Thunderbird Lodge No. 15 Free and Accepted Masons
Temple
Talk
552 North 40th Street
Phoenix, AZ 85008-6441
Vol. 17, No. 3 www.thunderbird15.org MAY
– JUNE 2010
NOTICE
As
in most previous years, Grand Communication will be held during the first week
of June, from June 3 - 5, and our officers will be at Grand Lodge and unable to
conduct a Stated Meeting. Therefore this serves as official notice that the
Stated Meeting for June will be held on the second Thursday of June, which is
June 10 at 7:00 PM.
From The South:
Hello Brethren,
We had a great time last movie night. The movie was
excellent and the sound and video superb. The Pop corn was great and our
refreshments satisfactory. But more than anything, the brotherly love among our
brothers and family members that were able to attend. Our quest to make our
lodge a great place to improve in masonry keeps getting better. Some brothers
might say it is a small process and some might see already great improvements.
The important thing is that we are trying and preparing ourselves to make our
purpose a better reality. Even though
that we are having great distress with our Worshipful master’s health situation
and our loss of our senior warden very soon, I strongly believe that we will be
able to keep our lodge in the right direction. I encourage you to bring ideas
for the next stated meeting, which I am confident it will be a very special meeting
where I hope we will have an open forum discussion regarding our own lodge and
possible ideas that might help us improve us. There is a lot of work to be done
in our lodge so any help on your part would be a great help.
See you there!
Gustavo Rodriguez
Junior Warden
From the West:
Brothers,
It is with Great sadness that I write this
letter to you all. As most of you know, I am moving back east to help my family
with my father in his time of need. I want to say that I joined an organization
with curiosity and nervousness, that organization took me in and made me truly
feel like a brother. Thunderbird lodge #15 has been a second home to me and the
people I have met in my time there have been of the best that I have ever had
the privilege of knowing! I thank you all for you experience, your
knowledge, your teachings, your humor and your help in all ways. Without the
love of the lodge and the brothers that make up that lodge I would not have
been able to see my father after his stroke! Nor would going back to live with
him now be as easy. Thank you all!!!!! I will miss you while I am gone and will
communicate through email as often as I can. As my last article, I will finish
with the last ten Landmarks of Freemasonry.
I hope to see you all again...
P.S. Thunderbird lodge is a good lodge! Please continue to show your support to
the lodge in person as well as in deed.
Landmarks 16 - 25
16. No Lodge can
interfere in the business of another Lodge, nor give degrees to brethren who
are members of other Lodges
17. Every freemason is Amenable to the
Laws and Regulations of the Masonic jurisdiction in which he resides.
18. Qualifications of a candidate: that he
shall be a man, un-mutilated, free born, and of mature age.
19. A belief in the existence of God.
20. Subsidiary to this belief in God is
the belief in a resurrection to a future life.
21. A "Book of the Law" shall
constitute an indispensable part of the furniture of every Lodge.
22. THE EQUALITY OF ALL MASONS.
23. The secrecy of the institution.
24. The foundation of a Speculative
Science, for purposes of religious or moral teaching.
25. These Landmarks can never be changed.
LANDMARK SIXTEENTH: No Lodge can
interfere in the business of another Lodge, nor give degrees to brethren who
are members of other Lodges. This is undoubtedly an ancient Landmark, founded
on the great principles of courtesy and fraternal kindness, which are at the
very foundation of our institution. It has been repeatedly recognized by
subsequent statutory enactments of all Grand Lodges.
LANDMARK SEVENTEENTH: It is a Landmark
that every freemason is Amenable to the Laws and Regulations of the Masonic
jurisdiction in which he resides, and this although he may not be a member of
any Lodge. Non-affiliation, which is, in fact in itself a Masonic offense, does
not exempt a Mason from Masonic Jurisdiction.
LANDMARK EIGHTEENTH: Certain
qualifications of candidates for initiation are derived from a Landmark of the
Order. These qualifications are that he shall be a man, shall be un-mutilated,
free born, and of mature age. That is to say, a woman, a cripple, or a slave,
or one born in slavery, is disqualified for initiation into the rites of
Masonry. Statutes, it is true, have from time to time been enacted, enforcing
or explaining these principles; but the qualifications really arise from the
very nature of the Masonic institution, and from its symbolic teachings, and have
always existed as landmarks.
