A Brother Asks: Esoteric Freemasonry and Religion

 

A Brother Asks: Can you provide a safe way to explain Esoteric Freemasonry!

Coach: The best response that I have ever heard is this topis is this:
 

So, you want to know about Esoteric Freemasonry?

Good! 

Do you remember that old trope, "Hidden in plain sight?"  

Yep!  That's what Esoteric Freemasonry is all about... 

It's revealing what is hidden in plain sight... and that requires seeing things through new eyes that is only brought about by being informed through specialized training that Freemasonry points toward but, and this is the key, only Masonry will provide to those who pursue it. 

Brother: But discussion of Esoteric Freemasonry is not allowed as we are not supposed to discuss religion. Yet, there’s no way to explain in detail the three main characters or first three grand masters without discussing religion. A conundrum!

Coach: I disagree!  I fail to see the connection between explaining Esoteric Freemasonry and discussing religion.

 

Brother: Please explain!

Coach: The three main characters are allegorical. They're based upon religious text characters, but they're not the characters of the religious text. 

 

Being allegorical, they personify "Wisdom", "Strength", & "Beauty" solely and do so to drive home the point as to how these specific personifications of each would act in a specific situation that is fabricated for educational purposes. 

 

When you're not trained to see this, then this point is hidden in plain sight.  Only those who have gone through specific training can see the lesson as plain as day.

 

No Conundrum at all. No Religion discussed!

 

 

(Hat tip to Bro. Brad Parkinson for the inspiration of this post!)

 

 

A Brother Asks: Esoteric Freemasonry

 

A Brother Asks: I want to pursue Esoteric Freemasonry.  Have you any advice?

Coach: To pursue it, you have to understand what it is that you are pursuing.

Brother: Please explain.

Coach: Ritual by its very construction alludes to more than what appears upon its surface. If you do not have a rich history of the classics (and I include "The Bible" in this category), or a strong foundation required to understand them, most all of what Ritual intends to communicate to candidates, and the crew that performs it, is not there; it remains hidden in plain sight to all involved!

Brother: Wow!

Coach: Wow indeed!  In this respect, the esoteric nature of Ritual is only revealed to those who have been already initiated elsewhere.  However, I do understand what many esoterically inclined members are seeking.

Brother: What's that?

Coach: They want to know WHAT is hidden within Ritual. 

Brother: Yes!  I do!

Coach: Good!  Unfortunately, far too many of these members chase things that have nothing to do with what is hidden. Being ignorant of the classics, they want to make more of Ritual than is actually there. They earnestly & sincerely want to associate it with other schools that ARE esoteric and in that association, Ritual is bastardized. Many of these members also tend to be ruffians.

Brother: Ruffians?  Really?

Coach:  Yes, in that They want to have handed over to them what they have yet to truly earn by the hard Work required to understand the very things they seek.

Brother: You mean they're actually blind to what they seek?

Coach: Yes!  And there's the catch-22 of esotericism that is clearly alluded to by the third degree drama. The ruffians wanted the secrets. Those secrets would enable them to obtain The Master's Word. They were told they had to complete their temples to obtain the secrets and thereafter apply those disciplines to also obtain The Master's Word.

Brother: What's the connection?

Coach: Great question!  By not having completed the temple, an esoteric way of saying, "they have yet to do the Work to understand what needs to be understood" (a process that requires the internalization of specific disciplines), they would not understand that they were unprepared and unskilled to obtain The Master's word. And, ironically, neither is the Candidate; for most every Candidate going through these degrees has NOT internalized the very disciplines required to understand The Master's Word. This is why they all get a substitute for the real thing; they have yet to earn the real thing!

Brother: Ouch!

Coach: And, because most jurisdictions don't support the internalizing of these disciplines, the esoteric aspect of Ritual remains hidden from most members.

Brother: Wow!  The hidden aspect remains hidden!  This explains why I've been having difficulty getting traction on my efforts.

Coach: You're not alone in this!  Unfortunately, in this respect, there is no such thing as esoteric freemasonry. 

Brother: Yikes!  Really!?

Coach: Yes! And there will never truly be such a creature until Freemasonry is practiced with the overt intention of cultivating Masonry within Freemasonry.

