to his lodge’s ‘line’ he can begin planning what events he will promote, what he needs to prioritize, whom he can influence to chair an event, etc.

We are all competitive to some degree – such lodge competitions, if done fairly, can satisfy our competitive nature while making our lodges true “working” lodges.  Members enjoy being part of a vital, lively organization and the lodge prospers.   Creativity results as well.  One competition requirement is holding a recognition of some persons or groups within the community apart from Masonry.  At Bethel Lodge a PM came up with the idea of recognizing community volunteers such as Scout & 4H leaders with a dinner.  Yes, these folks may be recognized within their own group but to be applauded in public makes them especially proud.  (and the Lodge got nice coverage in the local newspaper – just remember to prepare press releases and always have a camera ready!)

Even if your Grand Lodge does not have such competition, the checklist will prove to a valuable tool in revitalizing your Lodge both within the Lodge Room as well as within your community.

2011 Iowa Masonic Lodge of the Year Award

 

2011 Iowa Masonic Lodge of the Year Award 2

I would tweak the Iowa Program with these additions.

  • There should be added to the list of actions required the formation of a Lodge esoteric study group.
  • Then there should be some sort of financial reward for the top three vote getters. Granted hundreds of Lodges can win the award but the top 3 should get something special. Most Grand Lodges today are financially well off enough to give the First place winner $50,000, Second place $25,000 and Third place $10,000.

The Bee Hive is  indebted to Brother Gerald Edgar of Iowa for supplying the information that made this article possible.  The Lodge pictures included here are explained by Edgar.

The big temple is the Dubuque Masonic Temple, built in the 1930’s in the style of an English Manor House – it is as magnificent inside as it is outside.  Four Lodges, YorkRitBodies, OES, White Shrine, DeMolay, High-12, etc are among the Masonic bodies therein.  The storefront Lodge Hall was built in 1916 as the third home of Bethel Lodge #319 which owns the building with 3 tenants providing income.  The unusual feature is the large cast concrete square & compass at the roof line, with a York Rite keystone below.

square and compass, freemasonry, S&C, freemason information

Al-Qaeda Targeting of Freemasonry

A short time back, we published a 4 page document from the Canadian CSIS on the threat posed to Freemasonry by Islamic extremists.

Shortly after posting the paper, I recieved an email from a source who has had close dealings with the CSIS and is involved in International and Terrorist Intelligence Programs.

In his email, he said:

This report, and the CSIS document upon which it was apparently based, simply confirms what most counterterrorists have long known: Islamic-extremist are hostile to Freemasons. In this regard, please refer to the Hamas Charter, Articles 17, 22 and 28, below. As you may know, Hamas, generally considered to be the Muslim Brotherhood’s Palestine arm, is a designated terrorist organization under the laws of various countries.

They lump the fraternity of Freemasonry in with with several groups including Freemasons, Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, B’nai B’rith, saying they are part of the various Zionist Organizations making consistent efforts by way of publicity and movies, and curricula of education and culture.

This is of some interest as I can see where certain traffic frequently comes from to the site and notice every so often that large volumes of traffic comes from the middle east, specifically from countries that have generally been considered enemies of the West, or at best tacit allies in the war on terror. Often the spikes in traffic are followed by requests of “how to join in my country”, “Where are lodges in my country”, and pleas of people who “want to “become members”. With all this in mind, I often wonder what it was that sent them or what was behind the requests.

As a Masonic community, what do you think about this?  With an enemy so far away, do you find there is any immediate threat, or is it just one of the many religious detractors towards Freemasonry?

Included below are those portions of the Hamas Charter of 1988.

