Monroe Lodge #22 F&AM

A common problem in Freemasonryi today is the low cost of dues. Using an inflation calculator shows that if we paid just $10 for dues in 1900 (I am not sure how much Monroe 22 charged for dues in 1900, this is just a random figure) the current dues should be $220.

However our current dues are about $75. We once had a great Lodge building right downtown where people could notice us. However, we lost that building because we did not keep it up. Imagine if our dues would have increased with inflation, would we have been able to keep up our building then? It seems very likely that we could have. We can't go back and fix that problem, but we can deal with the problem today for the future of our Lodge and Freemasonry in Bloomington.

The Volume of Sacred Law

W:.M:., Wardens, and brethreni,

Upon the altar of Freemasonryi resides three great lights. Of these three, one is considered the “Greatest Light of Freemasonry”. In Indiana ritual this is referred to as the Holy Bible. In many other jurisdictions it is referred to simply as the Volume of Sacred Law. It is a symbol only, and not the religious text of Freemasonry.

Freemasonry is nonsectarian. It does not, and should not attempt to provide a religion to its candidates, nor promote one religion or another. While many anti-masons claim otherwise, Freemasonry is not a religion, nor a substitute for religion. While the anti-mason quickly points to the Holy Bible, or Volume of Sacred Law which rests upon our altar, and claims that it is proof of our fraternity’s religious nature, it is merely a misunderstanding of the uninitiated. To the initiate it should be clear that the book that rests upon our altar, whatever it might be, is a symbol only.

Ok, many people have probably stumbled upon anti-masonryi. I will quickly demonstrate here its tactics...

There is a list on a certain anti-masonic website about Freemasons who talk about Satan. It misquotes passages and takes things way out of context. For instance this:

'Illustrious' Manley Palmer Hall 33°
The Secret Teachings of All Ages

"I hereby promise the Great Spirit Lucifer, Prince of Demons, that each year I will bring unto him a human soul to do with as as it may please him, and in return Lucifer promises to bestow upon me the treasures of the earth and fulfil my every desire for the length of my natural life. If I fail to bring him each year the offering specified above, then my own soul shall be forfeit to him. Signed..... { Invocant signs pact with his own blood } " page CIV

After several months of work by many Masons, including many of the Knights of the North, we are pleased to announce the launch of the new Masonic Dictionary website! Also known as "A Field Guide to Progressive Masonryi," the Dictionary includes articles on Apathy, Universality, Landmarks, Pride, Dues, Freemasonarianism, and many more. It's your A to Z Guide to the problems that Freemasonry faces, and solutions to those problems.

Here is a Masonic Education Link from our Brothers in California.

http://www.calodges.org/no194/Masonic_Education.htm

Check it out,

Rick P.

Hey,
here are some books that I think are seriously good works dealing with Freemasonryi...

The Meaning of Masonry by W.L. Wilmshurst

Symbols of Freemasonry (this book is a part of a "Symbols of" series by Barnes and Noble... written by a French brother)

Freemasonry by W. Kirk Macnulty

Turning the Hiram Key (note: not The Hiram Key) by Robert Lomas

Let me know of any others that I should get my hands on.

fraternally,
Rick

Hey,
I realize that someone might find this website looking for information on joining our Lodge. If this is you then give us a call and let us know you are interested. Our phone number can be found under the "when and where" section on this website. For information on the requirements for joining, see the Grand Lodge of Indiana website; a link can be found on the lower right of this website.

If you know a Freemason ask him for a petition (2B1 Ask1), if not we can send someone out to meet you, and then you can ask him for a petition.

good luck,
R.P.

Albert Pike's Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite is available online at Sacred-Texts.

(Since we postponed my presentation of this topic until the May meeting of the G&G Society, I thought I would post my working transcript here for those who are interested.)

Why the Holy Grail? And why me?

Last Fall, I was contacted by the people who have been publishing my wife’s low-carb cookbooks, which many of you know about. The same people have also been the state-side publishers of books like The Hiram Key and Robert Lomas’ latest effort, Turning the Hiram Key, which I had the opportunity to preview before publication. They informed me that they were planning to issue a "Holy Grail Kit," which would include a figurine of a "grail," a map showing important grail-related locations, a set of character cards depicting important people relative to the grail-legends, a genealogical chart showing the bloodline of Jesus and Mary Magdalene (ahem!), and a booklet to explain the origins of the legends, modern theories, etc. Their hope was that they could persuade me to write the booklet.

This is pretty cool:

The 26-page Coptic text of the Gospel of Judas is part of 62 pages containing several writings (some in Coptic and others in Greek) copied in one codex, or ancient papyrus book. It appears to have been produced by Egyptian Christians sometime in the fourth century. It's quite possible that the codex was part of the cache of 13 codices discovered in 1947 at Nag Hammadi, including the famous Gospel of Thomas. (Slate - April 10, 2006)

And here i