A Murder of Masons
on Blog From Beyond (Rwanda), 31/Jan/2010 12:04, 34 days ago
Makeup:Check.Stockings:Check.Dress...Check!Then we shall go to the ball :)L-R: William, me, mum, Merrick.And what a very interesting night it was too.It was the Anglo Scottish Masonic Lodge's annual Ladies Night in Northampton. Mum's partner, Merrick, is a Mason as was his father. Who knows, William (his son) may be too one day.I have to admit to having been hugely curious. I'd never been to a Mason's lodge before. My friend Taz and I were trying to think of the collective noun for a group of Masons. Logically it must be a 'lodge' of Masons, but she suggested a melee, a mob or a many of Masons. My personal favourite, like crows, is a murder of Masons; it has that sufficiently occult ring to it.It began with drinks at the bar. Then into the hall for a five-course meal which began with a bagpiper piping in the Lodge Master, his daughter (standing in for his wife, who died three years ago) and his personal guests who paraded between the tables to their table in the centre.Each year the Lodge Master changes and next year it will be Merrick's turn. A huge honour amongst Masons, or 'Worshipful Brothers' and 'Brethren', as they are called. This year Merrick was one of three gavel bangers. There were large wooden mallets and a wooden block and each time order was called the three gavel bangers hit their gavels in turn: bang, bang, bang. The table fair shook! Any time he went for a comfort break, another W. Bro. had to take his place as the chair could never be left empty in case a gavel needed to be banged.Next, someone stood up and exclaimed:Some hae meat and canna eat, and some wad eat that want it, but we hae meat and we can eat, and sae the Lord be thankit.Next, the piper returned with a giant haggis on a silver plater marching behind and the Master of Ceremonies recited (very well, it must be said) the first three verses of Burns'Address to a Haggis:Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,Great chieftain o' the puddin-race!Aboon them a' ye tak your place,Painch, tripe, or thairm:Weel are ye wordy o' a graceAs lang's my arm.The groaning trencher there ye fill,Your hurdies like a distant hill,Your pin wad help to mend a millIn time o' need,While thro' your pores the dews distilLike amber bead.His knife see rustic Labour dight,An' cut you up wi' ready sleight,Trenching your gushing entrails bright,Like ony ditch;And then, O what a glorious sight,Warm-reekin, rich!Upon which he stabbed it to pieces and we all clapped.The first course of the meal was cock-a-leek soup followed by the famed haggis with neeps and tatties, then a full chicken dinner with bacon and button onion sauce. Pudding was chocolate fudge cake with fresh cream and a strawberry on top, rounded up by coffee and mint chocolates.I was absolutelystuffed.Oddly, grace was said at the end of the meal:For these and all thy mercies given,We bless and praise Thy Name O LordMay we receive them with thanksgivingEver trusting in Thy WordTo Thee alone be Honour, gloryNow and henceforth, for evermore.After dinner we were entertained by traditional Scottish dancers. The full crossed-swords and all. They were very good. Then came the toasts, first to Her Majesty the Queen, then to Absent Friends, and then a kind of best-man's wedding speech but about women. Sort of humorous cracks about ladies - supposed to be 'humorous but never offensive'. It was excruciatingly 'old boys club', with us women smiling along. Jokes such as: "Originally this toast was given to the wives of Masons who had prepared the meal. But isn't it insulting to suggest that it should be the women who do the cooking? After all, we all know that the best chefs are men."That sort of thing.Then another bloke stood up and sang a song calledThe Ladies' Songand during the chorus all the other men joined in and, on the last chorus, joined in standing:Solo: Ladies from the East and WestWe have done our very bestTo ensure your welcome hereBright, fraternal and sincereChorus: Warm Masonic hearts to meet youHands of fellowship to greet youMay our welcome here todayCheer each lady on her waySolo: We all recognise your worthOur best friends upon this earthMay we always be inclinedTo be loving just and kindChorus.Solo: And when we have said adieuMay our love remain with youAnd may we renew that loveIn a grander lodge aboveChorus.I couldn't help thinking, however, that - should we chance to meet again in a grander lodge above - us women folk wouldn't be allowed in.Seemed a bit of a silly line.After the song, the wife (or, in this case, daughter) of the Master Mason gave a 'reply' on behalf of the ladies - which was basically a speech about how wonderful her father is. Next year mum will have to do the same for Merrick. Could be interesting :opThe raffle was drawn and then all the ladies put their place names in an ice bucket and each table drew the name of the lady who would take home the table centrepiece of white roses and thistles. All of the ladies received a little thistle pin for attending.The closing of formalities came with theTylers Song, sung by the Worshipful Master, Masters (of other