St John's Lodge No. 11 FAAM Washington, DC

10/06/2026

Is Freemasonry a “Secret Society”?

For all that has been written, imagined, and speculated about Freemasonry, few descriptions have followed the fraternity more persistently than the phrase “secret society.”

But Freemasonry is not a secret society.

It is more accurately described as an openly existing fraternity that has certain things it keeps private.

That distinction matters.

Smithfield Lodge No. 182, F&AM, is not a hidden organization. We are part of the 24th Masonic District of Ohio and operate under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of Ohio. Smithfield Lodge was chartered on October 17, 1849, and has been part of the Masonic history of Jefferson County and Ohio for more than 175 years.

The existence of the Lodge is not a secret.

Our Lodge building is not a secret.

Our affiliation is not a secret.

Our charitable activities are not a secret.

Our history is not a secret.

And the basic principles and purposes of Freemasonry are certainly not a secret.

The Grand Lodge of Ohio publicly provides information about Freemasonry, its history, its Lodges, membership process, educational programs, and Lodge locations. It even provides a public Lodge Locator for people who want to learn more about Masonry or visit a Lodge.

So why does Freemasonry have secrets?

Because private does not mean clandestine.

There are portions of Masonic ritual, modes of recognition, and certain aspects of Lodge business that are intentionally kept within the fraternity.

And there is a reason for that.

A Masonic degree is not simply a collection of information that a candidate is handed on a piece of paper.

It is an experience.

A candidate listens, observes, participates, and reflects as the lessons unfold in a deliberate sequence.

Through symbolism, allegory, ceremony, and instruction, the degrees challenge a man to think about his character, his responsibilities, his relationships with others, his obligations to his community, his mortality, and the kind of man he chooses to become.

That experience is part of the teaching.

There is a difference between reading the ending of a story and actually experiencing the story as it unfolds.

There is a difference between being told a lesson and experiencing the lesson.

And there is a difference between being handed an explanation of a symbol and being given the opportunity to contemplate that symbol within the context for which it was intended.

That is one reason Masons safeguard their ritual.

Not because the fraternity possesses some mysterious knowledge that the rest of society is forbidden to understand.

Not because Masons secretly control governments, courts, churches, banks, or other institutions.

And certainly not because every criticism or conspiracy theory about Freemasonry must somehow be true simply because some of our ceremonies are private.

Secrecy is not evidence of conspiracy.

The existence of private ritual establishes that Freemasonry has private ritual.

It does not, by itself, establish anything beyond that.

If someone makes a claim about Freemasonry, that claim should be evaluated on its own evidence.

Historical claims should be examined against historical records.

Claims about Ohio Freemasonry should be compared with the laws, records, publications, and official statements of the Grand Lodge of Ohio.

Claims about individual Masons should be evaluated according to evidence concerning those individuals.

And accusations of misconduct should be judged by the evidence supporting them not simply by the fact that the accused organization has traditions that are not open to the public.

Freemasonry should not be immune from criticism.

But neither should it be judged by speculation in place of evidence.

There is another important distinction.

Masonic ritual has been published and reproduced outside the fraternity for generations. Books claiming to reveal Masonic ceremonies have existed for centuries, and today information claiming to describe Masonic ritual can be found online with a few clicks.

But the fact that someone has published something does not eliminate the obligation of the Mason who received it in confidence.

A Mason’s obligation isn’t based upon whether information could be discovered.

It is based upon what he agreed to preserve.

That is a distinction between public availability and personal obligation.

And ultimately, that is what matters.

Freemasonry isn’t about possessing secret information for the sake of possessing it.

The lessons are supposed to mean something.

The ritual is supposed to make a man think.

The symbols are supposed to make him examine himself.

The obligations are supposed to affect how he treats other people.

The principles are supposed to follow him outside the Lodge.

Because what good is a man who can perfectly recite a Masonic lesson but doesn’t live by it?

What good is knowing the symbolism if the symbolism never changes your conduct?

