My postings to The Burning Taper have been scant lately. I've had business and personal issues to deal with, and frankly, lately my interest in Freemasonry has waned a bit.It's now been over a year since I was ostracized by my “brothers” in my local blue lodge. Only a couple have I kept in touch with, and they were friends before I was a Mason.
As I was thinking of writing this article — about how I feel today about Freemasonry — I read an email backchannel that was sent by a Mason out West to a blue lodge secretary and to the Grand Master of Texas, informing them that one of their members had recently been arrested in a sting operation involving solicitation of sex from a minor.
That brought back memories of my experiences in my own blue lodge in 2005, when a member pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a minor in my hometown.
As then-webmaster of our lodge's website, I posted the news online (pursuant to Georgia Masonic Code, which states that information of that sort should be publicized to show the community that the lodge doesn't tolerate such behavior), and met with a torrent of criticism from my lodge brothers saying, “You can't put that online!” They didn't want the lodge, or the child exploiter's father, a Past Master, “embarrassed.”
As Junior Warden, it fell to me to “be in charge” when the lodge finally voted — remorsefully, as if it was the lodge's fault — to bring charges of unmasonic conduct against the brother who was by then a registered sex offender.
As JW, I signed the paperwork that led to the Masonic trial. The offender, and his Past Master Big-Shot-in-Town father took offense at me personally for having written up the charges, though I had never even met either one of them. Neither had attended a lodge meeting in years.
The full story can be found in parts 1-4 of “Small Town Freemasonry.”
Eventually, in a great imitation of Don Corleone, the father succeeded in having bogus charges of unmasonic conduct threatened against me. He even attended the meeting where another Past Master (who is in line to be Georgia's Grand Master in a few years) stood and accused me of unmasonic conduct for posting the information online. No official charges were ever filed, just threatened, to keep me “in line” until my term as Junior Warden officially ended in December, 2005.
Though of course advancement to the next chair is not guaranteed, here in the South, it's virtually assured. I've seen some most unqualified men advance to the East just because “it was his turn.”
Naturally, before all this happened, it was assumed I would become Worshipful Master when “my turn” came.
But at the election last December, I was unceremoniously dumped from the line by a vote of 27-4. The Godfather and the Heir to the Grand Master's Chair had called in their markers... brothers I'd never seen showed up to vote against me. (I'd missed only two meetings in three-plus years; I knew all the “regulars.”) I was also “deposed” as Director of Masonic Education, a position I'd held with pride for a couple of years. I was replaced by a “team” that could be controlled — a pig farmer who thinks of himself as a minister of God, and a new brother I had helped raise about two months before. I can only imagine the education those two have provided this past year since I've been gone.
It was a given that the Powers That Be didn't want me to come back to lodge meetings after that, and so I haven't.
Tuesday, December 11, is another election, the one I'd looked forward to for years, the one where I would most likely have received the honor of serving as Worshipful Master for 2007.
Ain't gonna happen.
I assume the Powers That Be (unaffectionately remembered as Jubela, Jubelo and Jubelum, plus Big Daddy and his pal Bro. Heir to the Grand Master's Throne) are still running things at the lodge, making sure they have their yes men in the Chairs and on their committees.
Same as it ever was.
“Making Good Men Better,” my ass. More like “Making Good Men Stop Attending.”
Image: The state of Masonry in the southern United States today — empty and devoid of any real meaning
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I, like you have grown sickened at the sanctimonious Bullsh*t that passes for masonry in some Blue Lodges. These same lodges have devolved into forums for self-aggrandisement and BBQ's. The only people that these lodges help...are themselves.
ReplyDeleteOf course, WS... you know that the snakes will now come out of their holes and condemn us as "disgruntled, expelled masons" just sowing discontent. Nevermind that we we were never expelled. If the facts don't support their purpose...they just glance over them and make up their own truths. Wait a minute!!! I think I hear Mr. E. King screaming obscenities in the background as he logs on to his computer to put us all in our right place.
