Free and Accepted Masons Dover, N. H. June thru August 2016 Organized Under Dispensation December 20, 1889 Chartered May 21, 1890

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1 MOSES PAUL LODGE #96 DOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE Free and Accepted Masons Dover, N. H. June thru August 2016 Organized Under Dispensation December 20, 1889 Chartered May 21, 1890

2 June-August Calendar Event: Square and Compass Date and Time: Thursday June 2nd, 6:30 pm at the Lodge Hall, Dress Code: Casual Cost: $20.00 Description: Surf and Turf Fellowship dinner, Social Hour, Advance Reservations are required! Who can attend: EA s and above, and Guests for dinner, Event: Moses Paul Lodge Dine Around Club (informal gathering) Date and Time: June thru August TBD 6:30 pm, Dress Code: Casual Cost: Special of the day or order from menu Description: This will replace the regular Square and Compass fellowship dinners for July and August. It is an informal gathering to enjoy fellowship outside of the Lodge. A great time to introduce good men to Masonry. If you haven t been to one of these meetings, you have missed some great food and fellowship! Location: is TBD Who can attend: All Masons and Guests. Event: Stated Communication and FC degree Date and Time: Thursday June 16 th Lodge opens at 7:00 pm for FC degree, Business meeting to follow. Dress Code: Officers Tux, all others Jacket and tie Cost: Donation for collation Description: Fellow Craft Degree for Brother Jeremy Erb, and Monthly business meeting. Please make a note that the change in start time is for the degree only, no business will be conducted before7:30 pm. Who can attend: FCs and above

3 District 5 Calendar Event: Winnipesaukee Lodge Breakfast Buffet Date and Time: Sunday June 19 th 7:30 am-11:00 am at Winnipesaukee Lodge in Alton NH Dress Code: Casual Cost: $10.00 Description: Famous Breakfast Buffet Who can attend: Public event All are welcome! Event: Masters and Wardens, and Masters Class Date and Time: Tuesday June 28 th, 6:30-9:00 pm at Moses Paul Lodge#96 in Dover, NH. Dress Code: Casual Cost: Usually less than $10.00 for Light meal Description: Masters and Wardens Meeting and Masters Class, this month s topic will be Masonic Protocol and Balloting. Who can attend: Master Masons Event: Winnipesaukee Lodge Breakfast Buffet Date and Time: Sunday July 17 th 7:30 am-11:00 am at Winnipesaukee Lodge in Alton NH Dress Code: Casual Cost: $10.00 Description: Famous Breakfast Buffet Who can attend: Public event All are welcome! Event: Winnipesaukee Lodge Breakfast Buffet Date and Time: Sunday August 21 st 7:30 am-11:00 am at Winnipesaukee Lodge in Alton NH Dress Code: Casual Cost: $10.00 Description: Famous Breakfast Buffet Who can attend: Public event All are welcome!

4 Moses Paul Lodge #96, Dover, NH Officers & Appointments for 2016 Worshipful Master: David Akridge Senior Warden: John T. Pond, Jr Junior Warden: Wor. George McGee Treasurer: Adam M. Hughes Deputy Treasurer: Secretary: David Martinelli Deputy Secretary: Representative to Grand Lodge: Richard Lapointe Chaplain Wor. Kristopher G. Furtney Asst. Chaplain Wor. James S. Miller Senior Deacon: Robert P. Johnson Jr Junior Deacon: James E. Lewis Marshall: Wor. Donald Meserve Senior Steward: Brett Cossaboon Junior Steward: Michael P. Couturier Tyler: Richard Lapointe Organist: Lodge Ambassador: Historian: David Akridge Finance Committee: Jean L. LaBrack Trustees of Charity Fund Wor Kristopher Furtney 2016 Wor. James S. Miller 2016, & 2017 John T. Pond, Jr. 2016, 2017, &2018 Widow s Program Chairman: Vincent R. Puleo John T. Pond, Jr Gates: #1-, Richard Lapointe #2-, #3-Wor. Donald Meserve Representative to Evergreen Place: Kevin M. Schultz Building Assoc. Representatives: Richard Lapointe Adam M. Hughes Robert P. Johnson Wor. Robert Corsetti Public Affairs Officer: Wor. Kristopher G. Furtney Lodge Care Taker: Richard Lapointe Web Master : John T Pond, III

5 MASTER S MESSAGE Summer is here and our Lodge is approaching a time of Darkness. Like previous summers, we will continue to have our Dine Around. Stay tuned. We have some summer venues that we would like to try. Our last dine around, we had four Lodges represented and a really great meal. We have a Fellow Craft Degree scheduled for 6/16 and then your current line will be able to say that we have done all three degrees. Winnipesaukee Lodge will celebrate its 150 th Anniversary on 6/11. We will have a delegation going, won t you join us? Your Officers attended Grand Lodge in May. Moses Paul Lodge #96 was acknowledged for its Widows and Orphans efforts in the proceedings. Thank you Worshipful Puleo for your efforts. Additionally, our 125 th Anniversary Celebration and Cornerstone Ceremony are recorded in the Reports and were a part of Most Worshipful Brother John Gordon s comments regarding his activities in his first year. There is a 2 nd Cornerstone Ceremony that will be performed in the Fall. Our new District Deputy Grand Lecturer, Rt Worshipful Paul Smith will be coordinating this effort for Grand Lodge. We will have a large delegation attending from Moses Paul Lodge #96 as we support this historical re-enactment of the Cornerstone at the State House in Concord. This is yet another opportunity for New Hampshire Masons to practice our