What good is calling yourself a Mason if the world outside the Lodge cannot see the difference in the way you live?

That is why the phrase “secret society” misses the point.

Freemasonry is not secret about its existence.

It is not secret about its charitable work.

It is not secret about its history.

It is not secret about its basic principles.

It simply maintains certain private traditions and ceremonies that are intended to be experienced by its members rather than publicly displayed.

Smithfield Lodge No. 182 has been part of that tradition since 1849.

For more than 175 years, men have entered that Lodge, participated in its traditions, learned its lessons, and eventually walked back out into the community.

And that last part is the one that matters most.

The ritual may be private.
The purpose is not.

The lessons learned inside the Lodge are meant to become visible outside of it in our character, our conduct, our charity, our integrity, our families, our communities, and in the way we treat our fellow man.

We don’t keep the lessons secret.
We carry them with us.

— Smithfield Lodge No. 182, F&AM
Smithfield, Ohio

10/03/2026

Join us for an evening of praise and worship!
The National Christian Choir is coming to Perry Hall Baptist Church this Sunday, October 4, at 6:00 PM.
Doors open at 5:00 PM, so come early to get a seat. Admission is free (an offering will be received). We hope to see a sanctuary full of familiar and new faces as we praise the Lord together!

10/03/2026

THE JOURNEY TOWARD LIGHT

A Freemason's journey from Entered Apprentice to Fellowcraft to Master Mason can be understood as something much greater than progression through three ceremonies.

It is a journey toward Light.

But Light in Freemasonry isn't simply something we receive.

It is something we must learn to live by.

Each Degree gives us more to contemplate, but it also asks more of us.

Greater responsibility.

Greater self-discipline.

Greater control over our passions.

Greater fidelity to our word.

And perhaps most importantly, a greater understanding that becoming a Mason and becoming the man Masonry challenges us to become are two very different things.

That's why the language of architecture works so beautifully.

A temple isn't built simply because someone possesses the plans.

Someone has to do the work.

The foundation must be sound.

The walls must be upright.

Every stone must be shaped.

Every measurement must be checked.

And every piece must eventually find its proper place within something larger than itself.

So it is with us.

We are simultaneously the craftsman and the stone.

Our thoughts are material.

Our words are material.

Our habits are material.

Our actions are material.

And every day we add something to the structure of the man we are becoming.

That's why the rough ashlar remains one of my favourite symbols in Freemasonry.

Look closely at rough stone.

It isn't worthless.

It isn't broken.

It's unfinished.

It contains possibilities that haven't yet been revealed.

But revealing them requires work.

Our rough edges may be ignorance.

Ego.

Anger.

Vanity.

Prejudice.

Impatience.

Fear.

Selfishness.

Or any of the countless imperfections human beings carry with us.

Freemasonry doesn't magically remove them.

Initiation doesn't finish the stone.

Neither does receiving your Master Mason Degree.

Neither does sitting in the East.

Neither does becoming a Past Master, Grand Lodge officer, or accumulating another string of letters after your name.

No title can substitute for character.

No ceremony can polish an ashlar while the craftsman refuses to pick up his tools.

The labour belongs to us.

And here's something every builder understands:

A small error ignored at the beginning can become a serious problem further up the wall.

Character works the same way.

A small dishonesty repeated becomes a habit.

An uncontrolled temper becomes a reputation.

An ego continually fed becomes arrogance.

A resentment continually entertained becomes bitterness.

So the wise craftsman regularly stops and examines his work.

Is it Square?

Is it Plumb?

Is it Level?

And when it isn't?

We don't throw away the stone.

We go back to work.

That's the part of Freemasonry I find incredibly hopeful.

The expectation was never perfection.

The expectation is labour.

Recognize the imperfection.

Apply the appropriate working tool.

Make the correction.

Learn.

Grow.

Then continue building.

That is why our progression through the Degrees should never be confused with our actual progress as Masons.

Degrees can be conferred in months.

Building character takes a lifetime.

