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From the Master’s Desk
May
Brethren,
“A land of love and a land of light,
Withouten sun, or moon, or night
Where the river swa’d a living stream
And the light, a pure, celestial beam;
The land of Vision it would seem.
A still, an everlasting dream.”
Poetry has never worked for me, not the way it does for some of us, such as our past DDGM, RW Brother Steve Priessman. It just is not in my DNA to appreciate it. Once in a great while, though - maybe once a quarter century - I’ll come across a piece of verse that strikes me like lightening out of the sky. The few lines above did just that when I first read them. They are by James Hogg, a Scot and a contemporary of Sir Walter Scott, and were taken from his long, elegiac poem Queen’s Wake. Either Fenimore Cooper or Cooper’s printer chose those lines as an epigraph to one of the beginning chapters in The Pathfinder, and it was in re-reading that book last year that I ran across them.
Our Craft would not exist but for the destruction of Temple of Solomon and the loss of the Master’s Word; we thus spend our speculative lives rebuilding the one and searching for the other. The yearning for the past (whether that past is idealized or factual or both) is a constant theme in humanity. The loss of greatness, innocence, goodness, etc, has inspired countless stories, the Arthurian tales and the Grail legends being examples. As a teenager, my Boy Scout Troop (113, in Oaklyn) had a brief period when everything we did worked like magic, and when that period appeared somehow to slip away we were at a loss as to how to recapture it. In my mid 30s, I had a similar experience in one
of my Army units. In both instances, the swing in morale from high to low was painful in the extreme for my friends and me. From listening to many of the older members of our Lodge, a similar circumstance, perhaps not so drastic, may have happened to us several years ago after RW Bob Howell passed.
I’ve expended a great deal of thought about how and why such things occur. I have not found a simple answer to achieving and sustaining greatness in a good cause; but I know without the least doubt the steps men can take to set the stage: committing to hard work without shortcuts, working together to gain trust in each other, having a common goal, earning the self-satisfaction that arises from extreme competence, and having a sense of fulfillment from being in each others’ company.
I do not know whether or not James Hogg was a Brother. (If by an off-chance a member of the GL of Scotland reads this message, he might be able to enlighten me.) Had I read his lines before I was raised, I don’t think they would have had the same significance for me. We all miss something of our pasts. The key to recovering it is in the active, practical steps we choose to take.
Very Fraternally Yours,
WM Donald C. Elfreth
April
Of the many good things which RW Brother Ben B. Foster, Jr.,has done for this Lodge over the years, surely the greatest (in my mind) was exposing us to Laudable Pursuit and MW Brother Dwight Smith’s writings in the early autumn of 2009. Those papers energized us, and for a brief time we experienced the feeling of having crystal-clear goals AND the means to achieve them. I am by no means saying that we previously severely lacked those things. Rather, we, as with much of Freemasonry in the last quarter century or more, perhaps did not clearly see and address certainfundamental issues and problems facing the Craft.
It has now been a few years since this Lodge reached widespread agreement on many of the issues brought up in Laudable Pursuit. Despite accomplishing good things during these few years, consensus among many of us indicates that we have veered off the path which Ben helped us to find. In light of all I have said above, I have asked Worshipful Brother Shindle to chair an informal, Lodge-wide discussion, in which the Brethren will be solicited on what we believe Masonry is (or what it should be), and how we accordingly ought to act as a Lodge. This discussion will be the main focus of our April 10th communication. It is my hope that all the members of this Lodge come and participate.
March probably was the busiest month we will have had this year. April and May also will be busy, but at a pace we ourselves will set. The work you have done so far is deeply appreciated. I am looking forward to all that we can accomplish this spring.
Very Fraternally Yours,
Donald C. Elfreth
Worshipful Master
February
From the East….
During Lodge meetings last year, we conducted classes on the Ancient Landmarks, the 47th Problem of Euclid, and 20th century Masonic authors. An additional subject we planned to cover, but were not able to, was the Old Charges of Freemasonry.
