The 5-Minute Management Course

Lesson 1:

A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings. The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs. When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbor. Before she says a word, Bob says, 'I'll give you $800 to drop that towel.'After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob.After a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves.The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs. When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, 'Who was that?' 'It was Bob, the next-door neighbor,' she replies.'Great!' the husband says. 'Did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?' Moral of the story: If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.

Lesson 2:

A priest offered a nun a lift. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg. The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg. The nun said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'The priest removed his hand. But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again.The nun once again said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'The priest apologized, 'Sorry, Sister, but the flesh is weak.'Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily and went on her way.On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129. It said, 'Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory.' Moral of the story: If you are not well informed in your job, opportunities for advancement will pass right by you.

Lesson 3:

A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, 'I'll give each of you just one wish.''Me first! Me first!' says the Admin clerk. 'I want to be in the Bahamas , driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.' Puff! She's gone. 'Me next! Me next!' says the sales rep. 'I want to be in Hawaii , relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life.' Puff! He's gone. 'OK, you're up,' the Genie says to the manager.The manager says, 'I want those two back in the office after lunch.'Moral of the story: Always let your boss have the first say.

Lesson 4:

An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, 'Can I also sit like you and do nothing?' The eagle answered, 'Sure , why not.'So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.Moral of the story: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson 5:

A turkey was chatting with a bull. 'I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree,' sighed the turkey, 'but I haven't got the energy.' 'Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?' replied the bull. 'They're packed with nutrients.' The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree. Moral of the story: Bull shit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.

Lesson 6:

A little bird was flying south for the Winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and shit on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Morals of the story:
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.
(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.
(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's best to keep your mouth shut!


THIS CONCLUDES THE 5-MINUTE MANAGEMENT COURSE

"Recieved by a E-mail"

Very Interesting Subject -

Subject: Jesus folded the napkin

Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection?

The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes. The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded and was placed at the head of that stony coffin. Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, 'They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!' Peter and the other disciple ran to the tomb to see. The other disciple out ran Peter and got there first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying to the side. Is that important? Absolutely! Is it really significant? Yes! In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day.

The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition. When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch that table until the master was finished.

Now if the master was done eating, he would rise from the table wipe his fingers and mouth with that napkin and toss it on to the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, 'I'm done.' But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant knew that the folded napkin meant, 'I'm not finished yet.' The folded napkin meant, 'I'm coming back!'

IF YOU BELEIVE HE IS COMING BACK - PASS IT ON, I DID!

"Recieved by a E-mail"

LODGE COURTESIES

by: Unknown

Conventions are the rules which society makes for itself, without the force of law, by which its members live together with the least friction. It is not a sin to eat with one's knife or to keep one's hat on in the house; but these are "Not" good form, or good manners.

Masonry has developed its own conventions, by which its members act in Lodge and the Anteroom. Not to proceed according to their dictates is not a Masonic offense; it is merely a lack of Masonic manners.

As you Passed through the Third Degree you received instructions in the Ritual and the obligation. You were carefully taught those essential things which a man must know in order to be a Mason. But unless you belong to a most unusual Lodge, or had a most wise Brother for a mentor, it is doubtful if you were told much about these little niceties of Lodge conduct. You are supposed to attend your Lodge and learn by observation. Not all Brethren are observing, however. It is not uncommon to see some brother, old enough in Masonry to know better, crossing the lodge room between the Alter and the East (when lodge is open). He might have observed that his Brethren did not do it; but it is much more difficult to note the absence of an act than to take cognizance of something done.

Brethren do not pass between the Altar and the east in a Lodge that is open. It is a convention and there is no penalty for the infraction. It is a courtesy offered the Master. It is rooted in the theory that, as the Great Lights are necessary to shed their eternal light and wisdom upon the Master to govern the lodge with wisdom, this light should never be interrupted at any time; except, during the processions of an initiation and degree work; even for an instant.

Well informed Brethren do not take a seat in the East without an invitation. All Brethren within a tiled room are equal; and the officers are the servants of the Brethren, and not their superiors. All seats, then, might be considered "Open" to all. But Masonry exacts long services of her officers; Past Masters have worked hard and long for the Lodge they love. The Master recognizes their devotion and their loyalty with a special word of welcome, and an invitation to a "Seat in the East" to any
distinguished visitor, or some member the Master wishes especially to honor. If all in the Lodge helped themselves to seats in the East there would be no opportunity for the Master to offer that courtesy.

