Charles E. "Chuck" Maier, 33°
489 Jasmine Street, Laguna Beach, California 95651–1615

July is, or should be, a very patriotic month for Americans. Initially, we fought for our independence from England, and while July 4, 1776, is a commemoration of a specific day when the Declaration of Independence was adopted, it has become a symbol of freedom generally for us and a prayerful hope for many throughout the world.

There is an aspect of serving in the military, which is just as deep and enduring as love of God and Country. Any veteran will tell you that the fellowship, friendship, and camaraderie found from bootcamp ordeals to frontline action are probably more precious than any battle scar, campaign ribbon, or medal from any war or military service. These were days not of independence but of interdependence, a time when friends became closer than blood brothers. In the extreme, it was a matter of physical survival, but most of the time, it was a sense of trust and fellowship, a time to be your own person with the support of your group. For many, this was the first time they had experienced such an unusual sense of family. For others, it became the standard for all close relationships in the future—interdependence emerging from independence.

Years ago, a grand old man came to my church's adult Bible study faithfully each week, and when he had settled in his own regular seat, he would say, "It's good to be in the company of faithful people!" This was his trademark phrase. He felt it, he believed it, and others soon believed it, too. In our Masonic Lodge, when I was old enough to become a member, I saw this same dear Brother take his favorite seat, and before the Master sounded the gavel, this faithful attendee would said, "It's good to be in the company of faithful people." The study of the Bible and the pursuit of Freemasonry were all the more precious because he helped us to become that "company of faithful people," faithful to God, to our country, and to each other. This was something akin to military fellowship. Again, we felt safe to be ourselves and yet supported by our fellows.

Where do we go after the July Fourth parade, after the last pyrotechnic extravaganza, after the final note of the national anthem? Beyond this very grand and public unity, where do we find our place, or seat, independent yet secure? Where are we made to feel like a Brother, a part of rather than apart from? That sense of fellowship comes and goes. We need to be sensitive of it, both its presence and its absence. We cannot recreate the intimate groups of our youth, of another time, of another life, or of another place. Yet our role in this time and place is to be that person who takes his place and, in saying "It's good to be in the company of faithful people," makes that fellowship a reality.

Charles E. Maier was a U.S. Marine during the Korean War and is a veteran of the Chosin Reservoir Campaign and a member of the Chosin Few. Raised in 1954 by Laguna Beach Lodge No. 672, he is the founding Chaplain of Orange County Daylight Lodge No. 833 and Irvine Lodge No. 841. Since 1995, he has served as Grand Prelate of the Grand Commandery, York Rite, California. He was Grand Chaplain of the Grand Lodge of California, 1987–88. After graduating from a major seminary in 1960, Father Maier served as a missioner with the Navajo Nation in Arizona and as a pastor in a small parish development in California. In 1980, he was called into the hospital ministry as a chaplain and therapist, working with alcoholics and substance-abuse patients. He began active retirement in January 2000.