Darren
the Infamous F. Roy Dean Schlipp!!!
Yes, Brother, sad indeed!
ReplyDeleteI myself,with about 4 or 5 other brethren havrun into the same mentality in our neck of the woods.
It really is disheartening......
And the statement I can't stand is" oh, just wait , and a cuple of masonic funerals will go by and these people will be gone", well, that is un masonic and BS. Why, because only anointed lemmings fill in when that happens and status quo ensues.
bleak future
I've been reading your blog for several weeks now. It's very clear that you are a "pot-stirrer". I'm not passing judgement as to whether "pot-stirrers" are good or bad. But it is clear that you "get off" by doing so. In a similar fashion, your "opponents" in Lodge are guys who enjoy the clandestine effects of being in a "secret" society. Thirdly, there are the "know nothings" who are easily manipulated.
ReplyDeleteSo, we have covered 3 of the "types" that inhabit Lodges. None of them are important, really. The only guys who matter are the quiet ones who do their job and ask for nothing in return. There are one or two in every Lodge I've visited. Watch those guys. Study and emulate them. That is why you SHOULD have become a Mason.
Widow's Son,
ReplyDeleteNo matter how hard it may be for you, you should try to remember what Great and Good things Masonry has done for you and your life. Remember that it is you who have been holding to Masonic ideals in this case, and the brethren who seem to have conspired against you were acting unMasonic. It isn't Masonry's fault, it seems to be the "good ol' boys" fault.
I sympathize with your situation because I have experienced similar 'persecutions' from "my own people", but in my situation this has been religiously rather than Masonically. But forgiving the offender is the only really good way out. Masonry is supposed to be an organization to make good men better. If the good men go elsewhere or even just stop showing up, who is going to be there to raise the bar, to set a good (and perhaps very humble) example by living according to their obligations and the principal tenets of Masonry. Who will be left? You seem to be a critical example to new brethren that may come into your lodge. So what if you'll never be the Worshipful Master at that lodge. Somewhere, some day, you may get that chance in a place and time where those who are unhappy with you now are long gone.
You also have numerous brethren the world over who appreciate you, or would if they got to know you. Don't forget the worldwide fraternity just because some or even most of your local brethren have gone sour.
I too am SICK of the self-imposed "leaders" in the Blue system. For 50 years or more they have been the very ones that have torn down the Temple of Free-Masonry. The rancor, the rot, the stitch of a decaying system that murdered honor, brotherhood, leadership, and fraternal love.
ReplyDeleteI am suppose to sit back and "be told" I am clandestine, bogus, expelled and un-fit to be a Mason.
They can all go to Hell for one thing I know for sure WS, "a few good men" are real Masons and I am glad to know you as such!
Yes, don't stir the pot, you pot-stirring pot-stirrer!
ReplyDeleteEverything is wonderful. Remain quiet. Ignore failures of the system. Everything is going to be juuuuuuust fine.
Isn't there anything at all you can do? Is there not a higher authority you can appeal to?
ReplyDeletePerhaps the pot needs to be stirred with a Roto-Rooter. Seems like pretty much the same stuff in the pot. Just what do you do about the stench? :)
ReplyDeleteDarren
Brother Widows Son,
ReplyDeleteDon't give up hope yet. I've always enjoyed reading your blog, even though I've been sickened sometimes by what some people out there are calling "Masonry" where you live. But it's not that way everywhere you go. There are some lodges out there that actually do try to improve their members, get involved in real Masonic Education, and try to improve the community.
I know here in Iowa, the Grand Master is working on doing away with having a Grand Lodge Reception for every Grand Officer (and actually just had an open house himself), and is instead making sure that his Grand Officers get out and help the Lodges in their vicinity, and the guy who is next in line (Yes, I'll admit, we have an election for GM from a pool of one candidate that the ingoing GM appoints at the start of his year) will likely continue the trend of taking our GL in a new direction.