Brethren who respect the formalities of their Lodge will not enter it undressed; that is, without their apron, or while putting that apron on. The spectacle of a brother walking up to the Altar, tying the strings and adjusting his apron while the Master waits for his salute, is not a pretty one. A man who entered church putting on his collar and tying his necktie could hardly be arrested, but he would surely receive unflattering comment. The strangeness of the new badge of a Mason and unfamiliarity with its meaning cause many to forget that it is as important to a Mason in lodge as clean clothing, properly adjusted is to a man in the street.

The Worshipful Master in the East occupies the most exalted position within the gift of the lodge. A lodge which does not honor its Master, not because of what he himself may be, but on account of the honor given him, is lacking in Masonic courtesy. The position he occupies, not the man, must be given the utmost respect, if the traditions of the Fraternity are to be observed.

It is, therefore, to the Master, not to John Smith who happens to be the Master, that you offer a salute when you enter or retire from your lodge, or any lodge. Like any other salute, this may be done courteously and as if you meant it, or perfunctorily as if you did not care. The man who puts one finger to his hat brim when he speaks to a woman on the street compares poorly with his well brought up neighbor who lifts his hat. Taking the hat off is the modern remains of the ancient custom of knights who removed their helmets in the presence of those they felt their friends, and thus, before those they wished to honor by showing that they trusted them. A man removes his hat before a woman to show his respect. Touching the brim is aperfunctory salute. Similarly, the salute to the Master is your renewed pledge of fealty and service, your public recognition before all men, or your obligation. It is performed before the Master and the Altar to show him your veneration for his authority, your respect for all that for which he stands. To offer your salute as if you were in hurry, too lazy to properly make it, or bored with its offering, is to be, Masonically, a boor.

A man in lodge is the servant of his Brethren, if he engages in any lodge activity. Servants stand in the presence of their superiors. therefore, no Mason sits while speaking, whether he addresses an officer or another brother. This does not refer to conversation on the benches duringrefreshment, but to discussion on the floor during a business meeting.

During the refreshment the Master relinquishes the gavel to the Junior Warden in the South, which becomes, for the time being, constructively the East. All that has been said about the respect due the Master in the East applies now to the Junior Warden in the South.

It is illegal to enter or leave the room during a ballot; it is discourteous to leave during a speech, or during a degree, except at the several natural periods which end one section and begin another.

Smoking is permitted in some lodge rooms during the business meeting. Alas, there are some which do not interdict it during a degree! You will, or course, be governed here by the custom of your own lodge, although it is to be hoped you will never lend the weight of your opinion toward establishing the custom of smoking during the solemn ceremonies of a degree. unless, indeed, you would like to smoke in church!

A courteous brother does not refuse a request made in the name of the lodge. There are three duties which devolve upon the membership which are too often "the other fellow's business." Every lodge at some time has a knock upon the door from some visiting brother. This requires the services of two brethren from the lodge in the examination committee. Some one has to do that work. To decline it, on any ground whatever, is discourteous to the Master, to whom you have said, in effect, "I don't want to do my share; let George do it. I just want to sit here and enjoy myself while other fellows do the work."

A degree cannot properly be put on without the services of conductors. When you are assigned such a piece of work, it is not Masonic courtesy to refuse, for the same reasons given above. And if you are selected as a member of the Fellowcraft Team in the Master Mason degree, the only excuse for not accepting is that of physical disability. Like other matters herein spoken of, refusal here is not a Masonic offense. Neither is it a legal offense to drink from a finger bowl, seat yourself at the table before your hostess, or spit on your host's parlor floor! But the convention of good manners is what makes society pleasant, and Masonic good manners make lodge meetings pleasant.

One does not talk in church. God's House is not for social conversation; it is for worship and the learning of the lesson of the day. A good Mason does not talk during the conferring of a degree. The lodge room is then a Temple of the Great Architect of the Universe, with the brethren working therein doing their humble best to make better stones for His spiritual Temple. Good manners as well as reverence dictate silence and attention during the work; officers and degree workers cannot do their best if distracted by conversation, and the irreverence cannot help but be distressing to the candidates.

There is a special lodge courtesy to be observed in all debates to any motion. One speaks to the Master; the Master is the lodge. One does not turn one's back on him to address the lodge without permission from him. One stands to order when addressing the chair; customs differ in various jurisdictions as to the method of salute, but some salute should always be given when addressing the Master. The spectacle of two brethren on their feet at the same time, arguing over a motion, facing each other and ignoring the Master, is not one which any Master should permit. But it is also one which no Master should have to prevent!

