Noah 10/23/07

Masons make good men better! We have all heard this phrase. But, have you ever stopped and asked yourself, just how do Masons accomplish this? It is answers to this question I will deal with in my message this evening.
Do Masons make good men better or do they in fact make men better? There is a fine yet important distinction here. The truth is Masonry does take men and if it determines they are good makes them better. But what is a good man? It could be said he is one who meets the criteria found on a Masonic petition, but this is not enough. When the Worshipful Master says: “Brethren, you are about to exercise one of your most sacred rights as a Master Mason,” he means it. Because, he continues, “before you cast your ballot, I would remind you that it is important that you act in the best interests of Masonry.” If we honestly evaluate the qualifications of a petitioner, we are the ones who determine whether or not a “man” is “a good man” before we vote. This is the proper time to make this distinction, for it is our job to make certain only “good men” pass through the inner door. My Brothers, the more seriously we take the candidate selection process in the beginning, the more significantly the Craft will be improved in the end. This is in the very “best interests of Masonry.”
“You must not allow personal prejudices or private piques and grudges to influence your ballot. You are to consider only the moral qualifications of the petitioner.” As a Master Mason, you know that one of the Craft's greatest strengths is its ability to teach moral intelligence. Rectitude of conduct is one of our paramount tenets. Because you are a Mason you understand the importance of the instruction “to consider only the moral qualifications of the petitioner” and because you are morally intelligent you accept the responsibility for distinguishing the good man from the man before you vote. This too is in the very “best interests of Masonry.”
Masons make good men better. We now know that the good man is one who in the reasoned judgment of other Master Masons is presumed to be a moral man. We are confident we have identified a moral man because we have used our minds reflectively to develop our own moral intelligence according to the lessons taught in Freemasonry. Why is it so important that we follow this instruction? Because “there must be none among us who would cast a blemish on the Lodge and the whole Fraternity by balloting for an unworthy petitioner or by rejecting a worthy applicant.”
The warning contained in these words is profound. We cast a blemish on our Lodge and the whole Fraternity when we have not developed our moral intelligence to the extent necessary to judge whether or not the candidate is a moral man - a good man. To accomplish this is an important responsibility and one upon which the long-term success of the Craft depends. It is only when a candidate has been judged a good man by morally intelligent Masons that he should be allowed to enter a Masonic Lodge and it is only when he comes through that inner door that the process of making the good man better truly begins. This is why the act of balloting is one of our most sacred rights as a Master Mason.
Before we can make the good man better though, there are some practical things we should do. We should show him and his family the first session of the LSOME video. We should give him the “Who are the Masons” brochure and the “Why I Became a Mason CD.” We should show him the “Freemasonry in New York State” DVD and make sure he attends a Brother Bring Friend Night. In short, we should make sure the good man is properly prepared for his Masonic journey by answering all his questions as well as the questions of his family.
Now we are ready to begin the process of making the good man better. This is done best by guaranteeing that his degrees are presented in due form, for it is his degrees which teach the lessons necessary for him to develop his moral intelligence and live his life according to the tenets of the Craft. The truth is, how much better the good man becomes is directly proportional to how well he is prepared to be made a Mason and how well we are prepared to “transmit unimpaired the tenets of our Institution.”
Those who came before us passed down our Ritual in such exquisite detail for good reason. They knew full well that the good man would never become better if he was exposed to poor ritual, if he was not properly mentored between degrees, if he was not made to learn and reflect upon his questions and answers. They knew full well that the good man would never become better if he did not hear every last word of the Historical Lectures, or if those who were presenting his degrees did not rehearse them beforehand. They knew full well that the good man would never become better if he was so confused by a degree that it made no sense to him, or if the words themselves were not delivered with knowledge and passion. In short, our Fathers knew that the good man would never become better if their successors did not do everything in their power to make certain every new brother became a Mason in due form. We are their successors and this is our responsibility now.
How do we know if we have succeeded in making the good man better? This answer is easy. “The teaching of this degree then is that it is your duty to make the most and the best of yourself.” These are the words the newly raised Brother hears at the end of his 3rd Degree. I maintain that not only do Masons make good men better, but if the tenets of the Craft are transmitted unimpaired to every new Brother, if we all do the jobs our Fathers expected us to do, then not only will we make good men better, we will make them the best they can be. The good man who has been made better by developing his moral intelligence according to the teachings of Freemasonry possesses the tools necessary to become the best he can be and has the opportunity to fulfill the most important Masonic charge of all; that of making the most and the best of himself.
The first article of our Masonic Compact reads: “Because I am a Freemason I know that Masonry's power is best exercised when its Light is shared with the world at large; I therefore vow to bring the best of myself to my Lodge, in order that my growth might be fostered and nurtured, and to present myself to the world as a working Freemason, on the path to building a more perfect temple.” In this article the word “best” is used twice. Masonry's power is “best” exercised and I will bring the “best” of myself to my Lodge.
Tonight, I have discussed the concept of Freemasonry's unique ability to develop moral intelligence in good men. In my opinion, in today's society, moral intelligence is in decline. Great effort is made to develop individuals intellectually while traditional or generally accepted moral principals are eliminated from our education, both at home and in school. My Brothers, Freemasonry can fill this void. When its power is “best” exercised and when we bring the “best” of ourselves to our Lodges we, all of us, become the best we can be. If we do not, the good men who look to us to make themselves better by the “best” exercise of Masonry's Light and by utilizing the “best” of themselves, will not become better. Please, if a Mason does not become the best he can be, let it not be the fault of our Fraternity.
To achieve success as a Master Mason is difficult. It is extraordinarily hard to take a good man and make him better by meaningfully developing his moral intelligence so that it governs his entire life. But, if from the beginning, we teach him to understand his ultimate Charge which is “to make the most and the best of himself” and if we understand this ourselves, then all of our chances for success improve dramatically. We will have given the good man the opportunity to participate in the on-going, life-fulfilling process of being made better by being made a Mason.

Thank you my Brothers.

Special Event in the Albany and Rensselaer/Schenectady Districts

It is my great honor to announce a very special event for our Districts.
On Thursday evening November 1, 2007, from 7-9 PM at Evening Star Lodge in Latham, our Deputy Grand Master RW Edward G. Gilbert will be holding a "Meet with The Deputy Grand Master and Share Your Ideas."
Many of you know the Deputy Grand Master from his days as our Grand Lecturer.
You know he is a remarkable and charming man. You know this will be a wonderful evening.
Please urge all Brothers in your Lodges to come meet and share their ideas with our fine Deputy Grand Master.

Most Fraternally
Peter Kermani, DDGM Albany District