In my limited experience (I've only attended 3 or 4 different lodges' stated meetings in my 3 years of being a MM), we also do have real Masonic Education - what the compasses mean, what various parts of the initiation ceremonies _really_ mean (Like what the length of a cable-tow originally meant) and so on.
Ultimately, Brother, don't give up hope. Somewhere, Masonry
Sorry, I think I forgot to finish that last post.
ReplyDeleteSomewhere, Masonry is doing something good. I'm saddened that it isn't happening in your area, but I hope that some day, the true ideals of Masonry will shine through in every lodge.
BORING
ReplyDeletestir the pot and get the underside of the bud... re- lite it then , take a drag and sit back and wacth those silent brothers on the side in silence watching all the BS go on, and say nothing and do nothing, those are the masons we should emulate instead of Geo Washington , Ben Franklin, John Hancock,Paul Revere, luis and clark, john marshall daby crocket, etc.... sit back, be quiet and do nothing is what the GL's want out of their lemmings.
ReplyDeleteDid someone refer to Geo. Washington?
ReplyDeleteGeo & co. were great men who lived in exiting times.
They were great men from their youth - who HAPPENED to join the Masons later on.
They were not the PRODUCTS of Freemasonry.
None of us here are great. None of us here is going to change the world - much less change Masonry.
The best we can do is change ourselves - for the better.To do that, though, you must LOOK...at YOURSELF...at YOUR FAULTS - not the other guy's faults.
If you want to look at the others, like I said, look at the ones quietly doing their JOB.
I didn't know being a Mason was a (job) I thought one was made a Mason FIRST in his heart.
ReplyDeleteFree-Masonry is an ideal, a way of life, a fraternal bond. Not something that is run as a tyrannical dictator ruling with so-called "claimed rights of authority" or by a group of leaders who are promised titles hats, and chains. All of which are empty meaningless trinkets for self-gratification.
Free-Masonry is more than being someones robot.
Brother,
ReplyDeleteBefore I start, I must state that I've been up for almost 48 hours now, so I apologize in advance for spelling, grammatical, and other errors.
I empathize with your sorrow, and I can share your frustration at the control still exerted by the status-quo.
I cannot however sustain your disdain. We are the masters of our destiny. Change comes not without a catalyst. Trend-setters pay the price for all those that follow them, and the courage of their convictions is measured in their perseverance through hardship. If you simply bow out. If you choose to wallow, then your courage and character are revealed.
The only reason you weren't elected is because you were convinced you need do nothing to ensure you were elected. The Trial is not the cause. You are. 27-4. 31 Brothers Total. You needed only 10 Brothers.
The most powerful agent of change you have is the Petition.
Are you to say that there are no avenues you have left to explore that would not generate good, quality men. Men with whom the foundational bond of Masonry would be yours. Men whom you could not freely tell, that they too can be an instrument of change, and are coming into hardship with great rewards. Dear Brother, few things motivate good men better than adversity as it is an opportunity to test their character.
Are you to say, that within a one hour drive from your Lodge, there are not Brothers from other Lodges who you could not convince to join you in change?
I am not advocating that you hand-out petitions simply to change your Lodge. I am speaking to the notion that no where in this country is there a single location devoid of good and committed men who are duly and truly prepared, worthy and well qualifed to receive the mysteries of our order. We need only to open our eyes. Clearly, your vision is impaired, or you are not actively engaged in meeting potential Brothers.
There is only a decreasing number of the old-guard left, no matter how powerful. Call in the markers as they will, your agents of change can only grow in number.
Surely, within 60 miles of your Lodge there are at least 15 worthy men, interested in Freemasonry, who would be agreeable to joining a Lodge with the understanding that they are coming in on the ground floor of new and exciting developments.
I envy you. You are not an officer, you are not bound by an additional obligation to the Will of the Lodge. You are a free agent, able to engage in any enterprise. If I were you, the first thing I would do is take over Masonic Education. Get the phone numbers of new Brethren, and invite them to your house. Bond with them. Talk to them. Teach them.
What a great opportunity lies before you - you need only seize it.
PoTS
J.
