On the Level
Guru - The Divine Light
Thu, 07/02/2009 - 08:33While at the public library I was reading a book on Sikhism, a book entitled "Sikh Religion: God is One but One" produced by the Sikh Missionary Center. Upon reading the first few pages I found these very interesting words in which I will share with you.
Start Book Quote:
The word Guru is so popular in India that in order to understand the fundamental concept of 'guru' in Sikhism, one must first completely drive out of one’s mind the prevalent popular notion of a guru. The popular term ‘guru’ often used for a Brahman, a yogic teacher or a guide or even a school teacher, has made the Guruship so cheap that a scholar describes these gurus as 'wicks which small foul after the lamps are extinguished.'
The term 'Guru' in Sikhism is not used for a teacher or a guide or an expert or even a human body.
The word Guru is composed of two terms-
GU- means darkness andRU- means Light
In Sikhism the word 'Guru' is, thus, defined as the Light that dispels all darkness, and that is called JOT (Divine Light). Guru Nanak was, therefore, the Embodiment of Divine Light.
End book quote.
Symbolism of light and dark, good and evil is of course paralleled in so many different texts, but I had never seen it referenced in relation to the Sikh religion before.
Digging further in to the entomology of Guru we find its origins in Sanskrit.
The syllable gu means shadowsThe syllable ru, he who disperses them,Because of the power to disperse darknessthe guru is thus named.– Advayataraka Upanishad 14—18, verse 5
The word comes from Sanskrit Gu, darkness, and Ru, light (prakash [1]); literally a preceptor who shows others knowledge (light) and destroys ignorance (darkness).
[1] Prakash is a common Indian/Sri Lankan/Nepali name derived from Sanskrit - Prakasam, literally meaning "Bright light" or "Sun light" or "Moon light" or simply "Light".
Can anyone provide further abstraction or etymology for this word?
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The Master To Be
Mon, 06/29/2009 - 08:00"My Brothers, you stand here tonight, proud and tall, ready to lead
The Craft for but a time, we join in heart and tongue to congratulate you!
My Brother, the wisdom of Solomon which shall soon descend upon you in this
Oriental Chair, and once so occupied by us, the knowledge of ages past shall always be with you!"
"Oh my Brethren, hearken to our grand history, ones who have gone on before, for they have shown the way, the beauty and perfection of yonder Square and Compasses, supported by our Greatest and Holiest Light!
Oh my Brethren, those Three Great Lights will never fail thee, remember the lessons taught us in the First Degree, most important are they, through God’s All Seeing-Eye and brilliant Light!"
"Dear Brethren, the future of our Lodge soon will be in your capable hands, our trust in you complete, rule justly but with Compassion and Love for your fellow Brother!
Dear Brethren, the work of a Master is not for faint of heart, a tear may be shed, a painful choice to be made, but we know we have chosen well in you, my Brother!"
"My Brother, the roll of the workmen has been read, and a new leader has been Qualified tonight, set us to work dear friend, and be an ornament to the Royal Craft!
My Brother, through all the trials and tribulations that await, the rewards of serving your Lodge out-weigh it all, we look forward now, as you prepare to serve our Ancient Craft!"
"Finally my Brothers, each one of us here in this Lodge of Past Master’s tonight, is your support and strength, look to us for guidance and advice, we are but a heartbeat away from guiding you along, to show you the way!
Up in the East you will be, all eyes upon you, smile all the while, offer friendly counsel in all you do, others look to you now for inspiration, just as you once admired one of us, do us proud my Brother, show your Lodge the way!"
Author: Wor. Todd Oliver Galarneau
Past Master of Bristol Lodge
A.F. & A.M.
North Attleboro, Massachusetts
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Famous American Freemasons: Volume 1
Sat, 06/27/2009 - 21:45A book review of...
Famous American Freemasons: Volume 1
Author: Bro. Todd E. Creason
Many of the most significant men during the formative years of the United States of America were Freemasons and Brother Creason regales us with their tales in this, the first volume of Famous American Freemasons.
