My Grandfather was a MASON

well not to long ago i found out about my great grandfather being a freemason
i know the lodge he was a part of and so on

my grandfather told me that his dad made it to the 7th degree he not sure which rite he followed or what he did since his dad would never talk about it, but my question is what does a 7th degree mason do ???

i know he still went to his lodge every week, the most ironic thing there is that when he died he was 2 days away from being a mason for 34 years so it ended up being 33 and i know to mason 33 is a number they care about a lot is there anything to that ?

im planning on joining soon, would having family help my chance of getting in or opening up doors that normal masons would not have, and would the lodge have kept records of my great grandfather being there ?

reply to post by mrFMPerson


Being a woman I cannot comment on the Mason aspect of your OP. However, my Grandfather was also a Mason. Welcome to the family.

I would recommend that you ask around and see if you can locate his Masonic Bible. I have one that is fairly old and it is very beautiful. It is a really neat family treasure to have and take pride in.

If you know the lodge that he participated in, I am sure they will have records of his initiation date and dues. Never hurts to ask right? As far as 7th degree goes, I don't believe there is such a thing. But like I said, I am a woman and not allowed to participate.

Happy searching and good luck on your rites!

mrFMPerson
well not to long ago i found out about my great grandfather being a freemason
i know the lodge he was a part of and so on

my grandfather told me that his dad made it to the 7th degree he not sure which rite he followed or what he did since his dad would never talk about it, but my question is what does a 7th degree mason do ???

i know he still went to his lodge every week, the most ironic thing there is that when he died he was 2 days away from being a mason for 34 years so it ended up being 33 and i know to mason 33 is a number they care about a lot is there anything to that ?

im planning on joining soon, would having family help my chance of getting in or opening up doors that normal masons would not have, and would the lodge have kept records of my great grandfather being there ?

edit on 01Wed, 08 Jan 2014 12:34:25 -0600JanuaryJan-06:00America/ChicagoWed, 08 Jan 2014 12:34:25 -06002520141 by mrFMPerson because: (no reason given)

Firstly, i am sorry for the passing of your great-grandfather.

Secondly, i am not a Freemason, so i may be of limited help.

From what i understand, there are many rites, but the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry has 33 degrees, and may very well be the rite of which your great-grandfather belonged to.

I can't help you on the degree thing, sorry.

No, having Masonic family members will not improve your chances. In order to become a Freemason, you have to go through a blackballing process. From what i understand, if one person blackballs you, you will be declined in your wishes to become a Freemason.

Yes, i do believe your local lodge would have kept details about your great-grandfather.

All the best!

Daas.

My grandfather mwas a mason as well, so what?

reply to post by mrFMPerson

The 7th Degree would make him a Royal Arch Mason of the York Rite though the Degrees are not numbered in the York Rite.
Having a family member who is a Mason is favorable, but really makes no difference

reply to post by Sauron


thanks, the entire reason i posted the thread was really to just learn more about it, i was taking intrest and thinking about joining

reply to post by mrFMPerson


Well I was a member here on ATS years before I became a Mason, all the rubbish you read about us controlling the world, eating babies or what ever other clap trap that's posted here, is just that clap trap.
If you believe in one god and at lest 21 years of age and no criminal record your fine.
We do all kinds of things as well for the community and for ourselves as well. BBQ's, sports, motorcycle riding etc.
It's a good time, good fun and a great learning experience all round.
Keep in mind this is only my opinion on Masonry, I'm not speaking on behalf of anyone else.

reply to post by Sauron


i know there a lot of symbolic stuff related to freemasons
i guess my question is, is do you learn stuff the general public would not be normally open to ?

mrFMPerson
i know there a lot of symbolic stuff related to freemasons
i guess my question is, is do you learn stuff the general public would not be normally open to ?

No, it is just explained in a different format.

reply to post by AugustusMasonicus


How does one pick a rite to follow ?
or does someone from the rite contact you

reply to post by mrFMPerson


My Grandfather was a Mason as well.