Failure to obey the gavel at once is a grave discourtesy.

The Master is all powerful in the lodge. He can put or refuse to put any motion. He can rule any brother out of order on any subject at any time. He can say what he will, and what he will not, permit to be discussed. Brethren who think him unfair, arbitrary, unjust, or acting illegally have redress; the Grand Lodge can be appealed to on any such matter. But, in the lodge, the gavel, the emblem of authority, is supreme. When a brother is rapped down, he "Should" obey at once, without further discussion. It is very bad manners to do otherwise; indeed, it is close to the line between bad manners and a Masonic offense.

Failure to vote on a petition is so common in many jurisdictions that it may be considered stretching the list to include it under a heading of lodge discourtesies. In smaller lodges the Master probably requires the satisfaction of the law which provides that all brethren present vote. In larger ones, where there is much business, and many petitions, he may, and often does, declare the ballot closed after having asked, "Have all Brethren voted?" Even though he knows quite well that some may not have voted. This is not the place to discuss whether the Master is right or wrong in such an action. But the brother who does not vote, because he is too lazy, or too indifferent or for any other reason; is discourteous because he injures the ballot, its secrecy, its importance, and its value. Few brethren would be so thoughtless as to remain seated, or stand by their chairs, when a candidate is brought to light. Yet, indifference to one's part in this solemn ceremony is less bad manners than indifference to the ballot; the former injures only a ceremony; but the latter may injure the lodge, and by that injury, the fraternity!

It is a courtesy to the Master to advise him beforehand that you intend to offer thus and such a motion, or wish to offer thus and such a matter for discussion. You have the right to do it without apprising him in advance, just as he has the right to rule you out of order. But the Master may have plans of his own for that meeting, into which your proposed motion or discourse does not fit in. Therefore, it is a courtesy to him, to ask him privately if you may be recognized for your purpose, and thus save him the disagreeable necessity of seeming arbitrary in a public refusal.

Lodge courtesies, like those of the profane world, are founded wholly in the Golden Rule. They oil the Masonic wheels and enable them to revolve without creaking. They smooth the path of all in the lodge, and prove to all and sundry the truth of the ritualistic explanation of that "More Noble and Glorious Purpose" to which we are taught to put the trowel!

Short Talk Bulletin- May -1949

WHY FREEMASONRY HAS ENEMIES

Say "Anti-Masonry" to the average American Mason and he will think you speak only of the Morgan affair of 1826. So many books have been written on this, so many speeches made about it, so many study clubs have discussed it, that it is pretty much in the class with political oratory--interesting once, but a bore when much repeated!

Anti-Masonry neither began nor ended with the Morgan affair. The Fraternity has always had its enemies and, unless the world reforms spiritually, doubtless always will.

But why?

Doubtless there are many answers. Many roads may wind around a mountain--they must meet at the top. No matter how many separate causes for the hatred, dislike, enmity which men have conceived--and some still do --for the Gentle Craft, all these
mistaken ideas may be referred to one cause.

Examine just a few of the exhibitions of anti-Masonry, other than the Morgan affair,which was a sporadic explosion, not a deep-rooted and poisonous plant.

Mussolini, Hitler, Franco, Stalin could not permit the existence of a society which is predicated upon the brotherhood of man; they were, and are, too much committed to a society predicated upon a police power which knows no mercy and has but one object; the destruction of people, ideas, and organizations which do not believe that man is nothing, the State (and its ruler or rulers) everything.

Mussolini's anti-Masonic feeling was expressed in his doctrine of conflict, which does not even mention the Craft:

"Humanity is still and always an abstraction of time and space; men are still not brothers, do not want to be and evidently cannot be. Peace is hence absurd, or rather it is a pause in war. There is something that binds man to his destiny of struggling, against either his fellows or himself. The motives for the struggle may change indefinitely, they may be economic, religious, political, sentimental. But the legend of Cain and Abel seems to be the inescapable reality while brotherhood is a fable men listen to during the bivouac and the truce."

General Erich Ludendorff wrote a booklet against Freemasonry of which more than a hundred thousand copies were sold. Too long to quote here, the reader may get an idea of its contents from some of his words:

"Masonry brings its members into conscious subjection the Jews... it trains them to become venal Jews... German Masonry is a branch of organized international Masonry ,the headquarters of which are in New York ... there also is the seat of Jewish world Power..."

