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TemetNosceXVIcubus posted:Thanks Brother, If you get stuck, let me know. Ultimately it has been a huge success and it will make its way to DVD.
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Jun 2, 2013 12:59
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jrgnsn_tjf posted:If you get stuck, let me know. On seeing the title, I made the internal assumption that it would be in the usual vein of 'inside story' programs - I am pleased to say that I was quite wrong. I'm also glad that I can watch it online, sometimes we get problems in that kind of thing in the UK. The archive section is a personal interest - I do love learning about the rich tapestry of history that lodges develop. There are only two episodes listed presently for that series - is that correct or are there more that have aired which are due to be uploaded / released?
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Jun 2, 2013 15:05
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Was anybody serious about rebuilding Solomon's temple or was that a pie in the sky kind of idea?
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Jun 3, 2013 01:06
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Animal-Mother posted:Was anybody serious about rebuilding Solomon's temple or was that a pie in the sky kind of idea? After the Jews were kicked out, held in captivity in Babylon, and returned many years later thanks to a decree by King Darius of Persia, they did in fact rebuild the temple. Other bodies of Masonry explore that aspect of the story 
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Jun 3, 2013 01:21
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Animal-Mother posted:Was anybody serious about rebuilding Solomon's temple or was that a pie in the sky kind of idea? Lots of people are serious about it. But since there is a giant rear end Mosque sitting on top of the theoretical build site, its not real likely. Solomon's temple isn't just important to Masonry. Its a Big loving Deal to a lot of ethnic groups, societies and religions. So yes there are those who are serious. But the current inhabitants are most likely not going to turn over the land since it is considered holy and their place of worship sits on it (something about being the place where the prophet Muhammad's ascent to heaven happened). Temple Mount is probably the most fought over and argued about place on Earth, everyone has some sort of claim to it. There is zero chance Solomon's temple will be rebuilt with out a whole lot of people dying in the process of both land acquisition and building. Which is why it hasn't already been rebuilt.
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Jun 3, 2013 01:24
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Innerguard posted:On seeing the title, I made the internal assumption that it would be in the usual vein of 'inside story' programs - I am pleased to say that I was quite wrong. I'm also glad that I can watch it online, sometimes we get problems in that kind of thing in the UK. The archive section is a personal interest - I do love learning about the rich tapestry of history that lodges develop. Brother Innerguard..... I have nine episodes and I suspect that they only keep two at a time on the website. As I mentioned, I'm happy to help you find the episodes you've missed but it will eventually make it;s way to DVD. I'm not sure which one(s) you've seen, but each usually focuses on an interview with a high ranking member of the United Grand Lodge of Victoria - UGLV - (usually by either the Grand Master or Deputy Grand Master), an interview with an ordinary member (usually a tad goony), an exploration of some of the signs and symbols of freemasonry, a visit to an historically or geographically interesting lodge, a look at charitable activities by members, goatkeeping best practice techniques, and masonic items of interest from the grand lodge library. The GM and DGM usually are onboard to answer the very type of questions raised on this forum and they usually do a really good job, save for the trotting out the occasional "It's not a secret society, it's a society with secrets..." garbage. That said, they make things pretty clear that whilst anyone could go and google every aspect to every degree it really would detract from the experience of actually being a part of it. This was something I always thought was a throwaway line, but found it was true once I started out. It does it's best to present a modern face to the obviously shrinking numbers in my state (150K members post WW2 - down to just over 30K statewide nowadays), without making things too camp, post-modern, nor contrived. Obviously theres only so much you can do to try and pique the interest of young blokes when the average age is 70+, but I take my hat off to them for such a bold attempt. It cleverly avoids the terms: temple (masonic centre), ritual (ceremony / play / lessons), and brethren (lodge members), but still pays reverence to our traditions. Anyway, hope this gives a bit of an insight.
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Jun 3, 2013 04:30
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Animal-Mother posted:Was anybody serious about rebuilding Solomon's temple or was that a pie in the sky kind of idea? I was told that I was supposed to build the Third Temple in my heart. So far I've only mostly built arterial blockages in my heart with meat pie and chips. So yes, it is pie....