Brother: Why?

Coach: There's no structure in place that is supported by The Craft to cultivate these disciplines.  There are very few if any member who have done this Work already and who support this cultivation Work in others. Until this support occurs deliberately, all there will be for members are hidden things that few members will ever see.

Brother: Are you telling me that I would be pursuing a ghost if I continue down this rabbit hole?

Coach: No.  What I am saying is that you have to do the Work before what you seek will be revealed to you.  Without the internalization of these disciplines, you remain blind to what is before you.

For Further Light:

A Brother Asks: Why only Murder & Treason?

“Treason and murder ever kept together,
As two yoke-devils sworn to either’s purpose”
(King Henry V, act 2, sc. 2)

A Brother Asks: Why are murder and treason exceptions to keeping our Brother’s secrets?

Coach: Because they clearly put forth the standard one should measure one’s liabilities in keeping one’s word to another.

Brother: But why just murder and treason?

Coach: As opposed to what?

Brother: What if it involves other illegal, immoral or unethical activities?

Coach: What about these?

Brother: Shouldn’t we not keep such activities to ourselves.

Coach: We shouldn’t.

Brother: But they’re not murder and treason!

Coach: Aren’t they?

Brother: Wait? Are you saying they are one in the same?

Coach: I’m saying you might want to look up the words before you come to erroneous conclusions.

Brother: But I have.

Coach: And what did you find?

Brother: Murder is “the unlawful premeditated killing of one human being by another”.

Coach: And treason?

Brother: It is “the crime of betraying one's country, especially by attempting to kill the sovereign or overthrow the government”.

Coach: Thanks.  Do you want to delve into these?

Brother: You’re welcome and yes!

Coach: Good! Let’s start on the first one.

Brother: Okay.

Murder

Coach: The first one speaks to premeditation.

Brother: That’s where it is not a spontaneous act. It’s actually planned.

Coach: Are you seeing the connection to the ruffians?

Brother: Yes!  I am indeed. They plotted to extract the master’s word and were willing to do so even if it meant death to their victim.

Coach: Good!  Murder is a premeditated act where harm is involved.

Brother: Why do you say it that way?

Coach: Because this is a symbolic lodge.

Brother: And rather than take what was communicated literally, you’re trying to pull out the symbolic information to see how it applies to our lives?

Coach: Yes.  That’s how this Works. You take the general communications, boil down its essence and distill the lesson.

Brother: So the lesson here is to keep his secret unless it involves doing harm.

Coach: Yes. And if it does involve doing harm, then you are no longer obligated to keep his secret.

Brother: Wow!  I would have never gathered that by taking it literally.

Coach: Most Brothers don’t.  But does it have to be premeditated harm?

Brother: No. I see now that it doesn't.

Coach: How so?

Brother: Harm is harm whether it is planned for or after the fact.

Coach: Agreed!

Treason

Brother: What about Treason?

Coach: What about it?

Brother: Can you boil it down for me?

Coach: Yes, I could, but I think I’d rather walk you through it and let you do the Work.

Brother: Awesome! What’s first?

Coach: Look up the other definitions.

Brother: Okay. I get the following information. “the action of betraying someone or something”

Coach: What do you gather from that?

Brother: Well, it differs from the first definition in that the betrayal is now generalized to just betrayal…

Coach: As opposed to?

Brother: …one’s country.

Coach: Break it down.

Brother: It’s pretty straightforward.

Coach: How so?

Brother: It’s telling me that I’m not obligated to keep any secrets that betray anyone or anything.

One More Level

Coach: I get the same thing. Do you have any other definitions?

Brother: Yes… treason is “the crime of murdering someone to whom the murderer owed allegiance, such as a master or husband”

Coach: Wow!  Back to murder?

Brother: Yes. It appears that treason is linked to murder.

Coach: And in this instance you gather what?

Brother: Symbolically?

Coach: But of course!

Brother: Okay… symbolically treason is not just betrayal, which it is, but in this instance it is also harmful betrayal.

Coach: Does that sound familiar?

Brother: It sure does!

Coach: Of what does it remind you?

Brother: The ruffians once again!

Coach: It reminds me of them as well. Why?

