The Washington County Maryland Masons AF & AM have partnered with other local Non-profit Organizations to conduct Charity Drives. Through these charity drives, we hope to demonstrate the 3 Core Principles of Freemasonry: Brotherly Love, Relief, and Truth. It is an honor to share these with our community through our actions. I will share here a brief definition of each of these principles, to engen
der an understanding of our motivation.
1 – Brotherly Love
As Masons, we view all of the human race as a family of equals. It is our duty as Masons to help, support, and protect those who are in need of assistance. It is our responsibility to put the needs of others before our own desires, serving our communities for no recompense. In fact, Masons use “Brotherly Love” as a term that is synonymous with, “Charity.”
2 – Relief
Masons recognize that emergencies and need come in a variety of forms and levels of severity. We seek to empathize with others, allowing us to perceive the unique emotions, reactions, and obstacles inherent to situations both familiar and unfamiliar. When we use relief as a core principle, we mean to relieve others in whatever way we are best able. More often, relief comes in the form of time freely given. Relief could be as simple as an empathetic ear or more complex, such as a team formed to assist community members in developing strategies to problem solve and overcome a challenging impediment.
3 – Truth
When Masons speak of Truth, we are speaking of more than the simple value of honesty. Truth for us involves a quasi-pilgrimage for Spiritual Truth. Seeking knowledge is an honorable quest to be undertaken daily, throughout the lifespan, and with the ultimate goal of improving the state of mankind. On a small scale, we seek to continuously improve ourselves, our families, our communities with Truth, with Knowledge sought and gained through constant evolution. On a larger scale, we hope that if each Mason throughout the world commits to the path of seeking Truth, a cumulative effect will cause the world to reap the benefits, coming further out of the Darkness and into the Light.