The Old Charges (alternatively referred to as the Antient Charges, Ancient Charges, or Old Constitutions) are the original written source material for our Craft, and on which Masonic Constitutions, from 1723 onward, are based. The earliest existing Old Charge is dated by archivists to roughly 1390, and is known as the Regius, or Halliwell, manuscript. The next oldest known existing Charge is the Cooke manuscript, which is said to date from the 1400s. The earliest Charges were the written rules for operative lodges of Masons, and later versions served the same purpose for the mixed operative/speculative lodges leading up to the formation of the first Grand Lodge in 1717. The historical importance of the versions of the Old Charges is almost impossible to overstate. If a Mason were permitted to study only two sources about the Craft, the Old Charges and the Ancient Landmarks would be the only real choices. Masonic authorities such as Mackey, Newton, and Haywood cover both topics extensively, and, of course, we now have online sources. Arguably, a close study of both topics ought to be the foundation of all other Masonic reading.
January’s regular communication covered a great deal of necessary business, unfortunately somewhat to the detriment of the enjoyment of the evening. February should not be as busy. One important item remaining from January’s budget discussion is the proposed raising of rental fees, which needs to be decided on this month. I also will announce at February’s meeting the formation of a committee to study Lodge income and expenses, with the goal of making recommendations to the Lodge for increasing our savings; all recommendations must first be vetted by the Treasurer and our appointed Auditors. Last (but by no means least) for reasons that will be clear to all who attended the January meeting, we’ll give a talk on the different regular and non-regular Masonic grand bodies within the confines of New Jersey, and how we should act (or not act, as may be) with them.
In Fraternity,
Donald Elfreth
Worshipful Master
January
Brethren,
On the day after our last Master Mason degree, I had nothing left in the tank physically or mentally, so to speak. By the time late afternoon rolled around, all I felt capable of doing was sitting in the recliner and pushing buttons on the remote. However, I previously had committed to attend an awards event that evening at Rutgers Camden, so I reluctantly forced myself up and out of the house. (That evening started off just swell when one of the few history department professors remaining from my time there - early 1980s - kindly pointed out to me how old I look.) The faculty honoree that evening was a history professor whose area of study is the spread of knowledge in Europe during the late medieval/early enlightenment period. Turns out, he was awarded a hugely prestigious MacArthur Fellowship for his recent work.
This is a very great honor, and during his remarks I understood why he is so highly regarded. The man is utterly devoted to his field, and has a hard-core, almost fanatical commitment to excellence – in contrast to the contemporary, PC-driven, no-one-left-behind version of “excellence” seen in many organizations today, in some cases even in the Craft. The evening began to be relevant for me, in a Masonic sense, when he spoke on Francis Bacon’s ideas about Solomon’s Temple being a center of learning and knowledge. Many of this professor’s students were in attendance, and it was easy to tell from their speech and demeanor that they regard the professor the same way many of you, who are fortunate to have known him, hold RW Brother Howell. With nothing veiled or vaguely allegorical about it, witnessing this event drove home many of the hard lessons our Lodge has taught me during the last five years.
Moving on to an operative matter… These non-Line Lodge appointments were not announced during last month’s Installation, but they will be at the January regular communication: RW Benjamin B. Foster, Jr., Director of Ritual; RW Bruce C. Zielinski, Director of Craft; Bro. David Sommerville, Auditor; WB James C. Butler, assistant Auditor, as well as Sick and Visitation; Bro. Martin B. Bogardus, Webmaster, and to become chairman of a Website committee upon its formation later this year. Brothers Foster, Zielinski, Sommerville, Butler, and Bogardus, I am grateful for your help.
In Fraternity,
Donald C. Elfreth
Worshipful Master
December
Dear Brothers,
It would give me the greatest of pleasure to greet each of you individually at our Annual Installation on December 13th, however, many of you will, because of illness, business or distance be beyond the length of your cable tow, therefore, I take this opportunity to extend to you, on behalf of your brethren and myself, fraternal greetings and wish for you and yours happiness and prosperity in the years ahead. It has been a great honor to serve you as Worshipful Master and my duties have been
lighter by having willing members to assist me in their performance, Past Masters and my Senior Warden and officers to help and advise me, with their earnest support. I thank you. To me the deepest thanks that I could receive is your support, your attendance, your willingness to serve your lodge and the peace, harmony and good fellowship that has prevailed. With this annual installation another year has come to a close, the sands have run out and the time has come for me to relinquish the gavel of authority to another. I wish to extend my thanks to all for the fine spirit of cooperation and hope that the following
thoughts will apply to each of us;
Happy is the man whose every act shall bear
The rigid test of the unerring square
Who, while times level he unswerving trod,
Stands firm before his fellow and his God,
Seeking by deeds of charity and love
To gain admittance to that Lodge above
Knowing the stone among the rubbish cast
Shall be, regained, the cornerstone at Last
To you and your family I hope that the Joy of the Christmas Season may abide with you throughout the coming year
With Brotherly Love,
Raymond Csapo, Worshipful Master
November
Brethren.
