‘News from the Philalethes Society’

    

Great news from the Philalethes Society during Masonic Week:

✓ Adam Kendall is President for the two-year term.

✓ Chris Ruli is the new Third Vice-President.

✓ Michael Poll, made a Fellow in 2003, has been chosen Dean of the Fellows of the Society.

Steve McCall, owner of Macoy Masonic Supply Co., was the keynote speaker at the luncheon yesterday, discussing the history of his company in “175 Years of Serving the Craft: Publishing, Regalia, and Masonic Supplies.”

The Philalethes Society was founded in 1928 to serve as a nexus for serious thinking and a source for real scholarship on Masonic subjects. Grand lodges were not places to find research and education, so brethren motivated to fill that void organized independent bodies to publish enlightening papers and articles for the fraternity’s advancement in Masonic knowledge. The Philalethes Society was neither the first nor the only such group from that era, but it is the one still breathing at the close of the first quarter of the twenty-first century.

Congratulations all!

Okay, okay. I’ll rejoin. Stop browbeating me.

(Hey guys, how about updating the website, yeah?)

I wonder if I can revive Knickerbocker Chapter.

     

‘Our Stations and Places’

    

Sure, the First Manhattan District has the eldest lodges, and the Tenth Manhattan has the exotic lodges, and the Ninth has all the lager and schnitzel, but the Glorious Fourth Manhattan has the Book Club!

Its next meeting via Zoom is scheduled for Wednesday, July 27 at 8 p.m. Master Masons only. Contact the Square Club for login information.

It’s a classic but not very old (1938) text this time: Our Stations and Places by Henry G. Meacham, which he dedicates to “the Seekers of Light and the souls with a hunger to grow.” As you might infer from its title, this book is a guide for lodge officers. (Seems to me to be a trusted source on the Craft in the eyes of religious kook anti-Masons—so you know it has to be good! And, humorously enough, the book includes an appendix titled “Why Freemasonry Has Enemies.”)

Updated by Michael Poll for Cornerstone Book Publishers in 2019, Our Stations and Places is available from that publishing house and your preferred online retailer, or via Grand Lodge Services. Expect to pay around $17.

Meacham was Grand Lecturer of our Grand Lodge eighty or so years ago, and Grand Lodge published the book.

My congratulations to the Book Club for selecting a title that has practical value to the Masonic reader. With our lodge installations upon us, Our Stations and Places provides idiomatic New York lodge and Grand Lodge understandings for new and advancing lodge officers. Some of the ideas sound dated, but that’s okay.

     

‘TONIGHT: Michael Poll via Zoom’

    

Tonight! Michael Poll will be the guest speaker, via Zoom, of Ecclesia Lodge 1189. The particulars are below.

Ecclesia, in Webster—way up by Lake Ontario—is one of Grand Lodge’s designated Observant Masonry lodges, and received its charter three years ago.

Click to enlarge.

Bro. Poll, among many other stations and places, is editor in chief of The Journal of the Masonic Society.

It is asked that attendees wear jacket and tie.

    

‘Moe & Moe present two Michaels’

     
Moe & Moe Productions (that’s Mohamad and Moises) proudly present two online events starring two Michaels to help get us through this time of enforced Refreshment:

 Click images to enlarge.

     

‘Journal of the Masonic Society 46’

     
Editor-in-Chief Michael Poll announces the new Journal of the Masonic Society:

Issue 46 of The Journal of the Masonic Society is at the printers. Before long, it will be showing up in the mailboxes of members and subscribers. The line-up for this issue is an impressive one. Papers include:

• “Personal Ritual: A Contemplative Tool for Masonry Beyond the Lodge,” by C.R. Dunning, Jr.
• “Ancient Charges Scroll Case: Putting Craftsmanship Back into the Craft,” by Martin Bogardus
• “Who Are We, and Where Do We Stand?” by Robert L. Poll
• “The Boyer Model of Scholarship: Application to the Craft,” by Michael L. Moran and Seth C. Anthony
• “The Symbolism of Preparation,” by Mark St. John
• “Brother, Brother - Brother, Brothers,” by Anthony Whitehawk Cabello
• “Concept of Masonic Renewal: What Does it Mean to You Now and in the Future?” by Christian M. Christensen
• “Why Freemasonry?” by Barry A. Searle
• “Freemasonry and Rosicrucianism: Ludibrium or Logic?” by Michael E. Ludwig

