‘Hockley revisited’

     
Courtesy of Ill. Cliff Jacobs of the Valley of New York City.


Now Available from The Teitan Press: “The Rosicrucian Seer: Magical Writings of Frederick Hockley.”

An important collection of Hockley’s writings, with a biographical introduction by John Hamill, and chapters on Hockley’s Manuscripts, and “Hockley as an Astrologer” by R. A. Gilbert. The editor, John Hamill, is one of the leading historians of English Freemasonry - with a particular fascination for its more unusual byways. R. A. Gilbert is of course an acknowledged authority on the 19th century occult revival on which he has written and lectured extensively.

Frederick Hockley (1809-1885), was a major, if often overlooked, figure in 19th century occultism. He was an active “seer” who engaged in scrying, and took an interest in ritual magic, alchemy and spiritualism. He was also a Freemason, who was associated with the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia and other esoteric fraternities. In addition, Hockley sought out and copied Grimoires and other magical, alchemical and kabbalistic texts that had lain hidden in private collections around England. Many of Hockley’s early manuscripts were commissioned by John Denley, the bookseller who had acquired Ebenezer Sibly’s stunning library, the source of many of the texts that Francis Barrett used in compiling “The Magus,” while others were for his own use. After his death, Hockley’s library was dispersed, and it is known that many Hockley manuscripts made their way into the hands of members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Such was the high regard in which Hockley was held, that one of that group’s founders, W. Wynn Westcott, not only wrote that Hockley’s manuscripts were “highly esteemed,” but also posthumously claimed him as Adept of the Golden Dawn. “The Rosicrucian Seer” not only reveals much about Hockley’s life and esoteric activities, but also provides invaluable insights into the occult milieu of 19th century England that gave rise to the Golden Dawn and inspired its members.

“The Rosicrucian Seer” was previously published as a paperback in 1986. This new edition, the first in hardcover, has been extensively revised and corrected, and contains much new material both by and about Hockley.

New book. Fine in fine dust jacket. (36444) $45.00
Publisher: The Teitan Press. York Beach, Maine USA, 2009.
Details: First Edition Thus. Edition Limited to 950 numbered copies.
ISBN: 9780933429154.

Format: Hardcover. 8vo. xxiv + 240pp. Quality red cloth with gilt sigil on upper board, gilt titling to spine. Full color dustjacket. Color frontispiece, index. Printed on library quality paper. New book.

Shipping within the US for one book:
Priority Mail - $7.50 Media Mail - $5.00

Shipping overseas for one book:
Flat Rate Air - $12.50

(The shipping cost for multiple-copy orders varies according to quantity and destination.)


Special launch-week offer!
While supplies last, copies sold will come with a book-plate signed by both John Hamill and R. A. Gilbert. (Please note: Signed copies are strictly limited to one per customer, subject to availability on a “first come, first served” basis. No limit on purchase of unsigned copies.)

For further information on this and other Hockley titles published by the Teitan Press please click here.

Place an order via the secure website of Weiser Antiquarian Books, or send an e-mail to books@weiserantiquarian.com

Weiser Antiquarian Books is presently the sole distributor of Teitan Press titles.
Wholesale inquiries welcome.

21st Century Masonry

     

Bro. Ronald Pollock, president of the 1st Manhattan District Assoc.,
introduces RW Jeff Williamson, our speaker last night.

How good and how pleasant it is to dwell together with brethren who understand Freemasonry.

Last night was the first of what could become annual dinner-lectures hosted by the First Manhattan District Association at the Grand Lodge of New York. RW Bro. Jeffrey M. Williamson was the speaker. With his PowerPoint graphics ready, he discussed “How Can Masonry Survive and Prosper in the 21st Century?”

RW Williamson is one of those leaders whose résumé spans seven pages. He is a Past District Deputy Grand Master of the Second Erie District in the Buffalo area. He is Grand King in the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons. He also is a veteran of Grand Lodge’s Educational Services Committee and its Masonic Development Course, and has played a large role in training the jurisdiction’s DDGMs for many years. “I have a universal view of Masonry,” he said. (And he’s a Master Electrician, so “Let there be Light” is no trivial business to him!) He was recommended to the FMDA by Ted Harrison. ’Nuff said.

It seemed every lodge in the First Manhattan District was well represented last night. Worshipful Master Mike from Pioneer-Mt. Moriah No. 20 was there with a number of his officers and brethren. Many from Washington Lodge No. 21, like “HRH” Vincenzo, a college professor. There was Alessandro and others from Mariners. And Bro. Major, visiting from GLNF. RW Arnold from Consolidated. RW Christopher from Holland No. 8. Bro. Francisco, Bro. Terence, Bro. Lenny and many more. The room was full of young, educated men who are in Freemasonry to find a singular environment populated by exceptional people.

I think it is a gutsy move to host such a discussion. You never know who might show up, and what might be said. But, if there is any hope of reversing the problems plaguing Freemasonry, we have to admit a) there are problems, and b) there are solutions to the problems. The teachings of Masonry lead one to examine his life and to labor toward self-improvement. Moral, ethical, intellectual advancements. Does it not stand to reason that the order itself should, collectively, undergo the same sort of self-scrutiny, to discuss candidly the things we see that are just wrong, and the ways to fix them?

Dinner was simple, but New York style: big sandwiches worthy of a proper Manhattan deli, plus an open bar.