Article Seventeen: The Role of Muslim Women

The Muslim women have a no lesser role than that of men in the war of liberation; they manufacture men and play a great role in guiding and educating the [new] generation. The enemies have understood that role, therefore they realize that if they can guide and educate [the Muslim women] in a way that would distance them from Islam, they would have won that war. Therefore, you can see them making consistent efforts [in that direction] by way of publicity and movies, curricula of education and culture, using as their intermediaries their craftsmen who are part of the various Zionist Organizations which take on all sorts of names and shapes such as: the Freemasons, Rotary Clubs, gangs of spies and the like. All of them are nests of saboteurs and sabotage. Those Zionist organizations control vast material resources, which enable them to fulfill their mission amidst societies, with a view of implementing Zionist goals and sowing the concepts that can be of use to the enemy. Those organizations operate [in a situation] where Islam is absent from the arena and alienated from its people. Thus, the Muslims must fulfill their duty in confronting the schemes of those saboteurs. When Islam will retake possession of [the means to] guide the life [of the Muslims], it will wipe out those organizations which are the enemy of humanity and Islam.

Article Twenty-Two: The Powers which Support the Enemy

The enemies have been scheming for a long time, and they have consolidated their schemes, in order to achieve what they have achieved. They took advantage of key elements in unfolding events, and accumulated a huge and influential material wealth which they put to the service of implementing their dream. This wealth [permitted them to] take over control of the world media such as news agencies, the press, publication houses, broadcasting and the like. [They also used this] wealth to stir revolutions in various parts of the globe in order to fulfill their interests and pick the fruits. They stood behind the French and the Communist Revolutions and behind most of the revolutions we hear about here and there. They also used the money to establish clandestine organizations which are spreading around the world, in order to destroy societies and carry out Zionist interests. Such organizations are: the Freemasons, Rotary Clubs, Lions Clubs, B’nai B’rith and the like. All of them are destructive spying organizations. They also used the money to take over control of the Imperialist states and made them colonize many countries in order to exploit the wealth of those countries and spread their corruption therein. As regards local and world wars, it has come to pass and no one objects, that they stood behind World War I, so as to wipe out the Islamic Caliphate. They collected material gains and took control of many sources of wealth. They obtained the Balfour Declaration and established the League of Nations in order to rule the world by means of that organization. They also stood behind World War II, where they collected immense benefits from trading with war materials and prepared for the establishment of their state. They inspired the establishment of the United Nations and the Security Council to replace the League of Nations, in order to rule the world by their intermediary. There was no war that broke out anywhere without their fingerprints on it: “…As often as they light a fire for war, Allah extinguishes it. Their efforts are for corruption in the land and Allah loves not corrupters.” Sura V (Al-Ma’ida—the Tablespread), verse 64 The forces of Imperialism in both the Capitalist West and the Communist East support the enemy with all their might, in material and human terms, taking turns between themselves. When Islam appears, all the forces of Unbelief unite to confront it, because the Community of Unbelief is one. “Oh ye who believe! Take not for intimates others than your own folk, who would spare no pain to ruin you. Hatred is revealed by [the utterance of] their mouth, but that which their breasts hide is greater. We have made plain for you the revelations if you will understand.” Sura III, (Al-Imran), verse 118 It is not in vain that the verse ends with God’s saying: “If you will understand.”

Article Twenty-Eight

The Zionist invasion is a mischievous one. It does not hesitate to take any road, or to pursue all despicable and repulsive means to fulfill its desires. It relies to a great extent, for its meddling and spying activities, on the clandestine organizations which it has established, such as the Freemasons, Rotary Clubs, Lions, and other spying associations. All those secret organizations, some which are overt, act for the interests of Zionism and under its directions, strive to demolish societies, to destroy values, to wreck answerableness, to totter virtues and to wipe out Islam. It stands behind the diffusion of drugs and toxics of all kinds in order to facilitate its control and expansion. The Arab states surrounding Israel are required to open their borders to the Jihad fighters, the sons of the Arab and Islamic peoples, to enable them to play their role and to join their efforts to those of their brothers among the Muslim Brothers in Palestine. The other Arab and Islamic states are required, at the very least, to facilitate the movement of the Jihad fighters from and to them. We cannot fail to remind every Muslim that when the Jews occupied Holy Jerusalem in 1967 and stood at the doorstep of the Blessed Aqsa Mosque, they shouted with joy: “Muhammad is dead, he left daughters behind.” Israel, by virtue of its being Jewish and of having a Jewish population, defies Islam and the Muslims. “Let the eyes of the cowards not fall asleep.”

