Cortlandt DGGM visit                                                         March 5, 2008

The Challenge to uphold Tradition

My Brothers, when our Grand Master gave that speech, he painted a rich portrait of American Masonry.  He spoke of a simpler time, recalling activities that dated back to the late 1890s.  For Courtlandt Lodge #34, that is barely half of their 215 year span.  A Lodge that holds an annual roll call, where Brethren gather to share great stories of different eras and different Masters, knows a thing or two about tradition.  This is a Lodge that truly speaks to timelessness.

It is this topic of “timeless traditions” that I would like to touch upon this evening.  Specifically, I want to speak of some of the technological advances that sometime challenge our most important and respected traditions.  Only by being ever vigilant, can we insure that these traditions continue to be truly timeless.

One recent advancement that has brought many positive developments to our Craft is the Internet, the World Wide Web.  For one generation, typing on a computer keyboard feels very similar to typing on an Underwood portable.  For a newer generation, it is simply part of everyday life.  Yet in both cases, we sometimes forget the ramifications of such a wide reaching and immediate technology.  Unlike the spoken word, the printed word has the potential to exist forever; and, also unlike the spoken word, the absence of inflection and body language can sometimes lead to great misunderstandings.  Unfortunately, this instantaneous delivery may also lead us to rashly say things that were better left unsaid.

This great technology makes the practice of redundancy all the more important.  If you e-mail something to a group of Brothers, it is always good form to follow it up with a phone call to those Brothers who may not rely on this technology as much as you do.  Any opportunity to clear up vague words should be used as frequently as possible.  This is one of the many reasons that I cherish my official visits.  While I admit to relying on e-mail and my Blackberry for efficient communication, I am always happiest to speak face to face with the Brethren in attendance at a visit.  I return to my home afterwards with the confidence of knowing that I have cemented electronic requests with the mortar of a physical connection.

However, our newer technology does pose other, more insidious challenges that may not come as easily to mind as the misunderstood word.  In a world where the usefulness of information lies in both its accessibility as well as its relevance, we must remember that these connections are being drawn for us, even when we do not initiate them.

Most of you present have seen our District website.  If you remember it from the beginning, you know that I was fond of the doctored picture on the front page which was composed of my head and some other Mason’s body.  Its use was necessary because no picture existed of me clothed as a Mason.  I lovingly refer to it as my “Frankenmason” photograph.  You may have also noticed that this picture no longer is on our District website.  This is because in my job as an actor, I once gave an associate the URL address of my acting website and, apparently, having forgot it; he searched for images of me on the Internet.  The one that popped up was my Masonic photo.

Now, to be sure, I am deeply proud of my Masonic association.  However, as so many of us know from our own experiences, not every non-Mason views Masonry favorable.  The person searching for my photo mentioned the Masonic photo and also mentioned some falsities that he had heard about Masonry.  I assured him that his information was wrong, but the time and place did not allow for me to expound on that assertion.  It is unclear if I did not get that job because I was a Mason.  What was abundantly clear was that a bad taste had been left in my business associates’ mouth over the experience.

Now, we can have plenty of discussion of what kind of person we might wish to associate with in business and in life; and those discussions would all be valid…in theory.  The reality in a world where tens of thousands of Americans can lose their jobs in one day is that I needed to better protect my ability to earn by remembering the name I was given my first night as a Mason.  Hopefully all of us remember what that name was.

In this situation, I took the immediate action of taking the picture down; and within a few days, Google had forgotten it existed.  But that was relatively easy.  It was an action that I was responsible for that only affected me.  My action and the resolution were simple.  But, what about when it is not that easy?

I also have a Facebook account.  On it, I do not identify myself as a Mason.  In fact, even if I, or someone else, mistakenly makes any reference to my Masonry, or identifies me in a picture of Masons (called “tagging” in the parlance of Facebook), I delete it immediately.  I cannot risk another misunderstanding.  By the way, I let any uses of the term “Bro” stay on my page, because it easily sounds like vernacular that is not limited to Masonry. 

While I understand and applaud the motivation of Brothers wishing to share their Masonic connections, we cannot assume that it is to everyone’s benefit to be so identified.  Let us think, for just a moment about the very teaching of Masonry.  We are taught to identify other Masons in a very careful and private way.  We are also instructed to do so in measured and “strict” manners.  Finally, we are told to use our best judgement as to when to use Masonic words.

As a slight aside, I will also tell you that I do not always wear Masonic rings or pins outside of our meetings and events.  Some Brothers do, and some don’t.  It is everyone’s individual prerogative.  Personally, I particularly avoid a certain pin or car emblem you might have seen that shows a pair of spheres and a walking stick.  That’s just a bit too private, even for me to wear in a tiled Lodge.  It feels like the difference between wearing a simple wedding band and wearing a huge picture on my back of my wife and children.  Some things are so dear to me that only understatement will do.

 Am I telling you not to identify yourself as a Mason?  Absolutely not.  That is a choice that you alone should make.  But it is a choice that you should make only for you, just as everyone else has that same individual right.  I should also stress that only your Master can decide what public exposure your Lodge should or should not have.  In the final account, these respected wishes of fellow Masons or followed directives of your Master will only serve to illuminate how much you respect our hallowed customs.  You should look upon any such requests not as negative experiences, but simply as reminders of our need to always protect our treasured history.

Regardless of whatever technological advance comes next, the pride in being a Mason is a badge that each of us wears proudly.  Some of us can wear it openly, and some are required to wear it in more subtle fashion.  But at either extreme, the honor is still well earned.  That, my Brothers, is a tradition that will not be eclipsed by mankind’s machinations, no matter how grand.  That, is a tradition that no invention can surpass.

Worshipful Master, I thank you for the courtesies extended to myself, the Grand Sword Bearer, and the Brethren in attendance this evening.  I know that we all wish Courtlandt Lodge a continuation of their great Masonic tradition.  Most importantly, I want to thank all my Brothers who are here tonight.  May it be our good fortune that, perhaps, future generations of Courtlandt Brethren will be caused to remember this special night, at a roll call yet to come.  Thank you.