Just a couple questions to the Freemasons concerning higher degrees.

reply to post by Fitzgibbon

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Wow! That is an excellent analogy, Fitzgibbon!

Yes.. I do have authority over Roark .. he is .. how do you say? .. My behotch.



No, in reality most of my lodge is actually "york rite" not Scottish Rite. Makes a bit of a difference .. because if I told some of the brethren in the commandries that since they don't have numbers I am "higher" then them! .. I might just end up in a sword fight with a Templar!

3rd degree is the highest. Nothing else beats it.. it's like a card game. You can have a King or a Queen or an Ace but if 3 is trump .. it beats your Ace doesn't it? The Master Mason degree is the Trump of the deck. It trumps 12, 18, 32, 33 .. the commandries, the Shrine, the Royal, the Jesters everything.. because you can't get there with out the 3rd!

Numbers mean nothing in Masonry because we don't follow a logical precession of order regarding their alignment from less to greater. 3 beats every thing!

32nd is in my title because I am tired of anti's calling me names like "porch mason" and so forth, now I can just say "but I am a 32..." .. of course, I am still a porch mason because I don't have the 69th degree, which I hear the ritual for is very .. interesting.

Dawh, shucks.....yer embarassin' meeeee!

I guess it was the image that always came to mind for me vis à vis relating the side rites to Blue Lodge Masonry. Hope it helps provide some clarification.

[edit on 22-5-2008 by Fitzgibbon]

reply to post by metatronscube

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recommendations for the 33rd are made to the surpreme from each valley. The number of 33rd the valley may have is based on membership. If a member is unable to go to washington D.C. to recieve the degree, it can be confered localy. I am not a 33rd and most likly never well be. It is a honor reserved for those brothers who have worked long and hard for the craft. The one rule that stands out, is that it can never be ask for or openly campained for. If one would do so, their chance of ever getting it would be gone for ever. The rules are available from the main body in DC
Ps this is for the shouthern Scottish Rite , I can't speak for what our northern brothers do.

well i hope you see the Knights Templar degree is the equivalent of the 33rd degree one is Scottish rite the other is York rite
the Templars must be Christian- the Scottish rite religious specific doesn't matter...
to be a Shriner you used to need to be a Templar or a 32nd degree Scottish rite Mason.
i don't think this is implemented anymore due to the age and low interest as membership dwindles due to age and deaths of current members...
The dogma the OP posted is curious but not necessarily anything i have ever heard in a mason ceremony concerning the Grand architect...
and Adonai the is Hebrew word for the Lord....IIRC as 'I am Who Am' can not be named by men.

For what it's worth, I am a new mason, only been involved for 1 year. I have gotten my 32nd degree in the scottish rite and I am not fully sure what that means yet. I am trying to learn all I can and I am going through the chairs now. I have met some amazing people since I started my journey. If I was to try to sum up what makes it great with two words, it would be "great people". If you are interested in joining the fraternity, it is a very worthy endevor in my opinion.

reply to post by network dude

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.... You don't know what it means to be a 32 degree Freemason?!?!?!?!?!? ... And YOU claim to be a Mason???

Every Mason knows that within the first 72hrs of attaining 32nd degree you are to be given your secret communicator (with the mother ship), a secret pass card that lets you get inside our secret clubs spread throughout the cities of the World where you can discuss world domination with all the other top Masons of the world. And who can forget the "perk" package of easy women, human sacrifices and 10% off a JC Penny!?!?

Gosh, you musta fell asleep at the Reunion when they handed out all the goodies.

I have met plenty of interesting people. Interesting indeed. Met one fellow who only wore a kilt.. nothing else. Claimed he wore it on the job, which I honestly hope not because he worked in Construction .. feel bad for the fellow who had to hold his ladder haha.. ah but he was cool. Played the bag pipes well enough.

But that is definently one of the best parts of Masonry, you meet people from all walks of life. From the serious business man to the oddest characters you could imagine!

Another word I would use to describe Masons would be "eccentric" lol. From my experiences anyways. And no anti's .. eccentric is not a bad thing. Tis a good thing.

Wow, this is more information and input than I could've hoped for on the thread, so I'm at the least very grateful.

Hey Rockpuck, we'll have to party it up on the mothership someday!

I thought we weren't supposed to mention the "mothership".
Isn't that the "secret"?

We did all the degrees in one day and I admit I did nod off a few times.

Thats right rockpuck! Some get shoved right through this stuff like RacerX and I.
We somehow were not enlightened like you. And when we were wronged and cheated with things that conflict with God and country, by those with higher degrees, we simply do not understand.
But since you are a Master Mason with 29 more degrees then RacerX and I, you could explain all this super knowledge, wisdom and light, that we some how missed in our mere 3 degrees.

Master Mason Don Dyar

[edit on 22-5-2008 by HDFACTORYCERTIF]

reply to post by HDFACTORYCERTIF

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I'd say you missed out on the regular life lessons of humility, being humble, patient, understanding and forgiving. It's hard work to maintain such things, so very understandable. Nothing about masonry can teach you how to treat others with respect, and how to take appropriate actions in response to injustices. These are all things dealing with common sense, not masonry.