Nebraska Update

nebraska flagYou might have read about the turmoil in Mainstream Nebraska Freemasonry here on Freemason Information.

If not here is a brief refresher:

Guilt by Moral Turpitude not until proven guilty

Nebraska: A Predictable Masonic Mess

Thorns and roses

The Parsons/Watts struggle for power seems to have swung to the Parson’s side with the release of this letter by Parsons, although we will stay tuned for more updates and any corrections to this opinion.

 

Grand Lodge Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of Nebraska

JOHN T. PARSONS
GRAND MASTER

1240 N. 10th  Street, Lincoln,
Nebraska 68508-1125

(800) 558-8029
(402) 475-4640
Fax (402) 475-4736
www.glne.org

April 11, 2011

To:      All Nebraska Subordinate Lodges

Brethren:

As most of you know, at the last Annual Communication, Masonic charges were preferred against the then Deputy Grand Master, E. David Watts, the Grand Junior Warden, Rex Moats, and the Grand Senior Deacon, Thomas Hauder.  Trial commissions were appointed and I issued an order that no brother facing Masonic Charges would be installed in any Grand Lodge Office until the trial was completed and any sentence satisfied.  Subsequently, the lodge that preferred Masonic charges against Brothers Moats and Hauder declined to prosecute those charges and they were therefore dismissed by the Trial Commissions. Brother Moats has been installed as Grand Senior Warden and the installation of Brother Hauder as Grand Junior Warden is pending.

E. David Watts was convicted of a Masonic offense and sentenced to a definite period of suspension for one year.  That period commenced on April 6, 2011, the date of the filing of the report and findings of the Trial Commission.  As a result of such sentence, his Masonic memberships, as well as his memberships in all appendant bodies, are suspended.  He may appeal such suspension, but his suspension begins from the date of the trial verdict, not the date of any appeal, in accordance with Section 3-709 of the Grand Lodge Bylaws.  Since he is suspended from all Masonic Bodies, he is not eligible to serve as a Grand Lodge Officer,  and  is  accordingly  removed  from  all  Grand  Lodge  authority,  functions,  and  meetings.  All brethren should take due notice and govern themselves accordingly.

Mr. Watts and others may also be subject to additional Masonic charges for activities occurring after Annual Communication but before the period of suspension began, however, no charges have been filed at this time.

As I stated at Annual Communication, as soon as the results of the trials were in, I would resign as Grand Master and in accordance with Article XI of the Grand Lodge Constitution, the line of succession would take effect.  Therefore, RWB Bruce Baker, who was elected as Deputy Grand Master/Grand Master-Elect at the Grand Lodge session, will succeed to the office of Grand Master, effective on April 16, 2011. Those other Grand Lodge officers, previously appointed and installed, will retain their offices.  RWB Baker may appoint an officer to fill any vacancies or personal representatives as he sees fit.

I would urge each of you to support Brother Baker in his efforts to restore peace and harmony to Nebraska Masonry, as well in his endeavors to cleanse the fraternity of the tarnish applied over the past several months by a few individuals.  I know the fraternity in Nebraska will emerge stronger and more robust as a result of these tribulations, and I know that Bruce will have a good year.

Sincerely and fraternally,

John T. Parsons
Grand Master

non judgement of gay freemason

Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged

Ezekiel Bey on the Prince Hall Masonic group Blue-Lite introduced the group to an old Theron Dunn article from his site, A Beacon of Masonic Light. Theron passed away three years ago but his work lives on.

