A brief history of Advocate Illinois Masonic Health Center

One of the regular Taper readers occasionally sends me links to news articles about the good that Masons have done in the world.

Recently he sent this one about how a young woman from Spain was successfully treated by surgeons at Advocate Illinois Masonic Health Center in Chicago last April.

It's good to hear stories of modern medical technology saving lives.

It wasn't clear to me the relationship between Freemasonry and the hospital, other than the word "Masonic" in their name, so I held off publishing the story until I found out.

Advocate Health Care, the company that owns the hospital and at least nine others, sounds like a great organization. U.S. News & World Report has called them one of the top 50 hospitals in the nation treating heart conditions.

Their website explains their mission, values and philosophy, which mirror Masonic truths, but still, I was curious about the Masonic relationship.

Mission, Values, and Philosophy

Related to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the United Church of Christ, Advocate's health and healing ministry began over one hundred years ago. A faith-based mission of caring has been the foundation of our heritage for over one hundred years.

Mission

"The mission of Advocate Health Care is to serve the health needs of individuals, families and communities through a wholistic philosophy rooted in our fundamental understanding of human beings as created in the image of God."

Values

Advocate exists to serve. The core values of compassion, equality, excellence, partnership, and stewardship guide our actions as we work together to provide health services to others in our communities.

Philosophy

The care we provide is wholistic. This philosophy means we understand people have physical, emotional and spiritual needs and their relations to God, themselves, their families and society are vital to health and healing. Finally, we believe all people are created in the image of God. All human beings live under God's care and must be treated with dignity and respect.

The mission, values, and philosophy of Advocate are often referred to as the "MVP." By integrating them into every aspect of the organization, these principles have strengthened the foundation of the Advocate culture in which we all work and serve.

I wrote to the public relations director of the hospital to inquire about the Masonic ties.

Yesterday I received the gracious response of Bro. Robert A. Rylowicz, 33°, who sits on the Board of Directors of the hospital and a related foundation.

Brother,

While I could elaborate, I feel a few paragraphs from CARING COMMUNITY; an historical accounting may help supply you with an answer.

INTRODUCTION

"It was a struggle through the best of times and the worst of times to transform the UNION HOSPITAL into the ILLINOIS MASONIC MEDICAL CENTER of 1897. Beginning modestly when a caring company of men and women, members of a Baptist Sunday School Class, resolved to build a hospital to meet the health needs of their community, the hospital emerged into a major Masonic enterprise dedicated to healing of the ills of humankind.

"When it became obvious that the hospital enterprise involved more than could be managed by members of a well-intentioned Sunday School Class, most of them were Masons or members of the Eastern Star, leaders of the hospital turned to the Masonic Order. It was a fortuitous development since Masons were planning to develop a hospital to provide care for their own, and in 1921 purchased the Union Hospital and named it Illinois Masonic Hospital.

"This book is the story of the years of labor and sacrifice to build one of the major medical centers of the Chicago area. Masons of courage and competence faced the awesome task of raising the millions needed to provide buildings and equipment for an institution that would honor Masonry. When years of the Great Depression threatened the survival of the hospital, men of stature and commitment refused to surrender. Their fortitude and faith saved the institution.

"Through the efforts of innumerable men and women, Illinois Masonic Medical Center emerged from the dark days of Depression, undeterred in its resolve to care, not only for those who could pay for their care, but also for those dependent on Charity. It became known as a caring community of men and women dedicated to the healing arts."

These were the words of Dr. Harold Blake Walker, a Presbyterian minister who sat on the board of Trustees for more than twenty years and was truly an outstanding person. Strangely enough, as a teenager, I read his column in the Sunday Chicago Tribune, and then had the privilege of serving with him on the same board.

Prior to 2000, the Board of Directors saw many areas of concern on the horizon, and through a good deal of filtering out potential partners, voted to sell the hospital to the Advocate Health Care system. What emerged was the MASONIC FAMILY HEALTH FOUNDATION, with approximately 1-3 million dollars to help endow both the hospital and numerous Masonic Charities. And as a further outgrowth of this foundation emerged the Masonic Assistance Program (MAP), whereby we help provide health care to indigent Masons and their families.

As a member of the board of directors, for both the hospital and the foundation, I am proud to continue my service to Masonry, and provide answers to any further questions you may have.

Robert A. Rylowicz, 33°

Thank you, Bro. Ryloqwicz, for providing this interesting look into the history of the hospital.

Masons | Masonic Hospital | Masonic History | Freemasonry | Advocate Illinois Masonic Health Center | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Goo goo goo joob

Our story so far:

This past Saturday I endorsed a candidate for president of the U.S. on The Burning Taper.

Immediately, Theron Dunn objected, decrying the use of a "Masonic blog" to endorse a political candidate.

You can read that article plus the follow-ups "'Every generation needs a new revolution,'" "Of Masonic political correctness and hissy fits," and the most recent one, Theron Dunn 'outs' The Widow's Son". Blah, blah, blah.

I realize this story is rapidly becoming a cheezy B-grade movie , but it's the holidays and there's a writers' strike on, so it's either this or reruns of Frosty the Snowman for you on the boob tube.

If you want to hit fast forward, I understand. You can just mouse down in this article to the text highlighted in yellow. (The highlight is for your benefit; it didn't exist in the original text I'm about to share.)

What? Still here?

Okay... here we go. I was working the daywatch out of homicide....

Just checking.

While I have and do freely re-post public comments made about me or this blog, as I did when there was a long list of quotes over in the sidebar, I hold private emails to be private and confidential, and ordinarily would never share their contents with anyone without permission.

However, I have made an accusation against Theron Dunn for breaking his obligation to keep private something that a brother asked him to keep private. He's denied I ever mentioned it. And others have asked for "proof" he knew I wanted my name kept out of the limelight.

So I'm submitting a couple of emails as evidence to you as judges, jurors and executioners in this chattering court of public opinion.

Some may quibble with words, saying I didn't specifically utter (or write) the phrase "Please don't reveal my name online." Already, we've seen in Theron's comments to the previous article his proclivity to stretch the definition of words, saying he wasn't "GIVEN" my name, but discovered it on his own. Whatever. He knew before he outed me the first time on the forum Novus Ordo Saeclorum (NOS) last July that I didn't want my name publicized, and after our exchange then, he damn well knew it before he did it again earlier today.

In July, 2007 someone told me via email that Theron, whom I knew little of but had seen around, mostly on the old Collegium Fabrorum forum years ago, had launched a diatribe against me and The Burning Taper in a series of posts on NOS.

On July 18, I wrote an article for the Taper about this, titled "Masons gone wild!"

You might remember those posts of his from the old sidebar. For a while, I featured this compilation of Theronisms in the quotations section:

The 'Smoldering Stub' has published half truths and innuendos against the fraternity. The Burning Taper offers NOTHING useful or constructive.... I am not sure if the guy running the blog is even really a Mason, or just an agitator poking Masons in the eye.... He is worse than FreemasonryWatch.org. At least they are honest in their hatred of Freemasonry. His hatred is a lie, because he pretends what he is doing is FOR Masonry, when it's actually for HIM... revenge against Masonry for his own personal failings.... He posts like an anti-masonic nutter.... Negative, useless, self-aggrandizing, a carper, whiner, moaner, accuser, not only unjustifiable, but unmasonic and unworthy.... As for 14,000 unique [readers per month], congratulations. You are doing more damage to Freemasonry than even I thought. — Bro. Theron Dunn, co-publisher of Lodgeroom International Magazine, on Novus Ordo Saeculorum

These are quotes I found in various posts by Theron on the NOS forum.

