1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 3 00:01:32,475 --> 00:01:34,975 - I became a Freemason because 4 00:01:35,862 --> 00:01:37,700 I was obsessed with understanding 5 00:01:37,700 --> 00:01:40,554 what death was at a very young age. 6 00:01:40,554 --> 00:01:42,221 I was born in Spain. 7 00:01:44,193 --> 00:01:47,706 My mother worked for the government 8 00:01:47,706 --> 00:01:50,623 and my father was in the Air Force. 9 00:01:51,597 --> 00:01:54,800 It was pretty soon when we moved to New York 10 00:01:54,800 --> 00:01:57,251 that my parents got divorced, 11 00:01:57,251 --> 00:02:00,763 and then my mother remarried to my step-father. 12 00:02:00,763 --> 00:02:02,767 As I grew up my step-dad became 13 00:02:02,767 --> 00:02:04,399 the prominent figure in my life. 14 00:02:04,399 --> 00:02:07,985 He was my hockey coach, I played ice hockey for 13 years. 15 00:02:07,985 --> 00:02:11,568 On December 26th, 1991, I was 14 years old. 16 00:02:13,657 --> 00:02:15,368 It was the night after Christmas 17 00:02:15,368 --> 00:02:18,868 and my step-father died of a heart attack. 18 00:02:20,499 --> 00:02:22,958 After my dad has died, I really was looking 19 00:02:22,958 --> 00:02:25,443 for an answer for why this happens. 20 00:02:25,443 --> 00:02:29,106 It sent me on this journey to understand 21 00:02:29,106 --> 00:02:31,606 what this was, why it happens, 22 00:02:32,706 --> 00:02:34,370 and then what happens after you die, 23 00:02:34,370 --> 00:02:37,953 is there something, is there not something? 24 00:02:40,966 --> 00:02:43,447 Part of what this story's about is 25 00:02:43,447 --> 00:02:47,614 the quest of going as deep as you can into the unknown. 26 00:02:53,513 --> 00:02:56,263 - So as the story starts, we have 27 00:02:57,234 --> 00:02:59,651 some very peculiar questions. 28 00:03:03,021 --> 00:03:06,610 The fundamental message of masonry is 29 00:03:06,610 --> 00:03:10,777 truly man's pursuit of communion with his creator. 30 00:03:17,165 --> 00:03:21,033 And masonry is a very unique and ancient 31 00:03:21,033 --> 00:03:24,533 age old repository of wisdom and knowledge 32 00:03:25,640 --> 00:03:28,173 that has been preserved through the ages 33 00:03:28,173 --> 00:03:30,941 and gives a whole new perspective 34 00:03:30,941 --> 00:03:34,892 to the man looking to understand who he is, 35 00:03:34,892 --> 00:03:38,029 where he has come from, what he is to be doing, 36 00:03:38,029 --> 00:03:40,187 and his ultimate direction. 37 00:03:40,187 --> 00:03:43,683 Masonry provides all of the tools 38 00:03:43,683 --> 00:03:45,841 for a man to think about that, 39 00:03:45,841 --> 00:03:49,679 and to come to grips with who he really is. 40 00:03:49,679 --> 00:03:52,815 If you can think, you're probably 41 00:03:52,815 --> 00:03:55,148 a good prospect for masonry. 42 00:03:56,681 --> 00:03:58,877 If you can't think, it's probably better 43 00:03:58,877 --> 00:04:02,421 to follow the 10 steps to salivation 44 00:04:02,421 --> 00:04:04,671 that most folks ascribe to. 45 00:04:05,632 --> 00:04:09,019 Masonry is not for those folks. 46 00:04:09,019 --> 00:04:11,630 - Freemasonry has been a part of my life 47 00:04:11,630 --> 00:04:13,713 since the day I was born. 48 00:04:16,964 --> 00:04:20,028 Generations of my family have been masons. 49 00:04:20,028 --> 00:04:22,111 It's not been continuous. 50 00:04:23,206 --> 00:04:26,218 If memory serves, we can count back 51 00:04:26,218 --> 00:04:29,348 to a seventh generation Freemason. 52 00:04:29,348 --> 00:04:32,454 My father's a Freemason, my grandfather's a Freemason, 53 00:04:32,454 --> 00:04:34,757 my great grandfather was a Freemason. 54 00:04:34,757 --> 00:04:36,590 I don't think I really 55 00:04:38,857 --> 00:04:42,607 understood it until I was much older in life. 56 00:04:45,988 --> 00:04:50,054 Frankly, I'm not even sure that I fully understand it now. 57 00:04:50,054 --> 00:04:52,906 I think that's one of the beauties of Freemasonry 58 00:04:52,906 --> 00:04:57,104 is that it's not something you're going to 59 00:04:57,104 --> 00:04:59,387 necessarily be taught in a day. 60 00:04:59,387 --> 00:05:02,773 It's a lifelong commitment and a journey. 61 00:05:02,773 --> 00:05:05,781 Frankly, there are some men who enter Freemasonry 62 00:05:05,781 --> 00:05:07,364 and don't continue. 63 00:05:08,717 --> 00:05:11,443 There were thoughts that I would be one of those men 64 00:05:11,443 --> 00:05:16,380 because I joined Freemasonry at a relatively young age 65 00:05:16,380 --> 00:05:19,069 and didn't come back for five years, 66 00:05:19,069 --> 00:05:22,736 until I met some guys from a lodge where I'm 67 00:05:23,637 --> 00:05:27,061 a Past Master of now, and I just, 68 00:05:27,061 --> 00:05:28,653 as soon as I met these guys, I'm like 69 00:05:28,653 --> 00:05:31,303 these are the dudes that I want to hang out with, 70 00:05:31,303 --> 00:05:34,839 and that was it, that was really a turning point 71 00:05:34,839 --> 00:05:37,567 and after five years from becoming an Entered Apprentice 72 00:05:37,567 --> 00:05:40,832 I said duh, it's time to continue. 73 00:05:40,832 --> 00:05:44,749 From that point forward for seven, eight years, 74 00:05:45,779 --> 00:05:47,696 I was there every week. 75 00:05:48,628 --> 00:05:51,725 - Freemasonry of course is traditionally thought of 76 00:05:51,725 --> 00:05:55,892 as the world's oldest and largest fraternity for men. 77 00:05:59,584 --> 00:06:02,390 A true statement, it is a fraternity, 78 00:06:02,390 --> 00:06:05,372 it has always been a fraternity. 79 00:06:05,372 --> 00:06:08,789 It has been an organization that promotes 80 00:06:10,490 --> 00:06:14,694 the interests of men, or at least traditionally. 81 00:06:14,694 --> 00:06:16,396 That was its purpose. 82 00:06:16,396 --> 00:06:18,355 There's a lot of theories of origin 83 00:06:18,355 --> 00:06:21,355 about the fraternity, and it in fact 84 00:06:22,429 --> 00:06:25,118 has been around for so many years 85 00:06:25,118 --> 00:06:28,669 we're not real sure where we came from, 86 00:06:28,669 --> 00:06:31,752 but the most popular theory of origin 87 00:06:33,057 --> 00:06:37,057 and the theory that is supported by most Masonic 88 00:06:38,968 --> 00:06:42,385 scholarship today is that we evolved from 89 00:06:43,540 --> 00:06:45,372 the builder's guilds, the operative 90 00:06:45,372 --> 00:06:47,872 Freemasons of the Middle Ages. 91 00:06:52,974 --> 00:06:56,974 - It's a means by which men can coordinate with men, 92 00:06:56,974 --> 00:06:59,474 can have fellowship with them, 93 00:07:00,632 --> 00:07:04,292 but it's really much much more than that. 94 00:07:04,292 --> 00:07:08,420 It's a means by which you discover your own identity. 95 00:07:08,420 --> 00:07:12,403 It's a process in which you learn who you are 96 00:07:12,403 --> 00:07:14,356 and gain some idea of what you're 97 00:07:14,356 --> 00:07:17,439 supposed to be doing in the universe. 98 00:07:19,242 --> 00:07:23,103 - Freemasonry is not a secret organization, 99 00:07:23,103 --> 00:07:26,036 but it is an organization that has certain 100 00:07:26,036 --> 00:07:28,889 modes of recognition, ways in which masons 101 00:07:28,889 --> 00:07:31,329 make themselves known to one another 102 00:07:31,329 --> 00:07:33,496 that we keep confidential. 103 00:07:36,529 --> 00:07:39,340 Indeed, the whole ceremony of receiving that 104 00:07:39,340 --> 00:07:42,275 and being exposed to the basic principles of Freemasonry 105 00:07:42,275 --> 00:07:44,955 we also keep confidential. 106 00:07:44,955 --> 00:07:47,821 We keep these things confidential because 107 00:07:47,821 --> 00:07:51,904 they heighten the experience of becoming a mason. 108 00:07:54,073 --> 00:07:58,001 They are essentially based on the working tools 109 00:07:58,001 --> 00:08:01,715 and technics of the operative masons. 110 00:08:01,715 --> 00:08:06,288 Freemasonry is not really an intellectual exercise 111 00:08:06,288 --> 00:08:09,636 as much as it is an emotional, spiritual 112 00:08:09,636 --> 00:08:11,803 and experiential exercise. 113 00:08:13,359 --> 00:08:16,205 - I ended up moving to London for a short period of time. 114 00:08:16,205 --> 00:08:18,433 I studied abroad there. 115 00:08:18,433 --> 00:08:21,859 One day, I got a little too drunk 116 00:08:21,859 --> 00:08:26,685 and I ended up getting lost and just wondering around London 117 00:08:26,685 --> 00:08:30,395 and I ended up on Great Queen Street 118 00:08:30,395 --> 00:08:34,218 and I saw this building when I turned around. 119 00:08:34,218 --> 00:08:36,761 I'd never really seen a building that looked like that, 120 00:08:36,761 --> 00:08:38,859 it was very very unique. 121 00:08:38,859 --> 00:08:40,755 I remember above the doors of the building, 122 00:08:40,755 --> 00:08:42,606 high above the doors there were these 123 00:08:42,606 --> 00:08:45,156 two symbols and they were the symbols of 124 00:08:45,156 --> 00:08:47,625 the square and compass, the symbols of the Freemasons. 125 00:08:47,625 --> 00:08:51,071 I would try to find anything that I could about 126 00:08:51,071 --> 00:08:53,506 what the building was and then I found out okay, 127 00:08:53,506 --> 00:08:55,827 it's for this group called the Freemasons 128 00:08:55,827 --> 00:09:00,267 and then I started reading different authors 129 00:09:00,267 --> 00:09:02,732 Masonic authors like Mackey, and Albert Pike, 130 00:09:02,732 --> 00:09:06,629 and different scholars and essays, anything I could find. 131 00:09:06,629 --> 00:09:09,060 The more I read about masonry, the more interested 132 00:09:09,060 --> 00:09:12,278 I became in it because not only 133 00:09:12,278 --> 00:09:15,116 did it have the same types of principles 134 00:09:15,116 --> 00:09:18,779 and philosophies that I was already interested in, 135 00:09:18,779 --> 00:09:23,187 but some of the men that had passed through masonry's 136 00:09:23,187 --> 00:09:27,539 doors were pretty big idols of mine like Mozart, 137 00:09:27,539 --> 00:09:31,706 Voltaire, and Benjamin Franklin, George Washington. 138 00:09:32,873 --> 00:09:35,040 Some of the greatest minds 139 00:09:35,875 --> 00:09:39,674 from human history had been a part of this. 140 00:09:39,674 --> 00:09:41,123 I thought to myself, there has to be 141 00:09:41,123 --> 00:09:44,423 something to this if all of these geniuses, 142 00:09:44,423 --> 00:09:48,835 if all of these great men have been a part of this, 143 00:09:48,835 --> 00:09:51,532 this society, there's definitely something to it. 144 00:09:51,532 --> 00:09:54,146 What really resonated with me is that Freemasonry 145 00:09:54,146 --> 00:09:57,652 believes that all men are created equal. 146 00:09:57,652 --> 00:10:01,819 - In masonry, one of the important parts of the mythos 147 00:10:03,399 --> 00:10:06,624 is the widow's son, and it so turns out 148 00:10:06,624 --> 00:10:08,934 that I actually am indeed a widow's son, 149 00:10:08,934 --> 00:10:11,767 my father passed when I was young. 150 00:10:12,989 --> 00:10:15,210 I was at my mom's house going through 151 00:10:15,210 --> 00:10:18,069 just a bunch of junk she had and I found this mug, 152 00:10:18,069 --> 00:10:20,438 and this mug was full of pencils 153 00:10:20,438 --> 00:10:23,050 and it had the double headed eagle on it 154 00:10:23,050 --> 00:10:26,112 and it said Scottish Rite Spring Formal 155 00:10:26,112 --> 00:10:29,383 and through my studies, I recognized that as a Masonic sign. 156 00:10:29,383 --> 00:10:32,084 It didn't say masonry, it didn't have a square and compass, 157 00:10:32,084 --> 00:10:34,613 but I knew that the Scottish Rite was 158 00:10:34,613 --> 00:10:36,369 one of the branches of masonry and I 159 00:10:36,369 --> 00:10:38,491 was like whoa, this is really cool. 160 00:10:38,491 --> 00:10:40,002 I went to my mother and I asked her, 161 00:10:40,002 --> 00:10:41,999 "Mom, why do you have this mug? 162 00:10:41,999 --> 00:10:43,427 "Where did you get this from?" 163 00:10:43,427 --> 00:10:47,466 and she said, "Oh, that was one of your dad's mason cups." 164 00:10:47,466 --> 00:10:48,446 I go, "What are you talking about?" 165 00:10:48,446 --> 00:10:49,882 She goes, "Your dad was a mason and we 166 00:10:49,882 --> 00:10:52,453 "went to this spring formal for the Scottish Rite, 167 00:10:52,453 --> 00:10:53,879 "and they gave that to us." 168 00:10:53,879 --> 00:10:56,417 And I was just blown away. 169 00:10:56,417 --> 00:11:00,250 It's like something had led me to that moment 170 00:11:00,250 --> 00:11:03,716 to affirm what I'd always felt inside. 171 00:11:03,716 --> 00:11:06,006 It felt like a whole world opened up to me then 172 00:11:06,006 --> 00:11:08,452 because I was still one of the uninitiated. 