Pscyclepath
Premium Member
I traveled to at least 4 other lodges to watch EA degrees after I had received mine, and about the same as a Fellowcraft. My mentors in my lodge thought it was important to see the wide world of masonry beyond our lodge doors, and it's an excellent way to learn your lectures by seeing the degree again, coupled with sitting in the back benches of the lodge and learning to recite like a parrot ;-)
And it was a wonderful teaching experience... one of the things I like to do now is visit other lodges and meet my other brothers. I learn a little something new every time I go to a different place. And in mentoring new EAs and FC brothers, I escort them to the same sorts of things.
First thing: As an EA or FC, never "travel" alone. Always have one of the master masons from your lodge. who have sat with you in lodge at that degree or higher, go with you. You will need to be vouched for, and as mentioned above, only master masons can do that. (When you get to be a master mason, you will be able to do it too, so get on those lectures!! ;-) ) Our lodge has four or five guys who do a lot of visiting to help out with the degrees at neighboring lodges, and I was usually able to tag along with them.
Traveling with your brothers like this is an excellent team-building exercise. You do get to see there's a wide and wonderful world of brotherhood even outside of your home lodge. You can get drilled on your lecture/proficiency all the way up there, and most of the way back, if you run around with the same kind of mentors I did. And seeing the degree again, live and in living color, reinforces your learning your lecture. By not missing any of the practice nights, and acccompanying my mentors to the same degree at other lodges, I was able to go from EA to MM in a hair over 60 calendar days. My mentor was preoccupied at the time I was learning my master's lecture, so I wound up learning that mostly by going to and listening closely to the degree again, and committing that to memory, to the point I was able to turn that in at the next stated meeting after I was raised. So, traveling/visiting does help a lot.
And it was a wonderful teaching experience... one of the things I like to do now is visit other lodges and meet my other brothers. I learn a little something new every time I go to a different place. And in mentoring new EAs and FC brothers, I escort them to the same sorts of things.
First thing: As an EA or FC, never "travel" alone. Always have one of the master masons from your lodge. who have sat with you in lodge at that degree or higher, go with you. You will need to be vouched for, and as mentioned above, only master masons can do that. (When you get to be a master mason, you will be able to do it too, so get on those lectures!! ;-) ) Our lodge has four or five guys who do a lot of visiting to help out with the degrees at neighboring lodges, and I was usually able to tag along with them.
Traveling with your brothers like this is an excellent team-building exercise. You do get to see there's a wide and wonderful world of brotherhood even outside of your home lodge. You can get drilled on your lecture/proficiency all the way up there, and most of the way back, if you run around with the same kind of mentors I did. And seeing the degree again, live and in living color, reinforces your learning your lecture. By not missing any of the practice nights, and acccompanying my mentors to the same degree at other lodges, I was able to go from EA to MM in a hair over 60 calendar days. My mentor was preoccupied at the time I was learning my master's lecture, so I wound up learning that mostly by going to and listening closely to the degree again, and committing that to memory, to the point I was able to turn that in at the next stated meeting after I was raised. So, traveling/visiting does help a lot.