The great collection of reading in this issue will also include the regular book reviews, “Editor’s Corner,” W. Bro. Greg Knott’s great “Camera’s Lens” feature, W. Bro. John Bridegroom’s “Masonic Treasures,” and more. If you are not a member or subscriber, you should be!


And in other Journal news, Mike shared this recently:


I have an announcement to make concerning The Journal of the Masonic Society that I am not happy about, and a second one that does bring me pleasure. First, it is with regret that I announce the retirement of Bro. Tyler Anderson as Book Reviews Editor of The Journal. I have very much enjoyed working with Bro. Anderson, and his work for the Society has been outstanding. We all wish him the greatest success in the future.

So, who will be the new Book Reviews Editor? That brings me to the second announcement. It is with pleasure that I announce the appointment of Bro. and Dr. Michael Moran as the new Book Reviews Editor of The Journal of the Masonic Society. Bro. Moran comes to us with considerable editorial experience and has been a frequent contributor to The Journal. I know Bro. Moran from his work with the Pennsylvania Academy of Masonic Knowledge and do look forward to working with him. I know he will bring The Journal top quality work and reviews.


The next major event on the Masonic Society calendar will be our annual meeting during the Masonic Week festivities on Friday, February 7, 2020. Come here Bro. Mark Tabbert present his new research into the Masonic life of George Washington, and enjoy a great meal together. The reservations info should be available soon.
     

‘Pennsylvania Academy’s plans for October’

     
The Pennsylvania Academy of Masonic Knowledge has announced its plans for the October 28 meeting. This flier tells the tale:

Click to enlarge.

     

‘Journal 37 is a gem’

     

It’s been out for several weeks actually. The Journal of the Masonic Society No. 37 for Summer 2017 hit members’ mailboxes right around the Summer Solstice, so I’m late in catching up on The Magpie.

With a gorgeous shot of the East of Norman Hall in the Masonic Temple in Philadelphia on the front cover—that building never takes a bad photo—and a close-up of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania’s George Washington Apron on the back, these bookends enclose more than half a dozen explorations of the meaning of Masonry.

To join The Masonic Society, click here. Members receive four issues of The Journal per year, and enjoy full access to the superlative Masonic on-line discussion forum (if you can pull yourself away from Facebook) of international reach. In addition, our famous parchment patent with hand-pressed red wax seal memorializes your member status in a way you’ll want framed and hung on your wall. And those are just the material benefits of being with us. Learning more about your Craft in the company of like-minded Freemasons is the true point of it all.

In his President’s Message, Ken Davis imparts Part II of his advice on how to conduct Masonic research. I won’t give it all away, but one point I think is key is—his words— “Build a crap-detector.” (I call it a bullshit detector, but this is a family blog.)

When reading about Freemasonry, or anything really, consider the author’s credentials and qualifications. Look into the publisher. What other titles has it released? Is this material recent enough to be valuable currently? Scrutinize the sources. Are they reliable? Beware of academia. Sometimes reliable sources can be biased too. And, most importantly to me, distinguish between myth and history. I don’t know how many sensible and educated men in this fraternity believe the medieval Knights Templar were this merry band of mystic archaeologists who evolved into Freemasonry, but that’s a lecture for another day.

In every issue, we welcome the new members of the Society. Thirty-five are listed this time, including Brer Josh Heller of Pennsylvania! Josh is co-founder of Masonic Light, which marked its 17th anniversary exactly two months ago. I forgot to write about that. Amazingly, Josh and I have never met. I’m going to have to sneak up on him at one of his gigs one night. He plays the guitar in a rock and roll band. Welcome to TMS, Josh!