(Before things got started, the Magpie Mason had a “Narnia moment.” Whenever I’m in this building, I go to the windows to see what kind of view of Manhattan can be seen. The room next to our dining room was vacant, so I walk in, look out the window at an especially gloomy, rainy cityscape, and then return to the dining room. Right behind me come three Masons wearing aprons! I thought maybe the complimentary rye was getting the best of me. Where’d they come from? I go back into the room, head toward the coat closet, and find a narrow hallway winding its way around a corner. Voila! There is Publicity Lodge No. 1000 preparing for a Fellowcraft Degree! Strange that a lodge called Publicity would be secreted behind a coat closet, but of course the lodge room has a proper entrance also.)

An eclectic bunch of dozens of Masons packed the dining room adjacent to the American Room on the 19th floor. From three or four Fellowcrafts to a number of Past DDGMs, all were united in wanting to hear some common sense talk on what lodges need to do if they are to attract quality members and keep them stimulated and productive.

The Magpie Mason was delighted to see the recipe was very nearly identical to the recommendations set out earlier this decade by both the Knights of the North and the Masonic Restoration Foundation.

These two organizations deserve the credit for sparking the widespread interest in both European Concept and Traditional Observance lodges across the United States. European Concept emphasizes elegance and sophistication in upholding Masonic culture. The West Gate is closely tiled. Membership is limited. Dues are high. Food is great. Education is rewarding. Every meeting has a purpose. Sometimes a foreign ritual, like Emulation, is worked. It’s the kind of experience that, frankly, alarms those who want the Ralph Kramden Raccoon Lodge model to remain the only option. Traditional Observance has those traits in common, and goes further by incorporating highly esoteric elements into its initiations. T.O. is the proprietary design of the Masonic Restoration Foundation, a nationwide non-profit organization that offers memberships. The Knights of the North by contrast was a thinktank comprised of brethren from across the United States and Canada.

“We suffer from a lack of Masonic leadership and training,” said RW Williamson, “and we live in the past.” Boring meetings, poorly worked ritual, indifference to the brethren’s expectations and other familiar factors have created a “lackluster environment.” The fraternity’s longstanding preference for quantity over quality in membership not only has failed to cultivate talent that can move us forward, but actually has resulted in a greater number of Masonic trials to rid the Craft of those who never should have been initiated in the first place. “Can Freemasonry survive and prosper in the 21st century? It can and it will. Freemasonry is as relevant today as it was 250 years ago. But we need to make Masons, not members.”

His formula for returning Freemasonry to its true purpose is a checklist for lodges to incorporate into their management.

• Investigate the candidate thoroughly – He noted that in the GLNY the term now is “interview,” but he stressed the importance of making sure every petitioner is worthy and well qualified.

• Keep membership small – A lodge, if everyone is to know each other and function as a close unit, should be limited in size to about 50 Masons.

• Candidate comprehension – Challenge the Apprentices and Fellows to think. Have them write papers before their second and third degrees describing, in their own words, what the preceding degrees mean to them. Bro. Francisco noted how this process helped him gain greater comprehension.

• Proficiency – Rituals must be worked expertly and with sincerity, with work being assigned according to merit.

• Dues – Lodges need to be adequately funded by the brethren themselves. It is okay to hold fundraisers, but they are really intended to foster the bonding experience while raising money for worthy causes.

• Attendance – The brethren are expected to attend the Communications, or send regrets that they are unable to attend. Or, in other words, extend to the lodge the same courtesy one shows his family, friends and business colleagues.

• Festive Boards – No explanation is really needed here. Eat, drink, and be merry.

• Standards – “Set the bar high, and the brethren will respond,” he said.

St. John’s Lodge No. 1, Ancient York Masons was well represented last night. It is already achieving this very type of lodge experience. In fact, this lodge, founded in 1757, marked its 250th anniversary year in part by receiving its Traditional Observance certification from the Masonic Restoration Foundation. An old lodge can learn new tricks. The end result of this revolution is the existence now of a waiting list of candidates trying to gain entry into St. John’s – and many, if not most, will not make the cut – whereas several years ago this lodge was struggling to remain functional.

A Past DDGM who is a member of several lodges told of his experience in affiliating with Independent Royal Arch Lodge No. 2, which was founded in 1760. “Washington and Lafayette were regular participants in its proceedings.”

“I was one of the last to be allowed to affiliate with I.R.A.,” he said. “They are very selective.” He then described the process of vetting candidates for membership in I.R.A., which includes attending numerous non-tiled events and social functions to let the lodge’s brethren get to know the candidates, to see which would make a proper fit in the lodge. “Even though I was well known to the lodge, I still went through the process.”

The candidates of today, Williamson said, are looking for “education in a mystic craft,” and ways to achieve self-improvement and become gentlemen. They like the mysterious and unique language used in Masonic rituals. Memorization of ritual is not enough, but teaching an understanding of what these ceremonies say should be the goal. Admittedly, our speaker was preaching to the choir, but there was a lot of information and wisdom provided. Things that really needed to be said, and that drew applause. (And conversation of this nature is heretical in some jurisdictions, ergo this blog.)

Bro. Gerry of Pioneer-Mt. Moriah Lodge No. 20 shares his insights on membership retention.

“Just because Grand Lodge has no procedure to involve EAs and FCs, doesn’t mean the lodges cannot involve them in activities,” said RW Martin Kanter, PDDGM. Certain things have to be handled while at labor on the MM Degree of course, but there are ways to assimilate brethren of the lower degrees into the lodge experience.

VW Piers Vaughan recommended taking a creative approach to education, for example by making each of the Seven Liberal Arts and Sciences a path of study, and by exploring the Art of Memory to put the Fellowcraft Degree in even deeper esoteric, historic and cultural contexts.

