Freemason NSW & ACT – July 2023

Humility – Kindness – Generosity

Freemason The flying

COVER IMAGE: The view above the clouds, taken en route from Australia to England.

EDITORIAL POLICY

Aims of the Freemason magazine

R To uphold and promote those values, morals and virtues which Freemasonry believes are universal and enduring.

R To foster a better understanding of Freemasonry within the general community.

R To provide a forum for discussion on masonic issues.

R To publicise the charitable works of Freemasonry.

R To provide articles of interest and education and to disseminate masonic news and views.

R To recognise masons who make significant contributions to the Craft and the wider community.

The Official Journal of The United Grand Lodge of New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory of Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons

This issue of the Freemason is produced under the direction of:

Editor & Chairman: Bro Richard Dawes

Committee: Bros Ted Simmons, Graham Maltby (Secretary), Simon Pierce, Derek Robson, Max Katz-Barber, Terry McCallum, Kim Nielsen, Les Hicks, Alan Gale, Rick Atkinson, Owen Sandry and Mrs Lynne Clay

Design & Production: Bro Simon Pierce, Megan Baumann and Pam Gill

Freemason is published in January, April, July and October. Deadline for copy is 1st of the month preceding month of issue.

All matters for publication in the journal should be addressed to:

The Secretary Freemason Editorial Committee

The United Grand Lodge of NSW & ACT PO Box A259, Sydney South, NSW 1235

Telephone: (02) 9284 2800

Email: freemason@masons.org.au

Published articles do not necessarily reflect the policies or opinions of The United Grand Lodge of NSW & ACT.

Publication of an advertisement does not imply endorsement of the product or service by The United Grand Lodge of NSW & ACT.

Advertising enquiries should be addressed to: Bro Simon Pierce

APM Graphics Management

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Email: freemason@apmgraphics.com.au

Freemason is proudly designed and produced by APM Graphics Management

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Distributed to all NSW & ACT brethren and sister Grand Lodges in Australia and worldwide. Electronic versions of FREEMASON can be viewed or downloaded at www.masons.org.au and www.FreemasonNSW.com

ISSN 1836-0475 or ISSN 1836-0513 (Online)

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© 2023 Copyright: It should be noted that copyright for all text, photographs and illustrations (except where otherwise indicated) rests worldwide with Freemason

INDEMNITY:

It is the responsibility of the advertiser to ensure that advertisements comply with the Trade Practices Act 1974 as amended. All advertisements are accepted for publication on the condition that the advertiser indemnify the publisher and its servants against all actions, suits, claims, loss and/or damages resulting from anything published on behalf of the advertiser.

Calling all masons

Freemason magazine needs your support.

Like everything, the cost of producing the Freemason increases every year, particularly due to the increasing cost of postage (nearly a third of total cost is postage!). Further to that, the income we receive from Capitation Fees is just $12 per member, and has not increased for many years. This is compounded by dramatically declining membership numbers, which are no longer anywhere near what they were when that figure was set.

We are committed to the continued production of our great magazine with its interesting and informative articles, regional news and advocacy of our masonic principals in the community. It’s also the perfect platform to help keep all Freemasons in the jurisdiction connected to each other and to Grand Lodge, as well as being an attractive contact point for new masons and those who are curious about Freemasonry.

We can improve the financial health of the magazine if we carry more advertising. Any magazine or newspaper publisher will stress the importance of advertising as being a huge part of their financial wellbeing. The Freemason has a number of regular and loyal advertisers, but nowhere near the proportions that magazines need to survive. We have now reached a critical stage where our eroding income and increasing costs mean that we must put out a call for aid.

How Can You Help?

If every lodge paid for a notice in What’s On, we would raise around $13,500 each year. This means that for only $60 per year, your lodge can help keep your magazine going.

Further, if just one business per lodge placed a small advertisement in each issue, we would raise enough money to

cover the magazine’s costs for a year! There are plenty of options to suit all advertising requirements and budgets. Play YOUR part and support YOUR magazine.

You can view or download our Media Kit at Advertise.FreemasonNSW.com If you have any questions please email Advertise@FreemasonNSW.com

If

By VW Bro Joe Corrigan

From Australia to England in a light aircraft

In March I embarked on the adventure of a lifetime, ferrying a small single engine, four-seater aircraft from Australia to England covering over 20,000 km in three weeks.

Joining me were three mates, Charlie, Zach, and Rob who joined us in the UAE. Other than being great mates, they are all licensed and instrument rated pilots to share the mammoth task of international flying and join an unforgettable adventure.

Our steed for the mission was a Cirrus SR22, ‘Oscar Juliet Lima’, a single engine four-seater. But don’t let her size fool you! Built in 2007 the Cirrus is a little aeroplane with a big heart and equipped well enough to rival many commercial aircraft. She is to be permanently located in Europe; having conducted several trans-global aircraft ferries, it fell to me to relocate her.

Planning the route

Planning for this adventure began more than six months before our departure from Australia.

Flight planning for a trip of this nature is like conducting an orchestra, with so many moving parts working in concert to make it even possible. To ensure a relatively seamless experience en route, we needed to make sure that all the groundwork was laid, contingencies were accounted for, and that we had all the equipment we needed, spares and tools

for minor repairs, survival gear, as well as flight permissions and ground support. The first task was locking in the route for the flight. Our biggest constraint was the range of the aeroplane. Four seat aircraft aren’t typically designed to be long range aircraft. The aircraft has an operating range just shy of 1,100 NM or 2,000 km. However, this can reduce based on several factors, the greatest factor

being a headwind, followed by inability to adopt preferred tracking due to air traffic control constraints. The need to divert around weather or closed airspace can also add significant track miles. This effectively means we need to carry generous margins with respect to range and fuel planning. With this in mind, we then needed to plan a route to enable us to operate safely within these margins.

Four friends embarking on an adventure!

Added to that there are still a number of considerations:

Firstly, we can only depart and arrive into designated ports of entry and ensure that customs and immigration are coordinated at both ends, both for the crew and the aircraft itself when crossing a border.

Secondly, the airport must be suitable in terms of ability to handle smaller aircraft, and preferably have precision instrument approaches. Instrument approaches can be make or break a flight. Without them we could experience significant weather delays.

Finally, there is the major issue of fuel. For those that may not know, modern airliners and smaller commuter aircraft all use jet fuel, piston engine aircraft for the most part use 100 octane leaded gasoline or petrol commonly known as avgas.

Avgas availability was by far the most challenging element of this trip and a critical factor with respect to our routing.

Normally when we fly ourselves in Australia, we don’t have to give any regard to things like overflight, landing permissions, or even ground handling for that matter. But as soon as you leave the confines of Australia, Europe or North America it’s a whole different world.

Airlines have a full department dedicated to assembling all the moving parts

that are required for international air travel; added to that they do it every day rather than on one off basis.

For every country we passed through between Australia and Greece we required overflight permission as well as landing permission for anywhere that we landed. Added to this we needed to ensure that crew visas can be issued on arrival or could be easily obtained.

With all these considerations accounted for, let’s have a look at how we planned to get from Australia to England.

Departing from Bankstown to the Gold Coast, inland to Mount Isa to refuel before continuing to Darwin for the

night. From Darwin over the Timor Sea to Dili in Timor-Leste and then on to Singapore’s Seletar airport.

A few days in Singapore catching our breath, on to Bangkok then Chittagong in Bangladesh before crossing the Ganges Delta and the Indian subcontinent to arrive in Bombay.

Proceeding further west out of the Indian subcontinent to Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates before flying up the Persian Gulf to Saudi Arabia and then on to Jordan.

From Jordan over the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt for fuel before arriving in Heraklion, Crete. This brings us into

Red lighting in the cockpit helps protect a pilot’s night vision

Europe and from here on we get much greater flexibility with respect to permit and fuel availability.

We would then be on the home stretch: Greece to Italy, through France and then across the English Channel to England.

Preparing the aircraft

A flight like this requires a complement of equipment above and beyond what you’d normally carry on a small aircraft. Aside from the usual gear that we carried as a matter of course, we added three ‘Grab Bags’ each with a portable locator beacon, food and water rations. We each had a life jacket and the aircraft had a covered 4-man raft.

One of the highly specialised gadgets we carried on board was a portable SATCOM, or SATellite COMmunications receiver which allowed us to make and receive calls and text messages as well as access narrow band datalink services.

We utilised Iridium, a network of low earth orbit satellites, to handle narrow band digital link via SMS, voice calls and data calls. Iridium has a maximum data rate of 5.5 kbps. To put that into perspective; that’s 10 times slower than dial up internet.

This gear is used in concert with special software to highly compress the data we required, allowing us to receive weather radar, infra-red satellite

imagery, winds aloft and the latest weather for our route of flight, airports en route and destination. This data then fed straight into our iPads with the information being overlayed in real time on our route.

The reality

So with months of preparation now behind us the moment of truth arrived. It was now time to pull the aircraft out of the hangar and fly west.

Departing Bankstown we flew the aircraft up to the Gold Coast to undergo an ‘annual’ inspection. Preparing to depart on a trip like this it’s important to make sure that the aircraft is match fit. During this inspection the aircraft undergoes a thorough analysis and cross check of all systems inside and out; any components called up are replaced or overhauled and key areas subjected to meticulous examination.

At the conclusion of the inspection we provisioned the aircraft and set off for England, overflying Roma and Longreach before stopping for fuel in Mount Isa.

Heading north from Mt Isa and forging into the tropics, weather became far more of a consideration as we entered what is known as the ITCZ or Inter Tropical Convergence Zone. The ITCZ is a meteorological area between the tropics due to the convergence of the trade winds: the northeast trade winds from the Northern Hemisphere and the southeast winds from the Southern Hemisphere. The point at

An example of the weather radar information downloaded via SATCOM

Passed with flying colours!

The planned route

which the trade winds meet forces the air up into the atmosphere, forming the ITCZ.

Convective storms in the tropics tend to be of short duration and usually are small scale. But these short-lived storms can produce intense rainfall and damaging winds.

The position of the ITCZ varies seasonally because it follows the sun: it moves north in the Northern Hemisphere summer and south in the Northern Hemisphere winter. As a result, the ITCZ is responsible for the wet and dry seasons in the tropics.

The timing of the trip with a departure in March was predicated around the end of the southern tropical wet season but before the wet monsoon in Asia gained momentum. However, the last of the northern wet season storms were still hanging around and weren’t going to give us a free pass to Darwin.

We picked our way through a dense line of storms between Isa and Darwin. Once airborne it became apparent that there was a significant line of weather to the southwest of Darwin moving to the east, meaning if we could make it in time and anticipate its movement, we would be able to sneak around the eastern end of the line before it cut us off totally.

To that end we tracked northbound from Isa towards Numbulwar, on the western side of the Gulf Of Carpentaria,

attempting to beat the impending weather. The further north we tracked the more the storms built up, joining each other to form a full line in front of us. It’s times like this ready access to a fresh weather radar picture though SATCOM is pivotal.

The aircraft is also fitted with a system called Stormscope. Stormscope uses the electro-magnetic discharge from bolts of lightning to plot them on the aircraft’s navigation display/moving map, showing their relative position to the aircraft as well as age and rate of strike. With these crucial safety systems fitted to the aircraft we were able to dodge the worst of it and pick our way through the line of weather just in time for a spectacular sunset.

Established on the lee side of the weather, we then flew along its northern side until safely reaching Darwin.

To put the vastness of Australia into some perspective, our travels between Sydney and Darwin have accounted for nearly 20% of the total trip to England.

Departing Australia in a small aircraft is always a thrill. Sure the aircraft doesn’t know where it is, however it’s a Rubicon most private pilots never get to cross.

Crossing borders in a private aircraft involves a lot more planning and preparation as previously mentioned. Customs and immigration can occur anywhere from a standard departure hall to the back of a van or even on the aircraft’s wing. In Darwin it was the back of the ground crew’s van before we set off to track north-west across the Timor Sea bound for Dili in Timor-Leste.

Heading westbound over the Timor Sea and having been handed off from Australian air traffic control to Dili Approach we could soon begin to make out the silhouette of the Indonesian archipelago reaching as high as 10,000 feet.

Upon arrival our ground handlers were waiting on the apron for our arrival with our fuel order in tow, literally.

Given that avgas is so scarce outside the western world all our fuel from Australia through to Saudi Arabia was

After a few rainy years the inland wetlands of the top end were in full flow and we were treated to an amazing vista.

The Flying Freemason

delivered by drum rather than bowser or tanker.

This always presents a challenge when it comes to refuelling strategy as all drums must be ordered in advance and by the whole drum, 200 litres at a time. Let’s say I needed 300 litres of fuel for my next leg, I would either have to land with an extra 100L that I had effectively tankered in from my previous port or buy two drums (400 litres) and leave 100 litres behind.

The important thing to remember whenever taking fuel from drums is to personally open the tamper-proof seals for every drum, one seal on the filler bung and the other on the pressure relief

bung. This is to make sure there has been no fuel substitution or contamination.

Having only travelled a few short hours from the top end of Australia, Dili was another world. The buzz of mopeds and the smell of street food hung in the air. We really felt that the adventure was underway!

Look out in the next issue for the remainder of our trip to England including running out of avgas in Kuwait of all places, and Bangladesh trying to refuel us with jet fuel.

Partnering with Little Wings

With an adventure like this, we felt it important to partner with an appropriate

charity to raise awareness and funds for a worthy cause.

We are proud to partner with Little Wings – www.littlewings.org.au – a great grass roots charity that provides transport for sick children and their families, ensuring they can receive the medical treatment they need, regardless of where they live.

Donations to the appeal can be made at: tinyurl.com/austoengland .

On 11 August, The Royal Empire Lodge in association with Masonicare will be hosting a winter banquet fundraiser to celebrate both the success of our flight and Little Wings, this amazing organisation providing an essential service that gives families the chance to focus on their child’s recovery, rather than the financial and logistical burdens that come with accessing medical care.

Taxiing in after landing in Darwin

Main: The view corroborates the instruments’ warning of storms ahead.

Inset: The line of weather between Mt Isa and Darwin with our revised track in blue.

The fundraiser will feature live music, a three-course banquet and open bar held in the Cellos Grand Dining Room at the NSW Masonic Club. During the evening there will be a raffle and auction for various prizes including a scenic flight over Sydney, as well as a keynote presentation about the flight itself. The NSW Masonic Club has contributed to the fundraising prizes by generously donating one night’s accommodation for two, (including breakfast).