This is an easy to read book that thoughtfully presents over twenty-five stories about early American Brethren. Once you dive in to this book you will find it difficult to put down, I like this book for several reasons:
- As a Canadian I am of course familiar with the basic history behind the early years of the United States, however my knowledge was quite superficial and this book really brought to life the stories and attributes of some of the most important figures of the day. Not only do you get a superb history lesson, you also get a sense of the connectedness of early North American Freemasonry despite the turbulent era.
- This book presents stories in a biographical and historical way but doesn’t overload you with “pro-freemason propaganda” like many books tend to do. Each chapter gives a lovely historical picture followed by a few paragraphs about the fraternal ties to Freemasonry, lodges and their Masonic background.
I’d like to share with you the opening paragraph from the introduction which I feel adequately explains the purpose of this book and its nature:
"This is not a book about Freemasonry. This is a book about Freemasons. There are no Masonic secrets revealed here. There are no ancient mysteries uncovered or myths debunked. There are books like that if that is what you are interested in, but this is not one of them. This is a book about Americans – great Americans who also happened to be Freemasons. And this is also a story of American history and American culture – told through the lives and accomplishments of some of those men who molded our country, each I his own unique way."
I really enjoyed reading this book and strongly recommend it to all Brethren, especially those with an interest in early North American history and the development of freemasonry in the United States.
For more information on this book and Brother Todd E. Creason, please take a look at his website:
http://toddcreason.org/
P.S.Brother Todd has also previously contributed to this website -- check out his fabulous article on William McKinley.
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If every man a Mason
Sat, 06/20/2009 - 18:40If every man a Mason He’d never be aloneFree to travel to distant land Far from home
If every man a Mason He’d never be afraidFor he’d know a Brother’s helpTo be there to render aid
If every man a MasonHe’d be free from countries warA Brothers alway welcome On my land or distant shore
If every man a Mason He’d be free from countries fightUniversal knowledge, peace, freedomEver expanding Light.
Bill M. Thacker
--Thank you Bro Thacker for submitting this poem! Bro Thacker is a member of Marion McDaniel Lodge No. 56 in Arizona, USA.
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True and Upright Mason
Sat, 06/06/2009 - 22:30The Battle of Opequam took place in Virginia very near the end of the Civil War in Virginia-very shortly before the decisive Union victory at Gettysburg. The battle is more commonly referred to today as the last battle of Winchester. Winchester, Virginia, where this battle took place, was a hot-spot during the Civil War, and it was very well defended by the Confederate Army. Three major battles were fought there during the war. The Union Army won only the last one.
Shortly after the last battle of Winchester had been fought and won by the Union, a Union officer went with his friend, a surgeon, to a field where about 5,000 Confederate prisoners from the battle were being held under guard.
Very shortly after they passed the guard, the officer noticed his friend, the doctor, was talking to and shaking hands with some of the Confederate prisoners. He also noticed that the doctor was handing out money from a roll of bills he had in his pocket. It was a considerable sum of money the doctor was handing out, and he handed it all out before rejoining his friend.
The Union officer wasn't sure what he'd seen. Curious, he asked the doctor about it after they left the camp.
"Did you know these men or ever see them before?"
"No," replied the doctor, "I never saw them before."
"But," he persisted, "you gave them a lot of money, all you had about you. Do you ever expect to get it back?"
"Well," said the doctor, "if they are able to pay me back, they will. But it makes no difference to me; they are Brother Masons in trouble and I am only doing my duty."
The Union officer decided at that moment to become a Freemason. He recalled thinking to himself, "If that is Freemasonry, I will take some of it for myself."
That Union officer's name was William McKinley. He would later become the 25th President of the United States. On May 3, 1865, a few months after visiting that camp with his friend, he became a Freemason at Hiram Lodge No. 21, in Winchester, Virginia.
If I stopped right here, I think I've told a pretty good story. It's a story that tells us a lot about the character of one of the most virtuous men that ever sat in the office of President of the United States-a man who was moved to join Freemasonry after witnessing an act of kindness and charity.
But there is another side of this story-a side that reveals a great deal about the character of the institution that McKinley had resolved to join.