Ludendorff blamed Freemasons for bringing America into the world War I, helped by the Jesuits, B'nai B'rith and the Grand Lodge of New York! This, he stated, was done to destroy Austria Hungary, a Catholic world power. Had it not been for Freemasonry, Germany would have won the war --Kaiser Wilhelm and Czar Nicholas lost their thrones because they were not Freemasons--and so on and on and on for eighty two pages of "Annihilation of Freemasonry Through Revelation of its Secrets!"

Not all anti-Masonry has had causes so fundamental, which lie so deep; small jealousies and little rascals have started anti-Masonic movements; several religions have fought and, indeed, now fight the Craft, as sinful and unGodlike.

The opposition of the Catholic church, based on the Papal Bull of 1738, many times renewed, expanded, explained and emphasized, is well known. The Lutheran church as a whole has been unfriendly to the Craft and certain Synods rabid against it. The Mormon church has been anti-Masonic ever since hundreds of Mormons were expelled from Masonry by the Grand Lodge of Illinois. Even the gentle Quakers have opposed Freemasonry and not always gently!

When organized religion has disputed with Freemasonry, it is largely because of the thought that Masonic teaching of "that natural religion in which all men agree" might take the place of that which it espoused; knowing that the Fraternity operated by means of a secret ritual, obligations, religious beliefs and the doctrine that all men of whatever faith might worship a Great Architect of the Universe around a common Altar, Freemasonry became a rival!

Just as science disputes with no religion, so Freemasonry does not now and never has questioned any man's faith. There has never been an anti-clerical party composed only of Masons; there have been anti-Masonic parties in many clerical circles. As late as 1896 an anti-Masonic party convened at Trent. In the BUILDER, April, 1918, George W. Baird, P.G.M. District of Columbia, reports that the general and particular aims of this council were to wage war on Masonry as an institution; on Masons as individuals, in all countries and places where the order exists; to wage war on Masonry as a body, by collecting supposed documents and facts; assertions of perjured Masons as evidence and thus bring to light, or rather coin, by means of the press or special publications, all the misdeeds of the fatal institution; all the demoralizing influences it exercises; through obscene or sacrilegious rites, corruption and occult conspiracies on man and civilization; to wage war on individual Masons by opposing them in every phase of their existence, in their homes, in their industries, in their commerce, in their professional vocations, in all their endeavors to participate in public life, local or general, etc. The first anti-Masonic campaign--if it can be called that--in the American Colonies occurred in 1737. According to an account published in the Pennsylvania Gazette (Benjamin Franklin's paper) an apothecary duped a young man (Daniel Reese) who had expressed a desire to bc a Freemason, into a false and ridiculous ceremony, ending in a scene in which the devil was supposed to appear. When the young man refused to be frightened, the "devil" became angry and threw a pan of flaming spirits on the candidate, who died of burns three days later. Freemasons, though innocent, were blamed and the incident (if death can be called an incident!) spread far and wide to the serious but not too lengthy embarrassment of Masons of the City of Brotherly Love. There were a few sporadic attacks in the Colonial press against Freemasonry, including one in Boston in 175l, but no real opposition of any moment in this nation until the Morgan affair of 1826. (See Short Talk Bulletin of March 1933 and February 1946.) But the Colonies were not to escape prejudice, even if unorganized, for Pritchard's Masonry Dissected (1730) and Jachin and Boaz (1762) both had wide circulation, the latter pamphlet being reprinted here more than a dozen times; one edition was printed in Spanish in Philadelphia as late as 1822.

These "expose's" purporting to print the ritual, ceremonies and "secrets" of Freemasonry (invaluable now as giving clues to practices and words otherwise lost in the mist of the years) were then intended as body blows at the Ancient Craft. In early days Freemasonry was kept secret; place of meeting; men who belonged; candidates proposed, were all considered to be "esoteric". Hence there was a great curiosity on the part of the public and a large circulation of pamphlets designed to injure the Fraternity by "exposing" its charter, ritual and secrets. Today, few would look at and less would buy such a pamphlet on a newsstand--then, the public demanded these in quantities.

Like all such, the motive of their publication--whether revenge for fancied slights or avarice--kept them from being too seriously considered by the better educated and thinking class.

