The challenge before Freemasonry today is to see with clarity the potential of our Order, for history has demonstrated that when civilisations fail, it is almost always man who has failed, in his will, spirit, and morality.
Freemasonry offers to today’s world three abiding principles. These principles are the essence of Masonic philosophy and teaching.
MORALITY—Integrity of the individual—runs through all our philosophy. The man who does his duty, the man who respects his family and his friends, the man whose dealings are marked by uprightness of intent, the man who is just to his employees, honest with his employer, the man whose word is his bond—that is what Freemasonry teaches. Today’s world needs the moral teachings of Freemasonry.
BROTHERHOOD. Freemasonry is a declaration that mankind is indivisible and that we must learn to live together if we are going to live at all. We live in a global village. Nothing can happen in another that won’t have an effect on you and me. We belong together. The race that is on today, is not a race exclusively between totalitarianism and democracy; it is a race between brotherhood and destruction. The world must learn the secrets of life that will establish brotherhood if it would find its life. This can be Freemasonry’s major contribution to today’s world.
COMPASSION. The entire Masonic ritual stresses compassion. How today’s world needs compassion!!! To strengthen the ties of compassion for those in need is to strengthen the ties if international brotherhood. Historically, Freemasonry has survived the vicissitudes of time and circumstances irrespective of the size of its membership and its institutional characteristics. It has survived because of its focus on the individual.
What then can Freemasonry be in today’s world? It can be what it has always been, a lamp to light the way for the seeker of truth and a safe harbour for all who discover the true meaning of morality, brotherhood, and compassion.
As Freemasons we must remember that today is OUR time. Yesterday belongs to our predecessors, tomorrow belongs to our descendants who will fashion it by the rules and examples we give them today.
Freemasonry and Today’s World, W.L. Wright (The Northern Light):
Tupelo Masonic Lodge No. 318 F&AM
http://www.tupelomason.org
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