In his editorial, Editor in Chief Michael Poll tells of “The Domino Effect” that occurs when Masons labor together. The results can be the desired positive effect or can be unwanted negativity. It depends. Read his thoughtful—and I would say Rosicrucian-inspired—message on Page 10.

Turn the page and find a timely piece by Brent Morris titled “Albert Pike and the Ku Klux Klan.” In just a couple of hundred words, Morris challenges the highly flawed old sources that have been recycled over the decades to claim Pike was a member or even senior officer of the Klan.

I call this timely because it was only a month ago, on June 6, that National Review stupidly published an article by Edward Condon titled “The KKK Is Not the Christian ISIS: The Klan’s Hateful Theatrics and Symbolism Are Rooted Not in Christianity but in Freemasonry.” In this, Condon repeats the libel and goes even further, saying:

Pike was not recruited for his military savvy, however. He came into the Klan through his position as Sovereign Grand Commander of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry’s southern jurisdiction. Pike’s 800-page Masonic catechism, Morals and Dogma, and his time as Grand Commander were major factors in setting the ritual and philosophical tone for the higher degrees of American Freemasonry; it was this experience and authority that had the Klan knocking at his door as they looked to give their ragbag insurgency some ritualistic credibility and intimidating theatrics.

(I used to be a longtime subscriber to this magazine. I’m glad I’m not any longer, and not just for this reason. Fortunately, Art de Hoyos responded immediately with an informative and correcting letter to the editor, but I don’t know if it had any effect.)

Meanwhile here on planet Earth, Brent Morris explains there are but two published claims of Pike being with the Klan. Both are from the early 20th century (as in after Pike’s death, when he could not reply to them) and both are unsubstantiated and so shaky that no reputable historian should rely on them.

Clay Anderson of St. Paul Lodge 3 in Minnesota gives us “Mozart, Masonry and the Magic Flute” which contextualizes the history of the Austrian world outside the temple at the time Mozart composed his Masonic opera, and also explains the Continental way of Masonic initiation that the composer experienced. If you wonder what is so Masonic about this piece of music, read this article.

Mike Poll is back, this time on Page 22, with an interview of Art de Hoyos, Bob Davis, and Shane Harshbarger of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction. Here all four collaborate on explaining why a Master Mason should consider the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry for his future. (To be clear, it is the Southern Jurisdiction being discussed, and not the other jurisdiction.) Excerpted:

Arturo de Hoyos: “The Scottish Rite, perhaps more than any other Masonic system in the United States, presents a wider tapestry of Masonic philosophy… As I studied it, I realized that the Rite was not just pomp, not empty ceremonial, but a system which labors to fill the promise to provide ‘more light in Masonry.’ Many people don’t realize that the Scottish Rite is the most popular form of Masonry on the planet. Its Craft degrees are conferred in more countries of the world than any other version. Being a Scottish Rite Mason also gives me the opportunity to teach Masons about Masonry. If the Blue Lodge is like an undergraduate degree, the Scottish Rite is like a post-graduate degree. We simply learn more—and the stuff is pretty cool.”

Robert Davis: “The value of the Rite’s teachings is wholly embedded in the rituals of the degrees. And that value exponentially increases in proportion to the number of degrees which are presented to its members. Taken as a whole, the instruction of the Rite carries out six major historical themes in Freemasonry, along with four essential quests of the journey to mature masculinity. These themes and quests have to do with awakening consciousness within oneself. This is one of the most difficult challenges for most men. Yet, it is what makes Freemasonry a transformative art. For men, life needs to be seen as a journey. The Scottish Rite is built on the clear understanding that men need to be engaged in their own quest for self-improvement. The greatest value of the Scottish Rite is that it facilitates this fundamental psychological need in men.”

