The Order of Judas Maccabeus

by Raymond R. Beardsley, MPS

In the mid-1970's, a group of York Rite
Masons met in the Rochester area of
upstate New York to consider the initia-
tion of a new organization with the pur-
pose of eventually proposing it as a new
Body to be incorporated in the York Rite
of Freemasonry. The inception of this
idea had emanated from the fertile brain
of the late Brother Herman Sarachan,
often referred to as Mr. Mason in the
Rochester area. Brother Sarachan had a
distinguished Masonic record, having
actively participated in both the Scottish
and York Rites, as well as having served
as a District Deputy Grand Master in the
Monroe County area. He had been the
High Priest of Hamilton Chapter No. 62
and the Illustrious Master of Doric
Council No. 19.

For many years, Brother Sarachan
edited a column in the Monroe Masonic
News (the monthly Masonic publication
in the Rochester area) entitled: "Dear
Brother Herman, " in which he an-
swered questions regarding Masonry -
history, biography, definition, proce-
dure, law, ritual, protocol, etc. His arti-
cles were later incorporated into a book
under the same title, published in 1979;
in addition, Brother Sarachan had pre-
viously published a book on the history
of Freemasonry in the Rochester and
Monroe County area of New York.

Brother Sarachan believed that there
was a need for an additional body in the
York Rite for those Masons who either
could not for religious reasons or would
not for personal reasons join the Com-
mandery of Knights Templar. The first
two York Rite Bodies, the Royal Arch
Chapter and the Council of Cryptic Ma-
sons, like the Symbolic Lodge, are non-
sectarian; however, the Commandery of
Knights Templar is distinctly a Christian
Order of Masonry and is also a military-
type organization with uniforms, drills
and inspections. As a result, Members of
the Chapter and Council who are not
Christians or who do not favor the mili-
taristic atmosphere of the Commandery
do not have a comparable body to join,
which would be more suitable to their
religious or personal beliefs and mores.
With this in mind, Brother Sarachan
proposed that a new body be initiated to
meet the needs and desires of these par-
ticular Masonic brethren but which
would welcome all Masons who wished
to participate. The organization would
be known as The Order of Judas Mac-
cabeus .

Judas Maccabeus was the renowned
leader of the Jews when they revolted
against Roman hegemony in the second
century, B.C., particularly after the Ro-
mans had desecrated the Temple at
Jerusalem by erecting a statue of Zeus
over the altar. Under the leadership of
Judas Maccabeus, the Jews regained
control of Jerusalem and the Temple for
a period of time celebrated in Jewish
history. Because of his prestige and stat-
ure in Hebrew history and tradition, the
name of Judas Maccabeus was con-
sidered most appropriate for the new
body. The Order of Judas Maccabeus
would be founded on a non-sectarian
basis and without military accoutre-
ments, with the goal that it would even-
tually become a parallel Body to the
Commandery.

Thus, in 1974, a group of some 30 York
Rite leaders in the local area met in the
Rochester Temple to formally consider
The Order of Judas Maccabeus. Present
were Masons prominent in all the York
Rite Bodies, including past heads of all
of the Grand Bodies in the State of New
York: M..E..Frank Allen of the Grand
Chapter, M..I.. Bruce Dayton of the
Grand Council and R..E..Ward Ekas of
the Grand Commandery. All in atten-
dance were unanimously in agreement
as to the desirability of instituting a com-
plementary Body to the Commandery
that would more appropriately meet the
needs of our Jewish and other non-Chris-
tian or non-military-minded Compan-
ions. It should be born in mind that the
majority of York Rite Masons present
were Christians and members of the
local Commanderies.