McKinley was true to his word. He took his degrees in Winchester just few weeks after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Courthouse and just two weeks after President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated at Ford's Theater. To say this was a tumultuous time in American history is an understatement. This was a period in our history when emotions ran high on both sides. Many in the North felt the South should be punished for the war and the death of Abraham Lincoln. Many in the South who felt General Lee shouldn't have surrendered the Army rallied to raise the Confederate Army again. Most citizens on both sides of the conflict wondered if the wounds of the Civil War could ever be healed.
However, at the height of this turbulent time in our history, a group of Masons in Winchester, Virginia, put their differences aside, and together, North and South, put on the degrees. In fact, the Worshipful Master of Hiram Lodge No. 21 was a Confederate chaplain, and along with Masons that had served in both the Union and Confederate Armies, they performed the degrees. William McKinley was raised a Master Mason.
William McKinley is often overlooked by history-actually much of the reason for this oversight was his exemplary character. He was trusted. He listened much more than he spoke. He was willing to admit when he was wrong. But McKinley's greatest character trait was his honesty and integrity. He twice turned down the nomination for President because he felt each time that the Republican Party had violated its own rules in nominating him. He squashed the nomination both times-something a politician today would probably view as an unthinkable act.
Politics at the turn of the last century is much as it is today-full of scandal, corruption, and greed. McKinley was pretty boring compared to many of his contemporaries. Never embroiled in a personal scandal or controversy, McKinley's virtuous character hasn't given historians and biographers much to comment on. And of course, it didn't help McKinley's memory that he was assassinated before his full vision for America could be realized. He accomplished some remarkable things, won the Spanish-American War, and began many more important projects and initiatives. Teddy Roosevelt, McKinley's larger-than-life successor, often receives credit for completing many of the initiatives that William McKinley actually began.
William McKinley is a very good example of what a true and upright Mason should be.
Todd E. CreasonJW Ogden Lodge No. 754Ogden, ILAuthor of Famous American Freemasons: Vols. I & II
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On Receiving Candidates
Sat, 06/06/2009 - 14:18I have read both recently and in texts from twenty years ago about the decline in Masonic membership and how we must evolve and continue to be relevant to the current times. Many Brethren regularly speak on how to boost numbers and get new candidates, but how many are proactively trying to change the lodges for the better?
There is times when I sit in Lodge and wonder to myself, why would someone want to join this lodge of disharmony. I think everyone can think of one or two Brethren who regularly fuss or complain about every subject that is brought forward, who don't participate in events, but openly critic and demean the Brethren that works hard to put the events together.
When a new candidate is brought in to Freemasonry they are being exposed to a whole new world, a massive amount of information, and the personalities and friendship of everyone in their lodge.
It is important that we take the time to ensure these new Brethren are given the right impressions, are mentored, are taught and are treated as a BROTHER.
It is with that said I submit a list of articles I have compiled on various subjects pertaining to candidates, new entered apprentices and other articles I found to be particularly interesting and useful.
- Instruction of new members
- To the Initiate...
- The Business of Living
- Our Duty to the Candidate
- A Masonic Letter
- Meaning of Entered Apprentice
- On Initiation
- Younger men in Freemasonry
- Keeping Brethren Interested
- Three Degrees of Freemasonry
- Repaying the Debt
- The Ashlars
- Whose Lodge are you a member of?
- About Initiations
- Mutual Admiration
- Masonic Education in Lodge
- Image and Our Image
- Intro to the first step
- A little scrap of paper
Here in Canada many lodges are going in to their summer break and are ready for a much deversed break. I wish you and your families all a very safe and wonderful summer and look forward to seeing you back in Lodge in September.
I will continue to be posting articles through the summer and as always invite you to contribute an article at any time.
S&FBro. Ken
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Younger Men in Masonry
Sun, 05/17/2009 - 00:44What is it that attracts younger men to Freemasonry and why do we find it so difficult to keep our numbers strong?
This question has been swirling around in my head for about a week, brought on by a conversation I had with a Brother at the festive board. He had mentioned that in the past year he had introduced several younger men to Freemasonry. As we discussed this I couldn’t help but think in the back of my mind that this guy really knows what he is talking about.
I was formulating in my own mind what I believed to be the biggest draw to Freemasonry and I believe that for me (a brother of the age of 28) these were some of the biggest.
