On the Anniversary of my Third Degree.

On April 20, 1966 I was raised to the Sublime Degree of a Master Mason.

This is a speech which I gave which sums up my thoughts about being a Mason.

Re-Obligation Night (Speech given in Newton, Iowa) 3/30/09

Worshipful Master, Most Worshipful Brother Al, I thank you for asking me to share some thoughts this evening. You know, I knew Al before he was Most Worshipful…Heck I knew him before he was Most Illustrious. I am flattered to think that of all the hundreds of people he could have asked to speak to you this evening he chose me. But wait a minute. I am not sure he didn’t ask those other guys and they just turned him down, So he probably said, Let’s just ask Simser. So here I am.

This evening we have, each of us re taken the obligations that we took when we entered this great fraternity. In doing so we reaffirmed our commitment to this society of obligated men. What that means is different for each of us. For me one of the things it does is that it ties me to the members of my family who were Masons before me.

My father was not a Mason but both of my grandfathers were as were all four of my great-grandfathers. It has been a connecting point to me to think of them kneeling at that altar in that uncomfortable position saying those archaic words. Probably not understanding much more of them than I did when I first took them.

Whether or not we understand them they certainly put us under a duty to our Brothers, to the fraternity and to God. They also teach us how to behave towards each other and those who are not members of the fraternity. We are obligated.

What is an obligation?

An obligation is a requirement to take some course of action, whether legal or moral. Obligations vary from person to person: Obligations are generally granted in return for an increase in an individual’s rights or power.

There are several definitions
1. The act of binding oneself by a social, legal, or moral tie. …
3. The constraining power of a promise, contract, law, or sense of duty.
a. Something owed as payment or in return for a special service or favor.
b. The service or favor for which one is indebted to another.
Obligations bind us to one another and place us in each other’s debt. What we owe because we have taken an obligation is also owed to us by others who have taken the same obligation. It is a mighty cord that ties us together in the bonds of the fraternity.

We all know people who ignore their obligations. The Order of the Eastern Star has a line in its ritual that I love. “Woe unto those who seek to take upon themselves obligations lightly and forthwith forget them, it calls them “faithless and insincere.”

Most of us try to take our obligations seriously. We attempt to live up to not only the specific, stated obligations but also the implied, unstated ones.

What about those Masonic Obligations?

In the First degree one mainly promises not to divulge the “secrets” - we are reminded that if we were to do so we would be unworthy. There isn’t really much of a problem with doing that. I mean, what are these secrets anyway? I don’t think many of us really understand what those secrets are and we are over zealous about what happens during the degree and we won’t tell anyone anything about what has happened during the ceremonies of that night. We all know the story of the Entered Apprentice who went into the bathroom where his wife heard him muttering to himself. When asked why he was in there talking he stated that it was the only “tyled” room in the housel

But, if you stop to think about it in the open Ceremony of Installation the working tools are all explained and if you listen to the Master’s promises you see the values of our fraternity – right out there in the open. No secrets there.

In the Fellowcraft degree our obligations are increased. We reaffirm the obligations already taken and add to them that we will commit our time to the Lodge, obey the rules, deal honestly with the Lodge and our Brothers, etc, An increase in our obligation as there is an increase in our power and privileges.

As we advance to the Master Mason Degree we once again recommit ourselves to the previous obligations and then we add to them and place ourselves under more duty to the Craft, and to the brothers and their families. We add to it the duty to protect and defend the members and to come to their aid. We move our obligation to include not only the Lodge but to the members – the individual brother. We become so closely tied to him that he is as close to us as a member of our own family.

As a member of that family the obligations are reciprocal. They work both ways. We are obligated to each other. These are not just words we recite. They are in a very real sense a binding contract and we need to live up to them and follow though no matter what.