Brother: Because they betrayed the Grand Master to whom they owed allegiance.

Coach: Exactly.  Do the definitions drive home some points as to what you need to be aware of when deciding whether or not you should keep another’s secrets?

Brother: They sure do.

Takeaways

Coach: On what points are you now clearer when it comes to the exception for murder or treason?

Brother: If there is any harm planned for or committed, I have an obligation to assure I inform the proper persons to guarantee that this harm will not occur, prevent it myself if within my power or assure that amends are made for harm that is done.

Coach: So, murder is symbolic for any harm planned or after the fact?

Brother: Yes! 

Coach: And you are obligated to prevent it if you can or assure proper amends?

Brother: Yes.

Coach: And what about treason?

Brother: Betrayal in any form, but more especially, betrayals that do harm.

Coach: And you’re equally obligated to prevent it if you can?

Brother: Yes.

One Step Further

Coach: What about how all this applies to one’s morals?

Brother: Interesting. Please continue.

Coach: Can you murder your own morals?

Brother: You mean, plot to cause them harm?

Coach: Yes.

Brother: I imagine trying to figure a way around something that is clearly illegal, unethical or immoral would be undermining one’s morals, thus causing them harm.

Coach: How about betrayal of your morals?

Brother: Yes. I can see where this could occur when one’s standards get biased toward anything or anyone that would require those standards to be “relaxed”.

Coach: I agree. What is worse, murder of one’s morals or betrayal of them?

Brother: I’d have to say that the Murder of one's Morals is only overshadowed by one's Betrayal of Them.

Coach: Why?

Brother: Because, in the extreme, murder kills them dead while the betrayal leaves them as festering reminders of the harm one consciously undertakes or undertook in the face of dishonor.

Coach: So, if you take Exception to Murder and Treason literally when keeping within your chest the unworthy Secrets of others, you have yet to practice Masonry.

Brother: Yes!  That brings it back to the Craft.

Coach: Thank you. I agree.

Brother: Would you consider the Work that it takes to come to these interpretations to be the practice of Masonry?

Coach: As in?

Brother:  If one takes a literal view of that issue, he has yet to practice Masonry.

Coach: Agreed!

Brother: Wouldn't the process of getting from taking things literally to figuratively be considered the practice of Masonry?

Coach: Yes! Absolutely! Masonry is a process for sure, and moving from the literal to the figurative is part of that.

Brother: Are you saying that one is not working masonically when one does keeps secrets for secrets' sake?

Coach: If I understand your question correctly, let me respond as follows: When you keep secrets that should not be kept, because you think it is more moral to keep them, even when what is shared should not be kept a secret especially because of the immorality that would unfold because of keeping it a secret, you are not practicing Masonry.

Brother:  This makes good sense.

Coach:  Thanks!

General Guideline

Brother: Do you have a general guideline on all this?

Coach: I do.

Brother: Would you share it with me… …I promise to keep it secret.

Coach: LOL!  Thanks!  No need to. Share it to your heart’s content.

Brother: And it is?

Coach: I keep confidential information sequestered that would harm if shared. Should that information cause harm if kept sequestered, then I have a moral obligation to share it.

Brother: Is it that cut and dried?

Coach: No. It takes a lot of soul searching and prayer at times so I make sure anyone who wishes to share secrets knows that I do not want anything shared with me that would cause me or others a moral bind.

Brother: What’s a moral bind?

Coach: Anything shared that creates a moral dilemma where conflicting standards exist to choose between and someone or something suffers no matter what.

Brother: Such as?

Coach: You’re enjoying this too much.

Brother: Yes… and?

Coach: Let’s make it personal.

Brother: Okay.

Coach: Situations where I’m told something that will cause harm if I share it, but will equally cause harm if I don’t. 

Brother: What do you do in such situations?

Coach: When it’s after the fact, and I am now holding on to the secret, I pray for the right insights into the situations, while I act in love, hope for the best and have faith in all involved.

Brother: I guess that’s all one can do in these situations.

Coach: I agree.

Brother: Wait a minute!

Coach: Ah!  An insight to share?

Brother: Yes! Is this why the twelve fellow craft recanted, albeit a bit too late?

Coach: What do you think?

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For Further Light: