This was my last chance to perfrom the Inner guard’s position and I wanted it to be my best. That decision will need to be made by the Brethren present, not by me, I am prejudice, hee hee. The Lodge was opened in the First Degree and the usual Minutes, Correspondence, Accounts, Caring Officers and General Business Reports were attended too.

The Lodge was then opened in the Second Degree and right on que an alarm was heard and the Grand Director of Ceremonies entered and announced that the Assistant Grand Master of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory was outside the door of the Lodge and was about to enter. The doors were opened and the the Grand Lodge Delegation led the way in followed by the Assistant Grand Master. Greetings were conveyed and responded upon and we all sat.

The Worshipful Master Elect was then presented to the Worshipful Master by his Sponsors and the Ancient Charges and Regulations and Obligation was read and acknowledged.

The Lodge was then opened in the Third Degree and the Collars, Jewels and other insignia of Office was then collected and then all below the rank of Installed Master’s then retired.

Board of Installed Masters Opened and the ReInstallation then took place and the Investiture of Immediate Past Master, whatever that means. I will find out one day, but not today.

Lodge resumed in the Third Degree and all Master Masons were then admitted. An announcement by the Installing Master and subsequent Fanfare, along with a proclamation in the East. The Working Tools were presented and the Lodge was closed iin the Third and Resumed in the Second.

Fellow Craft Freemasons were then admitted, followed by a an Announcement and Fanfare, with the Proclamation in the West. The presentation of the Second Degree Working Tools then followed, after which the Lodge was closed in the Second Degree and Opened in the First.

Entrered Apprentices were then admitted, followed by an Announcement and Fanfare, along with the Proclamation in the South. Then it was my turn to Present the First Degree Working Tools. I have rehearsed it a 1000 times, in front of the mirror and my dog and goldfish and it is always outstanding and easy. However, as you make your way to the front and before all and sundry, you become aware of every detail, the eyes watching your every movement, your posture, the clarity of the speech and the actual Presentation and then it is all over and before you know it, you are back at your seat. Your breathing returns to normal, the sweat subsides and your pulse rate returns to normal. No it’s not that bad, it is actually a great thing and I enjoy the challenge of learning new Charges and then having the honour of presenting them.

The Musical Brethren then presented a number of renditions, which always adds lustre to any Lodge Meeting, especially Installations.

The Charter, Book of Constitution and By-Laws were then presented to the Worshipful Master, who then Investitured his Offciers. Is their such a word, I dont know, but it will do for the time being.

Relevant Addresses were given and another Welcome to the Assistant Grand Master and Grand Lodge Officers.

Grand Lodge Officers then retired, after which time the new WM gave a warm welcome to Visiting Masters, Pasty Masters, Wardens and Brethren and invited then to attend the South.

The Lodge was closed according to Ancient Custom and we then retired.

The South was well attended and the Ladies were busy serving up the meals. We tried something different which was to serve the Head table first and then invite each table to stand and make their way to the servery. I have no idea if it was succesful or not but I am sure I will find out. I started serving the drinks and filled up the drinks trolly and made a sweep through the crowd and then remained on standby to refill any empty glass or bottle.

Relevant speeches and Toasts were given and as I was charged with the responsibility of giving the Visitors Toast, I scoured the internet for a suitable toast. I found one, which I believe first circulated around 1945 - 1950. I have no idea who the author was and I will write a post about it shortly. I spoke with a lot of Brethren who have been involved with Freemasonry forever and they had never heard it and they enjoyed it.

The Swindle was run and won and after the Junior Wardens Toast, farewells were given. The clean up started and overall it was a great night and I heard nothing but praise for the entire evening.

Gave greetings to one and all, signed the Visitors book and introduced to Brethren I had never met before. The work of the evening was the Red Cross Knights Degree and as it is only conducted every couple of years, there were approximately 14 candidates.

The Chapter was opened in the Council of the East and West, with the admission of the suitably qualified Knights.

The Grand Director of Ceremonies entered and announced the reception of the Most Excellent First Grand Principal and Grand Master of the United Supreme Grand Chapter of Mark and Royal Arch Masons of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territories.

As the candidates were not permitted to enter at this stage, I stood towards the back of the room and was just minding my own business when who should stand beside me, The Grand Master, waiting to enter. We had a bit of a chat and he recommended that I pay special attention to certain names and locations during the course of the Ceremony as they are currently in the news at the moment. The Grand Master then proceeded to wish me well for the evening and to enjoy the occasion as it is a special Degree. I am not going to argue with that and it was certainly a nice way to start the evening.

