# Received the 33rd Degree Today



## Canadian Paul (Sep 15, 2016)

Today I was the Representative Candidate for the conferral of the 33rd Degree, Honorary Inspector-General, at the 142nd Annual Session of the Supreme Council, 33*, of the A&ASR of Canada being held in my home town of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. It was a great honour to be invited to receive the degree and an even greater one to receive it in my own Valley.


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## Ripcord22A (Sep 15, 2016)

Congrats brother!


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## Bloke (Sep 15, 2016)

Canadian Paul said:


> Today I was the Representative Candidate for the conferral of the 33rd Degree, Honorary Inspector-General, at the 142nd Annual Session of the Supreme Council, 33*, of the A&ASR of Canada being held in my home town of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. It was a great honour to be invited to receive the degree and an even greater one to receive it in my own Valley.


Hearty congratulations !


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## Brother JC (Sep 16, 2016)

Congratulations!


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## Warrior1256 (Sep 16, 2016)

Congratulations Brother! I'm very happy for you.


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## KSigMason (Sep 16, 2016)

Congratulations!


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## goomba (Sep 16, 2016)

Congrats brother!


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## fmasonlog (Sep 19, 2016)

I cannot wait to get mine after my MM degree 


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## Ripcord22A (Sep 19, 2016)

fmasonlog said:


> I cannot wait to get mine after my MM degree
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using My Freemasonry


You are not yet a Mason?  If not you have a long road ahead that you must pave in selfless service and dedication.  Good luck sir


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## fmasonlog (Sep 19, 2016)

Ripcord22A said:


> You are not yet a Mason?  If not you have a long road ahead that you must pave in selfless service and dedication.  Good luck sir



Thank you. I'm an EA, still fresh lol


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## The Traveling Man (Sep 20, 2016)

@Canadian Paul Congratulations Illustrious Brother!!!

@fmasonlog Focus on the Blue Lodge for now. You have a long road ahead of you and whole lot to learn before looking into the appendant bodies, especially with regards to the 33rd (a degree that most Brothers will never receive).


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## Blake Bowden (Sep 20, 2016)

Congratulations!


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## fmasonlog (Nov 18, 2016)

The Traveling Man said:


> @Canadian Paul Congratulations Illustrious Brother!!!
> 
> @fmasonlog Focus on the Blue Lodge for now. You have a long road ahead of you and whole lot to learn before looking into the appendant bodies, especially with regards to the 33rd (a degree that most Brothers will never receive).



Bro, why do you say "most brothers will never receive."? 


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## The Traveling Man (Nov 19, 2016)

fmasonlog said:


> Bro, why do you say "most brothers will never receive."?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using My Freemasonry



Because Most do not receive the 33rd.


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## Matt L (Nov 19, 2016)

Congratulations Brother, and thank you for your many years of service to the craft.


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## fmasonlog (Nov 19, 2016)

The Traveling Man said:


> Because Most do not receive the 33rd.



I've researched about it. But I'm following your advice and am focusing on blue lodge. I do hope  to be 33rd one day though. 


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## The Traveling Man (Nov 19, 2016)

fmasonlog said:


> I've researched about it. But I'm following your advice and am focusing on blue lodge. I do hope  to be 33rd one day though.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using My Freemasonry


I think its ok to 'desire' the degree Only if that desire is based on wanting to have had a Masonic career that warranted such an honor, and not simply because it's the 33°.

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## fmasonlog (Nov 20, 2016)

The Traveling Man said:


> I think its ok to 'desire' the degree Only if that desire is based on wanting to have had a Masonic career that warranted such an honor, and not simply because it's the 33°.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930P using My Freemasonry mobile app



Well said, brother. Thank you.


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## MarkR (Nov 20, 2016)

fmasonlog said:


> Bro, why do you say "most brothers will never receive."?


Only about a third of U.S. Masons are Scottish Rite, and only about 1% of Scottish Rite Masons receive the 33°.


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## Ripcord22A (Nov 20, 2016)

MarkR said:


> Only about a third of U.S. Masons are Scottish Rite, and only about 1% of Scottish Rite Masons receive the 33°.


Whats strange though is that at valley meetings its mostly white hats....

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## J. Earl (Nov 20, 2016)

Congratulations Brother. 


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## MarkR (Nov 21, 2016)

Ripcord22A said:


> Whats strange though is that at valley meetings its mostly white hats....


We have a lot of red and white caps at our meetings, too.  Not strange, though.  Those caps go to the brothers who are always there, doing the work of the valley.  The vast majority of the black caps are like the vast majority of blue lodge brothers; you rarely see them.


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## dfreybur (Nov 21, 2016)

Ripcord22A said:


> Whats strange though is that at valley meetings its mostly white hats....



To me it makes sense that the most active Brothers end up with the white hats and that they end up at all the meetings.  I'm active at the blue lodge level and rarely show up at appendent body meetings.


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## fmasonlog (Nov 21, 2016)

Ripcord22A said:


> Whats strange though is that at valley meetings its mostly white hats....
> 
> Sent from my LG-H811 using My Freemasonry mobile app



What does a white hat mean? 


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## Brother JC (Nov 21, 2016)

fmasonlog said:


> What does a white hat mean?



33rd


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## Dontrell Stroman (Nov 23, 2016)

From my understanding, many brothers buy the 33 degree

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## Ripcord22A (Nov 23, 2016)

Travelling Man91 said:


> From my understanding, many brothers buy the 33 degree
> 
> Sent from my LG-LS997 using My Freemasonry mobile app


Ummm no.