6 public work for all to see. From all that I have heard, it will be a great day. Finally, I hope you will join me in welcoming our new District Deputy Grand Master, Rt. Worshipful David Cumming as well as our new DEO, Worshipful Dennis Tuttle Jr. These two guys travel District 5 just about every night of the week and have been extremely helpful and supportive of our Lodge. I wish each of you a great summer and hope that you will join us for our limited Moses Paul summer events. A Masonic Thought NEEDED: A KNOWLEDGE OF FREE- MASONRY. At no time in Masonic history has there been a greater need for understanding of what Freemasonry is and what it stands for than there is today. Much has been left undone in the education of Members of our Lodges. The first essential in Masonic education is that desire to become interested and enthused in Freemasonry followed by a thirst for knowledge as to what Freemasonry is all about. Here is where the instructors can serve well and can influence the candidate in a continuous search for more Masonic Light. The qualifications for instructing are less exciting than may be imagined. What is essential is a basic knowledge of Freemasonry by the instructor. In this day and age, with so many counter attractions, it becomes more evident that greater efforts must be put forth to instruct our new Members in the ideals and fundamentals of Freemasonry. Every Lodge should have a definite pro- gram along authentic Masonic educational lines. We must understand what Freemasonry really is before we can practice Freemasonry in our lives. We must remember that Freemasonry is judged by the actions of its individual members. We must set an example to those out- side the Craft at all times. The need for Masonic knowledge is often evidenced in our Lodges, This can be alleviated where dedicated members qualify as instructors and then serve in teaching the principles and fundamentals of Freemasonry to all who will listen.

7 EMBLEMS OF THE CRAFT by Dr. Robert Morris You wear the Square! but have you got That thing the Square denotes? Is there within your inmost soul That principle which should control Your actions, words and thoughts? The Square of virtue,--is it there, Oh, you who wear the Mason's Square? You wear the Compass! Do you keep With that circle due That's circumscribed by law divine Excluding hatred, envy, sin,-- Including all that's true? The Moral Compass draws the line, And lets no evil passion in! You wear the Trowel! have you got That mortar, old and pure, Made on the recipe of God Divulged within His ancient Word, Indissoluble, sure? And do you spread, `twixt man and man, That precious mixture as you can? You wear the oriental G! Ah, Brother, have a care! He whose All-seeing Eye surveys Your inmost heart, with open gaze, Knows well what thoughts are there! Let no profane, irreverent word Go up t' insult th' avenging God! Dear Brother! if you will display These emblems of our Art, Let the great morals that they teach Be deeply graven, each for each, Upon an honest heart! Then they will tell, to God and man, Freemasonry's all perfect plan!

8 Greetings Brethren A Word from the West. Brother John T. Pond Jr. May was a great month for Moses Paul Lodge as well as for masons in the state of NH. During the month your Lodge with the help of Winnipesaukee Lodge made a mason of Mr. Mark Raiche. Congratulation Brother Raiche on becoming a member of Moses Paul Lodge, and thank you to our Brothers at Winnipesaukee Lodge for your help and Brotherly love and friendship. We had a great Stated meeting and Worshipful Akridge gave a great presentation on Masonic history, and the future of Masonry and Moses Paul Lodge. Your Lodge was well represented at the Annual Grand Lodge Communication by Worshipful Akridge, Brother Dick Lapointe, and me. It was a great day for NH masonry as the Meeting was attended by many Grand lodges of the United States and Canada. The Rainbow girls did the flag ceremony which was beautiful to watch and inspiring to hear. Your Lodge received several mentions for Events that we held this year, one for our 125 th Anniversary of the Lodge, one for the Laying of the Cornerstone at the New Dover Police Station and Parking Garage, and one for our Special Ladies program. We have a busy month coming up for June and then we go into darkness for July and August while we rest up and plan for the next year of events and activities. It is the hope that when we come out of darkness many of you will find a renewed interested in your Lodge and come back to give us your help and insight, because a house united will stand strong! Have a safe and fun Summer, and come back in the Fall ready to work and make your lodge prosper! Fraternally John T. Pond, Jr. bears123@comcast.net

9 The Trowel FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA THE CRAFTSMAN Freemasons' Lodges in America are of recent date. Upon application of a number of brethren residing in Boston, a warrant was granted by the Right Honorable and Most Worshipful Anthony, Lord Viscount Montague, Grand Master of Masons in England, dated 30th April, 1733, a pointing the R. W. Henry Price, Grand Master of North America, with full power and authority to appoint his deputy, and other Masonic officers necessary for forming a Grand Lodge; and also to constitute lodges of free and accepted Masons, as often as occasion should require. In consequence of this commission, the Grand Master opened a Grand Lodge in Boston, (sometimes called the "Grand Lodge of Modern Masons") on the 30th July, 1733, in due form, and appointed the R.W. Andrew Belcher, Deputy Grand Master, and Thomas Kennelly and John Quann, Grand Wardens. The Grand Lodge being thus organized, order the designation of St. John's Grand Lodge, proceeded to grant warrants for instituting regular lodges in various parts of America; and from this Grand Lodge originated the first Grand Lodges in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Barbados, Antigua, Newfoundland Louisburg, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Surinam, and St. Christopher's. In 1775, hostilities commenced between Great Britain and America. Boston became a garrison, and was abandoned by many of its former inhabitants. The regular meetings of the Grand