In every organization there are going to be those who do not live up to the standards that are set by the obligations assumed. I am not sure that I always live up to my Obligation. I try, but being human, I do not always achieve the goal I set for myself. There are a lot of “brothers” who are not “brotherly.” Sometimes ego gets in the way and we think we are the most important Mason in the room. – Jerry Marsengill used to quote this poem to me:

There Is No Indispensable Man
by Saxon N. White Kessinger, Copyright 1959

Sometime when you're feeling important;
Sometime when your ego's in bloom
Sometime when you take it for granted
You're the best qualified in the room,
Sometime when you feel that your going
Would leave an unfillable hole,
Just follow these simple instructions
And see how they humble your soul;
Take a bucket and fill it with water,
Put your hand in it up to the wrist,
Pull it out and the hole that's remaining
Is a measure of how you will be missed.
You can splash all you wish when you enter,
You may stir up the water galore,
But stop and you'll find that in no time
It looks quite the same as before.
The moral of this quaint example
Is do just the best that you can,
Be proud of yourself but remember,
There's no indispensable man.

Worshipful Masters have a tendency to think of themselves as very “special.” Sometimes they need to listen to the charge to the Senior Warden that tells us that he who has high office in Masonry is there to serve the rest.

Officers also take an Obligation to perform their duties and live up to the expectations of the office. One of the most important and interesting things about Masonry is that we seem to take an obligation every time we turn around. We take them when we join. We take them when we are installed into office. As we join other Masonic organizations we add to our obligations and in some of them we promise to forgive trespasses and to obey our superiors and to fight for American principles and on and on and on. There are, perhaps, too many of them. I am sure I have taken over 50 Obligations in my Masonic career.

There is a “law of diminishing returns” I learned about in high school. It says in essence that if we have too much of something we tend to devalue it. I wonder if Obligations are like that. Do we take so many Obligations that we devalue them? I hope not.

Timothy Bonney gave me the phrase “society of obligated men”. For some reason it resonated with me. It brought me up short as I thought about it. For the most part I had not thought much about “being under an obligation.” It just never occurred to me. I love the fraternity - In many ways the members are closer to me than some members of my own family. I would do almost anything for them. Just as in any family there are times when we disagree and when ego and personality get in the way. But the bottom line is that we take those obligations very seriously, and we try our best to live them.

As a Mason I was once asked by my great aunt “What are you doing for your Blue Lodge?” I was involved in the York Rite and Eastern Star and I was pretty much letting the Lodge take care of itself. I had been writing her about what I was doing in those Organizations and she asked me that question. That was a wake-up call for me. I went then and asked for the only office I have ever asked for in Freemasonry. I asked to start “through the line.” – I did it to fulfill an obligation. How well I did that I will leave up to others to say. I will say that it was the most satisfying 6 years I ever spent in Lodge and I wear my Past Master’s Ring proudly.

It was very interesting for me recently to look through the Scottish Rite Library in Des Moines and come across some books with some old engravings showing Masons dressed in clothing of the 1700’s participating in degrees. I realized that they, too, took those obligations and that we had a bond. That bond which connects us is the obligation that we took at the altar of Freemasonry. That Obligation which made us Masons, that tied us to one another in bonds of fraternal love and affection, that connects us by invisible ties, that inspire us to live nobler lives, to do more for our fellow man and to improve the world in which we live.
Recently I heard a paper in which Brother John Klaus stated. “Ritual is not Masonry and Masonry is not Ritual.” It got me to thinking about what is Masonry. What makes us Masons?

We start calling a man a Mason the minute he takes his obligation. I would argue that taking or re-taking the obligation does not make you a mason. Living the obligation does.

Tonight we have been reminded of those obligations. P.G.H.P. Tom Dean said” When you have Masonry in your heart and mind you will live your obligation! Now I challenge each of you who have been re-obligated to go out and live the obligations of Freemasonry. When you first took your obligation you did it without prior knowledge of its contents. Tonight you knew what was in them and you chose to re-obligate yourself. Living that choice will make your lives better lives and that will make this world a better world.

Way Back Machine

One of the things about the Masonic Fraternity is that there is a lot of room for people to participate, work ritual, go through the line and eventually become the "leader of the pack."  You really can't run for office.  You get elected if you have participated and if it is your "turn"  and you haven't royally messed up.  Of course once you are the Master of the Lodge or the High Priest of the Chapter, etc. you get to pick the program for the year and decide what activities will take place or you can decide that you will just have stated meetings and degree work (if anyone decides to join) and everyone tells you "It is your decision, you are the Master of the Lodge."  

