Guest editorial: Rebuilding lodges, part 2

Rebuilding Lodges (part 2) by W. Bro. Ken Miller

As you know, the decline in Masonry in the 1960's was not unique to our order. This same erosion was seen across all fraternal groups. Why did everyone decline? Because of societal changes that happened outside of our walls, not just rot from within (although there is little doubt that has happened).

Just as our lodges came to be governed more and more by code books and less and less by trust in our brothers, outside our walls more and more attorneys found work as our society became increasingly litigious and less trusting of one another. Unlike in the first half of the 20th Century, now we all need to "get it in writing."

As group participation in America waned, we lost our trust in one another. This, in a nutshell, is what Dr. Robert Putnam calls "social capital." Within our walls we have another name for the same thing — brotherhood.

Without social capital, we don't know how to interact with one another with civility, we don't look out for one another, and transactional costs increase (a handshake agreement is cheaper than getting the papers drafted up by the lawyers). Politics becomes shrill and base, our economy becomes more inefficient, crime rises and safety declines. The decline of social capital has become recognized as a profound challenge to quality of life in America.

How does this fit in to Masonry? Two ways: one, we must recognize this broad social force for what it is; and two, we can counteract it perhaps not on a large scale, but at least in our own lives.

First, Masonry has to acknowledge that the 1950's aren't coming back. Our lodge rooms will never again seat 150 for a stated meeting. Instead of swimming against that tide and amplifying the problem with one day classes, let's embrace our past and look to early lodges as our example.

In the Golden Age of Masonry, when it was a force for improving society, lodges were smaller than today. It worked pretty well for them, so let's take a few pointers from that age. Let's not fight declining social capital by diluting our own social capital. That is, lets not let in thousands of new Masons in one day classes and do nothing but collect their annual dues. That's the path to making Masonry a mailing list.

Let's counteract these forces in our own lodges by allowing our lodges to naturally contract. A small lodge where new petitioners are carefully vetted is a lodge where we all know one another and more likely have trust in one another. In other words, there is social capital. There is brotherhood.

— W. Bro. Ken Miller, Halycon Lodge No. 498, Cleveland, Ohio

Image: Photo taken during the 1901 construction of a 100 ft. tall obelisk monument to Sgt. Charles Floyd, a member of the Lewis and Clark "Corps of Discovery," the first American soldier to die west of the Mississippi River. Floyd was buried on this spot near Sioux City, Iowa, in 1804.

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Guest editorial: Rebuilding lodges

Rebuilding Lodges by Bro. Jeff Peace

American Freemasonry began to decline back in 1963. Since that time the number of Masons in America has dropped to less than fifty percent of what it once was.

The number of brothers is not the only thing that has declined over time so have the lodge buildings. Most Masonic lodges in the United States have seen little if any maintenance or renovation since the 1960’s. Freemasons are supposedly builders and architects, and our buildings are our face to the community. What does it say about us as a fraternity when our buildings are in such a state of disrepair?

Maybe the buildings are just a symptom of deeper problems — problems that go right to the core of our fraternity. Maybe our buildings are a reflection of the true state of our brotherhood.

Have we forgotten what Freemasonry is all about — what it really means? Today we have books like Freemasons for Dummies by Chris Hodapp and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Freemasonry by Brent Morris. Who is buying these books? Freemasons. Are we so ignorant of our fraternity that we need a guide for dummies and idiots to teach us what we are already supposed to know?

When a young man joins one of our lodges he expects that Master Masons are "Masters" of their Craft and can take him from being an apprentice to a master through education and participation. If he sees us thumbing through books for dummies and idiots what kind of impression do you think he will have of Freemasonry? He paid his initiation fee to a lodge and expected to learn something about the Craft from its supposed Masters.

What exactly is a "Traditional Observance Lodge"? Isn’t Freemasonry a tradition that's over 400 years old? Why do we need Traditional Observance Lodges when supposedly every Masonic lodge is a part of that 400 year tradition? There is nothing special about these lodges! They are merely doing what every other lodge has forgotten how to do. We have lost so much of our Masonic heritage that we have a special name for lodges that do what was common place a hundred years ago.