The following paragraphs attempt to lay out the Ceremony as it occurs, however, should I omit things or time lines then I apologise in advance, but as you would appreciate, this is new to me.

Owing to the number of Candidates, we had to select a Brother to act on our behalf. That being done we entered the First Point and the scene was played out before us. What an impressive amount of work and the presentation by the Companions was first rate. We then retired to allow the setting up of the Second Point.

Once again all 14 candidates selected a new leader if you like and we re-entered the Lodge and the Second Point then commenced. It was just as impressive and striking as the First Point and the Fellowship, Respect and good natured ribbing between the Brethren present was evident.  The Second Point was closed and the candidates were once again asked to retire.

We, the 14 Candidtaes entered once again for the Third Point and the symbolic nature of the Third Point was not lost on any of the candidates. After the completeion of the Third Point the Grand Master then congratulated each of the Candidates and wished them well in their quest. We then left the Lodge room as the Ceremony of Installation of the Most Excellent Chief took place. No idea about that one, but I trust in due course that I may get there.

We then ventured to the South where a meal had been prepared and we sat down and enjoyed the companionship of all present. A great night was had by all and I appreciate all of the effort that went into Wednesday’s Ceremony, especially considering that this Ceremony is only conducted every couple of years.

A greta night was had by all and the South concluded by 2345hrs.

Visitors were admitted at 7.30pm and the WM greeted us accordingly.

The work for the evening was a presentation of “Coal Loading In The Port Of Newcastle” and was given by two expereinced Brethren within this field. This presentation was to take place in the South.

The WM gave greetings to the DGIW who responded in kind. I believe this was his first outing as DGIW and as you would expect the Brethren eased him through his first visit.

The WM closed the Lodge in Peace, Love and Harmony and we were sitting in the South by 8.00pm.

Very interesting presentation on the process of loading coal and how it has changed over the course of 40 years. I discovered that the safe load line was also called the Plimsoll line, so named after Samuel Plimsoll who introduced it becuase of the overloading of ships, which caused the ships to sink with huge loss of life.

Although the coal loading facilities at newcastle are immense they are now spending vast amounts in order to increase the size and production to even greater levels.

the presentation concluded at about 9.15pm and the South was then presented. Raffle was run and won or in my case lost.

Said our farewells and I look forward to attending next month.

Gave greetings to all and sundry and met new Brethren. That is the great thing about Freemasonry, you can go to a new Lodge, introduce yourself and then talk with them as if you have known them for years.

Visitors were admitted and as I entered I must have had a brain snap or was in it bit of a daze. After I salutred the WM, I walked straight across the Lodge Room and took my seat. When I realised what I had done there was no turning back. I will never do that again.

On this occasion it was a Reinstallation and the Past Deputy Grand Master PDGM was representing The Grand Master.

The Lodge was opened in the Second Degree and the Grand Director of Ceremonies then entered and annouced the reception of the representative of the MW Grand Master. Greetings were conveyed and then the presentation of the WM Elect took place. Charges, Obligations and Regulations were conducted and then the Lodge was opened in the Third Degree.

Collars, Jewels and other insignia of Office was collected and handed to the GDC. It was at this point that all below the rank of installed Master retired and this was performed under the direction of the Grand Director of Ceremonies.

We went outside and ate, drank and was merry. The Lodge was resumed in the Third Degree and we were readmitted. I will find out one day what occurs. The announcement and proclamation in the East was conducted and then the presentation of the Third Degree Working Tools.

Lodge was opened in the Second Degree and all Fellowcarfts were admitted, which was followed by the announcement and Proclamation in the West and then the presentation of the Second Degree Working Tools.

Lodge was then opened in the First Degree and all Masons were admitted. Presentation of the Working Tools and the preentation of the Charter, Book of Constitutions and Bye-Laws. The Investiture of Officers then took place which was nice to observe, simply because our install is on Thursday.

Other greetings and responses were given by the WM and the WM Representative and Certificates were presented to a number of Brethren.

The Representative of The Grand master and Grand Lodge Officers retired and the newly installed WM thanked the visitors for attending and the JW invited all Brethren to the South.

Lodge was closed in Peace, Love and Harmony and we then drove to Bank Street, where the South was waiting.