Before I reposted those comments here, I had ventured into NOS and posted a few responses, assuring them I was in fact a Master Mason.

Theron wrote to me privately on July 20 with a long email telling me I needed to be "cured." I'm not going to reprint all of that one, as this post is going to be way too long already.

He began that email with:

I am not sure who you really are, and I feel strange addressing a stranger as a brother. However, Chris [Hodapp] and Jeff [Peace], and for what its worth, 'Grand Leveler' [?] have all vouched that you are a regular Mason, so I will address you thus.

He closed that email with:

Now, you do what you want, I have no intention of pursuing you or your blog, that's not who or what I am about. The only thing that I ask is that you remove my comments from your home page. I did not post them on your forum, and the way you post makes it look as if I did, which is untrue. I stand by my words 110%. I have never considered your forum to be anything but an oubliette for complainers, and I have no use for men who do nothing but complain.

So please, take my comments off your page, or at the least post a note that it was taken from NOS, and NOT posted on your forum.

Best wishes, and sorry to hear YOUR freemasonry is so bad. Mine is just freaking awesome.

Theron didn't like that I posted them here for everyone to see, or that I'd writen the "Masons gone wild!" article, and in retaliation, he wrote a post on NOS revealing my name.

On July 23, on NOS I posted a response to a comment Bro. Bill McElligott had made against the Taper. I began my comment with "Bro. Bill bellyached..." and then repeated what he had said. I like alliteration. "Bellyached" just sounded better than "said." And he was bellyaching, something about writing an anti-Taper piece for the "Masonic" online magazine he and Theron publish.

Almost immediately I received one of those moderator "warnings," which said:

Dear Widow's Son,

You have received a warning at Novus Ordo Saeculorum - for masons, by masons.

Reason:
-------
Threats and Insults

This is the first of many to be handed out. You will cease and desist with the threats.

Theron was a moderator there. So, I think, was Bill. As they seem to be on several Masonic forums.

Was "bellyached" a threat or an insult? I never did figure out which.

I publicly replied to Theron's posting of my name on NOS this:

I'm holding out an olive branch of peace here, Bro. Theron. I hope you accept it, and drop your moral vendetta against me and The Burning Taper. I'll say no more about it, and let bygones be bygones.

The other option is my pen, which is, as they say, mightier than the sword. For some reason, thousands of readers across the globe care what I write, whether they agree or disagree with me. You really don't want your childish attacks on me to be the subject of another article, next time there's a slow news day. It wouldn't be good for the Masonry that you love and cherish for such a display of un-brotherly love to play out across the world, would it?

As you can see (if you're bothering to read this at all), we simply postponed the inevitable from July until now.

Here's his July 27 private response to me:

You say you hold out an olive branch while threatening to do a hit piece on me in your blog...

so lets see, I can shut up about how unmasonic I think your actions are in attacking freemasonry, or you will attack me on your blog? So, where is the masonry in that?

I am not afraid of your blog. I have an attorney that will gladly go after you if you libel or defame me on your forum. I have zero interest in shutting you down, you have a right to free speech, but you do not have a right to shut ME up either.

Can't take the criticism you are handing out??? Self righteous hypocrite is what you are, not an advocate for anything good or right.

Bill is also about to undertake a criticism of your forum, and if you pursue me as you threaten, I can categorically assure you, my first phone call will be to my lawyer, and my second to the Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Georgia to get the phone number for the Junior Warden of your lodge to prefer masonic charges.

I have zero interest in your little "I hate Masonry" blog. But if you want to go to war, my brother, bring it on.

Or, take a break for a week, give it some thought. You seem very interested in shutting me up... how would you feel if someone tried to shut you up?

Here is an olive branch. Stay out of my face, take my comments off your blog, ignore me, and I will ignore you... entirely. Or pursue the course of action you have threatened, and have the weight of the legal system and the grand lodge of Georgia come down on you.

Ask Jeff about how it feels NOT to be a mason before you go chasing after a mason for a while for simply expressing my opinions, JUST AS YOU DO.

How is that for fair?

I'm not sure how, but I remained calm, and sent Bro. Dunn this private reply:

Brother,

This is what I wrote:

"I'm holding out an olive branch of peace here, Bro. Theron. I hope you accept it, and drop your moral vendetta against me and The Burning Taper. I'll say no more about it, and let bygones be bygones.

The other option is my pen, which is, as they say, mightier than the sword. For some reason, thousands of readers across the globe care what I write, whether they agree or disagree with me. You really don't want your childish attacks on me to be the subject of another article, next time there's a slow news day. It wouldn't be good for the Masonry that you love and cherish for such a display of un-brotherly love to play out across the world, would it?"

Bro. Theron, there is no threat there, nor do I have a desire to "libel or defame" you. Anything I would write would simply be about what you've said of me. It wouldn't be a "hit piece," as you said.

If I published something, how would that be any different from what you now say Bro. Bill is planning to write about me, or from all the nasty things you've written about me and the Taper?

I hold no hostility towards you. I have simply tried to respond to your postings on NOS. Had you simply written your opinions of me and the blog once or twice, I wouldn't have said a word. But you seemed to relish slamming me, over and over, and I had to speak up.

I'm unafraid of your threats of lawyers and Junior Wardens, but I see no reason we should escalate things. I have lawyers, too, and could easily get your lodge's JW's phone number. I don't think it would be wise for either of us to go down that road.

By posting my name, you've lost any defense you may have had where you could say you were just posting your opinions about an anonymous online writer. You've also skated arguably close to violating the obligation to keep the secrets of a brother Master Mason, since you knew full well I didn't want my name publicized.

You and I, between the reach of the Taper and your online newsletter, could make what is in reality simply a petty online squabble between us that no one really cares about into something ugly for the fraternity and grist for the gossip mill, and would serve no good purpose.

You and I should just agree that we hold vastly different opinions of Masonry, and let it go at that.

The offer of an olive branch was sincere. In hindsight, perhaps I should have not posted the final paragraph, but I did. As I said, I didn't and don't see it as a threat, just merely the pointing out of what could be, if we don't stop this disagreement between us now.

You and I both have a lot of supporters AND detractors. Neither of us is universally loved. Neither of us would "win" if we keep this up.

We both have different paths to walk in Freemasonry, and while you don't agree with my path, continually belittling it won't make me go away. It will only strengthen my resolve, and further prove to me that too many Masons talk the talk much more often than we walk the walk.

I know you don't think so, but you banging away at me as you have done lately is just as unmasonic as anything you accuse me of doing.

If you'll stop talking about me or the blog on NOS and elsewhere, including stopping Bro. Bill's planned expose' in your newsletter or otherwise, then I'll cease responding or posting about you, him and NOS.

Do we have a deal?

Fraternally,

Widow's Son
BurningTaper.com

Ten hours later, I was shocked to receive Theron's reply:

Yes.

I owe you an apology. I read your blog, and was very offended by what seemed your casual slamming of freemasonry. Jeff tells me you do it because you feel it will help.

I can accept that is what you think, and my comments were based on not knowing who you were. It SEEMED just another antimasonic site, and i have dealt with those folks for six years now, even had a stalker (connie berry of Durham North Carolina) as a result of defending masonry against those... folks.

I am sorry I offended you. I am sorry I mischaracterized you. I apologize for my unkind and short sighted comments.

I still think what you are doing is wrong and does NO service to freemasonry, but as I have noted elsewhere, it is your right, and I in no way am trying to force you to do or not do anything.