- Honour and trust
- Belonging, commitment and friendship
- Self development
I certainly cannot speak on behalf of all young men, but these tenets of which Freemasonry offers are a major attractor. It is doubtful that most men would openly say, “I am just looking for a place to belong, a place to feel accepted, honoured and trusted, where I can learn to be a better man.” I do believe that a large majority of people do indeed feel that way and would never express it in such an open manner.
When I joined Freemasonry I had at best a superficial view of what we were about, my Grandfather was a Mason and I had always respected him and his outlook on life and treatment of people. I didn’t know he was a Mason until after he had passed on to the Celestial Lodge above, but finding this out made me lookup Freemasonry and do some research.
My generation will search the Internet for hours on a subject before they take any direct action, such as contacting a lodge, or e-mailing a known Mason. We want facts and stories to make us understand more clearly about what or who we are dealing with. I myself joined Masonry by e-mailing the grand lodge!
Even though I had an extremely warm introduction to Freemasonry in North Bay, there is no way that I could have comprehended the full extent of its nature at that time.
It wasn’t until I started traveling, I had so many warm and wonderful experiences, with open arms Brethren from around the world united to help me, show me their cities, welcome me in to their homes and this universal kindness was extraordinary to me. I knew from my own Lodge that the friendships and relationships forged with Brethren was strong, but I had no idea to the vast extent at which it was reproduced globally.
I spent some time in the military in my life and honour, responsibility and team work were reiterated over and over to us. Honour and pride in our work, responsibility for our actions and inactions and working as a group to accomplish something great. These too are qualities that should be instilled in our Brethren.
It is my belief that if we speak about our experiences, or sense of true brotherhood to potential new candidates that we will do a far better of job of getting them in to our Lodges. Don’t treat them as a number, don’t treat them as stranger, treat them as you would a Brother and show them in your actions.
If you want to really make them understand, you need to be excited, proud and energetic about Freemasonry. Talk to them about your experiences, the visitations with open arms, the festivals and friendships and how we aspire to live by moral means and to develop the light within ourselves.
Bro. Ken H. DennisMay 11, 2009
What do you think? Please comment on this post and lets get a discussion going on the subject. I have numerous other posts along the lines of new candidates which I've be formulating and am interested to know your thoughts and feelings. Please use the comment button on the website.
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Keeping Brethren Interested
Wed, 05/13/2009 - 08:37I have noticed that often lodges are able to get quite a few new members initiated, but over the next few months or first year their participation wanes and they end up leaving the craft. I have discussed this topic with quite a few brethren in some detail and I'm going to weigh in on what I believe are some mistakes we might be making and offer my suggestions.
Brotherhood
As a freemason we afford each other a certain implicit trust and friendship knowing that we are all good men who are striving for the same purpose. Being a brother is more than just showing up to meetings or shaking a few hands it's about genuinely taking an interest in your brethren and opening up your life experiences and feelings to each other. True friends are always there for each other, they share their passions, desires, aspirations and pain knowing you will always be their to support them. Recite to yourself the 5 PoF and you will understand how important and ingrained this should be.
Participation in Lodge
One thing that really appealed to me at my mother lodge was how the worshipful master encouraged all brethren to participate in the ritual work. We would break up some of the longer lectures, or feed out some small bits such as the lesser lights to brethren that we not in the chairs. This really helped to encourage me personally to be active in lodge, in practice sessions and to feel like I have contributed; it became "my" lodge, not just a lodge that I had joined.
Outside of the Lodge
I have lived in small towns and big cities and one thing which I have noticed is the level of interaction with brethren outside of lodge is drastically different. Small town masonry, like small towns seems to be more of a tight knit group. It wouldn't be uncommon to pop in at a brothers business and chat, to meet for coffee, or share a beer or two (perhaps in a certain brothers' wood working shop). But these niceties are rare indeed for big city masonry. I believe that openness and welcoming nature of small town masonry is a wonderful thing and I hope that we can have more social functions, informal meetings and friendly greetings even in the big city environment.