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Jun 3, 2013 08:11
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TemetNosceXVIcubus posted:I was told that I was supposed to build the Third Temple in my heart. I'm a Florida Mason. I'm also an orthodox Jew. I wonder if perhaps you could go into any sort of detail as to at what point you were instructed to build it "in your heart". In Florida, focus is not necessarily on rebuilding the Temple, but more on the ethical/moral stuff, fitting our minds as L Ss for the S B, the H N M W Hs, E I T Hs. This is on a more metaphorical level. I ask because as a Jew, we are taught that by performing G-d's commandments, avoiding sin, and doing teshuvah, we are working towards filling the world's quota of requirements to bring the Messiah who will commence the building of the Third Temple in a very literal sense. This fits well with Masonic teachings that I've heard. Ari fucked around with this message at 18:12 on Jun 3, 2013 |
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Jun 3, 2013 18:10
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Do we have a goon from the Maidstone Masonic Centre (Bearsted Lodge)?
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Jun 4, 2013 08:53
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Thanks Jack White! http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/region/detroit/musician-jack-white-saves-detroit-masonic-temple-paying-off-concert-venues-142k-tax-bill He paid off the Detroit Masonic Temple's tax bill. They were in danger of being foreclosed on. He's originally from Detroit, played some shows at the Temple, and his Mother was an Usher there. If you happen to be in the area, it's a heck of a building to take a tour of.
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Jun 4, 2013 21:02
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KillianLett posted:Thanks Jack White! Saw that in the news when it all went down -- I gotta say, I honestly wasn't expecting someone so young to have ponied up for it. Pleased to see that philanthropy isn't entirely lost on my generation. :P
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Jun 4, 2013 21:47
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The Grand Master of Florida's ruling was overturned. http://freemasonsfordummies.blogspot.com/2013/06/florida-overturns-gms-edict-re-gnostics.html
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Jun 5, 2013 07:10
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KweezNArt posted:Saw that in the news when it all went down -- I gotta say, I honestly wasn't expecting someone so young to have ponied up for it. Pleased to see that philanthropy isn't entirely lost on my generation. :P At least it is good to see that there are more Masonic organizations out there that are neglecting their financial responsibilities. I mean this in the best way possible, mismanagement of funds can appear anywhere is what I am trying to say.
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Jun 5, 2013 08:35
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Lovable Luciferian posted:The Grand Master of Florida's ruling was overturned. quote:The passed resolution reverses the Ruling in its entirety, and concludes by affirming “that Florida Masonry hereby declares its eternal devotion to the religious toleration that is one of the immovable and Ancient Landmarks of Freemasonry, never to be changed by any man or group of men.” Heck yes.  I'll have to report on this at the Stated Meeting later this week; I know more than a few guys will want to hear this.
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Jun 5, 2013 13:50
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FreshFeesh posted:Heck yes. Extremely pleased to see this being overturned. Good sense prevails.
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Jun 5, 2013 15:29
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Excellent. I hope his butt hurts for a long time. Fraternally speaking, of course.
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Jun 5, 2013 22:11
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I sat in the Grand Master's chair once. Not comfortable.
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Jun 5, 2013 23:15
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Hey guys, check this out! My boss told me this story. About seven years ago, someone was working in the upstairs part of a building in our old downtown. The guy found some stuff and came to our office (we're a newspaper) to see if anybody knew what it was. The building he was working in was formerly the town's lodge, which demitted its charter in the 1980s and closed down. Their Royal Arch chapter, obviously, was gone and forgotten many years before. Boss lady didn't know what to do with the stuff at the time, or even what exactly it was, but she knew it was Masonic. She photographed it all, and promised herself she'd call a Mason she knew and figure out what to do with it. Life got in the way, though, and she never went back there, never knew what happened to it. But she also never forgot about it, and the subject came up this week and she told me about it. Anyway, it's now touched off a whole Indiana Jones-y thing for us. We're hoping we can find the former tenant and see if he knows what happened to it all. The pictures alone (she took quite a few, but I only have this one right now) are pretty cool, but this is regalia and records from the 1870s -- how cool would it be to see THAT in person! Wish us luck!
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Jun 6, 2013 19:00
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Definitely contact the state's Grand Lodge -- they would either be the appropriate contact or put you in touch with the right one. What a find!
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Jun 6, 2013 20:54
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Oh, of course! If we can find what happened to the stuff. Like I said, she took that pic when the stuff was found, like seven years ago. But I already know just the guy to call; he's a past GM, active in the York Rite, and is the de facto authority and archivist of pretty much every shred of our state's Masonic history.
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Jun 6, 2013 21:32
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Aaaaaaaand it's all been thrown away. Remember: if you don't know what something is, just put it in the trash!
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Jun 7, 2013 00:47
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Just pretend we aren't Masons here, just by the look of that stuff it was obviously fancy and important to somebody (and often that means worth money) so would any of us throw that kind of stuff away?
