Let There Be Light!!!!

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

WB Darin A. Lahners

A recent road trip to Salt Lake City, Utah with my girlfriend, Lisa, and youngest son, Spencer, took us from east-central Illinois to several cities, National Parks, and National Monuments on the way.  In order to get to Craters of the Moon National Monument, one would find themselves traveling through Arco, Idaho.  Arco's claim to fame is that it is the first city in the world to be powered by Atomic power.  Arco was powered briefly (for about 1 hour) by the Experimental Breeder Reactor (EBR-1) at the U.S. Atomic Energy Commissions National Reactor Testing Station, about 20 miles from Arco.  

Home of Arco Lodge #48

The author in front of the door to the entrance to the Lodge 

As luck would have it, right across from the City of Arco City Office, there stood a Masonic Temple, which is (assuming my research is correct) is home to Arco Lodge #48 of the Grand Lodge of Idaho, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, which would give it by default the distinction of being the very first Masonic Temple powered by Atomic power.  I thought that this was a very important and historic fact given our ritual's connection to light. 

This being said, I find it fascinating that one of the symbols that we are taught about in the First Degree, the point within the circle or the circumpunct, bears a striking resemblance to a Hydrogen atom.  Illinois ritual states:

"Lodges in ancient times were dedicated to King Solomon, he being our first Most Excellent Grand Master; in modern times to St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist - two eminent Christian patrons of Freemasonry; and since their time there has been represented, in every regular and well furnished lodge, a certain point within a circle, embordered by two perpendicular parallel lines, representing St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist.  On top of the circle rests the book of Holy Scriptures; the point represents an individual brother, the circle the boundary line of his duty. In going round this circle we necessarily touch on the two parallel lines, as well as on the book of Holy Scriptures; and while a Mason keeps himself circumscribed within their precepts, it is impossible that he should materially err."

The idea of keeping one's self within due bounds is personally a lesson that I consider to be a building block of the ideals of Freemasonry.  I look to that image above and it reminds me to contemplate keeping myself grounded.  As I look at it, I see not only myself and the length of my cable-tow but myself and my place in the world as well as my place in the macrocosm.  Should it be any surprise to us as Freemasons, that in following the hermetic principle of: "As above, So below", that our bodies should also be made up of Hydrogen on the microcosmic level?  Hydrogen is one of the elements that is a building block of life. 

Hydrogen is also electrically neutral.  Is the circumpunct not trying to keep us as Freemasons neutral (grounded) by reminding us to keep ourselves within those due bounds?  I refuse to believe that this is by accident.  As such, I believe that the Great Architect on his trestle board designed the Hydrogen atom as such to be not only one of the building blocks of life but also to teach us a fundamental lesson about how to act as Freemasons.  That is pretty powerful (pun intended) when you think about it.

~DAL

WB Darin A. Lahners is our co-managing Editor.  He is a Past Master of St. Joseph Lodge No.970 in St. Joseph. He is also a plural member of Homer Lodge No. 199 (IL), where he is also a Past Master. He’s a member of the Scottish Rite Valley of Danville, a charter member of Illinois Royal Arch Chapter, Admiration Chapter No. 282 and is the current Secretary of the Illini High Twelve Club No. 768 in Champaign – Urbana (IL). You can reach him by email at darin.lahners@gmail.com.  

Be Like Joe

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

Bro. Randy Sanders

A good friend and Brother Joe Stewart just handed over the reins for the second lodge in two consecutive years to other strong leaders, and I want to spend a few moments to call out the achievement and scale. Worshipful Brother Joe Stewart was installed as Master of Missouri’s Naphtali Lodge #25 in 2019 while installed as Senior Warden of Wentzville Lodge #46. Just after the 2020 Naphtali installation, Worshipful Brother Joe was installed as Master of Wentzville Lodge #46 and served a very successful year in each Lodge. You read that correctly: two consecutive terms leading the craft as Master in each of two different lodges. All the while he was active in DeMolay and Rainbow youth organizations at Wentzville, active in Knights of St. Andrew, Valley of St. Louis AASR, Chapter, Council, AMD, and active within his family.

He deserves some time to cool down, and I hope he takes it. However, I know Brother Joe as one of my best friends, and I know his dedication to the craft. I admire his focus and dedication to making the most of his 24-inch gauge. It will be difficult for him to sit on the sidelines, and I know it’s only a matter of time before the offers come pouring in for him to assist here, take the helm there, and be active in whatever is next on his horizon.

There are some lessons we can learn from Worshipful Brother Joe, and observing his work I can only hope to pass these lessons along. Worshipful Brother Joe understands what it means to do what you can and that much of what happens is beyond your control. Sometimes that is frustrating, but putting your best foot forward still accomplishes goals. Maybe the goal wasn’t exactly what was planned, but success follows accomplishment. That’s my paraphrasing, but WB Joe embodies the spirit of getting things accomplished. He won the very first Craftsman Of The Year award our lodge decided to give annually.

