A long, bountiful night
The September meeting’s agenda had us working on all three degrees, and though this makes for a longer meeting, everyone brought their utmost focus and intent to all business at hand.
After opening on the Master Mason and Fellowcraft Degrees, we were witness to Brother Gustavo Ramirez’s exemplary performance of the Fellowcraft proficiency. It was a genuine delight for all the brethren to see Bro. Ramirez prevail so powerfully after having failed in his examination this June. Though tension was in the air as Bro. Ramirez finished.
The Worshipful Master (who happens to be Gustavo’s coach and mentor) waited a beat before asking the Lodge, “Brethren, what say you?” The roar of applause from the brethren went on for a time and we could all see our brother move to wipe away a tear as he was conducted back to his seat.
Brothers everywhere, for life
After opening on the Entered Apprentice Degree our Junior Deacon introduced our visitors; chief among whom was Brother Phil Walker, Junior Steward, of Old West Lodge No. 813 in Newhall California. Following the introduction of visitors, Brother Walker took a moment to address the Lodge.
Thanking us for our hospitality, Bro. Walker then mentioned an unexpected connection – our mutual friend and brother, Dale Vrsalovich, how they had come up together in DeMolay and have maintained a lifelong friendship since.
He went on to share a few sentiments from his Masonic travels across the United States: how consistently impressed he is with the bond of brotherhood that exists between all Masons, and how no matter what lodge he finds himself in he always feels right at home. A theme emerged here that would be the through line for the night, echoed in our communications, business, and education for the night.
All for one and one for all
Amongst the communications read were a notice from Most Worshipful Brother Ron Eggers, Grand Master of Masons in Oregon, announcing a new partnership between the Grand Lodge of Oregon and Oregon FOX 12 news to highlight and support schools throughout the state. And another from a Friendship widow, expressing her gratitude for the moral and material aid the brethren had sent her way, and how significantly her life has improved as a consequence.
We got into the fine details of the planning and implementation of this year’s homeless relief kits, confirming that we are set to exceed last year’s total kits later on this autumn.
Studying the Master Mason Degree
There is a tradition in Friendship Lodge that as part of a brother’s progression through the degrees of ancient craft Masonry, he is to present original research into the degree he most recently received. After Brother Miller-Conley’s insightful work as an Entered Apprentice and Fellowcraft Masons, we were all keen to hear what he had discovered as a Master Mason.
It was a genuine privilege to receive our education for the night from Brother Kevin, who’s presentation focused on one specific symbol all Master Masons are called to contemplate. Curiously he noted that it once held a much more significant role in public representations of Freemasonry, though it seems to hold a comparatively diminished place there today.
As was the case with all business prior, the ideas of the individual and the collective were running throughout his lecture, and served as the perfect focus point for our post meeting philosophical discussion
What is a group, but a collection of individuals?
After the meeting we all gathered again in the library to discuss a central philosophical theme of the evening: finding the proper balance of individual and collectivist thinking and habits. Whereas our post-meeting conversations tend to be about half an hour, they sometimes go a bit further. The night of September 4th was one such occasion, with the brethren talking in the library for more than an hour and taking it up again at our favorite watering hole after we’d locked up for the night.