Shane Harshbarger: “Scottish Rite and Craft Masonry are so intertwined and linked that to speak of one without the other isn’t possible. In a general sense, I see Scottish Rite and Freemasonry continuing to decline in membership as a percentage of total population. Yet, I am not convinced that we need to fear this. We simply need to plan for the challenges that come with this reality. Conversely, I believe Freemasonry and Scottish Rite will always exist. There is no possibility of it dying out or disappearing. There will always be men who are looking for what Masonry and Scottish Rite offer. It is our job to ensure that when a man joins, he receives the experience that we promise to him. Masons need to do Masonry and be Masons… The future of Scottish Rite for me rests on Valleys that have social functions, perform and utilize all 29 degrees, and have continuing Scottish Rite education. There is more Scottish Rite than any Valley can do in a year, five years, or ten years, but we must be organic.”

There is a great deal more to this three-way interview. Get The Journal.

In book reviews, the great Chuck Dunning’s new Contemplative Masonry (that has yet another photo from the Philadelphia Masonic Temple on its cover!) is defined by reviewer Christian M. Christensen as “an extremely important and useful book for the brothers seeking to either get started or deepen their contemplative practices.” Meanwhile Tyler Anderson explains why The Ten Books of Architecture (actually a single volume summary of it) by Vitruvius is important to Freemasons and Masonic ritual.

In the back of the book, we have Brett Laird Doyle, a Full Member of Texas Lodge of Research, with “Captain Peter F. Tumlinson: Texas Ranger, San Jacinto Hero and Freemason.” This is a sterling example of why Masonic researchers today ought to concentrate on the Masonic history/biography in their own backyards. Your local research lodge, wherever you are, does not need more “papers” that deliver shallow understandings of broad historical topics that have been defined expertly by the authors we read already. Follow Doyle’s lead here, and bring to light the life of a brother Mason. Or a lodge history. Something significant to your locality.

John Hairston returns to The Journal with more remarkable details from the story of Prince Hall Freemasonry, this time with previously overlooked proof of the existence of Mark and Past Master degrees as conferred by African Lodge in the early 19th century. He’s not lost in arcana here. This is really cool research that shows how old archives can yield new understandings of the way we were.

There is much more to this issue of The Journal, but I’m at 1,600 words already and I doubt anyone is still reading. Join The Masonic Society now and improve your life immeasurably!
     

‘Another(!) singular surprise at Masonic Week’

     

Belated coverage of Masonic Week 2017 slowly continues with this account of the 73rd Annual Consistory of the Society of Blue Friars on Friday, February 10 in Arlington, Virginia.

The proclamation of a new Blue Friar is a very closely held secret usually. I imagine only Grand Abbot Brent Morris and the new appointee are in the know for many months. This year there was an innocent and very temporary slip in social media that revealed this embargoed information. Did you catch it?

Michael Poll, of Cornerstone Publishers, Journal of the Masonic Society, Masonic research, etc. fame, was made Blue Friar No. 106 in a tradition launched in 1932 upon the formation of this unique fraternity comprised exclusively of Masonic published authors.

Bro. Poll had been away from Masonic Week for a long time, probably since it was last known as AMD Weekend, and his appointment to the ranks of the Blue Friars last month was to be his first trip back. Unfortunately, rough winter weather, with lots of snow forecast, menaced the District of Columbia area, and Mike’s flight was cancelled, preventing him from reaching us in Arlington. Even worse, it turned out that not one snowflake fell in the DC area!

Nevertheless Poll appeared at his two planned speaking engagements—Blue Friars and Masonic Society—thanks to quick thinking and technology. His Blue Friars address, titled “The Role of the Masonic Writer,” was video recorded and made available to us via the interwebs, to wit:

Unquestionably a first for the Blue Friars. Not that they’d want to make it a habit, but it’s good to know an option like this can save the day. But this isn’t even what is meant in the title of this edition of The Magpie Mason. No. Something else unexpected occurred that made the meeting even more memorable.

Nearing the end of the meeting, the Grand Abbot, who wields supreme dictatorial powers by the way, announced a surprise: Another Blue Friar was being made!

BF 107 was in attendance, sitting in near anonymity on the sidelines: Robert L.D. Cooper of Scotland!

Grand Abbot S. Brent Morris, right, greets Blue Friar 107 Robert L.D. Cooper of Scotland after surprising him with the prestigious appointment at the Society’s 73rd Consistory last month in Virginia.

