Journey into the Heart of the Master Mason Lecture

Ready to journey into the heart of Freemasonry? You don't want to miss this deep dive into the craft of masonry, as we explore symbolic rituals and share insights for a healthier life. We kick off with a recap of the Master Mason Association meeting and a reflection on the importance of a healthy lifestyle. We also acknowledge the leadership of Paul Beckinhouse, who stepped up to the challenge at the Sarasota Sahib Shrine.

In this podcast, we examine the significance of the Master Mason degree lecture, its symbols, and the importance of keeping these symbols private. We also delve into the symbolism of the pot of incense, connecting it to spiritual beliefs and the concept of a pure heart. Our journey through Freemasonry symbolism continues as we discuss the emblem of industry represented by the beehive, highlighting its lesson on rationality and industriousness. 

As we wrap up, we emphasize the importance of community involvement and the role of elder Masons in the Grand Lodge of Florida. We reflect on the power of prayer, wisdom drawn from Ecclesiastes, and the teachings of Solomon. We express our gratitude to our listeners, and conclude with a discussion on the future potential of the Freemasonry community in Florida. Get ready to have your perspectives broadened and your understanding of Freemasonry deepened. You won't want to miss this enlightening journey into the world of masonry.

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:04

Hey, chris, yeah, fred, what's a Mason?

Speaker 2 0:08

That's a really good question, fred.

Speaker 1 0:14

You've reached the internet's home for all things masonry. Join Chris and I as we plumb the depths of our ancient craft, from the common gavel to the trowel. Nothing is off the table, so grab your tools and let's get to work. This is on the level. Yikes, that is something else, man. That worked really well. I think, it was a bit charged, I admit. If you guys are out there thinking what the heck just happened, I don't know what just happened. Audio just happened, man.

Speaker 2 0:49

Magic box strikes again.

Speaker 1 0:51

The magic box is getting better and better.

Speaker 2 0:53

Thank you magic box.

Speaker 1 0:55

Those levels were a little high. So I have to say, hopefully we didn't blow everybody's eardrums out just now, really, oh boy.

Speaker 2 1:02

Well, we'll fix it in post production.

Speaker 1 1:05

Anyway, hey, chris, how you doing bro.

Speaker 2 1:07

Hey Fred, I'm great. How are you?

Speaker 1 1:12

I am blessed and I am thankful, man. We had let's just jump right into it. We had a master mason association meeting last night. That was amazing, man, it was really good.

Speaker 2 1:23

You can see some photos on our Facebook page Nice. Hey, a little plug there for the Facebook page One of you and me.

Speaker 1 1:31

I have a face for radio, so try to keep that to a minimum Me too.

Speaker 2 1:34

Me too. Yeah, I was. I got in a big argument with my wife last night when I got home.

Speaker 1 1:39

Oh, really yeah About weight.

Speaker 2 1:41

Specifically weight, because I saw Weight. Your weight, yeah, okay. Well, we were at the meeting. Our ex president was being booked and got his mug shot and everything taken. So I was reading it and I'm like, wait a second. 6 foot 3, 215 pounds. I call BS on that. There's no way, no way that I weigh 40 pounds more than he does no way.

Speaker 2 2:06

Oh my gosh, she's like yes you do, yes, you do, and I'm like pulling up pictures of Trump. I'm like, look at him. No, we're the same height. No, no way. I'm 40 pounds heavy. I'm like you need to start jogging. I'm like, no, this is a lie. So I have to research that. I'm curious if they just let him write his own waiter, if they actually weighed him.

Speaker 1 2:26

Okay, but the point of the conversation was I weigh too much.

Speaker 2 2:29

Oh, there you go, there you go. That was the point of the conversation.

Speaker 1 2:32

Yeah, good on you, miss Catherine. Yes, she's right, yeah, shout out to the first lady.

Speaker 2 2:36

It really comes out in the photos. You can really see that extra 40 pounds.

Speaker 1 2:41

And, of course, my comments are not to discourage you, brother, but to encourage you to fulfill your health and nutrition goals man, because that's important, because we want you around. We need you around.

Speaker 2 2:56

Yes, you look around and masonry. In general, we need better fitness.

Speaker 1 3:00

You need to eat better and exercise.

Speaker 2 3:02

I'm guilty. I'm here saying I agree, we do.

Speaker 1 3:05

We do, we do. We're not necessarily a masonic thing, that's a United States of America thing. We are hugely out of shape and lacking whole nutrition in this country, so that's something that I'm big on. I mean, I absolutely love it.

Speaker 2 3:26

You look great.

Speaker 1 3:27

I have the blood work of a 30 year old and I am almost 61 years old and I can prove that. I can show you my blood work and it is true, and I'm telling you right now. If that's something you're into or need to get into, send me an email, man, I can give you some pointers to get you started, because I love to talk about health and fitness. Don't get me started.

Speaker 2 3:46

I won't stop. You had a podcast about that right.

Speaker 1 3:49

I did. I started a podcast about that. It was called a Holy Fit.

Speaker 2 3:53

University. Holy Fit that man.

Speaker 1 3:55

Holy Fit University.

Speaker 2 3:58

We had a perfect sound effect for that.

Speaker 1 4:00

Oh yeah, oh man, you mean this one.

Speaker 2 4:04

Oh, there it is there.

Speaker 1 4:05

It is Excellent, excellent.

Speaker 2 4:07

Thank you.

Speaker 1 4:09

Anyways, I don't know why we're talking about health and fitness. We're talking about arguments with wives. We're talking about the sound board.

Speaker 2 4:14

It's good. We need those reminders. That's why we're good masons we listen to our wives when they tell us the truth. That's right.

Speaker 1 4:20

That's right, hey, and I want to make a shout out to Sarasota Sahib Shrine for stepping up, man. They did a great thing. The first thing, they hosted our Grandmasters visit to District 23, which was a huge success, and we were able to use their ballroom and they served a really good dinner and everything. Everybody came together and made it a really, really great night. And then, to top it off, last night we found out that they comped the entire evening.

Speaker 1 4:54

It was on them, so the monies that we would have spent is still in our account. And I just thought man, the potentate at Sarasota Sahib Shrine, is making all the right moves, man.

Speaker 2 5:08

He's a smart guy, great leader. We should really have him on because I think he'd have a lot of interesting points of view on leadership. He took over a very difficult situation.

Speaker 1 5:17

He certainly did.

Speaker 2 5:19

During a difficult time and has in one year. His name is Paul Beckinhouse. In case you wonder who we're talking about Right worshipal probably.

Speaker 1 5:30

Probably right. Worshipal Beckinhouse From another state. From another state, yeah.

Speaker 2 5:34

But as a potentate, I mean the line behind him have really gelled behind his vision. I don't know if it's their vision, but certainly he's definitely embodying it. Visiting the lodges Not to sell anything, he just comes.

Speaker 2 5:47

He doesn't get up and talk about all about the shrine he just shows up as a brother and is a great example of more what we need more of, because the shrine in our district had some stressed relationships with blue lodges and the appended bodies and no one wanted to go there for these official functions because they had had bad experiences in the past. Not naming names because literally I don't know who.

Speaker 1 6:12

Right. Yeah, I have no idea when this happened. It's a long and storied history. Luckily, we don't know anything about it.

Speaker 2 6:17

No, ignorance is bliss. In this case, yes, absolutely, and that's how we got here. As president of the master mason association this year, our primary goal was to raise money for this grand master's visit and I was like you know, I'm really not good at this. I'm not excited about raising money, but how could we help? Because it seems like every year the district deputy really this is the most stressful thing they do.

Speaker 1 6:41

Right, oh yeah, they tell they're like really stressed out.

Speaker 2 6:43

Yeah, absolutely. All the planning, picking the place, the food, how am I going to do this? What happens with that? And they really stress about it. So I thought let's open a dialogue with the shrine. Out of ignorance, because I didn't know that there was this problem, this storied history. I didn't know. So, out of ignorance, I set up a meeting. They were very eager which I found odd to do something. And when I brought it to the district I got a lot of pushback. And that's when I realized there are some problems with the shrine Right, but your tenacity prevailed.

Speaker 2 7:17

Well, I mean cooler heads, it wasn't just me, obviously. There was people that saw the value in a multi-year arrangement with the shrine where we have set costs and not have to research venues Right, and they really put their best foot forward with this and I'm sure that every district deputy in our district for the next coming years will want to replicate what the shrine did there, and more power to them. It's just a great example of leadership and working together as brothers and doing the best, doing the best you can for your brothers.

Speaker 1 7:50

Yeah, that's right, they went way above and beyond. They certainly did, and I heard they got five members. Yeah, they did, they have five petitions for membership from that night, yeah.