Education and Development
We regularly profess to new applicants that we are a society of men who use allegorical and metaphorical stories to pass on great truths, that when studied and put in to action will help us on our eastward journey. But I ask you honestly, do you feel that you have learned our rituals, have you studied our texts; could you do more than merely repeat some ancient scripture verbatim? Many men join for the allure of learning about these lessons and truisms, but how can we teach them if we ourselves are only superficially aware of their meaning? I have heard from numerous brethren and demitted brethren that they thought and hoped they would learn from freemasonry which they haven't been taught elsewhere, but they were sadly mistaken when time and again their peers did not support, encourage and nurture their interests.
Visitation
Perhaps the most amazing aspect of freemasonry is visitation. Being welcomed to a lodge is a wonderful experience, but for the new freemason visiting a strange lodge and not knowing any brethren could be a very daunting idea. Often new brethren will visit lodges that reside in the same building as their mother lodge, but many will not drive to another city or town to visit a totally unfamiliar lodge without support. I suggest that if you are going to visit a lodge that you offer to take the new brother, pick him up from home, or meet him there. This will help to foster that friendship in your own lodge, as well as introduce him to process of visitation and how wonderful an experience it can be.
These are a few topics that I believe could use some improvement in our lodges and I submit them to you for your discussion, consideration and comment.
Bro. Ken .H. DennisMay 12, 2009MasonicTravels.com
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Masonic Education in Lodge
Tue, 05/12/2009 - 21:04Often I visit lodges and see how they try to integrate education in to the lodge meeting. It bothers me to some degree how some brethren seem to not care or hardly seem interested in the material being presented.
Some lodges seem to be fearful of putting too much educational content out there because they don't want to offend or hear complains about how much time was allocated.
Historically do you think we got together to do nothing but confer degree's and conduct business meetings?
We met to discuss the world, how things worked, how we can improve ourselves and society. So where have we gone wrong, why can't we discuss in gentlemanly fashion the aspects of life that we profess to hold so dear to our hearts?
Every time a Brother stands up to share, he is opening himself up to us all, he's worked at preparing some material or found something interesting that he wished to share, I think that we owe it to each other to indulge in this, support him and try to contribute back with interesting comments or questions.
To put my point bluntly, if we don't strive to excel and develop ourselves and our lodges then we might as well pack up and go home. There is no point in meeting twice a month to recite rituals with varying degrees of accuracy, if we are only giving lip service to our ancient and honourable society.
I challenge all of you to go to lodge, ask the worshipful master if you can speak on a subject of interest and do it with conviction and enjoyment knowing that you have done your part today and encourage others to do likewise!
If you have a success story about how you have integrated educational content in to your meetings and how they are well received then please take the time to comment on this post on MasonicTravels.com so we can get an open exchange of information flowing.
Bro. Ken H. DennisMay 12, 2009
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Updates and Changes
Sun, 05/03/2009 - 15:50Dearest Brethren,
As you may have noticed, the website has been entirely redesigned in the past week. The new look has been under construction for quite some time, but was forced in to the lime-light early due to a technical error on my part.
I sincerely hope that you enjoy the new look and feel and continue to spread the word about the website, recently we've broken the 1500 subscribers mark! This is largely due to all the amazing contributors and Brethren who have helped this website by contributing articles on a regular basis, and to all the people who forward these e-mails on to others to let them know about the site.
I have recently setup a large online file storage facility which will allow me to host a massive amount of information and I will be looking to host a variety of new sections on the website. One in particular I am looking forward to doing is hosting lodge newsletters. Many lodges publish monthly newsletters in PDF or Microsoft Word formats which they distribute via e-mail. I am inviting ALL secretaries and Brethren who publish material in electronic format to contact me and I will happily host your files.
This hosting service will be entirely free, just e-mail me the files and I'll take care of the rest. I would like to create the largest database of Freemasonry information and publications online and I believe that this will help out smaller lodges by giving them a starting point in which to make an online presence.
If you have been publishing a newsletter for some time and have all the back issues that you have released, I will happily host all the historical files you have also. This will ensure that we have a complete historical record of your newsletter or periodical.
Thank you all for your patience during this website transition and again, I hope that you enjoy the new look and feel.
S&FBro. Ken Dennis
--If you are good at graphics design, I am looking for a new image as a banner for the top of this website. I'm not a good graphics guy, but would appreciate help if someone has some spare time.