That article brought back memories of the days Theron and I did battle. We met on Stephen Dafoe’s Masonic forum, thelodgeroom.com in the 90’s and later we both became Moderators of that forum.  But Theron and I never saw eye to eye on much and we had some ferocious battles on line. He was a vocal proponent of the New Age Freemasonry that advocated marketing the Craft and becoming super active in community affairs, often called Masonic Awareness.  This approach invested heavily in Institutionalized Charity and building membership by showing the uninitiated how good we are.

I felt that was wearing charity on my sleeve and a corruption of Masonic Relief which not only did more harm than good, but that produced Freemasons who had little knowledge of the intricacies of the fraternity to which they belonged. My theory on life is that it is as much about being as it is doing.  After all we are human beings not human doings. Theron’s Freemasonry had so much doings that it crowded out time for just being.

Well one thing led to another and pretty soon Theron and I were not talking to each other. He moved on from thelodgeroom.com and much later so did I. After awhile we starting talking again, gingerly at first, but then a full blown relationship was re-birthed. At the time of his passing, Theron and I were once again debating the Masonic issues of the day but this time we had a healthy respect for each others opinion. We had learned the Masonic lesson of being able to disagree without judging. And that is what the article that Brother Bey featured and which is reprinted below is all about. It is one of Theron’s finest works.                

Homosexuality in Masonic Lodges?
Sunday, October 14, 2007     

non judgement of gay freemasonThe purpose of this article is not to discuss homosexuality, nor really, to discuss the possibility that there may be gay men in lodges. That written, it would be silly NOT to note something fairly obvious: given that 2% of the population is gay, and no lodge asks if a candidate is gay, we must assume that there are gay men in the lodges.

Of course, the corollary of the above argument may be true. Homosexuals are not exactly welcomed into most lodges, and if an openly gay man showed up at the west gate asking admission, I would not be at all surprised if at least one member of the lodge would not cast a black cube. Masons are men and products of our culture, after all.

I am not going to ask you to think about whether you would blackball an openly gay man, nor ask you to consider not casting a black cube on a gay man (ok, that last isn’t entirely true). Of course, the issue here really isn’t homosexuality, its just an example, because the issue here is whether or not we should be projecting OUR morality and value set(s) onto other people.

Freemasonry teaches us, among other issues, that we should be tolerant and charitable to others. What I am going to suggest is what we, as masons SHOULD be doing about the issue.

Lets say this year, the candidate proposed for Junior Warden was revealed as an active gay man. Lets say for the sake of argument that he is a pillar of the lodge, always ready to lend a hand, is a voice of reason, leads Masonic education in the lodge, and is otherwise the very embodiment of what we look for in a Mason.

Then you find out he is gay. Would you vote for him to serve as the Junior Warden of your lodge? Would you vote for him to serve as MASTER of your lodge? If not, why not? Think carefully here, because as Masons, we are taught the value of tolerance and are taught that we are each to apply the tools of Freemasonry to ourselves.

Christianity teaches that homosexuality is a sin… but Christians are also taught to hate the sin and love the sinner. Christianity teaches many things, but Masonry, as we keep telling the objectors and other pinheads, is not a Christian based organization. It is not a religion at all. It is a fraternity, as we all know, of men with a faith in g-d, however we each, individually, know and define him in our lives.

A fundamental (sorry) tradition of Freemasonry is that we do not push our religion on others in lodge. So how can we apply our understanding of a book translated from a language that has no word for homosexual into the lodge? How do we apply our morality?

This has much larger implications for the lodge, for our lives and our community. I chose this instant example because it is one that we have certainly experienced, or thought about, or talked about. How you apply your morality to your life is important, because it defines the Masonic edifice you are erecting.

How you apply your morality to OTHER people’s lives also defines you and that Masonic edifice.

Would you deny a man the opportunity to learn and grow from a Masonic experience, a man who is otherwise just and true, because of one aspect of this life, an aspect you personally do not agree with? If you would cast a black cube on a gay man, knowing he was gay, or vote no for a brother (because yes, he is a brother) who was nominated as an officer in your lodge because he was gay, what other action would you take to enforce YOUR morality, your understanding, your version of truth on others?

