The Cross Keys Marcch 2016
The Monthly Newsletter of Lodge Houstoun St. Johnstone
Number 191
In this issue:
Cross Keys Mar 2016
Ritual, who needs it? Beehive Titles, Degrees, and‌. A Reply Pearl Harbour Travelling Masons Zetland Hall
Ritual—Who Needs it? Ritual is a natural and vital part of being human. “Who needs ritual?” The short answer is, “We do.” To explain why takes a little longer. In a very real sense, it is the ritual of Masonry which makes Masonry work. Ritual is the channel through which Masonry teaches. But it is more than that. Because ritual is so important to Masonry, it’s worth taking a little time to talk about the nature of ritual itself, and why it is central to the Masonic experience. First of all, ritual is a virtual necessity to all humans, in fact to nearly all animals. This is so true that all human brains come “hard-wired” to respond to ritual. Very few things in human beings are instinctive—almost everything is learned behavior. But the response to ritual has been located by brain anatomists in the oldest and most primitive part of the brain, just above the brain stem, in the same area which controls alertness and the emotions. Ritual is as natural to us as love, or aggression, or cooperation. All of us engage in ritual all the time—we just don’t always recognize it. Most of us have a morning routine, for example. Some of us shave before showering, some of us shave after showering, and some shave while showering, but whichever it is, we usually do it the same way. A few people even have morning routines so exact that they always put on the right sock before the left sock. This morning routine is a ritual. Most of us shake hands when we are introduced to someone. That is a ritual as is bowing in the Orient upon being introduced. Pledging allegiance to the flag is a ritual. Bowing the head during prayer is a ritual. Making coffee in the morning is a ritual. Starting a meal with soup or salad and ending with dessert is a ritual. Our lives are filled and surrounded with rituals from birth to marriage to death. Why?
Ritual gives us a framework to organize events. We don’t deal well with chaos. We make lists of things to do, to buy, to read. Ritual does the same thing for us. By doing things in a given order (which is the essence of ritual), we make sure everything gets done. Even churches which try to make a point of not using ritual, use ritual in that sense. The order in which hymns are sung, the collection is taken, the sermon is given, and prayer is offered seldom changes for a given congregation. The primary reason most of us have a morning ritual is to make sure that we don’t overlook shaving, or brushing our teeth, or some other aspect of preparing for the day. Ritual provides a sort of mental checklist for many of life’s activities. Ritual helps us in our relationships to others. Almost all families have family rituals, things they just do in certain ways. Those rituals might include such things as making it a point to eat together on certain days, calling at certain times of the day, giving certain kinds of gifts. There are thousands of possibilities. Those rituals strengthen the unity of the family. Other rituals relate to those outside the family. Shaking hands when we meet, taking turns talking in a conversation—almost all the things we classify as polite (or consider a person as rude if he doesn’t do) are matters of social ritual. They help to make everyone comfortable and help situations move smoothly. Ritual is a powerful teaching tool. In fact, it was probably the very first teaching tool. Among some tribes, hunting rituals teach the young man how to hunt effectively. Mnemonics (phrases which help us remember things, such as “Thirty days hath September, April, June and November…”) are rituals, as is learning the alphabet by singing the alphabet song. The military developed many rituals (patterns of repeated behavior) to teach recruits how to maintain weapons.
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Ritual—Who Needs it?
Ritual helps give us a sense of identity. It may seem strange, but people often define themselves by their actions (I’m a salesman, a mechanic, a professor, a millwright, etc.). That’s not limited to what we do for a living. Our rituals, our actions, give an underlying sense of reality to our lives. We feel “right” or “complete” when we follow certain rituals, and we feel uncomfortable, even distraught, when these rituals are not followed. Ritual helps us prepare, helps us “get in the mood,” for what is to follow. Whether the event is a church service or a football game, most repeating events have a ritual of some sort which helps set the emotional tone. And we would have a strong sense of “wrongness” if those were violated—if a church service started with band music and cheerleaders or a football game started with a liturgical procession, for example. Ritual lets us condense a lot into a little time. Ritual enriches an experience by concentrating it. Rather than involving a full exposition, like a lecture, ritual makes references to things and leaves us to think about and fill in the details for ourselves. To illustrate with a portion of church ritual, consider just the last line of the Doxology, “Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.” The concept of the Trinity is a very hard concept to “wrap the mind around.” Rather than giving the many hours of discussion which would be necessary to explore the topic, the ritual simply mentions it, and leaves it to us to do the thinking if we are so inclined.