Please forgive me for my ill considered comments.

S&F

Theron Dunn

P.S.: If its not too much to ask, and since the comments are gone from NOS, and your name will be removed from the damn post sometime today (it was locked before I could remove it), would you remove MY comments from your sidebar?

In the spirit of moving on?

Thanks

I was shocked. I later found out that he and Bro. Jeff Peace had a long phone discussion about this at some point during those ten hours. Thank to Bro. Jeff, war was averted. Or, rather, delayed. In hindsight, I'm glad I didn't give Theron my cellphone number, or it would probably be plastered all over the Internet by now.

I immediately put up the asked-for "as posted on Novus Ordo Saeclorum" addendum to his comment, and then a day or so later, I just deleted his comment altogether from the list of quotes.

Though we were warily accepting each other as brothers or at least fellow homo sapiens from early August until last week, we didn't go skipping hand-in-hand down Tra-La-Lane. But I did give him a bit of of help and advice on layout and design and techno-tricks for his newfound passion, his blog, not that he implemented very many of the suggestions. If you saw his blog in its first few months, you'll recall it had his pointing-away-from-the-page face covering two thirds of the page, a huge bannerhead twice the size it is currently, and lots of gaudy multi-colored lettering. I never mentioned to him his silly parody of my yellow banner. Mine says, "Warning: This blog contains heretical tendencies," which is a reference to what some librarian wrote back in the 1920s on the inside cover of my copy of Morals and Dogma. Theron's banner, you may have noticed, proudly boasts that his blog DOES NOT contain heretical tendencies. I figured parody was a form of flattery, if not exactly sincere. Or maybe it was just mockery.

Anyway, I was happy to help him with a few technical aspects of blogging.

More or less, I ignored most of his articles on his blog, figuring they'd just annoy me.

But one October morning, I arose very early, and found myself inspired by Theron's "Who is the Widow?" article to write what I consider one of the most enlightening (to me) articles I've ever written, which I called "Then more light you shall receive!"

Well, that gets us pretty much up to Saturday, and you've seen the carnage since.

Do I think Bro. Theron Dunn sometimes comes across as a total jerk?

Yes.

Is he sometimes pompous, annoying, arrogant, egotistical, self-righteous, off-center, passionate, overzealous?

Yes.

And so am I.

And sometimes, so are you.

It's called being human. Or maybe we're those damn bloody apes.

Masons | Masonic Wars | Planet of the Apes | Freemasonry | Theron Dunn | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Theron Dunn 'outs' the Widow's Son

Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of you know who I am. I've emailed back and forth with many of you using the gmail account that bears my name. I've have met and know many of you personally. And I assure you, my local lodge brothers and grand lodge officers know who The Widow's Son is. This blog began as a local response to a local Masonic issue.

My name might even be near the top of that "Enemies List" that Bro. Tim Bryce speculated about recently.

I simply haven't used my name in the Masonic blogging world so that I can keep separate my professional/business life from my Masonic blogging. When you google me, I don't want the business side and the Freemasonry side of my life to co-mingle. It would simply confuse my clients and customers, and perhaps annoy those who have anti-Masonic sentiments. And when I google myself, it's to see how well my business websites are being integrated into the search engines.

And while I may have a healthy ego, it's not so big that I need to see my real name up in lights when I post something relating to Masonry. That's the purpose of The Widow's Son as a pen name.

Bro. Theron Dunn knows my name. In fact, he posted it out of spite last summer in one of his earlier hissy fits on LodgeRoomUS, where he is a moderator.

Immediately I privately asked him to delete it, explaining why. I told him that I wanted it kept secret, and directly referred to his sworn obligation to "keep the secrets of a brother Master Mason, they being confided to me as such...."

He deleted it, and agreed to keep my name private in his Internet postings.

Apparently, while telling the rest of us exactly how to be "true Masons," he has conveniently broken his word — and his oath — with his most recent comment on this blog.

Here's what he wrote (I've deleted my name here, for now):

Hahaha, so, disagreeing with the oh so great and wise ___________ is now cause for personal attacks and denigration. How very masonic of you there....

I guess your opinion is the only one that counts, though the "intellectual" level of your discourse is a tad bit... coarse. When you cannot win in the forum of ideas, all you can do is ridicule.

Very sad indeed.

I would imagine he's posted my name by now on other blogs and forums; there's nothing I can do about that.

Bro. Dunn has made somewhat of a name for himself in the past several months, running from blog to blog, forum to forum, and on his own blog, pointing his finger and shouting "unmasonic!" at most anyone who disagrees with his version of "true masonry."

I believe his recent pious screeds have done much more damage, and caused more true embarrassment, to Freemasonry than anything I've ever written. His twaddle has become more shrill with each passing day. Even many of those who once agreed with him and supported his positions are turning away from him, shaking their heads in disbelief as his self-righteousness grows. I remember when even I, a few years ago, had a great deal of respect for his online writings. Once, back in 2003 or 2004, before I knew much of him at all, I emailed him for permission to use one of his articles as a short talk in my own lodge.

Alas, no more. After months of his calling other people "oath-breaker!", he stands accused of being one himself.

"I will keep the secrets of a Master Mason, they being confided to me as such, murder and treason alone excepted, and these being left to my discretion."

Bro. Theron, please provide the name and address of your lodge's Junior Warden.

Masons | Masonic Oaths | Online Freemasonry | Freemasonry | Theron Dunn | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Of Masonic political correctness and hissy fits

Verily, it is written, that I am a bad Mason for having endorsed a political candidate here on The Burning Taper.

"There are even some who feel they can take public political positions as masons on candidates and issues. This is a practice that is totally anathema to true freemasonry," the Grand Pontificator and Self-Proclaimed Champion of "True" Masonry wrote in the midst of his recent hissy fit.

"Hissy fit" is what Middlesex-Fire blogger Bro. Ben Rowe, of London, England, called Bro. Theron Dunn's silly rant today about flying monkeys and Masonic anathema.

Hissy fit. I love that term. I haven't heard it since my mother used it when I was a wee lad crying over broken cookies and spilled milk. I thought it was an American colloquialism used only by southern belle mothers; I'm pleased to hear it's a phrase used in the UK, too.

Anyway, Bro. Dunn has reposted his hissy fit all over the Net, in all those seriously somber "Masonic forums" where, I suppose, it's politically incorrect to talk about politics.

It's ironic that the recent "dust up" on the Taper, as Bro. Chris Hodapp called it, over freedom of speech is regarding the mention of a candidate whose platform is about protecting and restoring American freedoms.

Masonic blogger and author Bro. Hodapp sent me the photo captioned "Let's End All the Discontent, Elect a Mason President" that you see above. It was a recurring campaign poster used by Republican presidential candidates Bro. William McKinley. Bro. Theodore Roosevelt, and Bro. William Howard Taft in 1900, 1904 and 1908. All three men were elected president.

Politics and Freemasonry have been married a long time.

Some Masonic background on the three brethren who became president:

• William McKinley joined the Union Army as a private and rose quickly to become a major during the Civil War. At the age of 22, near the close of the war, he was impressed by the interaction he saw between Union and Confederate Freemasons. He petitioned Hiram Lodge No. 21 in Winchester, Virginia, and took the three degrees on three successive days, May 1, 2, and 3. A Confederate chaplain, J.B.T. Reed, presided in the East. McKinley later took the full degrees of the York Rite. He became an attorney, a congressman and governor of Ohio, and President of the United States. Upon his death (by assassination in 1901), his casket was accompanied by 2,000 uniformed Knights Templar. We see here that politics and Masonry go hand in hand, and that some Masons have always been more equal than others. I don't think 2,000 Masons will come out for your funeral. I know they won't for mine.