Then there is the poor state of our brotherhood. We are no longer held together as brothers by such things as honor, trust, and mutual respect. We have replaced these things with thousands of rules written in Masonic Code books. The rules are so complex that we have been forced to create jurisprudence committees to maintain and interpret them for us. Ours is no longer an enlightened brotherhood of free-thinkers such as Benjamin Franklin and Voltaire, but a group of automatons blindly conforming to rules regardless of their moral consequences. We are not taught to think as individuals working towards a greater good, but that conformity in some magical way accomplishes this without any effort on our part.

Is it really any wonder why the public and the community have lost their faith in our fraternity? Is it a mystery to anyone why we are declining?

We need to start rebuilding our lodges today. It needs to begin with a true spirit of brotherhood and cooperation. We need to realize that rules do not make us brothers and that honor, trust, and mutual respect are the things that bind us together. We need to learn our Craft and once again become true Masters of the Royal Art so that we can pass on our age-old traditions to future generations. Grand Lodges cannot mandate by edict that we be brothers and it have any real substance or meaning. It must begin in each and every individual lodge across America. If Freemasonry dies it is our fault for not taking responsibility for our own lodge and expecting our Grand Lodge to solve all our problems for us.

— Bro. Jeff Peace

Masons | Traditional Observance | Jeff Peace | Freemasonry | Masonic Lodge | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

More on Bro. Jeff Peace's upcoming Masonic lecture in Cleveland, Ohio

I received this notice from Bro. Jeff Peace today, who asked that I post it on Burning Taper.

I’m really quite surprised by the number of emails I’ve received about my upcoming talk at Halcyon Lodge in Cleveland, Ohio. Some are curious about the subject matter of the talk while others are outright concerned. After reading through some of things being spread around the Internet regarding my talk, I thought a little clarification might be in order.

The talk is entitled “The Brotherhood of Man” and looks at the early development of speculative Freemasonry and how that the rediscovery of the basic principles of the Craft are its future. It is not a message of condemnation of the present ‘Antient’ state Grand Lodges, as many have speculated. These institutions of corporate Freemasonry became irrelevant to modern American society back in the 1960’s, and have no place in the future. The future of speculative Freemasonry lies in bringing all people together upon the same Level. Men and women do not join with us for initiation into a mere social club, but because they want to be a part of something greater than any individual, that points the way to a brighter future for us all.

Through this talk I hope to allow everyone a glimpse into the workings of the early lodges in hopes that they can begin to emulate their character and sense of brotherhood. I think we, as a fraternity, have lost sight of these fundamentals and replaced them with politics and justice. This is our greatest failure. Neither politics nor justice can replace the primordial nature of all human beings to long for the warmth and security of being associated with others. We are a social species that has always formed tribes, cities and states. For Freemasonry to be of value it must once again be able to forge the bonds of friendship between people who would otherwise have forever remained at a distance.

I believe this is possible, but only if we are willing to look within ourselves and our fraternity and make the changes that are necessary for brotherhood to prevail. These changes must start with us, if we and Freemasonry are to prevail.

— Jeff Peace

Note from Widow's Son: Some recent emails I have received indicate that some readers think I am Jeff Peace. I am not, nor am I a "mouthpiece" for him or for anyone or any group. If you have Masonic news or comments of interest you would like to see published here,
send it in.

Masons | Masonic Lecture | Masonic Education | Freemasonry | Halcyon Charities | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Wisconsin Masonic temple being renovated as community outreach center

The story of a restoration project of a formerly luxurious Masonic lodge building in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin not only gives us a glimpse into the past physically, but also acts as a metaphor for what happened to our Fraternity in the mid-20th century.

Like Freemasonry of old, this temple was once abundantly opulent. It was once "duly and truly prepared." Then,

During the 1960s, the arched store windows on the first floor were replaced with single panes astride a standard commercial door. Side windows were filled in, ceilings were lowered and any vestige of age was either removed or concealed.

It was just after World War II that Freemasonry saw an upswing in membership, when being part of a "club" became popular. Many Masonic writers point to this time period as being when the West Gates were flung open to the masses who paid little heed to the meanings of Masonry. Not only were ceilings lowered, but so were standards.