173 00:11:08,452 --> 00:11:11,431 I was one that still thought you had to be 174 00:11:11,431 --> 00:11:14,980 part of a bloodline or part of a legacy per se 175 00:11:14,980 --> 00:11:17,880 to become a mason and I had tingles 176 00:11:17,880 --> 00:11:19,001 all over myself because I felt like 177 00:11:19,001 --> 00:11:22,893 oh wow, I actually qualify to belong to this secret order, 178 00:11:22,893 --> 00:11:26,393 this mysterious group, this is part of me. 179 00:11:28,554 --> 00:11:32,144 That only inspired me to do more research, 180 00:11:32,144 --> 00:11:34,144 to actually start looking into lodges 181 00:11:34,144 --> 00:11:36,811 in my hometown of Boston, Texas. 182 00:11:38,598 --> 00:11:40,196 - Primarily I was intrigued because 183 00:11:40,196 --> 00:11:42,895 of the overlap between Freemasonry, 184 00:11:42,895 --> 00:11:47,062 other secret societies, and ancient mystery cults. 185 00:11:48,446 --> 00:11:51,066 My big thing was ancient Egypt 186 00:11:51,066 --> 00:11:54,733 so that led to my study of the phenomenon of 187 00:11:56,457 --> 00:11:58,309 mystery cults and secret societies 188 00:11:58,309 --> 00:12:00,976 and their inspiration from Greek 189 00:12:02,850 --> 00:12:07,017 and Roman and also Egyptian style secret societies. 190 00:12:10,802 --> 00:12:12,452 - In Jamaica's a little bit interesting 191 00:12:12,452 --> 00:12:15,868 because I grew up in a community called Oxford Spring 192 00:12:15,868 --> 00:12:18,733 and within the community's little bit rural 193 00:12:18,733 --> 00:12:21,020 and so a lot of the folks are not aware 194 00:12:21,020 --> 00:12:23,603 of Freemasonry as it were, but, 195 00:12:24,538 --> 00:12:26,448 they would see rituals being done, 196 00:12:26,448 --> 00:12:29,150 especially at funerals and they wonder what this is, 197 00:12:29,150 --> 00:12:31,069 and so a lot of folks would recognize this 198 00:12:31,069 --> 00:12:33,833 as oh, the blackheart man, because they 199 00:12:33,833 --> 00:12:36,205 were all dressed in black and white. 200 00:12:36,205 --> 00:12:38,939 I started understanding that masonry 201 00:12:38,939 --> 00:12:42,545 was really nothing more than a brotherhood, 202 00:12:42,545 --> 00:12:44,138 but at the time because they were referring 203 00:12:44,138 --> 00:12:46,016 to these men as the blackheart men, 204 00:12:46,016 --> 00:12:48,339 you thought these men were dangerous men, 205 00:12:48,339 --> 00:12:50,876 men who were diabolic in their nature 206 00:12:50,876 --> 00:12:53,446 and who wanted to really dominant, take over, 207 00:12:53,446 --> 00:12:56,796 and control everything, but that was not really the case. 208 00:12:56,796 --> 00:12:59,365 Good thing is I grew with a man who understood 209 00:12:59,365 --> 00:13:01,651 the nature of what masonry's all about 210 00:13:01,651 --> 00:13:03,977 and they exhibit those type of attributes 211 00:13:03,977 --> 00:13:06,362 and I was one of those persons who 212 00:13:06,362 --> 00:13:08,771 learned from him, understood many things 213 00:13:08,771 --> 00:13:13,492 where masonry was concerned, but he still did not tell me 214 00:13:13,492 --> 00:13:15,826 the whole spectrum so I became 215 00:13:15,826 --> 00:13:18,152 interested in learning about it myself. 216 00:13:18,152 --> 00:13:20,769 - If you don't know a mason and you want to become a mason, 217 00:13:20,769 --> 00:13:23,852 it's a simple search of the internet. 218 00:13:24,725 --> 00:13:26,438 You can find a local lodge. 219 00:13:26,438 --> 00:13:28,888 - Most guys petition the lodge because 220 00:13:28,888 --> 00:13:30,721 there's something inside them, 221 00:13:30,721 --> 00:13:33,494 whether it was stimulated by their dad, 222 00:13:33,494 --> 00:13:36,470 or by their grandfather, or by their neighbor, 223 00:13:36,470 --> 00:13:40,227 or their great uncle Joe, it's immaterial. 224 00:13:40,227 --> 00:13:42,765 The fact of the matter is is that most guys 225 00:13:42,765 --> 00:13:45,910 are stimulated to seek the lodge 226 00:13:45,910 --> 00:13:48,980 and knock upon its door because 227 00:13:48,980 --> 00:13:51,273 there is a yearning within them. 228 00:13:51,273 --> 00:13:54,376 Now they may not cognitively recognize this, 229 00:13:54,376 --> 00:13:58,129 it may not be in their conscious awareness, 230 00:13:58,129 --> 00:13:59,832 but they know, they have a feeling, 231 00:13:59,832 --> 00:14:03,312 there's a drive that pushes them 232 00:14:03,312 --> 00:14:05,729 toward the door of the lodge. 233 00:14:14,442 --> 00:14:17,163 - Once you have gone through the process 234 00:14:17,163 --> 00:14:20,216 of getting to know a lodge, you are then 235 00:14:20,216 --> 00:14:24,946 essentially given a application if you so request, 236 00:14:24,946 --> 00:14:28,034 and you fill out the application, 237 00:14:28,034 --> 00:14:31,726 you let them know that you're not an atheist or a felon 238 00:14:31,726 --> 00:14:34,984 essentially, that you are of legal age, 239 00:14:34,984 --> 00:14:37,614 and once the application is put in, 240 00:14:37,614 --> 00:14:39,320 it's voted on in lodge. 241 00:14:39,320 --> 00:14:42,120 - There has to be a unanimous vote in the lodge, 242 00:14:42,120 --> 00:14:44,834 that way no one is coming in that 243 00:14:44,834 --> 00:14:46,340 someone might have an issue with. 244 00:14:46,340 --> 00:14:49,090 They might look at another lodge. 245 00:14:51,088 --> 00:14:54,005 We want our guys who are interested 246 00:14:55,125 --> 00:14:58,919 to really meet the brothers of the lodge. 247 00:14:58,919 --> 00:15:01,528 We think it's gonna create a longer lasting 248 00:15:01,528 --> 00:15:04,758 connection because you have just a better 249 00:15:04,758 --> 00:15:06,960 understanding of who everybody is and 250 00:15:06,960 --> 00:15:09,543 if you're gonna jive with them. 251 00:15:16,179 --> 00:15:19,451 - To become a mason you must believe in a supreme being, 252 00:15:19,451 --> 00:15:21,656 however you might define that, 253 00:15:21,656 --> 00:15:25,330 and you must also believe in a future existence. 254 00:15:25,330 --> 00:15:28,722 Again, however you might define that. 255 00:15:28,722 --> 00:15:32,889 - Freemasons believe that there is an inherent need in men, 256 00:15:37,224 --> 00:15:39,641 to be initiated into manhood. 257 00:15:43,683 --> 00:15:47,850 There needs to be a set of moral and ethical guidelines 258 00:15:52,139 --> 00:15:56,306 that teach a man what the journey of mature masculinity is. 259 00:16:00,837 --> 00:16:04,472 To take a young man from sort of the impetuosity 260 00:16:04,472 --> 00:16:08,267 of youth to the mature masculine soul. 261 00:16:08,267 --> 00:16:10,430 - Joesph Campbell among others talks about 262 00:16:10,430 --> 00:16:13,597 the enormous importance of initiation. 263 00:16:15,002 --> 00:16:17,903 He talks about the fact that for women, 264 00:16:17,903 --> 00:16:21,698 it's not necessary because nature tells a woman 265 00:16:21,698 --> 00:16:25,575 unmistakably when she is no longer a girl, 266 00:16:25,575 --> 00:16:27,333 when she is a woman, it's dramatic, 267 00:16:27,333 --> 00:16:30,000 it's powerful, it's inescapable. 268 00:16:34,158 --> 00:16:37,908 Men don't become fully autonomous adult males 269 00:16:40,400 --> 00:16:43,794 without some form of initiation. 270 00:16:43,794 --> 00:16:46,817 For many it's the military or some other organization 271 00:16:46,817 --> 00:16:49,186 like that but if you go way back in history, 272 00:16:49,186 --> 00:16:52,869 in every society which we have record, 273 00:16:52,869 --> 00:16:55,360 there's been a necessary moment, 274 00:16:55,360 --> 00:17:00,100 a necessary point in which the man goes through 275 00:17:00,100 --> 00:17:03,568 a ceremony, a ritual, an understanding 276 00:17:03,568 --> 00:17:05,609 which divides his life and he talks 277 00:17:05,609 --> 00:17:07,737 about things which happen before 278 00:17:07,737 --> 00:17:09,305 and things which happened after. 279 00:18:39,807 --> 00:18:43,974 - Even a little bit of light can dispel much darkness. 280 00:18:52,366 --> 00:18:53,199 Brethren. 281 00:18:54,036 --> 00:18:57,098 The soul passes to a point in the Masonic journey 282 00:18:57,098 --> 00:18:59,629 when our minds were first about to behold 283 00:18:59,629 --> 00:19:03,666 the light of Freemasonry, before the light, 284 00:19:03,666 --> 00:19:06,416 there was a sound that commanded. 285 00:19:07,850 --> 00:19:12,244 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, 286 00:19:12,244 --> 00:19:15,117 and the earth was void and without thorn, 287 00:19:15,117 --> 00:19:19,131 and darkness was upon the face of the deep. 288 00:19:19,131 --> 00:19:22,048 And God said, "Let there be light." 289 00:19:23,491 --> 00:19:25,209 Think about it. 290 00:19:25,209 --> 00:19:27,431 We're talking big bang. 291 00:19:27,431 --> 00:19:32,179 Creation, the beginning of becoming a Freemason. 292 00:19:32,179 --> 00:19:34,787 The first injunction upon all creation 293 00:19:34,787 --> 00:19:38,515 and upon us as newly initiated masons 294 00:19:38,515 --> 00:19:40,098 let there be light. 295 00:19:41,577 --> 00:19:44,761 Brethren, I submit to you that these words 296 00:19:44,761 --> 00:19:47,460 are the purpose of life and the foundation 297 00:19:47,460 --> 00:19:51,627 of all that we were meant to do as men and as masons. 298 00:19:55,011 --> 00:19:57,928 - The Blue Lodge is considered your 299 00:19:59,587 --> 00:20:01,586 first experience in Freemasonry and that 300 00:20:01,586 --> 00:20:05,016 consists of three degrees, the Entered Apprentice Degree, 301 00:20:05,016 --> 00:20:07,953 which is the First Degree, the Fellow Craft Degree, 302 00:20:07,953 --> 00:20:10,977 which is the Second Degree, and the Master Mason Degree 303 00:20:10,977 --> 00:20:12,729 which is the Third Degree. 304 00:20:12,729 --> 00:20:15,706 Once you have completed those three degrees, 305 00:20:15,706 --> 00:20:18,968 you are considered a Master Mason. 306 00:20:18,968 --> 00:20:21,262 - Still to this day the First Degree of Masonry, 307 00:20:21,262 --> 00:20:22,609 the Entered Apprentice is one of the most 308 00:20:22,609 --> 00:20:26,042 beautiful things I've ever experienced in my life. 309 00:20:26,042 --> 00:20:30,209 It feels like almost like you're a new planet being born, 310 00:20:32,199 --> 00:20:33,859 but you're in a state of darkness, 311 00:20:33,859 --> 00:20:36,794 like you're revolving in this orbit, 312 00:20:36,794 --> 00:20:39,003 because you're literally traveling in the lodge 313 00:20:39,003 --> 00:20:41,492 in an orbital fashion, you're not going 314 00:20:41,492 --> 00:20:43,912 in a specific square pattern, or you're not 315 00:20:43,912 --> 00:20:47,412 going in a triangle, you're like orbiting. 316 00:20:49,450 --> 00:20:51,533 It felt like, like I was, 317 00:20:55,518 --> 00:20:59,109 like I had been born into this new life 318 00:20:59,109 --> 00:21:01,525 and I knew everything from my life up to that point 319 00:21:01,525 --> 00:21:05,692 but I couldn't see and I was in this whole other realm. 320 00:21:08,756 --> 00:21:12,756 - It is meant to be profound and transformative. 321 00:21:13,651 --> 00:21:16,510 It is definitely a basic understanding 322 00:21:16,510 --> 00:21:19,260 of the principles of Freemasonry. 323 00:21:22,225 --> 00:21:25,853 I think in terms of being the candidate, 324 00:21:25,853 --> 00:21:29,046 it might be overwhelming because it 325 00:21:29,046 --> 00:21:33,213 may be your first experience with that type of activity, 326 00:21:35,780 --> 00:21:39,573 but it is definitely meant to be an eye opening experience. 327 00:21:39,573 --> 00:21:42,775 - When I was about to do my First Degree, 328 00:21:42,775 --> 00:21:44,789 I really didn't know what to expect. 329 00:21:44,789 --> 00:21:48,434 It was a transition of rebirth basically. 330 00:21:48,434 --> 00:21:51,737 It was something that was a new and unique 331 00:21:51,737 --> 00:21:53,945 part of my life at that point. 332 00:21:53,945 --> 00:21:56,862 It was various stimuli coming at me 333 00:21:59,200 --> 00:22:02,459 and I was traveling in an orbital fashion, 334 00:22:02,459 --> 00:22:06,950 like a planet would, not knowing what to expect 335 00:22:06,950 --> 00:22:08,874 but just trying to take it all in, 336 00:22:08,874 --> 00:22:12,422 and it was actually a very sort of 337 00:22:12,422 --> 00:22:15,238 exciting moment for me that I knew 338 00:22:15,238 --> 00:22:16,503 something different was going 339 00:22:16,503 --> 00:22:19,170 to happen in my life after that. 340 00:22:21,355 --> 00:22:23,537 - After you get your First Degree, 341 00:22:23,537 --> 00:22:24,927 you're told in order to progress 342 00:22:24,927 --> 00:22:27,180 you have to memorize a portion of 343 00:22:27,180 --> 00:22:30,323 the ceremonies that you just went through. 