I've had some interesting thoughts recently as my nephews--both of them-- have gotten interested in Masonry. We've had several lodge brothers who have come through our doors whose families have been Masons for generations. Of course they would be interested; having known or found out that a father, or grandfather, or even great-great grandfather, or cousin or other relative was a Mason. If I found out that my grandfather was a Mason, I'd absolutely be curious about the craft. I've found that having these Masonic brothers "with history" makes me a little jealous.
I am the first in my family, that I know of who has become a Mason. Zachary, my nephew is doing his first degree proficiency tomorrow, and Gabriel, his brother, is also interested in the craft. It is not something I have hidden, nor did I solicit their participation; it was their own experience in their interaction with me as as an uncle, as well as meeting other Masons in their lives (Gabby's girlfriend is a Jobs Daughter, and her father is a Mason). They have found their own way here and have found that these Masonic folk have something about them that is valuable: Integrity perhaps. Perhaps a deep respect for one's fellow creatures and brother Masons. For Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth.
I suppose they have many of the same reasons that caused me to became a Mason: because those men I knew to be Masons were good and honest men. So I am now about to become the root of a long line of Masons-to-be. I am honored beyond words at the thought of my nephews interest in, and respect of the Craft. And in me.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Family Masonry
Saturday, September 1, 2007
From the East - September, 2007
Greetings Brethren and Masonic families. Thanks for coming to the Luau and stated meeting. Very well attended and fun for all. It would be nice if we could keep all the brothers who attend the dinners to walk down one floor to the Stated Meeting. And I know how.
With the help of Brothers Steve Merritt and Past Masters; Kevin Stroud and Richard Anderson, we are attempting to maintain classes for Entered Apprentices and Fellow Craft Masons who need their proficiencies to advance to Master Masons and thus attend the Stated meetings.
Believe me. When their proficiencies are completed they will advance at the scheduled degrees. What concerns me is the continued support from all Master Masons. The first half of the year we had a deluge of new members, proficiencies, degrees for advancement in Masonry, and attendance at the degrees. Lately, the lodge room at the degrees has the appearance of a ghost town.
Brethren, it's simple, it's "roots". You start at Entered Apprentice, you go to proficiency school, you advance to Fellow Craft, and then to Master Mason. Something we all want as Masons.
The officers of this lodge practice for just that! And in the interim, as Master Masons, you attend the degrees and you root these brothers on. You want them to advance, you need them to advance. And when you finish your fun and entertaining stated dinner, you walk down with them one floor, side by side, as Master Masons.
Bring that same spirit at the dinners to the scheduled degrees and then share with me the thrill of watching someone walk the same path as you have.
Fraternally, Dennis Wallace, Worshipful Master.
Kevin's Corner - September, 2007
Over here in the corner, many interesting and mundane pieces of information pass by. I have a habit of reading the writings of my contemporaries in the craft, to see what others are thinking, or doing. Masons from all over the world are taking the time to put their thoughts and such on the Internet. Daily, they write about the craft and their place in it, what they feel about it, what we “Should be” doing, what we shouldn’t be doing.
To be honest, I get excited about a lot of what is written. Two reasons for this:
1. It opens me to the wider world, shows me what others, in similar situations, are doing. It can be inspiring, as well as confusing. Invigorating, as well as frustrating.
2. I write a monthly newsletter. Sometimes I have to fill in the empty spaces.
I can not always use what I read in the Trestle Board. I may agree with what another Brother has written, but honestly feel that printing it would start more arguments then insights. Because it is our Trestle Board, not mine, I don’t take it lightly what goes in here.
But listen, if my article starts on page one then you can easily determine that not a lot came across from the membership for printing this month.
So, here are some articles that have made it to the corner this month:
Time, Attendance and the 24 inch Gauge
from Freemasons For Dummies by Chris Hodapp
Brother Kurt Kurosawa posted an interesting idea on the Masonic Light Forum today. He visited a lodge in the
They have a lesson about the 24 inch gauge which:
"teaches us that all men are gifted with the same good measure of time each day to discharge all their duties in life, as well as for work, refreshment and rest, but they remind each other that a 30-day month contains 720 hours, so that the bare minimum involvement of attending a stated communication, if it consumes 4 hours, would demand of them only half of one percent of their time."
Isn't your lodge worth one half of one percent of your time? Is your lodge worth one half of one percent of your members' time?
Quick Hit #1
From the Masonic Minute.Com, poster anonymous
It was suggested by a Fellow Craft in my Lodge that we hold the Initiation of our next candidate at midnight. Now, I know that most of you are getting your beauty sleep at that point…but wouldn’t that be a hoot?
