Masters Message Spring 2024

Digital Masonry                                                                                                       

Spring 2024                

What makes Silas Shepherd different?  We satisfy hunger.  Hunger for history.  Hunger for ideas.  Hunger to make a difference.

The pandemic tee-ed us up to satisfy those hungers.  Over a year of isolation made men look around and wonder… is this it?  The public couldn’t connect with others.  They started looking for ways to connect with others, and found that it was difficult to make new friends.

Technology gave people connections.  The digital world allowed people from nearby or even on the other side of the world to build bonds, and those continued even after pandemic passed.

While connections were made and relationships built through digital conference platforms like Zoom or Teams, people's eyes were opened as they realized that they could speak to other people, create other audiences and promote ideas from within the safety of their own home.

However, with the expansion of social media platforms; so comes with it the growing pains of learning how to manage social media.  Just as text messaging can contribute to misunderstandings, it takes skill and vigilance to learn how to communicate on each platform.  Even platforms and their popularity changes and this brings unique challenges.  For social media today; TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube are the most used as of this writing.  MySpace is a hollow shell of what it once was and Twitter now X is waning in popularity.

Rising in popularity are Reddit, Nextdoor, WhatsApp, Discord and GroupMe, and various others. 

Freemasonry has found its way to all these platforms including podcasts….  How has it impacted you?  Whether you were a content creator, you’ve read or listened to something that made a change?.

How has digital masonry affected you?  Have you written, or performed on any of these platforms?  We can be on the cutting edge.  There is a hunger for masonry right now – for the connections with like-minded individuals worldwide. We can do cool stuff, and we can feed the hunger. My Brothers, I look to an exciting year of taking Silas Shepherd to new heights this year, and with your contributions making an impact to a larger hungry audience!

Sincerely & Fraternally,

Jim McGuigan

Worshipful Master 2024

Masters Message Winter 2023

Change Happens!

“The saying ‘Tradition goes on’ or ‘change is bad’, is anti-dynamic and ruins the progress and development of every institution that adheres to it”

Brothers:

I have been racking my brain trying to figure out what my final message to the lodge will be this year, in fact, as I write this, I believe I’m on about my 5th or 6th different topic. In all of this deliberation, I keep coming back to, what I believe, is one of the achilles heels of our fraternity - its resistance to change. Whether we are talking about the way we conduct meetings, the way we dress at lodge or even the way that we prepare the green beans, it seems that Masons are almost more likely than most to get locked into traditions. Further, it seems that change has become one of the scariest propositions in our brotherhood, however, I am here to tell everyone - CHANGE HAPPENS! 

I would like you to consider the fact that Masonry has survived in North America for 290 years (records show that the first lodge permanently established in North America was St. John's Lodge of Boston on July 30th, 1733[1]). Since then, our fraternity has survived wars, scandals, pandemics and all manner of societal upheaval and we have endured because the brothers that came before us have been brave enough to not only recognize the changes necessary for this survival but also to lead that change. Consider also the fact that after our membership boom in the early to mid 20th Century we seem to have adopted a policy of sitting on our laurels. Lodge meetings have become more about reading the minutes and buying lawn mowers than about the real work of the fraternity. When changes are introduced, we see lodges hindered by those Masons who refuse to see the necessity of embracing and leading the changes that are needed. These members are part of the “I hate change” crowd where they completely avoid it or they have to be dragged kicking and screaming into accepting it.

Change is something that, likely, induces a great deal of anxiety in many of us. It is something that people are not naturally comfortable with, therefore, it is something that a great number of us avoid. In our lives we have the ability to react to change in a number of different manners.

The first of which I have alluded to already, fear. When we react in this manner we allow the prospect of change to control us, to guide our actions in a manner that avoids the fact that this change is happening and to steer clear of it for as long as possible. The second reaction is for us to accept it. We may not initially like the change but we can learn to live with it. We move along with what we are doing, begrudgingly accepting the idea that we have to make due with the new ways that things are done and, perhaps, we feel nostalgic for those times when things were “easier” which we naturally associate with being better. Reacting in either of these manners, I would argue, is not healthy. In both cases we do not take the opportunity to put ourselves in the driver's seat - we allow changes to happen to us and we simply deal with it.

The flip side of this is learning to lead the change. This is where we not only accept that the change is going to happen but we take charge by learning how to utilize the change in the manner that best suits us. We also may help other people to embrace the change so that they can feel the benefits of whatever that change brings. It may not always be the most comfortable ride to be on, but we enjoy the journey nonetheless. This is, arguably, the most difficult of the reactions as it requires us to become familiar with the changes which takes time and time is increasingly more valuable as we seem to always have less and less of it.

Here are some ways that we can work to lead change:

1.      Create a sense of Urgency: Work within yourself and others to focus on the importance of the coming change.

2.      Build a coalition: Find other people that you can trust to work with you to help guide the change.

3.      Form a Vision: Make sure that your group has a vision of what things will look like once the change is in place.

4.      Remove Barriers: Some changes require us to adjust previous practices - don’t be afraid to make those adjustments - occasionally this may mean that people need to be moved into different roles in the group because they present the barrier.

5.      Short-term wins: When implementing a change, set short term goals that are achievable and celebrate when they are accomplished.

6.      Institutionalize the Change: Make the change part of the culture of the group.

 Now, I would challenge us to understand that, as a fraternity, we cannot become what we need to be by remaining where we are. It is the work of any true educator, researcher, and historian to continually investigate and never give into the idea that the entire story of any topic has been told and that any social organization is perfect. We, as leaders in our lodges, have the responsibility to both lead and help guide future leaders to reinvent the role that our lodges have in our communities and greater society. Further, we need to realize and embrace the idea that some changes will not work and revision and reflection is going to be necessary for us to be able to find the right path. Do not get discouraged as the place that we have been is not viable as we move into the future.