10 Lodges were terminated, and the brethren of St. John's Grand Lodge held no assembly until after the re-establishment of peace. There was at that time also a Grand Lodge holden at Boston, upon the ancient establishment, under the designation of "The Massachusetts Grand Lodge," which originated as follows:- In 1755, a number of brethren residing in Boston, who were ancient masons, in consequence of a petition to the Grand Lodge of Scotland, received a dispensation, dated Nov. 30, 1752, from Sholto Charles Douglas, Lord Aberdour, then Grand Master, constituting them a lodge, under the title of St. Andrew's Lodge, (No. 82), to be holden at Boston. This establishment was discouraged and opposed by the St. John's Grand Lodge, who thought their privileges infringed by the Grand Lodge of Scotland; they therefore refused to have any intercourse with the St. Andrew's Lodge for several years. The prosperous state of St. Andrew's Lodge soon led its members to make great exertions for the establishment of an ancient great Lodge in America which was soon effected in Boston, by the assistance of travelling lodges, belonging to the British army who were stationed there. 1769, December, The festival of the evangelist was celebrated in due form. When the brethren were assembled, a commission from the Right Hon. and M.W. George, Earl of Dalhousie, Grand Master of Masons in Scotland, dated the 30th of May, 1769, appointing Joseph Warren to be Grand Master of Masons in Boston, and within one hundred miles of the same, was read, and he was, according to ancient usage, duly installed into that office. The Grand Master then appointed and installed the other grand officers, and the Grand Lodge was at this time completely organized. Between this period and the year 1791, this Grand Lodge granted warrants of constitution for lodges to be holden in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Vermont, and New York. In the year 1773, a commission was received from the Right Hon. and M.W. Patrick, Earl of Dumfries, Grand Master of Masons in Scotland, dated March 3, 1772, appointing the R. W. Joseph Warren, Esq., Grand Master of Masons for the continent of America.

11 In 1775, the meetings of the Grand Lodge were suspended, by the town of Boston becoming a garrison. At the battle of Bunker's Hill, on the 27th June, this year, Masonry and Grand Lodge met with a heavy loss in the death of Grand Master Warren, who was slain contending for the liberties of his country. Soon after the evacuation of Boston by the British army, and previous to any regular communication, the brethren, influenced by a pious regard to the memory of the late Grand Master, were induced to search for his body which had been rudely and indiscriminately buried in the field of slaughter. They accordingly repaired to the place, and, by the direction of a person who was on the ground at the time of his burial, a spot was found where the earth had been recently turned up. Upon moving the turf, and opening the grave, which was on the brow of a hill, and adjacent to a small cluster of sprigs, the remains were discovered in a mangled condition, but were easily ascertained; (by an artificial tooth) and being decently raised, were conveyed to the State House in Boston; from whence by a large and respectable number of brethren, with the late grand officers, attending in procession, they were carried to the stone chapel, where an animated eulogium was delivered by Bro. Perez Morton. The body was then deposited in the silent vault; 'without a sculptured stone to mark the spot; but, as the whole earth is the sepulchre of illustrious men, his fame, his glorious actions, are engraven on the tablet of universal remembrance, and will survive marble monuments or local inscriptions.' 1777, March 8. The brethren who had been dispersed in consequence of the war, being now generally collected, they assembled to take into consideration the state of Masonry. Being deprived of their chief by the melancholy death of their Grand Master, as before mentioned, after due consideration they proceeded to the formation of a Grand Lodge, and elected and installed the Most Worshipful Joseph Webb, their Grand Master. 1783, January 3. A committee was appointed to draft resolutions explanatory of the power and authority of this Grand Lodge. On the 24th June following, the committee reported as follows, viz. :- The committee appointed to take into consideration the conduct of those brethren who assume the powers and prerogatives of a Grand

12 Lodge, on the ancient establishment in this place, and examine the extent of their authority and jurisdiction, together with the powers of any other ancient Masonic institution within the same, bed leave to report the result of their examination, founded on the following facts, viz.;- That the commission from the Grand Lodge of Scotland, granted to our late Grand Master, Joseph Warren, Esq., having died with him, of course his deputy, whose appointment was derived from his nomination, being no longer in existence, they saw themselves without a head, and without a single grand officer; and in consequence it was evident that not only the Grand Lodge, but all the particular lodges under its jurisdiction, must cease to assemble, the brethren be dispersed, the penniless go unassisted the craft languish, and ancient Masonry be extinct in this part of the world. That in consequence of a summons from the former grand officers to the Masters and Wardens of all the regular constituted lodges, a grand communication was held, to consult and advise on some means to preserve the intercourse of the brethren. That the political head of this country having destroyed this connection and correspondence between the subjects of these states and the country from which the Grand Lodge originally derived its commissioned authority, and the principles of the Craft inculcated on its professors submission to the commands of the civil authority of the, country they reside in; the brethren did assume an elective supremacy, and under it chose a Grand Master and Grand Officers, and erected a Grand Lodge, with independent powers and prerogatives, to be exercised however on principles consistent with, and subordinate to the regulations pointed out in the constitutions of ancient Masonry. That the reputation and utility of the Craft, under their jurisdiction, has been more extensively diffused by the flourishing state of the fourteen lodges constituted by their authority, within a shorter period than that in which three only received dispensations under the former Grand Lodge. That in the history of our Craft we find, that in England there are two Grand Lodges independent of each other; in Scotland the same; and in Ireland their Grand Lodge and Grand Master are independent either of England or Scotland. It is clear that the authority of some of those Grand Lodges originated in assumption;

