‘On tap in Tappan, Part II’

    

This second “On Tap” post concerns the Ninth Manhattan District’s 120th annual Traubenfest held at the German Masonic Park, an autumn wonderland of beer, blondes, and sausages. I had no idea this place existed until I happened to be cc’d on an e-mail advertising this event some weeks previously. Too good to be true, I figured, must be a prank. But it is for real.

As far as I can tell, the lodges in the Ninth Manhattan District own the park, and each lodge owns and operates a building where food and beverages are sold. Some of the buildings are simple structures with a kitchen and some storage space, but others somewhat resemble taverns, or German beer halls. I don’t know what events take place here, or when, but Traubenfest (Grape Festival) is a very well attended and likely highly anticipated event. I know I’m going back.

I can’t name all the lodges of the District, but it includes Allemania 740, Lessing 608, Schiller Lodge, Trinity 12, Von Mensch 765, and I’m sure others. Plus there is the German Masonic Charitable Foundation.

The photos:



An instant after this photo was shot, a huge ball of flame erupted from the grill.





Spaten appears to be the official beer of Traubenfest 2010. And it is good.


Okay, okay, the photos stink this time. Listen, I had the camera in one hand, a pint in the other, and half a pound of bratwurst in another. And it’s not like you’re paying for the content here!

On a closing note, I attended both Grand Master’s Day and Traubenfest with my next door neighbor. After bending his elbow with a few pints at the festival, he let me twist his arm and bring him to Old ’76 House, yet another historic site in Tappan. It has been a tavern in continuous service since the 17th century; was used to jail Benedict Arnold’s accomplice, Major John Andre; and was frequented by George Washington and other Founders. We left there after a few more drinks with the inspired idea to have yet another drink at yet another historic site where Washington had “refreshed” himself, so we headed home resolved to have a nightcap along the way at Bloomfield Steak and Seafood House, about 30 miles away from Tappan. It is a restaurant now, but it had been a private residence for centuries. Built in 1670, it is the location where Bro. Joseph Bloomfield signed the charter of the Township of Bloomfield (wherever did they get that name?), and where Washington and Bro. Henry Knox once dined during the Revolution. A historical pub crawl. (I wanted to stop at Fraunces en route to Bloomfield, but I had to get him home to his wife.)
   

‘On tap in Tappan, Part I’

    
This edition of The Magpie Mason is the second attempt to rectify past negligence in blogging (a Class C misdemeanor in West Virginia). There are 10 or maybe more events from 2010 that I never got around to sharing with you – lectures, ceremonies, Germanic beer fests, etc. – and before we get too far into 2011, I’ll try to catch up on last year’s happenings. No lengthy articles, but some good photos.

The Mgmt.


Seems like only yesterday. Sunday, October 3, 2010 was a twofer in New York Masonry. Two very enjoyable Masonic public events having nearly nothing in common except the great convenience of taking place only a mile apart. The annual Grand Master’s Day at the George Washington Headquarters Masonic Historic Site, and the 120th annual Traubenfest in historic, scenic Tappan, New York.

Grand Master’s Day is one of several official occasions during the year when Grand Lodge showcases one of its priceless gems: DeWint House. It is called the George Washington Headquarters Masonic Historic Site because the GLNY owns and operates this landmark, which served as the headquarters of Gen. George Washington several times during the Revolutionary War.


The vocal group Harmony on the Hudson sings “God Bless America”

The Masonic War Veterans posts the colors.


More about the history of DeWint House can be read here.


Little Leaf Linden.

On the well kept grounds of the site, a diverse variety of trees have been planted over the years, lending exotic elements to what otherwise would be “the usual” landscape of a Colonial-era property. These trees are dedicated in honor of Past Grand Masters of the jurisdiction. Two Little Leaf Linden trees were dedicated, one for MW Edward G. Gilbert, the junior Past Grand Master who could not attend the ceremony last year due to illness, and the other for MW Gary Henningsen, Past Grand Master 1993-95, whose original Norway Spruce was felled by lightning.

More photos of the grounds can be seen here.

Here are some shots of the interior of the historic house:

A Park Ranger at Monticello told me long ago that beds from this period
are so short because people back then slept in a sitting up position.

     

‘Happy Hour’

    

Fresh from the Secretary’s desk is official notice of the rescheduled Installation of Officers of The American Lodge of Research (postponed from St. John Evangelist Day due to the snow): Tuesday, January 18 at 5 p.m.