Your progress isn't ultimately measured by the apron you wear, the chair you occupy or the title preceding your name.

It is measured in how you treat people.

Whether your word can be trusted.

Whether you govern your passions or allow them to govern you.

Whether you stand by your principles when doing so becomes inconvenient.

Whether the people closest to you can actually see evidence of the lessons you claim to value.

The Degrees show us the path.

The symbols provide the instruction.

The working tools give us a method.

Our Brothers walk beside us.

But nobody can swing the gavel against our rough edges except us.

The path toward Light is traced by symbols.

But it is travelled through labour.

Pick up your tools, Brother.

There's still work to do.

🔨📐

10/02/2026

Ordinary Men. Extraordinary Values.

Freemasonry brings together men from all walks of life who believe in something bigger than themselves. Men who value integrity, brotherhood, service and a commitment to doing what is right.

That is what it means to be a Freemason.

Ordinary men. Extraordinary values. Freemasons.

10/02/2026

Do you remember the night you first became a Mason?

You go through the preparation, the waiting, the anticipation, and the wondering.

And somehow, that waiting seems to move about as fast as a snail wearing peanut-butter sneakers while crawling through molasses.

Then suddenly, the night arrives.

You’re finally going to be made a Mason.

Everything begins moving. There are words, symbols, movements, lessons, and things you’re trying desperately to remember. You’re taking it all in as best you can, and before you know it, the degree is over.

And if you’re anything like most Brothers, you probably didn’t catch everything.

But that’s okay.

Because perhaps that is part of the lesson.

One of the reasons a Mason should attend degree work whenever possible is that we never truly experience a degree only once.

The first time, you experience the degree.

The next time, you begin to see the degree.

And the more you see it, the more you realize that Masonry has been giving you lessons that require time, reflection, and experience to understand.

There is probably one moment from that first night, however, that you do remember.

At a certain point, the Master of the Lodge tells you that you have been “brought to Light.”

Now, Brother, let me tell you something.

He wasn’t entirely honest with you.

Oh, he didn’t lie.

Not really.

But when you looked around…and no, this won’t spoil the details..you may have noticed something interesting.

You were shown a shadow.

You weren’t handed the Great Light in all its fullness.

You weren’t given every answer.

And honestly, you shouldn’t have been.

Why?

Because we aren’t ready for all of it at once.

As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3:2:

“I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it.”

Baby steps, Brother.

Baby steps.

And perhaps that is one of the great lessons hidden within the beginning of our Masonic journey.

Masonry is not a religion, nor is it intended to replace or conflict with a Mason’s personal faith. But Masonry can encourage a man to examine something he can never escape:

Himself.

At Smithfield Masonic Lodge No. 182, we are reminded through our symbols, allegories, working tools, and lessons that Masonry is not merely something we do inside the Lodge.

It is something we are challenged to live outside of it.

The Rough Ashlar is not merely a stone sitting upon a pedestal.

It can be a picture of you.

And every Mason who has ever entered the Lodge.

We arrive imperfect.

We carry our habits, our weaknesses, our contradictions, our fears, our pride, and the parts of ourselves we would rather not examine too closely.

Those parts can become our shadow.

And here’s where that Masonic Light becomes particularly interesting.

Because if there is a shadow, there must be Light.

A shadow does not exist independently.

It is evidence that something is standing between you and the Light.

Perhaps the purpose isn’t to destroy the shadow.

Perhaps the purpose is to understand what is creating it.

To turn toward it.

To examine it.

To learn from it.

And ultimately, to put the working tools of Masonry to work upon ourselves.

When a Brother reflects upon becoming a Mason, it becomes clear that he wasn’t being handed a finished answer to life’s questions.

He was being given the tools to begin asking better questions.

Who am I?

What kind of man am I?

What kind of man do I want to become?

Where are my rough edges?

What work still needs to be done?

And what can I do today to become a little better than I was yesterday?

That is the journey.

You were given direction.

You were given tools.

You were given Light.

But the work of discovering what that Light reveals belongs to you.