13 or, otherwise, they would acknowledge the head from whence they derived. Your committee are therefore of opinion, that the doings of the present Grand Lodge were dictated by principles of the clearest necessity, founded in the highest reason, and warranted by precedents of the most approved authority, This report was accepted, and corresponding resolutions entered into by the Grand Lodge and recorded. Phrases That Kill Ideas. This is condensed from the book What a Great Idea by C. Thompson Twenty-two phrases that we should avoid as much as possible if we want to improve the spirit of fellowship, how many times have we heard or used these ourselves! 1. "Yes, but..." 2. "We tried that before." 3. "That's irrelevant." 4. "We haven't got the manpower." 5. "Don't waste time thinking." 6. "Great idea, but not for us." 7. "It'll never fly." 8. "Don't be ridiculous." 9. "People don't want change." 10. "It's not in the budget." 11. "It will be more trouble than its worth." 12. "You can't teach an old dog new tricks." 13. "Let's stick with what works." 14. "We've done all right so far." 15. "It's too far ahead of the times." 16. "Get a committee to look into that." 17. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." 18. "You have got to be kidding." 19. "No!" 20. "We've always done it this way." 21. "It's all right in theory...but..." 22. "Be practical!" Don t be an idea killer!

14 Secretary s Desk Thank you to all who have paid their dues on time! There are still 14 that have not paid to date! Please make every effort to pay these quickly as the Lodge depends on this money to be able maintain our building and pay the bills. If you can t afford your dues or have other issues preventing you from paying them please contact me or any officer, we may be able to work out a solution. When was the last time you came to a meeting? We as your officers know that your time is valuable and should not be wasted! The meetings are fun and informative. Can t remember the signs or you don t feel you know anyone, don t worry, we are all brothers and will greet you with open arms. This month s education article is A Lodge at Work and don t miss the History Article Freemasonry in America. Please visit our website for upcoming events. The District 5 Calendar at: %40gmail.com NH Grand Lodge Web site at: Webmaster: dovermasons@nhfreemasons.org Facebook: NOT RECEIVING THE TRESTLE BOARD BY ??? If you would like to get it as soon as it comes out and save the Lodge a stamp send your address to bears123@comcast.net

15 A LODGE AT WORK Walter M. Macdougall Bro. Walter M. Macdougall is a member of Piscataquis Lodge # 44, Milo, ME and a Past Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Maine. Bro. Macdougall is a faculty member at the College of Education, University of Maine where he teaches philosophy. Bro. Macdougall also authored the 6-95 STB, Surprised By Joy. -Editor A Lodge is a certain number of Masons duly assembled, with the Holy Bible, Square, and Compasses, with a charter or warrant empowering them to work. Ask a brother how his lodge is doing, and his answer is very apt to be either that things are going well because there has been a lot of work to do or that the life of the lodge is at a low ebb because there hasn't been much work lately. Ten to one, he is talking about degree work. There is no doubt that performing degrees is a vital part of the work of a lodge, but it is a common short circuit in our Masonic thinking to conclude that exemplifying our degrees constitutes the work of our lodge. Degree work is a means not an end. Another possible and closely related short circuit lurks in the word jurisdiction. In our everyday Masonic usage, this term signifies the geographic area from which a lodge draws its candidates. Just as the work of a living lodge embraces much more than doing degrees so there is more to the concept of a lodge's jurisdiction than the place a lodge draws its candidates. The working of a lodge of Freemasons is a many faceted business which takes place, not just within a lodge hall or just among its members, but within the lodge's jurisdiction of compassion and service. Suppose we find ourselves standing outside "Builders Lodge" in a place called "Needsville, " Here, according to our ritual, gathers a certain number of masons duly assembled, inspired by the Sacred

