THE PAST AS PROLOGUE
The Past as Prologue William T. Rule Assistant Grand Lecturer
n my family I am at least a fourth generation Mason. Although I came late to the Craft, I eventually knocked at the door because of the men my father and grandfather were and because of the men they associated with. I am also a product of small-town Masonry even though I did not become a Mason before coming to Washington: the men I knew who were Masons were the backbone of the small communities I grew up in. I thought it might be because of this small-town background that I came to question the current state of the Craft, but I now think not.
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Two pieces from the Indiana Freemason Magazine convinced me that I am not alone: Whither Are We Traveling? and Why This Confusion in the Temple? They laid out a series of questions and pitfalls that focus on some critical issues for the Craft. Authored by Dwight Smith, PGM of the Grand Lodge of Indiana and originally published nearly 40 years ago, they have remarkable relevance today; so much so that a series of discussions between 2003 and 2005 among Masons from various backgrounds led to the publication of Laudable Pursuit: A 21st Century Response to Dwight Smith. All of these articles can be found easily through an internet search and I encourage you to get them and read them. I repeat the questions and pitfalls below: Questions 1. How can we expect Freemasonry to retain its past glory and prestige unless the level of leadership is raised above its present position? 2. How well are we guarding the West Gate? 3. Has Freemasonry become too easy to obtain? 4. Are we not worshipping at the altar of bigness? 5. What can we expect when we have permitted Freemasonry to become subdivided into a score of organizations? 6. Has the American passion for bigness and efficiency dulled the spirit of Masonic charity? 7. Do we pay enough attention to the Festive Board?
While Master of Federal Lodge, I used the Lodge’s Trestleboard from time to time to try to encourage reflection on the basic principles of Masonry. I also argued there and elsewhere that we may have, perhaps, wandered a bit too far from the path our Masonic ancestors walked. I have even gone so far as to suggest that our members, and especially our younger members, may be looking for a good deal more than they are currently getting, and that if we are to keep them and attract more men of the kind Masonry needs, we must change our ways.
The Voice of Freemasonry
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8. What has become of that “course of moral instruction, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols,” that Freemasonry is supposed to be? 9. Hasn’t the so-called Century of the Common Man contributed to making our Fraternity a little too common? 10. Are there not too many well-meaning Brethren who are working overtime to make Freemasonry something other than Freemasonry?
