I am being raised this upcoming Saturday and while I have decided to wait a while before giving York Rite or Scottish Rite a shot I am still curious as to the differences? Why do some go one route over the other? I know ultimately it is ones preference but I am curious about why others chose yr or sr
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I'm sure this has been asked a million times...
- Thread starter bubba806
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Michael Hatley
Premium Member
An (very) oversimplified bit - York Rite = the Christian faith, Scottish Rite = many faiths, including but limited to Christianity. In the United States, almost all blue lodges (the first three, and most important degrees of masonry) are based off York Rite, so in some ways there are stronger connections.
Scottish Rite casts a wider net.
More experienced brethren than I can no doubt draw finer, and better distinctions.
Scottish Rite casts a wider net.
More experienced brethren than I can no doubt draw finer, and better distinctions.
I've also heard the Scottish rite explained as the College of Masonry. Think they have a lot of study programs available to participate in if you so desire.
One quick note on the York rite. Though often not advertised it is possible to take each degree individually, rather than at a festival. It'll take longer, but some people prefer that. Your local chapter / council secretary should be able to help you when you get there.
One quick note on the York rite. Though often not advertised it is possible to take each degree individually, rather than at a festival. It'll take longer, but some people prefer that. Your local chapter / council secretary should be able to help you when you get there.
The York Rite Chapter and Council are not "Christian", however the Commandery- the final steps of the York Rite of Masonry- is a Christian order. You do not need to be of the Christian faith to take the Chapter and Council degrees and you do not need to continue to the Commandery Orders after you complete the Capitular and Cryptic degrees.
The Grand Lodge of Texas takes its form of esoteric work following the form of York Rite of Masonry. Therefore, when a MM progresses to the Chapter degrees, he's immediately struck by the familiarity of the form of the degree work. In fact, the Chapter and Council degrees complete the "story" begun with the EA, FC, and MM degrees.
The Scottish Rite also picks up after the MM degree, but the form of the esoteric work is different and is appropriate to the Scottish Rite of Masonry. The degrees are incredibly beautiful and equally instructive for the Mason continuing his journey.
Where the York Rite is - in form and esoteric work - familiar to the MM from his EA, FC, and MM, the Scottish Rite differs. Both provide further light, both inform on important principles begun in the Blue lodge, but differ in the form and esoteric work.
The Grand Lodge of Texas takes its form of esoteric work following the form of York Rite of Masonry. Therefore, when a MM progresses to the Chapter degrees, he's immediately struck by the familiarity of the form of the degree work. In fact, the Chapter and Council degrees complete the "story" begun with the EA, FC, and MM degrees.
The Scottish Rite also picks up after the MM degree, but the form of the esoteric work is different and is appropriate to the Scottish Rite of Masonry. The degrees are incredibly beautiful and equally instructive for the Mason continuing his journey.
Where the York Rite is - in form and esoteric work - familiar to the MM from his EA, FC, and MM, the Scottish Rite differs. Both provide further light, both inform on important principles begun in the Blue lodge, but differ in the form and esoteric work.
scialytic
Premium Member
The Chapter and Council are open to all faiths. I am finding that this is a common misperception. The Degrees conferred in the Royal Arch are deemed by many as completing the lessons of the Craft Lodge. The Council Degrees are set in the Crypts of Enoch, well before the Jewish and Islam divide (Abraham). The Degree Work itself (I believe) is similar to the Craft Lodge in that the candidate goes through the Degree like EA, FC & MM.
The decision between one and the other starts will discussing this with others. You will find that most opinions are biased (as one would expect). They are both very different in function and both continue and expound on the Legend and Search. You will not go wrong with either.
The Commandery (Knights Templar) is the York Rite body that requires Christian Faith. As all Degree Work is none higher than the Sublime Degree, attaining the title of Sir Knight or being able to say that you are a 32nd Degree Mason is ultimately moot in the shadow of the Sublime Degree. That being said, the search for further Light is far from moot and I commend you on your continued pursuit.
To recap: York Rite is open to all faiths...the exception is the Commandery, which is restricted to Christian Faith.