And so no matter what happens he will have the right to use the phrase in the poster above.  And most do. - It can be even worse if you were head of a Grand Body.  (BTW that just means State Organization.  Nothing really "grand" about it.  Just bigger and that is what Grand really means,,Big)  Except they say Back when I was Grand (Master, High Priest, Commander, etc. and then they go into a tirade, comment, story designed to let you know that they were so much better at being the _________________(fill in the blank with your choice) than you will ever be.

Another phenomenon in the Masonic Fraternity is what I call Masonic Generals.  These are the guys represented by the poster on the right. This is the person who joins all the Masonic Organizations he can and then collects "honors" or awards.  Sometimes these are for work, for participation, for being the past head, joust for joining.  And there are those who wear everyone they are entitled ot wear them.  They wear 5 to 10 lapel pins on both lapels or on just one lapel (and then they are lopsided. One guy even gave a speech at a meeting I was at about how everybody who belongs to any organization should wear all their pins and awards all the time.  I think that is the reason I only wear one.  Or if I am in my tuxedo none.

Back in 1980 I was Master of My Lodge and I did everything I could to make it a good year.  We did have a good year.  I did not operate by the dictatorial method but used the cooperative technique that I described in this article.  

The following year I was Grand High Priest.  And I had a good year.  I had an official portrait taken which has disappeared (I always accused Mother of throwing it away)  but I do have one wallet size left which I scanned in so I could share it.   I can say, "When I was Master of...." and "When I was Grand High Priest" with the best of them. Of course I never say that.  I just sit quietly in judgement and tsk tsk when they mess up.

Actually I don't do that.  I have tried my best to not give advice unless asked and to keep my nose out of the politics.  When I  was Master and Grand High Priest I had a friend who could recite the following from memory.  He kept me grounded and every once in awhile I would have hm recite this for me

Feeling Important?

Sometimes when you're feeling important,

Sometimes when your ego's in bloom,

Sometime when you take it for granted,

You're the best qualified in the room;

Sometimes when you feel that your going

Would leave an unfillable hole,

Just follow these simple instructions

And see how they humble your soul.

Take a bucket and till it with water

Put your hand in it up to the wrist,

Pull it out, and the hole that's remaining

Is the measure of how you'll be missed.

You can splash all you want when you enter,

You may stir up the water galore;

But stop, and you'll find that in no time

It looks quite the same as before.

The moral in this quaint example

Is to do just the best that you can;

Be proud of yourself, but remember

There's no indispensable man.

Besides everyone knows that it is actually the Secretary of the lodge who runs things AND HE IS THE TRUE INDISPENSIBLE MAN.

A Masonic Thought

A couple of my Brothers and I were having a conversation last evening and it got me to thinking about how a Lodge is like a rope. You can see from the diagram that a rope is made up of many parts. The parts are wound around each other and twisted together to make a strong piece of rope which can tie things up or lift heavy objects. All the pieces working together make the strength that is needed. If you look on the ends you can see that the little pieces of string or twine aren't very strong by themselves. But put them together and they are much stronger.

A Lodge (or any organization for that matter) is much like that. Individually the members are much weaker than they are when they join together and intertwine their efforts to make the strength that is needed.

What are the parts of the "Masonic Rope" Well the individual members are obviously a part of it. The Officers each doing their part are vital to the smooth running of the Lodge. The Activities of the Lodge, Degree work, family events, community events, honor events for 50 year members or Past Masters or a Community group such as teachers all play a part to twine the strands together.

The strength of the Masonic Rope is called "Brotherhood" and it has to be done by all working together. There is no (real) place for cliques or exclusionary groups if you want strength. If the officers are not in their places and do not know the members and if they to not pull everyone together the string is snapped, thus weakening the Lodge.

Lodges by their nature are social groups. Masonic Lodges are unique in that every member in the Lodge has been welcomed as a brother by something we call the ballot. You must be accepted by everyone in order to join the fraternity. Our relationship should be so special that before you become a member we know and want you as a Brother.

If all of the strands are woven together correctly the Lodge will be strong and the scripture we use will be fulfilled.. "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for Brethren to dwell together in Unity,

The Bee Hive

IN MASONRY
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 in the dust. It teaches us that we came into the world rational and human beings, so should we ever be industrious ones; never sitting down contented while our fellow-creatures around us are in want, if it is in our power to relieve them without inconvenience to ourselves.