I must say that you are right. I am a Mason of the Grand Lodge of New York. What we have in our Lodge are elderly men running from their wives, who tend to be horribly unsuccessful in other facets of life (not that this makes them any less men or Masons) who overcompensate by imagining that the titles and trappings give them grandeur and then sit around after sullenly eating boiled franks...
ReplyDeleteI have made a vast difference in a number of areas and have been pretty successful by most measures. Having said that, I have derived great benefit from the code of Masonry and I think that has translated into my life. Sadly, it is the rituals, found in the Monitor, not the actual institution.
In the institution I have found everything from the trite to the disgusting. Individual Blue Lodge officers and others that steal money, Grand Lodge cronies and insiders that skim millions from real estate deals, and dues, a fetid hostility to youth and diversity, a sort of reverse classism (most Lodge folks tend to come from "lower working class" backgrounds), misuse of charitable entities (and Brotherhood fund monies that support them)...
For all of these egregious sins, it is the petty sins, such as pushing young men away, effective segregation, filling up Camp Turk slots with GL leaders' grandchildren and children, giving money and "jobs" in the Lodge and charitable endeavors to children and cronies, the general abscence of healthy, across the board tangible efforts at mutual support, etc.
I am not disgruntled with Masonry, and I am not an ex-Mason. I am disgruntled with the awful sort of people who have taken over some part of our institution.
Perhaps some folks need to get together and do something. I can say that I attempted to, bringing in a dozen members (who the GL and cronies dispersed for fear of too many people in a Lodge who had a connection with each other outside them). The fellows actually tried volunteering their professional services (lawyers, doctors, accountants, teachers, etc.) for weekend events but the GL and the WM's literally stopped them from volunteering their efforts. We brought 30 college fraternity men from a local Ivy League University who wanted to come by show their ceremony to demonstrate to Masons how it was born of and still similar to Masonry. The Grand Lodge Officers turned them down, and did so pretty roughly.
And then there is the case of discrimnation against Muslim brethren in New York State, where over ten percent of the population is said to be Muslim, formerly practicing Muslim or have a Muslim parent...
M.•.W.•. Neal Bidnick , R.•.W.•. Edward G. Gilbert, R.•. W.•. Bro. Breheny, R.•.W.•. Walt Gillis... I could go on.
To fm:
ReplyDeletere: " I didn't know being a Mason was a (job)"
Masonry is a job. It is work. That's why we call it "labor". It's a place to chip off YOUR rough edges, not someone else's rough edges. You should kiss the butt of the scummy types in the Lodge for they are telling you where YOUR rough spots ARE.
re: "Free-Masonry is an ideal, a way of life, a fraternal bond. Not something that is run as a tyrannical dictator ruling with so-called "claimed rights of authority" or by a group of leaders who are promised titles hats, and chains. All of which are empty meaningless trinkets for self-gratification.
Freemasonry is above all an ORDER. Therefore, there are those that issue ORDERS and those that are BOUND to obey those ORDERS. The tyranny is BUILT-IN. Its to teach you one of the 3 SACRED VOWS: OBEDIENCE. If you learn that lesson, you may someday be the ONE giving the ORDERS. If that day ever comes, I'm sure your ORDERS will be pure gold!
To big city fella:
re: "I am disgruntled with the awful sort of people who have taken over some part of our institution"
You seem to be telling us that in the days of yore there were few if any "awful types". What makes you think that? You are dreaming. The awful types have always been there. You're just a NEWCOMER.
Well, 8 years is a new comer... Didn't realize. Six generations of Masons but what was I thinking... So if I stick to accepting awful things at the Grand Lodge of New York for a few decades then I will be inured to them? I hope not.
ReplyDeleteObedience- as in the laws of Masonry, not as in corruption, misdeeds and mismanagement at the Grand Lodge of New York, IMHO. If the Craft is about obeying these things (and perhaps you are right) then the Craft is pretty worthless.
I think it is sad Jeff that you are not going to be great or change the world. It is your prerogative of course but you shouldn't project.