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A Nearly Perfect Masonic Moment
Fri, 04/17/2009 - 08:00"A Nearly Perfect Masonic Moment"
Back when I was playing music for money with bands a lot, every once in a while we had a night when everyone was on his game, the club was pretty full and the crowd was into what we were playing, the groove was running like a freight train, the stars and planets were in perfect alignment, God smiled and the angels sang and at the end of a set everyone looked at each other and said: "Damn, I wish we'd had a tape rolling because that never happens in a studio!" Well, last night at James Island Lodge #396 something exciting happened. A nearly perfect Masonic moment. Three men were initiated into the first degree of Masonry surrounded by brotherly love.
It might well be asked why I found that exciting when men are being initiated into Masonry somewhere in Charleston SC. practically every week. Perhaps the ritual was flawless, or the room was packed with James Island members, or the Grand Lodge degree team put on the degree? No, no and no. Some members of the degree team were at their position for the first time, so inevitably there were occasional bobbles in ritual. As there were from time to time with the more experienced brothers, myself especially. There wasn’t a Grand Lodge officer within miles. The Lodge had a good crowd of brothers there, but the room wasn’t packed. What made it exciting was not that the ritual was perfect, although it was a heartfelt degree put on quite well, but that when the candidates became brothers and came to light they were surrounded by brothers representing seven or eight different Lodges who were there just because they love each other and Masonry.
They weren’t there to rub shoulders with Grand Lodge, they weren’t there to score "Lodge of the Year" points or to take a flag or a traveling Bible back to their Lodge because no Lodge other than the host had more than two or three there. They weren't there because it was a beautiful night to go visiting, because short of a hurricane the weather was about as foul as it ever gets around here. They were there because they knew there was a degree being put on and there was nothing more pressing demanding their presence. So instead of vegging out watching TV at home, they braved the elements to watch three guys they didn’t even know take their first step in Masonry. And they didn’t sit on the sidelines and kibbutz or criticize; they pitched in and helped where needed. They were there to be there for their brothers. The pure essence of Masonry.
I don't know if everyone else was as moved as I was, but I want to thank James Island Lodge #396 and the brothers from the other Lodges for what was for me a nearly perfect Masonic evening. For a couple of hours last night we caught Masonic lightning in a bottle. Damn, I wish we’d had a tape rolling!
Respectfully and Fraternally Tom Lewis, Jr 32° KT SW Mariner Lodge #2 Charleston, SC Life Member Jackson Lodge #45, Jackson TN
" Fraternitas Humana Sub Paternus Deus"
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A Talk on Codes and Ciphers
Tue, 04/14/2009 - 23:08
TALK GIVEN BYBROTHER MICHAEL HAY, IN GERMAN TOTHE “ZUR BUNDESKETTE” LODGE, SOEST, GERMANYMONDAY 16th FEBRUARY, 2009
Translation:
Most Worshipful Master and Brethren,
When I was initiated on Monday, 21st April 2008, I knew relatively little about Freemasonry. We Freemasons are frequently defined by outsiders as a secret society. We treasure our secrets, but we are not a secret society. Secrets have always existed.
In May 2008 I visited an exhibition entitled: “Year of Mathematics” at the Heinz Nixdorf Museum in Paderborn. At this exhibition I found a section entitled “Cryptographs” and surprisingly enough I was, amongst other things, confronted with a Masonic written code. It occurred to me, that later I could give my Fellow Craft’s talk sometime on this subject.
This will not be a talk on cryptography, but a brief elaboration of the Freemason written code.
Instead of “code” you can use the word “cipher” which derives from Arabic and means substituting and exchanging of letters. The beginnings of cryptography dates back to antiquity, the Egyptians for example in the third millennium B.C. had a coding system for military purposes. Also in the Middle Ages cryptographs were of great importance for delivery of secret messages.
In the 18th century we Free Masons in Germany dealt with the subject of secret messages. The Freemason cipher used a mono-alphabetic substitution system in which each letter, each punctuation mark and figures were replaced by a symbol (small box or angle) according to a precise pattern in order to encode the message. This was done according to a fixed scheme and never changed.
