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BACK NEXT Summer 2008 Issue 45 Letter from the Editor Grand Lodge News News and Views On The Level International News Beyond the Craft Perambulating the Lodge Masonic Dining and Celebration Interview: The Grand Chancellor The Orator Walking the Way of Saint James Abd el-Kader: Algerian Nationalist and Freemason Province of Cambridgeshire Library & Museum Brother Lightfoote's Journal Review: Committed to the Flames Review: The Mythology of Secret Societies Review: The Dawn of Astrology Letters to the Editor Internet Library & Museum of Freemasonry Grand Lodge Quarterly Communication Convocation of Supreme Grand Chapter RMBI Masonic Samaritan Fund Grand Charity RMTGB Canon Richard Tydeman: Looking unto the Rock Copyright 1997-2008 FREEMASONRY TODAY Designed and Maintained by: Cyberpoint Limited

FREEMASONRY TODAY Social Masonic Dining and Celebration After several years of serious subjects and fine art the summer show for the Library and Museum at Freemasons’ Hall this year turns to the more social side of masonry by featuring three hundred years of Masonic dining and celebration. One of the earliest entries in the first minute book of the Ancients Grand Lodge alleges that masons are being made for the fee of a ‘leg of mutton’ and, as one of the reasons for forming Grand Lodge was to ... A Weekend Away The range of schemes and projects which go to make up a Lodge or Ladies’ Festival is far wider than ever before. In days gone by lodges were restricted to the choice of a hotel or other venue in their immediate locality, with good travel connections to the home town. Nowadays, lodges have become much more adventurous and are ... Masonic Support in Sabah During my gap year travels I wanted to visit Sabah, which along with Sarawak, is part of Borneo; together both comprise eastern Malaysia. I wished to see the animal sanctuaries there - perhaps even work in one of them. Unfortunately, not long before I left, my college friend decided not to go. So I prepared to travel by myself. My father contacted Joseph Chow, a Past Master of Lodge Kinabalu, No. 7047, in Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Sabah, to see if he could help me meet some local people my own age. Upon arriving at Kota Kinbalu, I telephoned him ... A Weekend Away The image of a Ladies’ Festival or a lodge celebration of any kind has changed forever. These days, lodges plan weekends away, sometimes at a resort in their own part of the country, sometimes travelling considerable distances to benefit from a complete change of scenery. Such events have become very easy to organise since the hotel industry has adapted ... A Weekend Away In days gone by, the format in which lodges would organise a ladies’ festival comprised a dinner dance at a local hotel, with a toastmaster and some tasteful gifts. Nowadays, lodges are more and more planning weekends away, either in holiday and other resorts in the United Kingdom or, increasingly, at continental or Irish resorts ... Why Do We Exclude the Ladies? At a recent "20 years-on" reunion of 19 professional ladies, 16 of them had married a graduate from Cambridge University. Today, many of these ladies are better qualified and earn more money, than their highly qualified husbands. Obviously, these ladies expect to participate in family activities on equal terms because it has become the accepted social norm in such families. Therefore, freemasonry is trying to buck an existing social trend. No wonder it has become rare for doctors, teachers, solicitors and other professional men to join our Lodges. Recently my son and his wife joined 'Roteract' and a local tennis club, while their teenage sons are members of ... Masonic Night at the Palladium A highly successful evening’s entertainment was held at the London Palladium in the presence of the Grand Master, HRH Duke of Kent, which raised over £45,000. The supported charities are New Masonic Samaritan Fund and The Children’s Trust ... Don't be Pressurised I have been inundated with enquiries about stakeholder pension schemes and their effect on business. Banks and other institutions are bombarding businesses with literature, much of which seems to imply a panic, which is entirely wrong. While early preparation is desirable, the deadline is nearly a year away. For instance: The deadline by which employers must provide employees access to a stakeholder pension scheme is 8 October 2001, although schemes are already being marketed; At the moment there is no compulsion for employers to contribute to the scheme ... A Weekend to Remember Festival Secretaries play a vital role in the life of a Lodge, and these days they are spoilt for choice. But one wonders how often there is general discussion in Lodges about where to go, leaving it instead just to the Master and his Festival Secretary. To guide Lodges in their possible choice, Freemasonry Today has taken a look at some of the festivals on offer. Principal Hotels is a group of characteristic, individual and highly distinctive hotels located throughout the UK, the Netherlands, Denmark and Ireland ... Doing the Continental When the Lodge of Stedfast Unity No. 9128 from Saffron Walden in Essex invited Freemasonry Today to join them for their Ladies’ Festival weekend in the beautiful Flemish city of Brugge, how could we refuse? Ian Eaton Festival Secretary and Worshipful Master Colin Marshall had decided on Brugge following the Lodge’s first successful European excursion last year to Chantilly, near Paris. Ian and Colin were only too happy to engage the services of President Tours again, as the Paris weekend had gone so well ... Scrap the Festive Board Whenever friends bemoan the falling membership and current unfashionable image of Freemasonry, I attempt to cheer them. But the Order has been going 300 years, seen bad times before and will still be here in another 300 years. English Freemasonry must address the shortage of good candidates in many lodges. There are many different answers, but one simple practical measure for some Lodges would be to scrap the festive board. This is not a new or revolutionary idea. Struggling Lodges in London were advised in this way some years ago. Many English lodges abroad ... Dangers of Electronic Banking I often hear complaints about banks, but last month was quite an eye-opener on the aspects of banking-related fraud. Traditionally, the law has placed banks in the position of being strictly responsible for ensuring that cheques are correctly signed. Electronic banking has changed all this and banks are often asking their customers to sign a “blanket” indemnity. People seem to sign these documents in blissful ignorance, trusting their bank, not realising that by doing so they may be letting the bank “off the hook”. The electronic bulk payments system makes no provision ... At The Festive Board It is the natural ambition of many, if not most of us, to occupy the Master’s chair sometime in our masonic lives. Consequently, we spend countless hours over the years learning the ritual off by heart in preparation for that coveted office. However, when the great day dawns, some Masters Elect suddenly discover that ritual alone will not suffice, and additional skills have to be ‘plugged in’ to ensure all the proceedings run smoothly. Presiding over the Festive Board is such an example where a competent Master is put to the test ... Cruising is for Everyone Cruising used to be almost exclusively for the elderly and the very rich. The exceptions used to be the one-way emigration journeys such as the eight week voyage to Australia which was very class orientated. The émigrés were not only kept separate from the First Class at all times but in some cases they were even rationed as to how much daylight they could enjoy on deck. This has all changed very dramatically during the last thirty years and most especially during the last decade, with many of the major cruise companies commissioning large new cruise ships ...   Social © FreemasonryToday 1997-2008