“We’re not the American Legion Post,” Williamson said in his conclusion. “We’re a Masonic Lodge. We invoke deity to be with us.”

Bro. Lenny, Bro. Alessandro, and others socialize after the lecture.

   

At the Onassis Cultural Center

     
The New York City Greek Mythology and Classical Literature Book Club is planning a trip to this exhibition in two weeks.


Worshiping Women: Ritual and Reality in Classical Athens
December 10, 2008 – May 9, 2009

The galleries of the Onassis Cultural Center in New York will be transformed into evocations of ancient Greek sanctuaries, each filled with artistic masterpieces assembled from international collections, for the major exhibition Worshiping Women: Ritual and Reality in Classical Athens.

This is on view through May 9.



The exhibition brings together 155 rare and extraordinary archaeological objects in order to re-examine preconceptions about the exclusion of women from public life in ancient Athens. The story told by these objects, and experienced in the galleries, presents a more nuanced picture than is often seen, showing how women’s participation in cults and festivals contributed not only to personal fulfillment in Classical Greece but also to civic identity.

Worshiping Women is organized by the Onassis Foundation (USA) in collaboration with the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, Greece. The exhibition is curated by Dr. Nikolaos Kaltsas, Director of the National Archaeological Museum of Greece, and by Dr. Alan Shapiro, the W.H. Collins Vickers Professor of Archaeology at Johns Hopkins University. Worshiping Women is the first major exhibition in the tenth anniversary season of the Onassis Foundation (USA) and the Onassis Cultural Center.

Among the treasures being brought to New York for the exhibition are marble statues of the goddesses Artemis and Athena (National Archaeological Museum, Athens); a white-ground vase with an image of Artemis, by the Pan Painter (State Hermitage Museum, Petersburg); a red-figure vase with an image of Iphigenia, the legendary heroine worshiped as a cult figure and seen as a model for priestesses (Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Ferrara); a vase showing the Trojan priestess Theano, another model for priestesses, receiving the Greek warriors who had come to recover Helen from Troy (Vatican Museums); and a limestone grave marker (conserved with support from the Onassis Foundation) carved with the image of a young woman in bridal costume, holding a votive offering (State Museums of Berlin). Interspersed with these and other exquisite artworks are archaeological objects that document the religious practices of Classical Athens and tell the complex story of women’s roles in that society.

“If all Greek religion was about creating and maintaining a state of harmony between mortals and gods,” the curators state, “then the role of Athenian women was an integral part of that process. It was women’s essential contribution to share equally in securing and maintaining the divine favor that made Athens great.”

Worshiping Women tells this story in three main chapters. “Goddesses and Heroines” introduces the principal female deities of Athens and Attica, in whose cults and festivals women were most actively engaged: Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite, and Demeter and her daughter Persephone. This first section also investigates the role of heroines, a special group of women believed to have lived in the distant past, who like Iphigenia became important figures of cult worship after their deaths.

The second chapter, “Women and Ritual,” explores the practice of ritual acts such as dances, libations, sacrifices, processions and festivals in which women were active in classical antiquity. Here the critical role of the priestess comes to light, specifically in her function as key-bearer for the temples of the gods.

In the final chapter, “Women and the Cycle of Life,” the exhibition explores how religious rituals defined moments of transition. Because the most important transition in a girl’s life was understood to be marriage, the wedding took on great significance, with its rituals depicted on a variety of vases associated with nuptial rites and wedding banquets. Death was another occasion on which Athenian women took on major responsibilities, such as preparing the deceased for burial and tending the graves of family members.

By presenting this story in the only way it can be properly told—through artworks and the material culture of the time—this important exhibition corrects the common, bleak picture of the lives of Athenian women. Although their participation in the political process was indeed severely restricted, the exhibition demonstrates that religious ritual allowed them to define themselves not only as women but as Athenians and as Greeks. Their involvement in cults, festivals and life-cycle observances, whether alongside men or separate from them, was essential for the successful functioning of the city—and was understood as such.

The Curators
Dr. Nikolaos Kaltsas is the director of the National Archaeological Museum of Greece and the author of a prize-winning book, Sculpture in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens (2002), as well as many other widely published archeological studies. Dr. Kaltsas is a member of the Central Council of Museums, the Central Council of Modern and Contemporary Monuments, and the Committee for the Conservation of the Temple of Apollo Epikourios.

Dr. Alan Shapiro, the W.H. Collins Vickers Professor of Archaeology at Johns Hopkins University, has a particular interest in Greek art, myth, and religion in the Archaic and Classical periods, especially in the interrelationships among art, religion, and politics. He is an authority on vase iconography and has written numerous studies, including Personifications in Greek Art (1993) and Myth into Art: Poet and Painter in Classical Greece (1994). In addition, he is the co-author of Women in the Classical World (1994).

The Catalogue
The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue edited by Dr Kaltsas and Dr Shapiro, with essays by Professor Mary Lefkowitz of Wellesley College; Professor Olga Palagia of the University of Athens; Dr. Angelos Delivorias, director of the Benaki Museum; Professor Michalis Tiverios of the Aristotelion University of Thessaloniki; Professor Joan Breton Connelly of New York University; Professor Jenifer Neils of Case Western Reserve University; and Professor John Oakley of the College of William and Mary in Virginia, among others.

Public Programs
A variety of educational programs will be scheduled in conjunction with the exhibition, including gallery talks, lectures and an international conference.

Monday through Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Admission is free
The Onassis Cultural Center offers complimentary guided tours every Tuesday and Thursday at 1:00 p.m., open to the public.