Speaker 2 8:02

And they have a tiki bar and they often send petitioners to the blue lodges that want to join the shrines?

Speaker 1 8:08

Yeah, because they.

Speaker 2 8:10

It's now exactly the ecosystem it's supposed to be Right, exactly, and we feed them, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 8:14

And I love that building. I got to be honest with you. It's been there for a long, long time and has a history in this town and there was a time, man, where it was in Jeopardy.

Speaker 2 8:25

Yes, it was in a lot of.

Speaker 1 8:26

Jeopardy. Very recently, yeah, and they took on a to build a tiki hut restaurant and the method, the direction they took it in, was not advisable and they ended up long hard process to actually get to a point where that thing was profitable and, glad to say, today it is profitable and it is securing the future of Saheb Shrine. It will be there and I just love that building. Man, it is a typical picture in your mind, a typical 1980s shrine club building, and I love it.

Speaker 2 9:06

It's a big statue up front of the guy with the fans holding child.

Speaker 1 9:09

Yep, yep, the international Shrine's international statue, and then we've also got one of the Sphinxes there. But the other one had to go because the tiki hut is now where it was.

Speaker 2 9:22

But yeah, well, we need the tiki hut. It's our post-stated meeting rally point.

Speaker 1 9:28

Right right.

Speaker 2 9:29

Our lodge is about two minutes from that shrine tiki hut. Yes, yes.

Speaker 1 9:33

If you're not from Florida, you're thinking to yourself tiki, hut, what the heck's a tiki?

Speaker 2 9:37

hut. Yeah, we live in paradise. Sorry, we live in paradise.

Speaker 1 9:41

And remember, here in Florida we have as many tiki huts as we do Starbucks, so every there's a tiki hut on every corner and we like it that way.

Speaker 2 9:49

So if you're never far from a tiki hut where they pour adult beverages, yeah, yeah, and I know that our lodge visits the shrine a lot, because the last time I was there they were out of Woodford Reserve. Oh, my guys have been here. Yep, that's right, that's right.

Speaker 1 10:05

Out of Woodford. That means that 147 has been on the house Cleans your clock.

Speaker 2 10:09

Yeah, you better stock up on the Woodford.

Speaker 1 10:12

That's right. That's right. And another thing I want to talk about is one of our sponsors, which is three Ruffians cigar company Speaking of the shrine.

Speaker 2 10:22

Speaking of the shrine, yeah yeah, they have.

Speaker 1 10:26

They're working on creating Now, if you're not local, this is sorry.

Speaker 2 10:33

But every shrine has units.

Speaker 1 10:35

Every shrine has units and three Ruffians. If you're in the market for premium cigars that do benefit Shriners International and could we have a, they have. We have a fundraising. Full disclosure. I am affiliated with three Ruffians cigars. Need to tell you that You're a Ruffian. I'm a Ruffian, but there's, it's based on, it's a fundraiser idea and it's a cigar fundraiser and we're doing one with Liberty. 30 Liberty no not Liberty.

Fundraising With Cigars for Freemasonry

Speaker 2 11:03

Liberty Lodge, number 412 or Manatee 31. Oh, 412. Manatee number 31. 31. Yeah, same building. It gets confusing it gets a little confusing.

Speaker 1 11:10

There's two lodges in there. One's a daylight lodge, the other one's a lodge lodge. Been there since 1853.

Speaker 2 11:14

Another story. We were there last night and I have the. I have the broken column in my car right now for Sarasota Lodge of the Springs.

Speaker 1 11:22

Tuesday. Just saying we did steal the column.

Speaker 2 11:25

Another.

Speaker 1 11:25

Another story, but anyways, they have. Yeah, they're moving forward. If you go online, go to threeruffianscom. I think it is, or is it the?

Speaker 2 11:39

threeruffianscom. Yeah, the threeruffianscom.

Speaker 1 11:42

If you Google search threeruffiancigars it will pop up there. Hopefully it'll get to the top of that search criteria sooner than later.

Speaker 2 11:51

It's there actually.

Speaker 1 11:52

You just.

Speaker 2 11:52

Google it. What I'm excited about with this particular thing with Liberty Lodge is that it could be a really easy fundraiser for lodges to just pick up and run with.

Speaker 1 12:02

It really is. Yeah, and it's, it's um.

Speaker 2 12:05

You don't have to do guns or ammo, which I know everyone. You know it's effective, but when you're doing five at once, it's less effective. So you need something different, and here you go.

Speaker 1 12:13

Here you go. This is, uh, everybody knows somebody who smokes cigars and if they know anything about cigars. The premium version of cigars is what we're all looking for and, uh, threeruffians worked really hard to to find a vendor that would put together, um, a custom blended cigar, and that's what these are. There's four different versions of them currently. If you go on the website, you can see them there. 10% of everything that goes to, uh, it goes to Shriners International and if you're interested in the fundraiser, it's not on the website yet, but the fundraiser will be on the on the website. We'll explain exactly how it works and what you can do. We provide everything, uh, including some support, um, to get the word out there, and it's looking like this fundraiser. If it goes the way it's supposed to go and I believe it will um, they should come away with almost $1,000 as a fundraiser just under a thousand bucks.

Speaker 2 13:09

It's not bad for a fundraiser For an elbow grease to put into yeah.

Speaker 1 13:11

Not a lot of work, easy money. Yeah, it's, it is, it is. It's a great way to get your tickets, uh, for a premium product, you know. You can give it as a gift if you don't smoke cigars, or you can enjoy them as we do, uh, because they are delicious.

Speaker 2 13:27

And uh, the government has determined they are not as cancerous as cigarettes.

Speaker 1 13:32

Right, so great, right so the. The truth is the all cause mortality. When it comes to cigarettes. People who use cigarettes is like off the chain, off the chart, uh, compared to people that don't. If you look at the same criteria with cigar smokers, it's, it's, it's incalculable, so there's, no, you can't measure it, because it's so, it's so low, yeah, so that it's very different. Anyways, there's a lot of information. Look at George Burns.

Speaker 2 13:58

George Burns. Right, it's my name, sake. My father's name is George Burns. My name is Christopher George Burns.

Speaker 1 14:03

Oh right.

Speaker 2 14:04

I'm planning to be a 90-something year old cigar smoker myself.

Speaker 1 14:07

Excellent, excellent. And you can say what he said. Had I listened, had I listened to my doctor's advice and quit cigar smoking, I would not have lived long enough to attend his funeral.

Speaker 2 14:20

It sounds like George Burns.

Speaker 1 14:21

It totally sounds like George Burns.

Speaker 2 14:23

I love it. I love it, I love it. I'm not on. Anybody under the age of 45 probably has no idea who the hell we're talking about right now. Right, right.

Speaker 1 14:32

So big shout out to three. Ruffians cigar company for sponsoring this show. Thank you, and and all the work that they're trying to do. This is a it's a labor of love. There is not a lot of money in this. It's not about that. This is a fundraiser. This is a way to promote masonry and in the meat and and, while enjoying premium products that us guys love to enjoy.

Speaker 2 14:55

Well, I think we should also call out. We have two people that have personally subscribed and are now monthly donors to the show.

Speaker 1 15:03

Oh, yes, please do.

Speaker 2 15:04

I don't know how much, but we can see it in our software that people have subscribed, and so big shout out to worship of P Tars of Binkitch, who's a past master of Sarasota lodge number 147.

Speaker 1 15:15

Wow.

Speaker 2 15:16

And our current junior grand warden right Worship of Haskell vest no kidding is a sponsor subscriber to the show. So thank you both.

Speaker 1 15:24

Thank you very much, that's awesome. That's awesome yeah.

Speaker 2 15:29

Yeah, not something I expected, but yeah right.

Speaker 1 15:33

I mean, I figure you know if we, if it keeps going this way, someday we'll actually break even on this deal.

Speaker 2 15:41

We obviously you know we're not in it to get rich.

Speaker 1 15:45

No, no, no.

Speaker 2 15:46

But you know it would be nice not to lose money doing something you love. But anybody that's an officer or a district or a zone or especially a state person you know that you spend money to be involved and we get it.

Speaker 1 15:59

That's right? Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker 2 16:03

That's what we all spent in.

Speaker 1 16:04

Freemasonry? Yeah, and we had Last night we had one of the. Is it a candidate for Grand Master? Yes, he's running for the junior Grand Warden next year. Junior Grand Warden.

Speaker 2 16:16

okay, I think we have four people in Florida this year coming up that will be running for junior Grand Warden, and this is one of them.

Speaker 1 16:23

Alright, alright, now I had the idea of perhaps interviewing all four of these brothers just to kind of get to know them.

Speaker 2 16:33

Yeah, I think it's wise, and we don't want to make this a platform for campaigning or anything like that.