344 00:22:30,323 --> 00:22:32,365 You're given that information in the form of 345 00:22:32,365 --> 00:22:35,102 what's called a Blue Book, it's your cipher book. 346 00:22:35,102 --> 00:22:38,081 The cipher isn't written in English, it's literally a code, 347 00:22:38,081 --> 00:22:41,105 and you memorize this and it's basically like a test 348 00:22:41,105 --> 00:22:43,963 where when you go back into the lodge room 349 00:22:43,963 --> 00:22:46,289 to give your proficiency, it's called meaning 350 00:22:46,289 --> 00:22:48,538 that you're proficient in understanding 351 00:22:48,538 --> 00:22:51,190 the Degree that you just went through. 352 00:22:51,190 --> 00:22:53,315 For some people it takes them, 353 00:22:53,315 --> 00:22:56,999 it could take a month, for some people it could take years. 354 00:22:56,999 --> 00:22:59,040 It's just dependent upon the person's schedule, 355 00:22:59,040 --> 00:23:03,810 their work, how much time they put into learning it. 356 00:23:03,810 --> 00:23:04,977 It's not easy. 357 00:23:06,554 --> 00:23:08,291 But it also improves the mind, 358 00:23:08,291 --> 00:23:10,619 the way the mind begins to think. 359 00:23:10,619 --> 00:23:14,205 You memorize your cipher for your First Degree, 360 00:23:14,205 --> 00:23:17,788 you go back to lodge, you recapitulate that 361 00:23:18,862 --> 00:23:20,739 for your proficiency and then you're scheduled 362 00:23:20,739 --> 00:23:23,153 for your Second Degree which is the Fellow Craft Degree. 363 00:23:23,153 --> 00:23:27,320 - The Second Degree is kind of looked at as emblematic of 364 00:23:32,767 --> 00:23:35,430 period of growth in your life, 365 00:23:35,430 --> 00:23:38,347 and there's a big focus on learning 366 00:23:39,683 --> 00:23:42,600 and improving the mind by studying. 367 00:23:43,657 --> 00:23:47,574 Looking at things like arithmetic, or geometry, 368 00:23:48,807 --> 00:23:49,640 astronomy, 369 00:23:50,741 --> 00:23:51,574 music, 370 00:23:53,230 --> 00:23:55,159 grammar, logic, rhetoric. 371 00:23:55,159 --> 00:23:58,659 These are concepts and areas of study that 372 00:24:00,989 --> 00:24:04,489 really help make people more well rounded. 373 00:24:09,493 --> 00:24:13,091 - A lot of the rituals and ceremonies in Freemasonry 374 00:24:13,091 --> 00:24:16,806 take place around King Solomon's Temple. 375 00:24:16,806 --> 00:24:20,599 - King Solomon's Temple is the grand metaphor 376 00:24:20,599 --> 00:24:23,748 that unites all of us, and sort of represents 377 00:24:23,748 --> 00:24:27,423 the journey we're going through in the Three Degrees. 378 00:24:27,423 --> 00:24:30,486 The First Degree being sort of the porch of the temple, 379 00:24:30,486 --> 00:24:34,123 the Second Degree being the middle chamber, 380 00:24:34,123 --> 00:24:37,590 and then the Third Degree being the inner chamber, 381 00:24:37,590 --> 00:24:39,470 you know, the holy of holys, 382 00:24:39,470 --> 00:24:44,005 the secrets of secrets to be had at the end of the journey. 383 00:24:44,005 --> 00:24:47,070 - One of the most beautiful aspects of the Fellow Craft 384 00:24:47,070 --> 00:24:50,332 Degree is what's called the Winding Staircase Lecture 385 00:24:50,332 --> 00:24:54,948 and it talks about how these different sets of stairs 386 00:24:54,948 --> 00:24:57,685 going up this winding staircase 387 00:24:57,685 --> 00:25:01,102 instruct on different things like beauty, 388 00:25:01,936 --> 00:25:05,975 strength, and wisdom, and the five senses 389 00:25:05,975 --> 00:25:08,470 and the seven liberal arts and sciences, 390 00:25:08,470 --> 00:25:12,303 and the main focus that comes to the forefront 391 00:25:14,468 --> 00:25:19,124 of the Second Degree is the study of geometry. 392 00:25:19,124 --> 00:25:21,822 - Freemasonry, of course, is based on geometry 393 00:25:21,822 --> 00:25:24,514 and we refer to it as the symbol 394 00:25:24,514 --> 00:25:27,097 of the harmony of the universe. 395 00:25:27,937 --> 00:25:31,774 So if the harmony of the universe is the work of the divine, 396 00:25:31,774 --> 00:25:34,264 which we could refer to as the logos, 397 00:25:34,264 --> 00:25:38,065 in geometry is the symbol of that work, 398 00:25:38,065 --> 00:25:42,076 then on the principle of hypostasis, geometry 399 00:25:42,076 --> 00:25:44,993 is the symbol of the supreme being. 400 00:25:52,419 --> 00:25:55,405 - Looking at the celestial gallery, 401 00:25:55,405 --> 00:25:57,254 you can see that there's the hand of 402 00:25:57,254 --> 00:25:58,848 the great architect in the sky. 403 00:25:58,848 --> 00:26:01,709 I think about the heavens, I think about the 404 00:26:01,709 --> 00:26:05,392 celestial globe, I think about the constellations, 405 00:26:05,392 --> 00:26:10,336 and I kind of think about this larger body of patterns, 406 00:26:10,336 --> 00:26:12,705 beautiful geometric patterns in the sky, 407 00:26:12,705 --> 00:26:15,788 sort of reflecting as above so below. 408 00:26:17,981 --> 00:26:19,944 - So you complete the Fellow Craft Degree 409 00:26:19,944 --> 00:26:21,535 and similar to the First Degree you then 410 00:26:21,535 --> 00:26:24,271 have to memorize a portion of the lecture of the Degree, 411 00:26:24,271 --> 00:26:26,029 and then at that point you're ready 412 00:26:26,029 --> 00:26:28,397 to be raised to Master Mason. 413 00:26:28,397 --> 00:26:31,730 - So after the Second Degree you have the Third Degree, 414 00:26:31,730 --> 00:26:35,403 and that's what I say is when a mason 415 00:26:35,403 --> 00:26:38,820 becomes a made man within the fraternity. 416 00:26:39,818 --> 00:26:43,699 It is the ultimate transformative experience. 417 00:26:43,699 --> 00:26:47,782 It is the end of the journey as far as Blue Lodge 418 00:26:48,641 --> 00:26:53,197 Masonry becomes, and it is when, after you have 419 00:26:53,197 --> 00:26:57,364 persevered through the Degree, you have all the rights 420 00:26:58,335 --> 00:27:02,502 and benefits possible to you as a mason in the fraternity. 421 00:27:04,014 --> 00:27:05,764 - The Third Degree is 422 00:27:07,893 --> 00:27:10,560 it's one of my favorite Degrees. 423 00:27:12,007 --> 00:27:16,174 It is kind of emblematic of the twilight years in life 424 00:27:18,381 --> 00:27:19,548 and I think it 425 00:27:23,315 --> 00:27:26,982 it encourages the initiate to be comfortable 426 00:27:29,368 --> 00:27:31,285 with the fact that this 427 00:27:34,427 --> 00:27:38,260 place, the time we have here, is not infinite. 428 00:27:41,443 --> 00:27:43,526 That we are not immortal. 429 00:27:48,762 --> 00:27:50,880 Even though that's kind of a given, 430 00:27:50,880 --> 00:27:52,514 when you really think about it, 431 00:27:52,514 --> 00:27:56,014 it can be earth shattering when you really 432 00:27:56,925 --> 00:27:59,842 sit and contemplate your mortality. 433 00:28:03,856 --> 00:28:05,689 I mean there can be no 434 00:28:08,105 --> 00:28:11,050 more profound an experience in my mind 435 00:28:11,050 --> 00:28:14,276 than really understanding and coming to grips 436 00:28:14,276 --> 00:28:17,609 with the fact that someday you will die. 437 00:28:21,325 --> 00:28:23,696 - The main lesson of the Master Mason Degree 438 00:28:23,696 --> 00:28:27,373 is that all of life is a preparation for death 439 00:28:27,373 --> 00:28:29,171 and so how are you gonna live your life 440 00:28:29,171 --> 00:28:31,588 in the time that you're here? 441 00:28:36,055 --> 00:28:39,638 - Of course, everything is entirely energy. 442 00:28:40,588 --> 00:28:43,690 Energy cannot be created or destroyed, 443 00:28:43,690 --> 00:28:47,864 so almost by definition, because we are energy, 444 00:28:47,864 --> 00:28:49,456 there is going to be some part of us 445 00:28:49,456 --> 00:28:52,706 that's going to exist beyond our death. 446 00:28:53,986 --> 00:28:57,369 - We're all ultimately trying to connect 447 00:28:57,369 --> 00:28:59,872 with the part of ourself that doesn't die. 448 00:28:59,872 --> 00:29:02,103 We're all ultimately trying to purify ourselves 449 00:29:02,103 --> 00:29:06,343 and trying to deal with destruction and renewal. 450 00:29:06,343 --> 00:29:08,750 We are copying the book of nature 451 00:29:08,750 --> 00:29:12,267 and the book of nature, every year, she dies 452 00:29:12,267 --> 00:29:15,171 and she is reborn because that's what happens. 453 00:29:15,171 --> 00:29:19,734 Winter time, spring, summer, fall goes in seasons. 454 00:29:19,734 --> 00:29:23,816 We go in seasons, so our Degrees go in seasons, 455 00:29:23,816 --> 00:29:25,819 our lives go in seasons. 456 00:29:25,819 --> 00:29:29,204 - Elements of those Degrees that I went through, 457 00:29:29,204 --> 00:29:32,371 come up throughout the day in my life. 458 00:29:35,702 --> 00:29:39,226 I'm always noticing things that relate to masonry 459 00:29:39,226 --> 00:29:43,640 and it's a way of living my life, it's a code of ethics 460 00:29:43,640 --> 00:29:47,413 and other masons live by those same codes. 461 00:29:47,413 --> 00:29:51,080 I can meet a mason anywhere in the world and 462 00:29:52,114 --> 00:29:55,177 we might not have a lot in common, 463 00:29:55,177 --> 00:29:58,116 but I know that I can go with that person 464 00:29:58,116 --> 00:30:02,689 and trust them to be living the same code of ethics 465 00:30:02,689 --> 00:30:07,257 that I am myself, and there's a certain unity there. 466 00:30:07,257 --> 00:30:08,929 - So the options for a candidate, 467 00:30:08,929 --> 00:30:11,227 once they have attained the Third Degree, 468 00:30:11,227 --> 00:30:12,941 are a few different things. 469 00:30:12,941 --> 00:30:16,086 They can stay right where they're at in their understanding 470 00:30:16,086 --> 00:30:18,050 of what they've just experienced and try to 471 00:30:18,050 --> 00:30:21,716 figure it out, they can obviously join the line 472 00:30:21,716 --> 00:30:24,507 and participate in the Blue Lodge, 473 00:30:24,507 --> 00:30:26,954 they can also pursue the York Rite 474 00:30:26,954 --> 00:30:29,307 and the Scottish Rite Degrees, both of which 475 00:30:29,307 --> 00:30:32,021 elaborate on what was taught to them in the Blue Lodge 476 00:30:32,021 --> 00:30:36,188 and really expand upon it in a much larger format. 477 00:32:21,109 --> 00:32:22,827 - In Scottish Rite Masonry you have 478 00:32:22,827 --> 00:32:24,340 two main jurisdictions, you've got the Northern 479 00:32:24,340 --> 00:32:26,220 jurisdiction and the Southern jurisdiction. 480 00:32:26,220 --> 00:32:28,138 The Northern jurisdiction is relatively small 481 00:32:28,138 --> 00:32:31,038 encompassing a degree of the Northeast of the United States 482 00:32:31,038 --> 00:32:34,306 and I think parts of the Northern Midwest. 483 00:32:34,306 --> 00:32:36,720 Then the Southern jurisdiction encompasses everything else 484 00:32:36,720 --> 00:32:39,702 worldwide, it's a much bigger organization. 485 00:32:39,702 --> 00:32:43,379 Within the Southern jurisdiction you have different valleys. 486 00:32:43,379 --> 00:32:46,269 So you would have for instance, in Tennessee, 487 00:32:46,269 --> 00:32:48,476 we would have the Valley of Knoxville, 488 00:32:48,476 --> 00:32:51,307 the Valley of Chattanooga, the Valley of Nashville, 489 00:32:51,307 --> 00:32:54,299 and the Valley of Memphis, and such is the case 490 00:32:54,299 --> 00:32:57,090 with all the different states, 491 00:32:57,090 --> 00:32:58,073 and all the different regions of 492 00:32:58,073 --> 00:33:00,245 the Scottish Rite worldwide. 493 00:33:00,245 --> 00:33:02,039 Within the different valleys, we have 494 00:33:02,039 --> 00:33:04,898 four different bodies that encompass 495 00:33:04,898 --> 00:33:05,782 different parts of the Degrees, 496 00:33:05,782 --> 00:33:07,378 different groups of the Degrees, 497 00:33:07,378 --> 00:33:08,941 ending finally with the Consistory 498 00:33:08,941 --> 00:33:11,235 which would be the 32nd Degree. 499 00:33:11,235 --> 00:33:15,400 - The Supreme council rules the entire jurisdiction, 500 00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:17,565 the Southern jurisdiction and as you know 501 00:33:17,565 --> 00:33:20,105 there's a Northern jurisdiction as well, 502 00:33:20,105 --> 00:33:23,233 considerably smaller than the Southern jurisdiction. 503 00:33:23,233 --> 00:33:26,170 - The Supreme Council's main focus is to 504 00:33:26,170 --> 00:33:29,421 add a bit of unity to what would otherwise 505 00:33:29,421 --> 00:33:33,355 be a very very large and heavy organization. 506 00:33:33,355 --> 00:33:35,848 - The typical Scottish Rite Valley 507 00:33:35,848 --> 00:33:39,181 is comprised of the Lodge of Perfection, 508 00:33:40,095 --> 00:33:42,227 the Chapter of Rose Croix, 509 00:33:42,227 --> 00:33:45,727 the Council of Kadosh, and the Consistory. 510 00:33:47,525 --> 00:33:51,449 We go through each of the Degrees that comprise 511 00:33:51,449 --> 00:33:54,423 each of those individual bodies. 512 00:33:54,423 --> 00:33:58,173 It's absolutely essential that a Master Mason 513 00:33:59,171 --> 00:34:03,130 going through the Scottish Rite achieve at least the minimum 514 00:34:03,130 --> 00:34:07,288 of the 14th Degree, which allows him then to sit 515 00:34:07,288 --> 00:34:11,254 in the stated meetings where business is conducted. 