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oh! :52:
I can agree with rmcgehee on waiting a bit before jumping into the next leg of your journey. I'd suggest that you get your proficiency done first to the exclusion of everything else. Then get on some degree teams and participate in the degrees. One of the reasons for continuing the journey is to gain more of the knowledge expressed through our systems of degrees, so the more familiar you are with the basic lessons in the EA, FC, and MM degrees, the more the degrees in the York and Scottish Rites will mean to you. If you choose York Rite, pay close attention to the lectures in the EA, FC, and MM degrees and become familiar with their lessons. A year may be the right length for you, but I would agree some length of time is appropriate.
To add to chrmc, the York Rite is now testing a new course of study similar to the "Master Craftsman". I've joined a group of some of our Texian York Rite College members in testing the new course and we've just completed the enrollment process. It's very early in the process, but I'm hopeful that it will be an informative and useful course.
On how to decide which body? It's a totally personal decision based on your own preference. I for one had to join both before I could determine which held the most meaning to me. I joined the Scottish Rite about 9 - 10 months after I was raised and then the York Rite about a year and half after. After trying both, I found a passioin for the York Rite. Every brother makes their own decision in their own fashion based on their own passions. It's not an answer I think you were looking for, but I think it is how some make the decision.
Good luck in your journey, where ever it takes you! Both paths are filled with awesome brethren waiting to help you along the way!
To add to chrmc, the York Rite is now testing a new course of study similar to the "Master Craftsman". I've joined a group of some of our Texian York Rite College members in testing the new course and we've just completed the enrollment process. It's very early in the process, but I'm hopeful that it will be an informative and useful course.
On how to decide which body? It's a totally personal decision based on your own preference. I for one had to join both before I could determine which held the most meaning to me. I joined the Scottish Rite about 9 - 10 months after I was raised and then the York Rite about a year and half after. After trying both, I found a passioin for the York Rite. Every brother makes their own decision in their own fashion based on their own passions. It's not an answer I think you were looking for, but I think it is how some make the decision.
Good luck in your journey, where ever it takes you! Both paths are filled with awesome brethren waiting to help you along the way!
Michael Hatley
Premium Member
*nods, I should have been more specific. Goodness knows I've been nudged enough times by my worthy York Rite brethren to go petition based on that particular loophole.
I'd be willing to bet a nickel that a very small fraction of active York Rite members fit that particular loophole category, but it is certainly there. It is worthwhile to witness the degrees if nothing else.
Brass tacks are that the Scottish Rite degrees themselves center around other faiths, not just Christianity. York Rite is clearly more focused on Christianity, overall, than Scottish Rite is. Thats just calling a spade a spade, if my worthy brethren will forgive my simplicity.
If you are a Christian, do both. If not, then Chapter and Council at York Rite and Scottish Rite, in whatever order is most convenient, then decide which you want to be active in if not both.
I agree with waiting to do either for a year. Maybe get in your blue lodge line and whatnot.
Even then I'd do the Shrine before either of 'em, personally. At least there your marchin' to and fro (which the York Rite fellas seem to be big on almost as much as the Shriner Patrols) can earn you a trophy or two :thumbup:
The Commandery blokes get really fancy hats though. The Scottish Rite ones look like bellhop hats, and don't get me started on the Fez.
SeeKer.mm
Premium Member
I am a newly raised MM having been raised on 06/23/2012 so I am not yet very familiar with the differences between the two appendant bodies. I do know some but not everything. What I do know, is that a 33rd degree Mason was present at my at home interview and gave me the advice of waiting a year before deciding upon any appendant body, if any. Joining an appendant body does not make you any more a Mason than a 32nd degree Mason, as I understand it the 3rd degree is the sublime and most important degree to go through as a Mason. One should be dedicated and persistent in their support of their Mother Lodge, the Blue Lodge in which they were raised. However, as one gains experience and becomes more involved in their Blue Lodge, the thirst for further light in Masonry can be quenched via the appendant bodies of the York and Scottish rights. I have also been informed that one may become a member of BOTH bodies if they so choose. For me...no rush...I am a Mason, and in time I will seek more by way of the appendant bodies for sure, but in due time...good things come to those who wait, and Masonry is no different...having been raised as a Master Mason and being able to call Brother those who under any other circumstance in society I would likely never have the honor and privilege of associating with is enough for me at the present time...when such time comes that I am ready to join an appendant body, I am certain I will see the light ahead and will be guided by the GAOTU to such light as we both see fit.
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1LNSTR
Registered User
Bubba806 - The information provided above is correct. Let me give you a different perspective.