Speaker 1 16:39

No, no, nothing like that, not at all.

Speaker 2 16:41

But it would be nice for people to get to know who these people are.

Speaker 1 16:44

Yeah.

Speaker 2 16:45

Better, because I've been to Grand Lodge now four years in a row and I vote every year. But when they're contested it's hard. They come, they do travel around and if you're lucky you get to hear like a short speech that they offer.

Speaker 1 16:58

Right.

Speaker 2 16:59

You may get to ask a question or even meet them for 15 seconds, but I think it would be way different to hear them talk about their background and why they've been and what they've done. Yep, yeah, what makes them tick, and you know what their vision for the future Freemasonry is like. Those are things people need to hear.

Speaker 1 17:16

Right, right. So I have decided I think it's a good idea to call for me to reach out to Grand Lodge and make sure this is something we can do. So I'll be doing that this week, and if they give us a thumbs up or give us some criteria on how we can conduct ourselves, I'm scared. Then we'll do it.

Speaker 2 17:35

I'm scared to call Grand Lodge. They may be like, yeah, well, you're at it, please don't record anymore. You're really embarrassing all of us and we would love it if you just stop. And I'd be like no, you're breaking up.

Speaker 1 17:49

How real is that? Thought I've had the same thoughts.

Speaker 2 17:52

I'm scared to talk about it to them.

Speaker 1 17:54

I think we'd rather ask for forgiveness than permission any day of the week here, and we've been going on that for nearly a year now. Yeah, I was too.

Exploring the Master Mason Degree Lecture

Speaker 2 18:03

But I think it's going well. Our intentions are very good for the fraternity and hopefully people see that even if we do get boring or off topic or even God forbid, we're going to have to get offended by the fact that we're putting hours and hours and hours of positive, hopefully informative content about Freemasonry, not just for members but out there for people all over the world that are interested in becoming members of Freemasonry.

Speaker 1 18:33

Yeah, and interested in going back to your own lodge and making some positive change, man, and building the craft back up. Somebody told me that there was a time that there were over 85,000 master masons in the state of Florida 85,000. We're at 30, I want to say 34,000 right now. We're less than half of what we once were and as far as this show is concerned, we want to see that number, we want to exceed that number. We want to see 80,000 new masons, active master masons in the state of Florida. We want to lead the country in being a Masonic state. Florida is a Masonic state. Wouldn't that be funny if we were to be nice? Wouldn't that be interesting that the state of Florida is known for its robust Masonic community? That would be awesome man.

Speaker 2 19:31

That would be good, because right now it's not known for good things.

Speaker 1 19:35

Well, yeah, it depends on who you are. For goodness sakes, yeah, that whole argument.

Speaker 2 19:39

Just go follow Florida man and you'll see there's all kinds of crazy stuff. You know there's actually a Netflix movie now called Florida man.

Speaker 1 19:46

Florida man. I don't even know what Florida man is Really.

Speaker 2 19:49

Yeah, so all the social media platforms have a handle called Florida man and this profile posts all the zany, crazy, weird things that happen in Florida.

Speaker 1 20:00

Oh, okay, okay.

Speaker 2 20:01

Like the astronaut that wore a diaper to drive down.

Speaker 1 20:04

Right.

Speaker 2 20:04

She was mad at somebody, like all those kind of crazy stories, and they're nonstop in Florida. There's always a weird stuff happening here.

Speaker 1 20:12

Well, two things I want to say about that. One eventually, every nut rolls downhill to Florida. We do get a lot of transplants and secondly, I've already said, we have a tiki hut on every corner.

Speaker 2 20:22

Let's keep the perspective here, okay, yes, and if we're there, there's no Woodford, so you know, and if yeah, don't expect to get the Woodford, because we're drinking all of it.

Speaker 1 20:32

It's too early to even Okay anyway it's Friday, it's 8am in the morning, and we're talking about Woodford Reserve.

Speaker 2 20:41

So we're spilling our drinks as well.

Speaker 1 20:43

I'm fine, all right, all right, chris, chris, chris, why are we here?

Speaker 2 20:48

Well, it all started with a big bang.

Speaker 1 20:54

It all started when my father met my mother.

Speaker 2 20:58

I was born, I grew up. No, we're here to talk about what we can talk about in the master Mason degree lecture. This is a challenging one.

Speaker 1 21:10

It is very challenging. Yes, we're going through the monitor here. We're seeing that most of the lecture rightfully so is encrypted. So we're not going to be. We're skipping almost all of it. We're going all the way to the optional long form three steps the pot of incense, the beehive.

Speaker 2 21:31

So these are the emblems, the symbols of the master Mason degree and you hear them in the master Mason lecture, always the short version of them, and I've never even read the optional long versions myself personally. So I'm excited. We thought maybe I would try to do the memory of the short form and then Fred would actually read out the more interesting longer version of it.

Speaker 2 21:56

Yeah, I love that, but the reason we're doing this, for if you're a master Mason, you know the lecture of the third degree primarily is recounting what happens in the master Mason degree, which we cannot. That's for us, that's for that's ours, masons, is not for public.

Speaker 1 22:13

If you want to know what it is, go down to your local lodge and talk to them.

Speaker 2 22:17

No, it's not any murder. There's no nothing bad. It is a moral degree Right, and it's very symbolic of things that are important to humans as a whole and it's very emotionally charged. The most I think of this.

Speaker 1 22:33

I agree, I agree.

Speaker 2 22:34

And it will make you think about your life. And this is the reason that Mason re exists today, because we carry on these traditions and we're not going to mess that up. But at the end of the degree, just like the others, we do talk about working tools and you know the symbols of the degree, yeah, and so that we can talk about and that is for public.

Speaker 1 22:55

We want people that aren't master masons or even masons yet, to be able to hear a little bit about what we're all about, and that's why we're doing this with the lecture discussion and hopefully right and hopefully it just wets your appetite to grab that little blue book of yours you have one and open it up and read it and study it and see where it applies into your life these lessons are these are moral lessons designed to help you in your day to day walk through life that we can circumscribe those passions and the super fluidities and vices, Put those, put those down and pick up that charity and brotherly love and affection and be a Mason man. We had a brother last night got up and told us at the end of the day, we all need to be masons to each other. Hello, what a concept.

Speaker 2 23:46

Man, that's really cool. That was really. Yet again this is an individual I've seen do something very difficult, very public, very Masonic.

Speaker 1 23:56

Yes.

Speaker 2 23:57

Just a great example of Freemasonry, and we're talking about right worshipful Doug Dobbs.

Speaker 1 24:00

I was going to say don't use his name again.

Speaker 2 24:03

I don't think he likes it that much, but I was going to stop us.

Speaker 1 24:08

Well, I just yeah, let's not gush on on Dobbs anymore.

Speaker 2 24:12

He did a great deed. He really did he really stepped up, man. I think a very challenging situation in his lodge at a master Mason association and just laid out publicly for everybody, for everybody.

Speaker 1 24:25

So there's no as a learning lesson. As a learning lesson.

Speaker 2 24:27

This is something bad that happened. It is a black mark, but it doesn't need to be for you learn what happened to us. Yeah.

Speaker 1 24:35

And in doing so he circumvented any gossip, any falsehood. He laid it on the table, warts and all, so everybody could understand it, and then encouraged and admonished all of us. Now get up and be a Mason about it, you know, be a Mason about it on every aspect and every level. Be a Mason, learn from it and let's go forward. And that's why we love the man, love it, yep. So, brother worshipful burns.

Speaker 1 25:02

You are going to do the short form of the steps from memory and then I will read each individual part and ready go.

Speaker 2 25:13

The there are, there are three steps usually. Oh, okay, we're going right into it. There are three steps, usually delineated upon the master's carpet, emblematic of the three stages of human life Youth, manhood and age. And you have more. Yeah, the pot of incense is oh, I thought they went into each one in more detail.

Speaker 1 25:38

This is the short form, and then I'll read the long form.

Speaker 2 25:43

Sorry, folks we're. Oh, I thought we go. We did do a pre show. Oh, okay, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 25:48

All right, so you want me to read this one.

Speaker 2 25:49

Yeah.

Speaker 1 25:50

All right. So the long form optional. It's on page 119 of your little blue book. Go get it, open it up. It should be worn out. It should be worn out by this time you should need a new one. The three steps usually delineated upon the master's carpet are emblematic of the three principle stages of human life Youth, manhood and age. In youth, as an entered apprentice, we ought industriously to occupy our minds in the attainment of useful knowledge. In manhood, as fellow crafts, we should apply our knowledge to the discharge of our respective duties to God, our neighbor and ourselves, so that in age, as master masons, we may enjoy the happy reflection Consequent, we may enjoy the happy reflections consequent on a well spent life and die in the hope of a glorious immortality. That's a.