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Jun 7, 2013 00:58
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jonboy8871 posted:Aaaaaaaand it's all been thrown away. Remember: if you don't know what something is, just put it in the trash! This actually made me feel a little sick to my stomach.
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Jun 7, 2013 01:05
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Lovable Luciferian posted:Just pretend we aren't Masons here, just by the look of that stuff it was obviously fancy and important to somebody (and often that means worth money) so would any of us throw that kind of stuff away? I certainly wouldn't. Considering the area where I live, though, I can see it happening. There are a lot of people here who would rather not think about the past, probably for good reason.
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Jun 7, 2013 01:14
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Also I may not be a York Rite Mason but I sure as gently caress know what that tapestry alone could be and I sure as gently caress would not let it get thrown away. I'm actually a little upset by this. Would you mind saying what general area you live in, Brother? (state or province)
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Jun 7, 2013 01:19
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The Black Belt of Alabama. It was, of course, an old-school all-white lodge even up until when it closed. I mean, they all still are. But I can understand why the tenant who chucked it might not have been TOO bothered. Also, apparently, the building's owner (now dead so I can't call him up and ask him what the hell) told the guy it wasn't worth anything to him and to do whatever with it. I fully believe the guy when he says he tossed it. I almost wish I didn't, but I do.
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Jun 7, 2013 02:12
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jonboy8871 posted:Aaaaaaaand it's all been thrown away. Remember: if you don't know what something is, just put it in the trash! Oh no, no no no. That is the worst thing. What a massive shame - I know our sympathies won't really help in the resoration of the old artifacts, but I know exactly where you're coming from. I too feel a little queasy at the thought of old pieces of history being chucked out. We have an old apron behind a display case, guesstimated to be from 1822-1826 when the lodge was known to be under a different name.
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Jun 7, 2013 02:58
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Guys, I'm gonna let this go after this post, but I'm just so disappointed what people let happen. After tonight, I got a little more information on how what was basically all the accoutrements to the town's defunct Royal Arch chapter got trashed. Apparently, the now-deceased building owner brought in his friend, a local amateur historian who really does know a ton about the history of the area. He's not a Mason, but I believe his father was. He was the one who pronounced it not worth worrying about. One hundred and fifty years ago, his however-many-greats grandfather was an extremely prominent Alabamian and a Royal Arch Mason. His name was probably in that record book that's disintegrating in a landfill somewhere now. And I bet he had no idea. I discovered it just now through a Google search.
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Jun 7, 2013 07:26
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jonboy8871 posted:Guys, I'm gonna let this go after this post, but I'm just so disappointed what people let happen. After tonight, I got a little more information on how what was basically all the accoutrements to the town's defunct Royal Arch chapter got trashed. Apparently, the now-deceased building owner brought in his friend, a local amateur historian who really does know a ton about the history of the area. He's not a Mason, but I believe his father was. He was the one who pronounced it not worth worrying about. That is supremely depressing, and a great shame.
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Jun 7, 2013 11:19
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This post is to comfort, not to start a religious discussion, but some guy who lived about 2000 years ago said: "Split a piece of wood: I am there. Lift a stone, and you will find me there." The stuff is not important, the people are.
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Jun 7, 2013 13:09
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True, but it's always kind of nice to have a tangible bit of history. My local Lodge burned to the ground about 15 or 18 years ago. All that was salvaged were a handful of metal officers' jewels that weren't consumed by the fire. Everything else? Gone. All the photos of the past masters, all the photos of the events, all the history. Thank God the secretary had the roll books and so on at his house -- but the other records and the original (1850) charter are gone. I go to visit other lodges in the area, and I see a wall of past masters looking down at me, stretching back into the distant past. My Lodge only has a couple of pictures of a local who was Grand Master in the 20s or 30s, and a few pictures of recent DeMolay/OES/Rainbow things. We don't even have the past 16 years of WMs, apparently because it would be "too jarring" for sudden modern pictures with nothing behind them. Some of us officers want to at least get a placque made up with past WMs' names on them, but... sigh. The official story is that the fire was an unknown accident; the unofficial story is that it was arson, and people had a good idea of generally who, but... eh.