I followed the wrong car and ended up lost and finally found my way and becasue I was slightly late, I was invited to sit with various Grand Lodge Officers and their Ladies…Oh My. Various Toasts and responses were given. The WM wife was extremely nervous about giving her sppech, however, she gave a great speech and it was warmly received. Had a lovely evening talking with the the Brethren and their Wives and I look forward to sitting in Lodge with them in due course. The Swindle was run and won and as it turned out Our Table scored well in the end.

The JW gave the final toast of the evening and we said our farewells.  I spoke with the SW and his briefly and I will see him at the next Regional practice.

Arrived home at about 2230hrs.

It was interesting to say the least. The Brethren you would expect to be there were there and the ones you didn’t expect to be there, were there. The meeting came to order and the minutes of the previous month was read and moved and seconded. Treasurers report and accounts were read accordingly and moved and seconded. General business was open and a motion was moved that we accept the motion from the executive committee regarding assistance. The motion was seconded and accepted.

It was handled with dignity and compassion and was a pleasure to witness. The R.G.C. then delivered a report on the roles and duty of a R.G.C. and how it has changed over the years. He spoke about the past D.G.I.W.’s and their valuable contribution to the various Districts over the course of their Term. He spoke briefly about how he is looking forward to working with the the new D.G.I.W’s and the amount of work required. It was made mention of the number of Members within the Region and of current Lodges, with the prospect of opening new Lodges.

The botttom line is that the future of Freemasonry is with it’s Members, purely and simply, nothing more, nothing less. I hear of Members complaining about Grand Lodge and this and that, but at the end of the day, it is the Lodges and more importantly the Members of those Lodges that must be held accountable for the success and or failure of those Lodges. For Freemasonry to thrive and succeed, we need to encourage new members who are committed to growth, development and leadership and the Lodges must change their currently outdated views to embrace this change.

The floor was then given to Past DGIW’s who responded in kind. District 42 DGIW, provided numbers of Members within his District and the percentage that attended. It was interesting to note that at the commencement of his Term, approximately 36% of Lodge Members regularly attended, however, at the end of his Term that figure had risen to 55%. Granted, numbers were down, however, their were more members attending, which in itself is a good thing.

Positions were then called for within the Association, Committee Members etc. Before throwing my hand up, I will speak with my Partner, however, I know what her response will be. If you want to do it, just do it. I will contact them accordingly and volunteer for the Committee Assistant Member position, no idea what that is or what they do, but if it helps in some way, So Mote It Be.

Meeting was closed and we then enjoyed coffee and a chat. Spoke with one of the Committee regarding continued advertising from my business for their Diary. Confirmed that I will be continuing the advertising for another 12 months and to keep the same Ad as last year.

Helped to clean up and headed home at about 2130hrs.

The Brethren involved with the meeting have come from far and wide. Lodge St. James, Lodge City of Newcastle, Lodge Lake Macquarie, Lodge Port Stephens, Lodge Brotherhood of Maitland, Lodge United St Andrew Singleton, Lodge Benjamin Pryor, Lodge Hunter Hiram, Lodge Forster, Lodge Scone. I have said it before and I will say it again, it is indeed an honour to be involved with this Regional Meeting.

Took our respective stations and opened the Lodge. i have always enjoyed visiting and apart from the Fellowship you receive, you get to see subtle differences from the Officers, when performing their respective duties. These differences, albeit slight, are things that you notice and makes you sit up and take notice. I enjoy it, but then again My Mother Lodge was a Scottish Lodge in Queensland, Lodge Auchenflower No. 224, unfortunately no longer in existience and our Due Guard sign has been compared to holding a wee little dog. I still cop shite becasue I occassionally use this sign.  I would stilll prefer to use My Sign, however, I am in NSW and when in Rome do as the Romans do. I will continue to attempt to educate them, yet I feel my cause is a lost one.

Where was I, oh yes, the subtle differences in signs. We then rehearsed the work of the evening. It reminds me of the old joke of a guy that walks into a Pet Shop because he has heard that he sells Masonic Parrots which will help in reciting charges. 

