Ronald A. Seale, 33°, Sovereign Grand Commander

More than ever before, we now have an opportunity to substitute fact for fable and let the general public know what Freemasonry really is.

Last year, Freemasonry came to the attention of the general public more than ever before. The best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown and the Hollywood blockbuster movie National Treasure, starring Nicolas Cage, were only two of the several major works to generate a growing popular interest in Freemasonry. More often than not, however, the portrayal of the Craft was far from the truth. Still, just getting references to Freemasonry before the public in these high-profile instances stirred public awareness of Masonry and gave us an opportunity to substitute fact for fable and so make people aware of what Freemasonry really is.

The Supreme Council is seizing this opportunity in a variety of ways. For instance, in this issue, Ill. Arturo de Hoyos, Grand Archivist and Grand Historian of the Supreme Council, has an essay titled “Freemasonry’s True National Treasures.” In this article, he notes the many Masonic buildings, like our own House of the Temple, and other edifices in Washington, D.C., which are genuine representations of Masonry’s presence in our national history.

Similarly, the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia is developing an extensive series of exhibits, lectures, musical performances, and other events to celebrate Freemasonry in the Federal City. A highpoint of this series is the upcoming Masonic exhibit at the prestigious Octagon House, the Museum of the American Architectural Foundation, just two blocks from the White House. The exhibit will be open from May through November 2005.

I am pleased the Library of the Supreme Council is part of this general movement to open Freemasonry to the public. We have expanded tour hours for the House of the Temple, added interns, local college students, to our cadre of Brethren who are House of the Temple tour guides, and put a substantial number of our Library’s titles online. Now anyone in the world can use the Internet to access 27,203 of our Library’s books and periodicals, and more titles are being added to the online catalog every day.

You can personally be part of this outreach to the public and to Brethren everywhere. I urge you to become, like myself, a member of the Friends of the Library. Your membership in, donations to, and participation as a Friend of the Supreme Council’s Library, will enhance and extend the good work of our Library, a true Masonic and national treasure. Also, as a member of this group, you will receive Amicus, a quarterly newsletter from the Library. The fall 2004 issue, for instance, responds to the inaccuracies of the movie National Treasure and lists 11 books that provide facts, not fables, about Freemasonry, the Founding Fathers, so many of them Masons, the Knights Templars, the Eye in the Pyramid, and many other subjects, which are often misunderstood. Also, the Masonic Service Association of North America (see memo below) has addressed issues relating to National Treasure, and the Supreme Council’s Web site has news items on the film.

To become a member of Friends of the Library, please send a check ($100 tax-deductible donation) payable to the House of the Temple Historic Preservation Foundation, Inc., and earmarked for “Friends of the Library” to: The Supreme Council, 1733 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009-3103. For more information, please call Joan K. Sansbury, Librarian/Curator at 202-777-3139. Membership applications are online at the “Join Friends” Internet membership page. For a free copy of the most recent Amicus, please write to the address above.

Join me as a Friend of the Library and help reveal to the American public the true national treasures we have in the Library of the Supreme Council and, most of all, in the Scottish Rite and Freemasonry.

New Movie—National Treasure

November 22, 2004: The new movie National Treasure, starring Nicolas Cage, opened in theaters across the nation on November 19, 2004. It quickly rose to be the highest grossing film ($35.3 million in ticket sales) of the weekend and has already generated an extremely wide public awareness of Freemasonry. Most importantly, it portrays Masonry in a positive light and accents the significance of the Founding Fathers to our national identity. Many of these early patriots identified as Masons in the film, like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, are well known. Only one reference is not correct. Early in the movie, Charles Carroll, identified as the last survivor of the 56 patriots who signed the Declaration of Independence, is portrayed as a Freemason. Charles Carroll of Maryland was not a member of the fraternity. (Historically, it is believed the reason he was identified as a Mason is that he was present at the laying of the cornerstone of the B&O Railroad.)

Most of the movie is entirely fictional. There is no “National Treasure,” as defined by the film, nor were Freemasons as a group ever involved in collecting and safeguarding valuable antiquities on behalf of all humanity. Nevertheless, Masonic principles and values are referenced many times in the film, and the audience receives a very favorable impression of the Craft.

The movie is rated PG because of “mild violence.” It really is a family movie, and one all Masons should enjoy. It might even be fun for a Lodge to have a “movie night” and sponsor members and their families who wish to attend. Discussions about the film should result in many beneficial insights regarding Freemasonry among both Masons and the general public.

Masonic Service Association of North America