Text and art courtesy of Onassis Cultural Center.
     

Swedish Rite in Germany

Oh, it was just another night at the Provincial Grand Lodge of Essex County on Wednesday. The newly hirsute Past (2004) Prestonian Lecturer here; a sojourner from the Grande Loge Nationale Française there; and our speaker for the evening, Orator in the Swedish Rite, had just flown in from Germany.

You know, the usual.

Bro. Oliver came to speak on the topic of the Swedish Rite of Freemasonry as it functions in Germany. With terrific PowerPoint graphics and regalia samples on display, he walked us through the degree structure of his Rite, with plenty of explanation of its philosophy, history, ritual and symbolism.

Oliver explains the 1° Tracing Board.

“I love coming to Alpha Lodge!” said Bro. Oliver, sensing the energy that we all know when we’re inside that lodge room. “You can feel that something is really going on here.” (Interestingly, a lodge brother of mine, visiting Alpha for the second time, said the same thing.)

Oliver is a member of Zur Brudertreue im Ravensberger Land in Bielefeld, which is under the Great Land Lodge of Freemasons in Germany, within the United Grand Lodges of Germany. He is an 8º member, recently tapped for the 9º, and is well known in Masonry’s academic and research groups around the world for his scholarly work and his speaking engagements in Berlin, Dublin, London, Madrid, Strasbourg... and East Orange!

The Swedish Rite is a complicated subject because it exists in six countries, and undoubtedly varies a little from Iceland to Norway, to Sweden, to Finland, to Denmark, to Germany. In Germany, Freemasonry in general is difficult to understand because of its own complicated structure. This is a good thing however, because its diversity ensures there is something for everyone. As we’ll see momentarily, the Swedish Rite is a highly esoteric order that marries Masonic symbolism to Christian belief, but this is far from being the only Masonic option available in Germany.



There are no fewer than six Masonic rites at labor in that country, whose characteristics vary from the American-style “Rotary with ritual,” to the Three Globes’ similarities to Strict Observance, to the very obscure “Royal York.” All six are unified under the United Grand Lodges of Germany, I suppose to simplify external relations with jurisdictions around the world.

Oliver sketched the history of Freemasonry in Germany, zeroing in on the uniquely Christian obediences and explaining how their source is one Carl Frederik Eckleff, who supplied patents and rituals to J.W. von Zinnendorf who brought the Rite into Germany in the second half of the 18th century.

These lodges and their rituals “adhere to the teachings of Jesus Christ as they are contained in the Holy Scripture,” Oliver said. He made it understood that the philosophy is not to bar non-Christians from membership, but that the lodge instead will “delegate the responsibility to the seeker,” ensuring his right of conscience, to decide correctly his own compatibility with the lodge’s teachings. The further one progresses in the Swedish Rite, the more Christianity figures into the teachings of the degrees, so it is vital that one’s integrity and sound judgment form his decision to pursue Masonic Light in this system of degrees from the start.

Once that choice is made, it can take several years to be initiated. This period serves to filter out those who are either mentally or spiritually not ready for this experience.

It took two years for Bro. Oliver to become a Mason by initiation into a St. John Lodge, and as much as nine months in service to the lodge can be required for advancement to the 2º, and nine months to the 3º. Even more time is spent between the higher degrees, because the brother, in addition to proving his proficiencies, will experience each degree anew at least once before advancement. The Swedish Rite is very discreet, preferring mystery over gratuitous disclosure – there is not much information on the internet – which gives its members a greater appreciation for the Masonic journey. “You can see there is a place to go further,” he said, “but you don’t know where it is.” It can take as much as 20 years to reach the last available degree.

Beyond the three degrees of the St. John lodge, the Master Mason may continue to St. Andrew Masonry, which offers EA, FC and MM degrees of its own. The door to this progression is seen plainly in the lodge without being explained in detail to the St. John Mason prematurely. When the time is right – when a decision is achieved mutually between lodge and brother in light of philosophical questioning – the St. John Master Mason may knock upon the door leading to St. Andrew Masonry, transitioning from what could be termed “the stage of cleansing” to that of, so to speak, “illumination.” Years later, if proven worthy and well qualified, the St. Andrew Master Mason might gain entrance to the Chapter, where the highest degrees are worked as Christian chivalry in a process that could be dubbed “the stage of reunification.”

One possible interpretation of the Rite’s structure.

This, in my opinion, is the ultimate goal of all Masonic orders, whether they are founded in Christian chivalric traditions or not. From the EA Degree to 32º and others, Freemasonry is a God-centered psychology whose goal is to gradually reveal to Masonic Man the proper way to know himself, to find his place among mankind, and to praise deity by living in accord with the moral precepts that are universally known in our respective faiths. The grips, signs and words imparted to us along the way are proof of our progress in this work, culminating in our union with deity. Personally, I believe this can be understood at the Master Mason level, without need for exploring “Higher Degrees,” but let me explain that the Swedish Rite does not have appendant bodies, as we in America understand that term; its higher degrees are part of the Rite, a contiguous and progressive system of 11 degrees, with its 12º reserved for Sweden’s king. (Carl XVI Gustaf is not a Freemason, resulting in a rare vacancy at the 12º level, but this structure shows us how Freemasonry in Sweden is integrated with the highest level of civil government.)

