The GFN Treasure Chest Archives www.masonic-network.com "Where Master Masons Communicate"

Brother Lauritz Melchoir
Brother Wes Cook.

The Grand Lodge of New York annually awards medals to out-­standing Freemasons.

The recipient in 1946 was Lauritz L. H. Melchoir, said to be one of the greatest heroic tenors in all musical history. He is a member of a Danish lodge. Brother Melchoir has been singing ever since the 1890's when he was a choir boy in the English church of his birth-­place, Copenhagen. He has been signally honored and decorated no fewer than 25 times for his musical accomplishments:

"We honor him today not alone for that rise to supreme heights in his art, but because his fidelity to our beloved Craft has also grown with the years. He was raised a Master Mason November 13, 1919, in the Lodge Zorobabel og Frederik til del Kronede Haab, in Copenhagen. There he was made singer to the lodge. He took further degrees in 1921 and 1935. In 1928 he was honored by the National Grand Lodge of Denmark."

In reply, Brother Melchoir said:

"I can just say to you that this moment in my life as a Mason has been a crown for me of great worth. ... I have found that the three Lights have been shining for me as for others who like to follow what they shine for. The first, the Light of Beauty, I found in the symbols and the spirit of the Lodge and in the spirit of the brothers I met in many, many countries in the world. That beauty is there, always, and when you follow your Light you will see it, and you will absorb it, and you will bring it with you where you may go after your first entry in your Lodge. And then there is the Light of Wisdom. That also shines for you and shines bright for you, because you meet inside the lodge men who know what life is, and of whose wisdom you can drink like you drink of the well. So you find in your lodge your second Light—you can find that wisdom, if you want to find it. And then the last of these Lights—the Light of Power. Yes, that Light has certainly been shining for me and all of us who live in the world of today. We have seen power at its worst and power at its best. When you see power at its worst, look upon the enemies of the Church and Freemasonry. We know”we Masons-that we are not doing wrong by being Masons; but the present power of these 'bloodhounds' has taken away from many of our brethren all over the world their lodges and their symbols and all that they have built up in many generations. But they can never, with all the power they use take out that which we have inside us, our beliefs. They can only burn, they can steal and they can do everything wrong, but they cannot, as long as we are alive, take away our hearts and our brains.

"And then I saw the power in the beauty of power. I saw the power of the meaning of being a brother. I come from a little country from the north, and we have very fortunately had a Grand Master who has at the same time been King, who as a Freemason and as a King has shown to us, his country, and also to the rest of the world what it means to be real man and a real king. . . .

"The Grand Lodge of Denmark doesn't exist today because the Germans use the Grand Lodge as barracks. Many of our leading men are prisoners, but I know when victory is ours you will help the brethren of other countries to light their lights again, and you will be spared from what other Masons have suffered."

At the conclusion of his remarks, Brother Melchoir sang seven selections to the great satisfaction of the Grand Lodge.

Note the date. It was during World War II. The king of Denmark, courageously defended his homeland. The fact that he was the Grand Master as well, can make us, even more proud to be members of The Craft. --Steve Grant