LANDMARK NINETEENTH: A belief in the
existence of God as the GRAND ARCHITECT of the Universe is one of the most
important Landmarks of the Order. It has been always deemed essential that a
denial of the existence of a Supreme and Superintending Power is an absolute
disqualification for initiation. The annals of the Order never yet have
furnished or could furnish an instance in which an avowed atheist was ever made
a Mason. The very initiatory ceremonies of the first degree forbid and prevent
the possibility of so monstrous an occurrence.
LANDMARK TWENTIETH: Subsidiary to this
belief in God, as a Landmark of the Order, is the belief in a resurrection to a
future life. This Landmark is not as positively impressed on the candidate by
exact words as the preceding; but the doctrine is taught by very plain
implication, and runs through the whole symbolism of the Order. To believe in
Masonry, and not to believe in a resurrection, would be an absurd anomaly,
which could only be excused by the reflection, that he who thus confounded his
belief and his skepticism, was so ignorant of the meaning of both theories as
to have no rational foundation for his knowledge of either.
LANDMARK TWENTY-FIRST: It is a Landmark,
that a "Book of the Law" shall constitute an indispensable part of
the furniture of every Lodge. I say advisedly, a Book of the Law, because it is
not absolutely required that everywhere the Old and New Testaments shall be
used. The "Book of the Law" is that volume which, by the religion of
the country, is believed to contain the revealed will of the Grand Architect of
the universe. Hence, in all Lodges in Christian countries, the Book of the Law
is composed of the Old and New Testaments; in a country where Judaism was the
prevailing faith, the Old Testament alone would be sufficient; and in
Mohammedan countries, and among Mohammedan Masons the Koran might be
substituted. Masonry does not attempt to interfere with the peculiar religious
faith of its disciples, except so far as relates to the belief in the existence
of God, and what necessarily results from that belief. The |"|Book of the
Law|"| is to the speculative Mason his spiritual Trestle-board; without
this he cannot labor; whatever he believes to be the revealed will of the Grand
Architect constitutes for him this spiritual Trestle|-|board, and must ever be
before him in his hours of speculative labor, to be the rule and guide of his
conduct The Landmark, therefore, requires that a |"|Book of the
Law,|"| a religious code of some kind, purporting to be an exemplar of the
revealed will of God, shall form in essential part of the furniture of every
Lodge.
LANDMARK TWENTY-SECOND: THE EQUALITY OF
ALL MASONS is another Landmark of the Order. This equality has no reference to
any subversion of those gradations of rank which have been instituted by the
usages of society. The monarch, the nobleman or the gentleman is entitled to
all the influence, and receives all the respect which rightly belongs to his
exalted position. But the doctrine of Masonic equality implies that, as
children of one great Father, we meet in the Lodge upon the level-that on that
level we are all traveling to one predestined goal, that in the Lodge genuine
merit shall receive more respect than boundless wealth, and that virtue and
knowledge alone should be the basis of all Masonic honors, and be rewarded with
preferment. When the labors of the Lodge are over, and the brethren have
retired from their peaceful retreat, to mingle once more with the world, each
will then again resume that social position, and exercise the privileges of
that rank, to which the customs of society entitle him.