The ritual of Masonry involves all the above points and more:
the opening and the closing, the Degrees, even the ritual of voting—organizes the events and makes sure that everything happens that is supposed to. helps us define ourselves as Masons and strengthens the fraternal ties which bind us together as Brothers. And that effect is international and cross-cultural. We know we have shared experiences with Masons from all over the world. is a teaching tool—the lessons and values of Masonry are taught through ritual and symbols. helps set the tone and mood of the meeting—it helps us set aside the concerns of the outside world and focus on the great truths of human and spiritual nature. obviously condenses experience. It contains elements which raise important questions but which are deliberately left unexplored because it wants the Mason to think them through for himself.
Masonic ritual gives full range to Masons to explore their own interests. Masonic ritual is large enough and complex enough to accommodate all those interests—and many more. So, again, the answer to the question “Who needs ritual anyway?” is “We all do. The ritual of Masonry meets many needs and many interests. It is not the same thing as Masonry—any more that a sermon is the same thing as a church—but it is a primary way we teach and learn. It is the glue which holds us together. It is important. It makes us, us.
From Freemasonry 101 Facebook page: http://freemasonry-101.com/philosophy/masonic-ritual/
Cross Keys Mar 2016
The Beehive The beehive is a very old Masonic symbol that is still used in many countries, but in England and Wales it was dropped after the Union of 1813. It can still be seen however in some older pre-Union lodges, for example it is displayed as a symbol on the 3rd Degree Tracing Board of the Royal Cumberland Lodge No.41 in Bath, but to all purposes it has been lost as a symbol under the United Grand Lodge of England. The ritual of the Royal Cumberland Lodge dates back to
the eighteenth century and includes the following reference to the beehive symbol: “The Beehive teaches us that as we are born into the world rational and intelligent beings, so ought we also to be industrious ones, and not stand idly by or gaze with listless indifference on even the meanest of our fellow creatures in a state of distress if it is in our power to help them without detriment to ourselves or our connections; the constant practice, – of this virtue is enjoined on all created beings, from the highest seraph in heaven to the meanest reptile that crawls in the dust.”
The symbol is a very ancient one, representing the working lodge. Seven bees are usually seen flying around the hive, seven being the number to make a perfect lodge. The bee was used as a symbol in ancient Egypt, and the beehive symbol dates back to at least ancient Rome. The beehive as a symbol was adopted by many Friendly Societies, Trade Unions and insurance companies, the hive representing industry and the bees the workers. The Roman writerPorphyry, in his work De antro nympharum(The Cave of the Nymphs), tells us that in the Roman rites of Mithra, honey from a honeycomb was poured over the initiate during the Leo (Lion) ritual while he was admonished to avoid all that which is unclean in the world. The Church of the Latter Day Saints also adopted the symbol and it may be featured in the
Book of Mormon, when it states that the Jaredites carried “with them Deseret, which, by interpretation, is a honey bee” (Ether 2:3). A beehive was discovered at Rosslyn Chapel during the recent renovations. It was inside a rooftop pinnacle that had been hollowed-out by the masons for this purpose. The bees entered through a hole in a decorative flower on the pinnacle. It is interesting in that its con-
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The Beehive (ctd) struction did not allow for the extraction of honey. The sole purpose appears to have been to protect the bees from the bad weather of the region. According to the American Preston-Webb Ritual it is explained as a symbol of industry and co-operation, and as cautioning against intellectual laziness, warning that “he that will so demean himself as not to be endeavouring to add to the common stock of knowledge and understanding, may be deemed a drone in the hive of nature, a useless member of society, and unworthy of our protection as Masons.� It has been such an important symbol, and continues to be in many constitutions, that it has also appeared on stamps depicting freemasonry.