516 00:34:11,254 --> 00:34:14,227 So that becomes an essential part of 517 00:34:14,227 --> 00:34:15,820 the Scottish Rite training, and then 518 00:34:15,820 --> 00:34:17,384 obviously you want to move beyond that 519 00:34:17,384 --> 00:34:20,287 and achieve the 32nd Degree, 520 00:34:20,287 --> 00:34:23,026 and I suppose if you're a really lucky guy, 521 00:34:23,026 --> 00:34:25,517 you'll get the 33rd. 522 00:34:25,517 --> 00:34:27,360 - I would describe the Scottish Rite 523 00:34:27,360 --> 00:34:29,943 as a modern day mystery school. 524 00:34:30,867 --> 00:34:32,748 The way that I like to think about it 525 00:34:32,748 --> 00:34:37,323 is really, it involves a lot of training in the virtues, 526 00:34:37,323 --> 00:34:41,892 it involves a lot of training in personal improvement, 527 00:34:41,892 --> 00:34:44,873 personal transformation, personal purifications 528 00:34:44,873 --> 00:34:48,216 that are necessary so that the parts of the self, 529 00:34:48,216 --> 00:34:52,917 which are not working, which are dysfunctional, 530 00:34:52,917 --> 00:34:56,151 they're symbolized by different characters in these dramas, 531 00:34:56,151 --> 00:35:00,318 that they can be cast off and that the true self can emerge. 532 00:35:06,077 --> 00:35:10,244 - The fraternity is basically the source of male initiation. 533 00:35:12,458 --> 00:35:15,347 The Scottish Rite on the other hand 534 00:35:15,347 --> 00:35:17,764 takes that to the next level. 535 00:35:18,855 --> 00:35:21,921 It goes way past initiation, it assumes 536 00:35:21,921 --> 00:35:24,963 that's already taken place, and now it goes 537 00:35:24,963 --> 00:35:27,455 into learning and development. 538 00:35:27,455 --> 00:35:31,388 What kind of human being are you gonna be? 539 00:35:31,388 --> 00:35:33,715 What is your value system going to be? 540 00:35:33,715 --> 00:35:36,700 How are you going to understand what's important? 541 00:35:36,700 --> 00:35:37,803 And how are you going to understand 542 00:35:37,803 --> 00:35:39,556 your relationship to the universe? 543 00:35:39,556 --> 00:35:41,315 Your relationship to deity? 544 00:35:41,315 --> 00:35:44,657 These are all issues that the Scottish Rite deals with 545 00:35:44,657 --> 00:35:47,762 and I think deals very effectively. 546 00:35:47,762 --> 00:35:51,968 That's actually the task of the first body. 547 00:35:51,968 --> 00:35:54,705 First is called the Lodge of Perfection. 548 00:35:54,705 --> 00:35:57,320 On a mundane level it pays the bills, 549 00:35:57,320 --> 00:36:00,737 it's the organizational body of the Rite, 550 00:36:02,794 --> 00:36:06,411 but it's quest themed, the thing it teaches, 551 00:36:06,411 --> 00:36:09,107 the thing it does is to find this original 552 00:36:09,107 --> 00:36:12,377 source of who you are, and it uses 553 00:36:12,377 --> 00:36:14,138 the same kind of thing you're gonna find in 554 00:36:14,138 --> 00:36:18,660 the ancient Greek traditions, you'll find it in Maslow, 555 00:36:18,660 --> 00:36:20,876 you'll find it in basic psychology, 556 00:36:20,876 --> 00:36:23,366 find it in Freud, this idea of making 557 00:36:23,366 --> 00:36:25,699 the journey inside and down, 558 00:36:26,836 --> 00:36:29,937 and into the deepest level of your ego 559 00:36:29,937 --> 00:36:33,648 where you discover the cubical stone 560 00:36:33,648 --> 00:36:37,090 in the Scottish Rite, you'll discover 561 00:36:37,090 --> 00:36:40,228 the material world with the symbol of deity, 562 00:36:40,228 --> 00:36:42,921 the triangle insured into it. 563 00:36:42,921 --> 00:36:45,293 It tells you something about what you are 564 00:36:45,293 --> 00:36:48,626 as both a divine and a mundane creature. 565 00:36:52,886 --> 00:36:56,083 - This concept of perfection is 566 00:36:56,083 --> 00:37:00,217 very similar to, connected to in alchemy 567 00:37:00,217 --> 00:37:01,935 the process of transmutation, 568 00:37:01,935 --> 00:37:03,973 the process of raising the stone. 569 00:37:03,973 --> 00:37:06,138 This whole thing is about the first temple 570 00:37:06,138 --> 00:37:10,418 and the concept that's really powerful to me is secrecy 571 00:37:10,418 --> 00:37:13,198 and silence, fidelity, and obedience, 572 00:37:13,198 --> 00:37:16,698 those concepts, they're necessary in order 573 00:37:17,964 --> 00:37:20,458 to go into the mystery school, 574 00:37:20,458 --> 00:37:22,011 and it takes a lot of studying, 575 00:37:22,011 --> 00:37:25,486 a lot of scratching under the surface to understand 576 00:37:25,486 --> 00:37:27,481 what it is that you've just been through, 577 00:37:27,481 --> 00:37:29,076 what it is that you've just seen. 578 00:37:29,076 --> 00:37:31,531 They have a sign of silence, they have a sign of secrecy, 579 00:37:31,531 --> 00:37:33,004 it's like you're entering into this thing 580 00:37:33,004 --> 00:37:35,617 and you can't really shout it from the rooftops. 581 00:37:35,617 --> 00:37:38,148 Even if you tried to reveal it, 582 00:37:38,148 --> 00:37:41,085 it would be impossible, to me that's the symbolism 583 00:37:41,085 --> 00:37:43,212 of the secrecy in the Fourth Degree. 584 00:37:43,212 --> 00:37:47,045 - Secrecy and silence are so important because 585 00:37:48,021 --> 00:37:52,188 people need to learn how to keep their mouths shut, 586 00:37:54,645 --> 00:37:57,338 and that is a thing which we have lost. 587 00:37:57,338 --> 00:38:00,732 How can you trust a man if you tell him 588 00:38:00,732 --> 00:38:02,488 what's really important to you because 589 00:38:02,488 --> 00:38:05,800 you need to get it dealt with, you need to get it out, 590 00:38:05,800 --> 00:38:08,905 and he goes and tells everybody what you said? 591 00:38:08,905 --> 00:38:12,702 How can you possibly ever trust him again with anything? 592 00:38:12,702 --> 00:38:13,869 Why would you? 593 00:38:16,684 --> 00:38:20,935 We live in this very strange world in which 594 00:38:20,935 --> 00:38:25,102 we have decided that secrecy is somehow a bad thing. 595 00:38:27,674 --> 00:38:30,376 I'm forced to disagree, I think secrecy 596 00:38:30,376 --> 00:38:33,774 is a very good thing, a very positive thing. 597 00:38:33,774 --> 00:38:35,616 It could be used for bad purposes, 598 00:38:35,616 --> 00:38:39,820 there's no question about that, certainly. 599 00:38:39,820 --> 00:38:41,982 But you know, I have a feeling 600 00:38:41,982 --> 00:38:45,246 when they were working out the D-Day invasion, 601 00:38:45,246 --> 00:38:48,996 they didn't really want the enemy to know the plans. 602 00:38:52,992 --> 00:38:57,159 There are things it's useful just to keep quiet about. 603 00:38:59,170 --> 00:39:01,218 One of the things that just absolutely fascinates me, 604 00:39:01,218 --> 00:39:06,004 because I do not understand it, is this Facebook phenomena 605 00:39:06,004 --> 00:39:08,047 where everybody is busy telling 606 00:39:08,047 --> 00:39:10,786 everybody else everything about them. 607 00:39:10,786 --> 00:39:13,243 I can not imagine that I have any friends 608 00:39:13,243 --> 00:39:17,693 who are fascinated in knowing what I had for lunch. 609 00:39:17,693 --> 00:39:21,110 - The Lodge of Perfection is dealing with 610 00:39:22,111 --> 00:39:26,278 the initial Degrees that take you all the way through 611 00:39:27,224 --> 00:39:31,509 essentially the same story as the first Three Degrees, 612 00:39:31,509 --> 00:39:34,342 but with considerably more detail. 613 00:39:35,771 --> 00:39:39,074 There are little side vignettes to explain 614 00:39:39,074 --> 00:39:41,117 some of the happenings that occur 615 00:39:41,117 --> 00:39:43,699 in the first Three Degrees, so we're really 616 00:39:43,699 --> 00:39:46,516 talking about the Hiramic legend 617 00:39:46,516 --> 00:39:50,266 and how that pertains to each individual man. 618 00:39:52,739 --> 00:39:56,577 That's really our fundamental pursuit. 619 00:39:56,577 --> 00:39:59,070 So we can talk about these Degrees 620 00:39:59,070 --> 00:40:03,153 in a sort of concrete sense, but the real message 621 00:40:04,284 --> 00:40:08,201 of masonry is tremendously lost in that regard, 622 00:40:09,766 --> 00:40:12,516 because it's really not about the 623 00:40:14,433 --> 00:40:16,656 actual movements and the rituals, 624 00:40:16,656 --> 00:40:18,415 it's not about the actual words, 625 00:40:18,415 --> 00:40:21,248 it's about what's behind all that. 626 00:40:23,206 --> 00:40:25,286 - Overall theme of the Lodge of Perfection 627 00:40:25,286 --> 00:40:28,768 is this search for this cubical stone. 628 00:40:28,768 --> 00:40:32,253 This lost word which is alluded to in the Third Degree 629 00:40:32,253 --> 00:40:36,257 about this word has been lost upon the death 630 00:40:36,257 --> 00:40:40,135 of the master architect of King Solomon's Temple. 631 00:40:40,135 --> 00:40:42,672 As you progress through the Degrees of the 632 00:40:42,672 --> 00:40:45,781 Lodge of Perfection, the allegory of 633 00:40:45,781 --> 00:40:48,847 King Solomon's Temple is expanded upon. 634 00:40:48,847 --> 00:40:52,097 There is a funeral for the Master Hiram 635 00:40:53,347 --> 00:40:56,947 who was murdered, there is an anniversary of his death, 636 00:40:56,947 --> 00:40:59,441 and a lot of these things play into themes of daily life, 637 00:40:59,441 --> 00:41:04,091 about letting go, and taking the tie to grieve things, 638 00:41:04,091 --> 00:41:06,944 to be able to move on, to find the truth about things, 639 00:41:06,944 --> 00:41:08,331 to be able to continue to grow. 640 00:41:08,331 --> 00:41:10,561 What comes into focus there also is 641 00:41:10,561 --> 00:41:14,765 how important it is to transmit and share knowledge. 642 00:41:14,765 --> 00:41:17,132 When Master Hiram would finish his work 643 00:41:17,132 --> 00:41:19,704 at the end of the day he would love talking 644 00:41:19,704 --> 00:41:22,891 about the Egyptian mysteries with these five young men 645 00:41:22,891 --> 00:41:24,772 that he believed one day could take his place 646 00:41:24,772 --> 00:41:26,526 if something happened to him. 647 00:41:26,526 --> 00:41:29,505 That was important that he did that because 648 00:41:29,505 --> 00:41:31,544 one of them eventually does take his place 649 00:41:31,544 --> 00:41:34,461 and the work is then picked back up 650 00:41:35,385 --> 00:41:38,357 and they keep building the temple. 651 00:41:38,357 --> 00:41:41,748 Eventually, the assassins that murdered the Master Hiram 652 00:41:41,748 --> 00:41:45,165 are found and they're brought to justice. 653 00:41:47,307 --> 00:41:49,675 So as you come to the close of the Degrees 654 00:41:49,675 --> 00:41:51,269 of the Lodge of Perfection, you come 655 00:41:51,269 --> 00:41:54,005 upon the 13th and 14th Degrees. 656 00:41:54,005 --> 00:41:58,415 The 13th Degree is one of the most interesting Degrees 657 00:41:58,415 --> 00:42:01,355 in all of masonry to me because 658 00:42:01,355 --> 00:42:04,368 the story behind the 13th Degree is about the 659 00:42:04,368 --> 00:42:07,295 biblical character Enoch who received 660 00:42:07,295 --> 00:42:10,649 the true name of God, and he supposedly built these 661 00:42:10,649 --> 00:42:13,100 nine vaults deep down within the earth, 662 00:42:13,100 --> 00:42:15,837 vertical vaults and in the ninth vault, 663 00:42:15,837 --> 00:42:17,636 he placed the true name of God there, 664 00:42:17,636 --> 00:42:20,498 for future generations to discover that. 665 00:42:20,498 --> 00:42:24,707 That vertical line of those vaults represents spirituality. 666 00:42:24,707 --> 00:42:26,911 So it's about going within the self 667 00:42:26,911 --> 00:42:29,274 to discover the truth, and bringing that forward 668 00:42:29,274 --> 00:42:32,049 and emanating that light out into the world. 669 00:42:32,049 --> 00:42:35,632 - There's also a focus on the nature of man 670 00:42:39,001 --> 00:42:42,668 and the surroundings that we find ourselves. 671 00:42:43,543 --> 00:42:45,903 You're encouraged to not only study 672 00:42:45,903 --> 00:42:49,380 but then also understand how you fit into 673 00:42:49,380 --> 00:42:51,424 the natural order of things. 674 00:42:51,424 --> 00:42:54,000 - If I take it out of the realm of the literal, 675 00:42:54,000 --> 00:42:56,373 out of the realm of trying to 676 00:42:56,373 --> 00:42:58,014 understand everything like something that 677 00:42:58,014 --> 00:43:00,681 actually happened in a year, BC, 678 00:43:01,813 --> 00:43:06,433 and look within myself and say what part of myself is Enoch? 679 00:43:06,433 --> 00:43:08,107 How can I connect to that? 680 00:43:08,107 --> 00:43:10,470 What do I need to cast away to connect to that? 681 00:43:10,470 --> 00:43:13,006 What purifications do I need to do to connect 682 00:43:13,006 --> 00:43:17,299 with this Enoch character that actually lives within me? 683 00:43:17,299 --> 00:43:20,799 And what is this thing that's buried in me 684 00:43:21,904 --> 00:43:24,563 in the ninth vault, in my heart? 