I'm hearing that great things happened over the weekend in Cleveland, Ohio.Bro. Jeff Peace spoke to an enthusiastic crowd at West Side Masonic Temple on the history of speculative Freemasonry.
Tubalcain420 has written about it on his blog in an article called "A Great Masonic Weekend." In part, he writes:
The fellowship and brotherhood that was exemplified this weekend will have an eternal impact on many lives. The masonry/brotherhood we all experienced cannot be regulated; it cannot be chartered; it cannot be dispensated; And it cannot be forced. The love and tolerance that was exchanged between brothers (whether recognized or not), unconditionally is what masonry is supposed to be about. Men meeting on the level. There were no aprons brought out to potentially show some inequality in rank, there were no appendent bodies trying to get recognition. It was men only interested in the world of Blue Lodge Masonry. Where ALL men meet on the level.Bro. Jeff writes of his experience in Ohio:
The knowledge that Brother Peace has on Masonry, the zeal and passion for the fraternity is second to none. I am quite content in the side of the story I have on Brother Jeff Peace being expunged from the records of the GL of Ga without a Masonic trial (which I thought we were all afforded?). Once a Mason always a Mason. All I know is that any group of Masons would benefit from having Brother Peace around, teaching and enlightening the members. Whoever Brother Peace meets with at the present time must be blessed men to be privileged to be exposed to a man with this knowledge and love of the craft. Another humble servant of the craft. Brother Jeff Peace is a Mason through and through and no man has the authority to say otherwise.
— Tubalcain420
On Saturday, April 21st, 2007, after 20 years of being a Freemason I discovered the secret treasure that every true Freemason seeks: a real Masonic lodge. Like many others after so many years of searching and hoping I had all but given up any hope of ever meeting on the Level with true brother Freemasons in a Masonic lodge dedicated to the very spirit of Freemasonry. I had become so accustomed to the long boring meetings of doing nothing more than meeting, eating and paying the bills that each visit to a Masonic lodge to give a lecture on history or symbolism represented something I dreaded, but felt obliged to do. Within minutes of meeting the brothers at Halcyon Lodge, No. 498, in Cleveland, Ohio, I knew that something was very different here. This was a thriving lodge of young Freemasons whose interests were wide and varied. There was total equality among them and nasty Masonic politics was nowhere to be seen — all met upon the same Level. As a brother who has been erased by the Grand Lodge of Georgia I had expected a rather cold reception, but instead discovered the warmth of friendship and brotherly love with each new face I came across. One brother came up and said, "Brother Peace, no Grand Lodge has the power or the authority to sever the mystic tie that binds us together as brothers. Once a Freemason — always a Freemason. Forget your past and live in the radiant Light of the present." It was at once humbling and wonderfully refreshing to be among this most excellent group of men, who were not only Freemasons, but true brothers.Image: Brothers from Georgia with Ohio brothers before Bro. Peace's lecture April 21, 2007. L-R back row: W. Bro. Chris Snow, Bro. Eric Chipps, Worshipful Master Mike Howard. L-R front row: Bro. Brian Roper (Ga.), Bro. Jeff Peace (Ga.), and Bro. Andrew Kavanaugh.
The lodge building where Halcyon meets resembles the Greek Parthenon and is a magical edifice where the ghosts of brothers past freely roam the halls speaking out from their graves in testament to the brotherhood that still exists within the walls of this temple. For it is indeed a "temple" and not just a "lodge" — it is a Temple erected to the spirit of Freemasonry and the brotherhood of man. I couldn’t help but feel that some sacred force lived within the walls — ever watching over the brotherhood.
While I am not a member of Halcyon 498 I shall always know it to be my mother lodge because it was there that I first discovered Freemasonry.
— Bro. Jeff Peace
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