What’s in Your Library? - From the Archives

By Midnight Freemason Contributor

W.B. Gregory J. Knott

Many new Masons are eager to learn all they can about the craft when they are first raised.  You hear many unfamiliar terms during the ritual and lectures that require further study to understand their meaning within the entirety of the ritual. One of the duties of a Freemason, is to educate yourself further on the craft by studying the history, meaning, and philosophy of this ancient and honorable fraternity.  Engaging in this course of study can be done in several ways and achieved through a large variety of available resources.   

I wanted to establish my own home library of Masonic resources.  I’ve always loved books, so this was an easy excuse for me to expand my personal book holdings.  But I really didn’t have any idea where to start.  I visited my local Barnes & Nobel bookstore and perused their offerings and bought a few titles and used Google Books to discover many older books that were available digitally.  I later found Masonic book publishers such as Macoy and Michael Poll’s excellent Cornerstone Book Publishers.

So the question comes down to, what are the basics to place in your home library?  I asked several people including some of my fellow Midnight Freemasons and here are some starting suggestions:

• Short Talk Bulletins by the Masonic Service Association
• Famous American Freemasons Volume I and II by Todd E. Creason
• Morals and Dogma by Albert Pike
• Hidden Keys to Freemasonry by Manley P. Hall
• Secret Teachings of All Ages by Manley P. Hall
• The Book of Words – Lawrence Kushner
• Royal Masonic Encyclopedia
• History of Freemasonry by Albert Mackey
• Ancient Freemasonry by Amblain
• Freemasons for Dummies by Christopher Hodapp – especially valuable to loan new members
• Mackey’s Encyclopedia Pre 1911 edition
• Your Grand Lodge Proceedings - Illinois Grand Lodge Proceedings
• Egyptian Mythology
• Books of the Sacred Law – Holy Bible, Koran, 
• Roberts Rules the Masonic Edition by Michael Poll
• A Bridge to Light by Rex R. Hutchens
• Born in Blood by John J. Robinson
• A Pilgrim’s Path by John J. Robinson
• Dungeon, Fire & Sword - by John J. Robinson
• Laudable Pursuit – Knights of the North
• Observing the Craft – Andrew Hammer
  
  

What’s in your Masonic Library?

~GJK

WB Gregory J. Knott is the Past Master of St. Joseph Lodge No. 970 in St. Joseph (IL) and a plural member of Ogden Lodge No. 754 (IL), Homer Lodge No. 199 (IL) and Naval Lodge No. 4 in Washington, DC. He’s a member of the Scottish Rite, the York Rite, Eastern Star and is the Charter Secretary of the Illini High Twelve Club No. 768 in Champaign-Urbana. He is also a member of ANSAR Shrine (IL) and the Eastern Illinois Council No. 356 Allied Masonic Degrees. Greg serves on the Board of Directors of The Masonic Society and is a member of the Scottish Rite Research Society and The Philathes Society. Greg is very involved in Boy Scouts—an Eagle Scout himself, he is a member of the National Association of Masonic Scouters.

Outside the Door

by Midnight Freemason Guest Contributor

Paul Nevins

Being Tyler, I have found that I have some free time on my hands during each meeting. The WiFi signal at my station is frustratingly slow. There is no cable TV or mini-fridge for me either. So my time is often spent sitting in my chair by the door, reading whatever book I brought upstairs from the Lodge’s meager library.

One evening, I found myself reading an old book containing excerpts of meeting minutes from our past. With Montgomery Lodge being over two-hundred years old, I have always enjoyed learning more about its history. There were a few intriguing notes like how Brothers Burr and King (King was Tyler at the time) concealed our Charter in various locations during the anti-Masonic era. This includes being sewn in the lining of a jacket! I’m reasonably sure my tenure as Tyler won’t be as James Bond-like as that, fortunately.

I was slightly disappointed in what little detail the book shared overall. Most meetings were glossed over with short summaries like “Jan 12, 1803 – Regular Communication. Raised one. Nine visitors.” Not much information or insight there. I still wanted to know more. I wanted to know what they discussed in those meetings so long ago. Did they have the philosophical discussions I had envisioned when I petitioned the Lodge? Did they take a moment to discuss the esoterica of our Fraternity? Or was symbolism limited to just the degree lectures? Maybe the meetings were just a dull reading of the bills and correspondence. I wish I knew. With so much going on in this country’s history in the last 200 years, I would think that there had to have been some interesting discussions; whether in meeting or later in the collation. Were those discussions in-depth and serious? Or, were they light hearted? To know this, I found that I wanted to find out more about the Brothers themselves.