This is the harvest season and the month of Thanksgiving; let us therefore
pause and give thanks to the Great Creator of the Universe for the
many blessings and comforts we enjoy. Also, let us remember those
not as fortunate as us, that they may also enjoy the day and have cause
for thanksgiving.
I wish to express my thanks, on behalf of the Lodge, to the Officers for
the work in last month's Fellowcraft Degree. Also, the Membership
deserves a large "thank you" for turning out to support it. I believe that
each was amply repaid for attending.
TRUE MEN NEEDED
The world is needing you and me
in places where we ought to be;
somewhere today it's needing you
to stand for what you know is true.
And needing me somewhere today
to keep faith let come what may.
The world is needing me and you
to share the tasks it has to do;
it needs high-minded men to stand
Against the thoughtless of the land,
Men who will scorn to stoop to wrong
to win the favor the throng.
With Brotherly Love,
Raymond Csapo, Worshipful Master
P.S. “If all the year were playing holidays, to sport would be as tedious
as to work.”
April
Brethren.
My Brothers; We repeat here the four (4) fundamental and eternalquestions:
No. One: Who am I?
No. Two: Why am I here?
No. Three: Wither goest I?
No. Four: What is the Meaning of life and death?
And these questions persist in this life and into the next! They cannot be ignored they hang around us as a cloud or a vapor and cling to us continually, crying for answers of which we remain speechlessand mute. This is our task, our reason for being: Knowing that these four questions even exist enlargers us, quickens us, and adds to us aand somewhat boring New Dimension to a rather stultified Life, with little meaning. Fortunately for us we have started this quest throughthe MASONIC ORDER, not fully aware of what we are Actually doing and what our true purpose is:We were brought back from the dead SYMBOLICALLY, and we shall be brought back again and again. Symbols reveal (and conceal) Meaning and truth: We are standing right next to the elephant in the roomand ca not see it. But we shall when that time arrives, for each one us individually.
With Brotherly Love,
Raymond Csapo, Worshipful Master
November
Brethren, Thanks for the fun this year. In January I approached this year with apprehension, and was uncertain how it would all turn out. In February we had bad weather, and missed the meeting, but a bunch of you came up and worked on cooking your special someone’s a nice valentines dinner. March came and we had some problems with the floor in the library, and discussions started at the trustees meeting. April came and went, followed by may and the Mayfair, where we were found working the child ID program and helping to cook some popcorn to raise money.
I can tell you about all the things we did this year, but the really important thing that I want to tell you is that the lodge is still open for you to come and visit. There are Brethren who are there at different hours of the day, and our meetings are genereally well attended. What I cannot tell you is how your personal lodge is doing, that house within you, not built with hands. How is that going? I am interested to know how your Masonic journey is going, and in that vein, I would like to hear from you. Send me an email, and I will read it in lodge and tell the Brethren how your Masonic edifice is progressing.
My Masonic edifice has been strengthened this year, as I have finally answered the one question that I have been trying to figure out for awhile. The question is “What are we selling?”, and I ask it so that we can focus on what is is that is the prime benefit of becoming a Master mason. We all know what it is once we figure it out. When asked, I heard things like “We make good men better”. What does that mean, and to the follow up question, You make men better at what?
A wise old mason once told me that not only is this whole thing a great, ancient self-improvement program, it is also something that you really do for yourself. We all know that, since we are constantly told about the duty you owe to GOD, your neighbor, your country, and YOURSELF. When I allude to the ”little lodge within”, it is important to realize that only you can work on perfecting that building. This is something that you take with you wherever you go, and it is seen by the world as a wonderful structure. How can they, who know nothing of freemasonry actually see the great works that you have done on this “little lodge within” without actually being able to see it?
Brethren, lets not kid ourselves about the future of our lives. Every generation has challenges, and life can dish out some hard times. Your work on your Masonic temple will strengthen you for the journey that you are on, and if you apply those principles to your daily life, it will help you persevere, and overcome, and prosper and thrive.
There – the secret is out. The best things in life are free. Freemasonry. Come visit us on the second Tuesday of the month.