Among the books Bob Cooper has authored are Cracking the Freemasons Code, The Red Triangle, and (my favorite) The Rosslyn Hoax. Please read The Rosslyn Hoax. He is curator of the Scottish Masonic Museum and Library, and is a true expert on the subjects that confound so many well intentioned Freemasons: Rosslyn Chapel, the Sinclair family, and the Templars. If you think you know something about these, do yourself a big favor and read Cooper’s findings.
     

‘Masonic Week deadlines near’

     

Masonic Week is less than a month away, meaning the deadline for booking rooms and meals is very near.

To see the agenda of all the meetings, click here.

For hotel accommodations, click here. Reserve before February 1.

For meal reservations, click here. Also before February 1.

If nothing else, be sure to attend The Masonic Society’s banquet on Friday night, but click that link to book your seats. Our keynote speaker will be Michael Poll of Louisiana—scholar, writer, publisher extraordinaire, and editor-in-chief of The Journal of The Masonic Society.

Also, look for our hospitality suite!

See you there.
     

‘Big news for 2017’

     

Cinema Group Ventures

New Year’s greetings to everybody in Masonic cyberspace, and thank you for reading The Magpie Mason, which begins its ninth full year with this post you’re reading now. I don’t know what everyone has been eating for breakfast lately, but readership has been in the several thousands per day during the past month or so, a reach I don’t think I’ve seen since the golden age of Masonic blogging back in 2009-10. Honestly, it is humbling to learn how what is basically a hobby of mine can be interesting enough to so many others who make time to read it. My thanks to you all.

But the big news for 2017 mentioned in the subject line concerns The Masonic Society, which also begins its ninth year this year.

Next month, The Masonic Society will hold its annual meeting in Virginia. That’s Friday, February 10, amid the Masonic Week festivities to take place at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City at Reagan National Airport in Arlington. This is one of the few events on the Masonic Week calendar that all Masons, their ladies, and friends of Freemasonry may attend. But unlike, say, the Society of Blue Friars meeting, our banquet is not free of charge. The food was terrific last year, and I’m sure it will be again, but we pay in advance. Click here to take care of that.

Our keynote speaker for the banquet will be Michael Poll, a Fellow and Past President of The Masonic Society, as well as the editor in chief of The Journal of the Masonic Society. Mike is owner of Cornerstone Book Publishers, and is a New York Times bestselling writer and publisher, in addition to being a prolific writer, editor, and publisher of Masonic and esoteric books. Additionally, he is a Fellow of the Philalethes Society, a Fellow of the Maine Lodge of Research, secretary of the Louisiana Lodge of Research, and a full member of the Texas Lodge of Research. As time permits, he travels and speaks on the history of Freemasonry, with a particular focus on the early history of the Scottish Rite.

If you plan to attend Masonic Week in any way, or if you live in the Washington, DC area and want to check it out, please make sure you get to this banquet—arguably the highlight of the annual event’s calendar.

Looking later into 2017, The Masonic Society will host its annual conference in Kentucky. “Celebrating 300 Years of Freemasonry” is the theme of this event to take place September 7-10 at the Embassy Suites in Lexington. Our cosponsors are Lexington Lodge 1 (chartered in 1788), the Rubicon Masonic Society, the Grand Lodge of Kentucky Education Committee, William O. Ware Lodge of Research, and Ted Adams Lodge of Research.

More details on everything to come later in 2017, but do anticipate a roster of nationally known speakers, a formal festive board at Spindletop Hall(!), and tours of local attractions, like the Kentucky Horse Park.

The initiative behind this upcoming conference in Kentucky is John Bizzack, a Fellow of the Society, and a member of its board of directors. You may know him through any of the five (I think it’s still five) books on Freemasonry he has written, or through the Rubicon Masonic Society and other educational groups and activities in Kentucky, or from Masonic cyberspace.