16 Book and guided by the compasses and the square. They are, by a charter, empowered to work-that is they have the honor of laboring as Freemasons. On reflection, we realize that Builders' Lodge, like all Masonic lodges, exists even when there are no masons meeting in the building. It exists in the shared belief system of the brethren and in their united endeavor to give concrete evidence of their beliefs through their service to others. Every Mason who has received his training in Builder's Lodge should know that the dimensions of his lodge spread symbolically to the ends of the earth and that nothing short of universal compassion is the aim of the Fraternity. In more immediate terms, the dimensions of Builder's Lodge spread across Needsville to the borders of the lodge's jurisdiction. Jurisdiction defines a certain community of lodge members and wayfaring brethren alike. It is a community within the community at large, a community of the Craft, alive and operative. As in the case of the Masonic terms work and jurisdiction, the word "lodge" with its varied meanings may cause confusion. Your wife asks you if you will be at home this evening. "No" you answer, "I am going to lodge. " In this response "lodge" means a place and an event. You are signifying a communication of the officers and brethren at the lodge hall. Such usage indicates a partial manifestation of the lodge, but, in this last instance, "lodge" identifies an entity neither limited to a particular place or to a special event. Put simply, lodge meetings represent a vital and special function of the larger lodge which is the local community of Masons. The lodge hall houses the operating and training center for this larger lodge. It houses the nerve center, if you will. From this place of focus, the leadership of the Master, assisted by his officers and his committees, radiates outward and assumes the responsibility for "putting the Craft to labor" within the lodge's jurisdiction of compassion and caring. [These officers are the future masters in training. It is in leadership training, instruction on how to build an administrative team, and in schooling Masonic educators that our Grand Lodges play their most essential role.] Consider the extensive dimensions of the lodge's mission! This

17 labor falls into three categories all of which are interrelated and partake of the vision of the Craft. (a) Care for the Masonic family (b) Serving the needy and building a better community (c) Training the builders "Take care of the widows and the orphans' " this is the great charitable charge we have received from our operative predecessors. This noble charge still stands, but it has been expanded to the entire MasonicFamily. Our obligations have enlarged with our growing conception of what we as Freemasons came here to do and as new needs have demanded. We feel it our wider calling to support the aging members, the young Masons laboring to bring up their family amidst an enlarging circle of dangers, and our youth who may find their first introduction to the great beliefs of humanity within our youth organizations. Who are we as Masons if we do not look after our own? But there is more. What do we understand about our work if we curtail our mission within our own Masonic house? We come to work upon a fairer city of humanity; this is what we intend to do. It is our vision to bring a new era of hope and joy within our lodge's jurisdiction of compassion and service. It is the result of our calling as builders within our given jurisdictions of compassion and service which constitutes the work of our lodges. We all like to see a large number of brothers out to our meetings, for, after all, fraternal companionship is one of the great joys of Freemasonry. However, it is not the primary business, or even the business at all, of the master or his officers to entertain the brethren in an attempt to populate the "sidelines. " Lodges at one time may have served as places of entertainment, they may properly do so now, from time to time, for happiness is part of our business, but lodges are not primarily about "sidelines." They are about mainlines of action and vision. Masons, even those who seldom attend lodge meetings, are duty bound to practice and to live

18 Masonry within their own Needsville. Recently I had the opportunity to present a fifty year veterans medal. As so often is the case, the receiving brother began to apologize for not having come to lodge more often. When he was done, a young mason rose and said, "Don't you apologize. I watched you all the years I was growing up in this community, and I wanted to be like you. You and your life are why I am here." It is the master and his officers' duty to see that the living of Freemasonry throughout the jurisdiction is not haphazard. Every member according to his time and his capabilities should be given some part to play in the work of the lodge, as it promotes the human conversation, as it conciliates true friendships, as it stands for justice and equality, and as it "restores peace to troubled minds." It is from the "nerve center" of the living lodge that such direction and leadership of the Craft must come. All this is implied in the phrase "a lodge duly assembled"-assembled, coordinated for the accomplishment of its work. All successful lodges are operative lodges. Find such a lodge and you will discover leaders (or a leader) who knows how to bind the brethren in a significant expression of the Masonic enterprise, and who has the skill to set them to accomplishing this purpose for themselves. Perhaps we have not given enough thought to how much skill, how much informed art such leadership demands. [And this too must be primary in the concern and the services of a Grand Lodge to its lodges.] Perhaps we have not sufficiently considered how much sophisticated skill is demanded if we are to help create within the community that communication, networking, and coordination which is now required in the building of a better world. Certainly we all tend to forget that below all that we do, welling up and giving strength to all building endeavors, are those moral principles which illuminate and stimulate the Masonic vision. So now we return to where we began this exploration of a lodge and its work. We find ourselves realizing why our degree work is a vital means and not an end in itself. At the "nerve center," the

19 officers and those members who possess the special gift of being ritualistic teachers assemble to set another man upon the degree joumey-that greatest gift which the lodge has to give a brother. One man at a time, heart to heart, mind to mind, the Craft builds its working force. The meaning which gives significance and purpose to the builder's life and to his labors must be discovered; it must be journeyed after. This is the purpose of the degree journey, and this is the work of the degree givers, to share the old guideposts, to go in companionship as far as a brother can go, and to celebrate the new understanding and dedication found. The brethren of Builders' Lodge have a vision to give to Needsville. In giving that vision, the brethren, themselves, will come to understand its immense value. Through the work of the lodge which is going on within its jurisdiction of compassion and service, the brethren will be drawn back to that "nerve center." In that "sacred retreat of friendship and virtue," they will find the quiet joy of renewal. When the Sacred Book is spread and the working tools displayed, there will be created a special place apart from the press of time and the urgency of life's demands. It is a place we name "our lodge. " It is a place from whence we go out renewed and shoulder to shoulder to work again. A Masonic Thought As we continue to improve ourselves in Masonry, we are indeed improving life. We know from history that without ideals to guide us, the garden of a man's life will not grow into a place of beauty. Stanley F. Maxwell