Lets step away from the issue of homosexuality for a moment, because its really not the focus here. What if the candidate was living with his girlfriend and their child? Would you cast a black cube then? What if the candidate had lived with his girlfriend for years, and then married her just before petitioning for the degrees, would that change your vote?

What if the man were participating in a totally legal enterprise where you lived? Lets say he owned a restaurant with a bar in it. Some brothers feel that selling alcohol is immoral. Would you cast a black cube for a man because he sells alcohol?

This is an important question, not because of the instant issue, homosexuality, alcohol, living in “sin”, because the issue isn’t these things. The issue is you, my brother, it is each of us, in the silence of our conscience. Honor and integrity is what you do when no one is looking.

We are each called to act in a just and upright manner, in our several stations before g-d and man. EACH of us individually. We are called to circumscribe our passions, desires, prejudices, each of us. No where in Freemasonry are we tasked with circumscribing each OTHERS passions, desires, prejudices.

I have stated often, its not about me changing them, it’s about me changing me. Here is a perfect case of that, and the question is, what will we, each of us, do when confronted with something we don’t like or agree with in our lives? Will we judge it? Well, we can’t avoid judging, its our values based lives that require it.

Judging, however, does not mean imposing sentence. As Masons, we are taught to regard the whole human species as one family, the rich and the poor, the high and the low, who, as created by one almighty parent and inhabitants of the same planet, are to aid, support and protect each other.

If a man, who is otherwise qualified, is blackballed or a candidate for office in our lodges is voted down who is otherwise qualified, ready, willing and able, because of something in his life we disagree with, how are we helping him, aiding him, supporting or protecting him? Would we not be failing him in doing so?

As I noted above, I am not here to advocate homosexuality, nor, frankly, to condemn it. It is not for me, but then, I wasn’t born gay… and no one can seriously think ANYONE would CHOSE to be homosexual, any more than someone chooses to be blonde, or brown eyed, or short, or tall or… it is what it is.

We need, each of us, in our growth as Masons, to apply the tools of the fraternity to our own rough ashlars, assist our brethren in perfecting their ashlars, and refrain from applying our tools to their work. That is a great task set before us… and frankly, most of us have enough to do with perfecting our own ashlars without judging others…

You see, its really, really easy to judge someone else. The difficult part is in judging ourselves… that’s why many spend so much time judging other people and so little time judging themselves. We however, are Masons. We work in stone, and the work, while rewarding, is difficult.

This then brings us to the subject of Masonic Morality. But then, that’s another blog topic for later.

May the blessing of heaven rest upon you and all regular masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every moral and social virtue, cement us.

As Theron so convincingly wrote, it’s not about homosexuality, it’s about judging others. And that judging leads to basically importing personal morality into Masonic code, thereby excluding those with different values and lifestyles. The entire Grand Lodge then becomes judgmental. That means outlawing gambling and alcohol from Masonic gatherings.  It means not allowing any other Holy Book on the Masonic altar besides the Holy Bible. It often translates into “Christian only” and White only.

But Freemasonry is not about exclusion, it’s about a broad inclusiveness. Freemasonry only limits its membership to free men of good character who have a belief in Deity and even then you would get some argument from Women Masons, Co-Masons and the Grand Orient of France. Every culture, creed, race, lifestyle, political persuasion, and economic status should be considered as qualified to become a Mason if they meet the basic requirements. When Freemasonry becomes exclusionary it loses its universality.

Individually or collectively as Freemasons we would do well to abide by the Biblical verse:

Matthew 7:1-5 ESV

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”

Of course we don’t have to be Christian to heed that advice.

Seeking Answers, Hearing Consequences

Most of us have a Mentor/Confessor, somebody special and trustworthy we go to when things don’t make sense or problems ensue. I have been in touch with mine quite often lately regarding the developments in Mainstream Masonry and the difficulties in reporting same.

Grand Lodges are in a lot of trouble these days and Freemason Information has reported some of the worst case scenarios. We do so in the hopes that reforms will be made by informed Brethren who were in the dark about such goings on.