At every step of the way, the Mason is challenged with questions intended to explore the depths of both heart and mind, possibly even eliciting beliefs he may not have consciously realized, but that are the result of his Masonic education. His ability to advance through the degrees depends on this growth. This is not a form of Masonry in which one’s reliable attendance ensures promotion; these degrees are earned, not merely received. A significant part of this approach involves the Rite’s treatment of its rituals. Not only is the memorization of ritual not mandatory in this Rite, but memorization is not a goal at all. The time, talent and energy that might be spent on memorization and precise recitation instead is devoted to – get this – thinking!

“It is a thought process, not a memorization process,” Oliver explained. Ritual accuracy is ensured by – get this – reading the ritual. Ritualists read printed texts; they are familiar with the material, so there isn’t clumsiness or error to disrupt the work. At least as importantly, the Mason is not programmed to think and speak like a parrot; he is expected to learn, to internalize the teachings of the ritual, and to be able to communicate his own thinking in his own words at the proper time. In this method, one can actually make a mistake, which of course is the best learning experience. This aspect of Masonic labor is perhaps the greatest variant from American jurisdictions, where strict memorization is the most important achievement, dead end that it is.

Of course there are other significant differences, the kinds one finds in examining rites not his own. For example, alchemical symbolism figures heavily in the Swedish Rite. The Fellowcraft Degree is the only time music is heard, being employed effectively to reinforce a lesson in harmony. There is no raising in the 3º because that degree is not the culmination of the Rite. The layout of the lodge is different. The Words of the first two degrees are reversed. And, perhaps most unusual to the Anglo-American experience, there is no progressive officer line. It is a meritocracy. The Master of a lodge serves a three-year term. If his performance is outstanding, he could be re-elected to another three-year term. If he is truly irreplaceable, he can be elected to a third triennial term. (The number three is embedded countless times in the rituals, symbols and structure of this Rite, ever recalling the Holy Trinity.) Considering lodges typically have 30 members, Oliver joked, it could take 270 years for a brother to become Worshipful Master.

Bro. Oliver displays regalia of the Swedish Rite in Germany. Left: a sash worn in the Higher Degrees, where no aprons are worn. Right: a St. Andrew apron.

Below: from the Magpie Archives, aprons of the Swedish Rite in Norway.

Magpie readers, there is so much more I’d like to share, but circumspection demands I withhold information that is not open source, that cannot be corroborated by Masonry’s reference books, academic journals, and other sources of firm information. (Oliver, you’ll let me know if something need be removed.) Please understand any inaccuracies here are my own, and not the lecturer’s. The presentation Bro. Oliver treated us to offered sincerely curious and open-minded Masons a wonderful glimpse into a little understood rite of Masonry. Minds were enlightened and nourished, and I suspect barriers between brothers, however unspoken their existence, were breached. It was Freemasonry in action, with both Speculative and Operative impulses gratified.

These illustrations actually are pages 212-13 of “Freemasonry: Symbols, Secrets, Significance” by W. Kirk MacNulty (Thames & Hudson, 2006), a landmark publication recording hundreds of images of esoteric culture.

‘Mysticism Night’

This flier speaks for itself, so I’ll only add that there are things happening in New Jersey Blue Lodge Masonry that haven’t happened in years – if ever – thanks to a precious few progressive thinking Masters and Wardens.


This event, to take place at Nutley Lodge No. 25, is just one of many happenings on the lodge’s trestleboard intended to broaden the horizons of its brethren. As you can see, it also is open to the public, which is a bold move, in my opinion.


Nutley Lodge is a winner of the 2008 Twain Award for excellence in Masonic Awareness. This event on the 25th represents the kind of public outreach Masonry should attempt. The blood drives, coat drives, canned goods drives, and other drives are important, but there is more to Freemasonry than that.

Also scheduled to appear at Nutley Lodge this year are Trevor Stewart, Past (2004) Prestonian Lecturer of the United Grand Lodge of England and Past Master of Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076, and Mark Tabbert, director of collections at the George Washington Masonic Memorial, board member of The Masonic Society, Vice President of the Masonic Library and Museum Association, etc.

Tim Wallace-Murphy at Alpha

     

Dr. Tim Wallace-Murphy is welcomed to Alpha Lodge by Worshipful Master David Lindez. The world renowned scholar visited Saturday night to discuss “Rosslyn Chapel: Reliquary of the Holy Grail.”

The August Order of Alpha Males inducted a new member Saturday night when Dr. Tim Wallace-Murphy of Lodge Robert Burns Initiated No. 1781 in Edinburgh became the latest world renowned scholar to lecture at historic Alpha Lodge No. 116 in East Orange, New Jersey.

(I recently dubbed Alpha the Provincial Grand Lodge of Essex County because it simply surpasses everything else going on in New Jersey Freemasonry in terms of Masonic culture, while not at all forgetting about the basics, the brotherhood, and its relationship to the neighborhood.)

They came from miles away to be at Alpha that night. Masons from New Jersey’s Fifth, 10th, 12th Districts and more; and from Pennsylvania too. We gathered to listen to this prolific author, lecturer and familiar face from documentary films discuss “Rosslyn Chapel: Reliquary of the Holy Grail.”

“I started my spiritual journey 35-36 years ago,” said Wallace-Murphy, prefacing his lecture with some personal background. Fascinated by the books of Trevor Ravenscroft and Joseph Campbell, he was intrigued by the great power that symbols and myths have to conceal hidden wisdom while inspiring seekers to break the codes.

In particular it was the Holy Grail that first drew him in.

“My first literary collaborator, the late Trevor Ravenscroft, composed his masterwork, “The Cup of Destiny,” to reveal to the younger generation that the Grail romances reveal, within their drama and symbolism, signposts to a unique path of initiation: the true teaching of Jesus,” he explained. “He was not alone in this conclusion, for one of the world’s leading mythologists, the late Professor Joseph Campbell, writing of the importance of the Grail, cites a passage from the Gospel of Thomas: “He who drinks from my mouth will become as I am, and I shall be he.”