And that work doesn’t end when the degree ends.

In fact, that’s when it begins.

So if you ever find yourself feeling lost, confused, or uncertain about your Masonic journey, remember that first night.

Remember being told that you had been brought to Light.

And remember what you saw.

Maybe you weren’t being shown the destination.

Maybe you were being shown where to begin.

The shadow wasn’t proof that the Light was absent.

The shadow was proof that the Light was there.

So don’t be afraid of the shadow.

Study it.

Work upon it.

Learn from it.

Improve yourself.

And continue seeking the Light.

Because somewhere behind every shadow is the Light.

And perhaps one of the greatest lessons Masonry can teach us is that becoming a Mason isn’t something that happens only once.

You are made a Mason once.

But you spend the rest of your life becoming the Mason you were called to be.

May we continue to seek the Light, labor upon the Rough Ashlar, and use the working tools entrusted to us, not merely within the Lodge, but in every part of our lives.

10/02/2026

THE BADGE OF A MASON

Of all the things a Freemason may receive throughout his Masonic journey, few are as simple—or as meaningful—as his Apron.

It carries no monetary value worth mentioning.

It does not grant authority.

It does not make one Mason greater than another.

Yet we are taught to regard it as an emblem of innocence and purity, and as a reminder of the kind of life we have undertaken to pursue.

There is something beautifully appropriate about that.

The operative mason wore an apron for practical reasons. His work was physical. Stone produced dust and debris, and the apron helped protect the workman's clothing while he laboured.

Speculative Masonry took that ordinary garment of labour and transformed it into something symbolic.

The work remained—but the stone changed.

Our labour is upon ourselves.

The stains we are cautioned against are no longer simply dust from the quarry, but the imperfections of character that can accumulate through our choices and conduct.

Dishonesty.

Cruelty.

Arrogance.

Prejudice.

Greed.

Uncontrolled passions.

The temptation to place ourselves above others.

The Apron reminds us that becoming a Mason doesn't suddenly make a man pure.

It reminds him that purity of intention and conduct is something he must continually work toward.

And that's an important distinction.

We are not perfect men wearing white aprons.

We are imperfect men wearing something that reminds us of the standard we have chosen to pursue.

Every time we put it on, perhaps we should ask ourselves:

Am I living up to what this represents?

Not just inside Lodge.

At home.

At work.

In our communities.

In how we treat strangers.

In how we speak about people when they aren't in the room.

And especially in how we treat the men we call Brother.

There are fascinating historical parallels here as well. Aprons, ritual garments and symbolic vestments appear in numerous religious, initiatory and craft traditions throughout history. But we should be careful about claims that the Masonic Apron can be traced through an unbroken 3,000-year lineage to Mithraic mysteries or the Essenes. There is no solid historical evidence establishing that direct transmission.

We don't need to manufacture an ancient pedigree to make our symbolism profound.

The documented connection to the working mason is powerful enough.

A craftsman put on his apron because there was work to be done.

So does the Freemason.

Perhaps that's one of the simplest lessons our Apron gives us:

When you tie it around your waist, you're not displaying proof that the work is finished.

You're reminding yourself that the work continues.

The rough ashlar remains before us.

There are still imperfections to remove.

There is still character to build.

There is still Light to seek.

And hopefully, when our working tools are finally laid down, we can say that the man who removed his Apron was better than the man who first received it.

It isn't a decoration.

It's a reminder to get back to work.

🔨📐

09/30/2026

Did you know that in 1784, the United Grand Lodge of England issued a charter to African Lodge No. 459 in Boston, MA?

Having been rejected by Colonial Freemasonry, fifteen free Black men petitioned Lodge No. 441 of Ireland, which was attached to Britain’s 38th Regiment of Foot and met at Castle William (now Fort Independence) in Boston. Their petitions were accepted, and on March 6, 1775 they became the first Black men to be made Freemasons in America.