685 00:43:24,563 --> 00:43:27,645 What is this thing that's buried? 686 00:43:27,645 --> 00:43:30,606 If I want to search for that thing, 687 00:43:30,606 --> 00:43:33,056 it might help to know where it's buried. 688 00:43:33,056 --> 00:43:35,710 - In the 14th Degree, the really fascinating 689 00:43:35,710 --> 00:43:38,038 part of the story in the Masonic allegory is that 690 00:43:38,038 --> 00:43:40,855 when King Solomon was building his temple, 691 00:43:40,855 --> 00:43:43,507 there were nine crypts built horizontally 692 00:43:43,507 --> 00:43:46,125 underneath King Solomon's Temple. 693 00:43:46,125 --> 00:43:49,883 What begins to come into appearance here is 694 00:43:49,883 --> 00:43:52,418 a very very interesting symbol. 695 00:43:52,418 --> 00:43:55,234 When you take the vertical line of the vaults 696 00:43:55,234 --> 00:43:58,218 that Enoch built and buried this divine spark 697 00:43:58,218 --> 00:44:01,604 at the bottom of it, and you take the horizontal line 698 00:44:01,604 --> 00:44:04,668 of the crypts underneath King Solomon's Temple 699 00:44:04,668 --> 00:44:07,648 you begin to see the symbol of the cross, 700 00:44:07,648 --> 00:44:09,488 and that's a very powerful symbol 701 00:44:09,488 --> 00:44:11,901 when you look at it like that because 702 00:44:11,901 --> 00:44:15,953 the crypts, the horizontal crypts represent the earthly 703 00:44:15,953 --> 00:44:20,120 and it's about progressing through these nine arches, 704 00:44:21,007 --> 00:44:25,740 these nine crypts and improving the self through study, 705 00:44:25,740 --> 00:44:30,439 through constant refinement, through subduing our passions, 706 00:44:30,439 --> 00:44:32,243 and trying to find that balance, 707 00:44:32,243 --> 00:44:34,903 and as we do that we begin to also ascend 708 00:44:34,903 --> 00:44:38,736 at that same time that spiritual path upwards. 709 00:44:40,946 --> 00:44:43,647 The Lodge of Perfection concludes 710 00:44:43,647 --> 00:44:47,448 with the preservation of that which was lost 711 00:44:47,448 --> 00:44:49,734 and is now found again, that lost word, 712 00:44:49,734 --> 00:44:54,634 that name of God as a symbol, but that divine spark, 713 00:44:54,634 --> 00:44:58,514 and it reminds me of the verse in the Book of John, 714 00:44:58,514 --> 00:45:01,170 when it says, "In the beginning was the word, 715 00:45:01,170 --> 00:45:05,375 "and the word was with God, and the word was God." 716 00:45:05,375 --> 00:45:09,211 So as you see these things start to be revealed 717 00:45:09,211 --> 00:45:11,870 and the word revealed means revel, 718 00:45:11,870 --> 00:45:13,959 so one thing is revealed to you, 719 00:45:13,959 --> 00:45:16,446 but it's hidden by another thing and that's 720 00:45:16,446 --> 00:45:20,042 the nature of God in a sense, is that 721 00:45:20,042 --> 00:45:23,729 God will reveal one thing, and then veil it in another way 722 00:45:23,729 --> 00:45:26,841 because it's the constant quest of the infinite 723 00:45:26,841 --> 00:45:28,967 of seeking light and seeking this knowledge. 724 00:45:28,967 --> 00:45:31,375 It's a constant refinement of the self. 725 00:45:31,375 --> 00:45:33,958 As we see that symbol of the cross appear between 726 00:45:33,958 --> 00:45:37,791 the vaults of Enoch and the crypts of Solomon, 727 00:45:39,192 --> 00:45:42,178 you start to understand the importance of 728 00:45:42,178 --> 00:45:45,011 understanding Kabbalah as a symbol 729 00:45:47,578 --> 00:45:51,990 and as a way to understand how these things are presented. 730 00:45:51,990 --> 00:45:54,601 Not as a dogma, or as a religion, 731 00:45:54,601 --> 00:45:57,927 but to learn from the symbolism and the wisdom 732 00:45:57,927 --> 00:46:00,792 that that school of thought brings into Freemasonry. 733 00:46:00,792 --> 00:46:03,818 It allows us to understand the importance 734 00:46:03,818 --> 00:46:05,946 of playing the peacemaker in life, 735 00:46:05,946 --> 00:46:08,349 and to if we have to be the judge, 736 00:46:08,349 --> 00:46:10,849 to be impartial in situations. 737 00:46:12,417 --> 00:46:15,969 - The stories being told is profound. 738 00:46:15,969 --> 00:46:18,998 Very influential on the mind and the psyche, 739 00:46:18,998 --> 00:46:22,887 and it brings you into a state of understanding, 740 00:46:22,887 --> 00:46:25,995 that none of the other degrees actually brought me into. 741 00:46:25,995 --> 00:46:28,532 Yes, you're looking for the lost word, 742 00:46:28,532 --> 00:46:31,269 but most importantly, you're actually 743 00:46:31,269 --> 00:46:33,681 discovering the word within yourself, 744 00:46:33,681 --> 00:46:35,478 you're discovering who you are, 745 00:46:35,478 --> 00:46:37,396 you're discovering the purpose of this, 746 00:46:37,396 --> 00:46:40,136 you're recognizing that there is a true value 747 00:46:40,136 --> 00:46:43,303 underneath wanting to just be a mason. 748 00:46:47,447 --> 00:46:51,046 - Uncovering the word is an allegory for 749 00:46:51,046 --> 00:46:53,827 discovering yourself, improving yourself and 750 00:46:53,827 --> 00:46:57,140 understanding the mysteries of life. 751 00:46:57,140 --> 00:46:59,392 - You're dealing with these great universal secrets 752 00:46:59,392 --> 00:47:01,513 and into that realm of communication 753 00:47:01,513 --> 00:47:03,556 and this time outside of time. 754 00:47:03,556 --> 00:47:08,334 Freemasonry basically has preserved the best of mankind, 755 00:47:08,334 --> 00:47:11,805 that's why we harken back to ancient times, 756 00:47:11,805 --> 00:47:15,440 that's why we ruminate on Greek and 757 00:47:15,440 --> 00:47:19,282 Cerastrian philosophy in the Scottish Rite. 758 00:47:19,282 --> 00:47:21,949 It brings us back to these times 759 00:47:23,030 --> 00:47:25,324 when mankind was searching for these answers, 760 00:47:25,324 --> 00:47:27,037 these eternal questions that we have, 761 00:47:27,037 --> 00:47:28,668 and we're still doing it of course, 762 00:47:28,668 --> 00:47:32,835 but it puts us in that mood of where the ancients were. 763 00:47:34,297 --> 00:47:37,075 - So one of the things Freemasonry addressed 764 00:47:37,075 --> 00:47:41,628 particularly on what were called the Higher Degrees 765 00:47:41,628 --> 00:47:45,966 such as the Scottish Rite was to consider the journey 766 00:47:45,966 --> 00:47:48,549 of manhood as the hero's quest. 767 00:47:49,685 --> 00:47:53,852 We applied contemporary mythos around the old ideas. 768 00:47:58,020 --> 00:48:02,061 So what Freemasonry has become in our time 769 00:48:02,061 --> 00:48:04,061 is a set of lessons that 770 00:48:06,303 --> 00:48:08,971 helps a man become consciously aware 771 00:48:08,971 --> 00:48:10,971 of what he's here to do. 772 00:48:13,553 --> 00:48:15,756 - That's the first body, the second body 773 00:48:15,756 --> 00:48:17,843 is called the Chapter of Rose Croix, 774 00:48:17,843 --> 00:48:20,295 which really ought to be Rose Croix, 775 00:48:20,295 --> 00:48:24,343 but I pronounce it the other way 99% of the time, 776 00:48:24,343 --> 00:48:26,343 it means rose and cross. 777 00:48:27,529 --> 00:48:31,696 15th and 16th deal with principles ethics essentially. 778 00:48:34,448 --> 00:48:38,630 They deal with the question of how do you know what's right? 779 00:48:38,630 --> 00:48:40,692 Is right always right? 780 00:48:40,692 --> 00:48:42,817 Is the same thing always right? 781 00:48:42,817 --> 00:48:46,575 Or are right and wrong hardly defined 782 00:48:46,575 --> 00:48:48,745 classifications you can deal with? 783 00:48:48,745 --> 00:48:52,298 - The 15th and 16th Degrees get into the story of 784 00:48:52,298 --> 00:48:55,048 building the second temple and it 785 00:48:56,668 --> 00:48:59,038 it can be looked at from a sense of 786 00:48:59,038 --> 00:49:00,468 these things that we go through in life, 787 00:49:00,468 --> 00:49:04,635 like this constant, again, whether it's a career or 788 00:49:06,390 --> 00:49:10,197 a marriage or friendships or family, 789 00:49:10,197 --> 00:49:11,752 we have these great things that we build up 790 00:49:11,752 --> 00:49:13,917 and we have these great moments, 791 00:49:13,917 --> 00:49:16,943 and then there destroyed right in front of our eyes. 792 00:49:16,943 --> 00:49:21,022 - The 17th Degree is based on the Book of Revelation, 793 00:49:21,022 --> 00:49:25,189 or takes its thematic material from the Book of Revelation. 794 00:49:26,625 --> 00:49:29,208 It, to me, is all about energy. 795 00:49:33,554 --> 00:49:36,659 One of the questions that you always have is 796 00:49:36,659 --> 00:49:39,976 where does the dynamic of life come from, 797 00:49:39,976 --> 00:49:42,266 where does the energy to do things come from 798 00:49:42,266 --> 00:49:45,824 and part of it obviously is purely mental, 799 00:49:45,824 --> 00:49:47,787 purely emotional, spiritual. 800 00:49:47,787 --> 00:49:49,037 Take your pick. 801 00:49:49,951 --> 00:49:51,832 And the 17th Degree is about that, 802 00:49:51,832 --> 00:49:56,367 about the power which comes into a person when they are 803 00:49:56,367 --> 00:49:57,837 doing what they should be doing, 804 00:49:57,837 --> 00:50:00,701 when they are paying attention. 805 00:50:00,701 --> 00:50:02,368 Then comes the 18th, 806 00:50:03,800 --> 00:50:06,003 and the 18th is one of the most beautiful Degrees 807 00:50:06,003 --> 00:50:08,864 of all the Scottish Rite. 808 00:50:08,864 --> 00:50:11,197 It is the Knight Rose Croix. 809 00:50:14,389 --> 00:50:16,306 It is structured around 810 00:50:19,350 --> 00:50:21,933 the story of Jesus of Nazareth. 811 00:50:22,910 --> 00:50:25,993 Not as a redeemer, but as an example, 812 00:50:27,900 --> 00:50:32,481 as an archetype because the Scottish Rite is nonsectarian. 813 00:50:32,481 --> 00:50:36,319 But it does, part of the language says, 814 00:50:36,319 --> 00:50:38,076 if he were nothing more, he was surely 815 00:50:38,076 --> 00:50:41,512 the ideal of the race made whole. 816 00:50:41,512 --> 00:50:44,179 The great teacher, the exemplar. 817 00:50:45,280 --> 00:50:48,863 And it talks about the love and the caring. 818 00:50:50,220 --> 00:50:53,387 He died in agony, not cursing humanity 819 00:50:56,476 --> 00:50:59,059 but uttering blessings upon it. 820 00:51:00,365 --> 00:51:03,282 That's an important set of lessons. 821 00:51:04,651 --> 00:51:05,734 It sort of is 822 00:51:07,803 --> 00:51:11,157 the question of what should be your model. 823 00:51:11,157 --> 00:51:15,213 If you're gonna try to live a productive useful life, 824 00:51:15,213 --> 00:51:18,334 what kind of model can you find? 825 00:51:18,334 --> 00:51:20,872 - The one thing that I would say is truly 826 00:51:20,872 --> 00:51:24,644 the mystery of Freemasonry is that it's love. 827 00:51:24,644 --> 00:51:26,940 It's a mystical state of being. 828 00:51:26,940 --> 00:51:30,857 It's little wonder that Christ spoke about love 829 00:51:33,198 --> 00:51:36,031 in a very deep and fulfilling way. 830 00:51:36,961 --> 00:51:39,044 It's a love for the soul. 831 00:51:43,302 --> 00:51:45,506 - One of the questions that started this whole 832 00:51:45,506 --> 00:51:49,678 story off for me about why death existed and 833 00:51:49,678 --> 00:51:51,190 why are things the way they are, 834 00:51:51,190 --> 00:51:53,023 why is there darkness? 835 00:51:54,374 --> 00:51:57,541 What starts to come into focus is that 836 00:51:58,650 --> 00:52:00,370 it's about love. 837 00:52:00,370 --> 00:52:04,537 It's not about fully comprehending why these things exist 838 00:52:06,532 --> 00:52:08,782 and it's about forgiveness. 839 00:52:13,822 --> 00:52:16,353 - When I look at these Degrees, 840 00:52:16,353 --> 00:52:20,196 I see all these characters in a dream, 841 00:52:20,196 --> 00:52:23,060 and I see myself in much the same way 842 00:52:23,060 --> 00:52:26,415 I would expect somebody may have experienced this 843 00:52:26,415 --> 00:52:29,194 in ancient times in the ancient mystery schools 844 00:52:29,194 --> 00:52:30,915 but in a modern context. 845 00:52:30,915 --> 00:52:35,196 I see myself projecting my own sense of who I am 846 00:52:35,196 --> 00:52:39,114 onto these various characters, to these various stories. 847 00:52:39,114 --> 00:52:41,363 Some of them have history to them, 848 00:52:41,363 --> 00:52:44,018 others are more symbolic. 849 00:52:44,018 --> 00:52:46,597 I see myself going through these transformations, 850 00:52:46,597 --> 00:52:49,430 they're making me a better person. 851 00:52:51,052 --> 00:52:53,101 - Those are the first two bodies. 852 00:52:53,101 --> 00:52:56,861 Then the third body is the Council of the Kadosh. 853 00:52:56,861 --> 00:52:58,694 Kadosh means separate. 854 00:53:01,391 --> 00:53:04,214 It's often translated as holy, 855 00:53:04,214 --> 00:53:05,770 but it's holy in the sense of being 856 00:53:05,770 --> 00:53:09,124 set apart from the rest of the world. 