I think I see why the Grand Lodge of New York has its problems. There are some people who are simply apologist, others that need to feel better about themselves through colorful names, ceremonies and dress up but few who care about Masonry itself...
I think W.S. is nothing more than a pot stirrer as well. It looks like you like to cry over spilled milk. You are the type of person who got dumped by his girlfriend in high school and can't put his life back together. B-O-O H-O-O I got kicked out of the Blue Lodge. Get over it you cry baby. Be a man about the situation. Post some worthy stuff about the lodge and stop all this useless bitching and moaning sissy boy.
ReplyDeleteI agree with j.'s comments earlier. There is a cost associated with breaking the old ways and forging new ones. There are some Masons who are built to perform that task. We are the lightning rods who take the heat, trigger the foment and make the path clear for the Brothers who follow us. My road to the East was not an easy one either, but every argument, every fight for change, every irritating evening has proven worthwhile as I see what my Mother Lodge has become.
ReplyDeleteI am proud of what we have accomplished; I am proud of the men who came after me and where they have taken the lodge. At the same time, I now recognize myself in the grumpy guys who I tussled with during the last ten years. While it cannot make me agree with them when I would not, it does give me a sense of empathy and compassion.
As for your particular case, my Brother, I understand well the place to which you have been and the anger and loss you must feel. No Brother here can blame you for what you feel or your desire to walk away shaking your head. None of us can ask you to take another path. Yet in the few quiet moments of life, think of the relationship with your Brothers whom you love. Those men you brought into the Craft. Can you teach them? Can you mold them into the men whom Freemasonry (or Free-Masonry for that matter) needs? Can you work with them to forge the future of our beloved Craft?
I hope so...
christian
a rough ashlar
Br.,
ReplyDeleteWhat a tragedy! I had nothing to do with the offenses and can not verify them, but as a Brother, I take your word and I am sorry. Unfortunately, we can all list stories of the 'bad' Mason/Masons and the wrongs that we have had to endure, but Masonry is good and far better than most organizations. Simple and stupid, yes, I conform to the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) principle and Charlie Brown (easy enough for Charlie Brown to understand) Mentalities.
Do not ever feel that you can not say what you feel, because that is what we as Brothers care about, each other. The only thing we have to do is follow some tried and true procedures. 1) Inform the offender with tact and consideration, 2) Seek the help of a Worthy Brother, or Brothers if need be, and 3) act for improvement, not destruction, the offender/s will destroy themselves. I suppose a few other guides are important, but this is a good start.
I am usually not involved in these types of things, but I was referred to this site by a new Brother in Masonry. I gave him a few other sites to consider and am genuinely concerned with your plight. I also recognized a former IA Brother in the comments, I am now an AL Brother.
Masons are not, never have been, and will never be perfect, but there are those that have learned to use the system and intimidate others to an almost perfection. How sad.... I have rekindled my hope in mankind from the Masons. I have begun to read my Master Mason Bible (I have never read the Bible from cover to cover before) and continue the study of History, for which I have a BA. I have also met some of the best men ever and shared some of the most free conversations of some of the most interesting topics, by far not all Masonic.
You are unfortunate to not have been Master of your Lodge, but I was unfortunate to have been Master of a Lodge. I dove into the middle of problems in an IA Lodge and was threatened and then forgotten. Masonry did not do this to me, Masons and an unfortunate situation did this to me, but there are so many more good examples of Worthy Brothers than not and we need to remember that there are always more sides to a story than our own.
Why did you become a Mason? What did/does it mean to you? What good is there to Masonry? Answer these questions and think of some more. I truly am sorry Brother that you had something as bad as this happen to you, but I am happy that you are a Mason and hope that you can remain a Worthy Brother, because that is our responsibility as Brothers and it will not be a detriment to you.
Fraternally,
Keith Zech
Husband and Father
Brother
PM Twilight Lodge #329 (IA)
York & SR Member
PVM KSA Sioux City AASR Valley
Disabled/Retired US Army Vet
Thank you for your kind words, Bro. Keith.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Masonry is good. That's why I'm still here, and why I'm still a Mason.