Approach life with humor. WB Joe is quick with humor, makes the most of situations, and on the very few times I’ve ever seen him down, he had already started the process of climbing out of the hole of darkness. He had already refocused on the light and how to get back to making the best of the situation. Humor is an attitude, how it applies to you will be different in every situation. My lesson from my Brother Joe is to find the way to levity, even if only a short distraction, in order to keep everything in perspective.

Live within the chaos. We all have chaos in our lives, and WB Joe’s lesson here is understanding that everything has chaos, find a means of structure, and build on it. Maybe the lodge reconstruction isn’t exactly the most organized with tools and materials scattered, but a quick break, a good look around, and tracking down where that hammer went can go a long way toward creating your own mental structure of how that project is progressing. I witnessed Bro. Joe take charge through the chaos many times.

Celebrate your successes. It seems to me to be a natural, but many people don’t stop to celebrate the successes no matter how small the success, nor how small the celebration might be. Worshipful Brother Joe can take a 5-minute breather and celebrate the progress made, and it inspires others around to get more done.

We can all take a moment, as leaders in this fraternity, to understand the above. Many of us already do much of the same in our own ways, and many of us, me included, can benefit from a bit of work toward our attitude and how we approach projects, the lodge, the brethren, and our lives. Be like Joe.

~RS

Bro. Randy and his wife Elyana live near St. Louis, Missouri, USA. Randy earned a Bachelors's Degree in Chemistry with an emphasis in Biochemistry, and he works in Telecom IT management. He volunteers as a professional and personal mentor, NRA certified Chief Range Safety Officer, and enjoys competitive tactical pistol, rifle, and shotgun. He has 30 plus years teaching Wing Chun Kung Fu, Chi Kung, and healing arts. Randy served as a Logistics Section Chief on two different United States federal Disaster Medical Assistance Teams over a 12-year span. Randy's Masonic bio includes past Lodge Education Officer for two Symbolic Lodges, Founder of the Wentzville Lodge Book Club, member of the Grand Lodge of Missouri Education Committee, Sovereign Master of the E. F. Coonrod AMD Council No. 493, Co-Librarian of the Scottish Rite Valley of St. Louis, Clerk for the Academy of Reflection through the Valley of Guthrie, and a Facilitator for the Masonic Legacy Society. Randy is a founding administrator for Refracted Light, a full contributor to Midnight Freemasons, and an international presenter on esoteric topics. Randy hosts an ongoing weekly Masonic virtual Happy Hour on Friday evenings. Randy is an accomplished home chef, a certified barbecue judge, raises Great Pyrenees dogs, and enjoys travel and philosophy.

Dear Prudence…

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

Bro. Randy Sanders

I worked recently to clean up an older presentation of mine, and the cardinal virtue of Prudence kept coming to mind. In the presentation, I review how contemplative practice gives us time to deeply consider decisions, to maybe bounce an idea around inside your own head. This in itself is an example of Prudence.  I focused on prudent practicality as an example, more specifically posing the desire of wanting to build a bridge. The prudent considerations are, do I have resources? Do I have time to complete it? 

There's more to Prudence than just the practical example, and I missed that part in my considerations. The presentation doesn't need to deep dive into a sub-lecture in Prudence, but I needed to consider this more carefully. With some keyword searches and some reading, I stumbled across an article on Prudence that seemed to reflect and even summarize my thoughts.

"The word 'prudence' is used in several ways in contemporary English, and its different philosophical senses to some extent reflect that variety. Traditionally, Prudence is the ability to make morally discerning choices in general; but the term is also used to denote a habit of cautiousness in practical affairs; most recently, attempts have also been made to identify Prudence with practical rationality, perhaps even with the pursuit of the agent's own interests, without any specifically moral implications." 1

Morally discerning? Cautiousness in practical affairs? Practical rationality? Pursuit of interests without moral implications? What was this crazy talk?

However, I believe this author might be on to something, and that something might help Masons like me looking into the Cardinal and Theological Virtues. Practicality, morality, and cautiousness don't just pop out of thin air. We must work toward sharpening skills here, or in other words, we have been given working tools to assist us in bettering ourselves. 

Bettering our skillset with regard to Prudence comes down to understanding three things about our own behavior, and this applies to each of the virtues. We have to gather knowledge. This can be an instantaneous snapshot from childhood warnings to look both ways before crossing streets, or it can be walking into a building and scanning for threat assessment – is there anyone here who potentially poses a threat/what is that threat? We apply our own acquired knowledge, hopefully as wisdom, toward this assessment of any given situation. We now make a decision based on our best judgment, and then we act in the best manner we can achieve—a little more on that.