We will also be presenting all funds through our fundraising drive to Little Wings.

The banquet is open to all masons, their adult friends and families. Tickets can be booked at www.trybooking.com/ CIAWZ or scanning the QR code in the sidebar to the right.

What is Little Wings?

Little Wings is a non-profit organization that provides free, professional, safe flight and ground transport services for seriously ill children in rural and regional NSW and the ACT.

We strive to ease the journey and help sick children access specialised medical services and treatments that are only available in major cities or towns. We do everything we can to support families by easing the financial burden, emotional strain and travel fatigue that they experience due to the long-distance travel associated with receiving vital medical treatment.

If you’d like to attend the banquet to celebrate fundraising for Little Wings, scan the QR code below:

Preparing to refuel from the blue 200L drum in the trailer. Note the storms on the horizon.

The hills above Dili, East Timor

The Indonesian archipelago

Spectacular views from the cockpit

By MW Bro Les Hicks, Grand Master

JUNE COMMUNICATION

It’s easy to be nice

We have a busy night tonight with elections and appointments for various positions: an important night no doubt as we prepare ourselves for a new and exciting Masonic term.

I’m referring to words and actions which do not occur as frequently today and which still rankle by their absence.

structure plays its part in helping them balance their work, play and masonic obligations.

You remember them – grace, manners, civility, courtesy.

Ithank all those who have put their hand up to support the Craft and I look forward to working with you all as we continue to nurture the present and create the future.

Recently, we witnessed the crowning of a new king, a new era for the monarchy and we wish King Charles III a long, happy, and successful reign.

For example, grace is something you would think of as belonging to an older era, when people were automatically polite, when you wrote letters by hand, ladies and gentlemen were easily recognised, being kind and a willingness to help others.

The craft in NSW and ACT is also moving into a new era. You are aware that I have been talking technology over the past couple of years and with the economy like it is, we now, more than ever need to take advantage of the technology available if we are going to rein in our ongoing expenditure, and provide you all with fast, efficient service, and up to date, accurate information.

Manners of course were automatic with respect given to elders, not interrupting when someone else was talking, thanking people for gifts or assistance, giving up your seat in the tram or bus and even holding the door open.

These actions could also be consistent with the words ‘courtesy’ and ‘civility’ which was part of the era when children were taught what was considered the correct thing to do.

People say to me that the world has progressed since then and we must adjust to modern times and methods. But I wonder whether we should.

OUR NEXT COMMUNICATION

We don’t listen anymore and it is becoming an endangered skill. We talk to, or at, each other but not with each other; that’s when there is a break in the mobile

The next Grand Lodge Quarterly Communication and dinner will be held at the Sydney Masonic Centre on WEDNESDAY 13 September 2023 at 7:30pm

The Communication is open to all members of Grand Lodge, which includes all Master Masons. Other brethren are invited to attend as observers.

I am glad to say that we are now approaching the pointy end of our website and content management development, and I’m looking forward to sharing it with you all. Overall, it has been an arduous but necessary task and I thank RW Bro Randall Wilson, RW Bro Garry Sayer, VW Bro Adam Whitby, members of the Board of Management and our Grand Secretariat for all their assistance, hard work, and persistence over many months. Your contribution has been nothing short of outstanding.

Initially our system was at the end of its lifespan, it was upgraded as a matter of necessity and to some extent it has helped our Grand Secretariat. This enabled us to look at new methods of administration and it allowed us to explore some serious and innovative integrated business technology, technology that will soon steer us into the future. That future looks bright, and we are already seeing results. This year we have seen an enormous increase in our new initiate numbers. I am excited to say that, at the time of writing this address, the number of new members joining the craft this year are over 40% higher than they were last year.

Like it or not, technology now plays a huge role in all our lives, we have no choice but to provide our new and younger generation of Freemasons with the tools and time saving initiatives that they need to operate in an ever-changing world. We want our members to stay, learn and lead the Craft into the future, and this can only be achieved if our

I am confident, that, when you see our new website, you will understand the great benefits on offer, our system will now be better, cheaper to maintain and, much easier to navigate and use than it has been in the past.

The vast array of information provided to you from our new-look website will continue to grow, it will be accurate, and it will be freely available to all those that need it. I completely understand the difficulties experienced with our system over past few years. In a strange way those difficulties were the vehicle that set us on the road to developing what is shaping up as, an outstanding final product, our own fit for purpose masonic website, data base and Content Management System.

Over the past 18 months or so we have received advice, and of course, I do accept, some complaints from our members about the functionality of the system in its present state, but please be assured that we have listened, and those issues have been addressed.

Your valuable advice has been heard, absorbed, and incorporated into what I am sure will soon be an irreplaceable addition to our masonic lives. Our CMS system has been re-worked and designed from the ground up and could not have been created without your valuable input. Now, your lodges’ input and assistance are also needed. The CMS system will only be as good as the information that we feed into it, so to help your lodge, the Grand Secretariat needs accurate and timely information. I ask our lodge secretaries to ensure that your lodge’s 2023/24 capitation information is accurate and

As a youngster, my parents taught me many habits which still persisted as I got older but which now seem to be part of today’s modern ‘it’s old fashioned, throw it away’ system.

As Freemasons, we are taught to be civil, to help and to become better people, to give aid and support to our community...

submitted on time, this will enable us to enter that information into the updated system before we launch it. Moving forward, accurate, timely LMR information is also critical if we are to quickly provide the up-to-date information, and ongoing assistance that you and your lodge will need.

restructure in a way that will offer ongoing strength and support to all our lodges.

It’s easy to be nice

The GM at Deniliquin

There are many highlights during a Grand Master’s term. Just last week I had the absolute privilege of attending our most historical lodge, Lodge Antiquity 1 where I witnessed VW Bro John Khoury install his son Joseph into the Chair of King Solomon.

As a youngster, my parents taught me many habits which still persisted as I got older but which now seem to be part of today’s modern ‘it’s old fashioned, throw it away’ system.

I’m referring to words and actions which do not occur as frequently today and which still rankle by their absence.

You remember them – grace, manners, civility, courtesy.

Our plan is to launch the updated website some time during the final quarter of this year. The website will surprise and delight you all. There will be video news, guidance and tutorials, there will be ritual voice over assistance to help both new members and those of us that want to further our own ritual expertise. As of December this year we will have our own, easy to use events registration portal, and much more. Any information that you need, will now be accurate and available at your fingertips, and our lodge secretaries will finally enjoy the information, and the ease of use, that will soon be provided to them by the CMS both at a lodge, and as they have requested, at a district level as well.

For example, grace is something you would think of as belonging to an older era, when people were automatically polite, when you wrote letters by hand, ladies and gentlemen were easily recognised, being kind and a willingness to help others.

Brethren, to attend a 203-year-old lodge that is still having fathers installing sons and with over 10 entered apprentice and fellowcraft Freemasons in attendance is quite remarkable. I will be attending another such event at Nowra next week when W Bro Mark Baker will install his son David and there are others coming up within the jurisdiction. For me this is Freemasonry, and I have a feeling that this is just a taste of what’s to come.

Brethren: I really appreciate your tolerance and support, and I understand the difficulties associated with change. Be assured that we won’t launch the final version of our website and content management system until all changes and updates have been thoroughly tested, are user friendly and fit for purpose. Final testing will start before the next communication, and I look forward sharing the result with you as soon as that testing is complete.

Manners of course were automatic with respect given to elders, not interrupting when someone else was talking, thanking people for gifts or assistance, giving up your seat in the tram or bus and even holding the door open.

These actions could also be consistent with the words ‘courtesy’ and ‘civility’ which was part of the era when children were taught what was considered the correct thing to do.

On the lodge front we have several centenaries and installations coming up and I thank all those that are taking on representative responsibility. If you have a function coming up, I wish you and your lodge every success.

People say to me that the world has progressed since then and we must adjust to modern times and methods. But I wonder whether we should.

Moving forward, I will, of course, continue to visit where and when I can, and I recognise the importance of supporting our lodges. My Deputy and Assistant Grand Masters are keen to support you all and between us we will do our best not to let you down. This coming year it is important that I adjust my focus slightly as I provide extra time and assistance to our various boards, committees, and charities. If we are going to make this work, and ultimately grow the Craft, our leadership must be all encompassing.

On 27 May the Grand Master of the UGL NSW & ACT and the Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of Victoria met in Deniliquin where Lodge St John’s No 16 (NSW) hosted a Hands Across the Border event. The Grand Masters jointly presented the local branch of Riding for the Disabled with donations for the incredible work it does in their communities, notably during the recent floods. This is another example of the Grand Master’s Disaster Relief Fund working directly with grass roots community organisations who support those most in need.

I thank our Grand Secretariat, all our boards and committees and I especially thank my Deputy Grand Master, RW Bro Khris Albano, my Assistant Grandmaster, RW Bro Paul Schultz and our amazing Ceremonial Team for the encouragement and support that our lodges and I have received as we have criss-crossed this vast jurisdiction over the past couple of years. We are kicking serious goals out there and I’ll keep the pressure on.

We don’t listen anymore and it is becoming an endangered skill. We talk to, or at, each other but not with each other; that’s when there is a break in the mobile

There is no doubt that, over the past two years, I have made it my business to visit many, many lodges, I cherish every moment I get to spend with the brethren, many of whom I have had the privilege of meeting for the very first time. As Grand Master I wanted to give my support to all corners of this jurisdiction and while this has been a huge undertaking, it has given me the privilege of meeting with both country and city brethren, where I have been able to discuss the issues facing our lodges at a grass roots level and I hope the knowledge learnt will help us

Brethren, your hard work will prevail, and we will win the membership battle.

It is always sad when the Grand Master is called upon to acknowledge the passing of a brother to the Grand Lodge above, and it is important to acknowledge special service given by such a brother.

Tonight, I ask that we all remember the outstanding service given by RW Bro Graham Allen Boyce PAGM.*

RW Bro Graham Boyce will be sorely missed.

Brethren, Freemasons are well known for their Humility, Kindness and their Generosity and it is nice when we see them rewarded for a lifetime of commitment to their craft and their community. I take this opportunity to congratulate RW Bro John Robert Jacobson OAM PDGM, Deputy Chair of the Board of Management who was recently recognised in the Kings Birthday Honours List. Most of us know John and recognise his unwavering passion for both the Craft and his community and we extend our well wishes and congratulations to John and his wife Janelle on this special occasion.

Brethren let’s keep kicking these goals, and let’s do it with Humility, Kindness, and Generosity.

* In his address the Grand Master described the masonic achievements of RW Bro Graham Boyce. The details can be seen on the Grand Lodge website.

Freemasonry and religion

Our purpose as Freemasons is not that of a religion.

Freemasonry lacks the basic elements of religion. Freemasonry is not a religion nor is it a substitute for religion.

R Freemasonry advocates no sectarian faith or practise.

R We seek no converts.

R We solicit no new members.

R We raise no money for religious purposes.

R We have no dogma or theology. Religious discussion is forbidden in a masonic lodge thereby eliminating the chance for any masonic dogma to form.

R It offers no sacraments and does not claim to lead to salvation by works, by secret knowledge, or by any other means. The secrets of Freemasonry are concerned with the modes of recognition only and not with the means of salvation.

R By any definition of religion accepted by our critics, we cannot qualify as a religion.

R Freemasonry supports religion. Freemasonry is far from indifferent to religion. Without interfering in religious practise, it expects each member to follow his own faith.

A man does not subscribe to a new religion, much less to an anti-Christian religion when he becomes a Freemason, any more than when he joins any political party or community association. There is nothing in Freemasonry that is opposed to the religion he brings with him into the masonic lodge. Freemasonry does not assert, nor does it teach that one religion is as good as another. Freemasonry admits men of all

religions. Freemasons believe in religious freedom and that the relationship between the individual and his God is personal, private and sacred.

We do not apply a theological test to a candidate. We do ask a man if he believes in a supreme being and that is the only religious test. Belief in God is faith; belief about God is theology. As Freemasons we are interested in faith only and not in theology. Religion is not permitted to be discussed at masonic meetings.

Freemasonry is a completely tolerant organization. When Freemasonry accepts a Christian, or a Jew, or a Buddhist, or a Muslim, it does not accept him as such, but accepts him as a man, worthy to be received into the masonic fraternity.

Freemasonry stands for the values that are supreme in the life of the church and expects each member to follow his own faith and to place his duty to God above all other duties. We are sure that a member who is true to the principles he learns in Freemasonry will be a better church member because of it.

Religious discussion is forbidden in a masonic lodge.

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June

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Donate by June 30th to make a difference Support Whiddon’s Creative Ageing & Reablement Programs for Older Australians

30th to

Whiddon was founded in 1947 by local Freemasons with the goal of providing care and support for older people in their community. Seventy five years later, Whiddon still believes that ageing should be a rich and rewarding journey for everyone.

Whiddon was founded in 1947 by local Freemasons with the goal of providing care and support for older people in their community. Seventy five years later, Whiddon still believes that ageing should be a rich and rewarding journey for everyone.

Whiddon supports more than 2,100 residents and clients across NSW, largely in regional and remote communities.

Whiddon supports more than 2,100 residents and clients across NSW, largely in regional and remote communities.

What’s different about Whiddon is our relationship-based care model. We believe in really getting to know our residents and clients to ensure they have continued meaning and purpose as they age.

What’s different about Whiddon is our relationship-based care model. We believe in really getting to know our residents and clients to ensure they have continued meaning and purpose as they age.

With the generous support of donors, Whiddon can provide Creative Ageing and Reablement programs which are lifechanging for our residents and clients.

With the generous support of donors, Whiddon can provide Creative Ageing and Reablement programs which are lifechanging for our residents and clients.

Donate today and support Whiddon’s Creative Ageing and Reablement Programs!

Donate today and support Whiddon’s Creative Ageing and Reablement Programs!

• Exercise 4 Life – a new group exercise program which has had success in reducing pain by 50% as well as increasing general mood and wellbeing. The program will not only benefit its residents, but will also provide opportunities for Whiddon employees to train as Therapy Assistants as part of the program.

• Exercise 4 Life – a new group exercise program which has had success in reducing pain by 50% as well as increasing general mood and wellbeing. The program will not only benefit its residents, but will also provide opportunities for Whiddon employees to train as Therapy Assistants as part of the program.

• Strength Up – proven to reduce Falls, this 2-week program involves 5 physiotherapy visits via telehealth created tailored to residents and clients and supported by one of Whiddon’s trained exercise coaches.

