The Pennsylvania Freemason - Spring 1981

Questions & Answers

Questi o n: Can a P ennsylvania Mason be a Me mber of more than one "B lu e at the same time as permitted 111 varwu s Gr and Juri s dictions?

Answer: It is not pe rmis s ible for a Pennsyl va nia Mason to be a Member of two " Blue Lodges " at the same time, eit her in th e Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania, or o.u r Juris di ction and another Jurisd ict iOn Dual membership ha s been pr o hi b it ed since 1804.

Question: Was Freemasonry invol ved in the fir s t oil well s c redited to Pennsyl- vania?

Answer: Onl y th e fac t that the world ' s firs t oil w e ll was s uccessfull y drilled on A ug us t 27, 1859 , at Titusville, Pa. by " Co lon e l " Edwin L. Drake, a retired railroad conduc tor, and a Member of our fo r m er Oil Cree k Lodge, No. 303 , n ow T itu sv ille Lodge , No. 754 , held at Tit usv ille , Pa

Question: I hav e heard that John Wanamaker , prominent Ame ri can merchant and founder of the Wanamaker Departme nt Stores, was opposed to Freemas onry. Can you enlighten me on this rumo r ?

Answe r: Jo hn Wanamake r was not only a p romine nt Am eri can merchant and f o und er of the Wan a maker Department S to res, b ut h e wa s a prominent Mas on Bro Wanama ker was made a Mason at Sig ht by the Ri ght Worshipfu l Grand Mas ter of Pennsylvania on March 30, 1898 He was then accepted by Friends hip Lod ge , No. 400 , held at Jenkintow n, near Philadelp hia, and !ate r wo rke d through the chairs , s ervIng as Worshipful Ma s ter in 1905. Bro. Wanamake r later financed the beautiful I?orlc s tyled Mas onic Temple in Jenkintow n , Pa., and presented it to his Lodge on Janu ary 11 , 1913. A powe rful influe nce in the e s tabli s hment of th e w id e ly acclaim e d Library and Muse um of our Masonic Temple, Philade lphi a, and a generous contributor in th e earl y da ys of our now famous collec ti o n of Ma s oni c memorabilia , Bro. Wa n a m a ke r s erved as Chairman of the Gra n d Lod ge Committee on Library and Mu seum for many years.

Is there so mething printed in bn e f form that would exp lain ju s t w h at Free masonr y is to a non -Ma s on ?

T he Grand Lod ge of Pennsylvah as produced a folder, enti tl ed Free ma s onry , A Way of Life ," that ca n be rea d in a fe w minutes. Thi s a ttract ive fold e r was des ig ned and pr odu ce d as a broad d e finition of Freemasonr y fo r the Maso n and non-Mason ali ke. It is fre e up on request either thr o ug h your Lod ge Se c retary or by

writing to the Grand Lodge Committee on Masonic Culture, Masonic Temple, One North Broad Street, Philadelphia Pa. 19017.

Question: In addition to showing a " Blue Lodge " current Dues card, when visiting Lodges in American and foreign Jurisdictio ns, do we have any other type of confirmati on of a Pennsylvania Mason's Good Masonic Standing?

Answer: There are two items. One is a Grand Lodge Certificate, a beautiful printed-type document with a gold Grand Lodge embossed sea l attached which sells for $5.00. A second is Commission to a Brother to Visit Foreign Grand Lodges and Lodges which is typewritten on a Grand Lodge 8 %xll letterhead and issued free of charge. Each of these documents must be processed through your Lodge Secretary w ho, in turn, obtains them from the Office of the R. W. Grand Secretary. Please allow reasonable time before you depart on a trip.

Question: Has there been any progress in solving the damage done the south wall of the Masonic Temple, Philadelphia, created by the construction of the Center City Commuter Tunnel?

Answer: When cracks began to appear on th e interior of the south wall of the Masonic Temple, construction was suspend ed on the tunnel near the Temple for several months. Since early June the contractor has been drilling a series of ninty-five holes along the south wall of the Temple near the original foundation. These holes, each fift y- feet deep , will contain a steel I-beam encas ed in concrete When this process is completed, additional concrete abutments will be poured to g uarantee the maximum shoring up of the south wall of the Temple.

THE PENNSYL V ANJA FREEMASON Distribution Office MASONIC HOMES Eliza bethtown , Pa. 17022 (Send FORM 3579 to Above Address)

9? PLUS and 72 YEARS A P. M.-Relaxing in h1 s favorite chair is Bro. Walter K. Thorne , Past Master of Coatesville Lod ge No. 564. Bro. Thorne wa s Worshipful Master 72 years ago and is looking forward to his lOOth birthday which he hopes to ce lebrate this coming September. The Brethren wish thee well Walter. You have been a real inspiration to the Craft.