Jim Butler
September
Brethren, Have you ever heard the saying “You can’t get there from here”. It applies to where you are going and there not being a path. You may detour and waste time and energy trying to get there, instead of just returning to the point of your origin. In Freemasonry, we are all on ajourney, but for some, we are at a point where we must expend untold amounts of energy to get to where we want to be. I am the rough ashlar, and perhaps, so are you. How are you doing with the Masonic Journey you are on? As you travel alone, you are undoubtedly praying for yourself before beginning every undertaking.
You are working on the Masonic Temple within, ever working to smooth the rough ashlar that you are, mindful of the innocent social pleasures that we all pass through as members of this honorable and ancient fraternity. I really love that little phrase “I am the rough Ashlar”. I hear it from time to time in my travels, and it reminds me that while we may discover many secrets while we travel, we must remain mindful that we are on the quest for what was lost.
As Freemason’s, we go to work on that little Masonic temple that lives within each of us. Freemasonry for me has been a series of small construction projects within, which work (in a geometric fashion) within my being. The ritual has provided some of the bricks of the Temple, and the brotherly love from my Brethren has been the mortar. Kind and friendly acts toward others frequently observed are an inspiration to all. Words and insight into Masonic knowledge provides light, and brotherhood within the fraternity moves us into position to view the progress of our Masonic temple.
Take a moment to think of how you are doing on your Masonic Temple within, and take a moment to share your Masonic journey with a brother. A Masonic lodge consists of 4 groups of three, and a chaplain. Find your threesome in your lodge and triangulate, and enjoy the rewards of the craft in your travels. Work on the words, the lessons, and enjoy the Brotherhood. Evaluate where you are in your journey, and ask yourself if you can get there from here. I am the rough Ashlar, how about you? Good luck, my brother.
Fraternally,
Jim Butler, Worshipful Master
May
What is the meaning of life, and how does your life derive meaning? For many, the meaning of one’s life is directly extracted from the actions one takes while travelling the road of life. For a plumber, carpenter, lawyer, and all careers, one could argue that the meaning derived from the vocational and professional life adds to the meaning of the individual’s life. As the vocational or professional’s career advances, with practice, attention to detail, and time spent mastering his profession, so does the skill and ease with which he can accomplish is job.
Add to that the meanings derived from the spiritual time and other endeavors that one is involved in, and you begin to derive the meaning of that one’s life. As Masons, we hope to live cherished, and die regretted, and there are many fine masons who have gone to the lodge on high, who are still missed.
The practice of our ritual is a means to the end, and as time goes on, and our ritual becomes perfected in our minds, so those minds are fitted as living stones, for the destiny which awaits us all. Our ritual may not be perfect, but as the ritual improves in your mind, so will the living stone inside your mind become more perfect as well. As with the operative, the speculative also requires, time, patience, opportunity and desire, to polish the skills, and hone them to perfection. I like to think of imperfect ritual as a reminder of my own imperfections. No man is perfect, and to continually improve ourselves, thus perfecting and progressing in our Masonic journey should be the care of every Mason.
As you advance with the ritual, you will begin to work with it and think with it every day and it becomes a habit. When that happens, new visions will open to your view and some secrets of life, many of which have been staring you in the face for many years, will be revealed. If you do not bring the ritual into your daily life, and focus only on the operative aspects of it, I encourage you to try to bring it into your life in small steps. Take a piece of work, albeit small, and memorize it, (for example with Working tools of the EA, FC, or MM), and think about what it is during your day.
Freemasonry is a fraternity that flourishes when the outside world can see the good that you are, know the good that you do, and want the good for themselves. If we don’t talk the talk, and walk the walk, and show the world that we are polished, upright, virtuous, moral, capable, hard working men, we will be unable to attract new members. If any of this message has appealed to you, please join us on any of the dates in the trestleboard, and lets continue to perfect our rough Ashlar together.
April
Brethren, So we are often called upon to learn about many things during our travels through this
life. Some lessons seem more important than others, but as you look back upon your
life, you may find that some lessons which seem unimportant at the time you learn
them end up being lessons that, later in life, you really take to heart. In our travels as
freemasons, we often find that we are continually learning new lessons, and receiving
more light. As time goes on, the continual growth of an individual may require him
to revisit an old lesson, and look at it from another point of view. When this happens,
do we always arrive at the same conclusion? Do we continue to grow, and do we
continue to learn? Let us consider the lesson of charity that we have learned. As the
road of life unwinds before us, we may travel through peaks and valleys in our lives,
and while upon the peak, we may look down upon the valley, and see material, spiritual,
and living things, or we may see nothing at all. While at another time, we may
be down in the valley looking up, and again see something completely different.