• Strength Up – proven to reduce Falls, this 2-week program involves 5 physiotherapy visits via telehealth created tailored to residents and clients and supported by one of Whiddon’s trained exercise coaches.

• Creative Ageing – Creative Ageing is an essential part of our approach to care at Whiddon because of the lifelong benefits that creative therapies and programs offer. Our Creative Ageing programs include a wide range of activities and therapies including . gardening programs, arts and crafts, singing and choirs, cooking clubs, games, music, hen keeping and animal therapy.

• Creative Ageing – Creative Ageing is an essential part of our approach to care at Whiddon because of the lifelong benefits that creative therapies and programs offer. Our Creative Ageing programs include a wide range of activities and therapies including . gardening programs, arts and crafts, singing and choirs, cooking clubs, games, music, hen keeping and animal therapy.

Donate before June 30 for your tax-deductible receipt and to make a difference in the lives of older Australians:

Donate before June 30 for your tax-deductible receipt and to make a difference in the lives of older Australians: https://www.whiddon.com.au/donate/

https://www.whiddon.com.au/donate/

Your donation will help fund our essential Creative Ageing and Reablement programs which currently do not receive any ongoing government funding.

Your donation will help fund our essential Creative Ageing and Reablement programs which currently do not receive any ongoing government funding.

Thank you for your support!

Thank you for your support!

Shall I be a mason?

This article is from Transactions of the Lodge Quatuor Coronati Vol 1 1888, pages 146–147, unaltered and as unearthed from the archives by W Bro Kim Nielsen. The original article was written by Bro P Tempels, a Belgian mason from Brussels who was presented with the very first AQC Lodge Medal in 1888. The translation from the original French was by G.W. Speth, the Secretary of Lodge Quatuor Coronati at the time.

The author indicates the disposition required in order to make those sacrifices to which one is exposed in Freemasonry. Those who do not possess this temperament, he counsels to abstain. Do not offer yourself, he says, without due consideration.

How should one approach this?

Read a History of Masonry: there is no lack of them. Read the libels published against Masons; the Bulls of Excommunication; examine the charges made. Read some earnest work on its tenets, for example, Morals and Dogma, by the learned and Venerable Bro Pike, Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of the Southern States of America.

Do not present yourself out of mere puerile curiosity; you will only be disappointed.

Do not join the Craft except with a firm resolution to study the institution. It partakes of the nature of certain natural phenomena, of certain masterpieces of art, of the genius of certain men. The first view destroys the illusion: one must study them to comprehend them.

If, combined with the love of the true and the good, you have not also a slight mental attraction towards the poetry resident in all things, and a judgment tempered by feeling and sentiment, enter not, you will be bored. He who,

with the culture of progress, combines that of old memories; who, whilst pursuing exact science can yet understand all the charm of a venerable myth; who loves custom because it is old, antique forms because they are beautiful, even prejudice, because it is at the root of human history, such a one will find full play for his instincts as an archaeologist. But, should you enquire how it will benefit your pocket or influence the elections, —go not in!

If, in religious matters, you start with the assumption that your opponent is a fool or a knave, venture not to approach. But, if you respect every sincere opinion, or if, being of a religious temperament you can bear with those who are not so, or rather, are so differently from yourself, then go; no one will wound your susceptibilities, and you will hurt no one.

If, as regards God and your soul, you appreciate the majesty of the issue, whilst possibly of the opinion that the science of some does not differ greatly from the agnosticism of others, your aspirations may probably encounter comforting support.

If, as a physician or lawyer, a tradesman or merchant, official or clerk, you seek to find there either clients or patrons, you will be grievously disappointed. As an official you would inspire the good-humoured contempt of the minister, were he a mason, and his successor would, perhaps, send you about your business. As a merchant, you would cause both your Masonry and your merchandise to be regarded with suspicion.

If, being ambitious, you have capabilities equal to your ambition, go: many will learn to know you thoroughly. But if you merely seek to acquire stilts for your too diminutive legs, keep aloof: and for the very same reason.

As a politician, do not dream of making partisans in a lodge : you will only prevail with those who already

follow you ; and you will possibly lose them and have to endure their reproach that you have imported discord within the sacred precincts: your success will be short-lived.

If you hold opinions which possess you rather than you them, if your disposition be such as to render you too prone to blame others, or if you have no pride in your birthright independence in all matters that concern yourself, the education of your children, the actions of your religious, civil or family life, you will never possess the requisite masonic qualifications, you will never understand those who do.

If you be entirely absorbed by your profession, your associations, your position in society, approach not! Why should you undertake obligations which will be onerous to you?

If you owe all your time and resources to your family, abstract nothing from a duty which is above all others. The lodge is an incentive to outlay. You would either regret not being able to do even as the others, or you would violate our statutes in consecrating to your pleasure that which is justly claimed elsewhere.

If you be a hypochondriac, keep away! but, if you love a word in season and a merry jest, enter in.

And cherish no illusions! Do not allow yourself to be carried away by the idea that you owe a sacrifice to humanity, to progress, and all the rest! Masons are apt to laugh at high-flown notions of self-sacrifice.

Join the Masons only if you desire it for your own sake; whoever you be, they can get on excellently well without you.

By National Library of Australia

Australia’s first restaurant

The first restaurant in Australia was attached to a hotel called the Freemasons' Arms. It was the first licensed hotel in New South Wales, run by James Larra, who was transported for stealing a silver tankard from a coffeehouse in King's Cross, London.

He settled in Parramatta in 1796, building a wattle and daub hut at first, later rebuilding in brick in 1800 and employing a French chef.

You can read early Australian newspaper articles mentioning the Freemason's Arms through Trove's digitised newspapers.

It seems likely that the first Asian restaurant would have opened on one of the goldfields.

Do not present yourself out of mere puerile curiosity; you will only be disappointed.

The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, March 16 1806, page 3. Courtesy Trove

Newspaper articles about John Alloo's Chinese restaurant are also available through Trove's digitised newspapers.

The coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla

Whether you’re a monarchist or a republican, it’s hard to deny that no-one does pomp and ceremony like the British.

The chests of monarchists will swell with pride, while the eyes of republicans will water at the cost, asking ‘Do we really need all this? Is the ludicrous expense of a coronation really necessary?’

Is a coronation required by law? No! In the same way that a person does not legally have to marry their partner to be with them and (generally) enjoy the same entitlements and rights as a married couple, neither does a sovereign need a coronation to make them the monarch. But as a wedding is a lovely affair that binds everything together in love and friendship, so does an incoming sovereign very publicly take an oath to be ’married’ to the state, while officials from church and state administer their ritual as the world watches.

It’s all just a matter of scale really.

So ceremony and tradition take over, and an event dripping with symbolism and history unfolds before our eyes.

At the very moment of the passing of the Queen, Charles became King. ‘The Queen is dead. Long live the King!’ The King’s heir is of course pre-determined according to a whole bunch of rules and conditions. At that very same moment of the heir becoming the King, so did the next heir (William) instantly move up one rung. And so on along the family chain.

Great Officers of State gathered to form the Accession Council to formalise the already decided outcome, after which the Garter King of Arms called the very first Proclamation of the new King from a balcony at St James’ Palace in London.

It’s on! Proclamations then followed throughout the Realm, including every member country of the Commonwealth, all leading up to ...the coronation.

We’ve already established that it isn’t legally necessary to ‘coronate’ a King,

but during the ceremony many symbolic rituals are performed that – for want of a better term – firm it all up. It is the occasion when the Church of England formally recognises its new head. This is done by anointing the King with holy oil, carried out on behalf of the Church by the Archbishop of Canterbury (currently Justin Welby). For centuries a King or Queen has been anointed to acknowledge their appointment by God as Head of the Church. The actual anointing is done away from the eyes of others. It is a deeply significant religious moment between the Church and the monarch. The oil was applied to the head, chest and hands of Charles while he sat in the Coronation Chair. This requires a degree of disrobing, so elaborate screens were gracefully carried into position around Charles – the ceremonial equivalent of holding up a towel.

The oil historically contained animal product, and the same oil from previous coronations was often used for each sovereign. This time, however, new oil was prepared containing no animal product. The oil itself was made from olives grown at the Monastery of Mary Magdalene in Jerusalem, where King Charles’ grandmother Princess Alice is buried. The oil was applied using the Coronation Spoon. Its first recorded use was in 1349, by which time the Spoon was already said to be very old.

The coronation regalia (clockwise from top left): the Sovereign’s Orb, St Edward’s Crown, the Sovereign’s Sceptre with Cross. the Sovereign’s Sceptre with Dove and the Sovereign’s Ring.

King Charles III and Queen Camilla waving from the balcony of Buckingham Palace

After the anointing, the screens were removed to reveal the King robed in priestly garments, symbolising both humility and splendour (the two natures of Christ). The King was then presented with historic items of regalia: Spurs, Armills, the Orb, the Sceptre with Cross, the Sceptre with Dove and the Coronation Ring, symbolising the marriage of the King to the people of his realms.

All of it leading up to that photo moment when the Crown of St Edward – 2kg of jewel-encrusted craftsmanship held aloft in the extended arms of the Archbishop – is placed upon the anointed head of King Charles III.

All cry ‘God Save The King!’. Trumpets sound, the bells are rung and gun salutes in parks and on river banks begin their percussive symphony.

The King, having exchanged his Crown of St Edward for the somewhat lighter Imperial State Crown – moves to take his place on the throne in the centre of the Abbey.

Queen Camilla is then anointed and crowned, and similarly presented with numerous items of regalia before sitting beside the King, and after more readings, hymns and recitals, the very grand procession left the Abbey.

Were this a wedding, the congregation would now be tossing confetti. But it wasn’t. So they didn’t.

The flow on: Consider the things that must now change to reflect what just happened. Coins and banknotes, stamps, tourist items, all official buildings, courthouses, etc., even the buttons and embroidery on military uniforms must now show the new Royal Cypher.

Yes – a bit of work to do yet.

NOTE: Quite a large number of the royal ceremonial artefacts were created in 1661, because they were made for the coronation of Charles II, the first King following the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. After the death of Oliver Cromwell in 1658, his son didn’t really do very well and the Republic was abandoned in favour of recalling King Charles II from his exile in France. And so ended the Interregnum of 1649–60 – i.e. the time between reigns.

Aussies in the Abbey

Australia plays its part in Westminster Abbey on King Charles’ big day.

While the whole world watched King Charles III majestically pass through the grand ceremony of becoming King, Australia was adding its own contributions to the proceedings.

As well as providing some amazing Australian craftsmanship by way of two magnificent Royal carriages, our own Australian violin virtuoso Madeleine Easton was adding to the beautiful music of the day, playing works by Bach and Bruckner as guests and dignitaries entered the Abbey. With her old and rare 1682 Giovanni Grancino violin, Madeleine is no stranger to playing at Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace. She said she is ’super proud’ to be representing Australia on such an historic occasion.

We also had a pair of Aussie feet treading the aisle, being those of Simon AbneyHastings – the 15th Earl of Loudoun. Simon inherited the title when his father Michael Abney-Hastings died in 2012. Simon was the only Australian honoured with a role in the actual Coronation Ceremony, playing a part that the Earls of Loudoun have played since time immemorial.

During the ceremony, a number of highly symbolic items were presented to the King, key ones being of course the Crown of St Edward, The Orb, The Rod and The Sceptre. Some of those items were placed in the Abbey beforehand, but others were borne in during the ceremony on velvet cushions in a most stately and regal manner. Each item plays a highly significant role, referring to various powers and skills the incoming sovereign is blessed with.

One such cushion bearer was The Earl of Loudon, who carried the ‘Great Golden Spurs’ which have been used in coronations since 1189, the crowning of Richard I.

They symbolise the Sovereign’s chivalric and knightly values. The current spurs were crafted for the coronation of Charles II in 1661 and altered in 1820 for the coronation of George IV. The spurs are adorned with the Tudor Rose and an embroidered velvet strap. In former times they were ceremonially fitted to the heels of the sovereign, but nowadays they are symbolically touched to the heels.

As a side note, Simon’s father Michael (14th Earl) was featured in a 2004 TV documentary about his royal descent and the controversial claim that his direct ancestor George, Duke of Clarence, was the rightful King of England. This was based on the alleged illegitimacy of Edward IV – George’s older brother. The claim was that their father (Richard, Duke of York) had been away at the time of Edward IV’s conception. There were other legal factors in the claim, but it all boiled down to the King’s alleged illegitimacy, so George – as the first legitimate son – should have got the Throne instead of Edward.

Well … it wouldn’t be British royal history without numerous threads of controversy being woven through the tapestry. It all happened in reverse in the mid-1680s when the Duke of Monmouth (an illegitimate son of Charles II) challenged the legitimate King (James II) for the throne because he thought the people liked him more. He also threw in a claim of legitimacy, saying that his mother had actually married his father.

Whatever the reasoning – the end result was the same; execution for High Treason. Monmouth was beheaded, and Clarence was allegedly drowned in a vat of Malmsey wine.

And for the record ... NO, the Earl has no intention of challenging the King!

I had the pleasure of meeting Simon Abney-Hastings in April this year at a Highland gathering in Bundanoon. It makes one wonder how often we pass so close to people with such a place in history.

Journey of a Scholar

When university expenses appeared to be insurmountable the assistance of a Lorna Milgate Scholarship made all the difference.

Fortunately, I lived at home for most of my bachelor’s degree but at the start of my degree my father had just retired and my mother was working part-time. I didn’t want to burden them with having to help me with my university expenses and as I could only work casually, my grandfather suggested I apply for the Lorna Milgate Scholarship to help cover my university expenses.

My application was successful, and the scholarship allowed me to pay for my books and equipment and then with some extra savings I was able to purchase my first car, a very beaten up and somewhat unreliable Holden

Barina; but by having a car it reduced my university travel time by half.

In my final year of university, I did a research paper on mast cell tumours in dogs for which I received a high

distinction. I also received the Dean’s Award for consistently receiving high distinction grades. I finished my degree at the end of 2021 and had my graduation ceremony in March 2022 where I graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Animal Science) majoring in conservation biology and zoology.

In the future I plan to apply for a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree at Sydney University. Since graduating I have been working practically full time at Gordon Veterinary Hospital.

Granddad thinks the world of the Lorna Milgate Scholarship Fund, and so do I!

...my grandfather suggested I apply for the Lorna Milgate Scholarship...