The key consisted of two boxes with 9 fields in each box and with two crosses with 4 fields in each cross. The letters were then inserted depending upon code into the fields.
Coding by substitution is characterized by the fact that the process of disintegration proceeds according to a firmly fixed pattern and always remains unchanged. Once an outsider came to know this code, the complete system was useless.
One could say that the use of cipher writing in the 18th century was the “vogue”. Thus, Freemason documents, letters, books were printed in special variations of this code, even with several keys. Minutes of meetings and correspondence were also
coded so that, if they got lost on their way to another lodge, they were of no use to anybody as nobody could decipher them.
In Great Britain Freemasons used the “Pigpen Cipher”. Translated, “Pig” stands for Schweine and “pen” either for “writer” (German: Schreiber) or “sty” (German: Stal). So, the complete term may either be translated as “pig writer” (Scheineschreiber) or as “pigsty” (Schweinestal). An explanation for the term “pigsty” might be: the letters of the alphabet, called “pigs”, were trapped within the lines.
This code was very uncommon and almost looked like a scrawl of geometric symbols. As already mentioned, letters were replaced by small boxes and angles. The Pigpen ciphers date back to as far as the Crusades (1095-1272). But it was around 1860 during the American Civil War that they became really popular for transmitting secret messages.
Today, the Freemason Code can be found in various non-fiction books and books for young people. The symbols can also be found on gravestones and entrances to houses, frequently containing a motto or a password. Today, cipher text can at best be used in American Freemasonry. But this type of cipher writings is by no means safe against decoding by third parties. In Germany, we Freemasons have not used ciphered messages over 100 years.
I was initiated as an Entered Apprentice, comparable to a raw stone, and I continue to be interested in the subject of Freemason cryptographs and I am keen to learn more about them, for example: the contents of correspondence the lodges exchanged, or which code was used and was it comprehensible? In the context of this subject there are still a lot of other questions demanding answers. During my search I have found three codes and strangely enough, with two of these codes, comparing them to the alphabet known to us, some letters were missing. The J, K, V and W in one code and the J only in the other code. I will concentrate on this and other questions that have arisen in a future talk.
Most Worshipful Master and Brethren, this is the end of my first speech and at the same time my Fellow Craft’s talk.
Bro. Michael Hay, 16th February, 2009
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A Warm Masonic Tale
Sat, 04/11/2009 - 20:23A tale of Masonic men surrounding a campfire in the Old West, at night, discussing the Fraternity and its teachings. One old man listened patiently, and finally spoke up:
"I can tell you more bout Masonry in a little example than some of the great Masonic philosophers can in books. Everybody stand up, and gather in a circle around the campfire ." They did that. "Now, everybody hold hands with the man next to him." They did that, too. "Now, what do you See looking ahead ?" "The face of a brother through the flames." "What do you feel in front of you?" "The warmth of the fire, and the comfort it brings on a cool night." "What do you feel at your side?" "The warm hand of a brother." "OK. Now drop the hands, and turn around." They do so. "Now what do you See, looking ahead?" "Complete darkness." "What do you Feel, looking ahead?" "A sense of loneliness, of being alienated". "What do you feel at your side?" "Nothing at all." "What do you feel on your backside?" "The warmth of the fire." "So it Is with Masonry," said the old man. "In Masonic gatherings, you can feel the warmth of Masonic interaction, you can see the face of a Brother through the light Masonry brings to you, and you can always feel the warm hand of your Masonic Brother.
When you turn away from Masonry, and are out in the world , you see darkness, feel alienated and alone, and do not feel the warm hand of your Masonic Brother.
But Masonry, and the warmth and light it brings, are just a turn away from you."
Author Unknown
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A Vacation From My Destiny
Thu, 04/02/2009 - 21:14"A Vacation From My Destiny"
I’ve heard a lot of brothers say why they don’t like to go to Grand Lodge – the sniping, politicking, styling and profiling, etc. And it is a little expensive with the travel and accommodations, eating out and all. But for me it’s priceless for the chance to see brothers in other Lodges that I wouldn’t ordinarily see all together in one place. Especially when I go back to Tennessee and see people I knew when I was a young man and Mason that I never see otherwise now that I live in another state. Sharing time with men who showed me how to live as a man and Mason, and sharing accomplishments that they made possible through their mentoring is one of the gifts Masonry offers. And it does my heart good once a year to hear the ritual done he way I remember it done in my home Lodge 30 years ago, so when “Tennessee Ritual” supplants “South Carolina Ritual” in my South Carolina Lodge recitations, at least it’s correct “Tennessee Ritual” that’s creeping in.