857 00:53:09,124 --> 00:53:12,120 So it's not an isolationist thing, but 858 00:53:12,120 --> 00:53:15,620 that which is more than the mundane world. 859 00:53:19,277 --> 00:53:22,860 It explores many many many different ideas, 860 00:53:24,886 --> 00:53:28,277 but the basic theme of them is, 861 00:53:28,277 --> 00:53:31,068 what kinds of things do you need to do 862 00:53:31,068 --> 00:53:34,214 and what kinds of things do you need to avoid 863 00:53:34,214 --> 00:53:37,724 to live productively, to be able to say at the end of it, 864 00:53:37,724 --> 00:53:39,974 hey, I didn't do too badly? 865 00:53:41,575 --> 00:53:43,871 What ideas should you hold onto? 866 00:53:43,871 --> 00:53:46,446 What ideas do you need to get rid of? 867 00:53:46,446 --> 00:53:48,490 Vengeance, anger? 868 00:53:48,490 --> 00:53:50,157 Despotism, purinant? 869 00:53:51,234 --> 00:53:54,297 All of those things are destructive, 870 00:53:54,297 --> 00:53:57,445 and the Scottish Rite does try to teach 871 00:53:57,445 --> 00:54:00,884 that they're not always obvious. 872 00:54:00,884 --> 00:54:03,704 It's pretty clear when somebody invades your country, 873 00:54:03,704 --> 00:54:06,475 takes it over and starts issuing laws 874 00:54:06,475 --> 00:54:08,194 and says you'll be killed if you don't, 875 00:54:08,194 --> 00:54:09,545 that you're dealing with a dictator, 876 00:54:09,545 --> 00:54:12,488 that's an easy thing to spot. 877 00:54:12,488 --> 00:54:14,321 It's less easy to spot 878 00:54:15,802 --> 00:54:17,560 if you find that one of your friends 879 00:54:17,560 --> 00:54:21,727 is spending all of his time trying to tell you what to do. 880 00:54:22,795 --> 00:54:25,628 Or that some other person you know 881 00:54:26,677 --> 00:54:28,884 is trying to substitute their 882 00:54:28,884 --> 00:54:32,051 judgment of right and wrong for yours. 883 00:54:32,926 --> 00:54:35,139 So dictatorship and despotism is 884 00:54:35,139 --> 00:54:37,962 an easy thing to have happen, and 885 00:54:37,962 --> 00:54:40,416 that's one of the things that the right warns against, 886 00:54:40,416 --> 00:54:42,833 you've got to guard yourself. 887 00:54:43,859 --> 00:54:45,361 If you're going to be independent, 888 00:54:45,361 --> 00:54:48,222 if you're going to be free to think, 889 00:54:48,222 --> 00:54:52,305 then you got to make sure you stay free to think. 890 00:54:55,785 --> 00:54:58,318 - The Consistory, finally, is the last 891 00:54:58,318 --> 00:55:00,767 of the organized pieces of the Scottish Rite 892 00:55:00,767 --> 00:55:03,254 and within the Consistory, we find the ultimate 893 00:55:03,254 --> 00:55:07,097 tying together of all the Scottish Rite Degrees, 894 00:55:07,097 --> 00:55:09,755 all the main themes that run through them all. 895 00:55:09,755 --> 00:55:13,397 Consequently, upon becoming a 32nd Degree Scottish 896 00:55:13,397 --> 00:55:17,076 Rite Mason, your title is Master of the Royal Secret 897 00:55:17,076 --> 00:55:19,240 because at this point, you have understood, 898 00:55:19,240 --> 00:55:21,202 at least you should have understood, 899 00:55:21,202 --> 00:55:23,573 all of the esoteric teachings that came before 900 00:55:23,573 --> 00:55:25,291 and how they're all tied together. 901 00:55:25,291 --> 00:55:26,965 - At the end of the 30 Degree, 902 00:55:26,965 --> 00:55:29,965 there's a lot of symbolism of death. 903 00:55:31,540 --> 00:55:36,525 At the beginning of the 31st Degree you're in another world. 904 00:55:36,525 --> 00:55:38,563 - The 31st Degree is one of my favorite Degrees 905 00:55:38,563 --> 00:55:41,143 and I think all Southern jurisdiction Scottish Rite Masons 906 00:55:41,143 --> 00:55:44,326 can agree that this is one of the absolute greatest Degrees 907 00:55:44,326 --> 00:55:46,859 within the Scottish Rite, it's a real gem. 908 00:55:46,859 --> 00:55:51,286 We go to amenti, the Egyptian Court of the Dead, 909 00:55:51,286 --> 00:55:53,821 where a new soul has arrived and 910 00:55:53,821 --> 00:55:56,757 must be judged by his actions. 911 00:55:56,757 --> 00:55:59,534 So among some of the chief characters we have 912 00:55:59,534 --> 00:56:03,701 are Osiris and Anubis, and Thoth, the giver of knowledge 913 00:56:04,594 --> 00:56:07,594 and the giver of life to the people. 914 00:56:08,583 --> 00:56:13,555 The soul makes its way through the Court of the Dead, 915 00:56:13,555 --> 00:56:17,062 and the Gods themselves are asked to weigh in 916 00:56:17,062 --> 00:56:21,229 and judge the soul's worthiness to enter into the afterlife. 917 00:56:22,281 --> 00:56:24,198 - This Degree teaches there's going to be 918 00:56:24,198 --> 00:56:26,285 some uncomfortable things in it 919 00:56:26,285 --> 00:56:29,469 that I will have to let go of. 920 00:56:29,469 --> 00:56:33,958 It makes a point that we have these human roles 921 00:56:33,958 --> 00:56:36,121 even if they might have spiritual titles 922 00:56:36,121 --> 00:56:39,553 such as Pope, or Bishop, or King, 923 00:56:39,553 --> 00:56:41,853 that has been ordained by God, 924 00:56:41,853 --> 00:56:45,251 that we will still die, all of us die, 925 00:56:45,251 --> 00:56:48,834 and that these temporal leaders can't crush 926 00:56:50,027 --> 00:56:52,694 that human spirit if it is wise, 927 00:56:53,552 --> 00:56:57,302 if it has abandoned the follies of the world, 928 00:56:58,899 --> 00:57:03,066 that there's parts of us that just remain eternal. 929 00:57:05,232 --> 00:57:09,315 - The 31st Degree catches you when you're feeling 930 00:57:10,522 --> 00:57:13,100 hey I've just about got it, 931 00:57:13,100 --> 00:57:16,649 and you can be feeling just a little self satisfied 932 00:57:16,649 --> 00:57:20,816 at that point, one thing I've survived all of them. 933 00:57:21,673 --> 00:57:25,673 Then it says okay, let's talk about what's real. 934 00:57:28,796 --> 00:57:32,470 There are these series of questions 935 00:57:32,470 --> 00:57:36,637 and they are questions that sneak up behind you, for example 936 00:57:37,861 --> 00:57:41,028 have you contributed to the United Way 937 00:57:41,910 --> 00:57:45,258 or other nice safe charities, but walked 938 00:57:45,258 --> 00:57:50,118 across the street to avoid the bag lady who needed money? 939 00:57:50,118 --> 00:57:51,627 To have done that do you dare 940 00:57:51,627 --> 00:57:54,460 call yourself a charitable person? 941 00:57:58,045 --> 00:57:59,968 Have you been perfectly willing to help people 942 00:57:59,968 --> 00:58:02,908 who need a hand up as long as you don't get dirty? 943 00:58:02,908 --> 00:58:05,683 Have you been so careful about your image 944 00:58:05,683 --> 00:58:09,927 that you didn't care what happened to other people? 945 00:58:09,927 --> 00:58:12,093 These things are easy to have happen. 946 00:58:12,093 --> 00:58:13,426 They really are. 947 00:58:15,527 --> 00:58:17,376 Along with more predictable questions like 948 00:58:17,376 --> 00:58:19,991 are you sure you have not tried to help 949 00:58:19,991 --> 00:58:23,911 put power in hands that don't deserve it? 950 00:58:23,911 --> 00:58:27,303 Or have you been nice to somebody 951 00:58:27,303 --> 00:58:29,566 just because they have power and you think 952 00:58:29,566 --> 00:58:33,565 you can get someplace by being nice to them, 953 00:58:33,565 --> 00:58:35,247 which is a really contemptible thing 954 00:58:35,247 --> 00:58:38,269 but a very human thing to do. 955 00:58:38,269 --> 00:58:40,517 It takes you through all of these because 956 00:58:40,517 --> 00:58:44,267 it's saying if you are going to know yourself 957 00:58:45,255 --> 00:58:48,156 then you've got to ask these questions, 958 00:58:48,156 --> 00:58:50,767 and it's fine just to say yes, I'm charitable, 959 00:58:50,767 --> 00:58:55,633 I believe in education, I believe in free government, 960 00:58:55,633 --> 00:58:59,229 and the question is how much do you believe in that? 961 00:58:59,229 --> 00:59:02,830 Are you willing to let people disagree with you? 962 00:59:02,830 --> 00:59:06,163 Are you willing to say okay I'm revolted 963 00:59:07,532 --> 00:59:10,389 by every single thing you are saying 964 00:59:10,389 --> 00:59:14,556 but I will absolutely defend your right to say it? 965 00:59:16,525 --> 00:59:20,108 The 32nd Degree, Master of the Royal Secret 966 00:59:20,981 --> 00:59:23,314 disappoints a lot of people, 967 00:59:24,463 --> 00:59:27,123 because they come to it expecting 968 00:59:27,123 --> 00:59:28,961 that the heavens are going to open, 969 00:59:28,961 --> 00:59:31,091 the scroll is going to unfold 970 00:59:31,091 --> 00:59:33,630 and there in letters of fire are going to be 971 00:59:33,630 --> 00:59:38,202 the 18 words that teach you how to control the weather, 972 00:59:38,202 --> 00:59:41,388 make sure crops never fail and all the rest of it. 973 00:59:41,388 --> 00:59:46,049 Low and behold, what they end up being told is 974 00:59:46,049 --> 00:59:48,382 you've known this all along. 975 00:59:49,925 --> 00:59:53,239 There is nothing new that you don't know. 976 00:59:53,239 --> 00:59:55,490 You know what's important, 977 00:59:55,490 --> 00:59:59,657 you know what is required to lead a good life and go do it. 978 01:00:01,911 --> 01:00:05,210 Some people are just absolutely crushed. 979 01:00:05,210 --> 01:00:08,024 They figure they are now going to be among those 980 01:00:08,024 --> 01:00:10,637 who are the King makers and they find out 981 01:00:10,637 --> 01:00:13,131 that there are no Kings to be made. 982 01:00:13,131 --> 01:00:15,507 - It's not about the external. 983 01:00:15,507 --> 01:00:17,916 It's completely about the internal and you realize 984 01:00:17,916 --> 01:00:21,183 that everything else is like dualism, 985 01:00:21,183 --> 01:00:24,206 a total illusion and that the oneness that 986 01:00:24,206 --> 01:00:26,821 pervades everything, ourselves, 987 01:00:26,821 --> 01:00:29,886 the world that we live in, the universe our world lives in, 988 01:00:29,886 --> 01:00:32,133 and everything that we can imagine, 989 01:00:32,133 --> 01:00:35,300 is all tied to that same divine spark, 990 01:00:36,540 --> 01:00:39,321 and that spark resides within all of us, 991 01:00:39,321 --> 01:00:43,167 and upon learning that, upon integrating that 992 01:00:43,167 --> 01:00:46,437 into our souls, into our very being, 993 01:00:46,437 --> 01:00:48,069 at that point we truly become 994 01:00:48,069 --> 01:00:50,819 32nd Degree Scottish Rite Masons. 995 01:00:51,901 --> 01:00:56,087 - Now, there's something really important being told here. 996 01:00:56,087 --> 01:01:00,457 You come to the realization that the creator 997 01:01:00,457 --> 01:01:04,040 created you and you are the only one of you 998 01:01:07,248 --> 01:01:09,831 ever to exist in this universe, 999 01:01:10,719 --> 01:01:13,302 there can never be another you. 1000 01:01:15,090 --> 01:01:17,757 - I confer the 33rd Degree here. 1001 01:01:19,465 --> 01:01:21,544 As did my father before me if 1002 01:01:21,544 --> 01:01:24,294 we're gonna talk about tradition. 1003 01:01:25,251 --> 01:01:29,983 It, I think, contains one of Pike's most beautiful writing. 1004 01:01:29,983 --> 01:01:32,816 I think it is just terrific stuff. 1005 01:01:35,696 --> 01:01:37,863 It is not new information. 1006 01:01:41,698 --> 01:01:43,701 Many people figure it's going to be. 1007 01:01:43,701 --> 01:01:45,704 Finally I'm gonna get on the 33rd. 1008 01:01:45,704 --> 01:01:49,432 Here's where I find out how I control the weather, 1009 01:01:49,432 --> 01:01:52,804 and make Kings and all the rest of it, 1010 01:01:52,804 --> 01:01:55,863 and that's not the point at all. 1011 01:01:55,863 --> 01:01:58,113 The point is to remind you, 1012 01:01:59,126 --> 01:02:01,576 well there's one place where it says 1013 01:02:01,576 --> 01:02:03,332 Master of the Royal Secret is what you call 1014 01:02:03,332 --> 01:02:05,739 somebody who's got a 32nd Degree, 1015 01:02:05,739 --> 01:02:07,987 and the people are taking the Degrees, 1016 01:02:07,987 --> 01:02:11,127 our 32nd Degree Masons, and Pike says 1017 01:02:11,127 --> 01:02:14,069 Master of the Royal Secret, 1018 01:02:14,069 --> 01:02:16,902 do you deserve that name you bear? 1019 01:02:18,152 --> 01:02:22,319 Are you first and foremost among the performers of charity? 1020 01:02:24,881 --> 01:02:27,798 Have you learned, have you studied? 1021 01:02:28,970 --> 01:02:32,137 Are you sure you have not lost the key 1022 01:02:33,260 --> 01:02:36,318 and therefore wander up and down the halls 1023 01:02:36,318 --> 01:02:39,818 of this magnificent palace, thinking it is 1024 01:02:41,102 --> 01:02:43,685 no such great structure at all, 1025 01:02:44,988 --> 01:02:48,571 but only such as are built by ordinary men? 1026 01:02:50,206 --> 01:02:54,286 If that is true, then the oracles of truth 1027 01:02:54,286 --> 01:02:57,953 are encoded in you, and you are in name only 1028 01:03:01,084 --> 01:03:04,153 a Master of the Royal Secret. 