Imagine getting a letter that says you have to appear at the Lodge on so-and-so Friday night at 11:30 p.m. in business casual attire. You arrive, and everyone there is in a tuxedo or a suit. The whole place looks totally different than the other times you have visited because it is entirely lit by candle light. Even the semi-familiar fellowship hall you were just getting used to has a mysterious glow about it. You are directed to a person whom you already know…the guy that’s going to be your coach…and he says very little to you. At about ten minutes till midnight, the entire group, minus you, goes into the Lodge room. After some time, two men appear carrying long rods and…….
Now, I don’t know about you guys, but this seems like a great idea. Keeping Freemasonry fresh and exciting is one of the best ways to energize and motivate the Craft. The problem is, trying to get a big-enough group of men together to arrive at that hour. I know the younger guys would probably get a kick out of it, but what about the others?
By the Way, Brother Chriss Hodapp – author of “Freemasonry for Dummies” and, “Solomon’s Builders”, will be at Grand Lodge this year. Friday, September 28th at 7:30 PM in the California Room He will be speaking about the architecture and Masonic Philosophy involved in the foundation of the
Kevin
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
From The East
Greetings Brethren and Masonic families.
With most of July being dark, I've missed you all and cannot wait until we meet again. We did have many degrees in June and a very nice Forth of July Rib and BBQ'd chicken dinner on July 5Th, celebrating our country's Birthday, but it's been too long.
So let's start off our next meeting with a Luau. Brother Steve Merritt is hunting for some Hawaiian dancers to entertain us while we enjoy a Luau dinner. There may be hors d'oeuvres, so come early and call in your reservations. (510)864-9545. Main entree will be Huli-Huli chicken. So dress Hawaiian.
We had an extremely successful and eventful Festival of St. John, (first annual) hosted by Steve Merritt and myself. I'm sure the word is out and all Masons will attend next years. Thanks to all who participated.
October will bring us Oktoberfest stated dinner/meeting, and November we will celebrate our Golden Veterans 50 year pins celebration to honor all of our Masonic Brothers who have reached this milestone. Mine is slated for 2048, so I'm planning the meal now!
It's that time of year to plan the second half of the calendar, and to thank you all for allowing me this great honor bestowed upon me as Master of this lodge. It has been successful and I thank you for the support.
We have many new brothers and their families’ and friends. I wish all of you many proud years of telling everyone you are a Mason!!
Fraternally grateful,
Dennis Wallace, Worshipful Master.
From the Secretaries Desk
Brethren, my column this month tells a true story that best demonstrates the spirit of Fraternalism and Brotherly Love which we enjoy as Masons.
“The Travels of a Lambskin Apron”
This story begins in 1940 when Captain John Cleaveland Miller petitioned Foothill Lodge Number 564 for the Degrees of Masonry. Brother Miller was born on July 13th 1885 at Myrtle Point, Coos County, Oregon. He was Initiated, Passed and Raised in 1941 by Worshipful Brother Ludolph Foulkers. At the time, Brother Miller, age 55, was a qualified Captain, Master and Pilot of the San Francisco Bay and Tributaries, and worked for the Tidewater Associated Oil Company in San Francisco.
In 1942, at age 56, he registered for the draft, but there is no substantive evidence that he ever served on active duty in any of the armed services of the United States. Yet, sometime after he was raised, evidence suggests that he traveled to, and about York, England, and while there may have visited Lodge Harmony Number 156, where he left his inscribed apron, “for safe keeping”. It is possible that, being a “seafaring man” he may have been there with the Merchant Marine, or other maritime support service.
In early June this year, I received a forwarded email from W. Brother Chic Lewis, P.M. of Lodge Harmony No. 156, Yealmpton, Devon England expressing an interest in returning Brother Millers apron to his “Mother Lodge”. After some emails, and a phone call from Brother Lewis, the apron was returned to us in beautiful condition, and at our July Stated Meeting was laid in the archives of the Lodge. This is not only appropriate, but timely, as this year marks the 122nd anniversary of his birth.
Brother Lewis was concerned if Brother Miller had survived the war years, in whatever he was doing in Europe, and after doing some research, I found that he had indeed survived, returned to the United States, and passed away in June of 1969 at Atascadero, San Luis Obispo County, California at 83 years, 11 months. He had never married.