My brothers, some of us are at the peak, and others are in the valley, and I say to you,
please look and see what is. Remember that Truth is the center of Freemasonry, and
of Faith, Hope, and Charity, that Charity is the only one that extends beyond the
grave. And as the heavenly bodies roll through the vast expanse, remember we are all
controlled by the same unerring law. Look out across your horizon, and find a
brother that you can help, or if you need help, find a brother who can help you, and
reach out to one another, and may friendship and brotherly love cement us forever
and continually strengthen the fraternal chain we have for one another.
Fraternally,
Jim Butler
March
Brethren, I would like to thank all the Brethren that helped make our Valentines Supper a success.
It was wonderful to work together in unity with my brethren to prepare a nice
surprise for our loved ones, and I appreciate all the efforts.
Spring is right around the corner, and we have a busy month coming up. There are
two Table Lodges in the district that I will be attending, at Mitzpah-Haddon Heights,
and then at Merchantville. We will be rehearsing for the upcoming Fellow Craft Degree.
There is a lot of activity going on in the 18th Masonic district, and I encourage any of
my Brothers who would like to travel with me to other lodges to check the Calendar
for dates and lodges that we are visiting. There is up to date information on the Website,
and you can get a copy of the trestleboard online, to check dates, times, and other
information. There is also a contact link so that you may email different officers from
the website directly.
We had a problem with the heater this month and an excess of steam leaked from
some of the pipes under the library, and the floor is now warped, and our lodge was
damaged. Fred Shindle, Ben Foster and Don Elfreh worked on the problem the day
that it happened but the damage had already been done. We will need to repair the
damage, and I would like to appeal to you to donate to the Building fund as your ability
to give will permit.
Brethren, thank you again for all of your efforts and the work that you do for your
lodge. I really appreciate it, and thank you very much!
Fraternally,
Jim Butler
February
Brethren, As the cold relentlessly keeps its tight grip, as it does every year at this time,
and we go about our business of resolutely beginning a new year, let us focus
on what matters most, and make the most of our time together. We were all
endowed with the gift of life, which was expanded upon by the gift of friendship,
which has been enriched by the gift of brotherhood. The fraternal connection
which we all share is a blessing, and is one that is unseen, unfelt, and
often times unknown to the outside world. We are all connected, in an indissoluble
chain of friendship and brotherly love, where peace hope and charity live within us all.
The strength of that chain depends upon all of us, so Let us extend the warmth
we feel for each other from within us to every being we see. “Every Human
Being has a claim upon your kind offices”. Go forth and use the great warmth
that you have within you and share it with the world.
This month we will have our official visit from the DDGM to our lodge. We
will also be cooking dinner for our wives on Feb 13, in recognition of Valentines
Day. If you would like to participate, please contact our Senior Deacon.
Check our website for more details.
Finally, our thoughts and prayers go out to people of the island of Haiti, during
this great tragedy.
Fraternally,
Jim Butler
January
Happy new Year, my brothers. I am excited about the new year, and am looking
forward to a great Masonic year in our lodge.
I will be starting a new calendar event this year, which occurs monthly, where
I will post one lodge a month that I will be travelling to, and this will be
posted in the trestleboard as MTN (Master’s Travelling Night). It is my hope
that with a monthly travelling night in the trestleboard, that you will join me
when I travel to other lodges.
We have a new website, which is being setup by Brother Martin Bogardus,
the url is http://www.collingswoodcloud101.com/, where you will find up to
date information about the lodge. We will strive to use the website as a tool
that brothers, the general public, and others can use to find information about
the lodge. I invite you all to submit Masonic announcements that you would
like to get out to the brethren.
In my tenure of Worshipful Master of our lodge, I will continue to work on
the rough ashlar of my being, and my message for this month while we all
work to be the perfect ashlar, is this:
In this season of social events, I am reminded that freemasonry is a system of
morality … designed by wise and virtuous men … which reminds us of the
most solemn truths in the midst of the most innocent social pleasures. Brethren,
take this to heart when out at a football game, or social event. Morality
and virtue are what we are all striving for as we pass through the halls of freemasonry.
Strive to be the perfect ashlar, and remember this while enjoying
the social pleasures of the season.
Finally Brethren, I would like to thank you and the past masters of Collingswood
Cloud lodge for all of their support, and the brethren for the confidence
which they have reposed in me.
Fraternally,
Jim Butler
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