(Yes, five o’clock.)

ALR meets in the French Ionic Room at Masonic Hall, located at 71 West 23rd St. in Manhattan.

After the ceremonies, a bunch of us probably will dine at the Outback Steakhouse across the street.
    

‘Masonic Hall centenary’

    

This edition of The Magpie Mason is the first in an attempt to rectify past negligence in blogging (a Class C misdemeanor in several states). There are 10 or maybe more events from 2010 that I never got around to sharing with you – lectures, ceremonies, etc. – and before we get too far into 2011, I’ll try to catch up on last year’s happenings. No lengthy accounts, but some good photos.

The Mgmt.

In the name of Freemasonry, Virtue, and Universal Benevolence, Most Worshipful Vincent Libone, Grand Master of Masons in the State of New York, rededicated Masonic Hall December 5, 2010, in a public ceremony commemorating the 100th anniversary of the GLNY’s current headquarters in New York City.

The ceremonial representation of the lodge.

The blade of the ceremonial trowel used
for the cornerstone-laying in 1908.

Proclamations from Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the New York City Council, and Gov. David Paterson were presented. Bro. Dick Gottfried, who represents the 75th District (Masonic Hall’s neighborhood) in the State Assembly, offered remarks as well.

Secretary Lenny Kagan and
Worshipful Master Michael Daniels
of Shakespeare Lodge No. 750.

Grand Post, of Masonic War Veterans,
presents the colors.

Grand Master Vincent Libone
inspects the ritual working tools.

MW Libone applies the ritual
elements of consecration.

The Grand Honors.

Mr. Peter Chiofolo, the gentleman responsible for keeping Masonic Hall well lighted, heated or cooled, and otherwise operational was among those saluted by the brethren. He admitted he would rather have been anywhere else but in the spotlight, but he earned a robust round of applause.

I do not know whose idea it was to add opera singers to the program as the event’s entertainment, but it was a great choice. Brilliant. W. Bro. Valentin Peytchinov, Past Master of King Solomon-Beethoven Lodge No. 232, with a soprano whose name I didn’t catch, absolutely thrilled everyone in the room. The Grand Lodge Room is enormous, taking two stories of the building itself, which is good because a smaller room would have been blown apart by their voices, and you don’t want to trash the place whose hundredth birthday you’re celebrating!

Performing a scene from Mozart’s

The Marriage of Figaro.

The duo also sang selections from The Barber of Seville by Rossini; Die Fledermaus by Johan Strauss; and Don Giovanni, also by Mozart. In addition, the young soprano sang “Hallelujah” from Mozart’s Exultate Jubilate, accompanied by the Grand Organist.

From a handbill distributed at the ceremony:

Masonic Hall, the historic landmark building on West 24th Street and Avenue of the Americas, and its connected twin structure on West 23rd Street, were constructed on this location in 1910 and 1912 respectively – the second building known as Masonic Hall to stand at this site. The buildings were designed and constructed by architect H.P. Knowles. Today marks the centennial of the West 24th Street building.

Freemasonry in New York dates back to 1757. From 1827 until 1856, the first Masonic Hall in the City of New York was located further downtown, between Duane and Pearl streets. On this site in 1875, the second Masonic Hall, a classic five-story building designed by the noted American architect Napoleon LeBrun, was built.

The present Masonic Hall is home to the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the State of New York, and houses the offices of the Grand Secretary and the Trustees of the Masonic Hall and Asylum Fund. It also is the meeting place of many local Masonic lodges and affiliated organizations. Masonic Hall also is home of the renowned Chancellor Robert R. Livingston Masonic Library.

The building has been restored through the years to reflect the inspired architecture and beauty of the original structure, often hailed as one of the most magnificent Masonic buildings in the world. The most recent renovation, conducted in the 1980s and ’90s, demonstrates the work of Felix Chavez.

    

‘Masonic Café?’

    

As promised on The Magpie Mason way back in 2010, yours truly will be the evening’s lecturer at the April 20 meeting of the New York Mythology Group. Our group is the New York City Chapter of the Joseph Campbell Foundation, and among its regular activities are these monthly discussions, collectively known as Mythology Café, or perhaps for this one evening, Masonic Café.