There are fewer Scottish Rite temples in Texas and they tend to be in bigger cities. My perception is that the York Rite tends to be more rural. This is important because you're probably not going to travel 75 miles one way for very long.
Wait, watch, say "no" a lot, become active in your mother lodge. You have a whole life of
Masonry ahead.
There are fewer Scottish Rite temples in Texas and they tend to be in bigger cities. My perception is that the York Rite tends to be more rural. This is important because you're probably not going to travel 75 miles one way for very long.
Wait, watch, say "no" a lot, become active in your mother lodge. You have a whole life of
Masonry ahead.
Pscyclepath
Premium Member
>>>I am being raised this upcoming Saturday and while I have decided to wait a while before giving York Rite or Scottish Rite a shot I am still curious as to the differences? Why do some go one route over the other? I know ultimately it is ones preference but I am curious about why others chose yr or sr <<<
I am about 2/3rds of the way through completing the York Rite, having gone through the Chapter and Council degrees, and will hopefully completing the Commandery a little later this fall. I have not yet petitioned for the Scottish Rite, but have read my way through their handbook, "A Bridge to Light," and parts of "Morals and Dogma." Being here in Little Rock, AR, Albert Pike is my homeboy, though in the past I tended to focus a lot more on what he did in the community, Mexican War, and Civil War than strictly on his philosophies about Masonry.
What I have personally found is that the York Rite degrees, specifically the Chapter and Council degrees, are a direct follow-up to the three degrees we received in our home (Craft) lodge. The degrees "feel" much the same, and pick up on many of the same topics and legends from the master's degrees. I went throught the Chapter degrees one at a time within my home chapter, and at a festival for my Royal Arch, since that degree is designed to take no less than three candidates at a time), and the festival format for my Council degrees. Sort of like the Star Wars movie sequels, these degrees bring out "the rest of the story" from the Master Mason degree with a more focused emphasis on "how and why" certain things happened. When I became an MM, I was told I still had a "rough and rocky path" before me. Silly me, I thought that referred to the second section of the master's degree ;-) I found out better in the chapter degrees.
The Scottish Rite, from what I have seen so far. takes a different perspective on many of the same lessons, that of Pike's mixing many different thoughts on religious and cultural histories into the mix. Some of the "outcomes" or lesson points will be a little different, and at least in reading the two books, it all feels a bit more "esoteric" to me, at least, from all the different viewpoints and concepts that Pike mixed in his writings. I wasn't sure that I would really like it when I first started researching it, but now am looking forward to making that my continuing Masonic education project for next year.
On a more practical basis, the York Rite groups tend to be more common as they are organized pretty much the same way that local lodges are, and tend to be more common out in the rural parts of the state. Because of the logistics in putting on the reunions, or degree conferrals in the Scottish Rite, the Valleys are sometimes few and far between. Here in Arkansas, for example, we have only two Valleys, one in Little Rock and one in Fort Smith, I believe. But about a fifth or so of the local lodges have at least a Royal Arch chapter affiliated with them. It's a bit more convenient. Here in Little Rock, the Scottish Rite is probably more popular and active due to the presence of the Albert Pike temple right in the middle of downtown, and because we had the two Shrine temples nearby, in Southwest LR and in Pine Bluff. In the old days when you had to be either a 32nd degree SR or a Knight Templar in order to be a Shriner, it was way easier to sit through a weekend reunion and emerge with a Shrine petition in your hand than it was to work your way through the individual YR degrees. (The Shrine no longer requires that, but then the Shrine is no longer an option for Arkansas Masons, and many of the former Shriners are getting more involved with the Scottish Rite or the blue lodges again, since they can no longer go to the Shrine.)
Matters of faith and philosophy aside, I've enjoyed my journey so far through the YR degrees, and the additional fellowship with the local Royal Arch chapters. You bond with a new set of brothers, since in most cases the chapter and council will spread across a number of local lodges, and each has its own charms. And for me at least, that's one of the big differences. For someone following the path, I would recommend that upon being raised, your first focus needs to be on learning and passing your MM proficiency. Arkansas doesn't have any restriction on time for this, but Texas derned sure does, and TX doesn't allow, or at least strongly discourages your petitioning to any of the appendent or concordant bodies until you get past that proficiency thing. At the same time, be sure to get your feet firmly on the ground within your home craft lodge... all the good stuff you learn there will definitely help you in the other bodies as well.
