T.F.S.
Three, five, and seven
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By Ed Halpaus, Grand Lodge Education Officer.
Number 88 – December 01, 2006
This publication, while it is printed with the permission of the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of A.F. & A. M. of Minnesota,
contains the writings and opinions of Ed Halpaus and is not in any way the opinion of the Grand Lodge of Minnesota.
“No Brother shall propose for admission into this ancient and honorable Society, a
person, through friendship or partiality, who does not posses the moral and social
virtues, a sound head and good heart; and who has not an entire exemption from all
those ill qualifications and vices, which would bring dishonor on the Craft.” The
Trestle-board of the United States Masonic Convention – Baltimore, Maryland 1843
The second of the Masonic Laws of Minnesota, which some will refer to as Landmarks,
and which our Grand Lodge says has the force of Landmarks is this:
(2) “That the moral law which inculcates charity and probity, industry and sobriety,
and obedience to law and civil government, is the rule and guide of every Mason, to
which strict conformity is required.”
This Masonic Law of the Grand Lodge of Minnesota has a lot in it, and to live up to it
will not seem difficult to a Freemason. If we were to begin searching for a similar law in
the Landmarks enumerated by Mackey or others we will need to look hard. Many people
think of the Landmarks of Masonry are primarily the list enumerated by Brother Mackey,
but you won’t find a Landmark of his that is similar to Minnesota’s Masonic Law #2.
Brother Elbert Bede has said, “Freemasonry is the only Fraternity claiming to have
landmarks, and the only Fraternity old enough to have Landmarks” under the accepted
definition of a Landmark by Mackey “is that it must have existed from time whereof the
memory of man runneth not to the contrary.”
Brother and Dr. George Oliver in his ‘Historical Landmarks’ said in referring to the Four
Old Lodges that formed the Premier Grand Lodge: “that every privilege which they
collectively enjoyed by virtue of their immemorial rights, they should still continue to
enjoy and that no law, rule or regulation should ever deprive them of such privilege, or
encroach on any Landmark which was at that time established as the standard of
Masonic government.” The Masonic government and Landmark Brother Oliver was
referring to were the Old Charges, (The Charges of a Freemason,) which were contained
in the “Constitutions of the Freemasons” of 1723.
So by the definition of a Landmark as given by Mackey the Old Charges certainly do
qualify as a Landmark, and this among some other places is where to look for the source
and reference to Masonic Law #2 here in Minnesota.
“The Charges of a Free-Mason” are said to be “Extracted from The Ancient Records of
Lodges beyond the Sea, and of those in England, Scotland, and Ireland, for the use of the
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Lodges in London.” In the Charges is this admonition: “To be read at the making of New
Brethren, or when the master shall order it.” This reminds me of the admonition given in
the installation ceremony of the Master of a Lodge, where he is admonished by the
Installing Officer to cause the Book of Constitutions, (the Masonic Code of Minnesota,)
“to be read in his Lodge, so that none may pretend ignorance of the excellent precepts it
enjoins.”i
Under general heading #1, of the Old Charges, “Concerning God and Religion” we will
read “A Mason is obliged, by his Tenure, to obey the Moral Law.” This is what Masonic
Law #2 of Minnesota is all about. In this Masonic Law it then proceeds to tell what this
law teaches, persistently and earnestly, such as “charity and probity, industry and
sobriety, and obedience to law and civil government,” which should be ‘the rule and
guide of every Mason and which the fraternity expects strict conformity.’
Charity as used in Masonry does not always and only mean the giving of money and
assistance to those who are less fortunate and to whom we will do what we can to help
them in their present situation. We willingly do that, but it comes from the original
meaning of the word Charity: Charity means love, love of ones fellow-man. It means
good-will toward others too, which is why we want to do what we can for those who are
less fortunate than ourselves. It also means being lenient, especially in judgment of others
and of their actions. We do not want to be unduly harsh in dealing with others.
Probity is a word you don’t hear much in general conversation, but the meaning here is
virtue and integrity, uprightness and honesty, being a man whose word is unquestioned.
Information on this can be found under general heading #VI “Of Behavior,” subheading
5 “Behavior at Home, and in Your Neighborhood” where it says in part: “You are to act
as a moral and wise man; particularly not to let your Family, Friends, and neighbors
know the Concerns of the Lodge, etc., but wisely to consult your own Honor…”
Industry is a word that is either alluded to or used in Masonry quite a bit. In the fifteen
points from the Regius Poem, point number two says; “The workman shall labor
diligently on work days, that he may deserve his holidays.” Freemasonry is a society of
friends and brothers that honors honest labor. We are taught in the three degrees of the
Blue Lodge that honesty, integrity and industry are traits to be developed. In the third
section of the lecture of the Third Degree it tells us that the Bee Hive is an emblem of
industry, and that industry is recommended to all created beings. Freemasonry teaches us
that we should always be industrious, and never be content to sit back and ignore the
suffering of our fellow-man when we could do something to alleviate it. Every Mason
who delivers, or hears, the lecture of the third degree will hear how important
Freemasonry treats industry.
Sobriety would imply that a Mason should not come to his Lodge while he is inebriated,
but in the Charges under general heading #VI “Of Behavior” item #2 “Behavior After
Lodge is Over and the Brethren Not Gone,” in the first paragraph it talks about avoiding
excess and not encouraging a Brother to eat or drink beyond his inclination, as well as not
doing or saying anything offensive, or something that might prevent an easy and free
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conversation. This is an interesting charge to read if you’re inclined to be interested in
things such as this. Sobriety has to do with being temperate and this is reinforced in the
Charge at Closing where it says; “Be diligent, prudent, temperate, discreet.” Also in the
Charge of the First Degree it says; “And to yourself, in avoiding all irregularity and
intemperance, which may impair your faculties, or debase the dignity of your profession.
A zealous attachment to these duties will insure public and private esteem.” Temperate
means practicing moderation, being self-restrained, not being extreme in our opinions
and not letting our passion lead us; this includes not only the use of alcoholic beverages
but in other things as well. The definition you find in the dictionary of the word
Temperate will, most likely, remind you of freemasonry. Finally in the Charge of the
Third Degree it says: “Your virtue, honor, and reputation, are concerned in supporting
with dignity the character you now bear. Let no motive, therefore, make you swerve from
your duty, violate your vows or betray your trust, etc…” So, sobriety is important in
Freemasonry.
Obedience to Law and Civil Government is very easy for a Mason to understand because
it is also stressed in the Charge of the First Degree, but it is also in the Old Charges as
general heading II “Of the Civil Magistrate Supreme and Subordinate:”
“A Mason is to be a Peaceable Subject to the Civil Powers, wherever he resides and
works, and is never to be concerned in Plots and Conspiracies against the Peace and
Welfare of the Nation nor to behave himself undutifully to inferior Magistrates; for as
Masonry hath been always injured by War, Bloodshed, and Confusion, so ancient Kings
and Princes have been much disposed to encourage the Craftsman, because of their
Peaceable ness and Loyalty, whereby they practically answered the Cavils of their
Adversaries, and promoted the Honor of the fraternity, who ever flourished in times of
peace. So that if a Brother should be a Rebel against the State, he is not to be
countenanced in his Rebellion, however he may be pitied as an unhappy man; and if
convicted of no other Crime, though the loyal Brotherhood must and ought to disown his
Rebellion, and give no Umbrage or Ground of political Jealousy to the Government for
the time being; they cannot expel him from the Lodge, and his relation to it remains
indefeasible.”
From the Charge of the First Degree as adopted by the Baltimore Convention in 1843
about citizenship: “As a Citizen you are enjoined to be exemplary in the discharge of
your civil duties, be never proposing, or countenancing, any act which may have a
tendency to subvert the peace and good order of society; by paying due obedience to the
laws under whose protection you live, and by never losing sight of the allegiance due to
your country.”
From this, I think, is where the wording about citizenship evolved in the Charge of the
First Degree in Minnesota: “In the state you are to be a quiet and peaceful subject, true
to your government and just to your country; you are not to countenance disloyalty or
rebellion, but patiently submit to legal authority and conform with cheerfulness to the
government of the country in which you live.”
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“The ancient [old] charges show by what principles the relations of those of the
fellowship to each other were regulated; and these may not improperly be said to
have been ‘Landmarks’ of the Craft.” Brother Albert Pike
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“All things obey fixed laws.” Manilus
Terra nova = [Latin] = New land --- Terra lapis = [Latin] = Land mark
From the Great Light of Masonry: “Your statutes are wonderful; therefore I obey
them. The unfolding of your words give light; it gives understanding to the simple.”
“Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.”
Psalm 119:129-130 & 133 NIV
With “Brotherly Love,”
Ed Halpaus
Grand Lodge Education Officer
i
Masonic Manual of Minnesota – Installation of Lodge Officers.
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