Yet 50% of the time we are greeted with derision instead of applause. Many have called us harmful to the Craft and a bunch of Grand Lodge bashers.

So I have taken to running these articles by my Mentor/Confessor for him to peruse and he has followed the developments of Grand Lodge abuse as it has unfolded for the last two years. At first he was incredulous thinking that perhaps there was much exaggeration or even misinformation from bad sources going on. As the stories multiplied and he checked them all out he finally saw what we saw.

When Nebraska hit the news I asked him if he had any special insights besides affirmation that he would like to share with me, something that might shed more light on the situation and perhaps heal some ill feeling.

This is what he sent me:

A grand lodge begins to sign its own death warrant when its internal governance and judicial procedures depart significantly from the accepted values and standards of the wider society of which it is a part.

Just as the seventeenth century English poet, John Donne, famously observed that, “No man is an island, entire of itself,” so too is this true of a grand lodge, any grand lodge. The conceit that a grand lodge can isolate itself, as if it truly was a sovereign entity in fact as well as in grandiloquent title, as if its members had no other emotional or intellectual loyalty to anyone or anything else, and as if a wider public was neither of concern to the grand lodge or itself had any interest in the doings of the grand lodge, is not only false in itself but a lethal basis for suicidal action by a grand lodge.

The general rank and file of the fraternity will forgive a great deal in the way of human frailty; they will accept errors arising out of honest error; they will generally cast a forgiving eye upon mistakes grounded in ordinary organizational inertia. But, when error arises out of conscious greed, the deliberate and knowing exercise of Masonic tyranny, or indefensible and arbitrary violations of the ordinary standards of fairness, square-dealing and honesty in order to conceal crime, promote racism or protect unworthy individuals from the ordinary consequences of their own deliberate and knowing transgressions, then the collective wrath of an outraged membership must, inevitably, descend upon those responsible.

As per the Letters of Junius, “The subject who is truly loyal to the chief magistrate will neither advise nor consent to arbitrary measures.”

Most recently, the manifestation of such withdrawal of consent has taken the form of judicial appeal to the secular courts. It has also become a prominent feature of Internet Masonry, a kind of modern version of the Committees of Correspondence that flourished in the colonies just prior to the more formal actions of the American Revolution. At some future point, it may take the form of mass resignations or demits from existing grand lodges, a kind of “vote with our feet” reaction. Lately, a return to pre-grand lodge Masonry in the form of the appearance of a few independent, sovereign individual lodges has appeared as an alternative organizational possibility.

In terms of the American Civil War, Abraham Lincoln once observed that, “If destruction be our lot, we ourselves must be its author and finisher. As a nation of free men we must live through all time or die by suicide.” Such is the situation of Freemasonry in America: our Craft is so strong in itself, so grounded in the finest principles and ideals of the Enlightenment, that, if it is to be fatally weakened or even destroyed, then it must be ourselves who do the deed.

Brother Junius

Nebraska: A Predictable Masonic Mess

Looking at the Masonic mess in Nebraska certain questions come to mind, such as, “How did we get to this point in Freemasonry where something like this can so easily happen? “  A hundred years ago in the Craft would any of the participants acted in this manner?  What is the difference between now and then? The answer to the last question may offer a clue as to why so many stories like this are so prevalent today. It seems like every few months another Masonic mess hits the scene.

nebraska flagParsons’, the outgoing Grand Master, logic is that the rules and regulations in the Constitution and by-laws of Nebraska will not allow a quick enough response for justice to take place.  Watts, the incoming Grand Master, who should be tried and convicted immediately and thus become ineligible to become Grand Master will not happen by following the rules, he thinks. So Parsons with some Past Grand Masters and other members of the Grand Lodge have decided that if the rules are deficient they no longer apply and they must take the law into their own hands. Watts will use his powers as Grand Master to delay his trial until after his term of office is up, they say. He could through controlling parliamentary procedure sidetrack or squash motions to challenge his authority or question his authenticity if he is allowed to assume the Grand East immediately.