Have you seen this? Get your lodge on the map!!!! http://masonicmaps.com/
Cross Keys Mar 2016
Title, Degrees and . . . People join the Masonic fraternity for a wide variety of reasons, but in the end they expect it to be a brotherhood based on moral principles and equality. What they soon discover is something more akin to George Orwell’s Animal Farm. They are told that all Masons are equal, and that they meet on the Level and part on the Square, but they soon observe that all Masons are equal, only some are more equal than others. The plethora of honorary degrees, titles, and invitational organizations has resulted in an elite class of Masons who feel entitled to more privilege than that of the lowly Master Mason. Due to this, Freemasonry has devolved from the ideal of a brotherhood of all mankind into a quest for honours, titles and privilege. Ironically, every candidate is informed that Freemasonry is not a place to seek after frivolous honours, titles, and privileges. Worse still, some Grand Lodges even make members pay for honorary grand ranks!! At least in the lodges, the number of titles are limited, but join some orders and we have all sorted of weird titles including horrific words as most illustrious, right eminent, most worshipful, and so it goes on. And boy, if you get one of these wrong. . . . How many of these highly exalted (another one of these words) are chasing egos that have never been recognised in the outside world and are just insignificant people outside. The private first class syndrome where a lower rank suddenly gets power and thinks great things of himself. While this system may have served the fraternity well during the 19th century, it is a boat anchor in the age of social networking. It makes the high ideals of Freemasonry appear to be nothing more than a convenient lie. This in turn brings into question the moral credibility of the entire institution. Millennials and Generation X members walk away in disgust and tell their friends about Animal Farm Freemasonry, but not the true spirit of Freemasonry, because they never had the opportunity to experienced it. The Scottish Rite seems to exemplify this to the nth degree (or should that be the 33rd degree). 32 degrees in a weekend after a few months of being a master mason. Just when the new master mason is told he has reached the pinnacle of freemasonry, then suddenly for a few bucks, it’s possible to get loads more higher degrees in a weekend. Does anyone know what these degrees are really about? Doubt it! So why bother with them? Why not just have 2/3 and exclude the rest? Perhaps because that’s not grandiose enough. We no longer have peddlers of degrees that went round in the 19th century selling degrees to lodges, chapters, etc. They have now become organised grand bodies that do that!!! Freemasonry is a great system, but to appeal to younger members, we need to lose some of the titles, irrelevant degrees and jewels that some members are covered with. Of course, many will have dented egos, but their egos won’t allow them to leave as they have nothing else in their life to inflate it. Brethren under 30 (and I’m sure many more) no longer value these things and often view them with contempt. 26 year old mason from a valley in NC, 32nd Mason after 2 years in masonry.
Cross Keys Mar 2016
Response to “Title, Degrees and . . .” There are two arguments that have been entwined in the previous article. The first is a criticism about the range of degrees available under the canopy of Freemasonry. The second, the use of One Day ceremonies in some jurisdictions in the USA to advance through many degrees devalues Freemasonry. I disagree with the former and agree with the latter. In my view conflating both diminishes the powerful argument against the use of One Day ceremonies. In this response I set out why the range of degrees is essential to the Craft and why One Day ceremonies undermine the very essence of what it means to be a Mason. The equality in Freemasonry is based on the criteria for entrance – a belief in the Supreme Being and good moral character. If admitted any rank or station held in the outside world is irrelevant – inside the lodge whether you are a prince or pauper you are viewed as equal. But even in the lodge room there are ranks which reflect roles and responsibilities – as you would find in any organisation – otherwise you would have a large committee with no chairman and nothing useful would ever be achieved. This was the type of ‘equality’ Orwell’s Animal Farm was parodying because without leaders nothing gets done coherently. Freemasonry is not a quest for honours. It is a progressive science studied by motivated men to improve themselves and contributing to the greater good of wider society. There is no forced conscription. It is a personal choice. Before joining men are made aware that the Craft is about individuals improving their knowledge through moral