WBro. Neil Marshall recently marked an impressive 50-year milestone in Freemasonry, and we celebrated the occasion in grand fashion on 21st June 2024. WBro. Dr. Rakesh Bhalla, Assistant Provincial Grand Master, had the honour of presenting him with a certificate of achievement.
In reflecting on his long journey within Freemasonry, Neil has penned some thoughts on the Craft. His reflections are aimed at inspiring contemplation among both younger members and those considering joining, offering them insight into the values and experiences that have shaped his Masonic journey.
The Memoires of an Ancient and Decrepit Freemason
By W.Bro. Neil Marshall Lodge of Progress 8259
Chapter One
Introduction.
This information is intended to provide short and succinct answers to questions the new freemason may well be asked by non-masons. It is based on many years I spent as a demonstrator in the Masonic Hall at Beamish Museum, talking to thousands of visitors to the the Hall and Freemasonry in general. I have concluded that a large majority of the population know very little or nothing at all about Freemasonry. My answers are based on my own ideas and 50 years of reading about freemasonry, I couldn’t hope to start to compile a bibliography, but thank you to all those Brothers who have gone before.
Questions
How long has Freemasonry been around?
The official starting date was the 23rd June 1717 when 4 Lodges met at the Goose and Gridiron Tavern in London and formed the first Grand Lodge. Its origins lay with medieval stone masons although there may be some other influences. The transition from trade guild to its present-day social institution started in the late 1500’s and throughout the 1600’s in Scotland, spreading to England in the mid 1600’s. In the later 1700’s Grand Lodges were formed in Scotland, Ireland and the Continent, and subsequently spread around the world with the continental empires.
What’s the object of Freemasonry?
Its objective is to provide moral, spiritual and intellectual improvement in its members. This is achieved by a series of ceremonies of initiation, the first, second and third degree i.e. The Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft and Master Mason. It also provides a basis for social and charitable activities
Is it a religion?
No. It was derived from the medieval stone masons and therefore has Christian basis, but as it evolved into its more social form it became more ecumenical. It now requires the candidate to have a belief in a supreme being and to take an obligation on a volume they consider a sacred.
Why the regalia?
Its was originally derived from the medieval stone masons who belong to a Trade Guild which required that they have working cloths consisting of aprons, gloves and gauntlets. As it transitioned to the social order the regalia became more elaborate and its design came to signify a member’s progress in the organisation.
What’s the rolled up trouser leg about?
This part of the preparation for the ceremony of initiation when you
take an obligation on the volume you consider sacred in should be
done on a bare and bended knee.
You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours?
To say that this kind of activity has not happened in a Masonic Lodge is wrong, but when it does it brings with it severe penalties. But this kind of activity occurs in all organisations both social and occupational. We have a need to belong and we tend to form groups, which is where our friendships belong, so it is natural to ask a friend for advice or favour, but not to any material advantage.
What do you do in the meetings?
As with all organisations the members are required to meet to discuss the financial, administration and social aspects of the Lodge and organisation. But hopefully the main object is to carry out one of the three ceremonies of membership. Followed by a dinner.
It’s for men only?
No. Women’s freemasonry started in Paris in 1890 when French Freemasons who supported the Suffragettes invited women to join their lodges. The lodges were excommunicated from the Grand Lodge but went on to form a mixed Grand Lodge. This spread to England with great enthusiasm and a women’s Grand Lodge was formed in
The only difference is that a man cannot attend an actual women’s lodge meeting or vice versa, (there is more to say on this).
What’s all the secrecy about?
The only secrets are the old methods of recognition used by the Medieval Stone Masons that have evolved into our modern ceremonies, but they are now in the public domain (Internet) as are our ceremonies, so they are hardly secrets, (there’s more to say on this)
Why are you a freemason?
This varies with the individual but to me it’s: –
BELONGING: Man as a species has the urge to belong to a group and a Masonic Lodge provides such a group.
STUCTURE: We have so little structure in our lives today so it’s a relief to walk into a room where you know what’s happening.
FREINDSHIP: We all have a thousand friends on Face Book, but it does not compare to spending the fourth Friday engaged in a ceremony with friends and then sitting across a dinner table and talking, knowing that what you say stays in the Lodge. Without digital gadgets.
Chapter Two – The Ladies
The first ladies to be invited to join a Masonic Lodge was in Paris in 1890, although there were a couple of historic anomalies before that. The Freemasons invoked were strong supporters of the suffragettes and decided they they should be admitted into their lodges. These 5 lodges were expelled by the Grand Lodge in Paris and decided to create their own Grand Lodge, La Droit Humane. This movement spread to England and soon became very popular. It was in 1902 that the first lodge of Co-Masons was formed in London and that importation from France soon snowballed. But within a few years some of its members became uneasy regarding the course being taken by the governing body in Paris. They felt that their ancient forms were in jeopardy and a departure from their traditional style was taking place; history was being repeated, for it was a similar state that had arisen in regular Freemasonry in the mid-18th century.
Various members resigned from the Order and formed themselves into a Society from which was to emerge the Honourable Fraternity of Antient Masonry, but still as an association for men and women. On 5 June 1908 a Grand Lodge wasformed with a Reverend Brother as Grand Master. He was the first and only male Grand Master and held that office for four years before retiring through ill health. His successor commenced the continuing line of female Grand Masters.
