By V. Thomas Langford
Why would a man want to attend Lodge?
Asked in a different way, why would a man choose to attend Lodge instead of a Rotary meeting, a Lions’ club fundraiser or an Elk’s Club function?
RESTORATION
Sometimes a revolutionary idea changes our lives and causes us to see the world differently. Sometimes that idea is so powerful that it creates an organization. If the organization grows in membership and influence, it becomes an institution of society. Unfortunately in the interest of perpetuating themselves, institutions have a bad habit of stifling the very ideas that brought them into existence. With this admonishment, I would like to suggest that we need to remind ourselves of the fundamental ideas that form the basis of our relevance.
Lodge provides a time, a place and most importantly, a space in a man’s life, when he literally and figuratively closes the doors to the demands of the outside world and concentrates on self improvement. I could use the metaphor of the cave, a place to which he retreats for refuge, but this would be a coarse analogy without nuance.
Masonry’s program is the three step initiation process whereby a man joins our fraternity and becomes a master mason. Our program is the initiate conferral of these three degrees. Each degree is made up of three distinct parts. The first is the obligation of the candidate; the second is a lecture or lesson of instruction; the third is the charge or orders for application. The obligation is taken and the lecture and charge are based on an oral tradition that is delivered using a proscribed ritual. The cache of our brand is that it is outside of the material or physical world. It speaks of the metaphysical dimensions of life—the values and principles that direct how we live.
The radical and revolutionary aspect of our program is that we literally and figuratively close the door to the outside world. In so doing, our institution provides a forum for reflection. In allows a man a time, a place and a space to embark on an internal journey. In an increasingly noisy world concerned with external productivity, a calm and quiet place is becoming harder to find and achieving a relatively quiet mental space even more difficult to reach. Ritual helps us to inhabit that space by solving the problem of trying to fill the space. Our ritual provides structure and relieves men of the burden of coming up with new programs of instruction. It is for this reason a deeply engaged and focused practice of Masonry can take on the form of an active meditation.
That is also the reason why the ceremony and ritual associated with opening and closing the lodge is so vital and important. This ceremony for many becomes repetitive and tiresome but that is because it has lost its connection with its mysterious purpose. Opening and closing a lodge is not just about a ceremony that marks a transition from the outside world to the Masonic world. More importantly, it is about creating a sacred space that sets it apart from anything in the world of the quotidian affairs of men. At its symbolic levels it is reminding us to set aside everything that is unreal and temporal and focusing our attention on only that which is real and eternal. When a space is created with intent and only that which is worthy is brought to the alter, then and only then, can the universal energies that we are ritually calling upon, work their magic in our bonds of fellowship. If this does not happen than lodge becomes an empty space, devoid of mystery and full of formal but empty ceremony.
FELLOWSHIP
When we attend Lodge at the Temple, we reaffirm that we are not alone in this journey. We share the fellowship of our brothers. A friendly lodge atmosphere and good fellowship are key ingredients in achieving this restorative function. In freemasonry we recognize that camaraderie is the essence of fraternity. We are all familiar with the rules of our Masonic Code that prohibit against political and religious debates and the significance we assign to tolerance of other’s religious convictions. These rules of conduct are designed to foster this atmosphere of brotherhood.
In Lodge we enter that quiet space with our fraternal brothers, reflect on the principles of our ritual and hopefully leave the Lodge recharged, ready to do better in the outside world. When we take care of ourselves in a responsible fashion we can then take care of others. If done right, this unique program can actually help to relieve the stresses of modern life. Recharged, we can go back into the world and do good stuff for our families, our employers and our community. Feeding his inner life, a mason is enables to be a better husband, father, worker and member of his community. Lodge provides the opportunity to recharge so a man can leave lodge and return to his community empowered to give of his time, talent and treasure.
We all know about the good work that Mason’s do. Our well known charitable work includes hospitals, schools, clinics and retirement homes. There are also lots of non-Lodge activities, particularly among our concordant bodies, promoting worthwhile goals. While these are laudable aims and activities and consistent with values we cherish, they are not the reason men come to Masonry. Men don’t come to Lodge because they want to perform more community services or be obligated to charitable tasks. There are plenty of great charitable causes. There are many outstanding social and civic organizations that are doing useful work in our communities. Men come to Lodge because they come to be restored and enrich their inner lives through fraternity. Some also come because they expect something more than the outside world can offer. Although they may no be able to articulate the exact nature of that “something more” is, it is the stuff of becoming a better man.
I began this article with an admonishment because we need to be careful not to lose sight of this important idea when we try to expand our officers’ and members’ obligations outside of Lodge. This is especially true in these times of diminishing membership and financial hardship. Our Lodge and its programs should feed us, not deplete us.
INSTRUCTION
This is not to say that Lodge ritual is the beginning and end all of Masonry. We are unlike any other community organization because our core purpose is fundamentally different. We exist to instruct, nourish and inspire our members to live good lives and do good things with their lives outside of the lodge.
However, to succeed in this purpose we need to be mindful that ritual is only the foundation upon which we build our Masonic edifice. It takes follow up. Interesting lodge programs that strengthen and help men to apply the essential message to their lives are necessary. When the body of our science becomes relevant to a man’s life, it lives, becomes vibrant and excites a man to keep coming back to Lodge. One can argue endlessly about whether ritual needs to be distilled or reformed. Regardless of whether the ritual is changed, we can still create programs that help to make it a comprehensible methodology for unlocking the hidden treasures within the hearts and minds of men. Masonry needs to be a relevant compass to help an engaged man navigate the waters of a changing world.
The Masonic education classes are an excellent step in this direction. Where there is interest, especially among our newer members, we need to think about how we organize this instruction in a more nuanced way. At the first level, new members need to be encouraged to move beyond the literal meaning of our rituals. One does not need Masonry to learn the classical virtues of temperance, fortitude, prudence or justice. Even the theological values of faith, hope and charity are far from the excusive province of Masonry. The historical roots of Masonry are entertaining but these discussions rarely move us beyond the literal landscape of the ritual. The next steps are harder because they always introduce opinion, and this is when the quality of the mentor, the Master makes all the difference. When we move past the literal meaning of the ritual and begin to explore its symbolic possibilities the conversations enter deeper waters of the intellect. Any yet, this is really only the beginning. Because if nothing else, these discussions about symbol and allegory make the candidates aware that the initiate rituals of Masonry are a social invitation to enter upon a more arduous internal journey.
As we all know Masonry is a progressive science taught by degrees only. There is no jumping ahead when following this kind of path. Until you really understand the symbolic values of our ritual you cannot venture into the even deeper waters of relational meaning where an understanding of a symbolic meaning suddenly has an application to a totally different aspect of the composite man. Then the paradigm shifts and broader horizons present themselves. Some things can be taught but this is probably where the mentor’s lessons end, because once the paradigm shifts the secret meaning of Masonry can be learned, but it no longer be taught, but must be realized.