Someone sent me the following:
From War and Peace

Tolstoy is using this an analogy to the nearly deserted Moscow when Napolean entered the city. It is just as appropriate for describing a Lodge without leadership.

- - - - - - - - - - - -


In a queenless hive no life is left though to a superficial glance it seems as much alive as other hives.

The bees circle round a queenless hive in the hot beams of the midday sun as gaily as around the living hives; from a distance it smells of honey like the others, and bees fly in and out in the same way. But one has only to observe that hive to realize that there is no longer any life in it. The bees do not fly in the same way, the smell and the sound that meet the beekeeper are not the same. To the beekeeper's tap on the wall of the sick hive, instead of the former instant unanimous humming of tens of thousands of bees with their abdomens threateningly compressed, and producing by the rapid vibration of their wings an aerial living sound, the only reply is a disconnected buzzing from different parts of the deserted hive. From the alighting board, instead of the former spirituous fragrant smell of honey and venom, and the warm whiffs of crowded life, comes an odor of emptiness and decay mingling with the smell of honey. There are no longer sentinels sounding the alarm with their abdomens raised, and ready to die in defense of the hive. There is no longer the measured quiet sound of throbbing activity, like the sound of boiling water, but diverse discordant sounds of disorder. In and out of the hive long black robber bees smeared with honey fly timidly and shiftily. They do not sting, but crawl away from danger. Formerly only bees laden with honey flew into the hive, and they flew out empty; now they fly out laden. The beekeeper opens the lower part of the hive and peers in.

Instead of black, glossy bees--tamed by toil, clinging to one another's legs and drawing out the wax, with a ceaseless hum of labor- that used to hang in long clusters down to the floor of the hive, drowsy shriveled bees crawl about separately in various directions on the floor and walls of the hive. Instead of a neatly glued floor, swept by the bees with the fanning of their wings, there is a floor littered with bits of wax, excrement, dying bees scarcely moving their legs, and dead ones that have not been cleared away.

The beekeeper opens the upper part of the hive and examines the super. Instead of serried rows of bees sealing up every gap in the combs and keeping the brood warm, he sees the skillful complex structures of the combs, but no longer in their former state of purity. All is neglected and foul. Black robber bees are swiftly and stealthily prowling about the combs, and the short home bees, shriveled and listless as if they were old, creep slowly about without trying to hinder the robbers, having lost all motive and all sense of life. Drones, bumblebees, wasps, and butterflies knock awkwardly against the walls of the hive in their flight. Here and there among the cells containing dead brood and honey an angry buzzing can sometimes be heard. Here and there a couple of bees, by force of habit and custom cleaning out the brood cells, with efforts beyond their strength laboriously drag away a dead bee or bumblebee without knowing why they do it. In another corner two old bees are languidly fighting, or cleaning themselves, or feeding one another, without themselves knowing whether they do it with friendly or hostile intent. In a third place a crowd of bees, crushing one another, attack some victim and fight and smother it, and the victim, enfeebled or killed, drops from above slowly and lightly as a feather, among the heap of corpses.

The keeper opens the two center partitions to examine the brood cells. In place of the former close dark circles formed by thousands of bees sitting back to back and guarding the high mystery of generation, he sees hundreds of dull, listless, and sleepy shells of bees. They have almost all died unawares, sitting in the sanctuary they had guarded and which is now no more. They reek of decay and death. Only a few of them still move, rise, and feebly fly to settle on the enemy's hand, lacking the spirit to die stinging him; the rest are dead and fall as lightly as fish scales. The beekeeper closes the hive, chalks a mark on it, and when he has time tears out its contents and burns it clean.

I personally think that it is a remarkable feat of true intelligence to be able to learn lessons from what we read and then apply them to our present situation. There are way too many Masonic Lodges who are content to put up without leadership. I am not sure how you would go about solving this but you must have Officers who will lead if a lodge is to grow and prosper. I read a post today on another Masonic Blog about Masters who disappear once their year in the East is over. It is worth a visit to The Middle Chamber to read what this brother has to say. Your comments on these ideas are most welcome. Hugs, J-bear.