Olivia with her Mum and Dad.

By RW Bro Glen Green

The social side

Some lodges invite the partners of members on all or special occasions to share in the enjoyment of our ‘disinterested friendship’.

Visiting other lodges has traditionally been an important part of our Craft but in modern life, time and family constraints have made visiting difficult. We can expand our masonic relationships through the Association by including the family and thus not neglecting those closest to us.

Your Freemasons’ Association exists to extend the benefits of the South to our

families and friends by organising interesting activities such as the masonic clay shooting day, a paddle steamer cruise on the Nepean River for the whole family, weekends away in the Hunter wine region, weekend car rallies, and dinners at restaurants in the City and suburbs offering a variety of menus, such as the recent nights at the Brauhaus restaurant and Pancakes on the Rocks.

The Association understands that there are members who prefer a midday, mid-week luncheon with an invited speaker rather than travel at night; such luncheons are planned at regular intervals.

Freemasons have life experiences and connections that can be shared with others. Last year, one of our members, having a previous profession in aircraft maintenance, arranged for our Association to be given a private tour of HARS aviation museum in Albion Park, followed by lunch on site. A really enjoyable social outing – no toasts or speeches, just friendly and casual fraternisation between families.

Country areas are not neglected with suggestions always welcomed by the Committee dedicated to the expansion and fulfilment of our masonic relationships.

Membership is available to masons and families with fees of $45 for 2 years easily recovered by the discounts available for most activities. Masonic widows are encouraged to join the Association, free of fees. It is the responsibility of every lodge to ensure contact and support is maintained with masonic widows.

Direct all enquiries to RW Bro Malcolm Stradwick: malstrad@bigpond.com

There is no doubt that attending the festive board at our regular meetings completes the experience of being a mason and in the opinion of some, is just as important as the ritual itself.

The ‘R’ word

Retirement. Inside the head of a new boy.

After a working life lasting just shy of fifty-five years, I have finally retired. My job involved teaching First Aid, Aquatic Rescue and Advanced Resuscitation techniques. My career path however is not the main point of this article. It’s not what one does for a job, it’s what that job does (or did) for you.

More specifically – what happens to you when you stop doing it. Remember that 1970 hit song ‘Big Yellow Taxi’ by Joni Mitchell? There’s a line that says, ‘...you don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone’.

I’m finding that retirement is a bit like that. But it’s not all bad – because the bits that are gone leave space for so much other stuff. New stuff.

THAT’S what this article is about. A new dawn and all that! Read on.

I can’t tell you how much I used to love my work. For so long the ‘R’ word wasn’t anywhere on my scope. The age of 65 came and went, and I wasn’t even beginning to think about my final day of work.

It was when I got as far as 70 that things started to change. The energy that my job required was proving increasingly hard to find, but there were some other things appearing in my head that were a little deeper. As the fine mental mist and blurred edges of those thoughts and feelings became sharper, I knew it was time to go.

The feeling of pride and worth that I got from my job was so precious to me, but I now see that it was based on a set of values that applies less and less in

our continually evolving set of social expectations. Further to that, I have no doubt that today’s values are highly unlikely to have the same importance fifty years hence.

The world had changed, but me... not so much. I started to feel a little less comfortable and relevant than I used to. The expertise and skill that I so proudly shared with my trainer colleagues in the Royal Lifesaving Society was unchanged, but the delivery of it – the requirements of it and for it –had evolved.

My own starting world had inkwell pens, blackboards and chalk. And let’s not forget logarithm tables. Museum stuff. There was also much less demand on people’s time. Whatever you needed to do or learn, you could easily find the time to do it – for in those days little else was calling for that time.

Now the days of a First Aid course lasting for well over a week – even two – are long gone. Over the decades it has been like watching a country lane grow into a four lane highway. Things now

move fast. If you can’t keep up – move aside.

And so began the first realisation that my working life was coming to its inevitable end. As a trainer I wanted everybody to understand what was going on inside a sick or injured casualty – so that they could treat with the best care, and with the best possibility of a good outcome. But it doesn’t tend to work like that any more.

Recognise and analyse what’s in front of you, then select the appropriate algorithm and apply. In my day we had to know the latin names of every bone and muscle in the body – and Heaven help the first aider who tied up a sling with the wrong type of knot!

Just like in schools – education nowadays is more about problem solving than carrying a headful of data. Especially such fluidic data – changing on a daily basis. Even I can now accept how preposterously unnecessary that all is for the first aider of today, and yet for decades I was so proud that I knew it.

Deal with what’s in front of you. Don’t overthink it. It’s great to know the finer details, but it mustn’t stop you from responding if you don’t.

The reality of my increasingly redundant headful of first aid trivia slowly sank in. I began looking at my job through the eyes of someone taking a last look around the office before they finally leave.

And when the date of my last day was decided, I started mentally ticking off those ‘last time that’ll happen’ things. The last time you are with your work mates, etc., and ultimately, handing over the keys of the company car. Like Frodo’s Ring – it was over.

Now what?

They rush off to catch up with those bikes, while you stand alone by the empty, crumb-laden goodbye plates ...

When your dreams are finally standing right in front of you

Throughout your early working life you dream of the day when you won’t have to work any more, and for so many years that vision hovers on the horizon like a waiting state of Nirvana. Then – with the ground rush of a descending parachutist – it draws ever closer ever faster, and in the blink of an eye you are standing toe-to-toe with it.

My first memory is of an overwhelming silence. The rushing wind and clatter and oft-times pandemonium of everyday working life had gone, noisily passing like a pack of Tour de France bikes, then vanishing over the hilltop.

I recall the last moments: the farewell meal with my friends and workmates, the informal cake and nibbles in the office, the goodbye hugs and handshakes and promises.

Then everyone goes back to work except you. They rush off to catch up with those bikes, while you stand alone by the empty, crumb-laden goodbye plates and dishes. As you open the exit door for the last time, instead of the car park you see the pasture.

At home, I recall fondly the ceremonial ritual of the ’Smashing of the Alarm Clock’. The shattered remnants were gathered into a pyre and consumed by sacred flame while my wife and I sat shiva for it with pizza and champagne. A large hammer lay nearby in case we saw any last signs of life. We didn’t, but I gave it a final wallop just to be sure.

Feelings, nothing more than feelings

Anyone’s career – if they’re enjoying it and doing it right – contributes MASSIVELY to their feeling of self worth. Being proud that you have done something of value. Mine was doing that for me. And now it isn’t. It leaves a void that’s hard to define and harder to fill. For a while.

A dear friend of mine, having lost the use of his legs in a road accident, went along the very common psychological path of mourning for all the things he could no longer do. It was his dad – a dour old Scot – that told him one day to

man up and focus on what he CAN do. And so began his new journey. He was a Paralympian at Sydney, and medalled in Beijing. A World Champion rower. A highly credentialed motivational speaker. He set up a foundation to raise funds for kids who can’t afford wheelchairs.

This very magazine featured him in an article in the December 2015 issue. John Maclean. Thanks to a most incredible development in neurological medicine he can now walk again. He told me that when he’s presenting he likes to wheelchair onto the stage and end by walking off. Wow!

Who the hell am I to wonder how I’m going to fill my days! My issues are in my head only. Nowhere else.

I watched a play in London long ago, where Sir Laurence Olivier said: ‘Remember [...] the only thing in Life over which you have complete control is your attitude!’

Amen to that! Bring me a copy of Desiderata – I need to read up! There’s a bit that says;

‘Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.’

. . . and especially that part that says; ‘Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.’

Time for me to be at one with everything!

My musings are done, and a new road waits at my feet. The blank canvas of my life’s next chapter is filling fast. Some things are already set in motion: I’ll be running photography classes at the University of the Third Age. I’ll be helping to organise the Anzac Day Scottish Act of Remembrance in Sydney. I’ll now be more available for this very magazine. And that’s not all; it’s about time I finished learning to speak French. Maybe I can now finally build that model boat. Teach Figure Drawing. I’ll volunteer for the SES. I’ll learn the piano at last. Drums too (that’ll please the neighbours). And, and, and...

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

– Max Ehrmann, 1927

A memorable mason

RW Bro Gustav Larsen – a tobacconist – was the first Junior Grand Warden of the United Grand Lodge of NSW. In this chapter from his coming book The Lodge above the Baker’s Shop, VW Bro Alan Gale tells the story of a man who lived and breathed the ethics of Freemasonry.

Gustav Larsen, the first Junior Grand Warden of the United Grand Lodge of NSW, was one of those perpetual organisers.

His life is an example of that interpretation of the North East Charge where charity of action rather than charity by financial donation is the distinguishing characteristic of a Freemason’s heart.

Larsen was indefatigable in his endeavours to improve society and to create opportunities that raised money for benevolent institutions.

Not only was he a serial lodge Secretary and Master and a member of Grand Lodge committees, but he was also strongly involved in Sydney’s Danish and Scandinavian communities as well as his local residential communities.

He was also a successful businessman, on the board of gold mining companies and other ventures, repeatedly appearing as secretary, trustee, board and committee member and honorary member of organisations.

An example is the listing of his name as organizing secretary of the annual Fancy Dress Ball to aid the benevolent fund of the Scandinavian Association of NSW for some 15 years.

An 1881 advertisement gives a clue to the event’s style, held at the Masonic Hall in York Street: Doors open and music starts at 9pm. German Band engaged for the occasion. Lady’s ticket procurable only on application of a gentleman. All visitors remove their masques at midnight. The ball will terminate at 4am.

Clearly they knew how to party in 1881!

Baptised Lauretz Gustav Larsen and born in Copenhagen in 1836; he lived in Elsinore and at the age of 40 arrived in Sydney on the good ship Hawkesbury in August 1877.

He packed a lot into his remaining 18 years.

After a rough introduction to Sydney (much of what he owned was stolen from his Macquarie Street lodgings in September 1877), he set up shop as a tobacconist at 90 Oxford Street the same year and threw himself into masonic affairs.

In November 1878 he was the foundation SW of Lodge Cosmopolitan No 16, part of the very new Grand Lodge of NSW and in May 1879 became its Worshipful Master, a position he repeated several times at Cosmopolitan.

At that time there were a number of masons running businesses up and down Oxford Street who were interested in forming a lodge. In 1880, Larsen was

the foundation secretary of Lodge Oxford No 22 of the Grand Lodge of NSW (later 85 of the UGL NSW) and was clearly the driver of the Lodge.

This was before the 1888 formation of the United Grand Lodge of NSW. At that time lodges also met under the District Grand Lodges of the English and Scottish constitutions and relationships between the three were not at all cordial.

Indeed, the Grand Lodge of NSW (formed in 1877) was regarded by the English and Scottish as a spurious or irregular masonic body and did much to hamper its development.

advertisement for the Scandinavian charity ball, with a strong masonic influence. Farnell, as well as being Premier, was the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of NSW.

Courtesy Trove

The Hawkesbury which brought Larsen to Sydney. Courtesy Mitchell Library

Contemporary newspapers have regular articles about speeches in lodges of the English and Scottish District Grand Lodges ventilating sometimes odious opinions about the upstart Grand Lodge of NSW.

At the same time, they record speeches at GL NSW lodge installations boasting about the rapid increase of its membership and the growing level of acceptance and recognition by overseas Grand Lodges.

Larsen was (unsurprisingly) heavily involved in the Grand Lodge of NSW as an office holder in several lodges; a member of more than one Grand Lodge committee and as an active Grand Officer, including terms as Inspector of Workings.

One of the delegates to the formation committee that decided the rituals and constitutions of the United Grand Lodge, he had the honour of being selected as the foundation Grand Junior Warden and his signature is clear on the 1888 Articles of Union – on the righthand side, second from the top.

Among all this masonic activity, he moved his tobacconists’ shop from 88 Oxford Street to the then brand new Sydney Arcade in King Street, was living at ‘Kronborg’, 100 Darling Street, Balmain and had a second residence ‘Elsinore’ at Springwood in the Lower Blue Mountains, opposite the Orient Hotel.

In 1890, after 13 years in Sydney, he applied for naturalisation papers and became an Australian. He did not marry,

had no children, and lived with his nephew Axel Bech, his wife Mary and their five children.

There are multiple newspaper references that record his continual community work, mostly in Springwood.

In 1890 a series of articles in the Sydney Morning Herald details his torrid campaign (against opposition from the local butcher) to have an animal pound created at Springwood. He organised community meetings, lobbied the local

parliamentarians and with his nephew Axel was on the foundation organizing committee.

The butcher had previously been cheerfully rounding up stray cattle as a cheap supply of stock for his trade and reducing them to tallow next door to Larsen’s house. Rendering cattle carcasses to tallow is a particularly odorous practice.

When the Springwood community needed a space for meetings and

This led to him being elected to the Progress Committee and he campaigned for better train and postal services ...

The Sydney Arcade, circa 1890. It was one of the city’s most fashionable places to shop. Courtesy Mitchell Library

concerts, Larsen made the ‘Elsinore’ billiard room available to community groups and the Progress Committee met there.

This led to him being elected to the Progress Committee and he campaigned for better train and postal services as well as the opening of a bank branch and the establishment of the Springwood School of Arts.

It may sound odd, but two Danes –Larsen and nephew Axel – were instrumental in the setting aside of what is now Lomatia Park in Springwood and the formation of the second oldest cricket club in NSW – the Springwood Cricket Club – in 1891. In 1892 they were appointed trustees of Lomatia Park and the recreation ground (also the Cricket Ground).

In 1893, improvements to the Cricket Ground were noted at a Progress Committee meeting and attributed to Larsen and Bech with the pavilion named ‘Larsen’s Hall’.

Through all this he maintained his activity in Sydney as the board member of mining companies and the leading

light of the Balmain North Freetrade, Land and Reform League as well as rarely missing meetings of Lodges Oxford and Cosmopolitan as well as tending to his tobacconists’ shop, and maintaining involvement in Grand Lodge affairs.

He led masonic delegations to the Governor, chaired a relief committee to raise money for the victims of severe ...

fires in Sweden, and donated a cricket set to Springwood Junior Cricket Club.

As befitted his status in Oxford, he was the perennial senior sponsor at its installations and his contribution was recognised when he was, by acclamation, made its first honorary member in 1893.

He died in his Balmain home on 17 September 1894 from a brain tumour, aged 58 years.

A Lodge of Sorrow was opened by the then Deputy Grand Master TE Spencer at ‘The New Masonic Hall’ (the predecessor to the Sydney Masonic Centre) on 19 September and was adjourned to the Anglican section of Waverley Cemetery where he was buried with full Grand Lodge Honours as befitted a Past Junior Grand Warden.