I don't know much about his lodge or what he followed, when I was old enough to want to ask questions about his life, his family, (geneology etc) and masonry (not that he would have told me anything secret) he had had a stroke and couldn't communicate verbally very well. I do have one of his pins, ( I wore it under my wedding dress, as my something borrowed and something blue.....and as a part of him to be "with" me on my big day as I still miss him very very much) and my Mom has framed some other of his pins along with his "certificate" (?) of being a ....I think it is called past Master, or past Grand MAster?

Anyway....I do remember my Grandmother not liking "the Lodge", and I also remember about 10-15 of his Lodge "friends" coming to his funeral to do a Masonal rite for him, as he lay in viewing. It was after regular visiting hours, only family was left. They had their robes on, and I do not recall much else of it except tha they all had springs of cedar in their hands, which they all left on his chest to be buried with him.

Even though my Grandmother hated the Lodge, she allowed them to do this, and to let the cedar be buried with him, because she knew how important the Lodge was to him. And she loved him enough, (still does, demntia and all), to not let her own feelings impair her judgement of his wishes.

reply to post by mrFMPerson


I would be more concerned about attaining the 3rd Degree of a Master Mason.
Then if you wish go from there, many Brothers do not bother or have no interest in the Side Orders and that is fine too.

One step at a time is my advise

reply to post by Sauron


i know you have to get to the 3rd degree first but my question how do you follow along the other paths once you're there and if you don't mind can i ask what degree you are ?

reply to post by mrFMPerson


I'm a 3rd degree Master Mason, and I am also a Royal Arch Mason in the York Rite and a (Widows Sons).
It takes time to reach the 3rd degree and during that time you will be able to speak with Brothers who belong to other the Side Orders.
My next step will be to become a Knights Templar of the York Rite.

reply to post by Sauron

i know you can't tell the secrets but what kind of secret do you learn ?

reply to post by mrFMPerson


How to recognize and be recognized as a Master Mason

My grandfather was also a Mason. He was a Mason back in Scotland then also chaired meetings in Australia.

My mother always asked him what happened at the meetings but he never said anything other than "We rode the Devil around the table".

I don't know what that means, but being a Mason didn't gain him riches beyond belief or power.

He was an aeroplane mechanic for Charles Kingsford Smith and designed and patented one of the earliest designs of vane superchargers specifically designed for aircraft which is held by The Australian Patent office in Canberra, and yet he died almost penniless.

Despite most of the mystery and stigmas associated with Masons I don't believe they are the crux of ancient mysterious power which most people suspiciously believe.

However they do help out with a lot of charities.

This is what I was brought up to believe about the Masons.....however!

reply to post by mrFMPerson

What does a 7th degree mason do? The same thing 3rd degree Masons do. 7th degree? He could've been a Scottish Rite Mason, but it most likely he went through Royal Arch Masonry which has 4-degrees in the American system. The York Rite doesn't use the numbering system though.

The number 33 is really only relevant to the Scottish Rite.

It won't necessarily help, but you can bring it up.

Sauron
reply to post by mrFMPerson

 

I would be more concerned about attaining the 3rd Degree of a Master Mason.
Then if you wish go from there, many Brothers do not bother or have no interest in the Side Orders and that is fine too.

One step at a time is my advise

I'd second that emotion. Depending where you are in your life, Masonry can be a huge time suck. One of our lodge officers joined the York Rite after having been Raised (made a Master Mason) and now has a 9-month-old son and all the important tasks that come along with that to attend to. Making things especially challenging for him is that on a regular basis over the last year, we've had to have more than our usual two meetings a month in order to deal with a big uptick in applications to for initiation. We've had as many as five meetings in a month so you can appreciate that Mrs. Brother has been reading Mr. Brother certain passages from the Riot Act about not being out so much.

Personally, I'm about to become the Master of my lodge and made a conscious decision when I first became an officer not to join a side rite until after my year as Master just so I could focus on the needs of my lodge and not be scattered all over the place. But that's me; your situation may be more fluid or you more of a go-getter than I. Just know that you could be out 3-4 nights a week, week after week visiting other lodges, doing York or Scottish Rite meetings and so on.

As in so much of life, the challenge is striking a balance that is workable for you and that is flexible enough that you can change it as your priorities change.

HTH
Fitz

i guess my question is, how does one join a (rite) or side order, is there a place or location for it or just a group of people or what ?

and is there anything like the black ball process for joining a side order or rite ?