My Brothers, the moral of this story is that as a Mason, you can always expect to be looked after and receive the love of your Brethren whithersoever dispersed but, if you do not live up to your obligations as a Mason, you will sever that bond of fraternalism. For those of you who have still not paid your 2007 dues, do you really wish to lose your fraternal ties?
Have a great month and hope to see you in Lodge
Fraternally
Jerry
Articles & Links
Many of the articles printed in our Trestle Board come from Web Sites. When this happens we place the link here to insure that:
- We give credit where credit is due! (We also print the links and attributions in the Trestle Board)
- Our readers have the opportunity to read other works by the authors
From our June / July 2007 Trestle Board.
Lodge Courtesies
From the Masonic Service Associations Short Talk Series
Conventions are the rules which society makes for itself, without the force of law, by which its members live together with the least friction. It is not a sin to eat with one's knife or to keep one's hat on in the house. But these are not "good form" or good manners.
Masonry has developed its own conventions, by which its members act in lodge and the anteroom. Not to proceed according to their dictates is not a Masonic offense; it is merely a lack of Masonic manners.
As you passed through the Third Degree you received instructions in the Ritual and the obligation. You were carefully taught those essential things which a man must know in order to be @ Mason. But unless you belong to a most unusual lodge, or had a most wise brother for a mentor, it is doubtful if you were told much about these little niceties of lodge conduct. You are supposed to at, tend your lodge and learn by observation.
Not all brethren are observing, however. It is not uncommon to see some brother, old enough in Masonry to know better, crossing the lodge room between the Altar and the East. He might have observed that his brethren did not do it; but it is more difficult to note the absence of an act than to take cognizance of something done.
Brethren do not pass between the Altar and the East in lodge. It is a convention; there is no penalty for its infraction. It is a courtesy offered the Master. It is rooted in the theory that, as the Great Lights and the Charter of the lodge are essential to the regularity of the meeting, as these are the particular care of the Master, and as their place is upon the Altar, the Master should never be interrupted in his plain view of them, even for an instant.
Well informed brethren do not take seats in the East without invitation. All brethren within the tiled door are equal; the officers are the servants of their brethren and not their superiors. All seats, then, might well be considered open to all. But Masonry exacts long services of her officers; Past Masters have worked hard and long for the lodge they love. The Master recognizes their devotion and their loyalty with a special word of welcome, and an invitation to them to occupy a seat with him, in the East where they once sat. From this pretty custom has developed the invitation to a "seat in the East" to any distinguished visitor, or some member the Master wishes especially to honor. If all in the lodge helped themselves to seats in the East there would be no opportunity for the Master to offer that courtesy.
Brethren who respect the formalities of their lodge will not enter it undressed; that is, without their apron, or while putting that apron on. The spectacle of a brother walking up to the Altar, tying the strings and adjusting his apron while the Master waits for his salute, is not a pretty one. A man who entered church putting on his collar and tying his necktie could hardly be arrested, but he would surely receive unflattering comment. The strangeness of the new badge of a Mason and unfamiliarity with its meaning cause many to forget that it is as important to a Mason in lodge as clean linen, properly adjusted, is to the man in the street.
The Worshipful Master in the East occupies the most exalted position in the gift of the lodge. A lodge which does not honor its Master, not because of what he himself may be, but on account of the honor given him, is lacking in Masonic courtesy. The position he occupies, not the man, must be given the utmost respect, if the traditions of the Fraternity are to be observed.
It is, therefore, to the Master, not to John Smith who happens to be the Master, that you offer a salute when you enter or retire from lodge. Like any other salute, this may be done courteously and as if you meant it, or perfunctorily as if you did not care. The man who puts one finger to his hat brim when he speaks to a woman on the street compares poorly with his well brought up neighbor who lifts his hat. Taking the hat off is the modern remains of the ancient custom of knights who removed their helmets in the presence of those they felt their friends, and thus, before those they wished to honor by showing that they trusted them. A man removes his hat before a woman to show his respect. Touching the brim is but a perfunctory salute. Similarly, the salute to the Master is your renewed pledge of fealty and service, your public recognition before all men, of your obligation. It is performed before the Master and the Altar to show him your veneration for his authority, your respect for all that for which he stands. To offer your salute as if you were in a hurry, too lazy properly to make it, or bored with its offering, is to be, Masonically, a boor.
A man in lodge is the servant of his brethren, if he engages in any lodge activity. Servants stand in the presence of their superiors. Therefore, no Mason sits while speaking, whether he addresses an officer or another brother. This does not refer to conversation on the benches during refreshment, but to discussion on the floor during business meeting.
