My wife and are taking a trip to Washington, DC later this month for a long weekend to just “get away”. Our focus is intended to be on several of the Smithsonian museums, but we’ve added the George Washington Masonic Memorial to the itinerary. I’ll be writing an article recapping our adventure, and I’ll include some pictures. I’m hoping that this will give us an excellent chance to see some examples of Masonic history and memorabilia, and to learn more about Freemasonry’s role in the foundations of this country. Stay tuned….

This is my thirteenth article on my experience in Freemasonry.

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Today, I received a call from Kenny, the Master of the lodge. He said that my Entered Apprentice initiation is scheduled for 7:00PM on Tuesday, June 12.

Last week, the investigating committee contacted me, and Kenny was on the committee. We had a very nice talk that was informal and low-key, and was far from my original impression of the investigation process. It was more like a job interview than anything else, but job interviews impose more pressure. We discussed some of my beliefs, who I am, what I do for a living, how I learned about Freemasonry, etc. And the fact that Kenny was nice, polite, and far from intimidating, made our discussion so much easier. Yet at the same time, he spoke with an authority and a knowledge that echoed and confirmed with great precision those things I have been reading over the past two months. I was impressed.

Kenny told me a bit about the lodge, what the next steps were, and what to expect. The lodge is the "Divver" lodge #349 in Anderson, South Carolina. It is one of three lodges in the area. Interestingly, it is not the lodge that my friend Roger is a member of. (Roger is the Masonic friend from church who I asked about joining.) But a number of church members that I know attend Divver, so I won’t feel like a complete outsider.

I found it interesting to learn that the Divver lodge is not "older leaning". Kenny said that though there are older gentlemen who are active in the lodge, the majority tend to be younger–mid 30s or so. I’m 41, so it’s great to see that kind of mix. I read so many stories on the ‘net of doom and gloom about the future of Freemasonry, yet locally, I see three very active lodges bringing in new members all the time. Maybe it’s regional, or maybe I’m just lucky, but I’m pleased to know that Freemasonry is active in my town.

So, the investigating committee reported favorably, the lodge voted to accept me, and on June 12, I go to the lodge by 6:30pm to go over some preliminary things. Then, at 7:00PM, the Entered Apprentice degree work begins. It’s been a couple months since I turned in my petition, and the wait has been long, but very rewarding. I’ve learned a lot about Freemasonry, and can’t wait to make the next step to become an Entered Apprentice.

I’ll post a follow-up article after the initiation.

This is my ninth article about my experience in Freemasonry.

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I’ve been a bit concerned lately because I have not yet had any contact with the investigating committee. The next lodge meeting is Tuesday, June 5th, and I’ve been afraid that if I don’t get contacted, I’ll have to wait another month. I’m taking it all in stride, understanding that the summer is a very busy time, so we’ll see how this plays out. But I am now greatly encouraged, because I found out a couple things appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel….

Yesterday, I spoke with Justin, a Past Master of the lodge and friend from church, and he said that someone from the investigating committee would be contacting me on Monday the 4th, and if that goes OK, then the lodge would vote on me at the meeting on the 5th.

I also spoke with Roger, my Masonic friend from church, and he explained a few more things about what I can expect. He said that they would schedule the initiation for about two weeks or so after the lodge votes on me. In fact, he said that if I put my mind to it, I could be initiated, passed, and raised by September. I was concerned about the summer months, but he said that unlike many other lodges, this lodge does not "go dark" during the summer, so I could progress during that time. I’m certainly not going to push anything–heck, I need to get initiated first!–but it’s still encouraging.

So, I am reading many of the articles aggregated on the King Solomon’s Lodge site,  I continue to read and study what I can, and i continue to look for resources that might be useful and interesting. Roger said that once I am initiated, that he has lots of good resources for me to read and study. He’s a history buff, and I share that interest a bit, so I anticipate learning lots.

This is my eighth article about my experience in Freemasonry.

