THE BLUE loDGE, THE Scottish RITE, AND THE YORK RITE
The Blue Lodge is the parent, or mother, Lodge of Free- masonry. In the Blue Lodge are conferred the first three de- grees: (I) the Entered Apprentice, where a man is initiated into the beginning mysteries of the fraternity of Freemasonry; (2) the degree of Fellow Craft; and (3) the Master Mason Degree. Before they may proceed to the higher degrees, all men must go through the first three degrees of the Blue Lodge. But it is possible to go through only the first one or two degrees.
After passing the three degrees of the Blue Lodge, the candidate may choose not to proceed any further. Many, and prob- ably most, Masons do stop with the first three degrees. But the candidate may choose to proceed higher along one or both of two branches in Masonry.
One branch is known as the Scottish Rite, which advances by numerical degrees, beginning with the Fourth and ending with the 32d, the 33d Degree being either active or honorary. The other major branch is the York Rite, which goes through what are called the “Chapter,” “Council,” and “Commandery” degrees ending with the degree of Knights Templar.
Anyone who passes the first three degrees and becomes a Master Mason may visit other Blue Lodges. If a Mason is sus- pended or expelled from his Blue Lodge, that automatically sev- ers his connection with all other Masonic bodies.
Besides the above degrees, numerous side degrees of Masonry may be sought, and many affiliated, or appendant, organizations exist. These are orders with specific memberships (youth, women, relatives, collegians) or goals (such as the Shriners, the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine). These will be discussed later.
The Scottish Rite publi- cation estimated that “between one in five and one in 10 of the adult thinking population come directly within the circle of Masonic influence.”34
THE ORDER OF THE EASTERN STAR
The Order of the Eastern Star is specifically intended for the wives, daughters, and female relatives of Master Masons.” Its rituals were prepared by Dr. Rob Morris, a leading Mason. Dr. Morris is considered the “Master Builder” of the Order of the Eastern Star. Thus, the Ritual of the Order of the Eastern Star published by the authority of the General Grand Chapter Order of the Eastern Star (1970) gives the history of Dr. Morris.
Dr. Morris became a Master Mason in Oxford, Mississippi
March 5, 1849…. He soon became interested in an idea that
the female relatives of Master Masons should share, in a mea· sure, the benefits frorn knowledge of this great fraternal Or- der. … He worked with zeal writing a Ritual of the Order of the Eastern Star. … In 1855 he organized a Supreme Constel· lalion with himself as the Most Enlightened Grand Luminary, with headquaners in New York City. . , , He was an author of great ability and wrote numerous and valuable works on Ma· sonry and its kindred subjects…. In 1858-59 Dr. Morris served as Most Worshipful Grand Master of Masons in Ken- tucky. In 1860 he drafted the Constitution of the Grand Lodge. , , , I’laving spent most of the stretch, thought and wisdom of
his early manhood in a close srudy of the Hituals, codes, prin- ciples and tenets of Masonry, he was conceded to be one of the most versatile and learned Masons of his day. In 1880 the General Grand Chapter conferred on Dr. Morris the title of “Master Builder of the Order of the Eastern Star.”~1
When one reads through the ritual of the Order of the Eas- tern Star, the claim is made that “the Order is no part of that A.tKient Institution” (i.e., Masonry). Yet there can be no doubt that the Order of the Eastern Star supports both the causes and doctrines of Masonry. This is evident throughout the ritual itself where the Order is stated to uphold Masonry.”
OTHER REL\TED ORGANIZATIONS
The so-called animal lodges reflect Masonic influence but are not, strictly speaking, Masonic organizations. Among these are the Fraternal Order of Eagles (FOE), the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE), and the Loyal Order of Moose (LOOM). Other affiliated or appendant organizations include the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Woodsmen of the World, the Knights of Pythias, Tall Cedars in Lebanon, the Mys- tic Order of Veiled Prophets of the Enchanted Realm (Grotto), Acacia Fraterniry, and the Knights of the Red Cross of Constan- tine. 6 l
Other masonically affiliated female organizations also ex- ist, such as Daughters of the Nile, the Order of Amaranth, the White Shrine ofJerusalem, and the Daughters of Mokanna. Nu- merous affiliated youth organizations add to the list, such as the Order of DeMolay, Order of Job’s Daughters, Order of the Builders, and Order of the Rainbow. Finally, the Lodge has ex- erted a considerable influence in the history of Mormonism” and in liberal religion, such as Unitarian Universalism.~
OccaSionally, the Kiwanis, Rotary, Lions Club, American Legion, and Veterans of Foreign Wars are incorrectly associated with Masonry or its affiliated organizations. But unlike Masonry, these are not religious groups having religiOUS goals” and should not be confused with Masonry.
The following is a brief description of the organization of Freemasonry:
Blue Lodge – instituted as a speculative science in 1717.
York Rite Freemasonry, consisting of: Chapter of Royal Arch – founded in 1750; Council R.A.S.M. (Royal and Select Masters) . . . and, Commandery of Knights Templar – which originated in the United States in 1816.
Scottish Rite – composed of 30 degrees along with the first three degrees of Blue Lodge which equals 33 degrees. It was built on the rite of perfection of 25 degrees, and was devised in the College of Clermount in 1854.
-The Shrine (A.A.O.N.M.S.) (shriners)– a candidate must be a 32 degree Mason or Knights Templar to apply. It is Muslim oriented with a Muslim death oath
-Tall Cedars of Lebanon – all Master Masons are eligible.
-De Molay – for boys from 14 to 21 years of age.
-Eastern Star – for women whose relatives are Masons.
-Rainbow Girls and Daughters of the Nile – also for the daughters of Masons.
-Various Square clubs – organizations to which any Mason can belong (Harris 1983:27).
Heart of Abraham 