The minutes of what was by then Lodge Oxford No 85 for 20 September 1894 record the funeral the previous day of RW Bro Gustav Larsen PJGW with full masonic honours and its attendance by some 200 people, including masonic and civic leaders as well as many Springwood residents.

the English and Scottish District Grand Lodges ventilating sometimes odious opinions about the upstart Grand Lodge of NSW.

Larsen’s tobacconist store (2nd from right) in 1911 – about to be demolished to make way for the widening of Oxford Street. Courtesy Sydney City Council archives

The 1886 ‘New Masonic Hall’ in Castlereagh Street, as Larsen would have known it.

Courtesy the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences

Have your say

‘Reform’ and ‘Change’

As you know, we go to lodge to learn and if we are fortunate, we go home a little wiser. Well, can I say that whenever I read the Freemason magazine, I am always a little wiser, so much so that the magazine inspires me to write these words which I have decided to share with you. Freemasonry is not a society of perfect men, but perfected men. In Freemasonry you can find the highest level of equality. Today we live in a society in which our customs, traditions and values are subject to the pressure of reform. Reform means ‘change’. The mission of Freemasonry and of every lodge is the ‘reconstruction of man’ in order to prepare him to accept ‘change’.

Our lodges will give us the courage to face society, the happiness to accept it, and at the same time give us a spring in our step that lifts us at times when all seems ‘locked up’. Brethren, together we can do it.

Regards

Tony Maiorana Lodge Trinity 666

Moving forward with COVID

It looks as though we are past the worst of the coronavirus, although I suspect that it is not as good as it appears. Perhaps the cessation of daily reports by State Premiers and not as much emphasis on the pandemic in the news has given us a false sense of relief. Although masks are no longer required to be worn on public transport, notices in buses and trains recommend that we do. A minority of us do wear masks at least some of the time. People have returned to work, church services are being conducted, public meetings are occurring, and masonic lodges are meeting. However, we would like to share the following with you.

We know of a lodge where the corona virus created disharmony because members had different opinions whether COVID-19 really existed and, therefore, why should they take any additional health precautions than those that were stipulated by Grand Lodge and the NSW Government?

In Freemasonry, we don’t discuss politics and religion, but there are no guidelines for any discussion on COVID-19, which has caused a great deal of disharmony among the brethren on more than one occasion. During a Zoom discussion, the Lodge decided it would meet, with those attending taking rapid antigen tests before each meeting. This seemed a reasonable proposition. However, closer to the time when the Lodge was going to meet, it was decided to not have these tests despite the feelings of some that it would be safer to do so. One could argue that as masons we are obliged, as stated in the Final Charge of the First Degree, that obedience requires a ‘ready acquiescence in all votes and resolutions duly passed by a majority of the brethren ‘, but is this what we should be doing in such a situation?

As Master Masons, we are taught that, as far as a fellow Master Mason is concerned, we are ‘ever to regard his interests as my

own’. Also, brotherly love and compassion for others are among the principles of Freemasonry. I feel that the way that we treat others, including our fellow masons, is more important than agreeing to a resolution that does not take his feelings into account. We should seriously consider any concerns others have, particularly something that can be thought of as a case of life and death.

Although Grand Lodge gave us advice what to do in conducting meetings when the coronavirus was prevalent, it would have been good to have been given some advice how to manage situations resulting from the confrontational issues above. It would be proactive if Grand Lodge were to formalise appropriate directions for the private lodges on matters of this nature because a pandemic such as COVID-19 can easily reoccur in the future.

There are a couple of questions that I would like your readers to consider:

1. What do you think Grand Lodge should recommend with regards to preventing disharmony within a lodge where members have different opinions as to whether COVID-19 still exists?

2. How do you think that a lodge could have handled the situation where some brethren wanted everybody to undertake a rapid antigen test before each meeting and other brethren did not?

Sincere fraternal regards,

Bro Dave Merritt

The Schools Lodge 639

As Master Masons, we are taught that, as far as a fellow Master Mason is concerned, we are ‘ever to regard his interests as my own’.

The many aspects of Harry Kellerman

There’s a Lodge Kellerman and a Kellerman Lectureship. Who was he, and what did he do to earn having a masonic lodge and a lectureship named after him?

Intrepid masonic researcher, MH Kellerman was born in New Zealand in 1902. His parents returned to Australia with him in 1910. He began in the NSW teaching service at Walcha in 1923. He became involved in distance education in 1938 until his retirement from that field in 1974. In 1969 he was honoured with an OBE for services to education.

Harry was initiated in Lodge Apsley in 1924 and was WM of Lodge Tullibigeal, 619, in 1945.

Harry, with his interest in education, was an ideal choice to preside over the Grand Lodge Committee of Masonic Education when it was formed in 1960. When the Research Lodge of NSW was consecrated in 1968, Harry was the foundation DC and editor of its Transactions. He was appointed Grand Lodge Librarian in 1982. He wrote the two-volume history of the UGL, From Diamond Jubilee to Centenary, and was conferred as PDGM in 1990.

Among masonic researchers he encouraged reference to primary sources and precise citation, and vigorously discouraged slipshod presentation.

Prior to giving my maiden presentation to the Research Lodge in 1992, I was told that if there was not blood on the floor after a Research Lodge meeting, Harry had been absent! While he was a stickler for correct scholarship, I can vouch for the fact that he was also very helpful to, and supportive of, neophyte presenters.

I’m sure you can understand why Harry’s contributions were honoured by naming a specialised lodge after him. Lodge Kellerman 1027 aims to be an exemplar masonic lodge in New South Wales for young Freemasons.

When the newly formed Australian Masonic Research Council (later

ANZMRC, having expanded to include NZ research bodies in 1996) was seeking to name the biennial Lectureships after an outstanding masonic researcher and educator, the founding Secretary, Bro Kent Henderson, could look no further than Harry Kellerman.

Harry gave an exemplary paper at the inaugural conference (1992), at the age of 90, and attended three subsequent conferences, in Parramatta (1994), the mini conference in Canberra (1995), and Perth (1996). He died in 2000.

Harry wrote concerning the Lecturers: We all hope that they will proceed from success to success, continually spreading, through their work, Masonic knowledge of significant value to all members, past and present, thus helping to preserve the ideals of Brotherhood, Peace and Understanding … But this is not the end. They cannot consider themselves to have arrived. I hope it is a means to the end — the encouragement of others to strive to copy their example, to dedicate themselves to the acquisition of knowledge and understanding of Freemasonry. I hope their achievements and successes will be an inspiration to Masons generally to look beyond the ritual and to work for the progress of Freemasonry as a way of life. We look to brethren like these for guidance and encouragement. When these aims are achieved then and only then will the Kellerman Lectures fulfil the purpose for which they were inaugurated.

... he encouraged reference to primary sources and precise citation ...

Harry Kellerman

The Kellerman Lecturers and their lecture topics

Lecture title Lecturer

The Challenge of the Changes in Membership in New South Wales

Freemasonry Among Australian Prisoners of War

The 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment and Freemasonry in Australia 1814 to 1817

Samuel Clayton, Australian Masonic Pioneer

The Degrees of the Practical Masons

Masonic Education

Mysticism, Masculinity and Masonry

Catherine the Great and Freemasonry in Russia

Green Masonry: Nature and Freemasonry

New Masonic History: The future of Australian Freemasonry and Ned Kelly’s Sash

Statistical Foundations of the Masonic Mind

Origin of the Craft Ritual in New South Wales

Two Enduring Treasures: Why they are not Ornaments

Some Mid-Nineteenth Century Sydney Freemasons

The theory behind the form and requirements of a Kellerman Lecture is an analogy with formal schooling: if a Craft lodge may be considered primary schooling, then a research lodge ought to be at the secondary level, and ANZMRC’s conferences should provide the setting for tertiary level. To this end, a Kellerman Lecture is required to contain the author’s

Harry Kellerman*

Brian Burton*

Robert Linford*

Arthur Astin*

Neil Wynes Morse

Andy Walker*

David Slater

Robert Nairn

Geoff Ludowyk

Bob James

Phillip Purcell

Ian Shanley

Peter Bindon*

Wayne McPhee and Benjamin Wharton

* Deceased

original work, previously unpublished, and be of interest beyond the boundary of his own masonic jurisdiction. The author must present the paper in person and be prepared to defend the thesis. It is up to the author to decide how much of the allotted 60–90 minutes should be devoted to presentation and how much left for questions and discussion. The

author may include as much additional material as is wished in the printed version of his paper, and then speak to the paper rather than read it all. The papers are published in the Conference Proceedings, which are given to registrants at the beginning of the four-day conference, allowing them some time to assess what is to be presented. Clearly it is better to allocate a non-controversial paper for the first session.

It is up to the affiliates of a particular jurisdiction to determine selection criteria for their candidates’ papers.

The Kellerman Lecturers for this jurisdiction are listed in the adjacent table.

Our next ANZMRC Conference – Sydney 2024

The next ANZMRC Conference will be held in Sydney in October 2024, and organisers are now calling for papers.

If you have an idea for a paper on any subject that has a connection with Freemasonry – historic, philosophic, or esoteric, please start writing and consider submitting a paper. Submission deadlines are early 2024.

The full submission guidelines and selection process can be obtained from the Sydney Discovery Lodge of Research secretary.

For more information email: secretary@discoverylodge.org

Masonry ‘revealed’

You can now find pretty much anything you want to know about Freemasonry online. We might well wring our hands about the availability of that information now that we live in the modern, information-on-demand, digital age. However, even before the web and the internet, masonic secrets have been publicly available, whether by people who are well-intentioned, ill-informed, or simply malicious. Names like Morgan (1826), Duncan (1866), and Pritchard (1730) might be familiar in this respect. However, does merely having the information really reveal the secrets? I wonder whether we need be so concerned. I plan to explain why we should not be concerned, by using cryptography and the idea of public and private keys.

What is this cryptography stuff?

Cryptography is the backbone of our modern, internet-connected, hyper-automated, and electronic world. We all use

encrypted information at some level on a daily, if not hourly, basis. Most of us bank online; and use shopping sites, mobile phone communications, cable and internet connections. Even our email communications and social media can be made (somewhat) secure from interception or theft using cryptography. But to do so, both parties must have a key to encrypt and decrypt the information.

This next paragraph is a little complicated for those who are terrified of mathematics but stay with me. The current cryptographic standard uses 256-bit encryption – that means it uses a key that has 256 binary places to encode the infor-

mation (each place consisting of a ‘1’ or ’0’ – because we are talking about computers after all). That means a number that has 2256 possible options, or almost 4.3 billion multiplied by itself eight times – an unfathomably large number. To make it simple, one estimate online suggests that even if we could use a version of hyped-up-all-bells-andwhistles-inter-galactic supercomputing power that titanically overshadows our current computing reality, it would take over 507 billion years to guess any random 256-bit code with a chance of one in 4 billion. You get the idea: if you don’t have the key, you have no practical chance of deciphering the code.

If you didn’t understand that last paragraph, fear not, now is the important part that brings it all back to Freemasonry. One form of encryption uses asymmetric keys, which means two keys, a public and a private key. The public key is a simple (but very long) number that anyone can know, the private key is made of factors – two numbers multiplied together to give

We are taught to be cautious about how we communicate with other masons and to shield our hearts, the safe and sacred repository of our secrets, from cowans, intruders, and the uninstructed world. We are the custodians of a long legacy of masonic teaching, and it is important that we maintain this caution.

... I think of this as the public key of Freemasonry.

the first number (like 4 times 5 gives 20). Without getting into the technicalities of how this works, basically someone sends you the public key (that long string of numbers) which you use to encrypt your communications using an algorithm (a set of rules or actions that tell you how to use the key to manipulate your information). You then send this encrypted information over an unsecure line back to the sender of the public key who also has the private key (the factors of the number they sent you, which no one else knows) which they use to decrypt your communication.

What does this have to do with Freemasonry?

To return to my earlier question, should we be concerned about how much information about our rituals, practices, and secrets is in the public domain? It doesn’t take long for the inquisitive, but critically unguided, mind to stumble across information about Freemasonry. But does access to this raw information mean that our ‘secrets’ are exposed?

Perhaps a little, but I think of this as the public key of Freemasonry: those things that are available to everyone. What is vitally important for understanding and applying this knowledge – to truly examining and relating to this knowledge – is what we as Freemasons have, and that is the private key. The key that deciphers that knowledge.

We are the gate keepers of the metaphorical cipher to understanding Freemasonry. You could read our secrets, you could recite the ritual, but what does it really mean? What does it really get you? Does it mean anything until you’ve been led to deeply interrogate the information presented to you, and to see how others relate to it and apply it, particularly those whom we see as our mentors who have had a long-standing and deep relationship with Freemasonry?

Without the private key of masonic understanding and what Masonry means to each of us as masons one will never fully decode what is offered by the public key; one will never fully decrypt our secrets or discover the full richness of what Freemasonry has to offer. Moreover, those who seek an easy ride to

enlightenment will be sorely disappointed by the ‘riches’ delivered to them – for they are not material, but something much less tangible albeit far more valuable.

Even more importantly, until you fully embrace Masonry and embed it in your heart and psyche, you will never be more than a ‘book’ Mason with little substance; though perhaps impressed by our historical and esoteric wondrousness. Others might wonder why what is ‘revealed’ to them seems so mundane.

There is one more aspect: living the life of a Freemason. What that means for you personally I can’t say, nor can any of your brethren, although we can all share a sense of what that means to us personally. We each decrypt Masonry in our own way. In effect, we each have our own personal key. The public key – the words, the symbols – are outwardly the same for everyone, but only the individual can decrypt what Masonry means for him personally. And that takes more than reading the texts. That means living the life of a good man, with a sound spiritual and moral edifice. That means constantly interrogating masonic principles; that means constantly asking what it means for me; that means asking how you can turn this into a communal good; that means seeking further light in Masonry. It does not end with receiving each of the three degrees. It is a constant process of searching.

Perhaps even now we don’t possess our own personal, private key to decrypt the secrets of Masonry. But our constant and abiding wish should be that each one of us will find it, and perhaps also then help

others to find theirs. Masonry provides a noble and ennobling path in that search.

If you’re not already a mason, perhaps the first step towards decrypting the secrets of the Craft is to join a lodge and set yourself to learn about the secrets and mysteries of ancient Freemasonry. You will find that it’s much more than words and actions!

