The Rough Ashlar

How I Came to be a Royal Arch Mason

A few years ago I decided to pursue the Royal Arch but I came to the group in a strange way. My lodge rents the facility to a RAM chapter, so I was familiar with the image of the triple tau but knew little about the group.

One night a meeting was called among some of the more active brethren of my lodge but when we got there we found that the building was already occupied by the Royal Arch members. We went elsewhere for our brief meeting but not before I caught a glimpse of some of the men who were there. They were guys I already knew and looked up to and many of the ones I did not know personally I knew by reputation. I decided then that this was a group I wanted to be part of.

Since joining, I have learned quite a bit about the order and am enjoying this pursuit. Getting to know the officers and members in my own chapter as well as the area chapters has been interesting because most of them were people I already knew to be masters of the Masonic ritual. Now it turns out that they are also masters of the Royal Arch ritual. Later I learned that they are almost all active in the Scottish Rite as well. Having a grasp on the operations of any one body is impressive enough, but many of the guys I know are experts on more than one level. It is very impressive and humbling. I am barely a master of anything, and I get to sit with these fine gentlemen who are more knowledgeable than I am ever likely to be.

So much of Masonry has been like this for me – following people whom I considered mentors, whether they knew it or not, and finding myself part of something surprisingly interesting and worthwhile. My brother (biological brother, that is) had advised me not to join any appendant bodies for at least one year and to spend that time in my mother lodge, learning and getting active. I followed his sage advice but knew early on that I would join the Royal Arch Chapter.

This year I am the king of my chapter. It’s different from being Elvis, at least so far, and I am excited about being the high priest next year. That’s when it will really feel like being Elvis!

Kena Shriners Homebrew Club: Can Beer Save Lives?

I am working on starting a homebrew club at Kena Shriners in Fairfax, VA. You guessed it – a group for Shriners who like to make their own beer and wine or are interested in learning how. Because the Shriners need another club, obviously. Just kidding. The number of clubs is not an issue. We have many, and each is geared toward a specific type of activity or interest. It’s at the club and unit level that people get the most out of the Shrine, where they are in small groups, participating in something they enjoy with good friends.

Beer and wine aside, the purpose of the clubs at Kena or any other Shriners temple is to have an active membership. Active members are more likely to pay their dues and less likely to demit from the organization. The happier and more active they are, the more they will talk about the organization, and the Shriners Hospitals for Children, and generally raise awareness for the good works we do. The more people know about the hospitals, the more kids we can reach out to and help.

So can beer save lives? I say yes, and I am doing my best to raise awareness in a responsible way as the airlocks bubble, and one sip at a time.

Paul Revere: Mason, Bruins Fan

Tweeted by The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts:

Was there ever any doubt that Past Grand Master Paul Revere was a Bruins’ fan?

What to do when the power goes out? Seek more light!

I am sitting in the dark, my reading materials illuminated only by a camp lantern. The power just went out and as such the computer I had been working on is inoperable. What to do? Try to complete the Scottish Rite Master Craftsman course!

There’s nothing quite like seeking more light in the darkness of the night!

Ascending to the Oriental Chair, Building Effective Committees, and Increasing Member Retention

I was recently installed as Worshipful Master of my lodge. Wow – what an exciting day that was! Wow – what a lot of work I have ahead of me! I get to write the monthly trestleboard; take phone calls from our brethren who have various issues such as illness, death, lack of transportation, and need of personal and fraternal advice; visit other lodges for various important events; improve our mentorship program; continue to teach a weekly ritual school; and arrange programs for 21 meetings this year, not to mention preside over many degree nights, at least ten of which I have already outlined as wanting to do before July. That’s a lot to bite off. Have you ever scheduled degrees? That’s a lot of work by itself!

Thank goodness I don’t have to do all this on my own. Our Junior Warden is scheduling degrees, our deacons are helping me teach the catechisms, our immediate Past Master is running the mentorship program and the secretary is going to take care of a lot of stuff I either don’t know what to do with or don’t have time for. And he will stay on my butt about writing the trestleboard. He hounded me until I wrote a brief bio for the website and is on top of stuff enough to not let me forget to do anything. Then what am I doing? I am hoping to have things farmed out enough that I mostly just have to answer the phone and show up to meetings.