lodges) and Past Masters who stood at the front of the hall:Solo: Are your glasses charged in the West and the SouthThe Worshipful Master criesThey're charged to the West, they're charged to the SouthAre the Wardens' prompt repliesThen to our final toast tonight your glasses freely drainHappy to meet, sorry to part, happy to meet againChorus: Happy to meet again, happy to meet againHappy to meet, sorry to part, happy to meet again.Solo: Amidst our mirth we drink to all our brethren o'er the worldIn every clime our flag of love is gloriously unfurledWe pride each brother dark or fairWho bears no moral stainHappy to meet, sorry to part, happy to meet againChorus.Solo: To brethren of the mystic artThe night is waning fastOur feast is o'er, our work is doneThis song must be our lastGoodnight, goodnight, once more, once moreRepeat the farewell strainHappy to meet, sorry to part, happy to meet againChorus.Throughout the entire evening there was one black man sitting slightly apart from the crowd, over by the bar. For most of the night I was trying to figure out which lady he was with and why he was sitting so far from the others.And then, of course, it became obvious.He was the DJ.And then 60s, 70s and 80s classics held sway and my estimation of the multiculturalism of the lodge slipped right back down to where it started ;)After a bit of boogying, one of the old boys took a few of us up to see one of their meeting rooms. Most years they also take ladies in to see the temple, but sadly not this year.The meeting room was big and red with a giant 'G' hanging in the centre, with an eye in it. I asked what this symbolised and he explained: the 'all seeing eye' and then gave me the absolute classic line: "I can't tell you any more otherwise I'd have to shoot you."I felt like burning my bra in the centre of the room.There were some very beautiful stained glass panels at the top of the stairs. One with the 'all seeing eye':Which immediately made me think of the 'eye of Horus':Which, in turn, made me think of the pyramids of Egypt:And subsequently I found this fascinating image on Google which is the exact Masonic image on the glass only with the eye of Horus where the all seeing eye was:I mean, that really doesn't take a genius to figure out does it - even a woman could do it. All be it one that was a neophyte in theGolden Dawn(err, twice) and who read and re-readPaul Devereux'sEarth Memoryfrom which she found herself explaining the significance of the Golden Square (fromgolden ratio) in pyramid building to a Mason.And for the same reason I found dib-dib, dob-dobbing to the GD a little ridiculous, I also have to admit to taking Masonry with a generous pinch of salt. All a bitKnights Templarreally. If, as a woman, you disrespect me by shunning me from your club (and then decide to sing me silly songs and jest at my expense to make up for it ;) ) - then really, what is there for me to respect in return?And yes, I am a feminist. I'm not a militant, but I believe in equality. The right to fail or succeed on your own merit - but at least the right to try. Even Buddhism lost my respect on that count. And Christianity. And Islam. And Thelema. In fact, very few survived ;) I'm sureRose Kellywould have something to say about it.Perhaps I'm not taking it in the spirit it was intended. But, as with my previousrants on the topic of 'tradition'. Just because we alwayshavedone it that way, doesn't mean we alwaysshould. And if you choose to stick to the tradition, then you can hardly be surprised or upset when a 'modern' woman chooses to find it amusing.Of course women can go off and set up their own lodges, and some have, and there is aGrand Lodge of Freemasonry for Men and Womenhowever, in a list exploring issues ofwomen in Masonryit states clearly that:...no "mainstream" Lodge/Grand Lodge of Masons accepts women as members or will recognize (acknowledge) any lodge which does.And all the while I just keep thinking back to one of my favourite books:Pillars of the Earthby Ken Follett. Women built the cathedrals of this country too. Women worked the earth, made the clay, laid bricks and everything else until they got pushed out of the game. So it isn't a question of physical ability, or architectural understanding, or surely even one of 'spiritualism'. We're all made out of the same clay.It's exactly the same issue I had withChristian NGOs: if your beliefs are defined by who isn't allowed to join, and held up by walls of whatisn'tpart of your beliefs - then the foundations those walls stand upon are very weak indeed. To think your entire way of thinking could be brought to its knees by a single woman taking part in your ceremonies. That your thinking is so fragile it would evaporate if you taught a woman your rationale.I don't, and probably never will, understand it. And that's undoubtedly the argument they would use as to why I could never join ;)Anyway, off on a bit of a tangent there.It was an extremely interesting experience.And with that, let me say it our way:Merry meet, merry part and merry meet again.We're not so different after all.Also the Northampton Mason's Pentacle. See 'golden ratio' link for more.