It seems to me that here is an instance where the Grand Lodge has been hoisted on its own petard.  Grand Lodges have deliberately allowed the power of the Grand Master over the Craft to reach hither unheard of heights. It was OK when the Grand Master was lording his authority over subordinates but now that it is the Grand Master versus his own Grand Lodge and Grand Master versus Grand Master and Past Grand Masters the tables have been turned and many look aghast at such horror.

It is precisely this trend in the Grand Master’s absolute power with no constrictions –  not voting members of the Grand Lodge or the Constitution of the Grand Lodge –  that has moved Masonic trials from the local Lodge into the chambers of the Grand Lodge chaired by the Grand Master and then ultimately to expulsions with no trial whatsoever. And right along with that goes the power of the Grand Master to revoke subordinate Lodge charters immediately on the spot and at will. So it only follows that a Grand Master can refuse to seat a duly elected successor or in the case of Frank Haas for a Grand Master to expel a Past Grand Master without a trial.

That amount of power has enabled Grand Masters in voting Grand Lodges to control the agenda and refuse to allow certain motions or votes to take place declaring then unconstitutional or not correctly drawn up or ultimately “not in the best interests of the Craft.”

It is not the rulings of the 21st century all powerful Grand Master that are always detrimental.  Many Grand Masters are quite benevolent and operate always with the best interests of the Craft in mind. It is the breakdown of the rule of law, the violations of its own Constitution that doom Freemasonry to chaos and anarchy. In civil society it is precisely the rule of law that separates third world machine gun political nations from those who obey the law even when the rulings are not in their favor.

Freemasonry seems to be going down this same lawless path.  It is the Old Wild West relived where Sheriffs and Judges rule with extraordinary powers and justice is a quick hanging without taking time for the formalities of the law.

The sooner Freemasonry recognizes why it is having all these problems and restores the rule of Masonic law is the sooner Masonic messes disappear from today’s news.

Lewis and CLark

The Lessons Of History

Thomas Jefferson had long desired to have the lands west of the Mississippi explored with the hopes of finding a waterway passage to the Pacific.  The Lewis & Clark expedition was the brainchild and pet project of Jefferson.  He plucked Meriwether Lewis from his staff and put him in charge of leading this exploration. Lewis picked William Clark to be his co-captain on the journey.

Lewis was a Mason having been made such in Virginia in 1797. It has been thought by Historians that Clark was recruited by Lewis to join the Craft on the expedition. We do know that Clark joined a Lodge in St. Louis at a later date.

Lewis and CLarkThe expedition, 1804-1806, took some 2 ½ years and covered approximately 7,200 miles. Lewis & Clark brought back a large set of journals along with samples providing detailed information on species of animals and plants, geography, cultural observations, Indian tribe information, climate and some 60 maps. While they did not find an all waterway passage to the Pacific they did explore routes and alternatives for a Northwest Passage.

Historians count this expedition which immediately followed the Louisiana Purchase as a very important event in the history of the United States. Among other things it paved the way for westward expansion and the territorial claims of the United States from coast to coast.

Much has been written about the Lewis & Clark Expedition many times over so there is little need for repetition here. Rather the focus of this article will deal with the unknown, or more accurately the little known, its importance to the success of the mission and the historical lesson it has for us.

The expedition was undertaken by some 29 regulars along with 16 others. Much of the travel was in areas never chartered or explored, among the habitation of many different Indian tribes, some of whom were hostile. How is it then that these 45 explorers trekked all those miles, during all that time and meeting many new and strange tribes yet recorded only one fatality that being of Sergeant Charles Floyd who was thought to have died from a ruptured appendix?

That is the story of the video here which in some detail will explain that Lewis brought with him the cutting edge of technology for that time, the Girandoni Air Rifle. My friend, Brother Mason and historian from Canada has supplied us with his take on this rifle.

