William G. Sizemore, 33°, G.C.
1733 16th St., NW, Washington, DC 20009-3103

A practical patriotism characterized by action, not just words and emotion, can overcome terrorism.

Photo: Chase Studios, Inc., Bethesda, Md.

The insights provided by the Scottish Rite are as timely today as they were nearly 150 years ago when Albert Pike first wrote the words which are the core of the Degrees. They carried truth then; they are still valid today. Regarding patriotism, for instance, Pike wrote: "The true Mason identifies the honor of his country with his own. Nothing more conduces to the beauty and glory of one's country than the preservation against all enemies of its civil and religious liberty. The world will never willingly let die the names of those patriots who in her different ages have received upon their own breasts the blows aimed by insolent enemies at the bosom of their country."

If we were to translate Pike's Victorian prose into contemporary English, we might say, "Masons understand that what happens to our nation happens to each of us. When fanatics-whether political fanatics like the communists of the cold war or religious fanatics like Bin Laden and the Al Qaeda terrorists today-threaten any part of our country or any of our countrymen, wherever they may be, they threaten every one of us. We honor those men and women who have died to keep us free, and we will make certain that their deaths are not meaningless."

For some time, many people were a little ashamed of patriotism. Some even criticized the Scottish Rite for talking about it. They suggested it was a bit old-fashioned to be quite so proud of being American. It wasn't that they didn't believe in America; they just thought we shouldn't talk about it so much.

Then they saw the fireballs from the World Trade Center and from the Pentagon and they learnedof the crash in rural southwest Pennsylvania. Suddenly, everything changed. They learned again what Pike meant by "insolent enemies." And in less than three days, virtually every American flag in every store had been sold.

The purpose of this essay is not to promote patriotism. Rather, it is to underline what the Scottish Rite teaches about patriotism and why I am so proud to be a part of an or-ganization which promotes those ideals. First of all, the Rite teaches that fanatics truly are, as Pike described them, "insolent enemies."

If a man walked up to you in the street and said, "I know the truth in all things, and if you disagree with me, you are a fool," you would classify him as a madman.

If he walked up to you, pulled a gun, and said, "I know the truth, and if you don't agree with me, I'll kill you," you would defend yourself. And, if that meant you had to injure him to keep him from killing you, you would.

If he said, "I'm going to stand outside this school and kill children until you admit I'm right," there is no limit to what you would do to take him out. His insolence is as intolerable as his threat.

The Scottish Rite teaches that there is no difference between that man threatening you and a man or terrorist group threatening our nation.

Second, the Scottish Rite teaches that ALL fanaticisms are equally wrong. Some may say, with Al Qaeda, "You must believe in God in the same way I believe in God." Some may say, "You must think about abortion, or gun control, or politics, or cloning, or defense spending, or the harvesting of trees as I do." It is not the topic that matters-it is the insolence, the willingness to say, "Agree with me or else," which makes the fanatic and the tyrant.

The Scottish Rite teaches that no person has the right to tell another what he or she MUST think on any topic. That, simply put, is the difference between tyranny and freedom.

Third, the Rite teaches that it is not sufficient just to have that freedom yourself, nor even to have it for your nation. You must seek it for all humankind and every nation. For instance, a few weeks ago, one of the elder statesmen of American journalism was interviewed on a news program. He was asked why America was far in front of other nations in fighting the war on terrorism. He answered with some wonderful words. He said, we should remember that America was born seeking freedom. More than other nations, we have a belief in our bones that freedom is the right, proper, and God-given state of mankind.

If those words have a familiar ring, remember these: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness...."

These words still resonate in our souls. And it's important to note that word unalienable. It is a legal term, meaning "something which cannot be taken from you by force, and something that you cannot give up voluntarily." In that word is the defeat of terrorism.

Pike, was personally caught up in the Civil War. He experienced war's violence firsthand and understood how a country's freedom must be protected by a strong and unrelenting patriotism. He wrote: "Above all, the Love of Country, State Pride, the Love of Home, are forces of immense power. Encourage them all."

The Scottish Rite sees patriotism as far more than waving a flag, or standing when the National Anthem is played, or wearing a poppy. For the Scottish Rite Mason, patriotism is a matter of practical, daily living. Practical patriotism isn't a momentary surge of pride. Practical patriotism is a calm and thoughtful process in which the Mason says to himself: "What things strengthen my country? What things weaken it? How can I help add to the strengths and eliminate the weaknesses?" That is our immediate and practical mission today.

So, as a matter of practical patriotism, what does the Rite teach?

First, patriotism is not just feeling pride; it is taking action. The love of our nation is demonstrated in making her stronger-and that is something every man and woman can do.

We are practical patriots when we work for quality education in all of our schools.

We are practical patriots when we support our Order's RiteCare Child-hood Language Program, when, through our Scottish Rite clinics, we help give young boys and girls the abilities they will need to succeed in good schools and become productive, contributing citizens of our country.

We are practical patriots when we support organizations that teach young people a sense of duty-organizations such as DeMolay, Rainbow for Girls, Job's Daughters, the Boy Scouts, the Girl Scouts, and JROTC.

We are practical patriots when we take our children or grandchildren to the town square or park and show them the memorials dedicated to the men and women in our community who have fallen in defense of our country and tell them about that sacrifice. Our young people need to know that they have freedom because others have earned it for them.

We are practical patriots when we explain to our children and grandchildren that there really are such things as heroes and what it takes to be one.

We are practical patriots when we live lives of honor and integrity, because such lives inspire honor and integrity in others.

All of this is more difficult than just standing for the National Anthem, repeating the Pledge of Allegiance, or feeling pride when we see our national flag-although these are also important.
Being a practical patriot by taking action in strong support of our country is difficult, but it is the only way we can begin to repay the debt we owe to the heroes of the past, and it is the only way we can assure that there will be heroes in the future.

Unfortunately, there will be no end of "insolent enemies," but fortunately and God willing, there will also be no end of dedicated Scottish Rite Masons acting as practical patriots to oppose them.

William G. Sizemore
served on active duty in the U.S. Navy from 1944 to 1982. Since 1989, he has served the Supreme Council as Grand Executive Director. He has been a Master Mason since 1948 and a member of the Scottish Rite since 1955. He is a Past Master and Past High Priest, R.A.M., and an active member of several Appendant Bodies and Masonic organizations.