The topic, unsurprisingly, will be Freemasonry, consisting of a summary of the fraternity’s complicated history, with explanations of the spiritual aspects of Masonic ritual and symbol. Mindful of the audience demographic, the speaker will anticipate pointed curiosity of Masonic tenets, practices, and even the vast diversity of lodges in New York City.

We’ll meet at 7 p.m. at our usual haunt, Ciao Stella, located at 206 Sullivan St. in Manhattan, between Bleecker and Third streets in the Village.

Membership in the New York Mythology Group is open to all, and you should formally join us if you plan to attend this event because we need your reservations. Seating at Ciao Stella is somewhat limited – it’s a pretty small place – and it is not unusual for Mythology Café to fill the room. Since management allows us to take over the restaurant, it is expected we all contribute toward the night’s receipts, so even if you don’t want to order a full meal, at least have a drink or something. (I’ll be having a few.)

   

‘Ephemera in a cigar box’

    

As smoking customs changed so radically in the past 30 years, the venerable cigar box lost its status as the safest place for small personal items that otherwise would be jeopardized by the recidivist menace of occasional tidying. A cigar enthusiast since 1985 myself, I don’t even use cigar boxes to store stuff, but generations of smokers and non-smokers alike had their peculiar treasure chests to secret away the memories that the mind thus unaided inevitably blends into busy pastiches of reminiscence. And at some point more than 30 years ago, as shown by the ages of these items, my grandfather deposited various pieces of Masonic ephemera into this Bances box. (These cigars were “clear Havanas,” meaning they were made of Cuban tobacco, but rolled in the United States. That, and all commercial trade with Cuba, ceased in 1962.) Worshipful Brother Sidney would preside over Mt. Nebo Lodge No. 248 in 1976. The lodge and the Elizabeth Masonic Temple where it met are long gone, having been amalgamated into what now is Azure-Masada Lodge No. 22 in nearby Cranford. There were 11 lodges comprising what was the 13th Masonic District between 1967 and 1976, the period recalled by the items inside this cigar box, and all 11 are gone, absorbed into other lodges many years ago. Anyway, this cedar time capsule was excavated from my aunt’s basement last month. Being the Freemason in the family, it was given to me. Some of these items (e.g., the 32° diploma issued by the Consistory of the Valley of Newark in 1968) I knew had to be stashed away somewhere, but a few others took me entirely by surprise.

An assortment of lodge trestleboards  dominates this box. Dated from January 1968 to March 1976, there are 31 in all. Unlike the typical trestleboard seen in New Jersey today, which is a tri-fold sheet of letter-size paper, these are small (6 x 3 ½ inch) two-color, six-page booklets, seemingly tailored to fit in the shirt pocket.

Their contents are unremarkable. I had hoped for Lux ex Oriente, or even Lux ex Cathedra, but it seems Mt. Nebo was a lodge that emphasized sociability over exploring the great mysteries and philosophies of life. Makes me wonder if maybe that is partially why the lodge and its 10 neighbors are all gone. Mt. Nebo Lodge was chartered on April 24, 1924 – the same day that my original lodge was chartered as No. 249, something serendipitous that I didn’t realize at the time of my initiation 30 years after my grandfather was made a Mason.

On Wednesday, March 20, 1968, the brethren in the Level Club met at Townleys’ restaurant at 6:15 for dinner, and left an hour later to catch the Knick game at the Garden. (The visiting team was the Cincinnati Royals, yet another defunct entity.) The ’68 Knicks of course was the team of Dick Barnett, Bill Bradley, Dave DeBusschere, Walt Frazier, Willis Reed… the Hall of Famers who had their numbers retired. But get this: The brethren left Elizabeth, New Jersey at 7:15 p.m. for a game at Madison Square Garden. If you tried that today, you’d miss the game.

Total assets on Dec. 31, 1967: $25,631 (that’s $168,596 in today’s money). 1968 dues: $17.50, including the $1 Grand Lodge assessment. Junior Past Master Albert M. Pines was feted February 18 at Short Hills Caterers ($11.50 per person). 44th Anniversary Dinner-Dance at Richfield Regency Caterers on May 22. Met game on June 19. Picnic September 15 in Warinanco Park. The lodge’s major accomplishment of 1968 was its establishment of a blood bank. Sid served as Chaplain that year, his first full year in Masonry.