In England, Pritchard's "Masonry Dissected" raised a storm when it was published, and was reflected even in the songs of the day. An actress in 1765 offered the following, as coming from the anti-Masonic Seald Miserable Masons:

"Next for the secret of their own wise making, Hiram and Boaz and Grand Master Jachin: Poker and tongs--the sign--the word--the stroke-- 'Tis all a nothing and 'tis all a joke! Nonsense on nonsense! Let them storm and rail Here's the whole history of the mop and pail. * For tis the sense of more than half the town Their secret is--a bottle at the Crown!"

Although inspired by the Morgan affair, the letters of John Quincy Adams had an anti-Masonic effect long after Morgan was forgotten. President Adams was never a Freemason; we have his own words as proof of that. That he was an implacable enemy of the institution is shown by his "Letters on the Masonic Institution" published in book form in Boston in 1847. His enmity of the Fraternity sprang from his belief in the reality of the "murder" of Morgan, the activities of the anti-Masonic party and his own great credulity and strong prejudice. His character as a man, his service to his country, his exhaustless energy made serious his attacks on Freemasonry, even though he displayed a woeful ignorance of the Order, its principles, practices, history and accomplishments.

John Quincy Adams is long gathered to his fathers. His "letters" remain largely unread in libraries and in the minds of historians. He did the fraternity harm once, but, judged by the perspective of a century, it was without permanent effect.

These are but the slightest of thumb-nail sketches of a few of the outbreaks against Freemasonry. In all countries since the organization of the Mother Grand Lodge, there have been these ebullitions of passions and prejudice; in some lands, tortures and burnings; destructions of Masonic property, imprisonment of Masons, especially in World War II.

These persecutions have had a hundred underlying causes; avarice, jealousy, desire for notoriety, disappointment, envy, the belief that he climbs high who climbs ruthlessly, the need for a scape-goat--the list is endless.

But all, in the last analysis, boil down to one cause. As the greater swallows the less, the large encompasses the little, the race includes all its blood strains, so the reason for the enmity of Freemasons and Freemasonry, encompassing all of many causes, is
simple.

There is always a conflict between any two opposing beliefs, doctrines, dogmas, religions, philosophies, political systems. For hundreds of years organized religion fought science; the doctrine of the divine right of kings ran headlong into the doctrine of the equality of man; today we see democracy and Communism in a cold warm to the death; less spectacular but none the less real has been the split of Lincoln's famous words, resulting in the opposition of those who believe in government by the people, to those who believe only in government of the people, by the governor!

Freemasonry is a philosophy which cannot exist side by side with certain ideologies. Either the latter must sink or Freemasonry must be banished. Wherever men have believed that one man or some men are above the law which applies to the many; wherever a government is by men and not by law, Freemasonry is anathema, must be persecuted, thrown out, dispersed, done away.

Freemasonry stands and has always stood for freedom of political thought; for freedom of religious thought; for personal freedom within the law; for the dignity, importance and worth of the individual. In Freemasonry there is neither high nor low--"we meet upon the level". In Freemasonry is no compulsion; a man must come
to it and be of it "of his own free will and accord." In Freemasonry is no religious sect: men of all religions or of no religion, join hands in kneeling about a common Altar erected to the Great Architect of the Universe, by which name each can worship the God he knows.

Such a plan, such a doctrine, such a brotherhood, cannot but be inimical to the selfish, the crooked, the power-hungry, the dictator, the religion which opposes any doctrine but its own, the self-seeking, the envious, the coward, the prejudiced, the passionate and the dishonest. The reason for all the attacks on Masonry, no matter how attempted or by whom accomplished, can be expressed in a word . . . The word is fear. Fear of what? Of freedom of thought!

*An illusion to tiler's implements with which he erased the designs drawn the lodge floor for the instruction of candidates.

Subject: The Little Mouse Story

Mouse Story...

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package.

"What food might this contain?" The mouse wondered - he was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.

Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."

The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The pig sympathized, but said, “I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."

So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap -- alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught.

The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital and she returned home with a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient.

But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.

The farmer's wife did not get well; she died. So many people came for her funeral; the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them.

The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.

So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember -- when one of us is threatened, we are all at risk.

We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.

How Do We Teach Freemasonry ?

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STB-AU58 August 1958

Some Misconceptions About Freemasonry "Oh that my words were now written! Oh that they were printed in a book! . . For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth." ( JOB 19: 23, 25 )

In these sentences Job is replying to his critics, who were asserting that his affiictions were the result of his unrighteousness. In the first verse Job expresses the wish that his honor be proclaimed for all generations to know; but in the second, he rejects the dream of a human acquittal in the centuries to come and confidently asserts his belief in an Ulti- mate Vindication.