Throughout our Lodge, we have portraits of many of the Past Masters. There are a few scattered pictures of Brothers who have long since departed to the afterlife. There are stacks of dusty and mildewed albums of black & white photographs of parades and formal dinners. I sat in that hall wondering what those Brethren were like beyond just the pictures. There are those excerpts in the book that give names and numbers but no real insight on who those men were as people. Pictures don’t always portray traits like humor, caring, honesty, and personality.

Even with the Brothers of today, I often find a mystery. There are just under 200 members in our Lodge but I’ve met a fraction of them. Most are men who, for whatever reason, stopped coming to Lodge. Often, I don’t really get to know them until they pass to the Celestial Lodge above. I have been to many Masonic Services over the last few years and as I sat and listened to the eulogies, there were so many stories told that had me wishing I knew that Brother while he was alive.

I urge each Brother to get to know the men in Lodge with you now. Whether they are young or old, they won’t be around forever. None of us will. Things happen. People move. People pass away. People sometimes just drift apart. Learn about those men and be able to pass on their stories because, after they are gone, the meeting minutes and photographs most likely won’t come close to reflecting who they were to us.

~PN

Measured Expectations - A Review of Michael R. Poll's New Book

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

WB Adam Thayer

One of the greatest duties I’ve been called for as a writer is to be a book reviewer. Not only does it afford me the opportunity to count my reading time as “work”, but it exposes me to multiple great works that I might otherwise never have discovered. Such is the case with “Measured Expectations: The Challenges of Today’s Freemasonry” by Michael R. Poll, which I only learned of when I was asked to review it.

I have enjoyed Brother Poll’s other works greatly, and specifically his Masonic edition of “Robert’s Rules of Order” has proven an invaluable reference during my time as Worshipful Master. If you have ever read any of his books on philosophy or esotericism, you should have a rudimentary idea of what to expect here.

This book (as with many of Brother Poll’s other books) isn’t necessarily intended to be read start to finish, although you are definitely welcome to do so. Instead, each chapter serves as a short stand alone education piece, suitable for either private reflection or for a supplement to your lodge’s education program. As such, it becomes very difficult to review this as a “book”, and we must instead look at it as a collection of papers sharing the same basic theme.

With any collection such as this, there will be some works that are stronger than others, and some that are more meaningful to you in your current journey than the rest. If I had my way, every single Mason would read the first paper, titled “A Young Man Joins A Masonic Lodge,” before their annual elections. I believe this one paper to be of such high importance to understanding the current problems in Freemasonry that I think it should be distributed as far as possible, and this paper alone is worth the purchase price of the book.

Another paper that I found fascinating had to do with the symbolism and history of the double headed eagle. I would love to see the ideas in this chapter expanded on, as it could almost be a book to itself. My only frustration is that it was much too short, and Brother Poll had to stop the article before really delving deeply into the ideas he brought up.

The remainder of the papers in the book delve into subjects such as music, the history and role of ritual, understanding the culture of different lodges, and a brief examination of the modern Scottish Rite. Conspicuously absent is any discussion of the York Rite; I’m not certain if Brother Poll does not find it an interesting topic, or if he doesn’t feel qualified to discuss it, however I would have loved to see his take on the modern York Rite in the same manner he discusses the Scottish Rite.

“Measured Expectations” is necessarily repetitive at times; as a collection of papers, some themes are touched on in multiple different papers, and each time it is from the standpoint that you did not read any of the previous papers. This isn’t a bad thing, since the intention is to use each chapter by itself, however it is something to be aware of if you choose to read it start to finish as I did.

The intention of this book is to help brothers who are newer to Masonic education find a foot in the door, and it exceeds expectations for that. The topics presented and writing style are all simple enough for a newer Mason (or one who is just finding an interest in learning more) to gain significant insight from, without boring the more experienced Mason. If this book makes you curious to start doing more in-depth research on your own, Brother Poll should consider himself highly successful.

~AT

WB. Adam Thayer is the Senior Warden of Lancaster Lodge No. 54 in Lincoln (NE) and a past master of Oliver Lodge No. 38 in Seward (NE). He’s an active member in the Knights of Saint Andrew, and on occasion remembers to visit the Scottish and York Rites as well. He continues to be reappointed to the Grand Lodge of Nebraska Education Committee, and serves with fervency and zeal. He is a sub-host on The Whence Came You podcast, and may be reached at adam@wcypodcast.com. He will not help you get your whites whiter or your brights brighter, but he does enjoy conversing with brothers from around the world!