A booklet even smaller than the trestleboard was the lodge membership roster, like this one from 1962. Junior Warden Stan Glasser is still around; I chatted with him at a recent meeting of our Consistory. (New Jersey Consistory is the oldest Scottish Rite Consistory in New Jersey, chartered in 1867. It met in Newark when Stan and my grandfather joined, then was moved to Livingston in 1972, then to Lincoln Park in 1977, and this month it relocates yet again, this time to Union.)

And speaking of New Jersey Consistory, here is that aforementioned diploma issued May 18, 1968. Just as my grandfather’s first entrance into the lodge was 30 years before my own, so too was his initiation into the AASR. Thirty years almost to the day. Actually this copy of the diploma is what used to be the traveling paper, folded and protected in a wallet, used for identification when visiting other Scottish Rite bodies. The actual diploma (heavy paper, embossed seal, suitable for framing, etc.) remains unfound.

There were a few non-Masonic papers and objects inside the Bances box that stand out. The sterling silver kiddish cup is out of place. The Morgan silver dollar (1884, New Orleans) is an entirely typical, predictable item to find among personal effects in my family...

... but the handgun permit and sales receipt for a Colt .38 Special are not. The late ’60s was a violent time. Acres of Newark remain vacant today, 43 years after the riots of the summer of 1967. That was my family’s hometown, and while they had moved out before Newark began its rapid decay, they still resided and worked not too far away. The sales receipt for this revolver is dated April 4, 1968, coincidentally the day Martin Luther King was murdered, which precipitated more rioting.

But the Masonic journey of the late W. Sid begins with this letter from W. Joseph Bernstein, Secretary of Mt. Nebo Lodge No. 248. Dated January 24, 1967, it informs its happy recipient that his EA° would be Monday, February 13, and that the $200 balance of his initiation fee will be accepted that night. That $200 is in addition to whatever deposit accompanied the petition for membership. If the complete initiaton fee totaled $250, that would equal $1,644 in today’s money. Has your lodge kept up with inflation?

Perhaps more mementos will be found in the house. My grandfather smoked a brand of Havanas called Gold Label. I remain hopeful that a Past Master’s jewel has yet to be discovered in one of those boxes.

‘The Enemy Within’

    

All the brethren, their families, and friends are invited to the Grand Lodge of New York’s annual celebration of the birthday of none other than George Washington, a Freemason and, if I’m not mistaken, a president of the United States, and possibly a general before that. This event (Reason No. 367,712 why the Grand Lodge of New York is the center of the Masonic universe in the tri-state region) will take place Sunday, February 27, 2011 at the George Washington Headquarters National Historic site in Tappan, New York, otherwise known to Magpie readers as DeWint House.

A “living history” play will be staged. The Enemy Within: Arnold Returns Home features Gary Petagine as Benedict Arnold, and Sean Grady as a captured soldier. After committing his treason, Arnold is made a brigadier general in the British army. His forces invade New London, Connecticut (his home state), and the play’s action concerns Arnold’s conversation with a prisoner of war while a massacre is committed at nearby Fort Griswold.

This program at DeWint House will begin at 2 p.m., and there will be a “no host” buffet luncheon, sponsored by Knickerbocker Chapter No. 13 of the National Sojourners, at 11:30 a.m. just around the corner at Old ’76 House. (If you like history, you can’t do much better than a tavern that has been in continuous service since the 1600s, and that served as the jailhouse of Benedict Arnold’s accomplice, Major John Andre.)

Cost per person: $25. Pay at the door.

This birthday celebration is brought to you by Grand Lodge’s George Washington Historic Site at Tappan Committee and the Trustees of the Masonic Hall and Home, who I’m confident will keep their speeches brief.

About the featured producers, writers and players:

Gary Petagine (Benedict Arnold)

A teacher for more than 30 years, Gary has been a master teacher for the Living History Education Foundation for eight years. He is a Colonial/Revolutionary War re-enactor with the 5th New York and has portrayed Patrick Henry, Gen. Richard Montgomery, and Samuel Adams. Gary co-founded A Living History: The Revolutionary War at Carmel High School and has been featured in Putnam-Westchester County’s Journal News.

Sean Grady (Captured Soldier)

A teacher for more than 10 years in Westchester County, Sean’s “Living History” approach to teaching has been highlighted in The New York Teacher Magazine and other regional publications. Sean has been a master teacher for the Living History Foundation for eight years. He and Gary Petagine created Flight of the Dark Eagle, a course that allows teachers to walk in the footsteps of Andre and Arnold as their plot of treason unfolded throughout the Hudson Valley. A veteran of the stage, Sean has performed in more than 50 theatrical productions across New York State.

