| Master's Message |
| Haddonfield - Cherry Hill Lodge #15, F&AM Haddonfield Masonic Temple 16 Kings Highway, East Haddonfield, New Jersey 08033 856-428-4193 [email protected] or [email protected] Regular Communication: Third Tuesday of each Month |
Brethren: Last year, my 18 year old daughter convinced me to take her to see the newest and hottest movie, 300. It was the most recent retelling of the story of the Battle of Thermopylae which took place in Greece in 480 BCE. The tagline for the promotion of this movie was, �Prepare for glory!� As we know, this was a key battle in which a small but motivated band of Spartans held off a vastly superior army of Persians under the command of Xerxes � for a time. Ultimately, the Spartans met their demise; the city of Athens was captured; and Xerxes and his army wintered in Thessaly undisturbed. That is, until unrest in Babylon required him to take most of his army with him to prevent a revolt. The army he left behind to destroy the Greeks was defeated the following year. This is important because democracy, which was born and fostered in Greece, would have died in its cradle. The world would have been denied a magnificent benefit had Xerxes or his commander completed the task of Greek domination. In 1826 there were approximately 1,000 Freemasons in 58 Lodges in this Grand Jurisdiction. Freemasonry was in its infancy, perhaps still in its cradle, at that time. That year, a Mason named William Morgan, of Batavia, NY, disappeared leaving a wife and 2 children. He was never found. He had been active in trying to establish a Chapter of Royal Arch Masons but was rejected by others involved. Purportedly, he endeavored to print and publish a Masonic Ritual with a local printer named David Miller. His disappearance started a series of trials and a new national Anti-Masonic Party. Great Anti-Masonic fervor occurred, particularly from 1830 to 1840. By 1842, the Grand Lodge of New Jersey assessed the State of the Craft and found 162 Freemasons in 8 functioning Lodges. The 50 other Lodges were stricken from the record � some to be resuscitated at a later time � and the 8 Lodges renumbered. Many Masons had recanted their obligations to the Craft � almost 85% �disappeared�. But 162 Freemasons heard the cry from centuries before, �Prepare for glory!� and responded. Will we, too, respond now as we are called to �Prepare for glory� � to advance Freemasonry in our time and to preserve Freemasonry for future generations? Sincerely and Fraternally, Ronald W. Brining, P.G.H., Worshipful Master 2008 |
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| E-mail: [email protected] |
| E-mail: [email protected] |