To find out more about Freemasonry, I checked online. I discovered a website for the Lodge in town and called. As I learned, there is no staff or regular Lodge hours. I left a message. Sometime later, a Mason called and invited me to have a tour.
The Thomas Talbot Lodge in Billerica sits across the street from the town green, between the library and the Unitarian church. That is a pretty common New England set up. Some 200 Lodges spread across Massachusetts, with I guess a similar spread across the country. American Freemasonry began in Massachusetts in 1733. Freemasonry worldwide is much older, but I do not know the history yet. I will refer to people by their Masonic titles, which is their function in the Lodge. My aim is to speak of the organization, rather than the people.
The building was built in the late 19th century. I assume that it was built for, and possibly by, the Masons, because it is laid out sensibly to the organization’s needs. It is not unlike the secular parts of most churches. In saying that, and despite the religious overtones to some of the organization’s accouterments, Freemasonry is not a religion.
[Note: I have since learned that the building was initially a store. For a while it continued so after the Masons bought it. I certainly did not notice but a fellow Candidate pointed out that the East/West orientation of the Lodge Room does not exactly conform to the East and West travels of the Sun outside. The symbolism remains effective even without celestial accuracy.
The Lodge features a large kitchen, a large function room, and numerous smaller rooms. On the second floor is another large room where ceremonies are held, and more small rooms. The roomy 3rd floor attic is being converted into a game room.
Throughout the building are pictures of members past and present, as well as symbols of the craft. It is a well-worn but vibrant building.
My cicerone was a Past Master. A Past Master is one who has served as Master of the Lodge. One can serve only once as Master, for a term, currently, of one year. The title Past Master can be regarded as an honorific.
The Past Master explained the organization while showing me the sights. I expected the Lodge Room, where ceremonies are held, to be off limits, but he took me in and explained the details of how it is laid out (which I will do shortly).
Symbolism is central to the Masonic manner of teaching. Freemasonry is regarded as a spiritual path, and I cannot disagree. The Lodge Room illustrates this symbolism.
The Lodge Room is an oblong square, i.e., a rectangle, or imperfect square. It is modeled after the Temple of Solomon. The rectangle runs along an East/West axis. Formal chairs, like thrones, are set at the East, West, and South for Masonic officials. Electric candles are also displayed at these points. The North sides is dark in imitation of the Temple of Solomon (which sits so far up the elliptic that it receives no light inside from that direction). This darkness also fits the symbolism. Benches for everyone else run along the North and South walls. In the center of the room is an altar with the Bible. The effect of the room, with its careful lighting, is both dramatic and thought-provoking.
When we finished the tour, we sat and talked. I was asked directly if I believed in God, which I affirmed. The Past Master invited me to the monthly breakfast the following Sunday.
My wife and I attended this breakfast. It was the sort of perfect early autumn day that New England can throw at you occasionally: clear sky and just slightly cool. The front door of the Lodge was open and the place bustled. I found the past master who invited me in the kitchen. During the interview, he offered to be my sponsor, which every candidate needs. He told me to go in and have breakfast.
The meal was a reasonable $5 a head. A woman collected money at the door, and women (and lots of children) attended the breakfast, but all cooking and serving was done by Masons.
We were given slips to check off what we wanted for breakfast: bacon, sausages, ham, eggs, pancakes, coffee, oj, and beans. Might have been more to the selection than that, but that is certainly enough.
We were joined by a man, with whom we conversed. We were new to Billerica and he was a longtime resident, so we talked about the town. I assumed that he, and all the men there, were Masons, but indeed he was not. He just liked the meal.
The breakfast is a way to make money for the Lodge, and is deemed successful in that way. It also develops camaraderie among the Brethren as well as provides a way to show off Freemasonry. I think a change in the organization occurred some few years ago that allowed a more active pursuit of members. Radio ads began appearing, featuring Ben Franklin.
After the meal, my sponsor came to take me away. He brought me to a table in the hallway outside the Lodge Room. He gathered a quorum of 3 other Masons. It was like a job application. I filled out an application, which included references.
While so engaged, I heard some noisy music. Someone was passing behind me, and I thought he carried a radio or something. After a moment I realized that it was my phone. Not my phone, really, but that of my son. I had inadvertently grabbed his instead of mine. He uses his phone as an alarm clock, hence the loud (and obnoxious) screaming of the ringtone. I apologized but it was just an amusing moment.
They inquired of my interest in Freemasonry, asked if I believed in God, and made other similar queries. I mentioned my grandfather and father-in-law. One of them said that he could look up my grandfather in the records.
After the formalities, I returned to my wife with my sponsor. We chatted briefly. He made it clear that my wife was welcome in one of the sister organizations, and my son, being over 18, could become a Mason, too.
I heard nothing from the Masons after that. I understood that it took a while to process applications. I do not know how rigourously they follow up references but I know of no blots on my ‘scutcheon, so I was surprised my this lack of communication. I finally called my sponsor, who was surprised that I had heard nothing. He put me in touch with the Lodge Secretary, one of the people who interviewed me.
The Secretary remembered me, and said that they were deciding how to handle the applications that they had. An open house sometime mid-October pulled in a goodly number of prospective members. They were working on the logistics of how to get all initiated.
It was not until January that the Secretary called me. A mailing that he’d sent out had been returned. My address had been transcribed wrong. He indicated that I was invited to the initiation. I shall speak of that ceremony next.
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