• Theodore Roosevelt was initiated in January, passed in March, and raised by the Grand Master of New York in April of 1901. He was governor of New York. In May, he became Vice President of the United States for McKinley's second term. By September of that year, he would become President, after McKinley's assassination. Roosevelt was a hearty, active man, and often attended lodge meetings, large and small, and was always given the floor to speak and entertain his brethren. Again, politics. I mean, he was raised by the Grand Master while he was governor of New York. Bully for him!


• William Howard Taft was a big and happy man, but terrible at being a politician, it's been said. He gave an eloquently humble speech to a joyous assembly of brethren in Massachusetts during the 1914 Feast of St. John the Evangelist while he was president. His father and older brothers were Masons. He became an entered apprentice on Feb. 18, 1909, and was "made on sight" a Master Mason in 1909 or 1910 (records indicate it was 1901, but perhaps the "09" looked like "01," or maybe it was reversed into "10." My guess would be it was in 1909, just before he became president on March 4, 1909. He served until 1913). If my speculation about him being made on sight quickly to become a Mason before his inauguration, then again, we see politics and Freemasonry having a special relationship.

I'm not being critical of these brethren, nor of the fraternity, and not even of "politics as usual." Politicians and political leaders have always been given special treatment. It is what it is.

And what it is, is this. These men didn't stop thinking politically or acting politically because they were Masons, and neither should we.

If you favor a candidate, or have an opinion on an action taken by Congress or the President or your local mayor, feel free to say so. As Bro. Hodapp pointed out, you don't have to hide your Masonic ring or Masonic belt buckle or Masonic tattoo before you talk politics with your neighbor, or with your brother. Speak up. The only taboo is talking about it during a tyled lodge meeting.

And if we run the right guy in 2012, I might even hang that "Let's Elect a Mason" poster in my window.

Masons | Masonic Presidents | Masonic Politics | Freemasonry | Hissy Fit | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

'Every generation needs a new revolution'

Bro. Theron Dunn, Masonic pontificator extraordinaire, has graced this blog twice thrice already voicing disapproval of my recent endorsement of U.S. Rep. Dr. Ron Paul.

I'm usually on the right track when he disagrees with me. And this time, I've also "disappointed" him. Man, I know I'm on the right track!

Bro. Dunn wrote: "It is one thing for a man to say: I support Fred Thompson, or I support Hillary Clinton, or in this case, Ron Paul; it is another to stand up as a Mason and say I support whatever candidate."

Let me climb to the highest soapbox — nay, let me write it in big bright 23-feet tall neon letters upon the side of a blimp hovering over Boston Harbor on this, the 234th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party: "I am a Mason and I support Ron Paul!"

Bro. Dunn constantly writes here, there and everywhere about how much he loves his grand lodge and Masonry "just like it is." Much of his writing on his blog and on various forums make him seem almost like a paid shill for mainstream, grand lodge American Masonry, constantly singing the praises of the grand lodge system, oblivious to what we've seen in many jurisdictions across America where the system is being used to attempt to silence brothers who think outside the current Masonic box. In just the past few months and years, we've seen improper and/or illegal abuse of power by grand masters in Georgia, Alabama, West Virginia, Arkansas, Arizona, and even his home state of California, where recently membership in certain Masonic-themed groups was outlawed by an edict by their grand master.

"But you swore to uphold the rules and obey all those guys in gold chains and black suits," we constantly hear....

No — we didn't.

We promised that if such constitutions, laws and edicts did not violate our obligations to God, our country, our neighbors, our families and most importantly, ourselves and our consciences, we would keep that "obligation."

It's often said that our Declaration of Independence, our U.S. Constitution and our original American ideals were based on Masonic principles, and many of our founding fathers and early presidents were Masons.

Curiously, one founding father, Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, has never been shown to have been a Freemason, though he was probably the most philosophical and Masonic of them all.

I've often wondered why he never became a Mason, when most of those around him were. Certainly he had the opportunity had he had wanted to.

There are only two places in Washington, D.C. I really care to visit: The Smithsonian Museum and the Jefferson Memorial.

I've seen all the monuments, sat in Congress, admired the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, and toured the White House. I think I was about twelve or thirteen the first time I was there, where my family and I spent a week.

In the ensuing years, I've been back to D.C. many times, often putting up with the horrendous traffic just to make a side trip into town when nearby on a roadtrip further north, to visit my former in-laws in Pennsylvania, or to the east to see my relatives in Delaware.

On these excursions into the nation's capital, I only want to go to one place: The Jefferson Memorial.

I remember the first time I was there. I stood in awe in that circular building, gazing not upon the statue of Thomas Jefferson, but focused on his engraved words which circumscribe the wall:

"I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."

I swore that oath, too, when I was but a boy. No philosophy has ever superseded it. No oath shall ever be greater.

I have stood in that great hall many times since, committing that phrase to memory. That statement is what induced me to be a libertarian and an outspoken critic against all attempts to ban or suppress free thought, free speech and free expression. I support anyone's right to say and think whatever they want... as long as they don't attempt to use their "authority" to suppress the rights of others, including myself, to say and think what we want.

Perhaps the reason Jefferson didn't become a Mason was that while he supported the original tenets of Freemasonry (as do I), he could not abide the "some men are more equal than others" grand lodge system that attempts to force "peace and harmony" by silencing those who think differently than those in positions of power.

Jefferson also wrote, "All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent." With that statement, he predicted today's mainstream American Freemasonry, where a tiny minority rules a group of good men who never speak up when it matters.

With the above statement and this one — "Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves are its only safe depositories" — he predicted our 21st century America.

And with this quotation, Jefferson set a course for our future, as Americans and as Freemasons: "Every generation needs a new revolution."

Image: "The Destruction of Tea at Boston Harbor." From an 1846 lithograph.

Masons | Masonic Principles | Thomas Jefferson | Freemasonry | Ron Paul | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

'Burning Taper' endorses Dr. Ron Paul for President

Today's political news brings us the woman whose husband didn't inhale reefer smoke apologizing to her opponent for making references to his admitted use of marijuana and cocaine as a teenager. On the other side of the aisle, the various "religious" candidates are poking each other in the eye with pointed crucifixes over whose God is bigger than whose.

It's painfully clear that none of the "major" candidates running for the U.S. presidency are qualified to be school crossing-guards, much less president of the United States of America.

Despite the supposed differences between candidates, should America elect Clinton, Obama, Edwards, Giuliani, Romney, Huckabee or that actor guy — the country will continue to slip-slide away from our once-proud ideals. Debt will continue to mount, personally and nationally. We'll entangle ourselves in further senseless wars, at home and abroad. Gas prices and taxes will continue to rise, and home values may continue to plummet as foreclosures increase. Much of the rest of the world will keep on hating us. Our Constitutional freedoms will continue to evaporate.

While the press bombards us with the daily antics of these seven clowns and buffoons, pretending there are no other candidates in the race, U.S. Representative Ron Paul of Texas is getting his message heard via the Internet.

I first heard of (and voted for) Ron Paul when he ran for president in 1988 on the Libertarian Party ticket. Then, as now, he was all but ignored by the mainstream media.

