Companion Joe
Premium Member
The gentleman to which I am referring could competently open and close the lodge, but it was far from smooth. By the time he was master, he was in his 70s, long removed from his lectures. He tried to beg out of being master, stating his lack of ability to do memory work like a champ. His lodge owed it to him to make sure he had the opportunity to be WM, an honor he richly deserved. Sometimes, the pride and respect goes from the group to the individual. This person, if you measured on a scale of 0-10 for being a man and Mason, he'd be a 12. Some people are ritualist, and some are not.
In Tennessee, Masons are only required to learn the EA and FC lectures to advance. You have to present the MM lecture before open lodge in order to get a certificate from the GL, but it is not a requirement. By that time, you have already been raised a MM and are entitled to the benefits of such. Heck, my dad is an old man and closing in on being a 50-year Mason. He is not now, nor ever has been, a ritualist. He could probably answer the first question of the MM lecture, but beyond that probably not. He is in lodge every time the door is open and has been the primary investigator for our lodge during the last 20 years. Just because he doesn't do memory work doesn't make him less of a Mason and a valuable contributor to the lodge.
In Tennessee, Masons are only required to learn the EA and FC lectures to advance. You have to present the MM lecture before open lodge in order to get a certificate from the GL, but it is not a requirement. By that time, you have already been raised a MM and are entitled to the benefits of such. Heck, my dad is an old man and closing in on being a 50-year Mason. He is not now, nor ever has been, a ritualist. He could probably answer the first question of the MM lecture, but beyond that probably not. He is in lodge every time the door is open and has been the primary investigator for our lodge during the last 20 years. Just because he doesn't do memory work doesn't make him less of a Mason and a valuable contributor to the lodge.