When
it comes to Masonic education, we tend to talk more than teach.
Recently, I received a phone call from a concerned 30-year-old
Entered Apprentice Mason. He had petitioned a Lodge for membership
because his grandfather, the man he respects more than any living
person, is a Mason. He wanted to be a Mason because his grandfather
is a Mason. He received his EA Degree recently, but has not
learned the catechism in order to receive the Fellowcraft Degree.
The main reason, he said, was the distance to the Lodge, which
prevented his coach and him getting together.
In the meantime, however, this young man went to a library
and checked out a book, which proved to be an anti-Masonic text,
in the hope he might learn more about Freemasonry. Instead of
answering his questions, the book raised many concerns in the
mind of this new Mason. Now, he has put on hold the decision
about whether to learn the catechism and continue with his Degrees.
He somehow found my telephone number on the Internet and called
me. We talked for an hour, and I have sent him some material,
which, hopefully, will answer the very real questions he has.
You might say he had not received enough Masonic knowledge
to answer the questions raised in the anti-Masonic book. I agree,
but he is a curious person and anxious to learn more about Masonry.
What might have been done differently?
I was in the delivery room when our daughter Sonya was born.
The doctor handed her to me-she was the most beautiful baby
ever born. As I held her, do you think I told her "Sonya,
now that you are here, you are on your own"? Of course
not. My work as a parent had just begun-and it began the moment
she was born. My wife and I had responsibilities to feed, clothe,
and love her. No baby can live on milk forever. It needs solid
food, but it doesn't know when to eat it or what to eat. That
decision is made by parents who know how to care for a baby.
A new Mason is a lot like a newborn baby. He comes into the
Lodge wholly dependent on others for guidance and education.
The blindfold is a symbol of that helplessness. How can we get
the new Mason off to a good start so that he will grow into
a mature Mason?
There is a wealth of information available to Lodges. Contact
your Grand Lodge and ask what resources they have or recommend.
Ask about the Lodge System of Masonic Education and other resources
to share with a prospective or new Mason and his wife. In Georgia,
we use (at least it is available for our use) a Mentor's Manual.
It is short, only 54 pages. It discusses visiting the Candidate
before the First Degree, topics to be covered during the three
Degrees, as well as the "practical aspects" of Masonry,
among other items of interest. Starting a man on his Masonic
pilgrimage is more than having him memorize the ritual. It must
include understanding the ritual and a whole lot more.
Mentoring is not unique to Masonry. Anyone who goes to work
for a new company receives orientation to help him/her in the
new job. New teachers are usually required to report for work
a week before veteran teachers so they can receive orientation.
In Georgia, a teacher shortage in the public schools has forced
officials to offer temporary teaching certificates to individuals
who work with a mentor in the classroom as they take the necessary
courses to earn certification.
Education is important to Masons. We talk about it all the
time, but I sometimes think we do more talking than teaching.
We must not assume a new Mason will learn what he needs to know
without good education. We must take the initiative in teaching
him the moment he walks into the Lodge room. If we do not, we
may leave him to the lies of our critics.
The above article is reprinted with permission
from the December 2001 (Vol. 7, No.1) issue of CIS Masonic
Report, which is edited by Dr. Leazer. The Report
is a publication of the Center for Interfaith Studies, Inc.
To subscribe to the CIS Masonic Report, please contact
Brother Leazer at the e-mail address noted at the head of this
article or phone/fax 770-979-1687.
 |
Gary Leazer
served 14 years on the staff of the Interfaith Witness Department
of the Southern Baptist Home Mission Board before his involuntary
resignation in October 1993. His primary responsibilities
included research, writing, and conferencing in 40 states
and four foreign countries on interfaith issues. Leazer,
not then a Mason, conducted the original study on Freemasonry
for the Southern Baptist Convention. Bro. Leazer began the
Masonic Report in March 1995 as a supplement to his CIS
(Center for Interfaith Studies) Quarterly Report. He was
raised a Master Mason on February 8, 1997, in Clarkston
Lodge No. 492, Clarkston, Georgia, and became a Scottish
Rite Mason in the Valley of Atlanta in 1997. He was a participant
in the 1994 and 1996 Scottish Rite Leadership Conferences
and is a frequent speaker at Lodges, Grand Lodges, and other
Masonic meetings. |
