166 lines
9.5 KiB
Plaintext
166 lines
9.5 KiB
Plaintext
SHORT TALK BULLETIN - Vol.IV May, 1926 No.5
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TRULY PREPARED
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by: Unknown
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Why do so many Masons lose interest in Masonry and drift away from
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the Lodge? Why do the majority retain only a nominal relation to the
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Craft? Why is it that hardly 10 percent ever attend any meeting of
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the lodge, and a still smaller number take an active part in its
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affairs? What is the meaning of these facts, and how can the problem
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which they raise be solved?
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Such questions are much in the minds of the leaders of the Craft
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everywhere. It is a condition, and not a theory, that confronts us.
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The influx of members during the Great War, and in the years
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following it, has subsided. In some states the number of initiates
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has fallen below pre-war days. The vast mass of those who came in on
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the impulse of war-time are now numbered among the casual Masons.
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The feeling grows that something is wrong, and that we must seek to
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set it right, if we are to have an alert and active Masonry.
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Just now The Masonic Service Association is working on this problem
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with the leaders of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, and we beg to
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give here the findings arrived at, both as to the meaning of the fact
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and the method of dealing with it. Clearly we have failed "to set
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the Craft to work and give them proper instruction," or else they
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would not drop out of our membership, or regard Masonry as merely
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another Order to "belong to" and nothing more. To that end, we must
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begin at the beginning and lay the basis of a real Masonic life.
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What is needed is extra-ritualistic preparation of the man applying
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for the Degrees before, during and after his reception into the
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Lodge. Of the three the first, if not the most vital, is surely
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profoundly important, and it has been almost entirely neglected. Let
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any man recall, if he can, his state of mind regarding the Craft when
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he knocked at its door, and he will realize that he had but the
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faintest idea of what Masonry is and of what it meant to be initiated
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into it. the method now proposed takes account of that fact, and
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takes him in hand as soon as he has expressed a desire to join the
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Lodge, and even before he has made his application for the Degrees.
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In this way, by making strict inquiry of an aspirant for the Degrees
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to see if he has in him the stuff of which a Mason may be made, no
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end of embarrassment may be avoided, and the Craft Strengthened or
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protected accordingly. The first duty of the committee, as well as
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the last, is to see whether or not the man before them has the
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qualities of character which will enable him to add to the good name
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and integrity of the Craft, and also whether he will actually make
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such a contribution. In short, is he in his daily life and acts
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going to be a Mason, in fact, or in name only?
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Such information or impression can be obtained by examining him as to
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his attitude toward Masonry. Why is he applying? What induced him
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to take this step? What is his opinion of Masonry and upon what does
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his opinion rest? It should be emphasized, in plain terms, that his
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privilege of membership in the Craft carries with it certain
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obligations that will rest upon him toward the Craft. It must be
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explained to the applicant that it is the business of Masonry to
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teach the virtues of the moral life - chastity, charity and service -
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and his known attitude in regard to these matters ought to determine
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whether he is a man fit for the fellowship of the Fraternity.
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Also, care must be taken to impress upon the applicant the fact that
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the moral life obtains its sanction and authority from Spiritual
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Faith. He ought to be asked, not obtrusively but candidly and
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earnestly, his ideas regarding God. If he has not clearly confronted
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his mind with the Supreme Reality, he ought to be asked to do so. No
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man who is uncertain about God, or who treats the idea of God as a
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piece of Lodge furniture, has any place in a Masonic Lodge.
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It is important that an applicant should know what duties devolve
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upon him as a member of a Lodge. Such as acquaintance with the
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ritual and other items of Masonic information. Attendance upon the
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Lodge as a duty, and whether or not he is in a position to attend.
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Whether he is willing to assist in the work of the Lodge, by serving
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on Committees or otherwise. As to his financial obligation - can he
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afford what it will be necessary for him to spend?
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When his petition has been voted upon, along with his notice of
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election the applicant ought to receive a copy of the pamphlet
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entitled "Preparation," with the request that he read it carefully.