Job never knew Freemasonry, but his words might well serve to encourage Freemasons who are troubled by the misconceptions and the falsehoods which are disseminated about the Ancient Craft.

In the charge of the Entered Apprentice Degree, Freemasons are told: "neither are you to suffer your zeal for the institution to lead you into argument with those who, through ignorance, may ridicule it." This Bulletin, setting forth seven of the accusations which are levelled at Freemasonry, is not a polemic to confute those who do not understand our Order. It is written as a reassurance to the members of the Fraternity that "truth and justice are on our side" and that these are the living Redeemer (ie., a Vindicator) in whom we put our trust.

"FREEMASONRY IS A SECRET SOCIETY"

The statement is not true. Freemasonry is a society which keeps certain matters secret, but the organization, its membership, its officers, its purposes are not secret.

Freemasonry meets in Temples. Many of these are beautiful, prominent buildings in the cities and towns in which they are erected. Men enter and leave these Temples openly, not secretly. A number of Grand Lodges publish the names of the members of the Order in their Proceedings. Many lodges issue directories of their membership. Men wear the square and compasses on their lapels. Who's Who lists Masonic membership in many of its biographies. Masons appear as such in public at cornerstone layings and at funerals. These are not the characteristics of a "secret" society.

The vast majority of Masons are proud of being such. They boast of it, knowing that the general public conceives of Freemasonry as an honor; that not every one can be a Mason; that it is a character building organization of good men.

But let us suppose for a moment that "Free- masonry IS a secret society." Is belonging to a "secret society" criminal? Only if such a society has inhuman or unlawful purposes. There are "secret societies" which engage in conspiracies, or terrorism, or other illegal practices; membership in them is "secret" because their members do not admit publicly that they belong to such organizations.

On the other hand, a number of individuals form a "secret" Christmas Club. They each make a contribution to buy gifts for poor children at Christmas. They keep the organization and their names secret because they know that otherwise they will be overwhelmed with publicity and with too many requests. They take pride in doing good without advertising. Is it harmful because it is secret?

In this country the Masonic Fraternity whose only objectives are charity and the building of character, counts approximately four million men in its membership. It is difficult to conceive how such a number, proudly asserting their affiliation, can constitute a "secret" society.

"FREEMASONRY, BEING A RELIGION, DETRACTS FROM ALL ORGANIZED RELIGION"

The statement is also untrue. Freemasonry is not a religion. The dictionary ( Funk & Wagnalls Standard) defines religion as "Any system of faith, doctrine and worship, as, the Christian religion." Freemasomy has no "system of faith", and its acknowledgment of a Grand Architect of the Universe is, in its own words ( Old Charges, first printed in Anderson's Constitutions of 1723) "that natural religion in which all men agree"--that is, the reverence for a supreme, single, creative Power.

No Grand Lodge phrases a doctrine, and a religion without a doctrine is no religion. No Masonic Lodge uses any service of divine worship in its ritual or meetings.

True it is that lodges have an Altar, use a Sacred Book upon it, open and close meetings with prayer, possess an officer called a Chaplain, and are dedicated to God and the Sts. John.

In almost every hotel room in America is to be found a Bible. Does that make the hotel either a religion or a church? The Army and Navy have Chaplains for every regiment, every ship. Does that make the Army and Navy religions, or the ships churches? The American Legion and a hundred other organizations have Chaplains, but no one thinks of them as religions.

Our symbols are not religious symbols. Our purposes, while virtuous, are not religious. We seek no converts; we profess no dogma; we gladly accept men of any and of every faith; indeed, we accept men of no particular faith who yet believe in one Supreme Being. Freemasonry does, indeed, inculcate morality, believes in human dignity, encourages charity, practices relief. The family, schools, institutions of higher learning, organizations of a hundred characters, all are moral, charitable, humanly helpful. But that does not make them religions.

One of the central teachings of Freemasonry is immortality. The answer to Job's question, "If a man die, shall he live again?" and the central teaching of all religions is also immortality. Therefore, say our critics, Freemasonry must be a religion.

But that is false reasoning. The central teaching of the land in which we live is patriotism--love of America and the American way of life. Exactly the same thing is true of an Englishman, of a German, a Frenchman. Each is taught patriotism, but that does not mean each loves OUR country best. Each loves best his own. Freemasonry insists on a belief in immortality, but it teaches no particular doctrine concerning survival after death.