Speaking of Masonic cyberspace, The Masonic Society has a new member on our board of directors. Eric Diamond of Chicago joined the team in late 2016 upon the resignation of José Diaz. Eric is a Past Master of Oriental Lodge 33, Chicago’s oldest lodge. Surely you know him from X-Oriente, the podcast—actually the granddaddy of Masonic podcasts—that has been educating Freemasons all over the world since 2004.

The leadership of The Masonic Society is an all-star team, like the Harlem Globetrotters, or the 1927 Yankees, or the ’94 Rangers. The weak link in the chain is myself, but the other officers and the board members are Masons whose work you have been enjoying for years, even if you don’t know their names. Writers, researchers, lecturers, makers of bespoke regalia, officers at the national level—all proponents of improving the condition of the fraternity. (If you have noticed the degree of turnovers in our leadership ranks, let me explain it is because of the demands of serving The Masonic Society. It’s real work. I can name a number of Masonic groups that are happy with the prestige of gathering eminent Freemasons among their leaders, but The Masonic Society asks much of its officers and directors, and sometimes a brother decides it’s better for all concerned if he steps aside to allow for another to carry on the labors.)

The chief labor of The Masonic Society is its quarterly periodical The Journal of The Masonic Society, the 34th issue of which reached members’ mailboxes in December. Under the guidance of Editor-in-Chief Mike Poll and Art Director John Bridegroom, The Journal has a new look and a sharper editorial focus now. (Advertisers, contact me here to place your message in the pages of The Journal.)

Issue No. 34 features:

Fascinating content from the Society’s Fall 2016 conference in California: “Freemasonry on the Frontier.” John Bizzack (there he is again!) offers “The Expansion of Freemasonry into the West: The Pivotal Role of Kentucky, 1788-1815,” in which he explains how America’s first western state was home to American Freemasonry’s westernmost grand lodge, which set about chartering lodges throughout the nation’s north, south, and west regions. This resulted in a kind of standardization of customs and usages based on Kentucky’s own, with results enduring through today.

Knights of the North alum (and possibly the most handsome man in Freemasonry) Bill Hosler, who likes to scatter his lodge memberships among a number of states to keep people guessing, asks “Living Stones or Bricks?” in which he weighs the meanings of making oneself better in the Masonic context.

Barry Denton, also of Kentucky, submits “Thoughts of Freemasons: Freemasonry and the Generational Gap,” that endeavors to make some sense of what Masons of different generations require of the fraternity.

In addition, there are book reviews (with maybe a literary feud in bloom!), poetry, breathtaking photography, the Masonic Treasures feature on the back cover, and much more.

C’mon, it’s $45 a year for membership in the United States. Make it a New Year’s resolution, and join now.
     

‘The Masonic Society brings the school to you’

     

Masonic Society School

announces pilot course

The Masonic Society School is proud to announce its pilot course, The History and Philosophy of Freemasonry, with historic readings, online video commentaries on the readings, and a discussion forum. The course will take place online October 17-December 19, 2016. Click here.

The readings and nine video commentaries will include:

• overview of the early operative masons
• formation of the Grand Lodge of England and its constitutions
• Masonic jurisprudence
• practice and nature of Masonic initiation
• Freemasons at the time of the American Revolution
• anti-Masonic movements
• women in Masonry
• Rosicrucian and Egyptian influences in Masonry
• spiritual nature of Masonry
• and more

Students and the instructor will have a private forum for discussing the readings and commentaries.

The course is open exclusively to Masonic Society members. A video introduction and registration form, as well as information on joining the society, are available on the society’s website.

The instructor of the course will be Michael R. Poll, owner of Cornerstone Book Publishers. and a New York Times bestselling writer and publisher. He is a fellow and past president of The Masonic Society, and a fellow of the Philalethes Society.
     

‘Rosicrucian book sale and other news’

     
Michael Poll of Cornerstone Publishers offers the following tremendous sale on three essential Rosicrucian titles. From the publicity:

Rosicrucian Bundle

Originally $62.40

On Sale for $37.44

The Brotherhood of the Rosy Cross, by A. E. Waite
(6×9, softcover, 652 pages)

Photographic reproduction of A. E. Waite’s classic 1924 work on the Rosicrucian Order. Waite presents his view of the development and history of the Rosicrucians from the very early days in the Middle Ages and takes them through their various incarnations. A fascinating and detailed work. Many consider this the finest book on the Rosicrucians available.

