A Brother Asks: TOP TEN Destructive Statements Members Make

 

A Brother Asks: What are statements that you hear from Brothers that are wrong and even counterproductive or destructive to our Fraternity?

Coach:  That's a great question!  Here are just a few statements of many that tell me a Brother has not thought things through enough and therefore ultimately drive off members:

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Destructive Comment #10 - Everyone has their own interpretation.

• This statement implies that no one interpretation is better than any other and therefore there is no one interpretation that can provide the truth that is sought.  
• This therefore is antagonistic to our Work since one of our tenants is "TRUTH" implying it can be obtained by true and forthright authentic speculation, and not by just any old interpretation based upon conjecture! - this is destructive & counterproductive!
  
  
• POINT: Although there exist infinite interpretations, there exists only a finite set of interpretations that actually are optimized for any one given situation and that are supported by the surrounding context offered.  
  
  
• We are obligated to find these optimal interpretations.
  
  

Destructive Comment #9 - The Temple is never completed.

• This statement ultimately disappoints & disenchants those who join to accomplish this very thing. It is actually antagonistic to the Craft since it implies what was joined for will never be realized - this is destructive & counterproductive!
  
  
• POINT: The Temple referred to in the 3rd degree is "King Solomon's Temple", and this term is an idiom for "a body of wisdom" which can only be obtained by completing the Work spelled out within both the Apprentice and Fellow Craft degrees. Wisdom is a direct result of the two results working together in harmony, not just one result or the other. 
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members on what that temple is, and how to complete it!
  
  
  

Destructive Comment #8 - The work is never done.

• This statement will leave many with a "then why bother" thought and is actually a hindrance to the Craft since it implies what was joined for will never be realized - this is destructive & counterproductive!
  
  
• POINT: Although life's work continues throughout a lifetime, Ritual is not talking about that work.  It is talking about the Work that the first two Degrees point us toward completing - nothing more and nothing less.  This Work can be completed within 7 years.  And due to our current situation in the world with so many available resources, completing it is more likely now than ever before. 
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members on what specific Work needs to be completed at each stage and what they are to expect from the results of that Work.
  
  

Destructive Comment #7 - Hiram was resurrected.

• This is the type of statement that will drive off some future members because it reflects a religious undercurrent that may go against their beliefs - this is destructive &  counterproductive!
  
  
• POINT: If Hiram were resurrected, he would be brought back to life as he was before he died, he would know his part of the Master's Word, and there would be absolutely NO logical reason for providing any substitute to the candidate. 
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members not to assume things not taught in Ritual and to correct them when they do.
  
  

Destructive Comment #6 - There are only 2 Apprentice Working Tools.

• This statement reveals a lack of awareness on the part of the member sharing it.  There are at least 11 Working tools that must be either used or developed by Apprentices if they want to be prepared to engage in Fellow Craft Work - this is destructive & counterproductive!
  
  
• POINT: The members in charge do no good to allow Apprentices to advance who have not internalized the disciplines these Working Tools represent.
  
• POINT: Apprentices who do not internalize the disciplines these 11 Working Tools represent will make for very poor members & Masons.   
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members as to what these Working Tools are, what they represent, how to internalize them, and how to employ them toward our Masonic Purpose.
  
  

Destructive Comment #5 - You'll never perfect your ashlar; you'll always be a rough ashlar.

• These statements are not true, are self-defeating, and they serve no good purpose in motivating members to do the necessary Work that does bring about a perfect ashlar. 
• Members who buy into this lie are less motivated to do necessary Work and might settle into complacency or even leave - they are destructive & counterproductive!
  
  
• POINT: We have within our Ritual several symbols and terms that use the word "perfect."  It's meaning is taken from the context of the 1800s and not that of the mid to late 1900s - two entirely different focuses & meanings!
  
• POINT: The perfect ashlar is an attainable reality and can be accomplished within 7 years when one applies oneself toward that goal. 
  
  
• We are obligated to our members to instruct them in how to understand meaning within context and to correct them when they are assigning modern meanings to ritual words written with meanings assigned centuries ago.
  
  

Destructive Comment #4 - Because you're always learning something, you'll always be an Apprentice.

• This statement is antagonistic toward our degree progression because it, by its very claim, dismisses both the Fellow Craft and Master Mason titles as fraudulent if one accepts these titles, wears them, and refers to themselves as anything other than an apprentice.  
• People hearing this statement coming out of the mouths of supposedly learned Brothers take it as truth and realize what they have achieved is diminished in value - this is destructive & counterproductive!
  
  
• POINT: Apprentices train themselves to be PREPARED to learn.  Fellows learn HOW to learn.  Masters are the only level where true learning actually takes place.  All the previous levels are preparation for that learning.
  
  
  We are obligated to our members to reflect back to them exactly where they are in their journey and to assign them titles appropriate to their skill levels; nothing more and nothing less.
  