Speaker 2 26:48

I mean, it's just so matter of fact, right, we just gave two 50 year presentations away on Tuesday, right? And this is what you tell those brothers when they stand there is that you're fortunate to been raised a master mason and you're a young manhood.

Speaker 1 27:02

Yeah.

Symbolism of the Pot of Incense

Speaker 2 27:03

Youth you were taught your duty to God, your neighbor and yourself. And manhood you applied these lessons so that in age you might enjoy that happy reflection consequent upon a life well spent. And here it is. Here it is the three steps Youth, manhood and age, and they're tying it to the three degrees a little bit right. Entered apprentice youth.

Speaker 1 27:22

Yes, they completely tie it in. That's right. As entered apprentice, as fellow craft and as master masons, all representing youth age, sorry, sorry. Youth, manhood and age, that's right, yeah, and then that's yeah.

Speaker 2 27:41

And if you're an entered apprentice and you're listening to this, don't go back, wait, wait until you're a master mason to listen to this.

Speaker 1 27:51

And? And well, there's nothing. We're saying that you're not privy to you, you're allowed. This is all published. Yes, you could go on to the Grand Lodge website and find all of this, so we're not giving away any secrets. I don't know how I feel about that anymore, though.

Speaker 2 28:06

Chris because which?

Speaker 1 28:08

part. Well, I know there's, like we do, a esoteric discussion group. We had a brother spoke up and he kind of curbed our enthusiasm to go through the Mentor's Manual because he said, well, there's people here who are EAs and and we don't want, and it's like, well, all of this, I said all of this is published. And he said, yeah, but you still don't want to do it and I was like, well, okay, but I think that this could only enhance. There's a reason why it's published. Parts of it are published and parts of it aren't.

Speaker 1 28:41

You know, there's a reason for everything in masonry and I don't know how I feel about that. Yet I think that it could only enhance. If I'm an entered apprentice and I'm going through and I'm learning the things I'm supposed to be learning, and then I'm getting glimpses and and just some, some, some teachings from the next two steps that I'm permitted to receive, I think it just enhances. When you get there, you know it. Just it just really enhances it because we all know, when we came as an entered apprentice, when we came into it during our degree and even after the degree, right up to our givebacks, our proficiencies, it was tough man, it was a fire hose of information we didn't have. I mean, it took me a long time to. I mean it did force me to go back and and review everything and study everything for myself, which I think was a good thing, but I think it would have been helpful to know what was ahead. You know some of these, these signposts.

Speaker 1 29:38

I'm not sure how I feel about that yet I think. I think that I guess, I guess for me, whatever I can learn, regardless of what it is or where it is, if it's available and if it's published, I should be, I should be learning it, I should be at least looking into it. You know, again, if you're an EA out there, you're thinking to yourself man, it's just forget about it because it's too much information and I'm totally overwhelmed. I get that. If you're weird like me and you want to go forward, you have that ability to do so. You can do so. It's on, it's on the Grand Lodge website. You can go there and read it and look into it, or you can listen to us.

Speaker 2 30:17

Yeah.

Speaker 1 30:17

Ramble on about it.

Speaker 2 30:19

Okay.

Speaker 1 30:20

Okay.

Speaker 2 30:25

The pot of incense is an emblem of a pure heart. Yes, the pot of incense is an emblem of a pure heart.

Speaker 1 30:37

The pot of incense is an emblem of a pure heart, which is always an acceptable sacrifice to the deity. And as this glows with fervent heat, so should our hearts continually grow with the gratitude to the great and beneficent author of our existence for the manifold blessings and comforts we enjoy. So let me read that last part again.

Speaker 2 31:00

I like that.

Speaker 1 31:00

Yeah, it's really good. I'm going to read the whole thing again because it's real short. The pot of incense is an emblem of pure heart, which is always an acceptable sacrifice to the deity, and as this glows with fervent heat, so should our hearts continually glow with gratitude to the great and beneficial and beneficent author of our existence for the manifold blessings and comforts we enjoy. The pot of incense it glows with fervent heat I think it's like I'm looking for the word you're. So should our hearts continually glow with gratitude to the great beneficent author. So you should continuously be growing.

Speaker 2 31:46

I look at it as like the pot of incense is basically a burning right, absolutely Right. The psychic connection is stronger and exemplified by its pureness to your Creator. Who accepts that as the most? I think they say? Pure sacrifice is to have your heart in the right place and a burning passion.

Speaker 1 32:18

Yeah, right, right, yeah. And so in the scriptures, incense is eludes to the prayers of the saints that rise Like the incense that rises up. It eludes to that. You know that incense, so the pot of incense it was. If you're a Roman Catholic, you know what. I'm talking about. You can call in and tell me if I'm right or wrong about this, but the priests they have this. It's like a ball with a chain on it. Yeah, yeah, and you're all thinking about Monty Python, right?

Speaker 2 32:53

now, aren't you?

Speaker 1 32:56

But, and they swing it as they walk, yeah, and the incense fills the room and the smoke of the incense rises above the altar up to God, and that is emblematic of, you know, of the prayers of the saints. And here it's, the pot of incense is an emblem of a pure heart. So that incense burning with, like you said, burning in the heart right, which is always acceptable sacrifice to the deity, it's a burning heart to know God is always acceptable and he will not turn it away.

Speaker 2 33:37

And you mentioned it's a relation to the Christian scriptures.

Speaker 1 33:42

Uh-huh Right.

Speaker 2 33:42

Which it is replete. I'm sure it's many times mentioned in the scriptures.

Speaker 1 33:46

It is Absolutely.

Speaker 2 33:49

I mean, you could probably find many passages about it, and also you can find inscriptions in Egypt, pharaohs that are depicted having the same kind of incense.

Speaker 1 34:02

Oh yeah, Absolutely.

Speaker 2 34:04

Where they're actually doing the same thing with it. I don't know if the ceremonies are quite the same, but I'm sure it's somewhat similar.

Speaker 1 34:10

Oh, absolutely yes, it's an incense. The fragrance of incense, the smoke of incense is not unique. You know, it's true, in Judaism, but even prior to Abraham being called, there were many, many nations in the world, tribes and nations and tongues. Prior to Abraham's call out of the land of Ur, you know, the Chaldeans, from a very pagan nation, and he was called to become the great grandfather of Israel. You know, and anyway, all those nations, they had all of these things. It's not unique. No, this was all part of the human experience, you know. And these, what am I trying to say? These emblems and all of these things are emblematic of.

Speaker 1 35:07

you know, it's the story, the incense, and you know, and we're going to go into the beehive, so what?

Speaker 2 35:16

does pure mean to you when they say a pure heart. A pure heart yeah.

Speaker 1 35:20

Wow, okay. Well, let's see, it means different things to different people, sure. So I think we should ask what it means to you, because I have an idea of what Freemasonry thinks it means right what is telling us it means. Well, everybody knows my background so I don't need to keep going over it. But from a Christian perspective, you're a Hasidic too, right?

Speaker 2 35:43

Yeah, hasidic, can you tell by the hair? Hello.

Speaker 1 35:47

I think that's a Nazarene, but anyway, it's not.

Speaker 2 35:50

He's Christian Right. Yeah, Calvinist if I recall Calvinist correct.

Speaker 1 35:55

So a pure heart before God would be something that, in and of ourselves, is unattainable. Only our hearts are purified, only by God and through God. So in our fallen state, this is Christian doctrine, guys. So just write, send your cards and letters to Chris at on the level of 10. But in my belief system and remember, masonry is not a religion we have men from all different types of religion and I call on every man of every religion to know what he believes and why he believes it. Because it's worth your time, it's eternity, so it's worth your time. But having a pure heart, first and foremost, would be something that is cultivated by God through the Holy Spirit. But also purity speaks to my motives. So what are my motives? Why do I do the things I do?

Speaker 2 36:57

So it Like from a good place.

Speaker 1 37:01

Right. So my desire to help the poor or to give to those less fortunate, right. What are my motives? Are they pure? Well, what does that mean? Well, a pure motive to help the poor would be to actually help them in their life. So if I meet a drug addict who's homeless on the streets and I give him $35 because I want to help him, well, that's not. That motive is not pure because it's flawed, because it's going to hurt him.

Speaker 1 37:33

So I guess what I'm getting to here is that the pure motive of a heart is a motive that's thoughtful, that you think through and that you implement in a way that is beneficial to the one you're trying to help. I don't know how I got there, but if back to your question, it's a tougher question to answer than I originally thought it is.

Speaker 2 37:55

Yeah, it's very deep.

Speaker 1 37:56

Right yeah.