Why has the mainstream media ignored him? Because what he says makes sense, and if his policies were enacted, we'd soon live in a significantly different, and in my opinion, better world, a world in which much of the status quo would be overturned. Dr. Paul's message doesn't play well with entrenched pundits and mega-corp advertisers who thrive on keeping America titillated by sensationalist gossip, mudslinging and flag-waving while ignoring more serious, fundamental issues.

Who is Ron Paul?

Congressman Ron Paul is the leading advocate for freedom in our nation’s capital. As a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Dr. Paul tirelessly works for limited constitutional government, low taxes, free markets, and a return to sound monetary policies. He is known among his congressional colleagues and his constituents for his consistent voting record. Dr. Paul never votes for legislation unless the proposed measure is expressly authorized by the Constitution.In the words of former Treasury Secretary William Simon, Dr. Paul is the "one exception to the Gang of 535" on Capitol Hill.

Some background on Ron Paul as a U.S. representative:

• He has never voted to raise taxes.
• He has never voted for an unbalanced budget.
• He has never voted for a federal restriction on gun ownership.
• He has never voted to raise congressional pay.
• He has never taken a government-paid junket.
• He has never voted to increase the power of the executive branch.
• He voted against the Patriot Act.
• He voted against regulating the Internet.
• He voted against the Iraq war.
• He does not participate in the lucrative congressional pension program.
• He returns a portion of his annual congressional office budget to the U.S. treasury every year.
• Congressman Paul introduces numerous pieces of substantive legislation each year, probably more than any single member of Congress.

Ron Paul is the only candidate running for president whose record indicates an unwavering support of liberty and freedom.

The Burning Taper joins with countless other voices across the nation and across the Internet to support Dr. Ron Paul's campaign for president.

Last week a group of academics from across the U.S. endorsed Ron Paul, in part with these words:

A Paul administration would dramatically reduce the size and scope of the federal government over our lives and liberties. President Paul will work to abolish the Internal Revenue Service, emphasize free trade and diplomacy over confrontation, cease the war on drugs, which has destroyed the lives and liberties of the poor in inner cities, and end our error-ridden system of federal capital punishment. To accomplish these goals, and ensure that those in greatest need do not suffer during the transition, Paul will bring home the troops and abandon our ruinously expensive and futile effort to police the world.

Paul is the only presidential candidate with a proven record of defending academic freedom across-the-board. He has stood against efforts by both the political right and left to restrict the free discourse of ideas in higher education. He strongly opposes the use of speech codes to restrict academic freedom. For the same reason, he has spoken out against the so-called Academic Bill of Rights and other proposals that would empower politicians to impose "ideological balance" in the classroom. As Paul points out, these "speech codes of the right" would, if implemented, create a chilling effect on free and creative academic inquiry and teaching.

I couldn't have written it better myself. A Paul presidency would restore and renew our country, returning us to the ideals of which we still boast but seldom (or never) practice.

The Widow's Son and The Burning Taper endorse Dr. Ron Paul for President to restore the American principles of peace, individual liberty, personal responsibility, and limited government. You are urged to vote for Dr. Paul in your state's Republican primary.

Related link: Ron Paul's official campaign site

Image: U.S. Representative (R-Texas) Dr. Ron Paul

Presidential Endorsement | Ron Paul | 2008 Presidential Election | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Guest editorial: Accepting change within Freemasonry

The following is a guest editorial by Bro. Dylan, a Freemason in Canada.

What we are seeing is change happening, change within Freemasonry.

As a body, our Craft is very resistant to change, and rightly so. We are dedicated to preserving our Ancient Landmarks while at the same time not knowing exactly what they are! Some of the landmarks are obvious, well known and agreed on, but anyone who has done any light research knows that there is no definitive list of what they are....

Our very craft is shrouded in mystery, or as the ritual says "veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols." Nothing of the treasure of what Masonry holds in trust for mankind is given openly, obviously. There are no silver platters. We are effectively given a bunch of symbols and obscured meanings and told to go figure it out for ourselves. The meanings and revelations we uncover are innately personal, the Truth of the Mysteries really cannot be shared, it has to be worked for and earned. There is, and cannot be, one definitive form of Masonry. This is why it does differ around the world.

We must be resistant to change in order to make sure that we do not lose things that we do not yet understand the hidden meanings of. Visiting lodges that practice different work in different jurisdictions allows us to discover little pieces of ritual or practice that have already been lost in our own lodges.

But Freemasonry does change, anyone who has even glanced at the Ancient Charges can see that. There was a time when King Solomon was new to the Craft. There was a time when the third degree was a new invention. In our rituals we hearken back to the ancient Egyptians and great Greek philosophers — did they practice the work as we know it today? Did they even use the same set of symbols? — Some, but not all....

It does change. Everything in nature changes. In the natural world the only things that do not change are dead things, and if we study the Hidden Mysteries of Nature, we would understand that.

So Freemasonry is changing, but it does not change lightly or easily. We need both the old guard and the new wave, and we will continue to have them both. In another generation or two, we will go through the same thing again. If we study the history of our Craft we will also see that such change has indeed come before as well.

We need the old guard to defend what we do not fully understand — our Craft and our symbols.

We need the new guard to push for change.

The two together are a dynamic harmony that will play itself out. However, just like in every day life, what is happening provides new opportunities for each of us (including Grand Masters!) to identify rough spots on our own Ashlars. We each have a choice as to whether we wield the chisel to smooth out the rough spots, or to make them more pronounced....

At the end of the day, Masonry is a personal experience for us all.

— Bro. Dylan, Canada

Masons | Masonic Symbols | Freemasonry | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

WV's expelled past grand master invited to speak at Philalathes Society; his name disappears from WV grand lodge website

The Philalathes Society, a Masonic organization dedicated to research and dissemination of Masonic information, has invited recently expelled Past Grand Master Frank Haas of West Virginia to be the keynote speaker at their February 8, 2008 annual Feast and Forum in Alexandria, Virginia.

M. W. Bro Haas was expelled (many say illegally) last month by current West Virginia Grand Master M. W. Bro. Charles Montgomery. (See Montgomery's edict confirming expulsion, courtesy of the blog Masonic Crusade.)

Meanwhile, Bro. Hodapp at Freemasons for Dummies has astutely noted that Bro. Haas' name has disappeared from the Grand Lodge of West Virginia's website's list of past grand masters. Bro. Haas' name has been tossed down the memory hole.

Image: If you don't know who it is, it would be doubleplus unwise to even ask.

Masons | Masonic Villains | West Virginia Freemasonry | Freemasonry | Grand Lodge of West Virginia | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Square and compasses smashed during removal from 'offended' church

The square and compasses lies in pieces, smashed to the ground while being removed from the Masonic temple building in Elgin, Illinois, now owned by a church group.

Officials of the fundamentalist Christian Family Life Church threatened the Elgin City Council with a lawsuit if they weren't allowed to remove Masonic emblems from the historic building, the Chicago Tribune reported.

The square and compasses enclosing the letter G, along with the original cornerstone which contained Masonic symbols and wording, was considered "offensive" by church officials. Read the "statement of faith" of church founders and "prophetic apostolic overseers" Robert and Stacy Whitt.

The broken terra cotta S&C along with the now-removed cornerstone which reads "Laid By the Masonic Fraternity June 9 A.D. 1923=A.L. 5923" will be housed in the Elgin Area Historical Museum.

Speaking of the removal, Betty Coture, a member of the Elgin Heritage Commission, said, "I didn't really think they would do it. It is too bad that a church that came here and wants to do good things destroys our beautiful building."

A small time capsule in a copper box was found under the cornerstone. It has been given to Elgin Lodge No. 117, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons.