lessons inculcated in degree ceremonies. The Craft is not about reducing everything to the lowest common denominator but ensuring everyone has an equal opportunity to fulfil their Masonic potential. The other Orders are part of the Masonic tapestry, each drawing its spiritual lessons from different aspects of the Volume of the Sacred Law. The use of titles and means of addressing members is common in every organisation. The whole point of Freemasonry is that your status outside the lodge is irrelevant inside it. A title or honour conferred by brethren on another as a reward for industry or skill inside the lodge is a fundamental component of Freemasonry. It is a matter for the brethren to decide on these. If someone objects they do not need to join that particular Order. Although how one can be considered to be agreeable in the Craft lodges and not in some other Orders seems contradictory, if not hypocritical. Information about Freemasonry is available in numerous publications and official websites of the governing bodies. Are we to assume that the social media generation have not taken the time to read and digest this information? Those who do not understand the structure and progressive nature of the Craft should consider why. It could be that it hasn’t been explained properly. Or they didn’t realise that they were expected to work at it themselves to gain a deeper understanding and personal insight. On social media you don’t have to take more than a moment to ‘like’ something or post an opinion, whether well informed or not. Just because Freemasonry is not presented in bite size and easily digestible form of no more than 140 characters does not undermine the moral credibility of the Craft or indeed the spirit of Freemasonry. It highlights why the Craft is more important than ever. Freemasonry is a personal journey. Those who set out must find their own way. Those who cannot comprehend this and fail to complete the journey should look to themselves. Blaming the Craft for their deficiencies and lack of understanding is selfish, and lacks any critical objectivity. The One Day ceremony approach is used in some jurisdictions in the USA for both Craft and Cross Keys Mar 2016
Response to “Title, Degrees and . . .” (ctd) Scottish Rite degrees. But even there it is controversial, with some referring to such brethren as ‘McDonald’s’ or ‘Drive-in’ Masons. In Scotland admission to the Scottish Rite is seen as a reward for service to the Craft, which implies before achieving such an honour the brother must have clearly demonstrated that his Masonic journey is one of dedication and commitment over a long period of time. There is no intention, as far as I’m aware, to introduce such ceremonies into Scotland. The reasons against One Day ceremonies should not be weakened by observations about the variety of Orders within the Craft. There is, however, a contradiction in the argument about those under 30 considering the titles and degrees are of no value. The motivation for writing the piece is a 26 year old becoming 32 degree Mason after two years. This is hardly evidence of contempt. That said, I agree that this type of Masonic progression is self-defeating and short-termism at its worse. What does the brother know? What can he have possibly learned? What value is he to Freemasonry? What value can he place on Freemasonry if it's achieved so easily? There are powerful arguments against One Day ceremonies. The candidate does not have the Masonic foundation to build upon, and it undermines the essence of Freemasonry as a personal journey seeking an idealised and perfected state. The strength of the Masonic lessons is the emotional connection the candidate experiences by participating fully in the ceremony. This is what engraves the lesson in the memory and enables the candidate to apply the lesson by changing his own behaviour. This can only be achieved through active participation. Freemasonry is not a spectator sport. Freemasonry is a life-long pursuit of knowledge and wisdom. It cannot be taught or learned in One Day.
My thanks to Bro. Kevin Pollock PM 1042 for responding to the article on Page 7.
Leadership without Competence A man does not deserve to be Master of the lodge solely because he has spent a certain amount of years in the lodge. We elect leaders without any regard for the skills that they possess to function in that capacity. Only competent, qualified men should be elected to preside over the Craft. Do you agree? Do we have some masters because no one else wants to do it?
Cross Keys Mar 2016
The Houstouns at Paisley Abbey I was reminded about the tablets that lie in Paisley Abbey of the Houstoun family. The out the blue, the Facebook page of the local history society had a post of these very stones as shown. Out first master, William, is shown on the left tablet. The articles on the family will continue next month with the family connection to Georgia, US.
