08/14/2022
** The Craft and the High Degrees **
Q. What induced you to become a Master Mason?
A. That I might travel in foreign countries….
The traditional environment of the Craft Degrees is centered on a single time and event in Old Testament history—the building of King Solomon’s Temple. The whole of our Craft activity occurs there, yet the ritual says that we became Master Masons in order that we might travel in foreign countries. That’s an interesting statement. The reason we became Master Masons was to “travel” somewhere away from Solomon’s Temple. What does this mean, and where are these “foreign countries?” Although there may be several interpretations for this, let’s consider for a moment how it can refer to experiences ‘beyond the Craft.’ Those who have received some of the high degrees of Freemasonry will recognize that many of them occur in those “foreign countries,” where we are introduced to a wider Masonic experience beyond our ‘home’ of Solomon’s Temple, and where we may learn important lessons which are not found in the first three degrees.
The notion that the high degrees are an important part of Freemasonry does not undervalue the Craft Degrees. By way of analogy, let’s consider high school, which is ‘complete’ unto itself. No one will dispute that a high school graduate has completed the curriculum of his school district, and earned the degree which it bestows. But high school is not the end of educational opportunities: there are trade schools, colleges, universities, branches of the military, and other institutions where one can learn things not available in high school. It may not be necessary to go beyond high school, but those who achieve higher education learn further lessons, and may obtain higher degrees, which add value to one’s life, an experience which cannot be fairly judged or undervalued by those who have not done the same. Similarly, beyond the Craft are other valuable degrees, many of which contribute to, or build upon, the legends of the Symbolic Lodge, and/or preserve traditions as old as Craft Masonry.
The connection which Craft Masonry bears to the high degrees is somewhat like the relationship between an immediate and extended family. It is a natural, organic development, and many of the high degrees retain ancient Masonic practices and legends as old as Craft Masonry. Occasionally, one encounters arguments against the high degrees, which opinions are generally founded on a faulty knowledge of Masonic history and practice.
When the Grand Lodge of England in 1717 there were actually only two degrees in Craft Masonry. The first high degree was actually the Master Mason Degree, which was created as a separate degree about eight years after the formation of the Premiere Grand Lodge. The earliest known conferral of the Master Masons degree occurred on May 12, 1725, when Charles Cotton and Papillon Ball “Were regularly passed Masters.” Nobody knows who created the Master Masons degree, or by what authority, but it was nonetheless accepted as a regular part of Masonry and is generally regarded as the most important degree.
However, Freemasonry does _not_ begin and end with the three Craft degrees. This mistaken opinion assumes that all Grand Lodges operate the same, which is incorrect. Each Grand Lodge decides for itself which types of Freemasonry may be lawfully practiced within its jurisdiction, as well as which degrees are a part of its system. And, since the Grand Lodges throughout the Masonic world are all independent, they are not necessarily influenced by the declarations of other Grand Lodges. The independent right of Grand Lodges to embrace high degrees, as a part of their systems, means that some accept a single high degree, while others embrace ten degrees; yet all are conferred under their authority as Grand Lodges, and all considered an essential part of their type of Masonry.
For example, in Scotland (the birthplace of Freemasonry) the Degree of Mark Master Mason is viewed as the completion of the Fellow Craft Degree, and it may be conferred by Craft lodges, in cooperation with the Supreme Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Scotland. The reason for this is the early association of the Mark with the Fellow Craft. As early as 1598 Scottish Operative Apprentice Masons registered their marks upon becoming Fellow Crafts. “The mark book of the lodge at Aberdeen in 1670 bears the names of forty-nine members, all but two of whom have inserted their marks opposite their names….” Thus, it can be seen that the Mark Degree preserves an old Masonic tradition, which is actually older than the Master Masons Degree. This being the case, isn’t it a bit presumptuous to dismiss such traditions, and declare that Freemasonry begins and ends with the Symbolic Lodge?
Of course, no one but Scottish Masons can decide what is properly Scottish Masonry, or assert, with credible authority, that the Scots are wrong for conferring the Mark Degree within a Craft lodge; and no individual can declare what constitutes the whole of Masonry. Some Grand Lodges adopt a conservative view, while others embrace many high degrees as a part of their regular practice. For example, Scandinavian Grand Lodges work the “Swedish Rite,” a system which includes eleven degrees, all of which are considered an essential part of Freemasonry in this system. Interestingly, the more one becomes familiar with the Old Charges, which are Freemasonry’s oldest documents, the more one recognizes that they embody traditions and a character which resemble the high degrees.
Take due notice there and govern yourselves accordingly.
- by Arturo de Hoyos