Previous stories on the Taper regarding this subject can be found here and here.

Image: The Masonic emblems on the building before their removal and near-destruction.

Masons | Christians | Historical Buildings | Freemasonry | Family Life Church, Elgin, Illinois | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Guest editorial: Authority of a grand master

Update, Tuesday, Dec. 11: Bro. Diogenes continues to update the story he tells here, providing names of those affected by the tyrannical acts of past grand masters in Arkansas. Be sure to read his updates in the comments section following this article.

Recently in the comments section of an article on The Burning Taper, a discussion has begun over whether grand masters have the legal authority to expel a brother without due process and a Masonic trial.

That such expulsions have taken place is without question. Witness recent events in Georgia and West Virginia.

But are these expulsions Masonically lawful or legal?

Bros. Gregg Hall and Theron Dunn were quick to jump on the "of course it's legal!" bandwagon, citing Georgia Code to prove that a grand master has authority to expel without trial. It's a bit amusing to have two brothers from California citing Georgia Masonic Code as if they're powdered-wig barristers, but they're welcome to their "considered opinions." After all, they've already proven to be experts on civil, criminal and Masonic law in Ohio.

In their pleadings in the court of public opinion, though, they confuse a grand master with a grand lodge.

The following guest editorial was written by a brother from Arkansas, who prefers to remain anonymous.

* * *

1-103 — Authority — The Grand Lodge is hereby declared the highest legitimate source of Masonic authority...

77-110 — Grand Lodge may Expel — The Grand Lodge may on its own motion expel any Georgia Mason, though not a member of its body and with or without the recommendation of the Constituent Lodge.
-----------------------------------------------

The people posting the information above are (intentionally or unintentionally) confusing the "Grand Lodge" with the "Grand Master."

The "Grand Lodge" is a GROUP. Typically, it convenes once each year, and consists of the "elected" Grand Master, Grand Wardens, Grand Deacons, and other grand officers. Depending on the jurisdiction, it may also include all active Worshipful Masters and principal officers of blue lodges in the jurisdiction, all Past Masters, all Grand Lodge committee members, etc..

The Grand Master is one man, who is the chief executive officer of the "Grand Lodge."

Unfortunately, in my home state of Arkansas, recent Grand Masters have endeavored to browbeat the craft into submission. When resolutions have been proposed for consideration at the annual Grand Lodge sessions, Grand Masters who oppose those resolutions have simply declared them "un-Masonic," and denied the members of the Grand Lodge an opportunity to vote.

In another notable instance, a Grand Master denied the assembled members of the Grand Lodge the right to vote on a candidate for Grand Lodge office. At the annual session of the Grand Lodge in February, 2005, Past Grand Master Arthur "Buddy" Mhoon (now deceased) attempted to nominate one of our state's most senior and respected brothers for Grand Master. The presiding Grand Master rapped him down, however, and told him he wouldn't accept that nomination, which was in opposition to his own handpicked successor.

When Masons here have expressed dismay and/or opposition to their Grand Master's actions, recent Grand Masters have simply declared those Masons "suspended pending trial," then appointed Grand Lodge "trial committees" composed of their closest friends to "try" the wrongfully accused brothers.

Trials in the lodges of the accused are not permitted, but are instead convened at the Grand Lodge offices, where only invited witnesses are allowed to attend, and crowds of ordinary Masons have been turned away at the door with threats of trespassing charges. Such trials can't be held on any "degree" of Masonry, because the accused have already been suspended, and therefore aren't entitled to attend "regular" lodge functions. Needless to say, no one has ever been acquitted under those circumstances, and never will be.

Arkansas Masonic law specifically says that "every man is to be presumed innocent until proven to be guilty," and the mere fact that charges are filed, does not deprive a brother of any of his Masonic rights or privileges. "No brother," it says "can be declared suspended or expelled" prior to Masonic trial, but that's happened more than 20 times in the last four or five years, and the only people who've tried to stand up for what's right, have become the newest names on the list.

If a significant number of Masons who perceive the wrongs would rally behind those who are persecuted, the situation would immediately change, but we've all forgotten the lesson of Grand Master Hiram Abiff, and courage within our fraternity is about as rare as it is among wildebeests facing lions on the African Serengetti.

God help us — we've become a fraternity of sheep led by wolves, "democratically" deciding on what to have for dinner. It's a sad, sad situation, with very little hope of remedy.

— Diogenes

Masons | Masonic Trial | Grand Masters | Freemasonry | Grand Lodge of Georgia | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Sound familiar? Episcopalian diocese breaks away from mother church to return to old ways

As above, so below. Or at least, as in the Church, so in Freemasonry.

Volunteer organizations based on metaphysical belief systems have a long and rich history of splitting off from one another when core beliefs among members clash. Martin Luther made breaking away from the mother church trendy when he nailed those theses to a door, thus beginning the Protestant Reformation, taking Christians down the road to centuries of divisiveness. Later, those Protestant churches further divided themselves into Lutherans, Southern Baptists, Anabaptists, Methodists, Anglicans, Episcopalians, Calvinists, Congregationalists, Amish, Quakers, and later still, Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons. By one count, there are over 30,000 various sects and denominations all calling themselves Christians.

I found today's announcement of the California Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin secession from the American Episcopal Church noteworthy because of how similar it is to recent events in American Freemasonry.

The diocese, which consists of 47 congregations, voted to separate from their mother church, and to affiliate with a foreign Anglican province, the conservative Anglican Province of the Southern Cone in South America, headed by Archbishop Gregory Venables of Argentina. It is estimated that another six or seven major U.S. dioceses will follow suit in the coming months (two others have already held their first vote; a second vote by each diocese is required to secede). These dioceses would together form a new Anglican Diocese of North America.

Thirty-two congregations have already quietly left the Episcopalian fold in the past four years. Another 23 have voted to do so, but haven't taken the final step yet.

Why are these congregations and entire dioceses turning their backs on their mother church? Why are they becoming renegades? Because they see the U.S. Episcopal Church as having betrayed their core Christian beliefs. They believe the Episcopal Church no longer is holding true to their original values and purpose.

Sound familiar?

The presiding bishop and chief pastor of the U.S. Episcopal Church has written to bishops warning them to stop and to be aware of "potential consequences."

Sound familiar?

"The Episcopal Church has said that people can depart, but they must leave their property, which, it contends, is held in trust for the church. The church and loyalist dioceses are already involved in several lawsuits against breakaway congregations that have insisted on keeping their property," the New York Times reported.

Sound familiar?

San Joaquin diocese spokesman Rev. Van McCalister said, "We have leadership in the Episcopal Church that has drastically and radically changed directions. They have pulled the rug out from under us. They've started teaching something very different, something very new and novel, and it's impossible for us to follow a leadership that has so drastically reinvented itself."

Sound familiar?

As an interesting footnote, one article on this subject mentions six historically prominent Episcopalians, three of them founding fathers of the United States (Washington, Franklin, Jefferson), and the other three 20th century presidents (Franklin Roosevelt, Gerald Ford, and George H.W. Bush). Four of those six were also Freemasons.

Image: Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, openly homosexual Bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire. His appointment as bishop in 2003 is the primary cause of the division within the U.S. Episcopal Church.

Thanks to Burning Taper reader Diogenes for the heads-up on this story.

Masons | Episcopalian Church | Diocese of San Joaquin | Freemasonry | Anglican Church | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Guest editorial: Who made who?

