Serving Those Who Served

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

WB Gregory J. Knott

The Masonic Service Association of North America has for many years, been involved with programs that assist our service men and women, including Veterans. One of these programs is the Hospital Visitation Program in partnership with the United States Department of Veteran Affairs.

In my area of east-central Illinois, area Masonic lodges have teamed up to ensure that veterans who are residents of the Illiana Medical VA in Danville, Illinois, have the opportunity to attend weekly church services on the VA campus.

These visits are both extremely humbling and very rewarding. I very much enjoy getting to meet the Veterans and learn about their service and lives. Something as simple as a handshake and hello bring a smile to the face of so many of them.

I didn’t serve in the armed forces, but this is one small way I can give back to those who did. If you don’t currently participate in such a program, I encourage you to look into how your lodge can get involved. I can assure you that our Veterans would be most appreciative.

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. You can contact him at gknott63@gmail.com

Individuation of the Craft Pt. 5

by Midnight Freemason Emeritus

WB James E. Frey

The Individuation of the Craft Series

Recognizing our shadow allows us identify what aspects of our self and which superfluities, we need to remove from our rough ashlar order to perfect our mind. This shows a desire to change and grow and also allows us to circumscribe our actions and keep them in due bounds. The progression of the Masonic system will often cause the initiate to re-evaluate themselves at a very introspective and personal manner. This stage of individuation, to accept ones doubts, fears, weaknesses, and primal capabilities is painful and may cause a conflict in beliefs in how we interact with the world. This embracing our inner shadow and accepting these aspects about ourselves makes us a whole individual and is the inevitably the starting point for the healing process, where we begin to accept ourselves.

It is revealed that the lack of confidence that we experienced growing up is now understood as illusion. The second stage of Individuation is a transition period where the archetype of the wise old teacher is given as a way for our consciousness to accept this darkness and embrace wholeness. This Wise Old Teacher in Entered Apprentice degree is the Senior Deacon. The guide upon the journey that finds the hero in his state of darkness and guides them toward the light to self-actualization. Jung states that the Wise Old Teacher is “...the principle that stands in opposition to matter… The archetype compensates this state of spiritual deficiency by the contents designed to fill this gap. ” (CW 7, pars 390)

The Wise Old Teacher Archetype is seen throughout mythology, he is the Wizard Gandalf, Merlin, Yoda, and any character that guides the hero of a tale toward greater spiritual revelation in rejection of material gain. This guide conducts you from darkness towards the light of the East, which is allegorical from a transition from material sense of self toward a sense of spirituality. This realization teaches us to balance our physical appetites with our higher intellect we gain a sense of inner balance.

This journey of traveling east can also be personified as a guide on the hero’s journey leading us to the path of realization. In the entered apprentice ritual this is the circumambulation that leads us toward the altar of obligation to solidify our dedication to self-improvement. This Guide or Teacher allows us to use the realization of our shadow to incorporate our desire into a sense of greater metaphysical unity. With taking the obligation we choose to embark on this process to individualize our consciousness and begin to transition it toward universal perception through balancing the conscious and unconscious self. “Conscious and unconscious do not make a whole when one of them is suppressed and injured by the other… Both are aspects of life. Consciousness should defend its reason and protect itself, and the chaotic life of the unconscious…” (CW 9 I, pars. 523)

Next week we talk about the absolute goal of individuation, Equilibrium. 

~JEF

The Perfect Margarita

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

WB Adam Thayer

As I write this, it is currently 105 degrees in beautiful Lincoln, Nebraska, and I am sitting in the dark, hot library of my lodge. It is important to note that there is absolutely no air conditioning in this part of the building, and it doesn’t help that there is a group of brothers in here, all writing their own papers. Right now, the only thing I can think about is having a margarita at the Mexican restaurant across the street from our lodge.

I’ve searched for a very long time to find the “perfect” margarita recipe, and while I’ve had many delicious drinks, I’ve yet to find one that hit all of the notes I was looking for. I have found one that was just nearly perfect, which I’ll share with you below, but even it is missing… something.

You may wonder what this has to do with Freemasonry.

The perfect margarita has a few key ingredients: lime, tequila, and some salt for flavor. The perfect lodge has a few key ingredients as well: ritual, brotherhood, and some education for flavor. And just like a margarita, there are many different opinions as to what goes into the “perfect” lodge experience. Some people will say that the lodge needs charity work, while others will say to focus solely on ritual work. Some crazy people even say that reading the minutes brings something special to the lodge, and should never be skipped. (Coincidentally, these are the same sort of people who put mint in a margarita… odd, to say the least.)

Some people prefer the “original” margarita, while many enjoy the newer fruit flavors, such as strawberry or mango, and some have even created exotic flavors such as red chili or hibiscus. This same attitude is mirrored in our lodges; many are perfectly content with sticking to blue lodge Freemasonry, while others will pursue the Scottish and York Rites, the Shrine, and a few adventurous individuals will seek out Rites such as Memphis and Misraim.

Who is to say which is right, and which is wrong? While I personally think it’s insane to put red chili into a drink, I’ve met people who will swear by it. At the same time, however, I’m willing to sample all of the different flavors that Freemasonry presents, even when I find one that doesn’t agree with me, because it is better to have been exposed to it than to spend my Masonic years sheltered in the safe harbors of blue lodge.