Have charter, will travel!

A simple example of an asymmetric key encryption scheme.

Fake News is old news

The so-called ‘Taxil Hoax’ was perpetrated by French author and anti-religionist Marie Joseph Gabriel Antoine JogandPagès from 1887 to 1897 and was widely praised by anti-masonic zealots. That zealotry persists to this day, as many lodges and brethren can freely attest.

Jogand-Pagès, writing under the nom de plume ‘Léo Taxil’ and rebelling against a strict religious upbringing, authored a number of anti-religious books.

In 1885 he feigned a sincere conversion to Roman Catholicism and renounced his previous anti-clerical stance. This was in response to the 1884 Papal encyclical, Humanum Genus, that said the human race was ‘separated into two diverse and opposite parts, of which the one steadfastly contends for truth and virtue ... The one is the kingdom of God on earth, namely, the true Church of Jesus Christ ... The other is the kingdom of Satan,’ which was ‘led on or assisted’ by Freemasonry.

Taxil announced his intention of repairing the damage he had done to the true faith. His real intent was to publicly slander the Freemasons (who reportedly had rejected him for membership) and simultaneously embarrass the Roman Catholic Church.

The Hoax

The first book produced by Taxil after his ‘conversion’ was a four volume ‘history’ of Freemasonry, which contained fictitious eyewitness verifications of its participation in Satanism. With a collaborator, Taxil wrote another book called The Devil in the Nineteenth Century,

introducing a new character, Diana Vaughan, a supposed descendant of the Rosicrucian alchemist Thomas Vaughan. The book contained many implausible tales about her encounters with incarnate demons, one of whom was supposed to have written prophecies on her back with its tail, and another in the shape of a crocodile played the piano.

Vaughan claimed participation in ‘Satanic Masonry’, only to be redeemed when one day she professed admiration for Joan of Arc, at whose name the demons were put to flight. (Taxil published a book under the Vaughan name called Eucharistic Novena, a collection of prayers that were praised by the Pope.)

The entire hoax led to massive sales of his books and resulting profits to him.

Others quoted his works as Vaughan in a series of writings about the roots of the masonic satanic conspiracy, falsely claimed to be found in the epic Morals and Dogma by renowned Masonic scholar and Grand Commander of the Ancient Scottish Rite for the Southern Jurisdiction, Albert Pike (1809–91). They read:

To you, Sovereign Grand Inspectors General, we say this, that you may repeat it to the brethren of the 32nd, 31st and 30th degrees: The Masonic Religion should be, by all of us initiates of the higher degrees, maintained in the Purity of the Luciferian doctrine. If Lucifer were not God, would Adonay and his priests calumniate him?

... Thus, the doctrine of Satanism is a heresy, and the true and pure philosophical religion is the belief in Lucifer, the equal of Adonay; but Lucifer, God of Light and God of Good, is struggling for humanity against Adonay, the God of Darkness and Evil.

In 1891, Taxil (Jogand-Pagès) and Adolphe Ricoux claimed to have discovered a Palladian Society. An 1892 book The Devil in the 19th Century, written by Jogan-Pagès alleged that Palladists were Satanists based in Charleston, South Carolina, headed by Pike, and created by the Italian liberal patriot and author Giuseppe Mazzini. According to this invention, Palladism was a religion practiced within the highest orders of Freemasonry. Adherents worshipped Lucifer and interacted with demons. The book had great sales among Catholics.

In 1887, Jogand-Pagès had an audience with Pope Leo XIII, who also

It is remarkable that a hoax perpetrated over a decade in the late 1800s persists to this day in certain quarters and is taken as totally truthful and accurate by a small but vocal portion of general society.

Marie Joseph Gabriel Antoine JogandPagès, also known as Léo Taxil.

rebuked the bishop of Charleston, South Carolina for denouncing the anti-masonic confessions as a fraud and supported anti-masonic conventions. In 1892, Taxil began a newspaper, Christian Antimasonic France, with his anti-masonic publishing friend, Abel Clarin de la Rive.

Arthur Edward Waite, British poet, scholar, and Freemason was among the first to vigorously address Taxil ‘s claims, debunking the existence of the Palladists in Devil ­Worship in France, or The Question of Lucifer, first published in 1896.

By this time pressure grew for Taxil to produce the elusive Diana Vaughan. On 19 April 1897, Léo Taxil called a press conference at which he claimed he would introduce Diana Vaughan to the press. At the conference instead he announced that Vaughan did not exist and all his revelations about the

Freemasons were fictitious. He thanked the Catholic clergy for their assistance in giving publicity to his wild claims.

Taxil’s confession was printed, in its entirety, in the Parisian newspaper Le Frondeur, on 25 April 1897, titled: Twelve Years Under the Banner of the Church, The Prank Of Palladism. Miss Diana Vaughan – The Devil At The Freemasons. A Conference held by M. Léo Taxil, at the Hall of the Geographic Society in Paris.

With that, the Taxil hoax collapsed.

Aftermath

Shortly before he died, Taxil/JogandPagès granted an interview to the magazine National Magazine, an Illustrated American Monthly which was published in 1906. Taxil gave his true reasons behind the hoax.

From the article:

The confession of Taxil, the French Freethinker, who first exposed Catholics and then Masons, makes interesting reading bearing on the present situation today. Similar motives actuate some of the

Above: Title page from a book debunking Taxil’s work by noted poet and mystic Arthur Edward Waite published in 1896.

Right: Poster advertising one of Taxil’s anti-Freemasonry books, featuring imagery based on Eliphas Lévi’s version of ‘Baphomet’, from the same year.

‘muck rakes’ of today, as indicated in the following confession:

The public made me what I am; the arch­liar of the period,’ confessed Taxil, ‘for when I first commenced to write against the Masons my object was amusement pure and simple. The crimes I laid at their door were so grotesque, so impossible, so widely exaggerated, that I thought everybody would see the joke and give me credit for originating a new line of humour. But my readers wouldn’t have it so; they accepted my fables as gospel truth, and the more I lied for the purpose of showing that I lied, the more convinced became they that I was a paragon of veracity.

Then it dawned upon me that there was lots of money in being a Munchausen of the right kind, and for twelve years I

gave it to them hot and strong, but never too hot. When inditing such slush as the story of the devil snake who wrote prophecies on Diana ‘s back with the end of his tail, I sometimes said to myself: ‘Hold on, you are going too far,’ but I didn’t. My readers even took kindly to the yarn of the devil who, in order to marry a Mason, transformed himself into a crocodile, and, despite the masquerade, played the piano wonderfully well.

Ah, the jolly evenings I spent with my fellow authors hatching out new plots, new, unheard of perversions of truth and logic, each trying to outdo the other in organized mystification. I thought I would kill myself laughing at some of the things proposed, but everything

Left:

went; there is no limit to human stupidity.

Yet, despite all of this and numerous other refutations over the years, Taxil’s elaborate fabrications live on. At least one publisher continues to reproduce translations of his materials, promoting them as truth and selling them worldwide to the gullible and angry, who often reproduce them and deliver them to lodges everywhere as revelations as to what we are ‘really doing,’ as well as distributing them through social media and other means.

This article is an edited version of an article by W Bro Andrew Niemyer published in The Short Talk Bulletin by The Masonic Service Association of North America.

W Bro Andrew Niemyer is a Past Master of Ionic Lodge No. 186, Duluth, MN and is a 32nd Degree SRSJ Mason. He currently serves as the Grand Lodge Education Officer for the Grand Lodge of Masons in Minnesota.

Far left: A woman poses as ‘Diana Vaughan,’ the fictitious descendant of the Rosicrucian alchemist Thomas Vaughan. Diana was supposedly involved in Satanic Freemasonry.

The issue of Le Frondeur in which Léo Taxil confessed the details of his hoax. The headline translates to: Twelve Years Under the Banner of the Church, The Prank Of Palladism. Miss Diana Vaughan – The Devil At The Freemasons. A Conference held by M. Léo Taxil, at the Hall of the Geographic Society in Paris.

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You’re never too old to learn

Following our infancy, our life can be divided into three main sections: School Life, Working/ Parental Life and Retired Life. It is the last one that is often referred to as our Third Age.

With our increasing longevity and good health, we find ourselves looking for something to do in our Third Age. More and more retirees are turning to learning as a great (and very beneficial) time filler.

Yes – retirees are going back to school.

There is an amazing, world-wide organisation that accommodates their ambitions perfectly. The University of the Third Age (U3A) comprises members wishing to either be taught by or simply be a part of like-minded groups. Crafts, languages, the arts, hobbies, science, literature, light sports (e.g. walking, table tennis, yoga, etc.), and so on. They meet at learning centres, but sometimes they meet in someone’s home.

Liberally sprinkled amongst its membership are those who feel they have something to offer – so they either teach or lead a group. There are no pre-requisites for teaching qualifications or experience; if you want to impart your knowledge then go for it! If you’re good then your group will usually grow as the word spreads. If you’re not so good - i.e.,

boring – then you’ll soon find that retirees don’t have time to waste on you, and there’s a kind of Darwinian shuffle down the corridor into the next classroom to see what’s happening there. And the hapless instructor has learned his or her own lesson in just how interesting they aren’t.

Generally speaking, a class or group will coalesce when a) there is sufficient interest in the topic and b) there is someone who will volunteer to teach or guide the group. This naturally results in a curriculum that varies between

learning centres according to who is available to teach what, and whether anyone wants to learn it anyway.

Even though its timetable and subject list might therefore be somewhat ad hoc, the organisation of U3A runs a very tight ship from a business point of view, ensuring that any random or fluid activity remains solely at the coal face – not at the management or organisational level.

As you can imagine, U3A as a concept brings a HUGE benefit to the older community – that being its social aspect. The physical and psychological advantages of regular meetings with others are immense, especially for those who live alone. There are often casual meetings at a coffee shop or nearby park before and/or after class. New friendships are forged, and getting out of the house is massively important to one’s overall wellbeing, as is KEEPING THE BRAIN ACTIVE!

Indeed, it could be argued that the topic of each class is somewhat incidental.

So where did it all start?

There are now around 300 branches across Australia, with more than 65 of them in NSW.

The idea of U3A was conceived in France in 1973, where its branches were usually associated with actual universities. The learning content tended to be quite academic, even tapping into those universities for some of their teaching skills. Academic or not, any accreditation for members rarely went beyond certificate level, but it all looked nice in a frame on the wall.

It was open to anyone who had the time to spare – which was predominantly retired people. It became known by a couple of names: UTL – Université du Temps Libre (Free Time University), or UTA – Université Tous Ages (University of All Ages).

The ‘Third Age’ component of the name got a foothold as it all spread around the world, with a global network soon developing. Each participating country had a representation in that global network. Here’s some more French: AIUTA – Association Internationale des Universités du Troisième Âge (International Association of the Universities of The Third Age). The President is currently Professor François Vellas from the University of Toulouse, who is actually the son of the guy who first came up with the idea of U3A in Toulouse in 1973 –M. Pierre Vellas.

Now there are U3As everywhere; they cover pretty well all of Europe, America, Russia, China and more.

The drift away from the more formal, certificated learning structure began when U3A reached the United Kingdom in the 1980s. The idea was to have each learning centre as a kind of franchise – each one being its own cost centre but still linked to the larger network. U3A UK has almost half a million members in over 1,000 centres, with each one being registered as a charity.

Australia

U3A reached Australia in 1984, with the first branch being opened in Melbourne. There are now around 300 branches across Australia, with more than 65 of them in NSW. Australia has opted to follow the less formal UK model rather than the more academic French original.

Each State or Territory has its own network to provide support and resources to its learning centres and has its own website allowing members and the public to access information about what classes are being conducted and where.

For more information on U3A NSW go to www.nsw.u3anet.org.au.

U3A Online

It was inevitable that an online option would ultimately become available for those living in remote areas or having difficulty attending centres. Recalling

the original concept of being a learning pathway for anyone who had the time – Université du Temps Libre (Free Time University) – U3A Online is available for anyone who has the time to undertake study.

The website www.u3aonline.org.au currently lists no less than 85 options for signing up to Independent Study Courses. Have a look. You might learn something.

And yes ... it’s ALL run by volunteers!

CLASSIFIED ADVERTS

Books for sale

Ars Quatuor

Coronatorum

– volumes for sale

Volumes 75–111, plus additional volumes in the sequence. Facsimiles of volumes 4 and 5 are also available. All profits will be devoted to masonic research.

Email aqc_vols@gmail.com for details.

EVENTS & NOTICES

Now meet on 4th Sunday of each month at 11.00am at the Blacktown Masonic Centre 5/1 Carnegie Place, Blacktown For further details please phone Talese on 0401 213 800 or email: rainbowgirls74@gmail.com

International Order of the Rainbow for Girls Rainbow Girls meetings

U3A accommodates a wide range of interests and activities.

100 years in Collaroy

On 20 April 2023, Freemasonry was duly celebrated at the Collaroy Masonic Centre. It was the 100th anniversary of the temple, which was originally dedicated on 7 April 1923.

The centenary was suitably celebrated with a rededication ceremony performed by RW Bro Robert Drake PAGM as the representative of the UGL of NSW & ACT. The event hosted many senior representatives from Grand Lodge, United Supreme Grand Chapter of Royal Arch and Mark Master Masons, Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite S.C. and the Order of the Secret Monitor. All are orders that currently meet at this centre.

There were many brethren visiting from throughout the state. All lodges of the district were represented along with several interstate visitors.

The building had undergone an external rejuvenation with a paint job and adorned with an illuminated square and compasses sign. There were nearly 100 people in the lodge room, and all

were suitably impressed. The ceremony, and consecration of a new marble plaque, which had been beautifully made by Lodge Warringah’s Senior Warden and resident stonemason, Hardy Crombach, was skillfully performed by RW Bro Robert Drake, assisted by the WM and Wardens of Lodge Warringah. The new plaque will

now adorn the wall in the lodge room next to the 1923 plaque.

Afterwards there was a delicious and celebratory dinner, with many ladies, friends and brethren in attendance. The meal and ambience were just perfect for the occasion, and according to many guests, the night was a resounding success. Here’s to the next 100 years!

The rejuvenated face of the Collaroy Masonic Temple, sporting a new illuminated square and compasses

The concecration of the new marble plaque

The brethren of Lodge Warringah and guests enjoying the celebratory dinner Lodge Warringah’s JW and JW Jr

On the level

Sharing your stories from around the jurisdiction

Position filled!