Cross Keys Mar 2016
Pearl Harbour The following are interesting notes from a book about an investigation into Pearl Harbour by Henry Clausen. In the book Pearl Harbor: Final Judgement, with Bruce Lee, published in 1992, shortly before his death, he mentions Freemasonry several times. At pages 56-57 he wrote: "So I called upon Harry Truman and met him for the first time. He was cooperative, but stiffer and more formal than I had expected. . . . he didn't respond with any enthusiasm. Then I told him: "When you were the Grand Master of the Masons in Missouri, I was Grand Orator of the Masonic Grand Lodge of California." Hearing this, Truman literally jumped up from his chair, came around the desk and began shaking my hand vigorously. "You'll have my complete cooperation, Henry," he promised, and he immediately began to put his words into action." At page 149 he wrote: ". . . MacArthur asked me some personal questions. I told him that when the war began, I had been the Grand Orator of the Masonic Grand Lodge of California, and I congratulated him, as I later did President Truman, on being made a thirty-third-degree Scottish Rite Mason. "He kept me in his office for nearly another hour, talking about how to expand in the Far East the moral principles of Freemasonry. Every dictator in history has tried to put the Masons out of business because they believe in freedom. MacArthur was positive that Hitler had poisoned the minds of the Japanese against the Masonic Order for this very reason, and that was why even the Constitution of Japan forbade anyone from joining the order. MacArthur promised me that if and when he got to Japan, he was going to make sure that provision was eliminated from any future Constitution. He did, too.
March Events in 242
Thursday 10th—EAD by OBs
Thursday 24th—PGL AV Visit: Monday 7th—FCD at Gartland St. Winnoch No. 205 Joint Divine Service on Sunday 8th May at Craigends
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Travelling Masons & Benevolence (January 1873) The sub heading for this article was Abuse and Rem ed y. It was a very lengthy column spanning 2 pages concerned about the benevolence given to brethren when appearing at a lodge. The real concern was that many were not actually masons, but pretending to be knowing the generosity of the Freemasons. Unlike today, where a quick phone call or email would allow secretary to check, in the 19th Century, it was impossible in a short space of time.
The article suggested remedy was to introduce a card with a lodge seal and inside would show how much benevolence had been received by the brother. This would be checked against PGL as well as it was believed there were too many “professional beggars” not willing to work and whose lives are a “continuous debauch.” [Some things don’t change!] Even in 242, between 1890 and 1920, Appendix 12 gives the full list of benevolence given to brethren in lodges all over (amounting to over 40) , including other constitutions. This was clearly a very real problem and with fewer benefits that exist today, we had some brethren who really struggled to survive. Hence the reason that many people (and not always poor people) died in the Debtors’ Jail. Lodges could make a positive difference to many brethren during this period.
Pause to think! Away back in the early 1990s when the Cross Keys (then called 242 Monthly) started, one of the main features was the questions with answers the following month. I thought I would resurrect this again, but give the answer(s) on the next page. I hope most are obvious to experienced masons and that younger masons will learn something. 1.
Where is the doric column situated in the lodge and what does it represent?
2.
What is the correct term of our Grand Master?
Answers on page 18.
Cross Keys Mar 2016
Facebook Pages to become Book
We have previously discussed whether or not this page should be a group. We have also expressed concerns about how best to preserve the contents of this page so that it does not become 'lost' at some future date. On the latter point we have found a way to preserve the content both on paper and electronically. There are several companies that offer print a book of a Facebook page and we opted to have this done by My Social Book (see: https://www.mysocialbook.com) as they seemed to be able to include all content - including comments following each post. The hardback book was not particularly cheap - ÂŁ100 for 276 colour pages covering the period 1 July 2015 - 22 January 2016. We await the arrival of the book and shall report on the quality etc. on this page once it arrives. As part of the transaction the company provided a PDF (see image) of the book. However, all the pages have a watermark 'SAMPLE BOOK' and whilst all the text is readable the watermark is a bit irritating. Does anyone know how to remove a watermark from a PDF? Any way the point is that we are happy to supply the PDF (with or, hopefully, without the watermark) to anyone how wish to have a copy. Email: curator@grandlodgescotland.org and he was arrange for one to be sent as an email attachment. One the matter of Page vs Group it has been decided to keep this as a Page. The reason is simple a Group would require more intense moderation and we simply do not have the resources to do that. Think of this Page as if it was a newspaper rather than a discussion forum.