Freemasonry is reverent, charitable, and ethical in precept and practice. So are millions of people who are neither Masons nor church members. The only religious affirmation required of a Freemason is that he believe in one God.

Freemasonry accepts as members the Christian, the Jew, the Mohammedan, the Parsee, the Buddhist; a man may be a Unitarian or a Baptist, a Spiritualist, a Quaker or a Catholic. Freemasonry accepts him as a man, not as a member of a church. Quakers and Catholics cannot become Masons without offending their own religion, which fact Masonic authorities will always explain to men of those faiths who apply, but Masonry accepts them if they are good men and wish to join. Ministers of all faiths are Masons, just as Masons are members of all churches. A minister of one faith cannot profess a doctrine other than his own; yet he can be a Mason. The Fraternity obviously is not a religion, but only a philosophy of life.

"FREEMASONRY IS ANTI-CHRISTIAN"

Freemasonry is not anti any faith. It is non-Christian, yes--it is also non-Jewish, non- Mohammedan, non-Buddhist, non-Republican, non-Democrat. Freemasonry makes no test of religion or of politics. Discussion of both is strictly forbidden in Masonic lodges. Freemasons, being good Americans, and teaching patriotism and love of the American way of life, are individually anti-communist. Some Grand Lodges have passed anti-communistic resolutions, but most of them have not dignified that cruel system with any notice, preferring the positive teachings of patriotism to any "anti" expressions whatsoever.

The American public school is non-sectarian. It teaches all children of parents of all faiths. It is non--not anti--religious. Any bank will receive and care for the money of any well-recommended citizen without regard to his color, his race, his creed. The bank is not anti-Negro, anti-African, anti-Christian; it is merely non-Negro, non-African, non-Christian. Its concern is with money and credit. Freemasonry's concern is with character and morality. School, bank, Masonry are all non; none of them is anti.

"FREEMASONRY DENIES JESUS--IT NEVER MENTIONS HIM"

Freemasonry does nothing of the sort. It does not mention Isaiah. Does that connote denial? It does not mention Woodrow Wilson or Abraham Lincoln. Does that mean that Freemasonry denies that they lived and worked and were great Americans? Freemasonry does not talk of Mohammed or Confucious, but that does not mean that the Order denies their greatness, or their importance to those to whom they are great and important.

The Chaplain of a Masonic lodge who prays as the voice of the lodge does not pray in the name of the Carpenter of Nazareth or the name of Jehovah or the name of Allah. He prays to the Grand Artificer or the Great Architect of the Universe. Under that title men of all faiths may find each his own deity. Failure to mention any deity by name is not denial, but merely the practice of a gracious courtesy, so that each man for whom prayer is offered can hear the name of his own deity in the all inclusive title of Great Architect.

"MASONIC CHARITY IS ONLY FOR MASONS"

The statement that Masonic charity is only for Masons is simply not true. While the charity provided by the local lodge may be largely for Masons, their widows, and orphans, the individual Mason participates in a number of other benevolent enterprises under Masonic auspices which are not limited to Masonic beneficiaries. He can also point out examples of benevolence which his lodge has extended to non-Masons or community projects.

But let us suppose for a moment that a Masonic lodge charity IS only for its own members. Is that a matter for censure? A father provides a home for his own children, not his neighbor's. He clothes and feeds his own family, not another's. A church builds its edifice for its own members first. A member of a workingmen's group gets into difficulties; his fellows contribute to his necessities. To help, aid, and assist those with whom we are closely associated is common practice. It is admirable, not reprehensible.

Many of the co-ordinate bodies of Freemasonry have established outstanding charitable foundations or enterprises, whose efforts to help the needy or to alleviate suffering are not restricted to those who are Masons or who have Masonic relatives. A few examples will suffice to illustrate the point. The Supreme Councils of the 33ø, Scottish Rite, in both the Southern and Northern jurisdictions, have made tremendous contributions to education, public health, and relief. The Southern Jurisdiction founded the George Washington University's School of Government with a grant of one million dollars, and has supplemented it with additional gifts and scholarships. Recently it has given a $20,000 grant to American University in Washington, D. C., and $10,000 to Baylor University in Texas. The Northern Jurisdiction provides scholarships for young men and women at the Boston University School of Journalism and Arts of Communication. Proven ability and financial need are the only tests applied to applicants for these scholarships.