During the refreshment the Master relinquishes the gavel to the Junior Warden in the South, which thus becomes, for the time being, constructively the East. All that has been said about the respect due the Master in the East applies now to the Junior Warden in the South.
It is illegal to enter or leave the room during a ballot; it is discourteous to leave during a speech or during a degree, except at the several natural perils@ which end one section and begin another.
Smoking is permitted in some lodge rooms during the business meeting. Alas, there are some which do not interdict it during a degree! You will, of course, be governed here by the custom of your own lodge, although it is to be hoped you will never lend the weight of your opinion toward establishing the custom of smoking during the solemn ceremonies of a degree, unless, indeed, you would like to smoke in church!
A courteous brother does not refuse a request made in the name of the lodge. There are three duties which devolve upon the membership which are too often "the other fellow's business." Every lodge at some time has a knock upon the door from some visiting brother. This requires the services of two brethren from the lodge on the examination committee. Some one has to do that work. To decline it, on any ground whatever, is discourteous to the Master, to whom you have &aid, in effect, "I don't want to do my share; let George do it. I just want to sit here and enjoy myself while the other fellows do the work."
A degree cannot well be put on without the services of conductors. When you are assigned such a piece of work, it is not Masonic courtesy to refuse, for the same reasons given above. And if you are selected as a member of the Fellowcraft 'team in the Master Mason degree, the only reason for not accepting is that of physical disability. Like other matters herein spoken of, refusal here is not a Masonic offense. Neither is it a legal offense to drink from a finger bowl, seat yourself at table before your hostess, or spit on your host's parlor floor! But the convention of good manners is what makes society pleasant, and Masonic good manners make lodge meetings pleasant.
One does not talk in church. God's House is not for social conversation; it is for worship and the learning of the lesson of the day. A good Mason does not talk during the conferring of a degree. The lodge room is then a
There is a special lodge courtesy to be observed in all debates to any motion. One speaks to the Master; the Master is the lodge. One does not turn ones back on him to address the lodge without permission from him. One stands to order when addressing the chair; customs differ in various jurisdictions as to the method of salute, but some salute should always be given when addressing the Master. The spectacle of two brethren on their feet at the same time, arguing over a motion, facing each other and ignoring the Master, is not one which any Master should permit. But it is also one which no Master should have to prevent!
Failure to obey the gavel at once is a grave discourtesy. The Master is all powerful in the lodge. He can put or refuse to put any motion. He can rule any brother out of order on any subject at any time. He can say what he will, and what he will not, permit to be discussed. Brethren who think him unfair, arbitrary, unjust, or acting illegally, have redress; the Grand Lodge can be appealed to on any such matter. But in the lodge, the gavel, emblem of authority, is supreme. When a brother is rapped down, -he should at once obey, without further discussion. It is very bad manners to do otherwise; indeed, it is close to the line between bad manners and a Masonic offense.
Failure to vote on a petition is so common in many jurisdictions that it may be considered stretching the list to include it under a heading of lodge discourtesies. In smaller lodges the Master probably requires the satisfaction of the law which provides that all brethren present vote. In larger ones, where there is much business, and many petitions, he may, and often does, declare the ballot closed after having asked, "Have all the brethren voted?" Even though he knows quite well that they have not all voted. This is not the place to discuss whether the Master is right or wrong in such action. But the brother who does not vote, because too lazy, or too indifferent, or for any other reason, is discourteous because he injures the ballot, its secrecy, its importance, and its value. Few brethren would be so thoughtless as to remain seated, or stand by their chairs, when a candidate is brought to light. Yet indifference to one's part in this solemn ceremony is less bad manners than indifference to the ballot; the former injures only a ceremony; the latter may injure the lodge, and by that injury, the fraternity.
It is a courtesy to the Master to advise him beforehand that you intend to offer thus and such a motion, or wish to bring up thus and such a matter for discussion. You have the right to do it without apprising him in advance, just as he has the right to rule you out of order. But the Master may have plans of his own for that meeting, into which your proposed motion or discourse does not fit. Therefore, it is a courtesy to him, to ask him privately if you may be recognized for your purpose, and thus save him the disagreeable necessity of seeming arbitrary in a public refusal.
Lodge courtesies, like those of the profane world, are founded wholly in the Golden Rule. They oil the Masonic wheels and enable them to revolve without creaking. They smooth the path of all in the lodge, and prove to all and sundry the truth of the ritualistic explanation of that "more noble and glorious purpose" to which we are taught to put the trowel.