I am able to do this by forming committees. We have a culture in my lodge of not liking committees, but that’s what we have. Everyone groans when someone mentions a committee, so what I have done is asked certain brothers to take on certain responsibilities and most have been willing to do so. Leadership established! Then I invited these brothers to pull in one or two extra guys to help them get the work done. Committee established! And look – I didn’t use the word committee in my requests at all. Instead of asking for committee reports, I just ask Bro. Bob how our widows are doing and what he has planned for them.

That’s what I am doing in my lodge. Whatever you are doing in yours, be sure not to do it all yourself. Bring in other brothers to help you out and give them something to do. Not only will this reduce your workload, but you will find that you have better member retention if you ask someone to take on a task or lead a committee. It gives a sense of ownership and also allows the bonds of brotherly love to grow organically as that brother finds others to work with him. Everybody wins and the Master just has to show up and be the overseer. In theory, anyway. We will see how it all works out.

Academic Lodges – Good or Bad?

There’s something I learned of recently called an academic lodge. No, not a research lodge, which is typically a lodge under special dispensation for the purpose of conducting Masonic research. A research lodge usually cannot work in the degrees and thus has a special mission.

An academic lodge, as I understand it, is a regular lodge in all ways that is set up in an academic community specifically for that community. Harvard has one and now George Mason University may be getting one on campus. These lodges are set up so that only members of the university community – that is, professors, students, alumni, etc. – can join. My understanding is that the university staff, such as janitors, cannot even join.

I have a big problem with this.

First of all, let’s get out of our minds the idea that because Harvard does something that it’s necessarily good or intelligent. Having worked in the education world and many other places, I can tell you that a fancy-looking degree is just that: fancy-looking. What a person knows and can do is much more important than where he or she went to school.

What makes Freemasonry special and beautiful is that it unites and equalizes different groups of men from all walks of life. In my own lodge we have generals, admirals, presidents of banks and corporate leaders. We also have plumbers, police officers, HVAC mechanics, waiters and even lowly photographers and writers – the lowest of the low – like me. We can all shed those outer selves and sit together in unity, all members of the same organization, meeting on the level.

Academic lodges are reserved for a group that seems to see itself as an elite class. Membership is restricted based on social status. This is a step backward in the progress we have made as a fraternity and society. People used to say that the lodges were havens for white men only but now more and more of our lodges are integrated, and that makes the fraternity stronger. Now are we going to say that some lodges can restrict their membership based on educational status?

That’s not meeting on the level. That is the opposite of one of the things I hold most dear about Freemasonry.

I asked last night at our lodge meeting about this issue and was told that I would be welcome to attend the lodge meetings but that I would not be able to join. I have to ask myself whether I would even want to visit an organization that would not have me as a member based simply on my social standing. The answer is no. I want no part of such an elitist group where only some of the brethren can meet on the level.

The really positive part to all this is that it will be a great way to attract some younger Masons. For that I think the lodge will be very valuable. We aren’t just a bunch of old guys, as some may think, but I suspect the median age is still quite high. We can use some younger blood in our midst.

Overall, the whole idea left a bad taste in my mouth. I suppose I can be swayed to accept it but it might take some selling. What do you think of this idea?

Just got my Fez – Check it out!

Yes, this is me showing off about my new Fez and the photography work I do. I had everything set up in the studio and had the Fez there, so I figured why not photograph it?

The Shriners are a great part of my Masonic experience. I just learned tonight that a friend of mine was treated by Shriners Hospitals for Children. She was a young girl in Kazakhstan and had some problems. Somebody traveling through the area thought she could benefit from the free medical help our organization provides and brought her to the U.S. for a consultation. She and her mother lived here for a year while she had surgeries and treatment. They stayed in the Ronald McDonald House during their stay, so it was all at no expense.

To me that’s very moving. I don’t think anyone can convince me that there is a higher good than helping children through medical care or education. So yes, I was just fooling around in the studio when I made this photo, but what it means to me is being able to hold my head high when I don it, proud to be a part of such a fine institution that does such important and lifesaving work. To me, that means a lot.

Forget not the Duties: Starting Your Lodge’s Food Drives

My lodge has been working with Arlington Food Assistance Center to collect food to support their important work of providing food assistance to the families in our community. AFAC sends out a regular email newsletter and I am always shocked by the number of families they serve. A recent newsletter showed that their services have increased 72% over the past two years. It’s a staggering growth.