The 1st parrot he sees costs $20 000 and is named JW but he is reluctant to spend that much money, although the pet shop guy guarantees that the bird will prompt you with all charges including the Installation Charges. The guy declines and asks if he has something cheaper and the pet shop guy shows him e bird called JD and it costs $10 000. This parrot can recite all charges in all degress except the Installation charges and that is why it is half the price. The guy is impressed, yet still reluctant to spend that much money and asks if he has something a bit cheaper still. The pet guy goes into the back of the shop and brings out a magnificent parrot, garter blue in colour with gold trim and his name is PDGIW and this parrot can recite every charge from every Order, including Installations and prompt from any sentence. The guy asks how much for such a magnificent parrot. The pet guy says it is worth $100.00 and the other guy says I will take it.

The next morning he takes it back to the pet shop and demands a refund. The pet guy is taken back and asks why and the guy says that yes the parrot knows evrything, all charges and yet when I am reciting my charges all he says is Oh My God, Oh My God and shakes his head.

Back to the task at hand, the practice went well and we have another practice scheduled for 2 weeks time. The Lodge was closed and I said my farewells. As so often happens when you meet a new brother, the course of the conversation turns to visits etc and the Brotherhood of Maitland is meeting this Staurday and I will visit. It is there Installation, so what better time to attend.

Owing to the fact that the Assistant Grand Master will be in attendance. The subject naturally turned to expected numbers. I personally believe that because of 2 reasons, the numbers may be higher. Firstly, the new Assistant Grand Master is from the Central Coast and this will be one of his first engagements and as such he will be well supported. Secondly, the Past DGIW is well liked and respected and because he is taking King Solomon’s Chair, the Brethren from the District should come from far and wide to support. That is how I see things in Stephen Land, yet time will tell.

This subject naturally led to another favourite subject of mine, the South. The incoming JW indicated that his wife would not be able to assist with the catering and that we may need to adopt a new measure. Firstly, let me say this, I have yet to see any directive, order or rule that states that the wives or partners of the Brethren are expected to provide the catering. My partner and I run a business together and she does just as many hours working within and on our business that I do. I can not reasonably expect her to then provide the catering, especially when I am more than capable of doing this. Should we elect to do this together, which would be the case, then we would have fun doing so, but I take objection, when it is expected from certain Brethren that becasue she is my partner, it is her duty to provide this. Wake up, this is not the 1950’s and if this places me offside with certain Brethren, So Mote It Be. The JW’s Role is just that, His Role and before I take that Role or any other Office, I will ensure that I am capable of performing that role to a high standard, otherwise I will not take that Office and will stand aside and let another Brother through. Simple, is it not.

The above is purely my own opinion and is not intended as a slight against anyone. I am respectful of the heritage and history of Freemasonry and of the Brothers that I sit in Lodge with. Times they are a changing and we must change and adapt with those times or be left standing by the wayside. I do believe that Freemasonry has a lot to offer the world and we need to ensure that we pass this through to them.

The Management Meeting closed and we proceed to the Practise. We had a quick run through and all Officers know what is expected of them. We have another practise next monday and this will be a complete run through. Looking forward to the meeting, in fact I have a busy schedule for the next 4 weeks.

Left at 2130hrs and arrived home at about 2200hrs.

I know I have said it before, however, I must repeat it again, I enjoy the 18th Degree. To me it is one of the nicest Degrees and represents different things to different Brethren.

The MWS and his Officers opened the Chapter and the DIW then entered. Greetings were conveyed and responded to.

The work of the evening was something I had never witnessed before. It was a detailed explanation given to the MWS on His Enthronement. The talk provided a full explanation of the MWS Jewel and the meaning behind it. I wont go into details here but suffice to say that it was extremely interesting and is something that you normally miss during the actual ceremony.

The second part of the work of the evening was a slide presentation of the Intermediate Degrees 4 to 17. Each slide represented a certain degree and a more detailed explanation followed. Once again, it was extremely interesting and has presented me with ideas for my upcoming year as MWS.

After the work of the evening, the MWS greeted the District Grand Inspector of Workings, who responded in like when it was the aprropriate time.

I gave Fraternal Greetings from the MWS of Qld #4 and invited the MWS, his Officers and the attending Princes to attend Our Installation in Brisbane on Monday evening. Apart from the Installation, We also have an initiation on a Candidate and to top the evening off, South Brisbane Chapter are doing the 7th Degree. I also gave Fraternal Greetings from the MWS of Aquila Alba Sovereign Chapter.

The Chapter was closed accordingly and we were invited to the refectory where a light supper had been prepared.

Sat with a number of Brethren and enjoyed their company as we discussed everything and nothing in particular.

Assisted with the clean up and packing away of the gear. Said my farewells and I look forward to sitting in Lodge with them in due course.