Both Supreme Councils maintain a Foundation or Benevolent Fund to help, aid, and assist. In the Northern Jurisdiction the Fund is used to promote public health by promoting research in the field of mental illness, particularly in the area of dementia praecox. In the Southern Jurisdiction local bodies support particular charities, two of the most famous being Hospitals for Crippled Children at Atlanta, Georgia, and Dallas, Texas.

Each of the local bodies of the Rite has an Almoner, who is provided with substantial funds to administer to the needy, without regard to Masonic membership. This longtime contribution of the Rite to public welfare is never publicized; its extent and importance are rarely known. Thousands of people are helped each year by Scottish Rite Almoners.

For more than thirty years the Grand Encampment of Knights Templar of the United States has maintained a large trust fund as an Educational Foundation, to enable young men and women to defray the costs of a college education, by borrowing on exceedingly liberal terms a part of their college expenses. More than a thousand young people are helped annually; they are using approximately a half million dollars each year. The Grand Encampment has also set up a foundation which supports research and treatment of diseases and injury to the human eye, in an effort to prevent blindness. The treatment is provided for individuals who are in need, regardless of race, creed, sex, age, or national origin.

Most widely known, perhaps, is the extensive work of alleviating distress which is carried on in the Shriners' Hospitals for Crippled Children. All Nobles of the Mystic Shrine must first be Master Masons; but the seventeen hospitals which Shriners have built and maintain at tremendous cost are for children of all colors, faiths, and either sex. They must be crippled and unable to get other hospitalization; the Shrine requires no other tests for admission.

Most of the Masons in the United States, through their Grand Lodges, contribute to the support of The Masonic Service Association. The far-reaching comfort and personal helpfulness of this agency's Hospital Visitation Program is provided for all who need it in the ranks of our disabled verterans, regardless of race, creed, or fraternal affiliation.

Freemasonry is proud of its contributions to human welfare!

"FREEMASONS FORM A POLITICAL PRESSURE GROUP"

It is difficult to say of one false charge against the Ancient Craft that it is more ridiculous than another, but no accusation of wrong-doing by Masons is more unjust than this one. Freemasonry has existed in the United States since 1730. Enough years have passed since our earliest American brethren met in Pennsylvania to demonstrate the "political activities" of the Fraternity, if such existed.

Politics--meaning partisan politics--are strictly forbidden to be discussed in lodges, and have been, since the publication of Anderson's Constitutions in 1723. If Masons were a "political pressure group", obviously they would need a cause, an idea, a program for which to exert their pressure. No one has as yet been able to name such an aim.

Freemasons, as a general rule, elect a new leadership every year; a few Grand Lodges re-elect a Grand Master for a second term, one usually for a third term. Each year every one of the Grand Lodges of the forty-nine in the United States publishes its Proceedings, which contain the annual addresses of the Grand Masters. In none of these, for any year, at any time in the history of Freemasonry in the United States, is there to be found any political objective, any aim to be obtained by pressure, any indication of the Fraternity's taking any part in partisan politics.

If Freemasonry is a "pressure group", it must have something to "press" for. It must have a political leader; he must apply that pressure. Since not the slightest scintilla of evidence for such activity exists, it is obvious that this charge is the nonsense of ignorance.

"FREEMASONRY WORKS IN SECRET FOR SECRET AIMS"

It would seem essential, to establish the truth of such an accusation, that somewhere, at some time, someone must have known of these "secret aims".. A secret which no one knows and no one does anything about seems harmless!

What are these "secret aims"? No one has ever stated! Presumably, they are something too terrible to phrase. The destruction of government? The murder of opponents? The elimination of all religions?

Thirteen Presidents of the United States have been Freemasons. At the present time five members of the Supreme Court are Masons. A majority of Congress is now and always has been composed of Masons, whose political beliefs have been as various as the nation itself! Thousands of ministers and hundreds of Rabbis are and have been Freemasons. What "secret aim" can be imagined which would appeal to such men as these?

Thousands of books have been written about Freemasonry, for Freemasons and for the general public. Many books have been published by the enemies of Freemasonry. The most virulent of these have never been able to specify any "secret aim" to the completion or attainment of which the Fraternity is dedicated. They cannot find it, because it does not exist. A "secret aim", of which there is no evidence and which no one has described factually, can exist only as a fancy in a credulous mind.

Freemasonry will continue to have its critics and detractors. Just criticism should always be welcomed; but ignorance and wilful misrepresentations should be ignored. "By acting upon the square . . . and avoiding the intemperance" of a reply, the true Freemason will maintain "a zealous attachment to those duties which will insure private and public esteem."