— W.S.
I hate to rub it in, but this sort of thing would NEVER happen under the UGLE. The brother who had committed the crime would be slung out, no matter who his relatives were.
ReplyDeleteBrother Ant:
ReplyDeleteIn the south, the battlecry of rural Freemasons is "that's the way we do it here."
Masonic rules and Masonic code is only followed when it suits the purposes of the "big dogs."
— W.S.
THIS IS B.S. ANTIMASONS ALREADY SAY WE RITUALLY MOLEST CHILDREN. WE DON'T NEED THIS! I FEEL THAT MOLESTING MASONS SHOULD BE KILLED BY THE BRETHREN. ONE DAY, THEY JUST DISAPPEAR. THERE ARE THINGS A MASON JUST DOES NOT DO. OF COURSE WE KNOW WHAT WOUNDS WILL BE FOUND ON THE BODY, DON'T WE? MORE THAN THE TONGUE SHALL BE REMOVED! MASONRY OCCURRS IN THE "GRAY AREA" OF LIFE, WHERE SOMETIMES A COP MIGHT LET US SLIDE FOR FRATERNAL REASONS. HOWEVER THE BALANCE SHOULD BE A HIGHER PENALTY THAN THE PROFANE RECIEVE FOR SUCH DISGUSTING OFFENSES THAT WILL FUEL ANTIMASONRY FOR DECADES! A DEMON REALLY HAS ENETERED THE LODGE,THE DEMON OF IGNORANCE!
ReplyDeleteAs a Worshipful Master about to leave the East at the end of my year, I am saddened by the story within this post. You should find yourself another Lodge of like minded men and request a transfer. I think there may be a bit more to the story than what you have told but a "big shot" past master with a threat of bringing unmasonic conduct charges to protect his child molesting son is just wrong. Don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise and know that there are lodges where this would be neither allowed nor tolerated.
ReplyDeleteBut...
Feeling the need to publicly announce the transgressions of another is neither masonic nor condoned. It was an affront to a past master and still current member of your lodge. It should not have been posted on your Lodges website without the explicit permission of the Worshipful Master and the consent of the Lodge. You may have been "webmaster" but you were not the MASTER of your Lodge. If a webmaster of our Lodge had published something to our site without my review (as Master) and approval, I would have immediately removed you from the role, demanded the keys and asked you to reevaluate your position in the Lodge. At the very least you should have discussed it with the past Master (give him due and timely notice that he may ward off approaching danger) and not chose to wrong a Masters Masons Lodge nor a Brother of this degree, knowingly.
You pledge this under the penalty yourself. Reflect on this. My .02.
John 15:1 KJV
ReplyDeleteI am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
1 Corinthians 3:13 KJV
Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
As it is written, by the Word which is true, so shall it be done. It is wont to happen at times in life that one should lose what wickedness he has devised and built, so that the loss may clear new ground and allow the good seed to be planted. God is the husbandman, and that which grows not from His seed shall be rooted up and thrown into the fire.
Proverbs 12:3 KJV
A man shall not be established by wickedness: but the root of the righteous shall not be moved.
The fact that freemasonry encourages success and 'spiritual development' (by rigid adherence to the morals/values of men and by philosophical delusions) in this world without using the true seed of God (His Word, in the faith of Jesus Christ), only shows that members have roots in something temporary, the darkness of this world. The true light of God, spoken of in the book of John, is the life of men; Jesus Christ and His commandments.
Jeremiah 23:36 KJV
And the burden of the Lord shall ye mention no more: for every man's word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the Lord of hosts our God.
Romans 8:13 KJV
For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.
Romans 14:11 KJV
For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
Psalm 42:2 KJV
My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?
Daniel 6:26 KJV
I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end.
James 4:15 KJV
For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
Numbers 14:21 KJV
But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.
Psalm 118:17 KJV
I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.