At Grand Lodge you get to share opinions and ideas with like-minded men in peace and harmony. You get to spend time with brothers that are just as “deep into” Masonry as you are who make you feel you may not be quite as odd as some of the brothers back home (and your wife) think. You get to sit down and share meals with brothers you never would’ve met otherwise. Sometimes someone gets elected Junior Grand Warden that you shared a table at dinner with the night before, who because of the shared time is someone you know instead of some well-connected brother you can barely see from the back of the hall. You hear stories of dedication to the craft and local successes – of men who’ve been their Lodge secretary for over 50 years and donations of large amounts of money to worthy charities. And sometimes, in the midst of all the reports of sundry committees, you get to hear a story that grabs you and brings into focus why many of us do Masonry. Such is the story of Brother Charles:
The Grand Master started the story, but was overcome with emotion and asked the Secretary of the Johnson City Lodge involved to take up the story. Charles had been in the military and when he got out, he decided to pursue two goals: to become a nurse and become a Mason. He petitioned a Lodge and took his Entered Apprentice degree in California, and started his nursing training which brought him to Johnson City Tennessee. He had already applied and gotten permission for the Lodge in Johnson City to put on his Fellowcraft and Master Mason degrees as “courtesy work”. Then life threw Charles a 90 mph curve ball. It was discovered Charles had prostate cancer that had already metastasized into his bone marrow. His chances of survival were nil. Charles was out of options and out of time. His greatest wish was to die a Master Mason and to have a Masonic funeral, but his condition precluded the normal process. He simply didn’t have 28 days to wait between the remaining degrees. Added to that, the pain medication just didn’t leave Charles the clarity of mind necessary to retain the memory work. That’s when the Tennessee Grand Lodge entered the story.
The Grand Master of Tennessee got with the Grand Master of California to get Charles a demit from the Lodge in California. The timing was right and the Lodge in California voted that night at their business meeting to grant the demit, and faxed the necessary paperwork to Tennessee. The Lodge in Johnson City voted two nights later to accept Charles by affiliation into their Lodge. Then Most Worshipful Grand Master Jerry Hanson traveled across the far corners of the state of Tennessee from Memphis to Johnson City to make Charles a “Mason at Sight” – one of the ageless prerogatives reserved for Grand Masters. A conference room at the VA Hospital in Johnson City was secured and while a hall-full of Masons and other well-wishers in wheelchairs waited outside the room, the Grand Master conferred the Fellowcraft and Master Mason degrees on Charles. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room. Brother Charles was presented with his white lambskin apron as well as a Masonic ring, both of which Charles requested to be buried wearing. Charles also requested that the Master of the Johnson City Lodge perform his Masonic funeral. Charles told the Grand Master:” You’ve given me a vacation from my destiny.” Thirteen days later Brother Charles’s feet too soon reached the end of life’s toilsome journey, and from his nerveless grasp dropped forever the working tools of life. But thanks to his brothers going the extra mile (or 400 miles) he had his dying wish fulfilled to stand before the throne of God as a Mason.
It’s true there is a certain amount of tedium in every meeting of every Grand Lodge. For me it is a small price to pay to hear from the participants stories that remind us why we’re proud to be Masons. Like that of Brother Charles.
--Bro. Lewis
--Open invitation to all Brethren,Visit Fil-Can Cabletow Lodge UD in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They meet on 4th Fridays, at 7:30 PM, at the East Kildonan Masonic Temple, 205 Kimberly Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba. For more information regarding this lodge please e-mail me and I'd be happy to pass on more contact information. This lodge has many Filippino and Asian Brethren and would like to extend a friendly and warm Masonic hand to all Brethren and to all Brethren who many not be actively partaking in lodge in the Winnipeg Canada area. S&F
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