Lodge Bland has operated for the past year without a Master due to the sad and untimely death of W Bro Ron Cooper eight days before his Re-installation in 2022.

Thankfully this changed on Saturday 18 March 2023.

The Re-installation of RW Bro Ken Roberts took place in the presence of RW Bro Glenn Linsdell PJGW, DGIW District 43b.

A feature of this installation was the presence of nine visiting masters who all played a part in the ceremony.

When we include RW Bro Ken Roberts there were ten sitting Masters in the Lodge!

R W Bro David Atherton-Cooper WM Lodge Leeton-Yanko 313 (SW)

R W Bro Andrew Earney WM Lodge Condobolin 185 (JW)

R W Bro Bob Bourke WM Lodge Federal United 193 (IG)

R RW Bro Hack Hetherington WM Lodge Temora 168 (Address to WM)

R W Bro Alex Szokalski WM Lodge Yass Lodge of Concord 27 (Address to Brethren)

R W Bro Ian Markham WM Lodge Carringtonia 17 (3rd Working Tools and Herald)

R W Bro Paul Everdell WM Lodge YoungBurrangong 20 (2nd Working Tools)

R W Bro Jakob Kember WM Lodge Wagga Wagga 22 (1st Working Tools)

R W Bro Richard Anderson WM Lodge Gowrie 715 (GDC)

The 14 members of the Grand Lodge delegation joined the brethren for a traditional installation supper and were joined by the ladies who had spent the afternoon on an excursion to the Regal Estate Winery/Vineyard Open Day, led by one of the Lodge’s unofficial tour guides, Rosemary Scascighini.

Glen Innes install

Glen Innes can be cool in the winter but it was a warm welcome when W Bro David William Thomas was installed in the Chair of King Solomon early in February.

The Glen Innes Lodge was full of anticipation as W Bro Robert Arthur launched into the installation of Bro Thomas. Their expectations were heightened by the entry of the representative RW Bro Ray Weston PAGM accompanied by 15 Grand Lodge Officers. The ritual was delivered with the panache that is expected of The Glen Innes Lodge and the GDC, RW Bro Dr Ross Haron, had a relatively stress-free night! The ‘Glen Innes style’ was continued in the South where the brethren enjoyed a tasty supper.

Lodge Bland No 337

The brethren of Lodge Bland gathered in force to re-install RW Bro Ken Roberts.

The Glen Innes Lodge No 44

RW Bro Weston and W Bro Thomas

A sucessful Enterprise

Thirty-three brethren attended Lodge Enterprise’s February meeting to witness the Passing of Bro Todd Sergeant.

The ceremony was characterised by excellent ritual and floor work.

W Bro Eric O’Driscoll was presented with his 50-year certificate by the WM, W Bro Kevin Schipp. Further congratulations were then made by the DGIW of District 14, VW Bro Peter Andrews.

Hunter’s significant activity

The 79th Assembly of Knights of Rome and the Knights of the Red Cross of Constantine was held in the New Lambton Masonic Centre on 14 March.

The weather was not kind as it had rained most of the day which meant that some Knights stayed home and stayed dry!

The work of the evening was to receive into the Orders of the Knight of Rome and The Red Cross of Constantine, Companions Nicholas Milwain (Lodge St

Harold’s ninth

Two more applications for affiliation were received. (Good news for the future of the Lodge.)

After the Lodge was closed, the brethren assembled in the South to enjoy an excellent two-course meal.

W Bro Harold Nankervis was installed into the Chair of King Solomon in a highly proficient manner. There were more than 40 brethren including visitors representing all the lodges in District 46.

The Grand Master was in attendance with his Ceremonial Team and 21 Grand Lodge Officers.

This was the ninth occasion that W Bro Harold Nankervis has occupied the office of Master and is an example of the dedication that members provide to enable small country lodges to survive.

The GM congratulated W Bro Nankervis on his installation and the quality of the ritual, and made mention of the improvements that had been made to the building. He continued by remarking that the high standard of the refurbished building would doubtless attract new members to the Lodge and the Craft and emphasised his remarks when welcoming Bro Joel Warren (an EAF) to Freemasonry.

The IPM, VW Bro Jeff Martin presented the newly installed Master with the Lodge’s Perpetual PM jewel.

Owing to the shortage of officers, the work of the evening was carried out with the help of a few stand-in officers. Nevertheless, the ceremony was carried out with the utmost dignity and the new Knights were appreciative of the efforts of all.

After the closing of the Conclave everybody gathered at the refectory for a delightful supper and excellent fellowship.

The installation dinner was held in nearby Wallerawang and rounded off a very successful installation evening.

Another milestone for the Lodge was the celebration of 100 years of masonic meetings in the recently refurbished building. The foundation stone for the Temple was laid on 7 April 1923 by MW Bro W Thompson, Grand Master.

L–R: Bro Kevin Schipp, VW Bro Clive Lipscombe, Bro Todd Sergeant and VW Bro Peter Andrews

Lodge Independent Lewis in Portland held their Installation on Saturday 18 March 2023.

Lodge Independent Lewis No 346

W Bro Nankervis and VW Bro Martin

Lodge Enterprise No 400

James), Tony Bayada (Lodge Enterprise) and Stephen Parrott (Lodge Enterprise).

Hunter Conclave No. 4

L–R: W Knight Nicholas Milwain, The most Puissant Sovereign W Knight Glen Carr, W Knight Tony Bayada, R Ill Knight Terry Holstein and W Knight Stephen Parrott.

Masons support the Shirley Shuttle service

On a beautiful sunny morning, at Community Transport Central Coast HQ in Berkeley Vale, Freemasons on the Central Coast (FotCC) proudly posed with their latest donation to Shirley Shuttle fleet.

The Shirley Shuttle is named after Mrs Shirley Galvin who passed away in 2006. Shirley, after being diagnosed with cancer, endured the inevitable appointments for treatment which was time consuming and tiring with unpleasant after-effects, but she had the help of her daughter, Barbara.

During the many treatments that her mother received Ms Barbara Galvin met many people who didn’t have family members or friends to provide the constant transport to the treatments. Barbara wanted to help which resulted in the donation of a Toyota minibus to the Cancer Council of NSW which was based at Erina Fair. Eventually, as the demand for patient transport and maintenance of the vehicle increased, Community Transport Central Coast agreed to administer the service.

Central Coast Local Health District covers fuel costs; however, each vehicle requires replacement at around 100,000 km (about every 2.5 years).

From 2009, Freemasons on the Central Coast have provided funds to purchase

several motor vehicles to be used in the operation of the Shirley Shuttle.

This year, The Shirley Shuttle Cancer Outpatient Service Central Coast (affectionately known as The Shirley Shuttle) celebrates 15 years of service to local cancer patients. Freemasons on the Central Coast have donated $21,000 to meet the replacement cost of one of four Shirley Shuttle vehicles. This will enable the door-to-door service for ‘transport challenged’ cancer outpatients to attend oncology appointments to continue for at least two years.

On Friday 6 May 2023, several board members of FotCC attended the launch of the latest vehicles added to the fleet.

Vice President of FotCC Jim Noble spoke of the ongoing relationship with Barb Galvin and the Shirley Shuttle and said that the Freemasons on the Central Coast were honoured to support such a valuable community service.

Member for Terrigal, Adam Crouch, praised all those involved for their contribution to the service.

From late November 2018 to March 2023 the four Shirley Shuttles provided 51,125 trips to 3,649 individual clients over 1,023,716 km. More than 35,000 driver

19 Degree exposition

On Saturday 11 February, Lachlan Macquarie Chapter of Improvement in conjunction with members from Central Rivers Sovereign Council No 26 carried out an exposition of the 19°, Grand Pontiff.

It was the first time that many members of the District of New South Wales North Coast witnessed this degree.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, a great deal of discussion took place regarding the importance of the theme of the degree, ‘To conquer ignorance and evil, we must solicit divine help.’

hours were volunteered, some of which were delivered during COVID lockdown periods in 2020 and 2021.

Barb Galvin said the service could not continue without the ongoing generosity of Central Coast community organisations such as the Freemasons on the Central Coast.

L–R: Em Bro Ron Woodward, V Ill Bro Stephen Dobbs, Em Bro Greg Scott-Pacey, Em Bro Ron Woodward, Ill Bro Bob Mackinnon, Em Bro Andy Boyden, Em Bro Doug McCumstie, V Em Bro Norm Standing, Ill Bro Stewart Bennington and Em Bro Les Cawthorne

Lachlan Macquarie Chapter of Improvement

Freemasons on the Central Coast

Bankstown Daylight Lodge No 996

35 years and still strong

Bankstown Daylight Lodge re-installed its 36th Master, W Bro Fonda Stoubidis, on Saturday 4 March at Padstow. The installing Master was W Bro James McDonnell whose ritual was an example to all aspiring officers.

RW Bro Joe Lentini PSGW represented the Grand Master and led a top-quality delegation. The visitors came from local and associated lodges.

Lodge Tranquillity No 42

The IPM, VW Bro Doug Usher, was one of the sponsors. He previously had been Master for six terms.

In the South, the harmony continued with a scrumptious luncheon of Greek cuisine. New friends were made, and old friendships were cemented. The entertaining toasts lived up to the theme: ‘A satisfied customer is the best business strategy of all’.

Tranquillity keeps calm and carries on

A strong attendance of local masons and a big delegation of Grand Lodge officers were present for the May installation of Bro Adam Zantis as the new WM of Lodge Tranquillity at Bondi.

W Bro Ismar Pasic gave a strong performance as the Installing Master to help steer the Lodge into its new year.

W Bro Zantis was initiated in March 2015, following his father in the Lodge and

Same but different

Twelve months on and Lodge West Epping Re-installation bore more than a passing resemblance to the 2022 event: same WM, W Bro Shady Suyyagh, same Installing Master and same delicious supper. The difference was the presence of the DGM RW Bro Khris Albano who spoke brilliantly both in the lodge room and in the South.

The ritual was such that the GDC, VW Bro Ben Tubridy, spent all night smiling. All progressive officers are Master Masons so doubtless we can expect a lot more of the same!

his grandfather and great grandfather who were masons in Goulburn and Newcastle.

The work for the evening was performed well by the members involved in the presence of RW Bro George Shenouda, representing the Grand Master.

The evening was further enhanced with a vocal performance by RW Alex Parker before adjourning to an enjoyable supper.

Lodge Tranquillity was consecrated in 1875 after a group of Sydney Freemasons were granted a dispensation by the Grand Lodge of England to hold meetings. Their first meeting was held on 11 February at the Freemasons Hall in York St. Sydney with W Bro David Mitchell as the Foundation Master.

Lodge West Epping No 390

L–R: RW Bro George Shenouda, W Bro Adam Zantis and W Bro Ismar Pasic

L–R: RW Bro Joe Lentini, W Bro Fonda Stoubidis, W Bro James McDonnell

DGM RW Bro Khris Albano and W Bro Shady Suyyagh

Canberrans rolling up sleeves for the Red Cross

To mark 100 years of Freemasonry in Canberra, Lodge Canberra Unity issued a call to the masonic community to help get 100 donations of blood and plasma to the Red Cross. Brethren, their families and friends rolled up their sleeves for National Blood Donor Week, 12–18 June 2023. The Red Cross pointed out that winter is a critical time as donations decrease due to illness. Donors wasted no time and the first donation was made in April, at the Red Cross House in Garran ACT.

The Red Cross created the Freemasonry Australia Canberra Masonic Community

team on their website, where donors registered and made their donations count. In turn, Lodge Canberra Unity put the word out to lodges in the ACT and surrounding areas and put up the Canberra Masonic Community Blood Drive page on Facebook. VW Bro Roman Cholawinskyj also lent a hand in spreading the word through the Canberra Masonic Forum, as well as through Freemasons in Canberra and Southeast NSW in Facebook.

As a thank you to donors, Lodge Canberra Unity will be hosting a Soup, Curry and Whisky event at the Canberra

Masonic Centre at the conclusion of the blood drive. RW Bro Terry Peek PJGW, Worshipful Master, also invited donors and their children to Lake Burley Griffin for a boat ride courtesy of Sailability.

The blood drive will conclude 31 July 2023. Donors are most welcome, and they do not have to be residents of Canberra and surrounding areas. They need only to register with the Red Cross and join the Freemasonry Australia Canberra Masonic Community team.

Lodge Canberra Unity No 465

Fran Noveras (left) and Apple Blakely-Kidd (right), making their second donations

Support comes in all forms and some are very unique!

As a small charity, it means a lot to A Start in Life that they have a community that cares deeply about what they do.

All donations the charity receives are incredibly meaningful, impactful and appreciated by the students they support. So too are the unique and inspiring cases shared below.

Hundreds of handwritten letters

Roy was a school teacher, principal, highly respected member of his community and fervent supporter of A Start in Life. With a warm and generous nature, he championed the charity in numerous ways before sadly passing away recently. Just one example of his tireless efforts included personally handwriting over 100 letters each year to his colleagues and community, informing them of A Start in Life’s work and encouraging them to join him in supporting it … with many inspired to donate in response!

Perhaps the best reflection of his zest for A Start in Life is captured in this email he sent their CEO, Neil Robinson, about meeting with one of his local groups ‘… will be seeing [them] at our meeting next Thursday and will exhort them to give until it hurts. Should some of them appear to be unresponsive, I will resurrect my long-buried headmasterly powers of persuasion’.

An auction with a difference

Charlie was another loyal and longstanding supporter of A Start in Life who passed away last year. In honour and memory of his passion for the education of young Australians and the charity’s work, his wife decided to hold a special fundraising auction. This auction,

however, was a little different! With the help of a local real estate agency, various furniture items were auctioned off to the local community and all the proceeds were donated to A Start in Life to continue helping future generations of students to thrive. As one of his friends said when he called to tell A Start in Life about the success of the event, ‘I am sure Charlie would be very happy’.

Local community advocates

Over recent years, a number of Masonic Hall companies have not only exhibited displays about A Start in Life within their halls, but have also actively advocated to associates and those using these facilities of the benefits of the educational assistance it provides to students. As a result, valuable donations have been garnered! The charity is fortunate to also know a few other local groups like these who are equally enthusiastic about what it does and work hard to continually spread awareness within their communities.