The Masters and The Path, by C.W. Leadbeater with foreword by Annie Besant
(6×9, softcover, 252 pages)

C.W. Leadbeater offers an enlightened study of the Path of Discipleship under the Guidance of the Ascended Masters. While existing in our troubled world, we can see in this work the place of initiation and its role in both our spiritual and physical selves. Beautifully written in a manner to both guide and instruct, this classic book is of timeless value to all students of Initiation and Guided Wisdom.

The Secret Doctrine of the Rosicrucians, by Magus Incognito
(6×9, softcover 156 pages)

This book provides a classic understanding of the teachings of the Rosicrucians as well as general Rosicrucian thought. Written by William Walker Atkinson, using the pseudonym “Magus Incognito,” this reprint of the 1918 edition is a valuable addition to any Rosicrucian student or those interested in their teachings. Includes: “The Soul of the World,” “The Planes of Consciousness,” “The Seven Cosmic Principles,” “The Aura and Auric Colors,” and much more.


If we do not buy books, there will not be books to buy, so take advantage of this generous sale price, and spread the word, and continue celebrating the Rosicrucian quadricentenary.

And speaking of esoteric books, in other news, the Esoteric Book Conference has digitized lectures from its recent annual events. Hear directly from Brian Cotnoir, Trevor McKeown, Paul Hardacre, Pam Grossman, and many more. Click here.

And there’s a new EBC lapel pin:

Not actual size.

     

‘Number 9’

    
Issue No. 9 of The Journal of the Masonic Society is in the mail to Society members now.

Contents include:

“The Way Less Traveled” – Stephen M. Osborn on some of the intangibles of Masonry.

“A Possible Cabalistic Explanation for the Point within a Circle” by Leon Zeldis.

“Down the Path of Proper Research” – President Michael R. Poll on the benefits of solid scholarship, and the perils of the alternative.

“Our Esoteric Odyssey: How We Resurrected a Long-Lost, 220-Year-Old Masonic Oddity” – a literary labor of love by Randy Williams and Stephen Dafoe.

“A Trip to Cuba: One Man’s View of a Masonic Journey” by Gerald Connally, who went with his lodge brethren to Cuba on a humanitarian mission... only to become honorees in a historic fraternal celebration.

“Laissez les Bons Temps Rouler at Etoile Polaire Lodge No. 1” – Let the good times roll! The Masonic Society at Polar Star Lodge by Marc H. Conrad.

“Masonry in the Mountains: 2010 Masonic Spring Workshop in Kananaskis, Alberta” – Reportage by Editor Randy Williams.

“Alchemy and the First Degree of Freemasonry” – A take on symbolism by Donald J. Tansey.

“Hallowed Halls” – Poetry by Jason E. Marshall.

“The George Washington Masonic Memorial Freemasons’ White House Stones Exhibit” – News from Alexandria by Mark A. Tabbert.

“Cryptic Council of Research” – A York Rite variation of the research lodge model by Jonathan Horvath.

Plus:

President’s Message: “Come on Down and Find Out” – Michael Poll on the great city of New Orleans, where the Society will host its Semi-Annual Meeting, September 24-25.

From the Editor: “Tooting Masonry’s Vuvuzela” – Editor-in-Chief Christopher Hodapp on why the Masonic Order should be clear about its own identity... and not be bashful about it.

Book Reviews:

The Art of Manliness: Classic Skills and Manners For The Modern Man, by Brett and Kate McKay.

Haunted Chambers: The Lives of Early Women Freemasons by Karen Kidd.

Hidden Wisdom: A Guide to the Western Inner Traditions by Richard Smoley and Jay Kinney.

AND!

Masonic Treasures: Mendocino Lodge No. 179’s Past Master Jewel from 1868, and:

News of the Society

Conferences, Speeches, Symposia & Gatherings

Masonic News from around the world

...and Old Masters Scotch Whisky.