20 The Old Past Master Speaks FAILURE "What's troubling you?" asked the Old Past Master of a seriousfaced brother who sat down next to him. "So much I hardly know where to begin to tell it," came the response. "I try to be an optimist, but I can't help feeling that, practically speaking, Masonry is a failure, and it depresses me horribly, because I love it." "Now that's too bad," said the Old Past Master soberly. "Masonry is a failure, practically speaking! That would depress me, too, because I also love it. In fact, I should think it would depress a great many men." "Yes it would... a lot of men love it," said the troubled brother. "Suppose you explain why it is practically speaking a failure," said the Old Past Master. "If I ought to be depressed because of such a condition I think I ought to know it." The troubled brother looked up suspiciously, but the grave face in front of him wore no smile. If the old eyes twinkled they were hidden by solemn lids from the penetrating glance of the troubled brother. "Well, it's this way," he began. "Masonry teaches brotherhood. Naturally, your brother is a man on whom you can depend; he is worthy of trust. One believes in one's brother. One backs his note

21 and expects to be paid; one is willing to trust one's wife, one's life, one's good name, to a real brother. "But there are a good many men who are Masons that I know are not worthy of my trust, merely because they are Masons. They are my brethren because I have sworn with them the same obligations and professed the same faith. But I do not think I could trust them with that which is of value to me, and I know they wouldn't trust me with what is of value to them. I don't mean they are not good men, but I don't feel that my Masonic bond is strong enough to give me the complete trust which a real brotherhood should provide and I don't think they feel it either. "If I were in a strange city and a man came up to me and wanted to borrow two dollars and pointed to a Masonic pin as the reason, I wouldn't lend it to him. And if I walked into a strange bank and tried to cash a check for twenty dollars on the strength of my Masonic pin, I wouldn't get it." "A pin, you know," put in the Old Past Master, "is not real evidence of being a Mason!" "No, but even if I could convince the banker I really was a Mason he wouldn't cash my check without identification. And I wouldn't give money to a stranger even if I knew he was a Mason, because...well, because my brotherhood hasn't struck deep enough, I guess. And so it seems to me that practically speaking, Masonry is a failure." "And yet you say you love it!" sorrowed the Old Past Master. My brother, you have, in the language of the street, got hold of the wrong dog. "Now let me talk a minute. Your blood brother is a man you love. You were children together, you fought with him and for him. You shared his joys and sorrows. You learned him, through and through. If you love him and trust him, it is not because of your mutual parentage, but because of your association. Two boys are not blood brothers, but raised as brothers, may have the same tender love and trust. It isn't the brotherhood of the flesh, but the brotherhood of spirit, that makes for love and trust. "You complain because you don't have that feeling for a stranger. Had you been parted from your blood brother at birth, and never seen nor heard of him until he met you on the street and demanded money while offering proof of his blood relationship, would you

22 trust him without knowing the manner of man he had come to be? Merely because he was a blood relative wouldn't mean he was the type of man you are. He might have become anything during these years of separation. "Now, my brother, when you became a Mason you assumed a tie of brotherhood with all the other Masons of the world. But you did not assume any obligation to make that tie of brotherhood take the place of all the virtues which are in the Masons of the world, or the virtues possessed by the profane. If you are a true Mason you will extend Masonic brotherhood, practically, to those Masons who hold out the brotherly hand to you; which means those men who are able and willing to prove themselves brothers and Masons, not merely those who belong to lodges and wear pins. "The world is one big compromise, my brother, between things as they are and things as we would like to have them. You would like to be rich, and you compromise by getting what you can. You would like to be famous, and you compromise by being as well known as you can and doing the best you can to deserve fame. You would like to be the most highly skilled man in your profession, but you have to compromise with perfection on the one hand, and the need of earning a living on the other. As a Mason, you would like to trust on sight every Mason in the world, but you have to compromise with this fact that all Masons are human beings first and Masons afterwards, and human beings are frail and imperfect. "Masonry makes no man perfect. It merely holds out one road by which a man may travel towards the goal of spiritual perfection more easily and with more help than by other roads. It had no motive power to drive men over that road; but it smooth s the way and points the path. The travel is strictly up to the individual brother. "If you trust those whom you know travel that path, they will trust you...and Masonry will be, practically speaking, for you both a success. If you travel with your eyes open, you will see many who fall by the wayside, not because the way is plain and smooth, but because they are too weak to travel it. That is the fault, not of the road, but of the traveler. "And so, my brother, Masonry cannot be a failure, because men fail as Masons. As well say the church is a failure because an evil man goes to it; as well call Christ a failure because all men are not

