Aug 14, 2013
5 Simple Tips to help improve your Masonic Education Experience As you already know, the stability of a building is dependent on the strength of its foundation. Similarly, the educational foundation of every newly-initiated Mason is equally as important to their growth and progression through life. I have seen many Brothers who, soon after being accommodated in the North East corner of the Lodge, are anxious to rush through the Degrees of Craft Masonry. They are anxious to get through their memory work, to quickly get started learning what the York Rite, the Scottish Rite or any other Appendant Body of Freemasonry has to offer. Unfortunately, not all Brothers have the privilege of discovering the many levels of education within the Three Degrees of Craft Masonry and that by rushing through them, they are leaving on the table an inexhaustible amount of information that could strengthen their foundation. Here are 3 Simple Tips you could implement today in your Lodge, to make sure that Brothers gain a better appreciation for the wealth of information and experience that is at their service, if they take the time to dig deeper. Tip #1: Meeting Regularly In the united states, it is common that there is a stated meeting every other week. For ease of explanation, I will use my Lodge as an example. My Lodge has stated communications (regular meetings) the first and third Tuesday of every month. This gives us the chance to schedule Masonic Education Nights on the Second and Fourth Tuesdays of the Month, in addition to our regularly-scheduled stated communications. What are the benefits of doing this? The first benefit is consistency. For the Brothers who are married or have variable schedules at work, your spouse or boss will know that on Tuesday Nights, you have a commitment. It is clearly easier to answer, Is today tuesday? than to answer, is today the third Tuesday of the month? The second benefit of implementing the consistency of weekly meetings, is that there is always something to work towards. In some of the Lodges that I have seen implementing this technique, on the Masonic Education Night, they help brothers with their Memory Work. If there is an upcoming Degree, the Brothers can practice and help one another to improve upon their roles. Finally, the benefit of Fellowship and Brotherly Love. In today’s busy world, we often lose track of the importance of having regular diversions or interactions with our friends and Brothers. Having this weekly meeting, gives you an opportunity to know your Brothers better and solidify your relationships. Tip #2: Distinction between Instructor and Mentor Let’s face it, there is a lot to learn through the study of the Three Degrees in Freemasonry. The amount of memory work can be a little intimidating. However, by ensuring that there is a separation of roles between the Instructor and the Mentor, the newly initiated Brother has two experienced Brothers to help him in this task. First, let’s define the roles of the Instructor and the Mentor. The Instructor The instructor is that Brother who will assist the the newly-initiated Brother in learning his Memory work. He is the one to share techniques on how to better go through the material and memorize it. He will provide the technical feedback what is the best method to learn the lessons of the Craft and how to recall them when it is time to prove proficiency before the Craft. The instructor will also be the person to meet in the lodge room with the Brother, shortly after his initiation, to refresh his memory of everything that went through and help him remember the sequence of events which took place. I have seen this step being ignored too often, to the detriment of the instruction process. The importance of this exercise is that our brains are able to recall information more easily when provided with context. Basically, our brain will create connections between the information being received and the fe...