A Call to Action

SERVANT LEADERSHIP IN THE QUARRIES OF FREEMASONRY

Eric B. Kuchner, PM Potomac Lodge No. 5

WB Kuchner

As I sat down in the folding chairs, the familiar smells of the lodge refectory filled my mind with memories, as the chime of the doorbell rang out—1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Brethren filled the room. With warm embraces and a quick catch up on our families, spouses, work, holidays… the committee got to work.

The warmth of camaraderie flowed among the Brethren returning from two years of less than ideal virtual meetings to our first in person committee meeting without masks—revealing the genuine, palpable, and familiar expressions of brotherly love, relief, truth, and fellowship that we all crave.

Through my experience travelling the winding roads of fifteen years of servant leadership on committees serving our Craft in many different roles, ranging from years of deep philosophical debates on the Grand Lodge Jurisprudence Committee to learning from other Brethren how to be a better educator and communicator while serving on the Grand Lodge Masonic Education Committee, from interviewing auditing firms as part of the Grand Lodge Accounts and Audit Committee to integrating diverse multi—generational perspectives on the Grand Lodge Strategic Resource Allocation Committee—I have come to believe that it is the Masonic Committee that forms the building blocks for Masonic action and where servant leadership is taught and refined.

Our Masonic committees are builders and movers of stone in the quarries of Freemasonry, and as such they form the learning grounds and crucible for internalizing the values and spirit of our Craft. It is our “Ethos of Giving” in action where cross—generational teams having diverse experiences, expertise, and perspectives are bound together by shared Masonic obligations, history, traditions, rituals, values, tools, outlooks, and landmarks that together form our intellectual, emotional, and physical safe space—the foundation and scaffolding for our living temple. Through our committees we build that living temple in action—as we come together to accomplish a mutual goal on behalf of others and in greater service to the Craft.

Arriving at wonderful events such as the Universal Brotherhood Celebration, the Leadership Conference, or a Lodge holiday party we often forget that behind every program is a team of Brethren. Reflecting back on my own experiences, some of the most indelible marks and deepest fraternal bonds of fellowship have grown out of coming together to solve difficult and complex problems Masonically, and from shared experiences soaking in sweat painting the refectory or hauling a truck load of Lodge furniture setting up for a Master Mason’s Degree in the pitch black of Teddy Roosevelt Island. For our newly raised Brethren glowing with excitement and energy to get involved, the committees are where you start to test drive the new values and tools that you have been freshly taught but have not yet internalized—where with awe and amazement you can witness more experienced Brethren patiently teaching mouth to ear and demonstrating the principles of the Craft through its practical application to solve a shared problem Masonically.

This is a place where we grow together as Brethren, where we practice and perfect the practical application of our Craft, and where fellowship through shared experiences forms tight and lasting bonds. It is the Masonic Committee that is the crucible for this growth, maturation, and refinement—that also helps us to shape our ability to build our lives, our families, and our communities.

I challenge all of us to become servant leaders and to get involved in our Committees, to share in the growth, fellowship, and brotherly love where our “Ethos of Giving” shines. Whether we are giving of our time, knowledge, patience, empathy, understanding, creativity, ideas, or sweat, this is a place where we grow as servant leaders and as Masons.