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A couple days ago, I received a letter from the Lodge secretary officially informing me that the Lodge had voted on and accepted my petition, an investigating committee was formed, and that they would contact me soon. The letter also said that the results of the committee would be presented and voted on at the June 5 meeting.

I called the secretary to let him know that I received the letter, and he was great to talk with! Unlike the letter, he was very informal. He was friendly, and gave me some additional information about what to expect from the investigating committee. Again, it was all very informal. I’m anxious to meet with the Lodge members (so far, I’ve only met just a couple.) If the balance of the membership is anything like the several Masons I have recently met, I think I’ll be in good company!

One point of note is that I was very intrigued by one aspect of the letter, just as I was by the petition: the wording, the embossed Lodge seal, the formality. But it wasn’t just a bunch of legal mumbo-jumbo. It had an air of historical relevance or rootedness. It had a formality about it that is very unusual for this time. It’s difficult to articulate, but these points are things that paint a picture of seriousness and importance. On one hand, I see informal Masons, and yet I see seriousness in the administration that I don’t see anywhere else.

So, I continue to wait while the process moves forward, but the waiting has been very fruitful. As I stated in earlier posts, I’ve been reading and reading and reading. I’m so fascinated by the history and the symbolism, and can’t wait to go deeper to learn more.

Oh, and the Blogs. Wow! I have found a number of Masonic blogs that I frequent, and have read lots of great (and not so great) articles spanning the spectrum of Masonic blogging. Some of the articles are a bit over my head, simply because haven’t been exposed to some of the discussed content, but overall, I’m enjoying some great reads. And I am especially enjoying the blogs by prospective and new Masons. It’s interesting and encouraging to read the stories and personal experiences of others around the world. Hopefully, someone out there will find my musings interesting!

Finally, one visitor here asked me where I’m from, inquiring that maybe I live near him. Well, I’m currently living in Anderson, South Carolina in the good ol’ U.S.A, having moved a few years ago from the Chicago area. Anderson is in the beautiful Upstate of South Carolina where my wife and I are enjoying the open spaces, friendly people, a deep Faith, and solid morals of most of the people we have met. No, it’s not Eden, but it’s a fresh change from the big city life of Chicago.

Oh, and I also found out that there are three Lodges in my area. Maybe that’s not unusual for a dense, metropolitan area, but for a town of 27,000 in a county of about 175,000, it seems like a lot. And the consensus among the Masons I spoke with is that all are fine Lodges.

More later as things progress….

This is my seventh article about my experience in Freemasonry.

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I told my Mason friend from church that I was reading the book “Freemasons For Dummies”. Though he had not heard of it, he was pleased to see that I was taking the initiative to learn and study Freemasonry. I told him that I was getting anxious about waiting for the process to unfold, and he said that this is “a time of waiting and patience”. In some Lodges, things can move forward very quickly. In others, things can take a while. For me, it seems to be the later. I want things to move forward, and I know they are (apparantly a lot happens behind the scenes) it’s just that sometimes I don’t like waiting. But you know, it’s a good lesson in patience that I’m grateful for.

I’m really enjoying reading and learning the history of Freemasonry. I’m almost done with the “Freemasons For Dummies” book, and I continue to be fascinated by what it presents. For example, I never knew that the Boy Scounts and its honor organization the “Order Of The Arrow” (OA) had some roots in Freemasonry. While they are not Masonic organizations, many of their founders were Masons, and Masonic influence is very evident in ceremonies and moral teachings. This really hit home for me because I received the Eagle Scout award while I was a Scout, and I was elected by my troop to receive the Ordeal honor in OA (Ordeal being the the first “level” of OA) and I later took the Brotherhood honor. In college, I pledged the Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity, which is an offshoot of the Boy Scouts. It did have its social elements, but its main goal was brotherhood and service.

So I do have some familiarity with involvement in fraternal organizations, and I have had the honor of achieving goals of moral and fraternal importance. As an adult, I am no longer active in these organizations, but interestingly, the Scout Oath and Law, and the OA Obligation do cross my mind frequently. I guess the lessons I learned as a child form those organizations have stuck with me.

