Jan. 30, 2020 Meeting

Our next stated meeting will be held on January 30, 2020.

More details as they are made available.

_________________________________

The Truth Conquers Above All
A Brief Discourse on the Topic of Knight Masonry
By:  John D. Barnes, VE Grand Superintendent, NJ

Excerpted from June 2019 Knightly News

Forte est vinu; Fortier est Rex; Fortiores sunt mulieres; sum om vincit veritas.

This phrase is chiseled into a lintel discovered inside Rosslyn Chapel, Scotland. Among all of the wondrous carvings of animals, angels, symbols, heraldry, humans and plants, this is the ONLY quote to be found in this Chapel. It is a most significant message summarizing content from the Apocryphal Book of Esdras III & IV; the name Esdras is the Greek form of Ezra, who was a Scribe, Priest and one of the leaders of the group of captives returning to Jerusalem from Babylonian captivity. 

This famous phrase translates as Wine is strong, the King is stronger, and women stronger yet, but Truth conquers above all. 




Our Knight Mason Degrees have their origins in some of the earliest Masonic records and may even predate the Master Mason Degree as conferred currently. There are three Degrees of Knight Masonry: Knight of the Sword, Knight of the East, and, Knight of the East and West. These Degrees are based on the trials and tribulations of Zerubbabel, a leader of the captives who return to Israel from Babylonian Captivity and a leader of the movement to rebuild the Temple; these notable events are as well alluded to within the Royal Arch Degree. 



The emblems of Knight Masonry are the Sword and the Trowel. The Sword of Hope, an emblem of Justice, is philosophically wielded in defense of the cause of Knight Masonry, and, the Trowel of Friendship, a symbol of labor, reminds us to spread the cement of brotherly love. Combined, these symbols, mentioned in the Book of Nehemiah, describe how the artisans rebuilding the House of the Lord were called to work with a Sword in one hand and with a Trowel in the other. 



During the Knight of the East and West, at the culmination of the initiation and just prior to the knighting ceremonies, the Aspirant is strongly reminded: King Cyrus created you a Knight and invested you with a Sword. I present you with this Trowel, that in the future you may use either one or the other during the rebuilding of the Temple.

These Degrees promote the importance of Zeal and Perseverance in overcoming all difficulties and challenges. 



These Green Degrees were conferred in Ireland under the auspices of their Royal Arch Chapters in the 1750's. Later, they were protected and worked by Templar Preceptories in the 1790's, and there remained until the formation of the Grand Council of Knight Masons in Dublin, Ireland, in 1923. In the 1930’s, these Degrees were brought into the United States and preserved by a group of distinguished Masons from North Carolina. 



Finally, in 1967, the Grand Council of Knight Masons of the U.S.A. was Chartered and remains in charge of promoting and preserving these sacred and antient Degrees. S.K. Harold V.B. Voorhis was our first Most Excellent Great Chief of Grand Council of Knight Masons of the U.S.A., and presently, S.K. Joseph S. Crociata is our 52nd Most Excellent Great Chief of the Grand Council of Knight Masons of the U.S.A.

The Grand Council of Knight Masons of the United States of America, in consideration of its origin strives to:

1. Perpetuate the ancient rituals of the Irish Masonic Canon, (the "Green" degrees) by promoting their frequent and regular conferral inits constituent councils, and by its expectation that such conferral will be executed with an accuracy, a precision, and a dramatic power congruent with the highest traditions of the Masonic institution.

2. Elevate to membership in its constituent councils only those Freemasons who in their character and persons have amply and thoroughly demonstrated in their Masonic lives, by means of a faithful attachment to the institution, a true and honorable record of service to its goals, and a genuine dedication to its high ideals.

3. Foster in its constituent councils the regular exploration and studyof the Masonic Tradition and Heritage by means of an aggressive program of scholarly inquiry and research, and to pursue that Masonic learning in the spirit of our Celtic forbears who kept the light of faith burning in times of darkness.

4. Encourage its constituent councils to discover in the pleasures and diversions of the festive board that warm fellowship and that joyous fraternity, which have ever characterized and actuated the great spirit of this Ancient Craft.

5. Promote the charitable dimension so central to, and inherent in, Masonic life and tradition by obliging its constituent councils to contribute with customary Masonic liberality to those institutions, both Masonic and non-Masonic, which serve the needs of the greater community.