Approximately ten years later it was decided to restrict admission to women only but to allow existing male members to remain. Within a very short period the title was changed to the Order of Women Freemasons but the form of address as ‘Brother’ remained, the term ‘Sister’ having been discontinued soon after the formation in 1908 as it was deemed unfitting for members of a universal Brotherhood of Freemasons. It is also of some interest to note that history was repeated again , in that the Royal Arch became the subject of a division in their ranks, rather on the lines of the Ancients and Moderns years before the Union in 1813. A group of its members wished to include the Royal Arch in the system but failed to obtain authority from their Grand Lodge , which caused them to secede and form the first Lodge of yet another Order – The Honourable Fraternity of Ancient Freemasons, two Grand Lodges running in parallel was almost a carbon copy performance, but in this case the time for a Union, similar to that which took place in 1813, is yet to come. The Order of Co-Masons continued and the three systems continued in parallel throughout the 20th century, all practising identical masonry and all trying to ignore each other. As many lady masons were married to gentlemen masons this was not easy.
My encounters with Masons at the Hall from throughout the world have been generally interesting, informative and very pleasant, particularly ladies. Ladies tend to be a little more apprehensive than the gentlemen, but once they realise they are on friendly ground, and are greeted as a brother, they soon find the experience enjoyable. Very rarely have I encountered criticism about the whole project and the exhibiting of the tracing boards, to which my reply is they are fully in the public domain, with explanations, and provide me with a medium to answer the question “what do you do in the meeting”.
It was a woman who gave the best answer I have herd to the question “Why are your ceremonies so secretive” and the answer “you can give a beautiful piece of music to someone to read, but its not until someone plays it that it means something” Again a lady explained why Lodges are exclusively male/female is the intimate nature of the ceremonies. I found this very significant from a male and female point of view, and something I had not thought about. Maybe it should not matter but we are what we are. Its also been suggested by a lady that in a mixed lodge the ladies would be much better at ceremony than the gentlemen! I am often asked if I am a Mason, but watching how a visitor view the hall often allows me to guess if they are Masons. One such was a lady from La Reunion, a French colony in the Indian Ocean who was looking perplexed at the Tracing Board. She was from Paris and a member of the Ladies GL, and SD of her lodge. The whole episode was delightful and she was was pleased to be greeted so well.
My only regret is that the two Ladies grand lodges seem reluctant to form a Union, it would simplify things and may enhance their acceptance, but things are what they are.
What would king James I/VI thought about it all.
Chapter Three – Secrets
These are probably the two most common questions I am asked at the Masonic Hall at Beamish. To see a presumably intelligent grown adult stand on one leg with the other foot on the knee on the opposite leg, then trying to put their hand under the knee and shake it about, fills me with trepidation, one of these days someone will really hurt themselves and I will have to fill out a big form, Monty Python you have a lot to answer for.
First Grand Lodge is quite specific, the ONLY secrets we are obligated to keep are the ancient modes of recognition adopted by the Medieval Stonemasons. So, what are they? When an apprentice stone mason had finished his time his master was obliged to give him appropriate work, if not then he would ensure he had tools, food and money so he could then travel to where there was work. He was now a Journeyman or Fellow of the Craft. If the new site did not have appropriate work then they were obliged to give to give him 3 days board and lodging and food and money so he could continue his journey. At some point in his travels after he acquired enough skills and experience, he would be accepted as a Master. To protect these valuable privileges certain signs, words and handshakes were adopted at each stage and communicated in secret ceremonies to protect the skills of his trade. All of this was governed by the Guild of Stone Masons. At the transition from the Operative Stone Masons to the Speculative Freemasons these secrets were incorporated into the modern rituals.
Whilst we treat them as secrets they are not. If you Google them they are all over the internet and are published in books available in shops and online. So why obligate the candidate to keep them a secret, well it’s his bond with the members of the Lodge and Freemasons in general. In my 14 years of talking to the public about Freemasonry at Beamish I have never divulged those secrets to anyone. We now come to the issue of being secretive about our membership. This is a complicated story. We are our own worst enemy. and the 20th Century was a very bad time for us. Apart from the fact that everyone had a bad time with two world wars, the advent of Facism and Communism in the 30’s did not bode well. Hitler, Musselini, Franco and Stalin were vehemently opposed to Freemasonry but it was Hitler who who really had the greatest effect. Freemasons were number five on the Gestapo hit list and hundreds of thousands disappeared in the concentration camps.
Thus in 1945 the whole of east and west Europe was a masonic desert, the advent of the cold war brought another danger. Grand Lodge adopted the attitude of shut the doors and say nowt to nobody. Seemed like a good idea at the time. Meanwhile there was a massive surge in membership and the creation of new lodges. It is amazing how many people come into the Hall at Beamish and say their grandfather or father was a Mason but they never talked about. We ended up with with a generation of members who new so little about the Craft that they did not know what the secrets were so everything was secret! The great irony was that your membership was open to the public!
In 1799 George III had concerns, the Americans were revolting, the French were revolting and of course the Irish were revolting so the PM William Pitt introduced the “The Unlawful Societies Act” to suppress sedition and treason, but Freemasons of the Moderns Grand Lodge were exempt, as the Prince of Wales was GM. An exemption for Ancients quickly followed no doubt as the GM was the Duke of Atholl, although all were required to have their names and address registered with the authorities. A requirement until the 80’s when it was removed by a Labour Government!
This ridiculous situation did not improve until the early 70’s when the new GM the Duke of Kent took office, but it took along time to remove the old entrenched and paranoid attitudes, and by the 80’s when membership was starting to plummet, and lodges closing.
All this meant that by 2000 we had the project of the Masonic Hall at Beamish Museum, and since then so much more. We can now say that an institution of some 300 years standing is well established in the 21st century.
Lodge of Progress 8259 