“Campbell came to the conclusion that this represented the ultimate form of enlightenment that can arise from a successful Grail quest. Thus the Grail quest is not what it seems, for there is a hidden agenda designed to conceal a heretical truth from the prying eyes of the clergy,” he continued. “The original Grail sagas of Chrétien (de Troyes) and Wolfram (von Eschenbach) are coded guides to initiation.”

Which leads us to Rosslyn Chapel, the enigmatic structure Wallace-Murphy credits with being the reliquary of this inspired initiatic heritage.

“The care and precision that went into the construction of the chapel fall into a category of what we would now call ‘quality assurance,’ ” said Wallace-Murphy. “Every carving and every decoration was first made of wood, and then shown to William (St. Clair).” They then were carved in stone and placed where he directed. Earl William St. Clair was the builder of Rosslyn Chapel and the last Sinclair Earl of Orkney.

Our speaker, using PowerPoint, lead a tour of the amazing site.


The Exterior

There are many flying buttresses of the Gothic order of architecture, but they are not weight-bearing. On the East Wall is found a bust of Mercury, “the first of many anomalies we’ll come across.” The West Wall he said was originally meant to be an inside wall, but the building was never completed; work on the site ceased upon the death of William St. Clair in 1482. In a window on the South Wall is carved a Knight Templar leading a blindfolded man by a rope about his neck.

The roof, made of solid stone, is divided into five sections, one of which displays what Wallace-Murphy said is a “profusion of five-pointed stars,” another sign denoting the Chapel’s relevance to the Knights Templar.


The Interior

“The inside is superbly carved,” he said. “Profuse, with very intricate carving at eye-level and above. A symphony of carved spirituality!” There are Zoroastrian and ancient Egyptian symbols. “Every form of spirituality known in the 15th century, but this is supposedly a Christian church.”

The Apprentice Pillar – The master mason, having received from his patron the model of a pillar of exquisite workmanship and design, hesitated to carry it out until he had been to Rome, or some such foreign part, and seen the original. He went abroad, and in his absence an apprentice, having dreamed the finished pillar, at once set to work and carried out the design as it now stands, a perfect marvel of workmanship. The master mason on his return was so stung with envy that he asked who had dared to do it in his absence. On being told it was his own apprentice, he was so inflamed with rage and passion that he struck him with his mallet, killed him on the spot, and paid the penalty for his rash and cruel act.

(Source: “An Illustrated Guide to Rosslyn Chapel” by Tim Wallace-Murphy. Photo from “Cracking the Symbol Code” by Tim Wallace-Murphy.)

The Apprentice himself, Wallace-Murphy explained, is seen in the southwest corner of the clerestory wall, his gaze directed downward at the Master Masons Pillar. Relating a fascinating anecdote, he told of how a colleague laboring in the restoration of the Chapel had discovered that this Apprentice once had a beard. “Apprentices in the 15th century were not allowed to have beards,” he added. An esoteric clue lies therein.

Other aspects of the Apprentice Pillar include its allusions to the Tree of Life; the musicians playing medieval instruments; and what is called the Stafford Knot, a pretzel-shaped configuration that Wallace-Murphy said is a reference to the Temple in Jerusalem.

Bro. Wallace-Murphy discussed many symbols found built into the architecture of Rosslyn Chapel, varying from Green Man depictions to symbols of the Deadly Sins and Cardinal Virtues to carvings of maize, lilies and rosettes. The Magpie Mason strongly recommends his books for detailed description and analysis of these and more. But one aspect he did discuss in detail that I ought to share concerns the Templar symbolism, which is the crux of his theory of initiatic intent in the design of the Chapel.

There are “five diagnostic elements” embedded in Rosslyn Chapel, he explained.

The Agnus Dei, or Paschal Lamb – the seal of the medieval order of Knights Templar that in this instance has carved into it a pair of hands drawing back a veil, all but exclaiming a sense of esoterica revealed. In addition, an angel in the south aisle is carved holding a Sinclair shield, with another pair of hands pulling back a curtain.

The Engrailed Cross of the Sinclairs – depicted throughout the main chapel is what Wallace-Murphy called the Croix Pattée: a Knight Templar cross converted into the Gnostic Gross of Universal Knowledge.

The burial stone of Sir William de Sinncler, Grand Prior of the Templar order who, according to legend, had commanded the Templars in their intervention on Scotland’s behalf at Bannockburn.

“Commit thy work to God” – is the St. Clair family motto, which the author likened to that of the Templars: “Not to our name Lord. Not to our name, but to Yours be all the glory.”

The heraldic colors of the St. Clair family – are argent and sable, the same color scheme of the Beausant, the battle flag of the Templar order.


▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼

As regards the medieval Knights Templar and their alleged role in the history of Scotland and as forefathers of Freemasonry, the Magpie Mason stands comfortably in the Cooper camp. It makes for a far less romantic story, but the trail of facts into Masonic origins does lead to the builders of the great cathedrals. The rival theory of Freemasonry descending from the Templars is very exciting, has sold many books, and is entirely speculative. But on interpretations of the countless symbols carved and placed throughout Rosslyn Chapel, I’m open to informed opinion and very much enjoy reading the research of those who actually study this enigmatic site, using their training in religion and mythology to translate what they see. In Freemasonry, there are tangible facts, but there also are the intangibles that spark curiosity and ought to mark common ground on which academics and ordinary thinkers like myself can build together. Bro. Tim Wallace-Murphy’s books are accessible to all, and intentionally so. He knows his material thoroughly and presents his theses in language and style that can bring together the most orthodox of Quatuor Coronati disciples and the undecided seeker beginning his journey.

