Preparing for the Future

Robert B. Heyat ,

Deputy Grand Master

This address was delivered at the Annual Leadership Conference of the Grand Lodge, FAAM, of the District of Columbia, in Front Royal, Virginia, on Saturday, September 16, 2006.

Peter Drucker, one of the leaders in the study of management, once said that the leaders who work most effectively, never say "I", and he says that is not because they have trained themselves not to say "I," but because they do not think "I." They think,"We," he says; they think, "Team." They understand that their role is to make the team function. They accept responsibility and do not sidestep it, but the responsibility that they accept is collective. The "We" concept creates trust and sees that the job gets done. My brethren, I am here as a member of our team.

As Freemasons we are concerned with the vision, mission and the potential influence of the ideals of the fraternity on our lives, our communities and humanity in its entirety. As a brotherhood our work is founded on solid principles that proclaim our belief in Deity and our freedom from religious dogma, and ethnic or racial prejudices. Our movement is universal in scope and millions of good men around the world have joined the fraternity in search of enlightenment. The true Mason is a man who adheres to his obligations and becomes absorbed by the spirit and the teachings of the Craft. He seeks to serve mankind within the boundary of his ability and to do good unto all in the hope of building a better world. My brethren, tremendous progress and renewal have taken place in our lodges and Grand Lodge, as a whole, over the years. We thank all those who preceded us for their hard work to keep our fraternity moving ahead while preserving the integrity of its moral foundations. Indeed, we all stand today on the shoulders of those who came before us and built our noble Craft. There should be no doubt that, having been so obligated, we will also labor together to ensure the continued prosperity of our fraternity well into the future. We must be mindful that it is in our lodges that the real work takes place; it is in our lodges that we can enrich and enable one another by working together to serve our brethren and our communities in a spirit of fellowship and charitable camaraderie. Our lodges provide the needed environment for us to grow morally and spiritually. In my visits I have sensed the unique character of each one of our lodges and appreciate the degree of diversity and richness which prevails. I take pride in the great work being done by the Worshipful Masters, officers and brethren of our lodges. There I also see young men seeking more light from their elder Brethren, actively participating in the affairs of their lodge. Your devotion to and practice of true Masonry is creating an environment of brotherly love, relief and truth and ensures the uninterrupted advancement of our ideals. Our fraternity is a Brotherhood of Man under the Fatherhood of God! Christians, Moslems and Jews, Europeans, Americans, Africans and Asians, all believing in the same principles and ideals, come together and work together in harmony and unison, sharing their ideas and ideals, their joys and sorrows. We should all be proud that our jurisdiction is an oasis of tolerance, fraternal love, justice, peace and freedom in a world that is increasingly thirsting for these virtues.

My brethren, while we are proud of who we are and where we stand as a fraternity, much remains to be done. We must continue the building process by going back to the trestle board in imitation of our Grand Master Hiram Abiff and developing together, as a team, visionary strategies, successful tactics and measurable goals. What does this mean?

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