My Brother, You Missed The Whole Point

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

WB Adam Thayer

Recently, I was in the unfortunate position of reading a negative Facebook comment from a formerly active brother of our lodge, and it has been bothering me for nearly two weeks now. The comment, and I’m paraphrasing here, said that he didn’t understand the appeal of Freemasonry; he had joined to find friendship and brotherhood, and instead found dull business meetings and endless ritual practices. In time, he grew more and more disenchanted with what he saw, and so he quit coming.

Now, just a little background: this brother had joined our lodge when I was still basically new, and very excited about everything Masonry had to offer. (As opposed to today, when I am still basically new, and very excited about everything Masonry has to offer.) At the time, my job allowed me quite a bit of freedom to take a few hours during the day to meet with brothers for lunch, or coffee, and to sit and talk and soak in all the wisdom I could. A few times, I met with this specific brother, and I still treasure the things I was able to learn from him.

As I said, his comment has been bothering me since I first read it, and one of the luxuries afforded to me as a Midnight Freemason (aside from the high pay and excellent benefits package) is that I can answer statements like that, and while he may never read it, I’ve at least had the chance to say it, and it’s a weight taken off my chest.

My brother, I’m sorry to say that you missed the whole point. Those thing that you found to be onerous, I find to be a never-ending source of joy and inspiration in my life.

I don’t think that any reader here will be surprised to learn that business meetings are, generally speaking, boring. They are a necessary evil that allows us to continue to function; they are the secular world invading the sacred space, however if we don’t pay our bills, we no longer have an organization.

In a perfect world, our business meetings could be exceptionally short affairs, where we meet simply to pay the bills, perhaps give some money to charity, and then adjourn to the library to discuss loftier ideals and improve our inner selves. In our imperfect reality, certain rules have to be followed so that those with mercenary motives cannot infiltrate our society and tear us apart from the inside. Things such as keeping and reading the minutes, the report of the Treasurer, and committee reports all help protect us. While they are not exciting or fun, they are so vitally important that we should treat them with the proper respect they deserve.

Ritual practice, while not the most enjoyable time for most people, is what allows us to continue to perform our initiation rituals at the peak level that our new candidates deserve. It forces us to focus on the impression we give to our candidates, and find ways to improve that so that they, in turn, can carry us into the future.

I once said that true Masonry doesn’t happen in the lodge room, and I still absolutely believe this to be true, however I also have to acknowledge the fact that Masonry doesn’t happen WITHOUT the lodge room. Without our distinctive rituals, we are no different from any of the animal lodges (the Elks, the Eagles, etc) that are struggling to keep their doors open.

Of course, these “boring” parts of Masonry generally don’t exist in a vacuum. Before our meetings and our practices we eat, and around the dinner tables true friendships are formed, and our bonds of brotherhood are strengthened. Our dining hall rings with laughter, with a free exchange of ideas, with love and caring for each other, and for our families. Those things you believed were lacking were right there, available to you, and all it cost was a little bit of your time.


~AT

WB. Bro. Adam Thayer is the Senior Warden of Lancaster Lodge No. 54 in Lincoln (NE) and a past master of Oliver Lodge No. 38 in Seward (NE). He’s an active member in the Knights of Saint Andrew, and on occasion remembers to visit the Scottish and York Rites as well. He continues to be reappointed to the Grand Lodge of Nebraska Education Committee, and serves with fervency and zeal. He is a sub-host on The Whence Came You podcast, and may be reached at adam@wcypodcast.com. He will not help you get your whites whiter or your brights brighter, but he does enjoy conversing with brothers from around the world!

The Most Important Part.

 by Midnight Freemason Guest Contributor

Bro. Daniel "Doc" Gentry

The most important part of the journey, in the same as creating a building, is the foundation of the beginning. From the first time we come to lodge and eat with brothers as someone who is “on the threshold” to the day we are raised. This time, for all masons, is critical time for a foundation of Freemasonry. Amazing, this is the time that most people will choose to not come back to lodge and finish their degrees. So let us look at this for a moment and see if there is something that we can take away from this point to make the Journey of Freemasonry more productive, and prosperous.

Freemasonry is a personal journey, an internal journey of the heart mind and soul. I would dare to say that if you see no change in your life, except for paying dues yearly, than you truly miss the function of our great craft. I believe this happens because people forget that our great craft has many different facets, but none of them are taken alone. In fact, that is what we hear, and need to hear more often, that no one takes a step in Freemasonry alone. We find sometimes that Mentors or Intenders do not keep a constant open communication between themselves and their charge. Brothers are left with the notion that they are on their own in studying, and if they need any help just call. Though this will work with a few Brothers, we are not keeping our promise to each other. I am not talking about being annoying, but being available, and willing to learn that there is a two way communication amongst brothers.

When I was going through my degrees, I had an issue where I was not able to retain what I was trying to memorize. Recently out of the military, I had a few things creep up on me, and I became distraught. I did not want to waste my Mentors time, so I refrained from calling him, or anyone for that matter, for help. On the other side of things though, not many brothers made themselves available for me to call upon either. After I admitted that I was having issues, to the point where I asked for more time for my degrees and, how I would describe it, stepped out of line letting brothers that had gone after me, pass me up, so that I could spend more time memorizing. During this time, I truly felt alone, and I did not know what to do.

It would be a good idea to encourage each candidate, to keep a log of each Masonic experience, from the day they sing their petition until their raising. Then, after they have been raised for a year, have them make a presentation to the lodge of their experiences. Let them be honest, and make sure they feel that they are part of the lodge, because we are all just brothers on the level, and take their “problems” to heart. If you can fix it make sure that they are looked into, and make corrections where you can. Remember, the worst thing that we as Masons can do is act upon the old adage, because this is the way we always have done it.

~DG

Sister Amanda Gentry and her husband 
Brother Daniel “Doc” Gentry at their installation
for their OES Chapter.

Brother Daniel “Doc” Gentry, is a Brother Freemason from Antioch Sequoit Lodge #827, in the 1st NE District of Illinois. He is an active Brother and researcher on Masonic Subjects as well as serving as the Associate Patron in Chapter #570, Order of the Eastern Star, Millburn Illinois