A Profile In Courage

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

Bro. Steven L. Harrison 33˚, FMLR

Author's note: This is in no way meant to be a political post. It is an account of events that occurred nearly a half-century ago with no intent to imply any relationship to events of today.

The 1956 Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Profiles in Courage, is a series of biographies of eight United States senators who endured criticism and personal loss after unpopular acts they each thought were the right thing to do. Among those accounts are courageous votes of Masonic Brothers Thomas Hart Benton and Sam Houston, both of whom opposed extending slavery into the US territories, and subsequently lost elections because of their actions.

Such politicians taking action against the majority views of their constituents in spite of the consequences are a rare breed. Another of our Masonic Brothers, Gerald Ford, falls into that category.

Living in an intensely divided nation today, it is hard to imagine a time when the mood of the country, short of the Civil War era, may have been more politically separated or rancorous, but the Vietnam/Watergate era of the early to mid-1970s clearly qualifies for that.

In 1968, Richard Nixon, after losing a close presidential race to John Kennedy in 1960, made the political comeback of the century. He won the presidency with a promise to end the unpopular Vietnam War. Instead, he expanded the war, even taking it into countries neighboring Vietnam. With those actions, war protests, which had been going on for years, hit a new level of intensity.

At the same time, Nixon's acerbic Vice President, Spiro T. Agnew, who himself had been intensifying the divisions in the country, came under fire for corrupt practices while Governor of Maryland. After a two-year acrimonious battle, Agnew pleaded nolo contendere to felony tax evasion, was fined, and placed on probation. With that, Agnew resigned from the vice presidency and President Nixon selected long-time Republican congressman Gerald Ford to succeed him.

With all that going on, the 1972 presidential elections saw Nixon's re-election. Subsequently, his involvement in and cover-up of the 1972 break-in at Democratic headquarters gradually came to light, in what has now become known as the Watergate Affair.

So with the Vietnam War in full swing, war protests raging, the vice-president battling accusations of corruption, and Watergate grinding on, the US went through a three-year period of political meltdown. Nixon's involvement in Watergate, his lies, and attempts to cover up his actions finally brought him down. Leaders of his own party convinced him there were sufficient votes in both Houses of Congress to impeach and convict, leading him to resign the presidency before that happened. Brother Ford took office on August 9, 1974.

Ford took charge in the midst of all the political turmoil, wanting to put it in the past. Some of his first words to the country were, "Our national nightmare is over." But it wasn't. The country would now have to turn its attention to a laundry list of charges being brought against former President Nixon. The aftermath of his actions could have lasted for months, possibly years, through indictments, trials, endless rehashing of events, and a plethora of incessant and merciless windbags debating it all.

Ford saw it as his responsibility to end the turmoil and get the nation back to some semblance of normalcy. With that, he granted Richard Nixon a "full, free, and absolute pardon." Political opponents and even members of Ford's Republican party leveled a firestorm of criticism at the new president. They accused him, among other things, of making a deal with Nixon that would lead to Ford becoming president. That was not the case. The only deal Ford made was that Nixon had to admit guilt. Nixon accepted the pardon and withdrew to his home in San Clemente, removing himself from further involvement in the political arena.

Historians agree Brother Ford's decision to pardon Richard Nixon was one of the main reasons contributing to the fact he lost the 1976 presidential election to Jimmy Carter. Ford simply said he knew the aftermath of Nixon's actions could go on and on, and he knew he was the only one who could end it.

John Kennedy, along with Ted Sorenson, wrote Profiles in Courage. Had they written it today, they might have included more than senators, and they may well have included Gerald Ford.

In fact, in a sense, he was included. In 1989, the Kennedy family established the "Profiles In Courage Award" in order to recognize the kind of political courage emphasized in the book. Then, in 2001, they named Ford the recipient of the honor, "for his courage in making a controversial decision of conscience to pardon former President Richard M. Nixon."

Brother Gerald Ford, 33°, was a member of Malta Lodge No. 465, Grand Rapids Michigan.