Speaker 2 38:00

It really causes you to have to reflect and think about how you'd answer what that means of pure heart, we say it, you hear it and you get a vision in your mind a little bit right. Yeah, what a pure heart is.

Speaker 1 38:07

I think in masonry, masonry is a works-based idea, so it's your working to better yourself and to be pure in your motives and in your actions and in the way you deal with it. And I guess what masonry does is it lays down a standard. There's a standard of conduct, right, right. So if you can meet that standard of conduct, then you are practicing purity in masonry, right?

Speaker 2 38:33

Yeah, I think we could agree that a definition, masonically, of what they mean by pure heart is a sincere one. Yeah, right, genuine, genuine, real Uh-huh Without pretense. Yeah, no-transcript, undefiled by the defaults and frailties of normal men. This is our goal, and you said it's not obtainable, but this is our goal, right To have pure heart.

Speaker 1 39:00

That's the goal.

Speaker 2 39:00

right To be pure yes, and it mentioned sacrifice in there.

Speaker 1 39:07

Well, I was just gonna read that the pot of incense is an emblem of a pure heart, which is always an acceptable sacrifice to the deities.

Speaker 2 39:16

That's interesting.

Speaker 1 39:17

Right. So sacrifice speaks. More of a sacrifice is giving something that you don't necessarily want to give.

Speaker 2 39:27

Right, something that is important to you right. Something that is meaningful to you, you sacrifice that thing Like fasting, for instance. As an example of your love.

Speaker 1 39:39

Yeah, no, that's right, that's exactly right.

Speaker 2 39:41

You're sacrificing these things that are bad as an example of your love.

Speaker 1 39:46

Right, and if anybody's ever done any spiritual fasting I have and it's I recommend everyone. Try it because it does begin to shift your thinking, because the most basic need you have is food and if you deny yourself that food, I've done 48 hour fasts I've never really done anything more than that just because of the health issues and other issues.

Speaker 2 40:15

People fast from alcohol they fast from like carbs. They fast from these things Absolutely.

Speaker 1 40:20

But this is different, fasting, from actual nutrition and food. Your body really just begins to change and your mind starts to go nuts and what happens is what's revealed to you is a lot of these inordinate loves and super fluidities in your life. You start to realize, man, I've got a lot of this stuff in my life that I don't even need, that I'm addicted to. And after 24 hours of water fasting, let me just say do not do a complete fast. There's no such thing. You have to drink water.

Speaker 1 41:01

But if you're fasting after that 24 hour mark, if you've never done it before, if it's your first time, you begin this journey of sacrifice and struggle that I think everyone should go through, and a lot of studies have found that it's extremely beneficial to your body. Your body will go into what after 24 hours? Your body goes into what's known as autophagy, and autophagy is a system inside your body where your cells begin to. The mitochondria in your cells begin to recycle. So all the dead ones, all the dysfunctional ones, begin to recycle themselves and are destroyed and sent out of the body and new ones are created. And this is part of the fasting process. After 24 hours, this begins to happen, and they've seen cases of people who have fasted, long-term fasting, who have seen amazing recovery from all kinds of disease, and it's just interesting to me that, as we make it, I don't know how I got into fasting here. Sorry guys, but as Down the rabbit hole.

Speaker 2 42:07

I went down this rabbit hole. I went down this rabbit hole.

Sacrifice and Industriousness in Masonic Symbolism

Speaker 1 42:09

But it's amazing to me that the stuff of life, that which gives us life food and nourishment and nutrition it gives us life, but we can turn it into death and it becomes this thing where our health is suffering and then our mind is suffering and it gets worse and then when you take it away, take it away all of a sudden and struggle and fight through to the other end. When you get to the other side of it, you have an amazing viewpoint of where you are in your heart as far as the things of life and what's important and what isn't important. I recommend it to everybody, but I would say that if you have medical issues, anything like that, just make sure you're talking to a doctor or a nutritionist or something. Don't just go hog wild and do a 72 hour fast without it Talking to anybody. It won't be fun. It will not be fun and it won't be good.

Speaker 2 43:07

Well, my wife would probably appreciate it if I did it, apparently.

Speaker 1 43:11

Well, and that's the thing, we gotta catch up to Trump's weight Fasting 40 pounds lighter than me.

Speaker 2 43:15

Come on.

Speaker 1 43:16

That's cause he eats nothing but McDonald's once a day.

Speaker 2 43:19

Real, not real.

Speaker 1 43:21

I have no idea.

Speaker 2 43:22

But yeah, so that is a really deep way to look at the pot of incense.

Speaker 1 43:29

Yeah, I'm gonna give a lot more thought to this purity of heart.

Speaker 2 43:32

Yeah, and sacrifice that you're making Sacrifice sounds scary to people, but it's a way of love. You do it when you're married. You sacrifice for your children.

Speaker 1 43:42

Absolutely.

Speaker 2 43:43

It's a way of life.

Speaker 1 43:44

Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker 2 43:44

Sacrifice. It's a right of humanity that we deny ourselves our animal instincts.

Speaker 1 43:50

That's right.

Speaker 2 43:51

For the betterment of people we love. Sacrifice is an everyday part of our life. It should be.

Speaker 1 43:55

I agree, it's part of our life, I agree, and that's part of the masculine man. A true masculinity is he's the one who sacrifices and he gives up his earthly desires for his wife, for his children, for his family, and he sacrifices. Not every guy wants to get up on Saturday morning and go to work.

Speaker 1 44:17

He'd rather have a boat or a Harley Davidson and he'd rather go out and do his own thing. But sometimes we can't, you can't. You have to sacrifice your desires for the benefit of those who depend on you, and that is a sacrifice. That's a worthy sacrifice, for sure, and it's one, according to this book, right here, that is acceptable to God the sacrificing of one's own desires for the benefit of another. And how masonic is that? That's about as masonic as you can get brother. All right, the beehive.

Speaker 2 44:51

Beehive is an emblem of industry.

Speaker 1 44:52

It is an emblem of industry, and that so makes sense. Everyone's seen a beehive.

Speaker 2 44:56

This is my favorite masonic symbol.

Speaker 1 44:59

It's a little long, so I think I'll do the first paragraph and we'll break. So the beehive. The beehive is an emblem of industry and recommends the practice of that virtue to all created beings, from the highest seraph in heaven to the lowest reptile of the dust. It teaches us that as we came into the world, as we came into the world rational and intelligent beings, so we should ever be industrious ones, never sitting down content while our fellow creatures around us are in want, especially when it is in our power to relieve them without inconvenience to ourselves.

Speaker 2 45:38

Hello, is this thing on? Wow? I mean okay logistically. The reason I love the beehive is a masonic symbol. I was always afraid of bees as a kid, but now I'm married to somebody whose family have 20 beehives at their house and I need to go out and observe these things and it's just fascinating the beehives, the structure of the colony of a bee is about as perfect a system that you'll find in nature Right.

Speaker 2 46:10

They work together for common good instinctively. You can take a bee miles from its home and it will get back. It knows where to go.

Speaker 1 46:20

Right.

Speaker 2 46:21

And it needs to travel, obviously, to find, you know, a substance that's the work of the worker bee. Then there's this whole geometric part of the beehive as an emblem, right it's like perfect geometry in nature. The honeycomb is insane.

Speaker 1 46:34

Isn't it octagons? Like enjoying the octagons.

Speaker 2 46:37

Which makes it so strong and also able to contain life. It's just fascinating. Fascinating the way that it works and as an emblem, we talk about it being a symbol of industriousness, because bees are never resting. Always working, they're always working, constantly working for the betterment of the colony, and I think that's what we, as masons, need to take from this emblem is that we should be like a beehive. Inside is this perfect, sacred geometry that we fill with life and together we build it.

Speaker 1 47:11

Yeah, constantly.

Speaker 2 47:13

There's never a day that you can be like we're good, it's good now.

Speaker 1 47:16

No, it's never good. It's never good. We need to be industrious.

Speaker 2 47:20

Constantly working together.

Speaker 1 47:22

And it just made me think of within the large structure. Industriousness requires us to all do our part.

Speaker 2 47:35

Yeah.

Speaker 1 47:36

And when somebody is not doing their part and I'm not saying somebody being lazy or not showing up that happens all the time but I'm talking about somebody who is more on the negative side, who is bringing negativity or not fulfilling their role properly into the large system. It causes incredible damage. I know I've seen pictures of like a wasp colony attacking a beehive and the damage that it causes in there and bees don't play man.

Speaker 2 48:10

They can fight. Yeah, oh yeah, my neighbor, I've told you, my wife's dad has 20 beehives.

Speaker 1 48:16

That's so cool.

Speaker 2 48:17

Literally killed the neighbor's dog.