  
  

Destructive Comment #3 - There's no such thing as Esoteric Freemasonry

• This statement dismisses the very thing that is true about our Ritual AND for what many join our Craft - this is counterproductive & destructive
  
  
• POINT: There's literally a treasure trove of immediately available written and recorded materials about things that are hidden in plain sight within Freemasonry!  
• POINT: When anything is hidden in plain sight and it requires coaching, training, mentoring, and/or instructing to have it revealed or seen or understood, it's esoteric! 
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members on the esoteric aspects of our Craft, you know, those things that are hidden in plan sight!
  
  

Destructive Comment #2 - We are a society with secrets.

• We are not a society with secrets. We are a society that doesn't talk about specific things with outsiders.  Not talking about specific things with outsiders is a discipline that members share in common.  These things not discussed with outsiders are NOT secrets, but internalizing and perfecting this discipline of non-discussion keeps us from talking about things with outsiders.
  
  
• POINT: The "Secrets of a Master Mason" are in actuality internalized disciplines realized by doing the Work pointed toward by our rituals.  When you don't do that Work, you'll not have those secrets.   In this light, NO ONE can TELL YOU these secrets!  They are disciplines that you have to cultivate for yourself!
  
• POINT: The statement "We are a society with secrets" is misleading for all the wrong reasons. It gives the wrong impression as well, making it destructive &  counterproductive.  Nothing that Freemasons have or do within its walls is secret.  But there are plenty of things that Freemasons will not talk about.  Why?  Because that discipline is one of many disciplines which are important in life.
  
• POINT: What are these things that we won't talk about?  Become a member and we'll let you know.
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members on the things that we can talk about in public, and what we must discuss in private.
  

Destructive Comment #1 - Freemasonry makes good men better.

• Use of this statement misleads pre-masons in that it is in no way supported by the organization or its members and leaves unfulfilled those seeking the improvements it implies.  As a result, pre-masons join expecting things that will never be provided. This lack of support by both the organization and its members ultimately makes this statement destructive & counterproductive.
  
  
• POINT: Neither the organization or its members will make better any person who joins.  It is only members applying themselves toward the Work that is pointed toward by our Ritual that improves those members and in direct proportion to the effort they make.
  
  
• We are obligated to our members to instruct them on what Work makes them better, and that just being a member will not improve them unless they actually do that Work.
  
  

BONUS LEVEL COMMENTS

1.  Destructive Comment - Any public accusation of an Obligation violation by a member.
   
   
• Publicly accusing any member violates two things:
1. It alerts the public, and hence cowans, that what was shared is something that was considered confidential to the fraternity.
2. It violates the accused member in that you didn't whisper counsel and you may very well have misunderstood what was shared and thereby accused him without due process.
   
   
• POINT: No matter how compelled you are to inform a member that they may have breached their Obligation, you are also Obligated to do so in a private, respectful, civil, considerate, and constructive way.
  
  
• We are obligated to our members to assure that we assist them in their obligations without making a mess of things when you do!
  
  
  
2. Destructive Comment - The Word "Free" used in "Free & Accepted", "Free Mason" & "Freeborn", means "unrestrained."
   
   
• Not sharing its true meaning does great disservice to our membership's ability to comprehend our true heritage and future exemplification of the Craft. This makes it destructive & counterproductive. 
  
  
• POINT: The word "free" used in these terms comes from the French "franc" , "frank", and "franche" and have the same meaning assigned to the first part of the compound word "frankincense" - that is "pure; excellent, superior."  It implied "Mastery" and is the very reason that "Free-Frac-Franch-Frank" were used as precursors to all guild professions.
  
• POINT: Free Masonry is about superior-excellent-masterful masonry!  It has nothing to do with being unrestrained to travel and work.
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members on how to research word meanings that existed when Ritual was created and the document meanings those rituals were based upon.
  
  
3. Destructive Comment - The meaning behind the Ruffian's names are unknown.
   
   
• Uninformed members who believe this statement to be true provide counter-support to members who seek the truth - this is destructive & counterproductive.
  
  
• POINT: This claim used to be true, but it is no longer valid.  Members who do not know what the ruffian names mean have not been keeping up with the latest discoveries.  
• POINT:  First off, they're not names.  They are phonetic representations of statements that are in a foreign tongue. 
• POINT: Secondly, the meaning behind these foreign statement is known.  
• POINT: Thirdly, once understood, these statements make for a more understandable degree experience.
  
  
• We are obligated to keep up to date on the most recent discoveries made by our Brothers.
  
  
  
4. Destructive Comment - The Lost Master's Word is provide to Members of the York Rite.
   
   
• This is a statement that leaves some members, who know better and who think things through, feeling conned and let down by their Brothers.  Even worse, it'll diminish in the eyes of these conned members the value of those Brothers who provided it and the Craft as a whole - this is destructive & counterproductive.
  
  
• POINT:  What is provide through the York Rite is "A Lost Word", but it is not "The 'Recovered' Master's Word."  That Word was already provided to Blue Lodge members within the Apprentice degree (and any member who paid attention, and thought the degree information through, would know this.)  By its very nature, what is provided by York members does not qualify as "The Master's Word".
  
  
• We are obligated to instruct our members as to the misdirected zeal of others within our organization.
  
  
  
  Do you know of other
  destructive & counterproductive comments
  that can be looked into as well? 
  Please!  Let me know!