    

Bro. Washington on St. John’s Day

    
Another Magpie Mason crosspost with the famous American Creation blog.


December 27 is the Feast Day of Saint John the Evangelist, and therefore is one of two major celebrations for Freemasonry (June 24, the Feast Day of Saint John the Baptist, is the other). On the 27th of December, 1779, while encamped at Morristown, New Jersey during the Revolution, the Masonic brethren serving under Gen. George Washington celebrated the Feast Day in the Masonic style of that period, with a church service, a lodge meeting, and a meal together.

From the records of the Grand Lodge of New Jersey:

“…the headquarters of Washington, at the close of the year 1779, were at Morristown, in this State. The American Union Lodge, which was an army Lodge, whose Warrant had been granted by Colonel Richard Gridley, Deputy Grand Master of Massachusetts, was at that time with the army under Washington at Morristown. At the festival meeting of this Lodge, held to celebrate the festival of St. John the Evangelist, December 27, 1779, the record shows the presence of sixty-eight brethren, one of whom was George Washington.”



One of Washington's aprons
is displayed in the museum
of the Grand Lodge
of Pennsylvania.

Considering the hardships faced by the Continental forces at Morristown (better informed historians know it was Morristown, not Valley Forge, that was the site of the most grueling, bitter winter for the troops during the war), it is not surprising that Masonic paraphernalia was not on hand for this celebration. The daunting feat of sending to Newark for the proper regalia was successful, and St. John’s Lodge No. 1 answered the call, providing the needed items. (St. John’s Lodge still exists, and will celebrate its 250th anniversary on May 14, 2011.)

It was at this meeting where a project was launched to bring some order and unity to the Masonic fraternity in the colonies by establishing a single grand lodge for America. Mordecai Gist, representing the Masons in the armed forces of Maryland, was made president of the committee that several months later would formally issue the call for this general grand lodge... with Gen. and Bro. George Washington as its Grand Master.

From this committee’s petition:

TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFUL,

The Grand Masters of the Several Lodges

in the Respective United States of America.

Union.    Force.     Love.

The subscribers, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons in convention, to you, as the patrons and protectors of the craft upon this continent, prefer their humble address.


Unhappily, the distinctions of interest, the political views, and national disputes subsisting between Great Britain and these United States have involved us, not only in the general calamites that disturb the tranquility which used to prevail in this once happy country, but in a peculiar manner affects our society, by separating us from the Grand Mother Lodge in Europe, by disturbing our connection with each other, impeding the progress, and preventing the perfection of Masonry in America.


We deplore the miseries of our countrymen, and particularly lament the distresses which many of our poor brethren must suffer, as well from the want of temporal relief, as for want of a source of LIGHT to govern their pursuits and illuminate the path of happiness. And we ardently desire to restore, if possible, that fountain of charity, from which, to the unspeakable benefit of mankind, flows benevolence and love. Considering with anxiety these disputes, and the many irregularities and improprieties committed by weak or wicked brethren, which too manifestly show the present dissipated and almost abandoned condition of our lodges in general, as well as the relaxation of virtue amongst individuals, we think it our duty, Right Worshipful Brothers and Seniors in the Craft, to solicit your immediate interposition to save us from the impending dangers of schisms and apostasy. To obtain security from those fatal evils, with affectionate humility, we beg leave to recommend the adopting and pursuing the most necessary measures for establishing one Grand Lodge in America, to preside over and govern all other lodges of whatsoever degree or denomination, licensed or to be licensed upon the continent, that the ancient principles and discipline of Masonry being restored, we may mutually and universally enjoy the advantages arising from frequent communion and social intercourse….”

While Washington was not named in this petition, it was made known that he was the choice of the brethren. Washington did not accept the position, and the general grand lodge in America never came to fruition.
  

‘Rose Circle and Rose Cross’

    

On Saturday, February 26, the Rose Circle Research Foundation will host another of its world renowned conferences, welcoming to its podium none other than Dr. Christopher McIntosh in celebration of the new publication of his The Rose Cross and the Age of Reason: Eighteenth-Century Rosicrucianism in Central Europe and its Relationship to the Enlightenment in January by SUNY Press in its continuing Western Esoteric Traditions series. This will take place at Masonic Hall, the headquarters of the Grand Lodge of New York, located at 71 West 23rd Street in Manhattan.