~SLH

Bro. Steve Harrison, 33°  is Past Master of Liberty Lodge #31, Liberty, Missouri. He is also a Fellow and Past Master of the Missouri Lodge of Research. Among his other Masonic memberships is the St. Joseph Missouri Valley of the Scottish Rite, Liberty York Rite bodies, and Moila Shrine. He is also a member and Past Dean of the DeMolay Legion of Honor. Brother Harrison is a regular contributor to the Midnight Freemasons blog as well as several other Masonic publications. Brother Steve was Editor of the Missouri Freemason magazine for a decade and is a regular contributor to the Whence Came You podcast. Born in Indiana, he has a Master's Degree from Indiana University and is retired from a 35-year career in information technology. Steve and his wife Carolyn reside in northwest Missouri. He is the author of dozens of magazine articles and three books: Freemasonry Crosses the Mississippi, Freemasons — Tales From the Craft and Freemasons at Oak Island.

Picking Up Where School Had Failed

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

Bro. Wayne D.J. Greeley

Myself surrounded by some of the most awesome blokes I’ve ever met at my third degree

My personal life goal is the motto of the New Zealand poet Katherine Mansfield, ‘I want to be all I am capable of being’. I’m going to tell you how Freemasonry is helping me become the man that I am capable of being. This one might seem weird, but I have my reasons for writing this article.

Please note that I’m not writing this for sympathy points

From the age of four to seventeen I attended 1 primary school and 4 different secondary/high schools, not because of juvenile delinquency but because my family emigrated … twice. When I started primary school I was very shy, polite and friendly. Qualities which were in that’s school year were considered to be unusual. Even more unusual for them when I joined the choir and began playing the violin. Basically I didn’t have any friends (don’t worry this story has a happy ending) so I couldn’t develop the social skills a young child should do.

At my first high school, all those previous qualities I had meant only one thing to the bullies … GAY. Turns out they were right, but at the age of 12 I didn’t even know what that was. From then on I was defined by my sexuality, “You are gay therefore you are this or that, you can’t hang out with us”. I had to change schools because the physical bullying became too much, though sending me to a private school really didn’t help. At this school, I did start making friends. A group of five girls to be exact. It was logical, they weren’t mean, we had a lot it common and they were always polite. This type of friendship making continued on when I moved to high schools in New Zealand and in Australia. My experience at school made me develop a type of intimidation towards heterosexual men, most I’d met were homophobic and weren’t averse to showing it verbally or physically.

• In 2015, I joined a fraternity that changed my life and continues to do so. 
• Qualities such as politeness and musical skills aren’t disregarded but embraced. 
• I’m not defined by my sexuality 
• If I was attacked in a homophobic manner, the men around me wouldn’t join in, they’d defend me. 

If I’d told myself this 10 years ago I wouldn’t have believed it.

It took time after I first joined, but I started visiting lodges and interacted with good men. I feel as though my social skills are developing more and more. I’m not afraid, I don’t feel anxiety talking to men anymore, I feel like I can be one of the lads and have a good laugh during the festive board. This is also affecting my life outside the lodge with my work and studies.

I know for other gay masons, their stories aren’t as positive as mine and their stories should be told as well. I’ve written this article to show how freemasonry has helped myself as a gay man and to give an example of how Freemasonry can affect a man in ways people might not have thought of.

For me however, Freemasonry has accepted me for the man I am and is helping me to become the better man that I am capable of being.

To the brothers pictured up above, my mother lodge, my affiliate lodge, Queensland Freemasonry and international brethren I have just one thing to say …. Thank you.

~WG

Bro. Wayne Greenley is member of Mount Pleasant Lodge No. 361 and research lodge Barron Barnett Lodge No 146 both holding under the United Grand Lodge of Queensland. Currently he is studying a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and a Bachelor of Business at QUT. In his spare time he likes to read, listen to music and research the Craft. He is looking forward to joining other orders when he’s permitted to in the next year and also to soon begin his journey through the progression of officers starting off with the Inner Guard.