23 Christians. The failure is in the man, not in the beautiful philosophy which is Masonry." "And I," said the troubled brother, "Am a failure now because I have failed to understand. But not in the future, thanks to you." Thoughts From A Brother by Ed Halpaus Grand Lodge Education Officer Grand Lodge of A. F. & A. M. of Minnesota From St. George s Banner, September 1992, Brother Kevan Van Herd, editor Thoughts from a Brother (Editorial from Bro. Jim Robertson's Desk) If you ask a Brother why he became a Mason, you often receive a variety of answers. Some joined because a friend whom they respected was a Mason, and encouraged them. Some joined out of filial respect; it was a family tradition, some because they were intrigued by the mystery of Fraternity. Whatever the reason for joining the reasons for remaining a Mason are quite as varied. For some, the theatricality of the ritual is an alluring element. For some the fellowship is an essential part of attending Lodge. For some it is an obligation which they accepted freely, and continue to feel obligated to the Fraternity. For many it is difficult to define what continues to connect them to Masonry. "Once a Mason, always a Mason", may be true on one level - once in receipt of the secrets they cannot be expunged by either suspension or expulsion. But once having all the Light that can be conferred up you in a Master Mason's Lodge, one has only begun to learn what it is to be a Mason. There are some practitioners of the Craft whom we are proud to stand beside in Lodge. They have taken their obligations outside of the Temple and practice those tenets of our Fraternity in their everyday lives. It is these examples to young Masons that determine whether we become Freemasons in the true sense of the word or merely card carrying members of a social club. [If] it is not to develop, through interaction with the Brethren, a greater inner strength and equilibrium in our lives, then we are neglecting one of the most important elements Masonry has to offer. Education and moral development are our stated aims and though the Brotherhood we must strive to attain them. It is believed that through the group we can make good men better. But this can only succeed if all participate.

24 HAND-PICKED "I have been thinking," announced the New Brother to the Old Tiler. "Interesting, if true," murmured the Old Tiler, crossing his legs and leaning his sword against the wall. "Sometimes people think they are thinking when they only think they think." "Huh?" said the New Brother. "I said, in other words, give me a cigar," answered the Old Tiler. "If you are thinking, or even if you only think you think and are about to tell me about it, I should have some nicotine as support." "I have been thinking," went on the New Brother, holding out his cigar case, "that the Masonic fraternity writes one of its unwritten laws upside down. I understand it is un-masonic for me to ask the best man I know to become a Mason. But if a man against whom I know nothing, except that he is only a fair, average sort of chap, wants to come into my lodge, it is equally against Masonic principles to blackball him, just because he isn't the best educated man in the world!" "All that you say is true," responded the Old Tiler. "But I think you have only been thinking you thought." "Ah, but I am not through!" countered the New Brother. "All that being so we stultify ourselves by that unwritten law. If it was the law that no man might apply for Masonry, and that only those who are asked could join, and we were careful whom we asked, what a wonderful personnel we could have!"

25 "Who, for instance, would you ask?" responded the Old Tiler. "I know a lot of fellows I would ask!" was the immediate answer. "Dr. Bell, the famous eye man, and Jordan, the English professor, and Dr. Goodspeed, the eminent divine, and Tomlinson, the philanthropist; and that explorer fellow who did such wonderful missionary work...can't think of his name...and...and...oh, a whole lot of wonderful men! Think of the benefit to us all by having men like that in the fraternity." "It would be wonderful, wouldn't it?" answered the Old Tiler. "Of course it would! Well, why don't we?" "Oh, that's simple enough. It wouldn't be Masonic." "But why?" "My son," answered the Old Tiler, "can you educate a man calling himself educated? Can you make a brick into gold by calling it gold? Can you make a silk purse out of a sow's ear by naming it a silk purse?" "Of course not," was the ready answer. "But we...we Masons make things Masonic or not Masonic by the way we look at them." "Oh, no, we don't!" cried the Old Tiler. "I have just been leading you on to see what you would say. Now I'll tell you what you want to know. We can't make a thing Masonic by calling it so because the principles of Masonry are fixed and unalterable. We agreed they were unalterable when we became Masons. Therefore, we can't alter them. While it would do you and me good if these fine men conceived a regard for the fraternity and became members, it would do us no good to make them Masons on our initiative. Then would then be above the fraternity, not humble members, glad of the blessings of the order. If we picked the men at our own pleasure we might get a higher type of personnel, but they wouldn't be Masons. They would be hand-picked men. We would deny its blessings to the men who need Masonry to shower them upon men who need them least. "There is no man who cannot be ennobled by Masonic influence. No matter how good a man is, his faith and his morality and his righteousness may be strengthened by Masonic influence. But good men need Masonry much less than others not so good. I do not mean that Masonry should take in bad men, but men like you and me, the average man, the banker, doctor, lawyer, merchant, clerk, laborer, the everyday fellow, needs Masonry in his heart and

26 in his life much more than the eminent men who devote their lives to humanity. Masonry is for all who want her blessings and can show that they deserve them. To restrict it to just a few, and those few picked by men with selfish interests at heart, instead of the interests of their candidates, would be un-masonic, unnatural, and the death knell of the fraternity. "There are plenty of clubs, associations, organizations, which hand-pick their members. They are useful, good to know and belong to. But they do no such work as do Masons. As well say no man may join the church of God or hear His ministers preach His word, save those who are invited and say, 'Let us have no candidates except those we choose.' "After men apply for the degrees, then, indeed we can choose. But our choice should be dictated by the man's character, not his wealth or education or services. If he is a good man, able to afford the fees and dues, unlikely to become a charge on the lodge, and seeking Masonry, we want him. To give the blessings of Masonry only to those who need them least, would be un-masonic." "I guess you were right," answered the New Brother. "Were right? I *am* right!" answered the Old Tiler. "I mean, I guess you were right when you said I only thought I thought!" smiled the New Brother.

