MovingForward

By Wayne Spooner

What is the Goal of Freemasonry? The answer is “to accept a good man, help make him better, better than the man he was six months ago, and ultimately, to help him become the best version of himself.”

In Freemasonry, we talk about “being on the level” which is interpreted by many Brethren as a mantra to treat one another fairly. A further interpretation is an important gift that we, as upright men and Freemasons, provide to each other. That gift is the equal opportunity to share our unique talents, strengths and capabilities to advance the collective work, priorities and success of our ancient and honorable fraternity. Whether you are a banker with deep analytical skills and comfort working with numbers or a carpenter who knows how to fix almost anything with his hands, both of these Brethren are given the opportunity for self-improvement and being useful as fellow workmen in our Speculative

Craft of Builders. Said simply, the Grand Architect of the Universe requires a variety of talents, skills and abilities to execute the designs laid down for the advancement of society. Success is driven by the ability for the various workmen to trust one another and work harmoniously together to simply “do his part and make his contribution” toward executing those designs.

To punctuate that last point, let’s review a powerful quote by Mark Twain (Brother Samuel Clemens) which is “The two most important days in your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why.” Regardless of our economic, social, ethnic, etc. backgrounds, many good men grope around in darkness most of their lives searching for their purpose and true usefulness. They are unaware of the steps and process to take. That quest leads a number of these good men to Freemasonry which is a valued institution to help them learn, develop and grow into the men who they have the potential to become. In our fraternity, we happily accept good men who share our values like honor, integrity, freedom, equality, tolerance, learning, brotherly love, and service to mankind. A key challenge for these good men is the ability to look beyond “the busy of life or making a living” to focus and significantly make progress in finding their “Why” or purpose. Freemasonry can help these good men move forward on that journey!

A developmental challenge for many good men is the comfort to ask for help or simply to acknowledge to others that he just does not know what he is doing. That vulnerability can feel threatening to one’s selfimage and the broader societal expectations that have been drilled into many males throughout their lives. Said differently, these males are repeatedly on-guard waiting to battle against various people or situations within their environment. Yet, many of them don’t realize the mental baggage holding them back from making real progress in their lives. In Freemasonry, we provide a Sanctuary, a safe and supportive environment in which good men can remove their figurative fighting armor, ask for assistance, learn how to trust other men, work harmoniously with people from different backgrounds and age groups, and positively contribute to the important work needed. Our unique Masonic Membership Experience helps these good men get unstuck in their personal development and enables them to advance forward.

Every Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft and Master Mason is given the opportunity to put in the important work on himself to build confidence through achieving proficiency and success in the vast world of Freemasonry. Also, critically important is the realization that he does not travel alone. He has at least one Faithful Friend and Guide assisting him on his individual Masonic Journey of Self-Improvement, along with the corresponding acquisition of knowledge.