Speaker 1 48:19

Wow, and they found the dog dead From bee stings. Yeah, the bees just got him, killed him.

Speaker 2 48:25

They know how to defend their land in their home.

Speaker 1 48:27

Right right.

Speaker 2 48:29

Against great a dog is not much for bees. They could just eat 100 of them probably.

Speaker 1 48:38

Right, right, but it's a good lesson for us to be protective of the beehive be protective. And be protective of your lodge and make sure that your brothers in the lodge are doing what is supposed to be done and not making it about themselves. That's the one thing that I see a lot of lately. I'm just conscious of it lately that if you're in a lodge structure, if you're in the line, whoever you are, whatever position you're holding, and you're making this about you, then you're negatively affecting the hive.

Speaker 2 49:13

Yeah.

Speaker 1 49:13

It's not gonna grow. It's not gonna grow, it's not gonna go forward and you're gonna lose your fellows along the way. And we've seen it over and over again. When that happens, it puts the entire industriousness of your lodge on hold until it's been dealt with.

Speaker 2 49:31

Yeah.

Speaker 1 49:32

And sometimes it's an easy fix and sometimes it's a big, major fix, man, that has to be done by others.

Speaker 2 49:39

It's a multi-year fix.

Speaker 1 49:41

Yeah, right, right.

Speaker 2 49:42

Yeah, but I mean that's true, you have one leader, and that leader, the queen of the hive, is not ruling like micromanaging the everyday operation of those bees.

Speaker 1 49:55

Right, yeah, those bees know what to do Exactly.

Speaker 2 49:58

Those bees don't need any direction or guidance.

Speaker 1 50:00

Perfect analogy right.

Speaker 2 50:01

They're gonna go do what they need to do, and the queen does what that one member does, which is to create new bees.

Speaker 1 50:11

Right, yeah.

Speaker 2 50:12

That's the purpose. And the master of the lodge is kinda like the queen bee in the hive. They're not out there fighting and guarding, but they are the heart of the entire hive and all light comes from that. For that one year Right. And so if you are fortunate enough to become that person in the lodge or in a state of leadership, in Freemasonry, or in work or in life, you have to remember that you're serving the colony, everyone's depending on you.

Speaker 1 50:45

Right.

Speaker 2 50:45

And if you make it about yourself, they start to die and become disorganized to chaos and you upset many independent lives for the focus of one.

Speaker 1 50:55

Yeah.

Speaker 2 50:56

But really you're supposed to be sacrificing that one for the benefit of the rest.

Speaker 1 51:00

Yeah, that's right. For the ultimate goal, you know, and they all work towards the ultimate goal, and for the beehive, it's that honey man that they create that honey. That honey is something else, man. The process of how that's done is fascinating man. Yeah, it's crazy, just absolutely fascinating, and it makes sense that that is a Masonic teaching for industriousness from the beehive.

Speaker 2 51:24

It's a perfect Masonic Because it totally makes sense.

Speaker 1 51:27

Let's read on, let's see what else is here. When we take a survey of nature, we view man in his infancy more helpless and indigent than the brute creation. He lies languishing for days, months and years, totally incapable of providing sustenance for himself or guarding against the attack of wild beasts of the field or sheltering himself from the inclement seas of the weather. It might have pleased the great creator of heaven and earth to have made man independent of all other beings, but as dependence is one of the strongest bonds of society, mankind were made dependent on each other for protection and security, as they thereby enjoy better opportunities of fulfilling the duties and reciprocal love and friendship. Thus, man was formed for a social and active life, the noblest part of the work of God, and he that will so demean himself as not to be endeavoring to add to the common stock of knowledge and understanding may be deemed a drone in the hive of nature, a useless member of society and unworthy of our protection as masons.

Speaker 2 52:41

Wow Dang that is a big one?

Speaker 1 52:44

Yeah, because the man who does not deem himself right. So if you're not part of the solution in masonry, then this right here, this statement right here, kind of questions. Should you even be here, right? Isn't that kind of what it's doing? Maybe deemed a drone in the hive of nature and a useless member of society, unworthy of protection as masons. Unworthy of protection as masons, I mean, at some point. If you're causing all these problems inside the hive and you're sacrificing the industriousness of your lodge, at some point your fellow bees are gonna be like man. You gotta go.

Speaker 2 53:35

Yeah, you're dead weight to us. You're killing us here.

Reflecting on Life and the Creator

Speaker 1 53:38

You're killing it, man, and that's a pretty stern warning. But I think it's important that the Grand Master's slogan for the year is stronger together, right, Stronger together. Stronger together, and that's exactly right Putting away our differences, putting down our egos and figuring out together how we might work and agree better, how we might be better at what we try to do every time we walk into that lodge and walk out of it.

Speaker 2 54:10

You see why the beehive is such a great emblem. Yeah, I love it, just love it.

Speaker 1 54:16

Yeah, the analogy is. It's almost a perfect analogy, right, Everything about it.

Speaker 2 54:21

Yeah, yeah, and it's got that geometry baked into it Geometry you know. What we gotta do, too, is talk about the prayers that we use in the circumambulation.

Speaker 1 54:32

Okay.

Speaker 2 54:33

Because in the Master Mason degree in particular it's on another level.

Speaker 1 54:39

Okay.

Speaker 2 54:40

I don't know if you wanna do that today, but it's gonna be an amazing conversation.

Speaker 1 54:44

I'm not finding it in my little blue book.

Speaker 2 54:47

I've got it.

Speaker 1 54:47

Oh, you know it.

Speaker 2 54:48

Yeah.

Speaker 1 54:50

Oh.

Speaker 2 54:50

All right, we'll do the first one.

Speaker 1 54:52

Let's do it. Let's rabbit trail go so this is the Master Mason degree. I put the book down, by the way go.

Speaker 2 54:58

And there are points in each of the three degrees, when prayers are read, that relate to the degree you're going through at a certain point, and then the Master Mason degree.

Speaker 1 55:09

it's just Should I look to make sure that they're not, oh no, they're right out of the Bible.

Speaker 2 55:14

So there's no worries here. Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years drawn nigh when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them. So remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years drawn nigh, when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them. So it's saying you're young, you think you're invulnerable, you think you're gonna live forever. But it's gonna be hard days ahead until you need to remember your Creator when you're having those good days. And we talk about this in the Entered Apprentice degree with the checkered pattern. We get a lot of questions when people see our Lodgerum because there's a checkered pattern under the altar and in Masonry to us that it talks about the light and the darkness in each of us.

Speaker 2 56:08

And here we are in the Master Mason degree, starting out the prayers with. You're in a good point in your life. These are happy times, the sun shining on you, but don't forget about your Creator. Don't get cocky, right, right, because the darkness is coming and you're gonna need that help. So when the sun's on your face and life is easy, don't take advantage, really enjoy it and do the best you can to support others. It's what I think this is saying.

Speaker 1 56:35

Well, and it is. And you know who wrote it right. It's in Ecclesiastes, chapter 12, verse one. It's Solomon.

Speaker 2 56:41

Correct Ecclesiastes, chapter 12.

Speaker 1 56:44

Yeah and so that's, and the book of Ecclesiastes is an amazing book. It's one of those books where, if you don't really understand where it's coming from, it could really depress you.

Speaker 2 56:56

Yeah, I see that. I mean because you learn these prayers as one of our proficiency cards in Florida, and so memorizing them is a different thing than hearing them, because to memorize it you have to understand it Right. So you start to read into this stuff and it is so poignant.

Speaker 1 57:14

Well, and the book of Ecclesiastes is Solomon writing in his elder years towards the end of his life, okay, and he says things like vanity of vanities, all is a chasing of the wind. And he says that I set myself to wisdom and I set myself to pleasure, and this I found also to be a chasing of the wind. And he goes on and on and on. Throughout his it's like I think it's 13, 14 chapters long and it's beautifully written and it's absolutely poetic.

Speaker 2 57:47

It's worth a read. It is extremely poetic.

Speaker 1 57:49

Yeah, it's worth. The whole book is worth a read, but in the very end, the very last statement is and now the matter has been spoken and all is taken into consideration. Here, says the preacher, or the evangel here's, or the king he's talking about himself says this Honor God, obey God and honor the king, for these are the main things in life. I'm butchering the heck out of it, but what he's saying is after it's all said and done, I'm the richest man in the world. I literally have 600 women that I'm accountable for. Throughout my life I've been with 600 women, half of them are actual wives. I've had more gold, more palaces, more than anybody, and I set my mind to experience everything fully as I possibly could. And I can tell you this at the end of my life serving God and doing what is right before him is the only thing that really matters.

Speaker 2 58:47

Dang, there you go.