Who Made Who? by Bro. Jeff Peace

When was your lodge charted by the Grand Lodge of your jurisdiction? It may have been relatively recently or it could have been hundreds of years ago. Masons petition a Grand Lodge to form and charter new lodges, and that’s the way it's always been — or is it?

In the days of the operatives lodges were formed in the towns and cities for the purpose of managing the trade guild and negotiating wages. In a sense lodges were similar to the present day union hall. Sometimes lodges would be established at large construction sites such as cathedrals and forts for similar purposes. Their "union card" was the secret modes of recognition.

Lodges were self-creating business entities that represented the craftsman and were charted by state and/or local officials.

Grand Lodges were not things or places but events called by the monarch to bring all the Masters of the Craft together for the purpose of discussion and negotiation.

By the late seventeenth century the Masonic guild was in decline and they began accepting "gentleman Masons" into their lodges. The gentleman Masons were not craftsman but middle class businessmen and scholars.

In 1717 a unique event occurred when three of these lodges decided to form a Grand Lodge without consent of the monarch for the purpose of meeting and holding an annual feast. This is of interest because the lodges were entirely independent and sovereign. They created the Grand Lodge, and not the other way around.

They invited other independent and sovereign lodges to join their new Grand Lodge. Some did while others did not become a part of it. The Sts' Johns Masons flatly declined and the Masons at York decided to establish their own Grand Lodge.

Independent lodges continued to exist apart from the Grand Lodges until late in the eighteenth century.

As Freemasonry moved from being a practical trade guild into a benevolent speculative fraternity a method was established for the creation of new lodges whereby the Grand Lodges became the issuers of charters and not the government. It was in this way that Grand Lodge became the creator and lost sight of the fact that it was in fact a creation of the lodges.

The present monolithic system of Masonic government is the exact opposite of what the original founding lodges had intended. If we are to reform Freemasonry in the 21st century we need to begin by recognizing that the lodges are sovereign, and that the Grand Lodge serves the lodges. The Grand Master is not a benevolent dictator, but a servant of the Craft.

Masons still have the right to form independent lodges. These lodges are not clandestine or irregular. The whole concept of being clandestine and/or irregular was invented during the dispute between the Moderns and the Antients in England. It was a childish name-calling game then as much as it is now.

We need more independent lodges offering new and unique insights into Freemasonry. They may choose to form new Grand Lodges based on their ideas. This is the same as it was in 1717. The most important thing is not the survival of the present Grand Lodges, but the continuation of the Craft.

— Bro. Jeff Peace

Masons | Masonic History | Grand Lodges | Freemasonry | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Happy Christmas (War is Over)

December 8, 1980: Former Beatle John Lennon has been shot dead by an unknown gunman who opened fire outside the musician's New York apartment.

The 40-year-old was shot several times as he entered the Dakota, his luxury apartment building on Manhattan's Upper West Side, opposite Central Park, at 2300 local time.

He was rushed in a police car to St Luke's Roosevelt Hospital Center, where he died.

His wife, Yoko Ono, who is understood to have witnessed the attack, was with him.

Read more....




John Lennon | Happy Christmas | War is Over | Peace | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Guest editorial: Repulsion, revision, revolution, and reformation

Repulsion, revision, revolution and reformation by Diogenes

Much of the behavior exhibited these days in Masonic forums can only be described as repulsive. When people exhibit so little regard for each other's thoughts and concerns, it isn't just an embarrassment to Masonry, it's an embarrassment to all of humanity.

A common complaint is that Masonry hasn't kept pace with the times, and needs to be revised. Indeed, even the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction, has recently "revised" its rituals to eliminate the last vestiges of Albert Pike's work. I don't know if that makes the ritual better, but it's certainly less "ancient" than it used to be.

It seems to me, however, that Masonic "revision" is really just "evolution"; progressive changes over time, adopted to meet changing circumstances. When such changes occur quickly, or when they involve institutions rather than living entities, the term "revolution" is often applied, which in a nutshell, is really just institutional "evolution."

That said, I believe the phenomenon we're witnessing in American Masonry today can best be described as "Masonic reformation." It's very similar in motivation and philosophy to the "Protestant Reformation," ushered in by Martin Luther when he posted his list of "grievances" on the door of his local church (the "bulletin board" of its day).

From the time of Christ until the Protestant Reformation, Catholicism was the only "mainstream" and "officially recognized" form of Christianity. People who chose not to acquiesce to the authority of the Catholic Church, were not recognized as "real" Christians, and were widely denounced and persecuted by those who chose to remain subservient to the established authority.

Today, after hundreds of years of hostility and bloodshed, most Christians seem to have learned to tolerate different "denominations." A few still insist that theirs is the only "true" church, but most seem to accept the idea that people can arrive at the same salvation through different denominations, just like they can arrive at the same destinations in different types of automobiles.

How long will it take for Masons to realize that no one has an exclusive copyright on Freemasonry, or Masonic philosophy, and that no one has a right to point fingers and unilaterally declare that others are "clandestine," "bogus," or "fake"?

Will wars have to be fought, or blood have to be shed? Shall we go on witch hunts and vilify common "enemies" to unite us, or can we find room in our hearts, our minds, and our lodges to embrace our similarities, and set aside the petty differences that divide us?

We can all say what we want about brotherhood and brotherly love, but our actions will always speak louder than our words.

— Diogenes

Image: Diogenes, mid-17th century, by Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione, from Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain

Masons | Masonic Reformation | Diogenes | Freemasonry | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

For what it's worth

There's battle lines being drawn,
And nobody's right if everybody's wrong.
Young people speaking their minds,
And getting so much resistance from behind.

It's time we stop, hey what's that sound,
Everybody look what's going down.

What a field day for the heat,
A thousand people in the street.
Singing songs and a carrying signs,
Mostly saying hooray for our side.

— excerpted from Stephen Stills' For What It's Worth


I'm frankly disgusted, but not surprised, at the free-for-all that has developed between so-called "brothers" in the comments sections of at least three recent articles on The Burning Taper.

A small army of mainstream grand-lodge-right-or-wrong supporters have descended on this blog like a horde of the Wicked Witch's flying monkeys. The breakaway brothers, in some cases, have responded to the attacks upon themselves and their recent actions with equally caustic comments. No one, including the inaptly named "Objective," has really been objective. Everyone's been pushing their own "party line."

I'm hard-pressed to find even one comment out of some 300 or more so far that is becoming of a Mason. Even in my own most critical of articles over the past two years, I don't think I've come close to the negative, ad hominem diatribes, rants and pontifications many of you have been writing. You've degenerated into chimpanzees, chattering inanely while trying to mark your territories by throwing pieces of shit at each other.

Bro. Arthur Peterson of North Carolina has just drawn a line in the sand against Bro. Brad Cofield of California. If they didn't live on opposite coasts, 2,900 miles apart, they'd probably be duking it out at a local lodge hall.

Bro. Peterson:

"You asked if I would chose Br. Peterson as a mason given the choice, and of course the answer is yes."

Hhhhmmm, Gotta problem with me Brad Cofield?

If you care to address your concerns about me with me personally, like a man would do, I am here.

I stopped posting to blogs, but for you I will make an exception.

So tell me Brad, what is the problem with me?

Fair warning though, I will not handle you with kid gloves. Others have been very patient with you. Some see you as a misguided child. I do not, and won't treat you as such. So, if you care to discuss personality traits, lets do it.

Br. Arthur Peterson

The levels of anger and self-righteousness coming from the entrenched majority old-school blue lodgers is amazing. I haven't seen anything like it before, not even the evening my own lodge went bananas back in early 2005 when I, as Director of Masonic Education, gave a lecture that mentioned our Grand Lodge's rules that sectarian religion shouldn't be discussed in a tyled lodge.