That embodies the ultimate goal of the Masonic lodge.
     

‘Hamlet Rhythm’

     


The Unterberg Poetry Center’s 2008-09 season continues at the 92nd Street Y, its Reading Series last night offering an insightful and colorful exploration of “Hamlet.”

The panel consisted of five highly informed representatives of the Theatre For a New Audience:

Cicely Berry is the Voice Director of the RSC for the past 40 years who holds the O.B.E. for services to theatrical arts.

Alyssa Bresnahan is Gertrude in TFANA’s current production of “Hamlet,” and whose presence justifies the repeal of the photography ban at these performances. She is a veteran of “Macbeth,” “Heartbreak House,” “Streetcar” and other Williams’ dramas, “Antigone,” and more. You may recognize her from the film “The Wrestler.”

Christian Camargo is Hamlet in TFANA’s production. Past Shakespearean work include “Coriolanus” at TFANA, and “Henry V” at Shakespeare’s Globe and again for Shakespeare in the Park. Masonic movie-goers may recognize him from “National Treasure 2.”

Director David Esbjornson has done “Much Ado About Nothing” for Shakespeare in the Park, and many other productions, including two premier Arthur Miller plays. His longstanding relationship with Edward Albee includes his direction of that playwright’s Tony-winning “The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?” on Broadway, as well as “The Play About the Baby” and “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”

TFANA Artistic Director Jeffrey Horowitz founded TFANA 30 years ago, and since has produced Shakespearean, Greek, Jacobean and Italian classical drama, and numerous modern works. He also serves on the advisory board of the Shakespeare Society, and is part of the directorate of the Globe Theater in London. He is a recipient of the John Houseman Award from The Acting Company.

With credentials evidently in order, the group treated its audience to 90 minutes of readings from The Bard’s ultimate Revenge Tragedy, with much well informed commentary on why this play is Shakespeare’s most quoted, best remembered play. The initiated ear can understand; indeed there is much a Freemason can learn from these experts. Let’s not forget one of the most enduring phrases of Masonic ritual is borrowed directly from this play.

Freemasonry, whose highly literate rituals gradually compel its initiates to eschatological understandings, had to borrow from Hamlet’s timeless soliloquy to condense thousands of words of instructive prose:

“The undiscover’d country from whose bourn no traveler returns...”

(Bro. Jeffery Marshall expands on this here.)

For starters, I wish there was a way to put Ms. Berry in charge of every Lodge of Instruction. She, more than any Freemason I’ve ever met, understands how memorized language can be robbed of its value. “We speak in order to survive, and we’re at risk of losing the feeling,” she said, explaining that the speaker’s over familiarity with the written material can be detrimental to the comprehension of the listener. “In Shakespeare’s time, only 8 percent of the people were literate. They were innocent when they heard the play, and they relied on the sound of the language.”

Actor Camargo concurred. “You can just ride the language,” he said. “You can allow the language to just carry you through the scenes.”

There is an “energy” that guides you, he added. “It’s esoteric or Buddhist! There is this element of ‘what is.’ You accept ‘what is.’ ”

We are so used to sets and to looking at things that we can lose the language, Berry continued. She then told of a Shakespeare production in which she was employed in China. The play was spoken in Mandarin, and yet her ear allowed her to catch poignant moments in the delivery despite the language barrier.

“When we still have an ear for sound, we can laugh (at Shakespeare’s wit) without fully understanding the comedy,” Berry added, before recounting an experience with Scottish comedian Johnny Beattie. “He was knocked out by the Fool in ‘Lear.’ He found something primal in the rhythm.”

Depending on the production, a “Hamlet” can run longer than three hours. The TFANA version reaches the three-hour mark, broken into three parts with two intermissions. “This gives the audience a chance to breathe,” explained Director Esbjornson. “We break at the right moments.”


▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼ ▲▼

The Hamlet character is often mischaracterized as the ultimate procrastinator for his delays in confronting the duty charged him by his father’s ghost: to avenge his regicide by killing Claudius. (It is an unjust assessment of the character, considering the many actions he undertook, displaying uncommon cunning and bravery: his questioning the Ghost; his feigning insanity; breaking up with Ophelia; testing the Ghost’s veracity; killing the eavesdropper; stealing the dispatches and forging their substitutes; and fighting the pirates before winning them over. Not too shabby for a teenager.)

At the end of Act III, Scene 3 comes a moment that ought to arouse the empathy of all Masons. This is the famous Prayer Scene, when Hamlet finds a choice opportunity to slay his uncle in this moment of unguarded helplessness, and yet he declines, surmising that anyone killed during prayer is guaranteed an eternity in heaven. He is unaware that Claudius is not actually praying; the king has enough sense to know his fratricidal crime recalls Cain and Abel, rendering any entreaty to deity a folly.

Claudius
But, O, what form of prayer
Can serve my turn? ‘Forgive me my foul murder?’
That cannot be; since I am still possess’d
Of those effects for which I did the murder,
My crown, mine own ambition and my queen.
May one be pardon’d and retain the offence?
In the corrupted currents of this world
Offence’s gilded hand may shove by justice,
And oft ’tis seen the wicked prize itself
Buys out the law: but ’tis not so above;
There is no shuffling, there the action lies
In his true nature; and we ourselves compell’d,
Even to the teeth and forehead of our faults,
To give in evidence.