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After he has received the entered Apprentice Degree he should be
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given a birds-eye view of Masonry, so to put it, showing geographical
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distribution in Grand Lodges, both at home and abroad. He will
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realize that Masonry encircles the earth, but is strongest in
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America, where three-fourths of the Craft live and toil. He ought
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to be told of the leading men in the State and the Nation who are and
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have been Masons, if only to let him see what kind and quality of men
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the Craft attracts and develops.
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It is not an accident that Masonry lures strong men and makes them
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stronger. Its teachings are the basic principles of civilized
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society, the very ground-work of Church, State and Home. Every man
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needs to realize that the truths of Masonry are not secret, but only
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the method and symbols by which they are taught. The parts of our
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ceremonies which are secret ought to be pointed out, and the
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candidate cautioned about disclosing what he has received.
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Those who "Post" the candidate on the "Work" of the Degree ought to
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tell him something of what it means, after the manner of the
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"Intenders" in the old Lodges of Scotland. Such a book as "The
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Symbolism of the Three Degrees," by Street, is useful for this
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purpose, not that it should be read to the candidate, but its facts
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told him as he goes along. He should know the use of the Tools of
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the Craft, the meaning of the Great Lights - especially the Great
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Light; its teachings about Brotherly Love, Relief, and Faith; its
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cardinal virtues of Temperance, Fortitude, Prudence and Justice.
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As in the Scottish Lodges, the obligation should be explained,
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particularly the figurative character of its penalty, and the fashion
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in which the oath was sealed and why. He ought to know the Due-Guard
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and Sign of the Degree, and when and how they are to be used in the
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Lodge. It is not enough to tell him these facts. He ought to be
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fully clothed, and asked to enter and retired from the Lodge in the
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proper manner. A candidate is in novel surroundings, and while he
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does not remember all that is told him, it is not easy for him to
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forget what he acts out.
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In a like manner, the Second degree is to be studied, showing in what
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ways it differs from the First, in the greater inclusiveness of the
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obligation, as well as in its emphasis upon the arts and sciences,
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with particular reference to Geometry and its meaning and use by the
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Craft. The initiate is asked to read The Masonic service Association
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Bulletin 3-5-7 before taking the third degree. It is a pity that
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neither the ritual nor the lecture tells us the meaning of the Great
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Degree, which has in it the sublime secret of Masonry and of life
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itself. All effort must be made to get the initiate to grasp the
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truth with which it deals - the truth of the Eternal Life.
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Having received the Degrees of Masonry, an initiate needs to know
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something of the regulations of the Craft, its constitution, its
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Landmarks; and the nature and authority of the Grand Lodge under
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whose obedience he lives. It is only fair to tell him the relation
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of the Blue Lodge to other Masonic Bodies, both York Rite and
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Scottish Rite; and in a way to emphasize the supremacy of Craft
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Masonry. It will be useful for him to know that the Shrine, the
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Grotto and other such organizations, while made up of Masons, are not
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Masonic any more than any club made up of Masons is Masonic. More
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important still is the etiquette of the Craft, in the Lodge and
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outside, and the discretion necessary in making himself known as a
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Mason, or in responding to the advances of others.
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Such simple things about Masonry and how to use it ought to be taught
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every Mason in the Lodge; and such extra-ritualistic instruction the
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Grand Lodge of Massachusetts proposes to give the men who enter its
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fellowship - using the literature and other helps prepared by The
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Masonic Service association. It is hoped that other Grand Lodges
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will take up the plan, or some other equally good, in simple fairness
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to men who are made Masons - that they may be duly and truly prepared
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for the better appreciation and service of the Craft. Some of us,
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looking back, wish very much that we had been thus set to work and
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taught the meaning and uses of our tools.
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The adoption of such a plan by an old and great Grand Lodge marks a
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long step in the right direction - a new epoch in Masonic education,
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of which we have heard so much and seen so little result. It is like
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a dream come true, the full meaning of which few can realize save
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those who have worked and planned for years to see it become a fact.
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Such things we can do together, each borrowing from the wisdom of the
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other. Those of us who had to wait long and work hard for
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information about Masonry which should have been taught us by our
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mother Lodge, look with envy upon the young men of the Old Bay State.
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