1029 01:03:04,153 --> 01:03:04,986 Wow. 1030 01:03:05,831 --> 01:03:08,859 You talk about laying it out. 1031 01:03:08,859 --> 01:03:10,816 And he does that so often. 1032 01:03:10,816 --> 01:03:13,350 Another of my favorite lines is 1033 01:03:13,350 --> 01:03:16,943 the truths of philosophy and religion are 1034 01:03:16,943 --> 01:03:19,443 for most men like the sun rays 1035 01:03:20,688 --> 01:03:24,279 that strike upon the arctic snows. 1036 01:03:24,279 --> 01:03:26,779 They glitter and are reflected 1037 01:03:29,261 --> 01:03:32,178 but they do not penetrate and warm. 1038 01:03:35,506 --> 01:03:37,256 So it's a Degree that 1039 01:03:42,300 --> 01:03:46,588 reminds you of some of the important things 1040 01:03:46,588 --> 01:03:49,171 and reminds you that there is a 1041 01:03:51,160 --> 01:03:54,243 connecting thread in all of humanity. 1042 01:05:05,573 --> 01:05:09,240 - The York Rite per se doesn't really exist. 1043 01:05:10,433 --> 01:05:13,631 It's kind of an umbrella that's used to describe 1044 01:05:13,631 --> 01:05:17,131 three separate and independent structures. 1045 01:05:18,038 --> 01:05:20,788 The Chapter of Royal Arch Masons, 1046 01:05:21,676 --> 01:05:23,431 The Council of Cryptic Masons, 1047 01:05:23,431 --> 01:05:25,922 and the Commandery of Knights Templar, 1048 01:05:25,922 --> 01:05:27,963 are three separate organizational bodies 1049 01:05:27,963 --> 01:05:30,151 that make up the York Rite. 1050 01:05:30,151 --> 01:05:33,734 It's the term we use to govern all of them. 1051 01:05:36,865 --> 01:05:39,440 So the story that makes up the Chapter Degrees 1052 01:05:39,440 --> 01:05:43,445 is primarily the story of the completion, 1053 01:05:43,445 --> 01:05:47,612 dedication, destruction of the Temple of King Solomon. 1054 01:05:50,845 --> 01:05:53,468 Of course there's important symbolism 1055 01:05:53,468 --> 01:05:56,338 that carries throughout, in particular things like 1056 01:05:56,338 --> 01:05:59,521 the key stone, which is an important symbol 1057 01:05:59,521 --> 01:06:01,817 in the Mark Master Degree, the Most Excellent, 1058 01:06:01,817 --> 01:06:03,865 and the Royal Arch Degree and further 1059 01:06:03,865 --> 01:06:05,708 throughout the York Rite as well 1060 01:06:05,708 --> 01:06:09,271 that ties all of them together in some way, 1061 01:06:09,271 --> 01:06:10,986 but ultimately they are the story 1062 01:06:10,986 --> 01:06:13,653 of our life, death, and rebirth. 1063 01:06:18,239 --> 01:06:21,668 - There is an important lesson imparted 1064 01:06:21,668 --> 01:06:25,634 in the course of this that number one shows 1065 01:06:25,634 --> 01:06:28,467 you have to surmount the confusion 1066 01:06:29,986 --> 01:06:33,744 and the pandemonium of everyday life, 1067 01:06:33,744 --> 01:06:36,994 which is in essence the course traveled 1068 01:06:38,275 --> 01:06:40,646 from Babylon to Jerusalem. 1069 01:06:40,646 --> 01:06:43,097 Think about it, Babylon is a place 1070 01:06:43,097 --> 01:06:45,847 of confusion, chaos, incoherence, 1071 01:06:47,304 --> 01:06:50,054 and Jerusalem is a city of peace. 1072 01:06:55,109 --> 01:06:58,939 We begin clearing away the rubble of the 1073 01:06:58,939 --> 01:07:03,106 First Temple of Solomon, which is now historically in ruins. 1074 01:07:04,861 --> 01:07:08,850 This is essentially the rubble of our life 1075 01:07:08,850 --> 01:07:12,317 and the working tools in Royal Arch become 1076 01:07:12,317 --> 01:07:16,028 the spade and the pick-axe and the crowbar, 1077 01:07:16,028 --> 01:07:19,028 used to demonstrate to the candidate 1078 01:07:20,938 --> 01:07:25,147 that it requires some heavy hand tools to pry away 1079 01:07:25,147 --> 01:07:27,188 some of the rocks and boulders 1080 01:07:27,188 --> 01:07:30,083 of your own prejudice and your own ignorance 1081 01:07:30,083 --> 01:07:33,000 and your own lack of understanding. 1082 01:07:34,615 --> 01:07:38,782 Then, they're sent off to dig into the ruins of the temple, 1083 01:07:40,496 --> 01:07:44,663 and they find an opening that leads them down into a vault. 1084 01:07:45,685 --> 01:07:49,268 How curious, a vault down inside the temple 1085 01:07:50,633 --> 01:07:54,550 of which the rubble is the rubble of your life. 1086 01:07:55,743 --> 01:07:59,410 So therefore the temple must be your temple, 1087 01:08:00,285 --> 01:08:04,452 your temple, your self that has fallen to rag and ruin 1088 01:08:06,792 --> 01:08:11,528 and now you have descended down into this vault, 1089 01:08:11,528 --> 01:08:15,695 into the inner you and you come up from that vault 1090 01:08:16,908 --> 01:08:21,075 with a variety of treasures hidden deep within you. 1091 01:08:23,092 --> 01:08:28,048 These are presented to the three stationed officers 1092 01:08:28,048 --> 01:08:31,676 who could easily be representing your 1093 01:08:31,676 --> 01:08:33,716 super conscious, your conscious mind 1094 01:08:33,716 --> 01:08:35,756 and your sub conscious mind. 1095 01:08:35,756 --> 01:08:39,173 There are four veils, each of these veils 1096 01:08:40,283 --> 01:08:44,449 has a banner attached to it, then the banners 1097 01:08:44,449 --> 01:08:49,324 are the banners of the lion, the ox, the eagle, and the man. 1098 01:08:49,324 --> 01:08:52,106 These banners are said to be emblematic of 1099 01:08:52,106 --> 01:08:55,732 the four principle tribes of Israel. 1100 01:08:55,732 --> 01:08:57,489 The principle tribes? 1101 01:08:57,489 --> 01:08:59,971 Yeah, the principle tribes. 1102 01:08:59,971 --> 01:09:01,600 Well why are they the principle tribes? 1103 01:09:01,600 --> 01:09:03,516 What about the other tribes? 1104 01:09:03,516 --> 01:09:06,166 Well, we believe there were 12 tribes 1105 01:09:06,166 --> 01:09:08,246 plus the Levites who tended the 1106 01:09:08,246 --> 01:09:11,079 Arch of the Covenant in the Sinai. 1107 01:09:12,296 --> 01:09:16,296 These 12 tribes are very much like the 12 houses 1108 01:09:17,763 --> 01:09:21,596 of the zodiac, and these four principle tribes 1109 01:09:22,666 --> 01:09:26,249 are emblemized by the four principle tribes 1110 01:09:27,619 --> 01:09:31,333 of the zodiac, or four cardinal signs of the zodiac, 1111 01:09:31,333 --> 01:09:34,391 they're one and the same, four principle tribes, 1112 01:09:34,391 --> 01:09:36,185 four cardinal signs of the zodiac, 1113 01:09:36,185 --> 01:09:38,349 and they're in exactly the same place. 1114 01:09:38,349 --> 01:09:42,516 Then, about 2,000 years ago, we have a new dispensation 1115 01:09:43,952 --> 01:09:47,508 and that dispensation is in 326 under the reign of 1116 01:09:47,508 --> 01:09:49,999 Constantine called Christianity. 1117 01:09:49,999 --> 01:09:53,710 Christianity has a doctrine and they have 1118 01:09:53,710 --> 01:09:56,293 their gospels and those gospels 1119 01:09:57,871 --> 01:10:02,255 are represented by Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John. 1120 01:10:02,255 --> 01:10:06,345 Curiously, they are represented by the very same emblems, 1121 01:10:06,345 --> 01:10:08,762 the lion, the ox, the eagle, and the man. 1122 01:10:08,762 --> 01:10:11,179 What is it trying to tell us? 1123 01:10:17,902 --> 01:10:22,069 It spells the name of Yhwh, Y-H-W-H, 1124 01:10:24,116 --> 01:10:27,783 and it's all buried deep within this ritual. 1125 01:10:40,862 --> 01:10:44,362 The Council of Cryptic Masons provides two 1126 01:10:46,178 --> 01:10:50,095 different Degrees, the Royal and Select Master. 1127 01:10:51,156 --> 01:10:55,323 Those Degrees were borrowed from the Scottish Rite. 1128 01:10:56,677 --> 01:11:00,844 In order to help explain how we get from the lodge 1129 01:11:03,225 --> 01:11:07,028 of Solomon to the Second Temple that is 1130 01:11:07,028 --> 01:11:10,831 illustrated and demonstrated to us in the Royal Arch, 1131 01:11:10,831 --> 01:11:14,664 so that becomes explanatory of the Royal Arch. 1132 01:11:17,397 --> 01:11:20,897 - The Cryptic picks up on some things that 1133 01:11:22,086 --> 01:11:24,248 happened in Hiram Abiff's life, 1134 01:11:24,248 --> 01:11:28,170 you learn some more of the secrets and get 1135 01:11:28,170 --> 01:11:30,996 a little bit more explanation on how things took place. 1136 01:11:30,996 --> 01:11:33,996 They have this undertoe of symbolism 1137 01:11:36,460 --> 01:11:39,324 that makes them very beautiful. 1138 01:11:39,324 --> 01:11:43,157 There is a Third Degree in the Cryptic Council 1139 01:11:44,067 --> 01:11:47,234 and that is the Super Excellent Master 1140 01:11:48,275 --> 01:11:49,513 which sounds like something out 1141 01:11:49,513 --> 01:11:52,776 of Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, 1142 01:11:52,776 --> 01:11:55,187 but that's more of a dramatic presentation 1143 01:11:55,187 --> 01:11:58,009 and that really feels like a Scottish Rite Degree 1144 01:11:58,009 --> 01:12:00,219 much more than a York Rite Degree, 1145 01:12:00,219 --> 01:12:03,083 and it actually dips back into the timeframe 1146 01:12:03,083 --> 01:12:06,760 of the Royal Arch itself and the destruction of the temple 1147 01:12:06,760 --> 01:12:09,343 and depicts some of that drama. 1148 01:12:13,175 --> 01:12:16,442 - I came into this looking for 1149 01:12:16,442 --> 01:12:20,025 a system of moral, and esoteric instruction 1150 01:12:22,039 --> 01:12:26,031 that would build me into a better version of myself 1151 01:12:26,031 --> 01:12:30,198 that I could then really understand on a deeper level. 1152 01:12:37,930 --> 01:12:41,151 - Jacques de Molay was a Grand Master 1153 01:12:41,151 --> 01:12:44,502 of the Knights Templar during the crusades. 1154 01:12:44,502 --> 01:12:48,250 He was actually burned at the stake. 1155 01:12:48,250 --> 01:12:51,469 It's less of a burn and more of a slow roast. 1156 01:12:51,469 --> 01:12:54,783 They really put this man through the ringer. 1157 01:12:54,783 --> 01:12:57,690 The church wanted him to give up his 1158 01:12:57,690 --> 01:13:01,440 so called Lieutenance and to turn over 1159 01:13:01,440 --> 01:13:05,607 the wealth that the Templars had amassed and he refused. 1160 01:13:06,838 --> 01:13:09,671 At its core, The Order is meant to 1161 01:13:13,529 --> 01:13:16,279 instill that same characteristic, 1162 01:13:18,018 --> 01:13:20,099 to be true to your word even 1163 01:13:20,099 --> 01:13:23,699 when things aren't going your way. 1164 01:13:23,699 --> 01:13:26,366 - Many people in masonry like to 1165 01:13:28,633 --> 01:13:32,800 see the Knights Templars of the Crusades in their origins. 1166 01:13:33,978 --> 01:13:36,712 They had a certain moral and ethical code 1167 01:13:36,712 --> 01:13:40,129 and we liked to incorporate many of those 1168 01:13:40,995 --> 01:13:43,745 codes into our ritual and Degree. 1169 01:13:44,705 --> 01:13:49,075 - I had the honor of becoming a Knight Templar. 1170 01:13:49,075 --> 01:13:51,524 I learned secrecy, and not secrecy 1171 01:13:51,524 --> 01:13:55,356 that most anti masons want to pin on us as 1172 01:13:55,356 --> 01:13:58,421 some subversive group that's trying to take over the world, 1173 01:13:58,421 --> 01:14:01,152 but the secrecy of the inner self, 1174 01:14:01,152 --> 01:14:03,110 and of the world, the mysteries 1175 01:14:03,110 --> 01:14:05,777 that need to stay what they are. 1176 01:14:07,031 --> 01:14:09,643 - If a mason holds to the Christian faith, 1177 01:14:09,643 --> 01:14:11,761 then the Order of the Temple is something 1178 01:14:11,761 --> 01:14:13,720 that he really should consider pursuing. 1179 01:14:13,720 --> 01:14:16,970 It is such a deep spiritual experience. 1180 01:14:20,690 --> 01:14:24,850 In masonry, we have so many opportunities 1181 01:14:24,850 --> 01:14:28,446 for those deep transformative experiences. 1182 01:14:28,446 --> 01:14:30,164 Some of them are more intellectual than others. 1183 01:14:30,164 --> 01:14:32,499 Some of them are very emotional. 1184 01:14:32,499 --> 01:14:36,288 Some of them open up new vistas of ways of thought 1185 01:14:36,288 --> 01:14:38,955 into the teachings that we have. 1186 01:14:41,412 --> 01:14:42,983 In the Order of Temple Degree, 1187 01:14:42,983 --> 01:14:45,142 you're caused to represent someone who's 1188 01:14:45,142 --> 01:14:47,149 joining the literal Knights Templar 1189 01:14:47,149 --> 01:14:50,649 and you go through the pilgrims journey in 1190 01:14:52,086 --> 01:14:55,419 moving from the traveler to the warrior, 1191 01:14:58,579 --> 01:15:00,742 to eventually the Knight's Templar. 1192 01:15:00,742 --> 01:15:03,642 It ties in to the Third Degree as well, 1193 01:15:03,642 --> 01:15:06,412 it's pretty symbolic, as you move through 1194 01:15:06,412 --> 01:15:10,579 the progression of masonry, I think it's a nice capstone. 