No Mason would need prompting to see the contrast of this prayer to that of GMHA in the Sanctum Sanctorum. The Operative Grand Master received no such spiritual regard from the Ruffians. This gives Masons a tidy comparison of assailants: Consider Claudius the regicide, in voicing his lament, expressing much of the same shame that gripped the Ruffians, and doing so within earshot of one intending to bring him to justice.

“Hamlet” also is one of Shakespeare’s plays that explicitly mentions masons. From Act V, Scene 1:

First Clown
What is he that builds stronger than either the mason, the shipwright, or the carpenter?

Second Clown
The gallows-maker; for that frame outlives a thousand tenants.

First Clown
I like thy wit well, in good faith: the gallows does well; but how does it well? It does well to those that do in: now thou dost ill to say the gallows is built stronger than the church: argal, the gallows may do well to thee. To’t again, come.

Second Clown
“Who builds stronger than a mason, a shipwright, or a carpenter?”

First Clown
Ay, tell me that, and unyoke.

Second Clown
Marry, now I can tell.

First Clown
To’t.

Second Clown
Mass, I cannot tell.

   

‘An evening at Hiram-Takoma’

   

RW Rashied Sharrieff-Al-Bey speaks to Hiram-Takoma Lodge No. 10
on Feb. 12 on the subject of ‘Symbolic Interactionism.’

Also during Masonic Week (and on Lincoln’s birthday) but not part of the Masonic Week schedule, was the stated meeting of Hiram-Takoma Lodge No. 10, under the Grand Lodge of Washington, DC. Not just any regular communication of the lodge, but a combination of guest speaker RW Rashied Sharrieff-Al-Bey from Cornerstone Lodge No. 37 of MW Prince Hall GL of New York, and the lodge’s Valentine’s Day thank you to the brethren’s ladies. Needless to say, expectations were high among those of us who wondered how Bro. Rashied would craft remarks not only appropriate for a program open to family and friends, but also keeping in tune with the quickly approaching Valentine’s Day.

Pffffffft! No problem. It’s Rashied!

Delivering a talk and PowerPoint presentation titled “Symbolic Interactionism,” our speaker, himself a student of organizational behavior working toward his Master’s Degree and part of the management team at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, deftly segued from the concept of communicating in symbols, to some of the specifics of Masonic symbols, to the key to understanding why men and women just don’t speak the same language. And he did so with the confidence and humor that the Magpie Mason envies in public speakers.

As usual my notes are a mess so I can’t quote him verbatim (but I don’t feel too bad because he snafu’d his own recording device!), but to summarize his thesis: A person can say exactly what he means with perfect clarity, but the point is to be understood, and even when ideas seem to be at opposites, there still is a relationship. “There is thesis, and antithesis, and somewhere in the middle is synthesis.”

In our relationships we are forever communicating and sharing, and not always in spoken words. Every message requires translation, interpretation, and extrapolation, from which we make inferences and act on those inferences.

A masterful speaker who illustrates his main points with personal anecdotes, Rashied told of his son and daughter-in-law: the former a Muslim, and the latter a Roman Catholic from Panama. “He can’t speak Spanish, and she can’t speak English, but there’s communication.”

Justin, Reed, Glen, and a local visitor enjoy the program.

Tapping into Masonic symbols, the Beehive and the Pomegranates, he showed that their symbolic values are not idiomatic to Masonic teachings – most of the ladies and other non-Masons present acknowledged an understanding of the Beehive representing industry and the Pomegranates exhibiting bounty – but that their usefulness in Masonic instruction is apt and offers layers of meaning.

Demonstrating just how many layers of interpretation can be peeled back in simple communication, Bro. Rashied produced a pack of standard playing cards. He asked Worshipful Master Marcel to choose one. To divine the identity of that card, Rashied investigated by inquiry. Not direct questioning to get to the point, but a process of investigation to arrive at a common answer.

Is the card red or black? Is it Diamonds or Hearts? Is it a number card or a face card? Is it a high number or a low number? In short order, he determined that Marcel’s card was in fact the Three of Hearts.

To better – well, frankly to best – explain why it is so crucial for those who think and speak directly (men) and those who think and speak in, ah, complexity, Rashied put onto the screen a graphic borrowed from a brilliant McCann Erickson campaign for Goldstar Beer:

Man asks Woman out for a drink. Man’s flowchart efficiently outlines what he wants.

Woman is game for the same things, but with an exuberance of elaborate considerations planted like so many seeds in her mind.

(“Thank God you’re a man,” goes the slogan for this Israeli brew, which I’m fairly certain comes from Leviticus.)

The question we have, said Rashied in conclusion, is how do we best achieve harmony and reconcile differences?

Whether in marriage or in Masonry, Magpie readers, some things never change!

The Worshipful Master then led his brethren in a ritual that probably is not worked enough: a heartfelt ceremonial thank you to their ladies for supporting them while they spend so much time on their Masonic labors. Roses, balloons and kisses were among the wages paid to the women who ultimately make it all happen.

The Worshipful Master makes the introductions.

Worshipful Master Marcel Desroches
on different points of fellowship with his Grand Master.

The Ritual Instructor ensures the floorwork is correct as Junior Deacon Fred plants one on the missus.

 

The Bat Signal towers over historic Takoma Park in DC.

Agent Reed keeps paparazzi a distance
from the Past Grand Masters.

A rare historic artifact on display at the lodge: a beer bottle emptied by Benjamin Franklin himself!