by Christopher Hodapp
The 2023 California Masonic Symposium on June 28th may perhaps be the most unusual educational program ever put on by a grand lodge: "Brother Harry Houdini – The Master Mystic & the Masonic Ties to Our Craft." Throughout its modern history, there have been active, practicing magicians within the fraternity of Freemasonry. Ye Olde Cup & Ball No. 880 is a recently-chartered "affinity lodge" in Los Angeles for professional and budding magicians. Appropriately, it meets at the famed Magic Castle private club in Hollywood (clubhouse for the very real Academy of Magical Arts). Additionally, the Invisible Lodge is an international, honorary association of magician-Masons (it was founded by Sir Felix Korim, a well known stage Illusionist in 1953). But how are the practices of magic and Masonry related—and what philosophical ideas underpin them both?
For a very long time indeed, there have been people with active imaginations who have attempted to either discover mystical, metaphysical secrets and powers within what we call speculative Freemasonry, or, when they couldn't really find any, to infuse it with their own notions of white magic, black magic, high magic, or spiritual magic (or, if you prefer, magick). There's always been a small group of people who join the fraternity and are sorely disappointed that we really don't teach them the power to raise the dead, live forever, and amass vast riches, after all.
But that's not to say there's no place in Masonry for magic. Au contraire. It's the *magic* that depends on showmanship and performance within our ceremonies to most effectively bring our memorized ritual work to life, instead of just being a two-hour drone of meaningless, antiquated, and unfamiliar words. Ritual showmanship – when it's done well – really does work magic on a candidate's emotions and spiritual understanding. It's very serious hocus-pocus that's supposed to be transformative to receptive candidates. Our magic is designed to make the common man actively think about deeply philosophical concepts of life, death, good, evil, honor, integrity, responsibility, the nature of God, the examination of our own faiths, and the very purpose of our brief life on Earth.
The legendary magician, escape artist and master showman, Harry Houdini (1891-1926) was a member of New York's St. Cecile Lodge 568, and one of the main presentations of California's online symposium will be about his incredible life and career. A panel discussion will explore the ties between magic and Masonry: Magic’s relevance to Freemasonry today, the importance of showmanship in our ritual ceremonies, and the very real 'magical' connections between Freemasonry and the ritual.
This year's theme for the California symposium shouldn't be surprising, as the current Grand Master of California, MW Randall Brill, is an accomplished magician, as are all of the other presenters for this program: Maynard Edwards, S. Brent Morris, and Ralph C. Shelton II. (In fact, if you've ever attended a Masonic presentation given by Brent Morris, he will commonly preface his speech by performing a quick magic trick, and his university dissertation for a PhD in mathematics was written about the mathematical probabilities involved in card shuffling.)
There will be no in-person presentations this year. The Symposium is expected to last approximately two hours and will be conducted online only. There is no fee – a reservation is required in order to receive the proper log-in credentials. REGISTER HERE.
On the same theme, on July 16th, 2023, the Invisible Lodge International (a.k.a. "The Honorary Association of Masonic Magicians at Work Under the Jurisdiction of the Known and Unknown World") will hold a special public celebration of its 70th anniversary at the Long Beach Scottish Rite Center (855 Elm Ave., Long Beach, CA 90813). It will also be the 100th anniversary of Harry Houdini's initiation.
- There will be two sittings for dinner on Sunday night, beginning at 6:00PM and 7:30PM.
- Magic shows featuring the Lodge's members will begin at 8:30
- The main stage show at 9:00PM.
- An attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the most number of simultaneous escapes (audience help will be required)
- The History of Magical Masons and the Invisible Lodge
- Public initiation of new members
- At midnight, there will be a Houdini séance (just in case he finally has found the secret to coming back again)
- And a surprise Houdini event will end the evening.
No word on price just yet, but tickets will soon be available online at the event website HERE.
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