Editor's Note:

As we go to press with this belated edition of "The Pennsylvania Freemason," delayed to carry articles on the five-day 250th Anniversary Celebration of Freemasonry in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the September Quarterly Communication of Grand Lodge to be held in the Cumberland Valley High School Sports Center near Mechanicsburg, we are aware of several articles in our pending file that will not appear in this particular edition. A 12-page edition of "The Pennsylvania Freemason" is being considered for the August-September edition and will be circulated during September. Your patience and understanding is appreciated.

Second Class POSTAGE PAID AT Elizabethtown Pennsylvania

.. The PENNSYLVANIA FREElYIASON

FREEMASONRYA WAY OF LIFE

Every indiv idual i s b y nature endow e d with c e rtain traits of character which form th e basis for r eas oning and the conduct of life. In fact, these natural traits or tendencies are but signposts a long life 's highway, directing us in our words, our thoughts , and our actions. If, by se lf-analysis, we can discover and di s card those traits which seem to l ead us in th e wrong dire ction, and at the same time , cultivate those natural tendencies which point the way t o higher a c hi eve ment, then we have carried into effe ct one of the great prin c iples of Fr e emasonry

Our s tation in life i s fi x ed many times by c onditions or circums tan ces ov er which we have no control. Cons equently, the individual is master of his own destiny onl y in a certa in degre e. It wou ld , therefore, see m that the ni che wh i ch we are to occ up y in thi s world has a l ready be e n c arve d for us by some natural or Divine powe r, and the h e ights to which we can rise are, in a ll probabi lity defined by powers and deficie ncie s within u s Our ability to make proper d ecisions , the height of our own ambition, and th e relations hip exi s ting between ourse lves and our fe ll owmen are th e cardinal principles whi ch can very well determine our s ucc e ss a s ind ividua l s and a s c itize n s Freemas onry re c ognize s th e inherent faults of the individual member, and endeavors b y prece pt and exampl e to curb irr egularities. It provides an opportunity for self-improvement by regular attendance at its Stated and Extra me e tings and throughout the s tud y and app li cation of its beautiful Ritu a li s ti c and Lodge Work It Co nti n u e d on Page 2

SITE OF SEPTEMBER QUARTERLY OF GRAND LODGE-Shown above is an outside view of the new and spacious Cumberland Valley High School Sports Center where the Quarterly Communicati on of Grand Lodge will be held on Wednesday evening, September 2, 1981, beginning at 7:00 o clock. The entrance to the Cumberland Valley High School comp lex i s at 6746 Carlisle Pike (U. S. Route No. 11) near Mechanicsburg , Pa., approximately 10miles west of Harrisburg. Pennsylvania Turnpike Exits 16, 17 and 18 are handy approaches to U.S. Route No. 11. The complex has parking space for 1000 cars and the Sports Center has a seating capacity of 2800.

September Quarterly Communication At Cumberland Valley School Complex

Bro. Jos e ph E. Trate , R. W. Grand Ma s t er , has selected the s paciou s Cumberland Va ll ey Hi gh Schoo l Sports Cent er as th e place for the Quarterl y Communication of ' Grand Lodge to be h e ld on We dnesday ev ening, Septemb er 2, 1981 , and beginning prompt ly at 7 :00 o clock . This will b e the firs t tim e a Quart erly Commun i cati on of Grand Lodge has b e en schedul e d for th e 3rd Mas oni c District whi c h is compri sed of Lod ges locat e d in th e be a uti fu l Cumb e r land County Valle y The Cumberland Valle y High School comp l ex is actua ll y locat e d at 6746 Carlis l e Pike, nea r Mechani csburg, Pa ., w hi c h i s U S Route No. 11, and is a cc e ss ible b y man y exce ll ent highwa ys from all dir ections . And, th er e ar e se v e ra l mote l s in s urr o undin g a r eas Parkin g will b e no prob l em a s th er e is ampl e parking s pa ce on the sc hoo l prope rt y . And, be ing o n e of the newer hi gh school c omp l e xes, it is adequately a i r c onditioned. The cu s tom of sch e du li ng Quarterl y Communication s in var iou s ci ti es throu ghout the Juris dic tion is to afford eve r y opportunity for Pennsy lvania Mas ons to att e nd and exper i e nce a Grand Lodge Communication . Th e Grand Ma s t e r i s hopeful that a l arge number of P e nns yl vania Ma s on s, p ar ti c ularl y fr om Lodg es in th e centra l sec tion s of th e Jurisdiction, will plan to attend th e September Quarte rl y Communi ca tion. It is not n ec ess ary to be a Lodge Offi c er or a Pas t Mas te r to attend a Communi ca tion of Grand Lodge. All Master Mas on s are e li gible and inv ited to att e nd. And , gu ess what? Refre s hments will be ser ve d following th e Co m muni ca tion