LANDMARK TWENTY-THIRD: The secrecy of
the institution is another and a most important Landmark. [There is some
difficulty in precisely defining what is meant by a "secret society,"
If the term refers, as perhaps in strictly logical language it should, to those
associations whose designs are concealed from the public eye, and whose members
are unknowing which produce their results in darkness, and whose operations are
carefully hidden from the public gaze - a definition which will be appropriate
to many political clubs and revolutionary combinations in despotic countries,
where reform, if it is at all to be effected, must be effected by stealth -
then clearly Freemasonry is not a secret society. Its design is not only
publicly proclaimed. But is vaunted by its disciples as something to be
venerated; its disciples are known, for its membership is considered an honor
to be coveted; it works for a result of which it boasts, the civilization, and
reformation of his manners. But if by a Secret society is meant, and this is
the most popular understanding of the term, a society in which there is a
certain amount of knowledge, whether it be of methods of recognition, or of
legendary and traditional learning, which is imported to those only who have
passed through an established form of initiation, the form itself being also
concealed or esoteric, then in this sense is Freemasonry undoubtedly a secret
society. Now this form of secrecy is a form inherent in it, existing with it
from its very foundation, and secured to it by its ancient Landmarks.] |The
form of secrecy is a form inherent in it, existing with it from its very
foundation, and secured to it by its ancient landmarks.| If divested of its
secret character, it would lose its identity, and would cease to be
Freemasonry. Whatever objections may, therefore, be made to the institution, on
account of its secrecy, and however much some unskillful brethren have been
willing in times of trial, for the sake of expediency, to divest it of its
secret character, it will be ever impossible to do so, even were the Landmark
not standing before us as an insurmountable obstacle; because such change of
its character would be social suicide, and the death of the Order would follow
its legalized exposure. Freemasonry, as a secret association, has lived
unchanged for centuries an open society it would not last for as many years.
LANDMARK TWENTY-FOURTH: The foundation of a Speculative Science upon an
Operative Art, and the symbolic use and explanation of the terms of that art,
for purposes of religious or moral teaching, constitutes another Landmark of
the Order. The Temple of Solomon was the [symbolic] cradle of the institution,
and, therefore, the reference to the operative Masonry, which constructed that
magnificent edifice, to the materials and implements which were employed in its
construction, and to the artists who were engaged in the building, are all
component and essential parts of the body of Freemasonry, which could not be
subtracted from it without an entire destruction of the whole identity of the
Order. Hence, all the comparatively modern rites of Masonry, however they may
differ in other respects, religiously preserve this temple history and these
operative elements, as the substratum of all their modifications of the Masonic
system.
LANDMARK TWENTY-FIFTH: The last and
crowning Landmark of all is that these Landmarks can never be changed. Nothing
can be subtracted from them-nothing can be added to them-not the slightest
modification can be made in them. As they were received from our predecessors,
we are bound by the most solemn obligations of duty to transmit them to our
successors. Not one jot or one tittle of these unwritten laws can be repealed;
for in respect to them, we are not only willing but compelled to adopt the
language of the sturdy old barons of England - "Nolumus leges
mutari."
Fraternally,
Jon Logan, Senior Warden
GOLDEN SCROLL
We are saddened to report to our Brethren the death of
Robert Bell PM on April 9. Bob succumbed to heart and respiratory problems and
passed on to the Heavenly Lodge, where he will join his wife, son and a
daughter who preceded him. Bob was Master of Tempe 15 in 1978 and 1988 and long
time Treasurer of Thunderbird #15. He had also served as Deputy District Grand
Lecturer and Treasurer of Hiram Daylight Lodge #73 and as lodge ritualist for
Thunderbird, Hiram Daylight and Camelback Daylight #75. He was also a Shriner
with El Zaribah Shrine, where he was a member of the Past Master’s Club. Bob
will be missed by Thunderbird Lodge #15 and the other lodges he was a member of
as well as Freemasonry in general. But he will forever reside in the hearts of
all those who knew him.
From the Secretary:
With the passing of our Treasurer, I
will be temporarily acting as Treasurer until a new Treasurer is selected.
Meanwhile, I will be glad to answer any questions or concerns the brothers have
about Lodge business or finances. We still have some Brothers who have not paid
their 2010 dues, and second dues notices were sent out at the end of March. If
you have any questions about dues payments, please feel free to contact me.
Also, the Scottish Rite will be
having the first three degrees of the Scottish Rite performed at El Zaribah
Shrine Auditorium on May 12-13. A degree team from Louisiana will be performing
the degrees as part of the Scottish Rite Reunion and it is open to any Master
Mason. Our lodge will be setting up the lodge with our furniture. There is a
modest registration fee, which includes dinner (and it will not be
rubber chicken!). Contact myself or our web maestro, Michael Gattorna for more
details. This should not be missed!