Speaker 1 58:49

Right and this is the wisdom of Solomon, and we masons take Solomon very seriously, Very seriously, and what's the next? One.

Speaker 2 58:56

Well, the sun, or the light, or the moon or the stars be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain. So this is just again. You're talking about the youth of our lives and how it's always sunny and you don't really worry about these bad things.

Speaker 1 59:12

Right.

Speaker 2 59:13

But you still need to remember your Creator In the days when the keeper of the house shall tremble and the strong men shall bow themselves and the grinder cease because they are few, and those that look out of the window be darkened. So here we go the keepers of the house shall tremble, the strong men bow themselves, the grinder cease because they are few. What are they talking about there? Symbolically, an old man's teeth the grinders cease because they are few. In our age our teeth start to decay and fall and those that look out the windows be darkened. So we get cataracts. In our age we can't see anymore.

Speaker 2 1:00:04

Now we're talking about what's gonna happen to us as we age, and the Master Mason degree wants us to take a good look at this. And the door shall be shut in the streets when the sound of the grinding is low and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird and the daughters of music shall be brought low. Now he can't hear, he can't eat, he can't see, he can't hear, he can't even hear music anymore and he's waking at the sound of the bird. So he can't even get a good night's sleep in his age, right.

Speaker 1 1:00:39

Even though he's rich and he has all the things in the world, all the things that are supposed to be important. But keep in mind, this is all coming.

Speaker 2 1:00:50

And when they shall be afraid of that which is high and fear shall be in the way and the almond tree shall flourish and the grasshopper shall be a burden and desire shall fail because man goeth to his long home and the mourners go about the streets. Here we go Now. Fear prevents you from doing things that you did as a man. Insects can completely wipe you out because you can't really control or work your fields anymore. Desire fails we're not even manly in our age anymore and ultimately we go to our long home, which means we're going to die, and the mourners go about the streets our family and the people that remember us.

Speaker 1 1:01:34

And everything that you've accumulated throughout your entire life goes to somebody you may or may not have even known. It's just gone. It's just gone.

Speaker 2 1:01:43

Or ever the silver cord be loosed or the golden bowl be broken, or their pitcher be broken at the fountain or the wheel broken at the cistern, then shall the dust return to the earth as it was and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. Wow, this is what we remember, or try to make our Master Mason degree candidates think about. This is what the chaplain's telling them while they're going through the ritual.

Speaker 1 1:02:12

If only there were some sort of visual like a closet with a mirror, a candle and a skull, that kind of thing.

Speaker 2 1:02:20

It kind of really ties into this right, Right, Remember your creator. These are the days of your youth, right, we're strong relatively. Relatively yeah, we're capable. We can hear, we can see, we can enjoy the pleasures of music and sound. We can see everything well, with glasses, both of us.

Speaker 1 1:02:39

We can still see.

Speaker 2 1:02:40

We have grinders in our mouth, we can still hear fun. It's like we're men. But these are the days when we have to remember that this will not last for long.

Speaker 1 1:02:51

Yeah, that's right.

Speaker 2 1:02:54

Our shells or vessels or whatever you want to call this. Earthly life is short, very short, and the eternity is a long time compared to your life on this earth, and we need to think about our creator while we're here, especially when the times are good.

Speaker 1 1:03:12

Yeah, I agree. I would encourage every man who's listening to this to begin that contemplation, if you haven't already, because we're masons, man, you're a mason, so you're supposed to contemplate these important issues, and it may seem morbid to some people who are new at this, but it's one of the most important things you can do is to consider your mortality. You know momento more. Remember you must die, remember that you must die. That time is gonna come when all your work, all your efforts, all the things that you've done will be gone, will they count? Nobody lays on their deathbed and says, gosh, I wish I would have closed one more deal.

Speaker 2 1:03:54

Right.

Speaker 1 1:03:55

I wish I would have stayed an hour more at work, you know, and sacrificed the lives of my loved ones. Nope, nobody says that. I can tell you. I did chaplaincy work in hospitals. I can tell you right now it's always the same, you know, it's always the same. You know, the regret is the same. Relationships, relationships with other humans and my responsibility to be my brother's keeper, that's what matters in the end. Yeah, and this calls us to think about it now, while we're young and strong.

Speaker 1 1:04:27

Yeah, and do something about it. Get up and do something about it.

Speaker 2 1:04:31

Not out of fear, not like, oh my God, I'm gonna die, or guilt, no fear, guilt cause that's paralyzing, that has to do with punishment and fear you don't wanna do that Masonry, as in many religions although you know it's not a religion, but it does have a lot in common with this aspect of religion, which is not to fear death as a thing, that is, a final, you know, end to your existence.

Speaker 1 1:04:56

Right.

Speaker 2 1:04:57

But a gift, that your death is a gift, a final transformation into a better state of being. But you know, ultimately we're here for a reason, and lots of different faiths believe there's going to be a judgment for the acts that you do Well here in the body, and so you've gotta be careful with what you do with the time that you have, and they call them the evil days in the beginning, when the evil days come not, and I believe that means being old. They call those the evil days, right.

Speaker 1 1:05:30

Yeah, it could be, or it could be, you know, good times and bad times.

Speaker 2 1:05:34

It could be bad times. You know, good times come and bad times come.

Speaker 1 1:05:37

It's just the nature of the world we live in, you know.

Speaker 2 1:05:41

Yeah, and there's also a Italian in the master mason degree to the harvest thing of crops, which is also emblematic of the cycles of life.

Speaker 1 1:05:51

Right right.

Speaker 2 1:05:51

We talk about, especially in the master mason degree, the sheaf of wheat and the what do they call it Threshing the threshing floor Right when they would thresh the wheat Right right, which is a big part of symbolism of the master mason degree, and you've explained this before. You probably do a better job than I could have.

Speaker 1 1:06:15

Go for it, you can do it.

Speaker 2 1:06:17

It's got something to do with beating the wheat and the casing coming off of the actual, the chaff, the chaff right, which leaves the actual good stuff that's inside the.

Speaker 2 1:06:30

You know the chaff Yep that we need to get to, that. We pound into flour and use this to make bread and food, and this is a natural cycle. We have to grow it, we have to tend to it, we have to care for it and then we have to harvest it and reap it and in order to make it usable, you've got to go through this process of Threshing.

Speaker 1 1:06:51

Threshing, yeah, they toss it in the air and the wind blows away the chaff.

Speaker 2 1:06:56

Which is the unnecessary hard shell that protected it its whole life.

Speaker 1 1:07:02

The bad stuff, the useless stuff, the stuff that is of no longer any value, that blows away in the wind, and what falls to the ground is the fruit, is the good stuff, is the nourishment, and I love that analogy, man, that's really good.

Speaker 2 1:07:18

This is all the Master Mason degree.

Speaker 1 1:07:22

Yeah, it really is.

Speaker 2 1:07:24

You get it in the degree, you get it in the lecture, which is what we're talking about, and even in the prayers it's somewhat referenced.

Speaker 1 1:07:31

Wow, this has been a great conversation. Once again, brother, I'm going to say that we're probably at the end of it. I don't know. We could go on and on and on.

Speaker 2 1:07:40

We got through a few symbols.

Community Involvement & Elder Masons

Speaker 1 1:07:42

We'll jump back in next week and do it again. One more Keep an eye out for our interviews coming up here. We're going to try to get as many people on as we can. I've got a couple of guys out there who are tentatively scheduled. Hang in there, guys, we will get you scheduled and get our interviews going. I'm really enjoying the interviews. It's getting really informative. I think the format I like the format, getting to know these people. You were asking most horse-whirl foster about where he went to high school where he grew up and his family, life and stuff.

Speaker 2 1:08:22

Military and military. It's like to have a young family while you're in the military.

Speaker 1 1:08:26

Right.

Speaker 2 1:08:27

How does masonry fit into your life? You notice, there's a common theme from these guys, which they wish they did sooner. Yeah, it's a common theme. That's the one thing they say.

Speaker 1 1:08:37

I'm raising my hand right now. Absolutely, I wish I'd done it a lot sooner. It would have definitely changed the course of my life. But we can't go back.

Speaker 2 1:08:47

But we can go forward.

Speaker 1 1:08:49

What we can do, what you and I can do and what we do, brother, is we encourage young men who are listening to this podcast to go deeper into masonry and to be that 50-year guy.

Speaker 2 1:09:04

Get in there as a young man and be the 50-year guy We'll be long gone, I was thinking about that we do these presentations for these 50-year masons and it becomes painfully aware you're not going to see that yourself Not going to see, I know I'm not.

Speaker 1 1:09:20

I'm living to 122 years old. That's not going to happen.