Psalm 69:32 KJV
The humble shall see this, and be glad: and your heart shall live that seek God.
Jeremiah 38:2 KJV
Thus saith the Lord, He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey, and shall live.
Psalm 72:15 KJV
And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: prayer also shall be made for him continually; and daily shall he be praised.
Isaiah 38:19 KJV
The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth.
John 6:57 KJV
As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
1 Samuel 17:26 KJV
And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?
Psalm 22:26 KJV
The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.
Ezekiel 33:13 KJV
When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.
For more similar search results:
http://www.youversion.com/search?q=and+you+shall+live&category=bible&version=kjv
To get helpful info from other ex-masons who have returned to Christ:
http://www.emfj.org/
May God bless you, in the love of Jesus Christ, our only Lord, Master, and Savior,
Benjamin Woodruff
Your frustration at not having been elected Worshipful master has stayed with me from some time. I share the thought of the other Brother who wrote to you saying that the difference in the tally was only 10 votes (if I remember correctly) and that had you beat the bushes you could have beat the opposition. While I share tha view Ii have two additional views to add:
ReplyDelete(1) GAOTU WILLING. Freemasonry is non-sectarian we know but it is still centered upon a belief in a Supreme Being. In your writing I did not see where you had activated the force of the GAOTU in your favor. I did not read where yo prayed to the GAOTU (as you were taught to do in both your EA and MM formatting experiences where, in the latter, you were caused to pray for yourself (at least that’s in MY ritual. Judging by what I read here and in your other powerful blogs, I wonder what’s in an Alabamian ritual but I digress). Maybe if you had prayed to the GAOTU 8and then left it up to Him yo8 would have had peace with your loss.
(2) Going back to your EA you will recall what it was that you came here to do: to lean to subdue your passions and improve yourself in Masonry. Nothing in the contract guarantees you to become Master; nothing. You got what you came for. You got what you paid for; to become a Mason. Besides the headache which governing a bunch of nonreaders [those who do not read their own Grand Lodge authoritarian publications, bellyachers and Jubelos gives you, the only thing you get from being a Past Master is the right to wear a beautiful apron. Yet when you sit and scrape off all the purple and gold what remains is a plain white apron. Every Past Master is a Master Mason
My kind advice to you is to stop pinning to become a Worshipful Master. Leave that up to the GAOTU whose lodge it is, whose Work it is. Be determined to be a great Mason which, in my opinion, you are or else you would not have lit up The Burning taper. Keep your head in your feedbag. Keep your nose on the grass. Keep your mind in your ritual. For that is where The Masonry is. Feed on your ritual as does a bull-grass and a horse oats. In no time at all you will become sleek and fast, big and strong, great a Mason. THEN the Brothers will bet on such a horse; wouldn’t you?. Then the Brothers will want a slice of that prime beef wouldn’t you? Then the Brothers will vote you in; wouldn’t you?. Then you will be a great Worshipful Master. Need I say More? Let me know. If this isn’t clear I have more. No, that’s not right; the Ritual has more to say. As does Claudy and Mackey, on the subject; whose works you should be reading instead of licking your wounds over the assaults of a bunch of Jebelos who, in a few years, will either be dead or worthless.
Besides, a close reading of the MM degree tells you right plainly that such Masons as these exist; there are at least three of them in every well governed lodge. Hell Hiram Abiff had his three (what!) do you think that, as a builder, you can get away clean? They killed Hiram Abiff, but they ain’t gonna kill you. You ain’t gonna let them, although they will try and try again. Look closely at your ritual see what happened to them? Let the same thing happen to these modern day Jubelos. Do them up legally: reprimand, suspension, expulsion. Cast them out and they will die by the imprecations of their own mouths. That is to say that YOU will not kill them (O no! that’s in the ritual drama) for we are not murderers. But they will kill themselves provided you move over and let the GAOTUU drive. Leave the dang mass up to the GAOTU. It’s his job. That’s what you have Him for (to do the dirty jobs).
LRA