Playing Favorites

by Midnight Freemason Contributor
Bro. Randy Sanders


What’s your favorite degree? Surely you’ve heard this question or even asked another Brother? My favorite degree apparently changes every couple of years. I started with the 3rd, then found a connection again with the Entered Apprentice, later finding that I just loved to hear the stair lecture in the Fellowcraft degree. Now throw in York Rite and Scottish Rite degrees, and you see I have a challenge.

How about you? We were mesmerized by the simple, yet extremely profound Entered Apprentice which speaks to our hearts in purification and morality. We were amazed at the depth Freemasonry goes into lessons and values, at presenting the lessons and tools for self-improvement.

Then what? Where did that lead you? Where does that resonate now?

I’m fortunate to be directly involved in the Master Craftsman work being done in the Valley of St. Louis, and that education is spectacular both in the Master Craftsman course work and the monthly walk through the different degrees. We’re already up into the upper 20’s, so we have only a few more months to cycle through the degrees. I’m also fortunate to have signed up for and received Oklahoma Grand Master Robert Davis’s new work on the Blue Lodge degrees. If you haven’t seen Robert Davis’s works, I can only say “go read them now” as a recommendation. York Rite has similar course material, also written by GM Davis who worked with Piers Vaughan on the Capitular Degree books.

So what? Well, education and performing the degrees, even in a tiny part, continues to shape my favorites. I would like to hear your favorite degree as well, and I’d like to hear why it’s your favorite.

Bro. Randy

Bro. Randy and his wife Elyana live in O'Fallon, MO just outside of St. Louis. Randy earned a Bachelors in Chemistry with an emphasis in Biochemistry, and he works in telecom IT. He volunteers his time as a professional and personal mentor, is an NRA certified Chief Range Safety Officer, and enjoys competitive tactical pistol. He has a 30+ year background teaching Wing Chun Kung Fu, Chi Kung, and healing arts. Randy's Masonic bio includes lodge education officer of two blue lodges, running the Wentzville Lodge Book Club, active in York Rite AMD, Scottish Rite Valley of St. Louis co-librarian, Clerk of the Academy Of Reflection through the Valley of Guthrie, a trained facilitator for the Masonic Legacy Society. As a pre-COVID-19 pioneer in Masonic virtual education, Randy is an administrator of Refracted Light and an international presenter on esoteric topics. Randy enjoys facilitating and presenting Masonic esoteric education, and he hosts an open, weekly Masonic virtual Friday Happy Hour. Randy is an accomplished home chef, a certified barbecue judge, raises Great Pyrenees dogs, and enjoys travel and philosophy.

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