Just two hundred years ago the famous signal was issued by Admiral Lord Nelson, reminding the fleet that England was expecting every man to do his duty. And as we know, every man did, and many of them - including the Admiral - gave their lives in so doing.
    ‘Duty’: it is a word that we don’t hear so much these days. Everybody wants their ‘rights’ but few will acknowledge their duties. However, Freemasonry leaves no doubt in the minds of its members that duties play an important part in our conduct. The Charge given to a candidate after Initiation recommends the serious study of the Bible, for therein we learn of the important duties we owe to God, neighbour and self. Notice the expression, ‘owe’, for the word ‘duty’ itself is derived from the Latin debere, ‘to owe or to be in debt to’. It reminds us that we are under obligation to pay or repay for what we have been given.
    ‘To pay?’ sneers the cynic, ‘What have I got to pay for? I didn’t ask to come into this world. If there is a God, it is up to him to provide what I need to get me through life.’ ‘But he does,’ replies the Godfearing man, ‘He has given us so much that a whole life-time of service could never repay the enormous debt that we all owe.’
    The Charge goes into further detail: our first duty is to God, by showing reverence to his name as our creator and maker; by imploring his aid in all our lawful undertakings - and note that they must be lawful - and by seeking his comfort and support in emergencies. The reverence comes first, with aid and comfort to follow.
    God is so often treated as a last resort instead of as a first principle. The opening scene of Shakespeare’s play The Tempest takes place on board a sinking ship as sailors cry, ‘All lost! To prayers, to prayers! All lost!’ This gives a very negative view of religion. God is not a safety valve but the very source of life and power. Reverence comes first, and the rest will follow naturally. Duty to one’s neighbour comes next, and the use of the very masonic expression, ‘acting with him on the square’ has entered into the English language as a summing up of the ideal way to live. It involves help and kindness towards our fellow-creatures, sympathy with the unfortunate and the suffering, and in general doing to others what we would like others to do to us. The injunction of Leviticus 19:18, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself’ has been repeated many times down the ages and is still as important today - and to those who ask, ‘but who is my neighbour?’ the story of the Good Samaritan will always stand as a classic example of ‘acting on the square.’
    Perhaps the most difficult to comprehend is the idea of duty to oneself. Owing a debt to God is understandable, and behaving hospitably towards neighbours makes sense, but how can you repay yourself? The answer lies in the value that we put upon self-respect. ‘You owe it to yourself to make the best of yourself’ we say. This requires what the Charge calls ‘a prudent and well-regulated course of discipline’. We have all been given talents, whether mental or physical, philosophical or practical, and we owe it to ourselves to exert those talents to the glory of God and the welfare of our fellow-creatures.
    However, the Charge to the initiate doesn’t stop there with what one might call the ‘moral duties’; it goes on to describe the civil duties which are owed by every citizen of the world. These include avoiding anything that might subvert the peace and good order of society, and paying due obedience to the laws of any country in which we may temporarily reside. It is important to stress this at the present time when certain wilder elements of our population seem to think that rules and good behaviour need not be observed when overseas, for instance, to watch a football match. A country that accepts you as a visitor or affords you its protection can reasonably expect you to behave. There can be no ‘duty-free zone’ for a citizen of the world.
    Finally, the initiate is charged never to lose sight of the allegiance due to the sovereign of his native land. Obedience to the rules in other countries need not affect the natural patriotism that nature has implanted in each of us. We have double duty here, to express our own love and attachment towards the country of our birth, and also to set a good example to those of other nations whose standards may be different from our own.
    ‘England expects,’ said Nelson, ‘that every man will do his duty.’ Freemasonry expects the same ready acceptance of duty from all its members.