Whatever flavor of Freemasonry you find that you enjoy, I hope you will throw yourself into it with gusto to get the most out of it. And remember: don’t eat the lime.

The “Good Eats” Margarita: (by Alton Brown, food nerd)

Ingredients:
2 ounces 100 percent agave silver/blanco tequila, divided
1 tablespoon kosher salt
4 limes, divided
1/2 small Hamlin or Valencia orange
2 tablespoons light agave nectar
3/4 cup ice cubes, about 3 to 4

Directions:
Pour 1/2-ounce of the tequila into a small saucer. Spread the kosher salt in a separate small saucer. Dip the rim of a martini or other wide rimmed glass into the tequila. Lift out of the tequila and hold upside down for 10 seconds to allow for slight evaporation. Next, dip the glass into the salt to coat the rim. Set aside.

Halve 2 of the limes, cut a thin slice for garnish from 1, and set aside. Juice the halved limes into the bottom of a Boston-style cocktail shaker. Cut the remaining 2 limes and the orange into quarters and add them to the juice in the shaker. Add the agave nectar to and muddle for 2 minutes until the juices are release. Strain the juice mixture through a cocktail strainer into the top of the shaker and discard the solids.

Return the juice to the bottom of the shaker, add the remaining 1 1/2 ounces of tequila and any remaining on the saucer. Add the ice to the shaker, cover and shake for 30 seconds. Strain the mixture through a cocktail strainer into the prepared glass, garnish with reserved lime slice, and serve immediately

~AT

WB. Bro. 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!

Recharge!

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

WB Adam Thayer

I, like many of you, am a nerd. Now, let’s not fight it, we’re on a website devoted entirely to education on a relatively obscure topic. You probably have at least half a dozen other tabs open in your browser right now, unless you’re reading this on your phone or tablet, in which case you’re using precious battery power to further your education. There is nothing wrong with being nerdy! The 1980’s, where we were skewered by pop culture, are far behind us.

Being a nerd, one of the most satisfying feelings in the world is seeing my cellphone and tablet batteries at 100% charge. Now, I know from a technical standpoint, this isn’t the best way to prolong my battery’s life, but I also know it makes me unexplainably happy to hit the power button on my phone and see that it’s fully charged and ready to go.

I forgot to charge my tablet last night. It was an incredibly long day, after an incredibly long week, and I just simply forgot to plug it in. When I woke up this morning and realized what I had done, there was definitely a moment of disappointment in myself; even though I will be spending the day with my wife and daughter, and will probably barely touch my tablet, it’s still nice to know it’s fully charged and ready to go. Right now, at roughly 7 am on a Saturday morning, my battery sits at 79%. (As a side note, yes I do get up stupidly early on the weekend, it’s the only time I have to write, due to the aforementioned beautiful wife and daughter.)

79%. That is plenty of battery left to get me through the whole weekend, and yet it feels like I need to conserve every bit of power it has. I have no idea why my mind works that way, but I’m willing to stake my writing career that at least one or two of you feel the same way. It’s especially silly, considering I could put it on the charger right now and solve the problem, but it is the wrong time of day to recharge; devices should be charged at night, not in the middle of the day. (This may be a whole other issue I have, that you don’t necessarily share.)

So here I am, on my third cup of coffee, staring at this tablet with 78% battery power, cursing myself for forgetting to charge it, and even more so for being crazy enough that I can’t charge it during the day, watching a terrible 80’s horror movie (one of my other guilty pleasures, and another reason I get up so early on the weekends), wondering if I’ve got enough power to get through the day if maybe I only read books on the tablet instead of watching videos and surfing the net, and I find myself asking this important question: how is my Masonic battery?

You see, we all have a limited amount of energy to put into our efforts; work, family, friends, civic efforts, Freemasonry… all of these things eat away at our batteries, leaving us worn down, sapped of strength, not even wanting to go outside and see other people. We all have to determine where our energy is best spent; how much time do I dedicate to work, how much time to my friends and family, et cetera, et cetera.

In a perfect world, we would be able to keep up with everything, without needing to worry about running out of strength, but in reality we all realize that we need to maintain our strength, and put our efforts into where they will be most valuable. We have to metaphorically (and, in some cases, literally) stop watching the tenth cat video, so we can spend some time studying our ritual work instead.

In the past, I have said that going to lodge helps recharge my batteries, and while that was true in the past, and surely will be true again once I’m through being an officer, right now it’s a significant drain on my energy and patience. I’m not complaining, I am beyond honored at being asked to serve my lodge in this way, but the reality of the situation is that being an officer in an especially active lodge will age you very quickly. Brother Robert Johnson has said in the past that being an officer is a full time job, and that is definitely true in my lodge; we meet nearly every week, and always have something going on to keep us occupied. It can get exhausting!

In the recent past, we have featured a few articles about Masonic burnout, and you don’t need to see another one to know it’s an issue we all face. Instead, let’s just use the reminder about how important it is to keep your battery fully charged, so you don’t get too worn down to continue perfecting your ashlar.

I’m now on five cups of coffee, midway through a second movie, my daughter is awake and ready to take on the world, and my battery is at 75%. Having spent this past hour or so writing to you, knowing that these words will help someone out there who is struggling, my Masonic battery is fully charged, so I have to ask you: how is YOUR Masonic battery?

~AT

WB. Bro. 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!