The Order of Judas Maccabeus was
originally to encompass three Orders:
The Order of David, The Order of Judas
Maccabeus and The Order of the Temple
(referring to the Jewish Temple). The
Order of David teaches the lesson of un-
selfish love and devotion and uses as its
framework the story of David and
Jonathan, as depicted in the Old Testa-
ment in the Book of First Samuel. The
Order of Judas Maccabeus teaches the
lesson of fidelity and devotion to faith
and uses as its framework the revolt of
the Jews in 168 B.C. against the Roman
hierarchy of Antiochus, who had pro-
hibited the practice of the Jewish faith
and had desecrated the Temple, as re-
lated in the Apocryphal Books of the
Maccabeus .

These first two Orders were prepared
under the aegis of Brother Sarachan,
and, to date, have formed the basis for
initiation into the Order. The Order of
the Temple, which ultimately is to form
the final phase of initiation into the
Order, has not been completed. Brother
Sarachan's health failed and he passed on
before he could turn his attention to the
proposed Order of the Temple. How-
ever, it is now in the process of formula-
tion, and much thought is going into its
preparation, in order that it may take its
place on a level with such awe-inspiring
exemplifications as the Royal Arch De-
gree of the Chapter, the Super Excellent
Degree of the Council and the Order of
the Temple of the Commandery.

Members of The Order of Judas Mac-
cabeus are titled "Valiant Princes" and
constituent Bodies are termed "Assem-
blages," whose principal officers are
Commander, Chancellor, Orator, Treas-
urer, Recorder, Captain of the Guard,
Lecturer, Marshall, Warden and Sen-
tinel. The premier Assemblage, inaugu-
rated in the Rochester area, is known as
Genesee Valley Assemblage No. 1.

A number of other Assemblages have
been instituted in New York State,
specifically in New York, Long Island
and Buffalo. Also, Assemblages have
been inaugurated in the States of Con-
necticut and New Jersey. Numerous en-
quiries have been received from inter-
ested York Rite Masons from such States
as Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona
and California, to name a few.

To date, recognition of The Order of
Judas Maccabeus as an accepted and
official York Rite Concordant Body has
not been granted by any Grand Lodge
Jurisdiction, but it is hoped that this rec-
ognition eventually will be received in
those jurisdictions where the Order has
been active and is growing. At the incep-
tion of the Order, Brother Sarachan dis-
cussed this possibility with the then cur-
rent Grand Master of New York, and it
was understood that the Order would
have to exhibit a continuing growth and
expansion before formally petitioning
for such recognition. This, undoubtedly,
would be true in any state jurisdiction.

Although the early years of Genesee
Valley Assemblage No. 1 did not always
run smoothly and for awhile the original
enthusiasm was somewhat abated, it is
now prospering with a large number of
new members. Whereas the charter
membership was largely Christian, in
recent years a number of our Jewish and
other non-Christian Brethren have
joined. In the meantime, with the emer-
gence of other Assemblages about New
York and adjoining States, a Grand As-
semblage was instituted a few years ago
with the presiding officer designated to
be "The Most Sovereign Grand Com-
mander of North America." The cur-
rent holder of that august-sounding title
is the author of this article, whose address
is 32 Kurt Road, Pittsford, NY 14534.

Any enquiries and questions should be
forwarded to the above address. Al-
though there may be those who question
the desirability of a new Masonic organi-
zation, the criterion that should be ap-
plied is the need for and function of such
a new Masonic entity. Over the past 35
years, we have experienced the inception
of two new Masonic organizations which
met specific needs and desires and,as a
result, have been highly successful.
These are The York Rite Sovereign Col-
lege of North America and The National
Camping Travellers. The first originated
for Masons active in all four York Rite
Bodies, and the second for Masons and
their families interested in camping.
Both of these Masonic organization
have, in a relatively few years, grown
tremendously with both of them having
well over 100 constituent Bodies
throughout the United States and
Canada .

In like manner, The Order of Judas
Maccabeus was founded to meet a dis-
tinct need in York Rite Masonry. Be-
cause of this, those of us who have been
intimately connected with its formula-
tion and establishment feel that it will
play a unique and increasingly im-
portant role in The York Rite of Free-
masonry.


The Philalethes, October 1991
