Rogue Council #23, Cryptic Masons of Oregon

by Jeff Day, Deputy Master

I have heard people say that Masonry is a little bit like an amateur theater group. There is some truth to this: We act out dramatic scenes, which are in certain cases even presented in a way similar to a theatrical stage production, complete with backdrops, props, and costumes. We are quite a peculiar "theater group" group however, for we have no audience except our own members, and we don't change our shows every year—in fact, we've been running the same few shows again and again for hundreds of years.

I would suggest, and I believe most Masons would agree, that our rituals are designed to provide unique transformative experiences both for the candidates and the "actors" involved in conferring the degrees. Our ritual work is intended to take on an inner meaning and significance within the heart and soul of each individual Mason.

The opening ceremonies performed at each meeting help to take our minds and imaginations into an allegorical (some might even say magical) place and time. For the Three Degrees of the Symbolic Lodge, this place is Jerusalem, and the time is during the building of King Solomon's Temple. The Lectures of these Degrees inform us that Entered Apprentices walk and work upon the ground floor of the Temple, while Fellow Crafts assemble in the Middle Chamber, and Master Masons meet in the Holy of Holies.

But nowhere is this type of "Time and Place" symbolism used as deliberately and effectively as in the opening ceremonies of the Select Master Degree, the Ninth Degree of Masonry in the York Rite. The language of this ceremony directs our imaginations to the "Secret Vault" and we are told not only exactly where and when it was built, but by whom, for what purpose, how it was constructed, and even the regular hours during which the construction took place. As I listen to the opening ceremonies, and later, the closing ceremonies, of this degree, even during a business meeting where no degree is being conferred, I try to relax and allow my imagination to take me to this place. When we finally close and depart from the meeting, I fully expect to walk out into the cool black of the night, only to be greeted by the startling fact that the sun is still bright upon the horizon (at least in the summer months.)

Was the "Secret Vault" real? Maybe not—ah, but perhaps! From a fraternal point of view it matters not whether the Secret Vault ever really existed in the physical world. What is important is that we are all taken together into this place which provides a sacred retreat of harmony and sincere brotherhood. It is because we have all heard and contemplated the legends associated with this Vault that it begins to take on a deep meaning to our Companions. Just as mentioning a few details from a great horror film or book can recall real fear and terror, and a great love story can recall romantic emotions to a person, regardless of whether the story was fact or fiction, so too, the Masonic legends, whether or not they represent accurate history, have the potency to draw great and genuine emotion into the hearts of our Brothers and Companions, uniting our hearts and minds together in peace, harmony, and brotherly love.

Image adapted from a photo of the arched basement that supported the western stoa of the Agora of Izmir in Turkey, built under the direction of Alexander the Great around 300 B.C.