The regiment left Boston shortly after the war began, taking its Lodge with it. Sgt. John Batt, Master of No. 441, provided the men with a “permit” to meet for Masonic funerals and processions. The permit did not allow them to confer the Degrees, however, or make new Masons.

African Lodge No. 1 organized under this permit on July 3, 1776, and elected Prince Hall as its first Master. The Lodge’s legitimacy was quickly acknowledged by John Rowe, Provincial Grand Master for North America under England’s Premier Grand Lodge, who issued a permit similar to the one from Lodge No. 441 of Ireland.

African Lodge worked with Brotherly Love Lodge No. 55 in London to petition the Premier Grand Lodge for a formal Charter. The Charter was issued 240 years ago today, on September 29, 1784, and established African Lodge No. 459: the first Lodge of Black men in America.

African Lodge No. 459 prospered to such a degree that Prince Hall was appointed a Provincial Grand Master, and under this authority he chartered African Lodges in Philadelphia, PA and Providence, RI. From these seeds grew African Grand Lodge, which elected Prince Hall as its first Grand Master.

Prince Hall died in 1807, but his legacy lives on. In 1847 African Grand Lodge changed its name to Prince Hall Grand Lodge, which survives today as over 50 Prince Hall Grand Lodges in North America.

Amity is proud to serve our Brothers and Sisters in the family of Prince Hall Freemasonry, and today we honor the legacy of Prince Hall and African Lodge.

09/30/2026

Masonic Reflections: LIGHT

Among the oldest and most enduring symbols in Freemasonry is light. The candidate's first request is for light, reflecting a tradition that understands enlightenment not as the acquisition of secret knowledge, but as the lifelong pursuit of truth, wisdom, and moral understanding. The phrase often attributed to the poet and Freemason Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, "More light," has long served as a fitting expression of that aspiration, whether or not it is taken as his literal final statement.

Within the Masonic Lodge, light is woven into every aspect of the ritual. The Worshipful Master presides in the East, recalling the rising sun that brings a new day, while the open Volume of Sacred Law reminds us that moral truth is to guide our thoughts and actions. These symbols point beyond themselves, teaching that the purpose of Masonic instruction is to help men move from ignorance toward understanding and from confusion toward a life shaped by conscience and integrity.

Freemasonry therefore speaks of "bringing men to light" as a moral journey rather than a destination. The Craft encourages its members to cultivate clear judgment, humility, and compassion, recognizing that many of humanity's greatest failures arise not only from malice, but from prejudice, misunderstanding, and the inability to see clearly. True light is found in the continual effort to better understand ourselves, our duties, and our fellow human beings.

The search for more light is never complete. Each new insight carries with it the responsibility to live more wisely, to act more justly, and to let truth illuminate both character and conduct.

Source: More Light, Short Talk Bulletin (Vol. V, No. 4, April 1927), Masonic Service Association.

09/29/2026

Today is the anniversary of the Battle of New Market Heights, where courageous soldiers of USCT regiments of the Union’s Army of the James displayed extraordinary valor. St. John’s was honored to have the BNMHMEA present on the battle and its heroes earlier this year.

162 years ago, the Battle of New Market Heights was fought just southeast of Richmond, Virginia. There the 3rd Division (composed of United States Colored Troops) in the XVIII, Corps of the Army of the James, attacked the earthen fortifications defended by the Texas Brigade. The 3rd Division brigades of Stephen Duncan and Alonzo Draper received the brunt of the horrific casualties in the desperate fighting that resulted. Valor was on full display in both the actions of the African American NCOs and enlisted men, and their white officers.

Eventually 14 Black soldiers received the Medal of Honor for their heroism at New Market Heights, along with two white officers

Three of those 16 Medal of Honor recipients--Lt. Nathan Edgerton, Sgt. Maj. Thomas Hawkins (with regimental flag), and Sgt. Alexander Kelly (with national colors) of the 6th United States Colored Infantry-- are shown in the dramatic painting by artist Don Troiani.

09/29/2026

MASONIC MONDAY:
Try To Be Better Each Day!!!