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## Dontrell Stroman (Nov 23, 2016)

I'm pretty sure I heard a Prince Hall Mason in the state of Georgia say that he received his 33rd by paying a large amount of money.

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## Ripcord22A (Nov 23, 2016)

Well if he did say that, and if it did happen that is as unmasonic as it gets.  Now from my understanding the Degree fee isnt cheap but you pay that after being selected.  Also alot of the 33rds have given loads of cash over their masonic careers but thats not the same as buying the degree

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## Dontrell Stroman (Nov 23, 2016)

Ripcord22A said:


> Well if he did say that, and if it did happen that is as unmasonic as it gets.  Now from my understanding the Degree fee isnt cheap but you pay that after being selected.  Also alot of the 33rds have given loads of cash over their masonic careers but thats not the same as buying the degree
> 
> Sent from my LG-H811 using My Freemasonry mobile app


I'll look into it a little more and get back with you on it brother.


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## dfreybur (Nov 25, 2016)

Travelling Man91 said:


> From my understanding, many brothers buy the 33 degree



That's Dan Brown fiction.  Not the way it works in regular jurisdictions.  Of course it may well be how it works in some clandestine jurisdictions.


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## Bro. David F. Hill (Nov 25, 2016)

Not the way it works. 

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## Glen Cook (Nov 25, 2016)

Travelling Man91 said:


> From my understanding, many brothers buy the 33 degree
> 
> Sent from my LG-LS997 using My Freemasonry mobile app


Not in AASR SJ and NMJ. In clandestine Masonry, certainly 

I sit on our Valley's screening committee. We pick from across the social strata.


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## Dontrell Stroman (Nov 25, 2016)

Glen Cook said:


> Not in AASR SJ and NMJ. In clandestine Masonry, certainly
> 
> I sit on our Valley's screening committee. We pick from across the social strata.


Do you brothers screen PHA masons as well ?


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## Glen Cook (Nov 25, 2016)

Travelling Man91 said:


> Do you brothers screen PHA masons as well ?


N,  and, given the current fractions in AASR PHA, it is unclear who is reviewing whom.


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## The Traveling Man (Nov 26, 2016)

Glen Cook said:


> Not in AASR SJ and NMJ. In clandestine Masonry, certainly
> 
> I sit on our Valley's screening committee. We pick from across the social strata.


I'm curious, are there Any fees involved in receiving the 33rd. I do remember years ago hearing something about Brothers paying to receive the 33rd. I remember thinking "why would someone be required to pay for something they didn't petition for or request"? Then I remember hearing (not sure if it was during the same conversation or at a later time) that recipients were asked to make a donation. I never gave it any thought back then because i hadn't even joined the Scottish Rite yet, but seeing this post makes me curious.

I'm assuming that being on the screening committee means you're a 33° and can speak from experience (if you're allowed to speak on it)..

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## MarkR (Nov 27, 2016)

The Traveling Man said:


> I'm curious, are there Any fees involved in receiving the 33rd. I do remember years ago hearing something about Brothers paying to receive the 33rd. I remember thinking "why would someone be required to pay for something they didn't petition for or request"? Then I remember hearing (not sure if it was during the same conversation or at a later time) that recipients were asked to make a donation. I never gave it any thought back then because i hadn't even joined the Scottish Rite yet, but seeing this post makes me curious.


I can't speak for the NMJ, but in the SJ, yes, there's a fee involved in receiving both the KCCH and the 33°.  IIRC, my KCCH fee was $200.  But I was informed that I had been elected to receive the honor before I was asked for the fee, and could have declined the honor if I had chosen to.  It's not a donation, it's an initiation fee, just like you paid when you joined your Lodge or your Scottish Rite Valley.


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## The Traveling Man (Nov 27, 2016)

MarkR said:


> I can't speak for the NMJ, but in the SJ, yes, there's a fee involved in receiving both the KCCH and the 33°.  IIRC, my KCCH fee was $200.  But I was informed that I had been elected to receive the honor before I was asked for the fee, and could have declined the honor if I had chosen to.  It's not a donation, it's an initiation fee, just like you paid when you joined your Lodge or your Scottish Rite Valley.


Thanks for the clarification. Initiation fee does make sense. I didn't even know there was an initiation with KCCH. I thought it was more of an honor than a degree. Good info Brother.

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## Glen Cook (Nov 27, 2016)

The Traveling Man said:


> Thanks for the clarification. Initiation fee does make sense. I didn't even know there was an initiation with KCCH. I thought it was more of an honor than a degree. Good info Brother.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930P using My Freemasonry mobile app


In many places the KYCH ceremony is open to the public


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## MarkR (Nov 28, 2016)

The Traveling Man said:


> Thanks for the clarification. Initiation fee does make sense. I didn't even know there was an initiation with KCCH. I thought it was more of an honor than a degree. Good info Brother.


It's not a degree (or a half-degree, as some have said in the past.)  It's a ceremony of investiture.  You are invested with the rank and decoration of a Knight Commander of the Court of Honour.  Yes, they use the British spelling of Honor.  The ceremony is conducted in a Court of Honour, takes about an hour, and can only be attended by 33rds and KCCH.  Those who are going to be invested cannot attend the opening of the Court of Honor; they are brought in as a group after it has been opened.


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