Then, I had gently reminded my brothers that we weren't supposed to be talking about or praying to Jesus in lodge meetings — according to Masonic law and tradition — and a bucket of rattlesnakes was turned over.

Here and now, brothers are up in arms over the fact that other Masons have made unilateral decisions — to start new lodges or grand lodges, or to break away from the established grand lodge system to practice what they see as Freemasonry. A dozen or so of mainstream Masonry's Online Spin Doctors have put themselves on the front lines, 24/7, it seems, to fight for their Lofty Ideals against the Masonic Malcontents.

And the Masonic Malcontents, pressed to the wall by the Spinners' shouts of "unmasonic!," "oath-breaker!," "Goofus!" "thieves!", and "you're no longer my brother!", have fought back, and not necessarily as gentlemen, either.

Even as I write this, another dozen or so comments have appeared on those three articles — none of them especially germane to the original points of the articles. Just more "my Masonry is better than your Masonry" stuff.

Ordinarily, I'd enjoy the attention the Taper is getting. Readership and comments are what makes a blog interesting. The stats programs show readership has nearly doubled in the past few weeks. I assume many brethren have been coming here to learn the latest news about Halcyon and Euclid Lodges and about the new Grand Orient of the United States of America.

It's a shame that now all these new visitors are seeing is the ongoing, same-ol' same ol' bickering of a dozen or so so-called practitioners of Brotherly Love — from both sides.

Disagreement is healthy, and I've encouraged it here since Day One. Masons disagree all the time, about life, the universe, and even Masonry. But we're to do it civilly.

During the Civil War, Masons from both sides of the fight put down their weapons and conversed with each other in brotherly fashion, even if just for a while. I'm sure they acted a damn sight more civil to each other than Masons have here (and on many other forums and blogs) lately.

The Masonic world is watching.

Take a break. Go file charges against yourself for being unmasonic. Or at least spend a few hours in your chamber of reflection. Imagine yourself in your "enemy's" apron. Can you at all understand his point of view? Can you at all understand why he believes the way he does?

Two months ago I wrote that I had become Master of my own lodge. Today I'm promoting myself, to Grand Master of this blog.

EDICT #1
December 4, 2007

• You will at all times while on this site behave as ladies and gentlemen. If you have a difference of opinion with someone, please express it, but express it with style, substance and grace, not ad hominem attacks or "fighting words." And once you've made your point, move on. Constantly repeating yourselves reminds me of a bunch of clucking old hens.


• Any use of the word "unmasonic" in any of its forms, or similar word(s), or the accusation against a brother Mason of having broken his oath, shall be accompanied by a copy of charges of said unmasonic conduct you have filed with the Secretary or Junior Warden of the accused brother's lodge. Accusation without formal charges is a Masonic offense.


• Lighten up.

The comments section of The Burning Taper will be closed for approximately 24 hours (until around 6 pm ET, Wednesday, Dec. 5). Please use this time to go stand in the corner and think about what you've done.


WE ARE NOT HELPLESS

We are not helpless, we are men
What lies between us
It can be set aside and ended
Ev'ryday we learn more how to hate
Shut the door
And then we tell ourselves we can relate
Only to the ones who are the same
Yet even they are diff'rent
And ever so they shall remain

All are strangers, all are friends
All are brothers, brothers
Open up, my friend, and learn to hear
For even lying
When it has nothing you should fear
If you cannot let yourself be known
By anyone
Then you are hiding and not whole

All are strangers, all are friends
All are brothers, brothers
We, your children, we would ask you all
Please do not hide your eyes
And listen when we call
We will whisper, shout or make a scene
We are the answer
For we can live the peace we dream

All are strangers, all are friends
All are brothers, oh yeah, oh yeah
Yes, America's children
Are askin' ev'rybody some questions about how it is
Yes, America's children
Are makin' it hard to look them in the eyes
America's children
Are makin' it hard to live lies, you know, whoa, it is
And America's children

Are diggin' that ev'rywhere children
Are diggin' we live on the earth
We live on the earth, we live on the earth right now
Yes, and it's right on, children of the earth, and it's right on
Children of the earth, and it's right on
Children of the earth and it's right on, right on, yeah

This is what has made our nation free
For life is change
And only blind men cannot see
The new order is upon us now
It is the children
They have the wisdom to be free
All are strangers, all are friends
All are brothers

— by Stephen Stills

Image: Carp food

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Bro. Rich Graeter's new paper is chemotherapy for Freemasonry

Last night W. Bro. Richard Graeter published to the Internet his impressive Masonic paper titled Reform Freemasonry! A Vision for the Future of Freemasonry. I sat up into the late hours reading it, and found it to be a treasurechest of positive ideas that, if implemented, would pump new life into an ailing American Freemasonry.

Drawing on ideas of notable Masons before him as well as 21st century business management techniques, Bro. Rich blends together a prescription for the fraternity that could save the patient, restoring Freemasonry to its former health and glory.

Author’s Note

There is a substantial and growing body of work addressing the decline of Freemasonry in the 21st Century. The decline has been so painfully obvious for so long that the body of work analyzing its causes stretches back decades. With the advent of the Internet and online publishing, forums, and BLOGS, the growth in the conversation of this topic has become exponential. Over the years I have added my voice to this cacophony as well. My favorite target to blame for all our misfortunes was failed leadership, particularly at the grand lodge level. But I was wrong. I have come to understand that I had mistaken what was merely the symptom of the disease (failed leadership) for the disease itself.

The good news is that I believe that the disease afflicting Freemasonry is curable. But treatment will not be easy. Like a radical treatment regimen for cancer, it will be painful and may even cause the patient to become more ill over the short term. But, the patient is still strong; is possessed of a good heart and a noble sprit; and, if it can face the brutal truth with courage, it will prevail.

Bro. Rich's paper is divided into five sections that look towards the future of Freemasonry.

The first section, Voices in the Wilderness, reviews four selected publications from the current body of work that addresses the future of Freemasonry.

The second section, How to Preserve and Stimulate Freemasonry, applies the discipline of the Business Week best-selling book Built To Last, by authors Jim Collins and Jerry I. Porras, to Freemasonry as an organization. Jim Collins is a student and teacher of enduring great companies — how they grow; how they attain superior performance; and, how good companies can become great companies. His books have been fixtures on the Business Week bestseller list and have been translated into 25 languages. His work has been featured in Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Harvard Business Review, and Fast Company.

The third section, Something To Believe In, explores the three building blocks that are essential for building an organization that can move the hearts and minds of its members and some of the reasons behind the failure of our grand lodge organizations from being able to accomplish this goal.

The fourth section, The Grand Hairball, adapts the sage advice of corporate gurus Dr. Oren Harari and Gordon MacKenzie to the masonic context, and presents some conclusions on one possible root cause of the disease afflicting Freemasonry, as well as proposing some chemotherapy for grand lodges that could help lead to a cure.

The concluding section, Freemasonry 3.0, closes with a radical vision for the wholesale reorganization of the body of Freemasonry should grand lodges fail to take progressive action to respond to the needs, hopes, and aspirations of today's young Freemason. Freemasons were meant to be great innovators, and it's about time that we restore this legacy.

Bro. Rich's well-researched and well-thought-out paper is destined to become a Masonic classic. I urge you to read it, think about it, discuss it, and implement some of the ideas it presents.



Author's note and Introduction reprinted with permission.

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