STOP PRESS: The book arrived yesterday and we have to say that we are very impressed. We opted for a hard back on high quality paper. The text is clear and the photographs are excellent - the colours are exactly the same as the originals. There are several nice touches. Chapters are month by month. Each post is followed by your comments. At the front of the book is a montage of images from the Page, apparently selected at random. At the rear is another montage of photographs 'THE MOST LIKED IMAGES' - obviously selected on the basis or the number of 'likes' made by those who visited the page. The only failing is the lack of an index but we could not honestly expect that given the nature of the material on the Page. Not cheap (ÂŁ100) as we have said but as a work of reference it will be most useful.
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Glasgow Herald 6th August, 1926
It is interesting to notice that the Herald published not only the Grand Lodge’s finances, but laso a report on their business. In this case, an enquiry into the OES.
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Old Tracing Boards Three circular tracing boards 19� in diameter representing the three degrees. The date is unsure, but definitively before 1845 but possibly about late 18th Century.
Research into
these is ongoing.
Masonic Lodges Worldwide This month’s pair of lodge buildings are: Overlain, Kansas, US and Lodge 70 in Bunbury, Western Australia.
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Zetland Hall, Hong Kong
The first Masonic Hall in Hong Kong was built in 1846 by The Zetland Lodge No. 525, English Constitution and was named Zetland Hall in honour of the Lodge that built it. The Zetland Lodge itself was named as a compliment to the then Grand Master, Thomas, Second Earl of Zetland, who was The Grand Master of the United Grand Lodge of England from 1844 to 1870. In 1865 this hall was replaced by a second larger and more impressive building in Zetland Street (top left) in the Central business district. This second Zetland Hall lasted until 1944 when it was destroyed by American bombing, Hong Kong then being under Japanese occupation. Between 1945 to 1950 the Freemasons of Hong Kong met in temporary premises while a site for a new hall was found. Work on the third and present Zetland Hall at No. 1 Kennedy Road began in 1949 with an impressive Foundation Stone Ceremony (top right) and was finished in January 1950. Bottom left shows the stone in closer detail and typical HK scaffolding! Currently there are 29 Blue or Craft Lodges that meet here under the auspices of the Grand Lodges of Scotland, England and Ireland, as well as a wide variety of English, Irish, and Scottish side-orders.
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242 First Visit On Monday 2nd February, 2016 our lodge visited Lodge Mauldslie Castle No. 1630 (Lanarkshire Middle Ward) in Wishaw for a first time in its history. The master, Bro. Ian Rogers, accompanied by 13 brethren exemplified the FC degree on a former work colleague. He was also pleasantly surprised by being made an honorary member of the lodge on the night and is seen here with the master of 1630 Bro. William Allison, another work colleague. Congratulations from all at 242.
Strange Aprons Two very strange aprons available on ebay from‌...Kilwinning! Clearly not allowed under the Scottish Constitution, but maybe available for the foreign market who might be allowed to wear hand painted aprons. Both £80
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Can you see it? A rather unusual view of the Grand Lodge of New York building on 23rd Street. Straight ahead is the new Freedom Tower build near the foundations of the twin towers. However, can you notice something on the Grand Lodge building?
Look closely and you will see a large square and compasses at the top of the building.
Where was this lodge in Glasgow?
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Pause to think! Answers 1.
Anno Lucis is Latin for the year of light and refers to the biblical account of the creation of the universe wherein God spoke and said: "Let there be light,...and there was light." (Genesis 1:3). This is often calculated by adding 4004 or 4000 so 2016 may be seen as AL 6020.
2.
The correct title is Grand Master Mason whereas most consti tutions tend to use the title Grand Master. It might be, Scot land is the only constitution to have this title. The current GMM is well known: Bro. Charles Iain Robert Wolrige Gordon is the 100th GMM of Scotland. His father was Captain Robert Wolrige Gordon of Hallhead and Esslemont served as Grand Master Mason from 1974 to 1979 and his grandmother was Dame Flora Macleod of Macleod, our old clan chief.
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To submit an article or want added to the mail list or facebook group, contact the Editor: Grant Macleod: E-Mail:
sec242pm@yahoo.co.uk
Thanks to Bro. Allan Stobo PM for proof reading.
Don’t forget to support The Ashlar magazine— Scotland’s only Masonic magazine. Just click on the magazine to find out more.
Cross Keys Mar 2016