Fortunately some bits of history remain. Eight foot high doors lean against the walls, along with a few of the original windows. Original wallpaper clings to the walls, harking back to the days when Greek columns and statues of females goddesses were a popular decorating theme. On the 14-foot high ceilings, elaborate borders and ceiling papers show how opulent the rooms must have been when kerosene chandeliers and huge wood stoves provided winter warmth.

The third phase will be the top floor, which holds the structure's greatest treasure. There, wall murals adorn each of the walls, depicting the moving sun and golden stars overhead. The scenes which cover much of the walls and ceilings are rich in Masonic symbolism. Tall doors have small panels which were raised for the ritual admission into the group's private chamber....

Like Freemasonry itself, parts of the building have been vandalized.

Portions of the murals have been damaged by vandals, with certain symbols painted over by the Masons when they made their move. The mural symbols that remain include golden crosses on the ceiling, an image of a master mason welcoming his brothers, and mountains and forests that show the glory of nature — and of God.

Salim Mohammad has purchased the temple, built in the 1860s and abandoned as a lodge in 1911, and may spend up to a million dollars renovating it. He plans to rent out space to non-profit community-oriented agencies. One of the groups who will be in the building is the Teen Center, an outreach of High Expectations, a civic group that has taken on the task of providing activities and support for young people aged pre-teen to 21.

We wish Mr. Mohammad well in his restoration of this noble landmark. Let it be a symbol of our own personal and Masonic restorations.

Masons | Masonic Restoration | Small Town Freemasonry | Freemasonry | Wisconsin | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com

Mystery: Two dead in old Masonic building

Two construction workers renovating a 158-year old former Masonic lodge in Westfield, Indiana, were found dead last Friday. Investigators are stumped, the Indy Star reported.

Foul play is not suspected, they weren't killed by electricity, and the fire department found no evidence of toxic gases in the building.

The two men had approached Bill Norman, the building's owner, two weeks ago, offering to do drywall work. No one else was working on the project at the time of their deaths.

Masons | Mysterious Death | Freemasonry | BurningTaper.com | Masonic Lodge | Burning Taper

We're in an awful way: Another death at a Masonic hall party

[Sung to the tune of Cat Steven's Another Saturday Night]

Another Saturday night
At the Masonic party
Two more wounded, another dead.
How I wish that someone would stop this
We're in an awful way.

Sixteen-year old Shaquil Sanders (also reported as Shaquil May) was stabbed to death and two other men wounded by gunfire outside a party at a Masonic hall in Brooklyn, New York early Saturday morning. The party was sponsored by a church, and billed as a "drug and alcohol-free" event.

Burning Taper reported last weekend violence broke out at a private party held at a Masonic lodge in Maryland, with four people seriously wounded by bullets.

So far in 2007, by my count, the boxscore for violence at parties in U.S. Masonic halls:

• Wounded: 8
• Killed: 2

This repeated violence at parties held in Masonic lodges further drives home the point that "black youth need guidance" by responsible adults in their neighborhoods that M. W. Bro. Milton F. Fitch, Grand Master of Prince Hall Masons in North Carolina, made during the Masonic African-American Male Summit last week in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

It also again speaks to the fact that Masonic lodges should closely monitor who rents out their halls. Though some of these news stories says that the party was sponsored by a local church, the New York Times article quotes Charles Brown, age 72, who was in charge of renting the hall (and whom we can assume is a Freemason), as saying he wasn't sure who sponsored the party, as he could not remember the names of the two people he had given permission to use the hall.

Links:
New York Times
1010 Radio (New York)
New York Post
NY1, New York City's 24-hour news channel

Image: Shaquil Sanders (or Shaquil May), stabbed to death at 16 in a Masonic hall parking lot

Note: My apologies for butchering Cat Steven's song. And yes, I'm aware this latest violence occured in the early hours of Saturday morning, not Saturday night. Poetic license, you know.

Masons | Violence | Freemasonry | BurningTaper.com | Brooklyn | Burning Taper