The cover shows “Silence,” by Beaux-Arts sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens, located at the Grand Lodge of New York’s Tompkins Chapel in Utica. (Photo by Christopher L. Hodapp.)

Membership in The Masonic Society costs $39 per year, and I promise it will be the best 39 bucks you’ll spend in Masonry.
    

‘Number 8’

Issue No. 8 of The Journal of the Masonic Society is reaching the members of the Society as I type this.

The Journal is a quarterly magazine containing Masonic information written by authors from all over the world. Speculative papers, academic writings, news stories, history, fiction, poetry, great photography, insightful opinion and other editorial elements reviving the golden age of Masonic publishing. Features in the new issue include:


Masonic Week: Let It Snow, by The Editors

The Grand Constitutions of 1786 and the ‘Scottish Rite War,’ by Michael Poll

Restructuring American Freemasonry Part III: The Scottish Rite, by Mark Tabbert

The Seven Liberal Arts & Sciences, by David E. Amstutz

Masonic History Unfolds at Historic Ft. Buford, by Jim Savaloja

The Mystery of Pre-European Freemasonry, by Ron Hartoeben

The Quest by Steve Osborn

Here’s Your Hat, What’s Your Hurry? by Roger VanGorden

Masonic Treasures: National Treasure Pipe by Chris Hodapp

A new section: Books, Arts, Styles and Manners, featuring:

Stephen Dafoe’s Morgan: the Scandal that Shook Freemasonry, reviewed by Kevin Noel Olson; Tobias Churton’s The Invisible History of the Rosicrucians: The World’s Most Mysterious Secret Society reviewed by Randy Williams; and Jay Kinney’s The Masonic Myth: Unlocking the Truth About the Symbols, the Secret Rites, and the History of Freemasonry reviewed by Jay Hochberg.

Plus Masonic news, reports of the Masonic Society’s activities at Masonic Week, new by-laws, Fellows for 2010, new advertisers, and more!

This issue’s cover features Solomon Dedicates the Temple at Jerusalem c. 1896-1902, by James Jacques Joseph Tissot (1836-1902). In the 1890s, Tissot left Paris and traveled extensively in Palestine, where he painted a series of what would become more than 700 watercolors based on the Hebrew Bible and the life of Jesus.

It is impossible for me to be objective about the value of membership in The Masonic Society, so I won't pretend. Since introducing ourselves 24 months ago, membership has grown beyond 1,100. The Journal is a top quality publication that, frankly, has inspired other national Masonic periodicals to revise their own operations by improving content and modernizing style. And a subscription to this magazine is only one of the benefits of membership. Members are granted access to the Society’s on-line forum, where hundreds of Masons from around the globe interact every day, helping each other learn more about our fraternity. As of right now, the Forum is buzzing with 734 members discussing 3,623 topics!

And of course it wouldn’t be a Masonic organization without goodies like pins and membership cards, but the Society cranks up the quality of these items, producing elegant symbols of membership that earn accolades. In addition, each member receives an 11x14 patent, personalized and highly stylized that you’ll want professionally framed. It is a very impressive document, on parchment with a hand-stamped wax seal.

But the true benefit of membership in The Masonic Society is the learning experience. Whether it’s an eye-popping topic in the magazine, or just simple conversation in the forum, there is no end to what a Mason can learn from his brethren in this organization. It’s the best 39 bucks I’ve ever spent in Masonry.

Our new President is Michael Poll, the publisher of Cornerstone Books. Our Editor-in-Chief is Chris ‘Freemasons for Dummies’ Hodapp. And our Directors, Officers and Founders include many leaders in Masonic education, including authors, publishers, curators, lecturers and regular Master Masons like you and me.

Brethren, there is a lot of confusion in the Temple over Freemasonry. ‘Dan Brown this,’ ‘Templar treasure that’ and all kinds of superstitions never should distract the brethren from Truth. The Masonic Society offers one way to uphold Truth with like-minded Masons from all over the world, and have some fun doing it. I hope you’ll check us out.