Ultimately, I joined the YR (and a little earlier than I probably should have) because I thought it would make me a better Mason and better asset to my home lodge. So far, that impression has been coming true.
I wish you best luck in your own search for light... and would definitely admonish you to finish your MM proficiency and get settled in your craft lodge... then ponder well which of the local options for the "other degrees" will best suit your expectations.
I am about 2/3rds of the way through completing the York Rite, having gone through the Chapter and Council degrees, and will hopefully completing the Commandery a little later this fall. I have not yet petitioned for the Scottish Rite, but have read my way through their handbook, "A Bridge to Light," and parts of "Morals and Dogma." Being here in Little Rock, AR, Albert Pike is my homeboy, though in the past I tended to focus a lot more on what he did in the community, Mexican War, and Civil War than strictly on his philosophies about Masonry.
What I have personally found is that the York Rite degrees, specifically the Chapter and Council degrees, are a direct follow-up to the three degrees we received in our home (Craft) lodge. The degrees "feel" much the same, and pick up on many of the same topics and legends from the master's degrees. I went throught the Chapter degrees one at a time within my home chapter, and at a festival for my Royal Arch, since that degree is designed to take no less than three candidates at a time), and the festival format for my Council degrees. Sort of like the Star Wars movie sequels, these degrees bring out "the rest of the story" from the Master Mason degree with a more focused emphasis on "how and why" certain things happened. When I became an MM, I was told I still had a "rough and rocky path" before me. Silly me, I thought that referred to the second section of the master's degree ;-) I found out better in the chapter degrees.
The Scottish Rite, from what I have seen so far. takes a different perspective on many of the same lessons, that of Pike's mixing many different thoughts on religious and cultural histories into the mix. Some of the "outcomes" or lesson points will be a little different, and at least in reading the two books, it all feels a bit more "esoteric" to me, at least, from all the different viewpoints and concepts that Pike mixed in his writings. I wasn't sure that I would really like it when I first started researching it, but now am looking forward to making that my continuing Masonic education project for next year.
On a more practical basis, the York Rite groups tend to be more common as they are organized pretty much the same way that local lodges are, and tend to be more common out in the rural parts of the state. Because of the logistics in putting on the reunions, or degree conferrals in the Scottish Rite, the Valleys are sometimes few and far between. Here in Arkansas, for example, we have only two Valleys, one in Little Rock and one in Fort Smith, I believe. But about a fifth or so of the local lodges have at least a Royal Arch chapter affiliated with them. It's a bit more convenient. Here in Little Rock, the Scottish Rite is probably more popular and active due to the presence of the Albert Pike temple right in the middle of downtown, and because we had the two Shrine temples nearby, in Southwest LR and in Pine Bluff. In the old days when you had to be either a 32nd degree SR or a Knight Templar in order to be a Shriner, it was way easier to sit through a weekend reunion and emerge with a Shrine petition in your hand than it was to work your way through the individual YR degrees. (The Shrine no longer requires that, but then the Shrine is no longer an option for Arkansas Masons, and many of the former Shriners are getting more involved with the Scottish Rite or the blue lodges again, since they can no longer go to the Shrine.)
Matters of faith and philosophy aside, I've enjoyed my journey so far through the YR degrees, and the additional fellowship with the local Royal Arch chapters. You bond with a new set of brothers, since in most cases the chapter and council will spread across a number of local lodges, and each has its own charms. And for me at least, that's one of the big differences. For someone following the path, I would recommend that upon being raised, your first focus needs to be on learning and passing your MM proficiency. Arkansas doesn't have any restriction on time for this, but Texas derned sure does, and TX doesn't allow, or at least strongly discourages your petitioning to any of the appendent or concordant bodies until you get past that proficiency thing. At the same time, be sure to get your feet firmly on the ground within your home craft lodge... all the good stuff you learn there will definitely help you in the other bodies as well.
Ultimately, I joined the YR (and a little earlier than I probably should have) because I thought it would make me a better Mason and better asset to my home lodge. So far, that impression has been coming true.
I wish you best luck in your own search for light... and would definitely admonish you to finish your MM proficiency and get settled in your craft lodge... then ponder well which of the local options for the "other degrees" will best suit your expectations.