First published in 1992, The Rose Cross and the Age of Reason has been heralded as an indispensible text, and has fetched prices in the many hundreds of dollars in the secondhand book market. SUNY Press offers this title at $80 per copy.

The publisher offers this summary of the revised text:

“This new edition of Christopher McIntosh’s classic book on the Golden and Rosy Cross order is eagerly awaited. The order stands out as one of the most fascinating and influential of the high-degree Masonic and Illuminist groups that mushroomed in Europe from the eighteenth century onward. Active mainly in the German-speaking lands, it recast the original Rosicrucian vision and gave it renewed vitality. At one point it became politically influential when the Prussian King, Frederick William II, was a member of the order. Historians have often perceived the Golden and Rosy Cross as having had a conservative, anti-Enlightenment agenda, but this study – drawing on rare German sources – shows that the matter was more complex. The members of the order practiced alchemy and operated a degree system that was imitated by later orders, such as the Golden Dawn. Like the latter, the Golden and Rosy Cross exerted a wide and enduring cultural influence. Both the alchemy of the order and its powerful ritual system are insightfully described in Christopher McIntosh’s clear and compelling style.

According to Rose Circle:

Christopher McIntosh was born in England in 1943 and grew up in Edinburgh, Scotland. He studied philosophy, politics and economics at Oxford, and German at London University, later returning to Oxford to take a doctorate in history with his dissertation on the Rosicrucian revival in the context of the German Enlightenment and Counter-Enlightenment. After working in London in journalism and publishing, he spent four years in New York as an information officer with the United Nations Development Program, then moved to Germany to work for UNESCO. In parallel, he has pursued a career as a writer and researcher specializing in the esoteric traditions. His books include The Astrologers and their Creed (1969); Eliphas Lévi and the French Occult Revival (1972); The Rosicrucians (latest edition 1997); The Rose Cross and the Age of Reason (1992), based on his dissertation; The Swan King: Ludwig II of Bavaria (latest edition 2003); and Gardens of the Gods (2005). His fictional work includes the occult novel Return of the Tetrad (1998). He also has a long-standing interest in nature-oriented belief systems. He has lectured widely and is on the faculty of the distance M.A. program in Western Esotericism at the University of Exeter, England. His home is in Bremen, North Germany.

McIntosh is indeed a Freemason, a longtime member of Pilgrim Lodge No. 238 in London. This lodge was founded in 1779 by Germans in London, and still conducts its rituals in German. Read more about it here.
 
The Magpie Mason also is the publicist of the Rose Circle Research Foundation, and expects to unleash a blizzard of publicity in a few days in support of this remarkable event. If you are interested in learning about Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism, other esoteric disciplines, or European history, do not miss this conference.

‘Ritman at risk’

    
Ever skeptical of the effectiveness of on-line petitions – I’m still lobbying for the return of The Bottom Line! – I nonetheless submit to you this global rallying cry for the preservation of the Library of Hermetic Philosophy, known more widely as the Ritman Library, in Amsterdam.

According to the petitioners:

It is widely known that the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica in Amsterdam, founded by J.R. Ritman, was in great danger in the 1990s, when the ING bank took possession of the collection and threatened to sell it. Fortunately, the Dutch government intervened, and the BPH was put on the list of protected Dutch heritage, and the State eventually acquired more than 40 percent of it. The books remained at the same physical location, integrated with the rest of the collection, and the government would eventually acquire all of it. As part of this process, there were great plans for further expansion. Largely due to the financial crisis and a change of government this was taking somewhat longer than originally anticipated, but nobody doubted that the library was safe.

Last week this turned out to be incorrect. An extremely valuable medieval manuscript owned by the BPH (The Grail of Rochefoucauld) was put on sale at Sotheby’s, and this triggered a reaction from the Friesland Bank, which took possession of the library, that had apparently been brought in as collateral, in order to get back a 15 million euro loan from Mr. Ritman. At present the BPH is closed, and intense negotiations are going on behind closed doors. It is impossible at this moment to predict the outcome, but there is no doubt that the situation is extremely serious. There is a very real possibility that the Friesland Bank will try to sell at least the 60 percent of the library that is still owned by Mr. Ritman, and nobody knows what implications this will have for the rest of the collection and the BPH as a whole, including its staff. The brand-new government of the Netherlands has announced a program of radical financial cuts in the culture section and elsewhere, which makes a renewed intervention from that side highly unlikely.