Part of this is due to the hard work of their director and staff, in increasing the outreach they do in the community. Another angle on it is the very real truth that need for this type of service has increased dramatically over the last couple years. With the current economic situation, more people are in need and the people who were in need before are still there. In almost all sectors there is very little upward mobility. The trend has been down – layoffs, pay cuts, work reduction, etc.

What? You want to start collecting food for your local food bank? Good on you. Here’s what you do. First, get your Worshipful Master’s buy-in. As always, he rules and governs the lodge, so you really need to contact him and at least let him know what you are doing. Also, contact a local food bank to let them know what you are doing. They will be tickled pink that you are helping.

Second, put a bin in a visible location in the lodge. Start it off with some donations. It’s like a tip jar. Nobody puts a tip in an empty tip jar. Plus, your willingness to donate is a sign that you are as invested as you are asking your brethren to be.

Third, announce in lodge, via email, and even in casual conversation, that the lodge is collecting food. Have the director of the food bank come give a quick talk at a lodge meeting to describe the need and talk about what they do.

Fourth, follow through and remind the brethren. If you get a thank-you note, read it in lodge or ask your secretary to do so. Keep talking about this effort. What I do, since we do not have a fee for dinner, is encourage every brother to bring one non-perishable item for the food drive in exchange for the fine repast they enjoy. Better yet, bring two items, because you know that someone else will have forgotten.

In my estimation, this is one of the most important things we can be doing to support the community in which we live and work. Not only does it help people and keep us true to our promise, but it helps demystify Freemasonry by bringing us into the community in a visible way. That leads to questions and to more petitions for membership. You can’t ask for a better combination of all-around good results.

Oh yeah – no, that photo is not from my lodge’s food drive. We don’t have that much collected right now. Many thanks to ladybugbkt, who put this photo on Flickr.

Use H&R Block and They Will Donate to Shriners Hospitals for Children

Folks, if you are going to use a tax preparation service this year, please print out this flyer (pdf) and bring it with you to H&R Block. They will donate $25 to the Shriners Hospitals for Children.

Shriners Hospitals for Children® is a health care system of 22 hospitals dedicated to improving the lives of children by providing specialty pediatric care, innovative research and outstanding teaching programs. Children up to the age of 18 with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries and cleft lip and palate are eligible for admission and receive all care in a family-centered environment with no financial obligation to patients or families.

That’s right – free medical care for kids and it doesn’t cost you a nickel to help out.

Masonic Traveler iPhone App

Brethren, if you have not yet downloaded the Masonic Traveler app for your iPhone, get on it now. Or better yet, go get an iPhone and then go get it. This application has a catalog of Masonic lodges searchable and findable in conjunction with your iPhone’s location services. So if you are traveling somewhere and want to find the lodges near you, maybe for your lodge photography project or else to actually attend lodge, this app will help you get there.

Here is how it works. You can find the lodges near you, click and find their meeting times, or you can do a search by lodge name, area code, jurisdiction or by lodge type. Currently there are only blue lodges listed in the database but I hope the author sees his way to including other organizations, such as Shriners, Royal Arch and other appendant bodies. Who knows – this could become a giant community-supported project. Maybe we could get the Prince Hall lodges in there as well. With more and more of us having visitation rights across that formerly impenetrable jurisdiction barrier, it might be nice to encourage some friendly discourse in this way.

Once you find the lodge you are looking for, you can click to its information and have the program make a map for you from where you are to the lodge. Maybe it’s me but this mapping function blows my mind. Perhaps I am easily impressed. That’s okay, I suppose.

The database is not perfect, but it is definitely a work in progress. In fact, the author of the app even included a feedback link so you can send him corrections or even just general feedback, like, “This app rocks!” That’s how I feel about it, anyway. I don’t often see apps that allow you to whisper good council in the ear of the author.

The only downside is the cost. In the current climate of iPhone apps, the $7.99 price tag on this may seem excessive. However, I guarantee that this is worth every penny if you ever travel and want to find a nearby lodge. It beats the pants off looking at lodge directories on many Grand Lodge Web sites. Here are some screen shots:

My recommendation: Go get this app now.