Other support for A Start in Life comes from all areas of the Freemason community, including hands-on fundraising events such as barbeques and lawn bowls days, bequests, community awards, local businesses and organisations, one-off donors and regular donors. With A Start in Life’s proud 100-year history, its present work and the future in mind, it is continuing to build on the work the charity was founded upon – helping young Australians overcome barriers to their education so they can achieve brighter futures.

“... supporting those less fortunate than others, nurturing young folk with education and life principles to become good citizens.”

People or programs?

Computers continue to defy expectations about their capabilities, and it is happening at a much faster rate than most people would have expected.

It wasn’t that long ago that people were saying that it would be impossible for a computer to beat a grandmaster at chess; that was until IBM’s Deep Blue defeated Garry Kasparov in 1997.

Since then computers and artificial intelligence have been given the task of detecting diseases, choosing partners and even writing news stories and opinion pieces (this story has been written by a human).

Computers are now taking a further step forward, with new research finding that people are more likely to rely on algorithms than taking advice from fellow humans.

From choosing the next song on your playlist to choosing the right size pants, people are relying more on the advice of algorithms to help make everyday decisions and streamline their lives.

Data scientists at the University of Georgia found that as tasks become more challenging, people are more likely to rely on computer algorithms to help guide their decisions.

‘Algorithms are able to do a huge number of tasks, and the number of tasks that they are able to do is expanding practically every day,’ said the University of Georgia’s Eric Bogert.

‘It seems like there is a bias towards leaning more heavily on algorithms as a

task gets harder and that effect is stronger than the bias towards relying on advice from other people.’

The study involved 1500 individuals evaluating photographs and trying to count the number of people in a crowd with supplied suggestions that were generated by a group of other people and suggestions that were generated by an algorithm.

Professor Aaron Schecter, who worked on the study, noted that as the number of people in the photograph expanded, counting became more difficult and people were more likely to follow the suggestion generated by an algorithm rather than count themselves or follow the ‘wisdom of the crowd’.

Prof. Schecter explained that the choice of counting as the trial task was an important one because the number of people in the photo makes the task objectively harder as it increases.

It also is the type of task that lay people expect computers to be good at.

‘This is a task that people perceive that a computer will be good at, even though it might be more subject to bias than counting objects,’ Prof. Schecter said.

‘One of the common problems with AI is when it is used for awarding credit or approving someone for loans. While

that is a subjective decision, there are a lot of numbers in there – like income and credit score – so people feel like this is a good job for an algorithm. But we know that dependence leads to discriminatory practices in many cases because of social factors that are not considered.’

Facial recognition and hiring algorithms have come under scrutiny in recent years as well because their use has revealed cultural biases in the way they were built, which can cause inaccuracies when matching faces to identities or screening for qualified job candidates, Prof. Schecter said.

Those biases may not be present in a simple task such as counting, but their presence in other trusted algorithms is a reason why it’s important to understand how people rely on algorithms when making decisions, he added.

Health, wealth, travel, food and fun!

Welcome to our new members

ASSAM, Devonne The Queen’s Lodge 229

AYLING, Daniel Lodge Challenge 284

BALLOOT, Wassim The Sydney Lodge 1020

BANGA-AN, Trinity Lodge Alpha 970

BARRY, Robert Lodge Benjamin Pryor 709

BARTLETT, Stephen Lodge Prince Leopold 71

BENZION, Walter Lodge Galileo 1019

BLANDON, Lucas Lodge Hellenic Arcadia 177

BOCQUET, Timothy The Yass Lodge of Concord 27

BROOKE, Michael Coeur De Lion – Narooma 84

BROWN, Christopher Lodge Illawarra 59

Lodge Panania No 845

Panania install

A picture can tell a thousand words and the evidence for Lodge Panania shows that its 2023 installation went particularly well.

RW Bro Allan Drane was installed in the Chair of King Solomon by W Bro Stewart Scott in the presence of the Grand Master’s Representative, RW Bro Tim Foster PSGW. There were 36 brethren present and we hear that the ritual was such that the GDC, VW Bro Maximino Totaan, had very little to do!

CABRERA, Joseph The Sydney Lodge 1020

CACCAM, Genar Lodge Canoblas Lewis 806

CAMILLERI, Peter Lodge Panania 845

CHILCOTT, Kirk Lodge Alpha 970

CHRISTOPHER, Joshua Lodge Oatley 381

CHURCHILL, Samuel Lodge Oorana 1053

COLEFAX, Paul Lodge Young Burrangong 20

CONCEPCION, Neil The United Lodge of Sydney 11

COOPER, Jeffrey Lodge Artarmon United 285

COPPOLINO, Jaydn The Goulburn Lodge of Australia 58

COSTA, Cassio William Ross 76

DABILE, George The Sydney Lodge 1020

DARE, Daniel The Hills Lodge 1025

DIAS, Antonio Lodge Horizons 1032

DOMINGUEZ, Stephen Lodge Merrylands 479

DRAKE, Geoffrey Lodge Bega Remembrance 220

DUCE, Sean Lodge Novacastria 765

EDWARDS, Luke Lodge Camden 217

ELSAKET, Mohamed Lodge Liverpool 197

FATRONY, Essam Lodge Mark Owen 828

GABOURG, Ange-Theophile Lodge Horizons 1032

GEDDES, Allan Lodge of Truth 26

GERONIMO, Jensie Lodge Canoblas Lewis 806

GRANT, Matthew Lodge Southern Cross 91

GRANT, Scott Lodge Emu Plains 860

GREENLEES, Harrison Lodge Burnside 729

HADI, Ethar The Lodge Of Australia 3

HAIDARY, Abdul Lodge Wagga Wagga 22

HANLY, Benjamin The Royal Empire Lodge 613

HANNA, Patrick Lodge Emu Plains 860

HARPER, Nathaniel Lodge Queanbeyan St Andrew 56

HAZELL, Blake Lodge Ku-Ring-Gai 1033

HEARES, Todd Lodge Ibis 361

HEDGER, Ryan Lodge Challenge 284

HERNANDEZ-O’CONNELL, Jose Australian Lodge of Harmony 5

HUNT, Brendan Lodge Liverpool Plains 191

JONES, Jacob Lodge Wagga Wagga 22

JUMAMIL, Kisna The Hawkesbury Heritage Lodge 150

KERSH, Robert Lodge Gloucester 291

KHOURY, George Lodge Artarmon United 285

KRISHNASWAMI, Ramesh Lodge Indus 1055

LEEMING, Jonathan Lodge Kingsford Smith 1028

LEWIS-DRIVER, Joshua Lodge Caledonia of Canberra 938

MATTHEWS, Scott Balmain Lodge 23

MAYER, Kane Lodge Woollahra 341

MEDURI, Pasquale Lodge Morning Star 410

MELMETH, Jack City of Newcastle Lodge 170

MERENCIANO, Jonathan Lodge Novacastria 765

MORROW, Paul Lodge Bega Remembrance 220

MURPHY, Maximilian Lodge Gowrie of Canberra 715

NASR, Habib Lodge Army and Navy 517

O’DONNELL, Ian Lodge Nowra Unity 60

PEEK, Allister Lodge Canberra Unity 465

PERRY, Trevor Lodge Gloucester 291

PETTIT, Dylan Lodge The Raleigh 241

POCHE, Jonathan Lodge Canoblas Lewis 806

RASARATNAM, Daven Lodge Castlereagh 72

REFAI, Zakaria The Royal Empire Lodge 613

RENARD, Amour Lodge Temora 168

RHODES, David Lodge St James 45

RIVAS, Jose Lodge Kilwinning 13

RODOPIS, Chris Lodge Oatley 381

RODRIGUEZ, Ronan Lodge Wagga Wagga 22

SANTOS, Wilfred Lodge Dubbo 906

SAYAS, John Lodge Novacastria 765

SINCOCK, William Lodge Pennant Hills 905

SOMMERVILLE, Glenn Lodge Allan Stuart 416

SPARROW, Bailey Lodge Silver City 141

STERLING, Joshua Lodge Gloucester 291

SUBASH, Swamy Lodge Queanbeyan St Andrew 56

THOMSON, Mark Lodge Liverpool 197

TOMAJEK, Ethan Lodge Challenge 284

TOMAS, Kent Lodge Canoblas Lewis 806

TRIMOCHA, Jerry Lodge Toukley 933

VITO, Kenneth Lodge Wagga Wagga 22

WANG, Zhixiao Lodge Castlereagh 72

WHITEMAN, Darren Lodge Oatley 381

WILLIAMS, James Lodge Burnside 729

WIXX, Adam Union Lodge 28

YEADON, William Lodge Toukley 933

YIN, Michael Lodge St John’s 16

ZERVOS, Paul Lodge Oatley 381

ZHANG, Aobo Lodge Chelmsford Technology 261

L–R: RW Bro Tim Foster, RW Bro Allan Drane and W Bro Stewart Scott

Across

1 Mother goes about informally after dark (7)

5 Ding – it’s time for the news as arranged (7)

9 Separated after springing a trap (5)

10 Take care Susan with some given certainty (9)

11 Caution exercised after Low country type of sale (5, 7)

13 Strange port I hesitate to say hides hydrogen isotope (7)

14 Match up the even ones; it is critical you see (5)

16 See 5 down

19 3.14159 for each wind bagger (5)

20 Garment opening for role ham played out (3, 4)

23 Presentation made to mad doctor in unit for the first time (12)

26 A nicer auto swapped for orange liqueur (9)

27 Pen return in indecent extremes showing incompetence (5)

28 Oldies say Robbie Burns et al, are not quite sonsier (7)

29 Show odd respect for symbolic staff of sovereignty (7)

Down

1 Exclamation of fault by Paul came as a surprise (3, 5)

2 & 25 – Establish performance of items stored at random (4, 4)

3 Of adverse entry, viz. in true unruly fashion (9)

4 Eye problems with a view to clog up gold post grad degree (8)

5, 6, 12 down, 16 across &15 down – Four of the five noble orders of architecture, it’s ironic no right is missing (6, 5, 10, 3, 9)

6 See 5 down

7 True story about NCO if not in order (3–7)

8 Because; genies are out, of the bottle perhaps (6)

12 See 5 down

15 See 5 down

17 Sightseers trips go to the darts you understand (8)

18 Repeat about witty speeches (8)

21 Spices up a pair of fish astronomically (6)

22 Coercion with rude arrangement on ship (6)

24 To be superior in action at alfresco function? (5)

25 See 2 down

Congratulations to our masons

75

YEARS SERVICE

LAYBUTT, Russell Lodge St David and St John 180

70

YEARS SERVICE

KOPFF, Arnold Lodge St David and St John 180

MANNING, Thomas Lodge LeetonYanco 313

MARTIN, Keith Lodge Forster Great Lakes United 994

MOORHOUSE, Arthur Lodge Nowra Unity 60

TAYLOR, Herbert Lodge Liverpool 197

WHITE, Russell Lodge Mayfield Daylight 493

60

YEARS SERVICE

BARRETT, Kim Lodge Ethos 963

CANTRILL, Barry Lodge Canoblas Lewis 806

GRADY, Barry Lodge Macquarie 53

HERD, Kenneth The Northern Rivers Lodge 77

Lodge Oberon No 355

MANSFIELD, John The Royal Empire Lodge 613

MARKS, Douglas The Northern Rivers Lodge 77

McCUMSTIE, Douglas Coffs Harbour Daylight Lodge 1016

SIM, John Lodge Blackheath 370

STEIN, Jacob Lodge Army and Navy 517

STEWART, Alexander Lodge Toukley 933 50

YEARS SERVICE

BOW, Michael Balmain Lodge 23

BRAID, James Lodge Artarmon United 285

CHADWICK, Bruce Lodge Enterprise 400

COX, Graham Lodge United St Andrew Singleton 34

FINDLEY, Donald Lodge Capitol 612

GNANADICKAM, Ravi Lodge Indus 1055

HAMILL, William The City of Wollongong Lodge 1049

HART, Richard Lodge Balgowlah 392

HILL, John Lodge Bulli Thirroul 1040

INWOOD, Barry Lodge Rudyard Kipling 143

JOHNSON, Ross Lodge Pacific 298

LARSEN, John Lodge St David and St John 180

Oberon steps up to help

Oberon Council embarked on a building programme to increase the size of its Community Hub. However – like most building projects – it took longer than expected.

That was when Lodge Oberon stepped in and volunteered to accommodate a number of community functions and events, such as:

R The University of the Third Age (U3A) AGM, as well as giving them somewhere to conduct their 500 Club card afternoon each Wednesday

R Meetings of the Oberon Writers Group

R The Oberon ‘Pink It Up’ event (a great success with about 40 people attending).

By May 2023 the new Oberon Community Hub was falling further behind the projected finishing date, and the Oberon Masonic Centre continued to plug the venue’s gap by hosting the Oberon Waste 2 Art Competition, where waste items are turned into art. This event is very important to the art community around the Central Tablelands of NSW.

Lodge Oberon takes this work of hosting community events very seriously, taking great pride in the enjoyment it brings to the people of Oberon. Indeed there were several community groups that used the Masonic Centre while Oberon Council’s free facility was unavailable.

This year marks the Oberon Masonic Centre’s 100th anniversary. It has gone

LEGGETT, Raymond Lodge WestonKurri Kurri 253

MAVER, Eric Lodge Artarmon United 285

NINDRA, Harbir Lodge Indus 1055

O’BRIEN, John Lodge Macquarie 53

PROVOST, David Lodge Canoblas Lewis 806

QUIRK, Bruce Lodge Warragamba 541

REID, Ross Lodge Wagga Wagga 22

ROBINSON, Peter Lodge Balgowlah 392

TIMPSON, Kevin Lodge Scone 183 40

YEARS SERVICE

ALLEN, Peter Lodge Kiama 35

AMOS, Max The Prince Charles Edward Stuart Lodge 1745

DRYLAND, Geoffrey Lodge Sylvania 853

FREEMAN-ROBINSON, Michael Lodge Milton 63

GRESSER, Terrence Lodge LeetonYanco 313

HINDMARSH, Ralph Lodge Paxton 608

KAUPKE, Wolfgang Lodge Dubbo 906

QUINN, Paul Lodge Leeton-Yanco 313

WERMAN, Mark Lodge Harold Herman Unity 428

through a complete makeover during the last year following some snow damage in August 2021. Lodge Oberon thanks the United Grand Lodge and all NSW & ACT masons who helped put the Centre back together.

The Masons of Oberon invite you to visit us in our small alpine town.

Lodge Oberon refurbished their masonic centre after snow damage

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