If the Ritman library would go down, this would mean an enormous blow to international scholarship in Hermetic studies. The damage would be irreversible. By signing this petition you express your concern, and ask the Dutch government and Friesland Bank to do their utmost to ensure that the collection will be saved and will remain available for the international scholarly community.

Additionally, you can express your concern by means of a signed letter. The initiative for this petition comes from the Center for History of Hermetic Philosophy and related currents at the University of Amsterdam (organizationally independent of the BPH, and not in any danger itself), so please send your letter to its director:

Prof. Wouter J. Hanegraaff
Oude Turfmarkt 141-147
1012 GC Amsterdam
The Netherlands

Or e-mail to: w.j.hanegraaff (at) uva.nl

Sign the on-line petition here.

My thanks to Paul Hardacre, editor of Alchemy Journal, for bringing this to my attention.
    

‘Masonic Hall at 100’

    

‘The Bat Signal,’ on the 24th Street side of Masonic Hall, towers over Chelsea.

It is a period of big anniversaries in New York City Freemasonry: 250th for I.R.A. No. 2, the bicentennial of Columbian Council No. 1, 130th of Cleopatra’s Needle, The Big 8-0 for The American Lodge of Research next spring, and the centennial celebration of Masonic Hall itself in a few weeks. The headquarters of the Grand Lodge of New York stands tall at 71 West 23rd Street in Manhattan. A wonderful place it is, and a party is being planned for the occasion.

Sunday, December 5 at 2 p.m. inside the Grand Lodge room (Third Floor).

There will be a ceremonial re-enactment of the cornerstone-laying, as well as a re-dedication of Masonic Hall.
     

‘Second Circle a sell out’

    
The November 30 dinner-meeting of The Masonic Society’s New Jersey Second Circle is sold out. We thank all the brethren, not all of whom are Society members (yet), for reserving their seats with advance payments so promptly. (If you’ve ever tried to plan an event in New Jersey Freemasonry, you know how excruciating it can be, but this was as expedient as possible. We really are appreciative.) (I mean truly, profoundly grateful.) (No exaggeration.)

The Masonic Society is the new, independent, non-profit Masonic education foundation serving the Craft in North America. The meeting on the 30th is the first Society event in New Jersey, and thanks to the pending success of this dinner, we are looking forward to the next gathering.

The program:

Keynote – Bro. Ben Hoff, the Right Worshipful Grand Historian of Grand Lodge, and Worshipful Master of New Jersey Lodge of Masonic Research and Education No. 1786, will present a discussion of how toasting became part of Masonic ritual. An entertaining and enlightening talk. Vivat!

St. Andrew’s Day – Bro. Fred Waldron, the Right Worshipful District Deputy Grand Master, will lead our celebration of this, the Feast Day of Saint Andrew, patron saint of Scotland and Scottish Freemasonry. Slainte!

Dinner will be a full course meal in the customarily delectable flavors and generous portions for which our venue is well known. Bloomfield Steak and Seafood House is a historic site as well. Built in 1670, it was the home of the Davis family until a century ago. Bro. George Washington dined there during the Revolution, and Bro. Joseph Bloomfield signed the township’s charter there also. Charming and warm ambiance.

Other attractions await our guests as well, including a gift bag for each brother containing refreshments for the mind, body, and soul.

If you missed out, please mark June 24, 2011 on your calendar, when The Masonic Society will do it again, on the Feast Day of St. John the Baptist, most likely in central Jersey.
    

‘Tim Wallace-Murphy in Connecticut’

    
Bro. Tim Wallace-Murphy will appear at Pymander Bookshop in Norwalk, Connecticut on Friday at 7 p.m. to deliver his illustrated talk titled “Cracking the Symbol Code.”

Admission: $20.

Pymander Bookshop is located at 37 Wall St.

From the shop’s website:

Back by popular demand! This presentation is based on his book of the same name; it is a guide to the coded symbolism of the hidden streams of spirituality that preserved the true teachings of Jesus. After twenty years of research, author Tim Wallace-Murphy takes the reader on a guided tour across Europe to medieval churches searching out the secret messages that were meant to be discovered.

Decoding this “hidden symbolism” is on two levels: There are certain keys, but there always will be an intuitive element to the understanding of the coded messages.

Information and reservations at (203) 854-5596.