Remember, also, that ritual changes are not necessary for this to happen. Our fraternal principles are solid and should be both respected and embraced. However, respect for ritual does not mean that we should not ditch other traditions that do not serve to advance the fraternity or the brotherhood. The brotherhood deserves leaders that are willing to embrace and lead change, not just do the same things over and over expecting different results.

With this, I want to end off by thanking all the members of Silas Shepherd Lodge for the honor of being Master. As someone who dabbles in historical research I have found it as, truly, one of the best experiences in my time as a Mason and I look forward to continuing with my involvement in our lodge as long as my schedule allows. Please take care of yourselves and families and I look forward to seeing you at Lake Country Freemasons Lodge #42 in Oconomowoc on November 18th.

Yours in Brotherhood,

Jonathan Schroeder

Worshipful Master

Silas Shepherd Lodge #1843

[1]  Crawford, George Williamson, and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. 1914. Prince Hall and His Followers; Being a Monograph on the Legitimacy of Negro Masonry. Internet Archive. New York, The Crisis. https://archive.org/details/princehallhisfol00craw/mode/2up, 22.

Fall Message From the Worshipful Master- September 2023

Justice

“Justice grows out of recognition of ourselves in each other — that my liberty depends on you being free too.”

~ Barack Obama

Brothers:

In my closing remarks at our annual meeting last December, I challenged our lodge to think about the Cardinal Principle of Justice; what that means within our fraternity and what role our fraternity has in our society. In this quarter’s message I want to revisit that challenge with an edited version of the script from an episode I recorded for the Further Light Podcast detailing some thoughts on this ideal.

The ancient Athenian philosopher, Plato is best known for his ideas regarding proper governance (as published in The Republic), as well as his further dialogues on numerous other social science topics. In those dialogues, Plato explores the concept of justice, he states that it is one of the most useful and indispensable qualities that any individual can develop and that in order for a person to be elevated to any position of respect they must be diligent in the development and practice of the principle.

It can be argued that Plato’s views serve as a direct reflection of his community. In the 400’s BCE, the Athenian government was plagued with rampant nepotism. As an influential Athenian, Plato would have had a front row seat to the parade of ignorance as it strutted itself about under the guise of knowledge. In response to this, Plato argues that the virtue of justice must be so celebrated that the respect carried with it acts as a tool to relegate ignorance into its proper place, as a symbol of one whose character is not worthy of respect. He furthers this by forwarding the idea that a person must not only strive to be just but also acknowledge their own imperfection so they can continue to work to be better.

Masonry has its own standard definition of Justice. Duncan’s Ritual states, in part, that Justice is “that standard or boundary which enables us to render every man without distinction his just due.” It reminds us of our duty to respect others and fulfill any obligations we have to each other. It further dictates that we must strive to treat others with fairness, honesty and morality. Masonic belief would further argue that in order to have a prosperous and well-ordered society, as well as a well-governed and successful fraternity, we must understand and apply this principle both within and outside of lodge. If our fraternity works to promote justice both within and outside of the lodge we will, in essence, become the example of change that we hope to see in the rest of society.

These are all big ideas so, what does it all mean?

A Mason who strives to become more just will, by the very nature of this virtue, develop an extreme sense of self-reflection where he will analyze his actions using his own understanding of justice. He will work to examine whether he has developed biases or prejudices against individuals or groups, especially against Brother Masons. When he finds these things, he will try to figure out how they developed and work to eliminate them. He will further ask himself if he has found the balance needed for his own happiness and success and whether that happiness and success comes at the expense of others and, likewise, in the event that he finds that he is working in a way that takes advantage of others he will work to find better ways to operate so as to allow for more equity and fairness.

In looking beyond the individual we ask what does a Mason who practices Justice in society look like? Perhaps one of the best definitions we find comes from the writings of Worshipful Brother Prince Hall, in an address to his lodge, in June of 1792, Hall stated that one of the most significant duties of a Mason is to “help and assist all his fellow-men in distress, let them be of what color or nation they may, even if they even be our very enemies, much more a brother Mason.” In modern times, we may use the call to action of Brother John Lewis who coined the phrase “good trouble” in describing how people need to constantly strive for the achievement of justice for all, no matter who they are, and if this work gets them into trouble with authorities, this is good trouble.

Ultimately the principle of justice calls on us to deeply examine the world we live in and work to eliminate the institutional and systemic inequalities and injustices that we encounter. Since there is no perfect person or society, there is always work to be done and that work is, often, not easy. It is much easier to simply walk away when we see injustice. It is tempting to join in when we hear derogatory jokes because it is much easier to go along with the crowd.

We must remember that when we walk away or join in we are part of the problem as opposed to the solution to inequality. We must remember that people who are marginalized and the targets of injustice are those, in many cases, who do not have the power to stand up for themselves and that the reasons behind their marginalization are often outside of their own control.

When they encounter these situations, we must take heed that as an individual who took an oath to the principles of Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth we cannot, with a clear conscience, participate in any action or organization that promotes hatred of others or supremacy of one person over another for any reason be it race, creed, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or any of the other myriad of reasons why our society separates people. We must also take to heart the words of Dr. Martin Luther King who famously said that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.

Finally, my brothers, don’t forget to join us on September 9, 2023 at 9am at Waukesha Lodge #37 in downtown Waukesha for our Fall Quarterly Communication. Also, please note that our Winter Quarterly Communication has been moved from our traditional 2nd weekend in December to November 18th at Lake Country Freemasons Lodge in Oconomowoc.

Yours in Brotherhood,

Jonathan Schroeder

Worshipful Master

Silas Shepherd Lodge #1843