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Advice For Esoteric Masons

Brother_Steve

Premium Member
Basically, I think Masonry is as esoteric as you want it to be. If you want to be in a good ol boys club that eats KFC off paperplates, votes on paying the bills and whether or not to let 'Steve's boy' in or not and then close, so be it. That's what's best for you. If you want more on the esoteric side of things, do some research and find the right place for you. You may have to drive a little, but it's better to drive an hour or so once every month or two than to go sit in lodge twice a month and gain nothing from it.
Lodge is for the purpose of making masons and work that needs to be voted on. We have 200 members. We get 30 out a night. The issue is the spectrum of those 30 men is very wide. It is tough to have esoteric discussions if half the people find that just as boring as opening, paying the bills and closing. Esoteric discussions happen over dinner and after lodge over a beer. It is when Brethren of the same cloth can sit and discuss masonry without boring anyone.

For me, I would love to have a "What's going on with you this week?" program where we go around the lodge room member by member and let them just talk about their day or themselves. We do announcements for upcoming programs, but Some of us do not see each other for two weeks at a time so there should be something to catch up on.

For example, Brother Steve, What's going on with you? I could talk about my week or differ if I wish. We should be interested in our member's lives.
 

CLewey44

Registered User
Lodge is for the purpose of making masons and work that needs to be voted on. We have 200 members. We get 30 out a night. The issue is the spectrum of those 30 men is very wide. It is tough to have esoteric discussions if half the people find that just as boring as opening, paying the bills and closing. Esoteric discussions happen over dinner and after lodge over a beer. It is when Brethren of the same cloth can sit and discuss masonry without boring anyone.

For me, I would love to have a "What's going on with you this week?" program where we go around the lodge room member by member and let them just talk about their day or themselves. We do announcements for upcoming programs, but Some of us do not see each other for two weeks at a time so there should be something to catch up on.

For example, Brother Steve, What's going on with you? I could talk about my week or differ if I wish. We should be interested in our member's lives.

I agree on some of that. I wouldn't want to hear an hour long presentation on Albert Pike or an hour on how the beehive and industry ties into our Craft. But I think setting aside 15-20 minutes aside for discussion isn't too much to ask. The bills and closing is going to happen regardless. Some lodges do discuss and makes for something to look forward to while in Light of fellow Masons with free discussion vs. looking over your shoulder and talking in public about these matters. Even if it's not terribly 'esoteric' discussions but crafting a better ashlar as individuals is a good topic. That's apart of our work I think. I know of one lodge that does a very casual meeting once per month with general discussion about anything from favorite sport teams to movies or why they joined etc. Then the other meeting is more formal and solemn. I would think the 'catching up on things' would be more suited over beer and dinner before or afterwards.
 

SimonM

Registered User
In beehives the females do all the work and when the drones have fertilized the queen they have their wings cut off and are pushed out as food for the ants.

How does that become a allegory for a Masonic lodge? What is veiled?

When the symbol of the bee hive was starting to be used for the lodge we did'nt know it was a queen that led the hive, everybody at that time thought it was a king.
 

coachn

Coach John S. Nagy
Premium Member
In beehives the females do all the work and when the drones have fertilized the queen they have their wings cut off and are pushed out as food for the ants.

How does that become a allegory for a Masonic lodge?
It is obvious to a trained mind, one that has been cultivated by the Trivium and Quadrivium, that it doesn't. Your allegory statement and subsequent question takes the metaphor out of context.
What is veiled?
To a trained mind, what is veiled becomes unveiled by such study. To the untrained mind, such statements and questions become all important distractions.
 

CLewey44

Registered User
Is this speculation? Or is there some evidence.

On the other side we have:

"In the time of ancient Greece, and particularly in the temples of Artemis, Aphrodite, Demeter but also of Cybele, Diana and Rhea, priestesses were called the Melissae, which translates as ‘the bees.’ The Goddess as the Great Mother was sometimes titled Melissa, literally, ‘the Queen Bee.’ Some classical sources describe these priestesses as young and virgin, others tell us the designation of Melissae was a title of honor, bestowed due to devotion and labor for the Great Mother by a certain individual, which was above and beyond the ordinary. The Pythian oracular priestess at Delphi was known as the Delphic Bee, and the emblem of a bee was placed on Delphic coins in her honor. Bees sometimes appear on the statues of Artemis, and the officiates at Eleusis during the celebration of the Mysteries were called Bees. "

http://mirrorofisis.freeyellow.com/id576.html

The Antients were very keen on the bee traditions but the Moderns did not seem to know much about those.

I think the point is that your focus on beehives and queen bees is really irrelevant to my post and the topic of this specific forum.
 

Glen Cook

G A Cook
Site Benefactor
We ju
It is obvious to a trained mind, one that has been cultivated by the Trivium and Quadrivium, that it doesn't. ...
...
St Andrew's Lodge (Utah) just had a lecture from a classicist last month on the subject from the viewpoint of them as curriculum.
 
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