For you folks that studied risk, we gather information, and then we make a decision based on what we know. In other words, we create a risk analysis, we make a decision based on that risk analysis, and we take the risk path that best suits our situation at that time. Is that always the right choice? I'm glad you asked. No, it isn't always the right choice. However, it can be the best choice we have at the time, based on what we know and observe. We can make the choice that we know is morally right, and still, someone possibly gets hurt, but if we work with our working tools, we can sleep at night knowing we put our best effort toward our actions. Our own moral compass sits solidly on Prudence. 

~RS

1. Hughes, G.(1998). Prudence. In The Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Taylor and Francis. Retrieved 28 Aug. 2021, fromhttps://www.rep.routledge.com/articles/thematic/prudence/v-1. doi:10.4324/9780415249126-L078-1

Bro. Randy and his wife Elyana live near St. Louis, Missouri, USA. Randy earned a Bachelors's Degree in Chemistry with an emphasis in Biochemistry, and he works in Telecom IT management. He volunteers as a professional and personal mentor, NRA certified Chief Range Safety Officer, and enjoys competitive tactical pistol, rifle, and shotgun. He has 30 plus years teaching Wing Chun Kung Fu, Chi Kung, and healing arts. Randy served as a Logistics Section Chief on two different United States federal Disaster Medical Assistance Teams over a 12-year span. Randy's Masonic bio includes past Lodge Education Officer for two Symbolic Lodges, Founder of the Wentzville Lodge Book Club, member of the Grand Lodge of Missouri Education Committee, Sovereign Master of the E. F. Coonrod AMD Council No. 493, Co-Librarian of the Scottish Rite Valley of St. Louis, Clerk for the Academy of Reflection through the Valley of Guthrie, and a Facilitator for the Masonic Legacy Society. Randy is a founding administrator for Refracted Light, a full contributor to Midnight Freemasons, and an international presenter on esoteric topics. Randy hosts an ongoing weekly Masonic virtual Happy Hour on Friday evenings. Randy is an accomplished home chef, a certified barbecue judge, raises Great Pyrenees dogs, and enjoys travel and philosophy.

Freemasonry, Notwithstanding, Has Still Survived!

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

Chris Hathaway

The lessons in our ritual are the backbone of the fraternity. I should say, applying the lessons learned in our ritual is the backbone of fraternity. True brotherhood flourishes when members internalize and follow through with the lessons and charges given to them. One of my favorite pieces of ritual comes from the Middle Chamber lecture in the 2nd Degree from the Grand Lodge of Illinois AF&AM.

It's ritual that is deeply important to me and my mission in this fraternity; ensuring its longevity so that future generations can enjoy and benefit from the wisdom of the craft. This particular piece is inspiring because it shows that no matter how tumultuous the world may seem, Freemasonry will survive. It is not about the amount of money, members, or buildings we have on our balance sheet. It is about the attentive ear, the instructive tongue, and the faithful breast. Improve those three things in the guys that are active in your lodge, and you will ensure a smooth transfer of the fraternity to the next generation.

The Middle Chamber is also deeply reflective, scientific, and holy. It teaches us to reflect on the world around us, enjoy its vastness, and be mesmerized by the unknown. It teaches us to appreciate the science of geometry and all of the allegory contained within. The ritual shows us equality by explaining that we are all governed by the same laws of nature regardless of our rank, tenure, or ability.

Freemasonry is not in decline. Timeless, ancient lessons do not go out of style. Popularity does not measure success. We all know this, but we still try to measure our own worthiness based on membership numbers. Masons throughout history have carried on the fraternity in far more desperate times.

We have carried it through civil wars, world wars, anti-masonic time periods, outright bans by governments and religions, and times with little money or people. In the Scottish Rite, NMJ, John James Joseph Gourgas, 33° kept the Rite alive single-handedly with just a vision and a copy of the ritual for many years. He knew what he had was important, and he persevered until the right group of guys were up for the challenge.

You have taken the obligation; you have been recorded in the Middle Chamber. It is your choice how you travel this life journey, but I can assure you that you and I will pass to the Grand Lodge above before Freemasonry disappears from the world.

What does the Middle Chamber mean to you?

~CH

WB Christopher J. Hathaway was raised in Catlin Masonic Lodge #285 and is a plural member of Normal Masonic Lodge #673 as well as Bloomington Lodge #43, where he is a Past Master. He belongs to the Valley of Danville, AASR, where he is the Most Wise Master of the George E. Burow Chapter of Rose Croix and Membership Chairman. He is the Oriental Guide in the Divan for the Mohammed Shiners and the 1st Vice President of the Bloomington Shrine Club. Other appendant bodies include the Gao Grotto and the Illinois Lodge of Research. Outside of the lodge, he enjoys spending time with his wife Taylor and cheering on the Fighting Illini and Chicago Cubs.