27 SUMMER BIRTHDAYS HAPPY BIRTHDAY BROTHERS Donal Anderson Gary Bandouveres James Masterson John Moore James Powers William Sherman Donald Valentine Justin Davis Francis Manock Albert Blahut James Miller Edwin Mitchell Vincent Puleo Sanford Salava John Sinclair Stephen Wawrzkiewicz Anthony Zizos William Akridge John Cullen William Hill Anthony Servetas Harvey Dattoli Mark Raiche

28 Brothers Fred and Barney enjoy their Lodge! How about you? Masonic Humor Do you remember when WORDS AND PHRASES REMIND US OF THE WAY WE WORD. by Richard Lederer About a month ago, I illuminated some old expressions that have become obsolete because of the inexorable march of technology. These phrases included "Don t touch that dial," "Carbon copy," "You sound like a broken record" and "Hung out to dry." A bevy of readers have asked me to shine light on more faded words and expressions, and I am happy to oblige: Back in the olden days we had a lot of moxie. We d put on our best bib and tucker and straighten up and fly right. Hubba-hubba! We d cut a rug in some juke joint and then go necking and petting and smooching and spooning and billing and cooing and pitching woo in hot rods and jalopies in some passion pit or lovers lane. Heavens to Betsy! Gee whillikers! Jumpin Jehoshaphat! Holy moley! We were in like Flynn and living the life of Riley, and even a regular guy couldn t accuse us of being a

29 knucklehead, a nincompoop or a pill. Not for all the tea in China! Back in the olden days, life used to be swell, but when s the last time anything was swell? Swell has gone the way of beehives, pageboys and the D.A.; of spats, knickers, fedoras, poodle skirts, saddle shoes and pedal pushers. Oh, my aching back. Kilroy was here, but he isn t anymore. Like Washington Irving s Rip Van Winkle and Kurt Vonnegut s Billy Pilgrim, we have become unstuck in time. We wake up from what surely has been just a short nap, and before we can say, I ll be a monkey s uncle! or This is a fine kettle of fish! we discover that the words we grew up with, the words that seemed omnipresent as oxygen, have vanished with scarcely a notice from our tongues and our pens and our keyboards. Poof, poof, poof go the words of our youth, the words we ve left behind. We blink, and they re gone, evanesced from the landscape and wordscape of our perception, like Mickey Mouse wristwatches, hula hoops, skate keys, candy cigarettes, little wax bottles of colored sugar water and an organ grinder s monkey. Where have all those phrases gone? Long time passing. Where have all those phrases gone? Long time ago: Pshaw. The milkman did it. Think about the starving Armenians. Bigger than a bread box. Banned in Boston. The very idea! It s your nickel. Don t forget to pull the chain. Knee high to a

30 grasshopper. Turn-of-the-century. Iron curtain. Domino theory. Fail safe. Civil defense. Fiddlesticks! You look like the wreck of the Hesperus. Cooties. Going like sixty. I ll see you in the funny papers. Don t take any wooden nickels. Heavens to Murgatroyd! And awa-a-ay we go! Oh, my stars and garters! It turns out there are more of these lost words and expressions than Carter had liver pills. This can be disturbing stuff, this winking out of the words of our youth, these words that lodge in our heart s deep core. But just as one never steps into the same river twice, one cannot step into the same language twice. Even as one enters, words are swept downstream into the past, forever making a different river. We of a certain age have been blessed to live in changeful times. For a child each new word is like a shiny toy, a toy that has no age. We at the other end of the chronological arc have the advantage of remembering there are words that once did not exist and there were words that once strutted their hour upon the earthly stage and now are heard no more, except in our collective memory. It s one of the greatest advantages of aging. We can have archaic and eat it, too. See ya later, alligator!

31 Moses Paul Lodge #96 Living Past Masters Gerald E. Brown Ronald C. Bartlett Donald S. Meserve Raymond E. Allen William H. Carswell, II 1976, 77, 78 David R. Spiller..1984, 85 Edwin F. Mitchell, Jr Anthony Zizos. 1989, 90 James S. Miller , 98, 01, 02, 03, 04 John F. Torr.1993, 94, 99, 00 Stephen E Wawrzkiewicz Robert H. Stewart Jay A. Edgerly 1997 William C. Hill, HPM.2003 Michael J. Mawson George M. McGee III Christopher Piehler 2007, 2008 Robert D. Berry Kristopher G. Furtney 2010, 2011 Vincent R. Puleo , 2013 Robert J. Corsetti , 2015

32 A BROTHER'S HAND by Brother George B. Staff When you're feeling all downhearted, And life's hard to understand, Say, it's fine to feel the pressure Of a Brother's friendly hand. Just to know he sympathizes, Though he doesn't say a word; How it starts your courage climbing, As your heart is touched and stirred. With an arm across your shoulders, And a grip you love to find, How it makes you feel the bounding Of the hearts of humankind. It is just a little token Of an ever growing band, For there's faith and hope and courage In a Brother's friendly hand!