1195 01:15:12,378 --> 01:15:16,211 It wraps up the York Rite Degrees really well. 1196 01:15:19,496 --> 01:15:23,286 - There's a huge huge huge difference between 1197 01:15:23,286 --> 01:15:25,576 the York Rite and the Scottish Rite. 1198 01:15:25,576 --> 01:15:29,545 Even though they're telling the same story, 1199 01:15:29,545 --> 01:15:31,828 little different twists here and there 1200 01:15:31,828 --> 01:15:34,558 but essentially the same stories. 1201 01:15:34,558 --> 01:15:38,725 The massive difference at the end of the York Rite 1202 01:15:39,912 --> 01:15:42,995 is that the York Rite requires you to 1203 01:15:44,027 --> 01:15:47,360 declare an adherence to a set of dogmas. 1204 01:15:51,091 --> 01:15:55,008 The Scottish Rite provides you with a myriad of 1205 01:15:57,105 --> 01:16:00,125 dogmas, or facets of different dogmas, 1206 01:16:00,125 --> 01:16:04,447 and tells you that you are free to sort this 1207 01:16:04,447 --> 01:16:08,863 out for yourself, and to form your own conclusion 1208 01:16:08,863 --> 01:16:12,780 about where you fit in this sequence of dogmas. 1209 01:16:14,526 --> 01:16:17,540 What does this mean to you? 1210 01:16:17,540 --> 01:16:21,128 The York Rite says this is what it means to you 1211 01:16:21,128 --> 01:16:24,191 and you must sign on the dotted line. 1212 01:16:24,191 --> 01:16:26,662 So there's a difference there, one tells you 1213 01:16:26,662 --> 01:16:30,454 what to think, the other tells you to think for yourself. 1214 01:16:30,454 --> 01:16:33,595 But they both kind of get you to the same point 1215 01:16:33,595 --> 01:16:37,186 and then you have to decide at the very end 1216 01:16:37,186 --> 01:16:40,499 exactly where you stand on the issues. 1217 01:16:40,499 --> 01:16:45,119 Very very important, very profound experiences 1218 01:16:45,119 --> 01:16:47,369 for every man to undertake. 1219 01:16:56,137 --> 01:17:00,137 - What will the fraternity be like in 100 years? 1220 01:17:01,794 --> 01:17:05,552 My father, my grandfathers, my uncles 1221 01:17:05,552 --> 01:17:08,802 were all very active in the fraternity. 1222 01:17:10,144 --> 01:17:14,144 I grew up, the young man exposed to Freemasonry. 1223 01:17:15,942 --> 01:17:20,717 Freemasonry has changed so much during my lifetime. 1224 01:17:20,717 --> 01:17:24,884 It'd be hard to predict what it's going to be like. 1225 01:17:27,775 --> 01:17:31,858 But there's certain things that have not changed. 1226 01:17:33,579 --> 01:17:36,579 The fact that it's a symbolic system 1227 01:17:38,444 --> 01:17:40,777 taught through Degrees only. 1228 01:17:43,210 --> 01:17:46,926 That we have a ritual that, well it's evolved, 1229 01:17:46,926 --> 01:17:48,093 not that much. 1230 01:17:51,628 --> 01:17:55,795 I think those things will still be here in 100 years. 1231 01:17:57,093 --> 01:17:59,176 Who will be a mason then? 1232 01:18:00,156 --> 01:18:01,707 What are some of the things that masons 1233 01:18:01,707 --> 01:18:04,241 might do out in the community? 1234 01:18:04,241 --> 01:18:07,583 Those things will evolve over time. 1235 01:18:07,583 --> 01:18:10,666 But, 1236 01:18:11,827 --> 01:18:15,994 would attracted combatence in the English Civil War 1237 01:18:20,023 --> 01:18:23,356 til one night, they aside their disputes 1238 01:18:25,275 --> 01:18:28,608 in a country home and become Freemasons? 1239 01:18:31,806 --> 01:18:35,306 That kind of spirit, I think will live on. 1240 01:18:37,162 --> 01:18:39,168 - The outer trappings of Freemasonry 1241 01:18:39,168 --> 01:18:41,456 change through the ages. 1242 01:18:41,456 --> 01:18:43,575 Once our lodges were lit by candles, 1243 01:18:43,575 --> 01:18:46,553 once we rode horses to lodge meetings, 1244 01:18:46,553 --> 01:18:51,282 or came by moonlight, nowadays we travel in cars, 1245 01:18:51,282 --> 01:18:53,440 we travel in planes to that. 1246 01:18:53,440 --> 01:18:57,729 100 years from now the external world will have changed. 1247 01:18:57,729 --> 01:19:01,813 But the core values of Freemasonry will not have changed. 1248 01:19:01,813 --> 01:19:04,142 The Grand Master 100 years from now 1249 01:19:04,142 --> 01:19:08,309 is going to need to find ways to empower every mason 1250 01:19:09,243 --> 01:19:10,835 to pursue that journey which is 1251 01:19:10,835 --> 01:19:13,211 the heart of what Freemasonry is. 1252 01:19:13,211 --> 01:19:15,942 I would suggest that he not forget that 1253 01:19:15,942 --> 01:19:18,683 his primary job is that of a teacher. 1254 01:19:18,683 --> 01:19:20,353 He is to teach those around that 1255 01:19:20,353 --> 01:19:23,905 the principles of Freemasonry are eternal 1256 01:19:23,905 --> 01:19:27,015 and that the pursuit of the journey of a Freemason 1257 01:19:27,015 --> 01:19:30,321 regardless of the time and the era in which it happens, 1258 01:19:30,321 --> 01:19:32,812 will be a challenge because the world is 1259 01:19:32,812 --> 01:19:36,072 not an easy place to be in, but a Grand Master 1260 01:19:36,072 --> 01:19:39,832 who is willing to help empower his lodges 1261 01:19:39,832 --> 01:19:42,530 and his brethren to be masons 1262 01:19:42,530 --> 01:19:46,409 will be doing what Freemasonry needs 100 years from now. 1263 01:19:46,409 --> 01:19:49,472 - Nothing can take away or fundamentally alter 1264 01:19:49,472 --> 01:19:52,607 the experience of the Masonic Degrees 1265 01:19:52,607 --> 01:19:55,014 and the lessons we are taught within them. 1266 01:19:55,014 --> 01:19:56,969 They have stayed consistent through all 1267 01:19:56,969 --> 01:20:00,519 evolutions of man and society from hundreds of years ago, 1268 01:20:00,519 --> 01:20:03,495 and is my sincere hope that they remain 1269 01:20:03,495 --> 01:20:05,571 the same a hundred years from now. 1270 01:20:05,571 --> 01:20:09,324 - The future of Freemasonry is in the hands 1271 01:20:09,324 --> 01:20:11,824 of people who aren't here yet, 1272 01:20:13,279 --> 01:20:17,446 and it is up to them to carry that torch into the future. 1273 01:20:23,984 --> 01:20:28,151 Light has a unique characteristic that it fills all. 1274 01:20:34,189 --> 01:20:37,356 I think that the seekers of that light 1275 01:20:38,314 --> 01:20:42,397 can make a profound impact on others around them. 1276 01:20:45,066 --> 01:20:48,149 By living that example, we can really 1277 01:20:48,986 --> 01:20:51,144 make a change for the better. 1278 01:20:51,144 --> 01:20:54,171 - Where this is gonna be in 10 years, I haven't a clue. 1279 01:20:54,171 --> 01:20:56,619 I've given up guessing, 1280 01:20:56,619 --> 01:21:00,786 but I am convinced that it is meeting a genuine need 1281 01:21:01,996 --> 01:21:04,702 in the human psyche, and that as long 1282 01:21:04,702 --> 01:21:06,783 as that's true, it's gonna be there. 1283 01:21:06,783 --> 01:21:09,113 It's gonna survive. 1284 01:21:09,113 --> 01:21:12,665 20 years ago, I kind of had my doubts, 1285 01:21:12,665 --> 01:21:15,233 but now, I know it's safe. 1286 01:21:15,233 --> 01:21:18,783 - In the future, I think our greatest challenge 1287 01:21:18,783 --> 01:21:22,866 is trying to assemble guys maybe more like myself 1288 01:21:25,327 --> 01:21:29,734 that are vested in trying to help younger masons 1289 01:21:29,734 --> 01:21:33,067 understand who and what they really are, 1290 01:21:33,926 --> 01:21:37,593 and cultivate the divine gift that is within 1291 01:21:39,695 --> 01:21:41,616 each and every one of us. 1292 01:21:41,616 --> 01:21:44,966 - Masonry really teaches us that 1293 01:21:44,966 --> 01:21:48,383 we're all brothers from the same creator. 1294 01:21:50,024 --> 01:21:54,023 People of all religious creeds, all cultures, 1295 01:21:54,023 --> 01:21:56,440 we're all living as brothers. 1296 01:21:59,210 --> 01:22:02,434 When you understand that it really, 1297 01:22:02,434 --> 01:22:05,698 a person of any faith can go to the 1298 01:22:05,698 --> 01:22:08,615 Masonic altar and become a brother. 1299 01:22:09,657 --> 01:22:12,306 - It is very important to value your brothers 1300 01:22:12,306 --> 01:22:14,753 and value the lessons learned, 1301 01:22:14,753 --> 01:22:17,736 and if you're gonna do anything in masonry, 1302 01:22:17,736 --> 01:22:22,510 recognize that it's not anything that is modern. 1303 01:22:22,510 --> 01:22:27,010 It has historic values that need to be continued. 1304 01:22:27,010 --> 01:22:31,097 Yes, we understand that 100 years, 200 years, 1305 01:22:31,097 --> 01:22:35,101 things are gonna change, but certain things must remain. 1306 01:22:35,101 --> 01:22:37,997 The principles of knowledge must remain. 1307 01:22:37,997 --> 01:22:41,915 You've got to vie for that, you've got to search for it, 1308 01:22:41,915 --> 01:22:45,460 and you've got to make sure that you respect it 1309 01:22:45,460 --> 01:22:48,480 because others before you certainly has 1310 01:22:48,480 --> 01:22:51,647 put in a lot of work, tremendous work, 1311 01:22:52,516 --> 01:22:55,782 and that came about simply because 1312 01:22:55,782 --> 01:22:59,294 persons desired to continue this work through their craft, 1313 01:22:59,294 --> 01:23:01,868 through their practice, through the brotherhood, 1314 01:23:01,868 --> 01:23:05,503 through friendship, and I'd admonish you 1315 01:23:05,503 --> 01:23:09,012 to continue to follow the trend so that 1316 01:23:09,012 --> 01:23:12,282 two, three hundred years after you, 1317 01:23:12,282 --> 01:23:15,549 the princeps and precepts still stands. 1318 01:23:15,549 --> 01:23:16,799 Most important. 1319 01:23:18,774 --> 01:23:21,916 - We have a saying in masonry that it takes 1320 01:23:21,916 --> 01:23:24,734 good men and makes them better. 1321 01:23:24,734 --> 01:23:26,943 Naturally the question I have is 1322 01:23:26,943 --> 01:23:28,616 what is it making me better for? 1323 01:23:28,616 --> 01:23:30,331 Why am I doing this? 1324 01:23:30,331 --> 01:23:34,379 Am I just trying to make myself a better person for me 1325 01:23:34,379 --> 01:23:36,300 so that I can feel like a better person 1326 01:23:36,300 --> 01:23:39,278 or so I can wear some badge and have a good guy badge? 1327 01:23:39,278 --> 01:23:41,483 I don't think that's really, 1328 01:23:41,483 --> 01:23:42,868 where it's gonna stock. 1329 01:23:42,868 --> 01:23:45,956 For me it's about making myself a better person 1330 01:23:45,956 --> 01:23:48,530 so I can be part of a better world. 1331 01:23:48,530 --> 01:23:50,776 So that the transformation that I feel, 1332 01:23:50,776 --> 01:23:53,347 that I achieved within myself can carry 1333 01:23:53,347 --> 01:23:56,205 forward through my actions into the world, 1334 01:23:56,205 --> 01:23:59,390 and the lives of people around me that have no idea. 1335 01:23:59,390 --> 01:24:01,807 They don't have any idea that 1336 01:24:02,660 --> 01:24:05,802 I go and dress up and go through these 1337 01:24:05,802 --> 01:24:09,726 really interesting rituals and Degrees. 1338 01:24:09,726 --> 01:24:12,826 They might not ever know that. 1339 01:24:12,826 --> 01:24:16,743 - I did find that there is without a doubt God. 1340 01:24:22,264 --> 01:24:25,181 That when you find God, the paradox 1341 01:24:27,530 --> 01:24:32,025 of finding God is that, it's a similar paradox in masonry 1342 01:24:32,025 --> 01:24:35,262 which is that how do you speak of God? 1343 01:24:35,262 --> 01:24:39,111 You can't put it into words necessarily. 1344 01:24:39,111 --> 01:24:42,656 It's the same thing as far as the secrets 1345 01:24:42,656 --> 01:24:44,989 of masonry go too, you can't 1346 01:24:47,557 --> 01:24:50,251 describe it with the human tongue because 1347 01:24:50,251 --> 01:24:54,249 all words are are symbols for thoughts. 1348 01:24:54,249 --> 01:24:58,819 So it goes a lot deeper than just what's on the surface 1349 01:24:58,819 --> 01:25:02,244 and that's what masonry is, it's a 1350 01:25:02,244 --> 01:25:06,411 mystery school that teaches the importance of conquering 1351 01:25:07,749 --> 01:25:09,960 these vices and super fluidities in our lives 1352 01:25:09,960 --> 01:25:13,956 so that we can align our hearts and our minds with God 1353 01:25:13,956 --> 01:25:16,318 and then have communion with God 1354 01:25:16,318 --> 01:25:19,581 and speak with God, and ultimately find balance 1355 01:25:19,581 --> 01:25:21,944 and find our way back home. 1356 01:25:21,944 --> 01:25:25,163 - So that when it's all said and done, 1357 01:25:25,163 --> 01:25:29,775 he can look back and he can have some sense of 1358 01:25:29,775 --> 01:25:32,942 comfort that he has lived a good life, 1359 01:25:34,130 --> 01:25:36,463 he has lived an examined life, 1360 01:25:36,463 --> 01:25:39,156 and in the process of learning himself, 1361 01:25:39,156 --> 01:25:42,739 he has taught other men how to be good men. 1362 01:25:44,218 --> 01:25:48,385 Our ultimate goal is to live respected and die regretted. 1363 01:29:58,969 --> 01:30:01,132 That's it. 1364 01:30:01,132 --> 01:30:04,821 Dude, that looked so ridiculous and awesome. 1365 01:30:07,219 --> 01:30:09,096 That's going in the blooper section.