We listened carefully to the teachings, all that is good. However those that taught us do not.
Its not reasonable to expect us to blindly follow "people" that use those teachings as to control us, as they cause financial harm to us, so that they gain financially.
In effect, these people have somehow corrupted the lowly 3 degrees by stating their degrees are higher and therefore in their minds are above it.
Justice, we will make that happen through the United States justice system as we have done so today.
If you are a sleuth, here is another piece of the puzzle, this will make two we have put behind bars, and we will not stop as we have many more to go.
www.co.umatilla.or.us...

Don Dyar Master Mason

reply to post by HDFACTORYCERTIF

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Oh my goodness. Are you still going around perpetuating what all signs point to as being nothing but a grand hoax? Man, I thought you would give up by now.

I say this as a human being and out of concern for you and not malice - I think, given the evidence I've seen here - you might have some issues for which you need professional help. It seems as though your having vivid delusions. This is not healthy. Please seek help, don't make it worse by perpetuating this sort of thing.

Count them, two nasty individuals that we have removed from the streets!
First is "Baby pictures Mader", that those with the high degrees voted in.

As seen here,
www.usdoj.gov...

And Heather Jo the embezzler today.
www.co.umatilla.or.us...

Heather Jo has led to two more, they are next.
Shucks! One would think we are improving the community.

Don Dyar Master Mason

[edit on 24-5-2008 by HDFACTORYCERTIF]

reply to post by HDFACTORYCERTIF

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HD, the hoax is up. You've used these same "links" to create all your little stories where the antagonist changes but the facts stay the same - first it was bikers, now the masons. None of them verify what you say, its like your coming up with the facts to support your "story" after the fact. The first one has to do with someone caught with child pornography underneath his bed (nothing to do with changing your website to porn, as you claim). The second one is a WOMEN (is she a mason too? in a regular lodge?) who was arrested for parole violation, not embezzlement. These people are indeed criminals, but it is slanderous of you to include them in your fictional story with your false accusations.

I think its obvious that you crave attention from drawing people into these story lines you weave, so this will be my last post on this matter. I urge you, as one person to another, to please seek help. I think this might be indicative of multiple issues that you need to get addressed - particularly, delusions of grandeur, paranoia, and perhaps multiple personalities. Please seek help.

Dont forget, the secretary of the lodge, high up York Rite, is a bike gang member.
I will help you through it. Also, I will go over to clubchopper in the "Lounge" and clarify the situation there. I really did not want to bring the Masonic connection up there. I am well known there. It will be interesting non the less.
Yes, we are hard, but fair.

Don Dyar Master Mason

Oh ya, Heather Jo embezzled $26000 and counting from RacerX, while on probation from the previous conviction, interesting facts came out at the hearing!

[edit on 24-5-2008 by HDFACTORYCERTIF]

Somehow I missed this thread...been too busy I suppose.

Anyway metatronscube, to answer your question, I received the 33rd Degree some years ago and, no, they did not ask my religion. Indeed the 33rd Degree is about duty and patriotism. Nothing evil or foreboding at all. To be honest, it's a nice degree and a very humbling experience to receive it, but the 30th Degree of the Scottish Rite (in my opinion) is more impressive.

reply to post by Appak

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Hey, thanks for commenting on that for me! That's a relief! Congrats on the degree!

I'm not a mason, so I may be terribly incorrect about my comparisons.

That being said, I think that you can liken masonic degrees to the collegiate world.

The entered apprentice position is sort of like undergrad classes. You're in the school, but you're not really learning anything new.

Once you become a 3rd degree, it's sort of like starting actual college corriculum. It's standard. It's basic. This is where most masons are comfortable staying.

Now, after you become a 3rd degree, there are all sorts of doors open for you to go into. This is like choosing a major. You can go down whatever route you want to go. That's why masonry accepts all religions into their ranking. Some will go one way, others will go another.

Once you start on your path in masonry, it can get very involved, and it doesn't make much sense to backtrack. Just like college.

Hope that helps.

reply to post by Privy_Princess

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No, that's a pretty good analogy, I think.

Ask one brother what Masonry's about and he'll tell you ESOTERICISM. Studying the mysteries of why we do what we do and where it came from and what it means.

Ask another brother what Masonry's about and he'll tell you RITUAL. It doesn't matter why we do what we do, but it's important that we continue to do it right.

Ask another brother what Masonry's about and he'll tell you PHILANTHROPY. It's all for charity and making sure the kids have schools and hospitals.

Ask another brother what Masonry's about and he'll tell you FRATERNITY. Socializing with brothers, having a good time and hanging out.

And if that's what each of them brings to the table, then that's likely what they'll leave with. And there's nothing wrong with that.

The appendant bodies may stress one or another of the above in different ways. A Master Mason may seek the one that most fits his view of Masonry in an effort to keep working in that vein with a group of likeminded men.

[edit on 5/24/2008 by JoshNorton]