Tyled at 7pm and visitors were admitted at about 730pm. Took my place within the Lodge and sat with a Brother that I haven’t had a chance to catch up with for some time. We chatted away and then the D.G.I.W. entered the Lodge. This was his 1st offical visit as the District Grand Inspector of Workings and he performed his duties with dignity and professionalism.

The work of the evening was a Past Masters Night and the W.M. invited a Past Master from the old Lodge Belmont to occupy King Solomon’s Chair. Once he occupied the Chair he then proceeded to deliver an explantion of the 1st Tracingt Board.

Absolutely outstanding, I went tonight because I knew this was the Charge and as I have learnt about 80% of it, it was an ideal opportunity to see how far I have to go. Oh My God, Boy, do I have a long long way to go.  Did not miss a beat, was performed with authroity and punctuated by illustrations and was a pleasure to witness. If you don’t visit, you do miss the chance to see quality work, mix with Brethren from across the District and overall just miss out on a great night.

I spoke with a Brother some time ago and he explained what Freemasonry was like back in the 70’s and how you would have 200 brethren to a Lodge meeting and the South would last for hours if not days. He finished by saying that until Masonry gets back to those days, he won’t visit again. It will be sad not to see him at other Lodges, but it was with that close minded attitude that will prevent Masonry from going forwards. It may very well never get back to those numbers, however, we have to ensure that the quality of the Memebrs that we have now is second to none and we want to visit and ensure that we do. The only reason, I believe, to look back at History, is to see what they did correct and what they could have done differently and learn from their mistakes and then correct the errors of their ways.

We Must Visit, end of story, purely and simply.

Lodge was closed in Peace, Love and Harmony and we were invited to retire to the South, where a light refreshment was waiting. I sat next to a Brother who is a wealth of information and we normally get involved into deep discussion regarding Freemasonry and it’s origins and it’s impact on other Orders.

Various Toasts and Responses were given and overall a good South followed. The D.G.I.W. spoke briefly about the upcoming Regional Meeting and how it would be an ideal time to meet the new Grand Master, Assistant Grand Master and Deputy Grand Master.

The JW Toast was given and I said farewells and made my way home. I look forward to their next meeting.

Correctional Services arrived for a Fraternal visit and as it transpired the work of the evening was to pass their Brother to the Second Degree. The WM and the Officers of Corrective Services occupied the Chair of King Solomon and the respective Chairs.

Jack and I were admited and we took our place in the Lodge and then Corrective Services entered.

Shortly afterwards the D.G.I.W. entered the Lodge and greetings were conveyed and responded to.

The WM of Corrective Services was invited to occupy the Chair and once this was completed, his Officers were asked to occupy their Stations.

The Brother was then presented and the usual questions and answers followed. The Brother was obviously nervous, however when asked upon to respond to certain questions he did so with clarity and conviction. His Mentors had trained and guided him well, as he was well versed. That is a credit not only to the Mentors but to the Newly Passed Brother.

When the Brother was asked to perform a certain task under the instruction of the JD, the JD got slightly confused with North, South, East and West on a number of occasions and this added to the jovial atmosphere of the ceremony. All charges were performed to a high level and the Fellowship and respect between the two Lodges is evident.

After the Ceremony was completed the D.G.I.W. congratulated the Newly Passed Brother and Photographs were subsequently taken of the Candidate, the Corrective Services Members, The Brethren attending in different combinations and stages.

The WM of Corrective Services then invited Toukley’s WM to take his Chair and sincerely thanked Him and his Officers in allowing them to ocupy their Stations and perform the work.

A Certificate was presented to a newly affiliated Brother from Lodge Resurgo.

The D.G.I.W. then retired after Greetings were conveyed and he was invited to attend the South.

The Lodge was closed in Peace, Love and Harmony and we were invited to the South.

Conversation and Fellowship continued as the meal was presented and relevant Charges and Toasts were given. The Newly Passed Brother from Corrective Services said he would rather attend a riot than the Ceremony, simply because he had less nerves. 

He is a great candidate in very good hands and I look forward to seeing his 3rd Degree in due course. Owing to their difficult work and their need to be cautious at all times, this obviously creates a special bond, trust and relationship and is a pleasure to witness.

We made our way home after the JW Toast and after saying goodbyes to all and sundry. I thoroughly enjoyed myself at Toukley and I will endeavour to attend on a more regular basis.