The Modern Templar Crisis By Sir Knight John L. Palmer
W
ikipedia defines the word “crisis” as “any event that is going (or is expected) to lead to an unstable and dangerous situation.” I believe that another definition would simply be the word “change.” Most changes lead to instability until an equilibrium can be found for the new state of affairs. Danger generally accompanies change but so does opportunity. A change can take us to a better state or to a worse state and almost always involves crisis. There is an interesting thing about organizational change. Anyone can be the leader of a group if there is no change. You just get elected, thank everybody, shake a few hands, and turn the organization over to your successor. When change is involved, it is an entirely different situation. Successful transition through crisis is dependant primarily on two things, available resources and more importantly, competent leadership that provides vision and inspiration. Sometimes, in order to avoid the dangers associated with crisis, we simply avoid change, perhaps because we are afraid that we don’t have the leadership skills in the organization to ensure positive results. I wonder sometimes if our organization has been doing that for the last hundred years. Sometimes we need to induce crisis for the preservation of an order we think is worthwhile. Last month, when I received the grand master’s message for publication in the magazine, I was elated to see that our grand officers had spent the time and effort to formulate a mission statement
knight templar
and a vision statement for the Grand Encampment. They read as follows: Mission Statement To provide every Christian Freemason the opportunity to extend his Masonic journey through the chivalric experience. Vision Statement Templary continues to be the most prestigious Masonic organization. We are a group of men proud to wear the uniform of the cross who share a common faith, mind, and spirit. Through the practice of Christian virtues, we testify to the world that we are leaders in our community and fraternity. This demonstrates our commitment to uphold a standard of excellence within Freemasonry. The mission statement of a parent organization like the Grand Encampment is generally slightly different from the mission statement of a subordinate organization such as your local Commandery, although your local Commandery’s mission statement should always support the parent organization’s mission statement. Mission statements are important, because they define what we are here to do. All the decisions we make and all the activities we engage in should be compared to the mission statement. If they don‘t support the mission statement, either they should not be allowed to use up our resources, or the mission statement should be changed. 25