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Jun 7, 2013 15:42
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Effingham posted:True, but it's always kind of nice to have a tangible bit of history. My local Lodge burned to the ground about 15 or 18 years ago. All that was salvaged were a handful of metal officers' jewels that weren't consumed by the fire. Everything else? Gone. All the photos of the past masters, all the photos of the events, all the history. Thank God the secretary had the roll books and so on at his house -- but the other records and the original (1850) charter are gone. I go to visit other lodges in the area, and I see a wall of past masters looking down at me, stretching back into the distant past. My Lodge only has a couple of pictures of a local who was Grand Master in the 20s or 30s, and a few pictures of recent DeMolay/OES/Rainbow things. We don't even have the past 16 years of WMs, apparently because it would be "too jarring" for sudden modern pictures with nothing behind them. Some of us officers want to at least get a placque made up with past WMs' names on them, but... sigh. We too have had a loss of extremely old records - minutes and records of past masters from 1736 to 1823 were lost when, during ww2, the lodge building was taken as a billet for Polish troops. To keep themselves warm, they burnt papers. Sadly, those papers were very old records, not that they were particularly to know. As Keetron has rightly pointed out, we make the history, and not the curios and suchlike - though I do find a nice piece of history quite comforting, sometimes - an old gavel, worn by the touch of many illustrious hands.
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Jun 7, 2013 16:44
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jrgnsn_tjf posted:Any other masonic tatts?? Got this a day after I was Raised in '09. 
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Jun 7, 2013 21:30
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Mr. Maltose posted:Considering the work that Masonry now conducts, no one could really be considered disabled in the unable to work sense. If someone (for example) needs to be pushed between stations in a wheelchair, I can't imagine that there would be a shortage of Brethren volunteering to assist. If you're lesser-able, your Brothers are going to be there for you, and nobody's going to give you any grief because of it. I have a tracheal stenosis (scar tissue just under my vocal cords) and sometimes crippling asthma. I was suffering from the aftermath of an attack when it was time to go through my FC ceremony. Nobody cared that I had my inhaler in my pocket and had to huff from it a couple times through the evening. After everything was done, the Brother who had led me by the arm told me that he'd walked me in smaller rectangles than would normally have been done. I was preoccupied and hadn't noticed.
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Jun 7, 2013 21:44
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I was officially invited to join both the Allied Masonic Degrees and the Knight Masons last night. Both of them were founded (i.e. brought to America) in Monroe, NC, about an hour from me. I'm pretty excited
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Jun 7, 2013 21:54
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mrbill posted:If someone (for example) needs to be pushed between stations in a wheelchair, I can't imagine that there would be a shortage of Brethren volunteering to assist. If you're lesser-able, your Brothers are going to be there for you, and nobody's going to give you any grief because of it. There were only enough brothers in lodge last night to compose a lodge  One of whom is in a wheelchair currently due to arthritic strain so he remained seated during the standing parts, he was playing Jr. Warden's role, as the regulars were out. I got to Tile, which was exciting because I'm still an EA due to time/date conflicts with work. Boo!
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Jun 7, 2013 22:24
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SaNChEzZ posted:I got to Tile, which was exciting because I'm still an EA due to time/date conflicts with work. Boo! I love getting to "fill in", although I've only done it for degree ceremonies and not Stated Meetings. Especially love being the Secretary; my large physical stature makes part of the EA lots of fun, and I improvised and did something once that had everyone in stitches and has become a tradition.
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Jun 7, 2013 22:46
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QPZIL posted:I was officially invited to join both the Allied Masonic Degrees and the Knight Masons last night. That's pretty awesome! I know several of our PMs are members of the AMD but I know next to nothing about them, truth be told. One of the things I like best about visiting other Lodges is offering to stand in or help fill any position they need. Heck, I was almost the de facto Junior Deacon at a sister Lodge as theirs was often out with medical issues. Getting to participate in the ritual from an old/new chair is always exciting, no matter how familiar the work.
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Jun 7, 2013 23:40
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FreshFeesh posted:That's pretty awesome! I know several of our PMs are members of the AMD but I know next to nothing about them, truth be told. I'm pretty intrigued by it. It's an invitation-only appendant body to the York Rite, that aims to preserve the degrees that weren't picked up by the Scottish or York Rites. For example: Royal Ark Mariner, Grand Tyler of Solomon, Order of St. Lawrence the Martyr, Knight of Constantinople, etc. The Knight Masons are very similar but their aim is to preserve what are known as the "Green Degrees", which are the traditional Irish degrees. I don't know as much about that one, but seems pretty neat
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Jun 8, 2013 00:35
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mrbill posted:I love getting to "fill in", although I've only done it for degree ceremonies and not Stated Meetings. Especially love being the Secretary; my large physical stature makes part of the EA lots of fun, and I improvised and did something once that had everyone in stitches and has become a tradition. Ok....I'm a fish.....I've taken the bait.... "Say, Mr Bill, what did you do filling in as an EA that was so drat funny!?!" (Nice tat btw, bro)
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Jun 8, 2013 05:01
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