300px-Girandoni_Air_Rifle“Interesting technology. The gun had some drawbacks – it took 1500 strokes of the air pump to re-charge the air bottle, and the shape at the back was not easy for the human shoulder to “sit” with. In Austrian use each soldier, it is said, carried two spare, already charged, air bottles. Later, again in Austrian service, there was a larger compressor on wheels that accompanied the army.”

“The air bottles themselves were difficult to manufacture with the metal, rivets and brazing technology of the time, and sometimes leaked because of the air pressure of up to 800 psi. Still, the ability to fire about 30 rounds without re-loading, with little noise and no smoke, and with enough power to seriously injure or kill was an enormous advantage.”

“The ammunition was a gravity feed, so the rifle had to be elevated before each round. The fact that Austrian forces issued the weapon and used it in combat makes it the first repeating rifle to be so used in history. “

“Apparently the mechanism was very delicate, and the rifle could easily break down for that reason. It is said certain seals had to be kept moist at all times. I still do not understand how the system regulated the exact charge of compressed air necessary for each shot.”

“I guess its remote descendant was the famous Daisy Air Rifle we all knew as children.”

“For the time, however, it would truly be seen as a wonder weapon, as it was.”

History often has for us some valuable lessons.  If Hitler had studied Napoleon’s disastrous march into Russia, if he had learned from history, perhaps he would not have repeated the same mistake.

The fact that we now know that the success of the Lewis & Clark Expedition can be partially attributed to adopting the latest technology perhaps has something to tell us about modern day Freemasonry.

Perhaps Grand Lodges have only themselves to blame for the steep decline in membership. Maybe there is nothing wrong with the message it’s the messengers. The question posed is this: Where would Freemasonry be today if in the early 90s it had adopted the latest technology to help convey its message? What if the Craft had embraced computer technology that far back and had been keeping abreast of all the changes to date? Where would we be right now if that had been done?  Let’s take a look at three areas.

PUBLICITY &MARKETING

Today we would see huge interactive Grand Lodge websites that would include forums, ask a question and get an answer areas, You Tube videos geared to explaining Freemasonry to the uninitiated, A Grand Lodge Facebook page and a Grand Lodge Twitter account for starters.

EDUCATION & INFORMATION

There might be in place today a complete Grand Lodge library search by computer, scanned books available on line, E-Books also available, videos that provide instruction and information, Masonic courses on line, a Grand Lodge radio show on line, proficiency instruction and proficiency testing on line and many more items.

ADMINISTRATION

Today all Grand Lodge forms and reports would be available on line and filed on line, computerized minutes, interactive calendars, special events, addresses by the Grand Master, memos and even Business meetings could be held on line.  All material could easily be encrypted. Grand Lodges might have their own server system or the latest in cloud technology.

The failure of Freemasonry to keep up with the times, to forge ahead boldly employing the latest technology and to structure the message into the forms of communication that are used by today’s generation is the failure to heed the lessons of history and to profit therein. Kodak declined because it didn’t’t see the merit in digital cameras, IBM an early powerhouse gave way to Microsoft. There are many examples of organizations and companies going under because they refused to adapt. Adapting to new ways of doing things is seen in Freemasonry as changing Freemasonry. It is not. The Drive In Movie is a relic of the past.  But movie making and movie viewing thrive on using different methods of deliverance.  And that’s the way Freemasonry should go.  Be a Meriwether Lewis and be a leader breaking new ground, forging new paths and setting the standard for greater performance.

Beyond Belief from Fox News

I stumbled across this and thought it an amusing look back at the decade that was.  This goes back a ways to 2008, Beyond Belief on Fox News’ Hanity’s America about “The Freemasonry…”

I apologize in advance for the quality, it looks like someone ripped it right off from the television screen.

Definitely interesting mix use of art and Meltzer giving his 2 cents. Pentagrams, owls, and squares and compasses….oh my – barely enough show to hold all the conspiracy theories.  Its definitely Beyond Belief!