Speaker 2 1:09:23

It makes it so much more special to witness it for someone that has had the 50-year experience, and I'm hanging on every word when we ask them to say something. Absolutely, I'm just dying to hear what they're going to say Right, it's just a really special time to see a man be honored for 50 years in the fraternity Right and get a symbol from Grand Lodge that says I appreciate you.

Speaker 1 1:09:49

Yeah.

Speaker 2 1:09:51

And we do. We make it a ceremony. That's a memorable experience. I think, for that brother and they get grand honors, well-deserved grand honors, which is rare in masonry that a mason gets that. And then in our lodge we like to let them talk and that's their chance to reflect on 50 years of masonry in front of their brothers. Wow, Make it next time someone's doing a 50-year presentation in your lodge.

Speaker 1 1:10:17

It's a very powerful experience. And take the time to shake the brother's hand and listen to him.

Speaker 2 1:10:23

You know there's a lot of wisdom there.

Speaker 1 1:10:25

They've seen it all. Man, 50 years in lodge, they've seen it all. They have wisdom to impart to the lodge. Our elders in masonry are a valuable resource and we need to get them more involved and get them back in lodge doing I don't know. We had a move to try to get past members to come back to lodge to help with catechism, remember, and we were talking about doing that because they know it and asking them.

Speaker 1 1:11:01

You know how come you're not in lodge. We need you. Get in here, man. We need you to do. It's an easy way to contribute.

Speaker 2 1:11:05

You don't have to tie yourself to being an officer, which is crazy, I understand and you're giving up an hour a week, maybe. It's not that much really, and you're doing a huge service to the lodge and you're really potentially changing people's lives. You connect with them and you're there tethered to Freemasonry for about six months.

Speaker 1 1:11:28

You are Freemasonry to those guys.

Speaker 2 1:11:30

Everything you say, everything you do, they're judging. They're looking closely at it because they're watching you as. Oh, this is how Freemasons behave. This is the only Mason I'm close to.

Speaker 1 1:11:41

And you will have won the affection of these young Masons for the rest of their Masonic career. They'll always remember you. So shout out to any of our elder statesmen. I'll say If you're a brother who's staying at home because you haven't been to lodge in a while, because maybe it's too hard to get there or you're just not as involved as you used to be and you've got some years in lodge, reach out, go back, say hey, I can help with catechism, I can help with mentoring.

Speaker 2 1:12:13

You would be a hero to your lodge.

Speaker 1 1:12:15

Yeah, the call went out last night from our DDGM that we definitely need to start thinking about catechism instructors and mentors, because we are on an upswing with membership and, as membership comes, if you don't have the proper systems in place and you need to have the Catechism instructors and mentors, you're going to have a problem. You're going to have a big problem and it's not going to be fun at all for anybody. We need to push everybody the state of Florida, everybody listening to this we need to push for more catechism instructors, more mentors, more people involved in the day-to-day workings of making new Masons.

Speaker 2 1:12:56

In Florida. The Grand Lodge is providing tools to the lodges in Florida. You can bring an unlimited number of Masons into your lodge. They're paying for it, they're providing the tools. It's so easy. The hard part is making your lodge fulfill the promise of Freemasonry to the guys. That's the hard part really. I mean Acting like Masons, doing things that Masons are supposed to do. Be visible, do charity, not just charity for your lodge, not just charity for the Grand Lodge or the Scottish Rite or the Shrine, but for the community and for people.

Speaker 1 1:13:30

Yeah, that's right.

Speaker 2 1:13:31

I mean it's good to do charity for Masonry too, and I'm not knocking that. But I think the community at large could. They will never be aware of any of the charity we're doing just for ourselves. The only way they'll be aware is if we do it for them. And charity isn't just giving money, it's about spending time with people.

Speaker 1 1:13:50

Right, yeah, giving money for a lot of people is easy. That's easy. You just stroke a check and move on. But actually giving your time and giving a part of yourself to another, you won't find too many things that are more fulfilling, I can guarantee you that, brother. It's certainly worth it. I'll give you that guarantee. You won't regret it. Let me just tell you that.

Speaker 2 1:14:15

Yeah, so we've got another esoteric discussion coming up tomorrow night.

Speaker 1 1:14:21

Yes yes, it's getting bigger and bigger it is getting bigger and bigger, and I just love the fact that it's at different people's homes every time we do it. Man, that is just so cool.

Speaker 2 1:14:33

I really, really think we should do some kind of a live broadcast at one of these so that people can see how to do it. Okay, I think you hear it and it's kind of scary to organize. It's a lot of people and I'm scared of the idea of entertaining 20 people in my home.

Speaker 1 1:14:53

It's a lot of pressure.

Speaker 2 1:14:55

But when you see how it really can go it's not that scary or intimidating at all You'll see how actually easy it is, and it takes a lot of life of its own. You don't have to put that pressure on yourself.

Speaker 1 1:15:07

Yeah, I think last time somebody ordered pizza and everybody brought their own drinks and it was just a matter of sitting down and talking, right, I mean, it wasn't a big. It doesn't have to be a big, stressed out production. It doesn't have to be.

Speaker 2 1:15:20

It's a great, it's a conversation you don't have to prep and have notes of things you're going to reference to be smart about.

Speaker 1 1:15:28

In fact that tends to kind of inhibit people from really just opening up and wanting to just share, and a conversation emerges out of the group as everybody begins to share. And I tell you it's very unique because these kinds of discussions in large groups are very rare and the way it's couched here in masonry is that everything is said with gentleness and respect for the other. I'm not proselytizing my position over and above anybody else's position. I'm asking for my two minutes to share, just as I'm doing my best to allow you to have your two minutes to share. Everybody shares together with an open mind and open heart Very rare. You're not going to find that anywhere else out there.

Speaker 2 1:16:22

I'm just telling you no, it's difficult to find. Yeah, yeah everybody's.

Speaker 1 1:16:27

you know, it's the Twitter mentality everywhere you go anymore, unless you 100%. We talk about this all the time. But I'm going to say it again If you don't 100% agree with everything I say, then not only we're not friends, but we're enemies and I'm going to do what I can to harm you, stop you and or, you know, knock you off your mark, and it's just. I'm over it. I am so over that entire idea in my life. I don't accept it and I don't participate in it in any way. If you have something to say to me and it's presented with gentleness and respect, with a view of education and companionship, then I don't care what you say, I don't care what you believe. Bring it. Let's sit down and talk, let's enrich our lives.

Speaker 2 1:17:15

you know through human contact. It takes practice, you're not going to be perfect at it out of the gate. Sure, you're like, we're humans, right, so we react chemically.

Speaker 1 1:17:25

Yeah, we can.

Speaker 2 1:17:26

You have very little control sometimes over your physical reaction to things that you don't like, and also your own history and your upbringing and the people and the circumstances. So you have to work at the idea of tolerance and not everything has to be said the way that you're thinking it.

Speaker 1 1:17:45

Right, that's right.

Speaker 2 1:17:46

It takes practice and the more you do it, the better you get at it. We've had you like are very good at some point, once the conversation's loosened up and everybody seems to be contributing, of taking it off the message and saying current events, what do you got? And letting somebody throw something out there. We had one time where it was like amazing, beautiful, what happened, and then another time where it escalated quickly.

Speaker 1 1:18:11

Yeah.

Speaker 2 1:18:11

And we kind of backed off, because it didn't seem, didn't feel like it was going to be the right environment to have that particular conversation.

Speaker 1 1:18:18

Right.

Speaker 2 1:18:19

And you have to become good at that of knowing when it's okay and seeing when it maybe it's not okay and stopping before.

Speaker 1 1:18:27

Right yeah.

Speaker 2 1:18:28

That's another learned thing that you need, we all need to do, is Mason's is. We want to have difficult conversations, but there are certain people that can't do it, and you have to recognize when you're talking to one of those people and not go there.

Speaker 1 1:18:41

Yeah, that's right, there are risks in having the conversation, but the rewards far outweigh it.

Speaker 2 1:18:45

Yeah, it's worth it If you do it right we're Mason's man.

Gratitude and Farewell

Speaker 1 1:18:48

Come on, we should be able to have conversations about anything without offending each other or getting mad, and being able to learn from each other and grow and move on, and that's that's unique to this, to this craft, and I want the world to experience it. Well, brother, another exciting and another exciting episode. I'm just really blessed to do this all the time with you. Yeah, me too. If you made it to the end again, you're our hero. We're really grateful that you're here with us and send us your emails. And please, fred or Chris at on the on the level with Fred and Chris, yes, yes, and as the music comes on, that's our cue to get out of here. And I just again, chris, thanks so much for everything that that you've done and everything that you do, and we'll see y'all next time.

Speaker 2 1:19:46

Thank you.