So, as I continue to wait and be patient, I also continue to read my book, and explore online. Despite the proliferation of anti-Masonic articles, there are many informative and interesting articles and blogs to explore. It’s very interesting to read the history of Freemasonry, how it has influenced society, and, more importantly, what other Masons went through and how they perceive Freemasonry.

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It seems that the topic of Freemasonry can pop up just about anywhere. I was having breakfast with a friend from church when the subject of Freemasonry came up. My friend is not a mason, but he told me that a number of our church members are. I had seen a lapel pin here and there on several of them, but I never gave it much thought. But after hearing a brief list of some church members who were Masons, I was intrigued. My first thought was, “How can these blatantly Godly men be Satan worshipers?” Obviously, I had some pre-conceptions of Freemasonry, so I decided to do some research to see just what it was all about. So began my journey.

Being an Internet geek, I started at the obvious places: Google and Wikipedia. As with most topics on the Internet, I was overwhelmed by the volume of information. It was also a bit discouraging because it seemed that for all the positive and informative Masonic sites I found, there were just as many if not more negative and anti-Masonic sites. On one hand, I read information on pro-Masonic sites that sounded above board and legitimate, and on the other hand, I read the conspiracy theories and claims about Freemasonry’s supposed “true” origins, involvements, and agendas. Some of these sites are quite convincing, and they do have some excellent information, but after a while, I became skeptical of many of the claims of the anti-Masonic view. I was reading one  anti-Masonic blog that appeared to have some excellent and interesting information…up to the point where it referenced the “Moon Landing Hoax”! That’s when the alarm bells went off, and I realized that my perusal of Masonic information had simply confirmed what I have always known: The Internet continues to be filled with lots of crackpots and paranoid people sporting tin-foil hats.

Are some of the anti-Masonic sites worth reading? In fairness, I have to say yes. After all, I believe that it’s important to understand all sides of an issue. Just try to be discerning about what both sides have to say. It was at this point that I stumbled upon the site MasonicInfo.com. At first, I thought it was yet another anti-Masonic site. But it turns out that it is a very pro-Masonic site that includes lots of interesting anti-Masonic information with responses, rebuttals, and explanations from a Masonic perspective. I found it to be very informative, and I was impressed that it presented both sides of the story. I especially liked the “Masonic Primer” section which contains lots of interesting historical and practical information about the “who”, “what”, and “why” of Freemasonry. For anyone interested in Freemasonry, I suggest you check this site out. It is rich with information, and well worth the read.

One interesting consistency I found with many pro-Masonic sites is that they tend to provide just enough information to get you interested in what Freemasonry is, but they don’t reveal everything about it. Many Masons will tell you that there are many things about Freemasonry that simply need to be experienced. In contrast, many of the anti-Masonic sites tend to want to reveal everything to the visitor. Again, this makes sense, as the apparent goal of many anti-Masonic sites is to “expose” Freemasonry. If you want to read the details of the rituals, and learn all of Freemasonry’s “secrets”, there are numerous sources, and they are available. But if you are at all interested in joining, then I’d recommend that it’s probably best to avoid those sources and just experience things as they come. I’ve chosen not to dig too deep, for should I decide to join, I don’t want to “spoil” anything.

Do take the time to research and learn. There are lots of misconceptions and misunderstandings about what Freemasonry is and isn’t. Heck, if nothing else, you are in for some interesting reading!

This is my first article about my experience in Freemasonry.

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I added this Masonic Tips section to my JimsTips.com site to provide you with a glimpse of my ongoing experience with Freemasonry. Despite the varied opinions and views of Freemasonry, I went into it with an open mind. Here you will find a blog of my Masonic journey, some informational articles, and some articles intended to provide objective responses to some myths surrounding Freemasonry.

The images below represent the several Masonic organizations I am involved in. They are from left to right: the Blue lodge, Royal Arch Chapter, Cryptic Council, Chivalric Commandery (Knight Templar), and the Allied Masonic Degrees (AMD).

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