James Drake PM, Secretary
RIGHT OR WRONG, A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE
One of the most important duties that a Mason has is
to cast his vote on matters coming before his lodge. It his by this vote that a
Brother can help establish the direction that his lodge will take in years to
come. Although some matters are more important than others it is always
important for Brothers to make their wishes known on every matter that comes
before their lodge.
I can recall a number of years ago I was visiting a
lodge when I overheard a Brother talking to several of his Lodge Brothers about
an issue of importance that was to come before the lodge at their next Stated
Meeting. I did not hear everything that was said but I did hear the Brother
saying that it was important to get on the phone and start calling Brothers who
would “vote the right way” and get them to come to the Stated Meeting. This
statement seemed to imply that he did not want Brothers who would “vote the
wrong way” to be informed of the impending vote.
This experience started me thinking about the way we
look at things. On most issues that come before our lodges there is no right or
wrong way to do things, there are only differing points of view on the same
subject. Just because I am convinced that there is only one course of action
that should be pursued on a given matter certainly does not mean that I am
right and it certainly does not mean that those who may choose to disagree with
me are wrong. It only means that different people may draw different
conclusions when presented with the same information.
At the 2001 Conference of Grand Secretaries in North
America, R\W\ Brother Michael W. Walker B. Sc. H.D.E., Grand
Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Ireland put it very well when he said “…we may
both be looking at the Statue of Liberty, though one from the front and the
other from the back.-both see the same thing but from diametrically opposite
perspectives.”
The Brother who wanted to notify only those who would
“vote the right way” was forgetting the fact that each Brother’s opinion is as
valid as his own. His goal should have been to notify as many members as
possible of the impending vote regardless of their point of view. This is how
Brothers should treat each other. We should all endeavor to treat our Brothers
like we would like for them to treat us. This is the Masonic way.
George
H. Stablein, Sr. PM
RESULTS OF SPECIAL ELECTION
A special election for Senior Warden
was held on April 1, and Gustavo Rodriguez was elected as Senior Warden, to
replace Jon Logan after his resignation. With the vacancy of his Junior Warden
position, an election was also held for Junior Warden and Jay David was elected
to that position. Congratulations to Gus and J.D.! Gus and J.D. will have to be
proficient for both their positions by June 1, and will need some help and
support to do this, as well as to execute their two offices after they are
installed.
Masonic Birthdays for: May and June
Steve
Ban 5/6/2000 Fred
Battles 5/28/1964
William Beatty PM 5/17/1995 Ralph
Bojorquez PM 6/10/1971
Randolph Boles 5/11/1983 Jerry Buckner Sr. 5/29/1986
Aaron Chamney 6/17/2004 John Cooper 6/25/1981
Joe Cortez PM 6/19/1968 Eric Devine 5/24/1995
Keith Ehrhardt Sr. 5/6/2000 Richard
Evans 6/18/1968
Michael Gattorna 5/18/2006 Joseph Goldstein 5/27/06
Vidal Gomez III 5/24/1994 Page Greer 5/9/1968
William Gulliver 6/17/1970 James Haak 6/10/1964
Richard Haynes PM 5/23/1984 Allen
Hensley 6/25/1981
Stephen Kooistra 6/18/2005 John LiBrandi 5/27/2006
Derek Longstaff 5/17/2003 Donald Lough 5/20/1971
Bill Lowe 5/28/1980 Dean Lufkin 5/24/1958
Alfred Lutzi 6/27/1967 Gene McFarland 5/31/1969
John McNichols 5/27/2006 Thomas McReynolds 6/11/1954
Mark Mitchell 6/27/1981 Walter Murray 6/12/1980
James Pomush PM 6/18/1991 Melvin Rearick 6/25/1975
Phiroz Rivetna 6/28/1979 Bruce Sparks 5/10/1980
Wallace Sweat 6/16/1980 Joel Turner 5/6/2000
Monny Weatherly, Jr. 6/28/1956
Calendar:
May 6: Stated Meeting, 7:00 PM, dinner in Red Fez at 6:00. Dinner is on the Lodge.
May 12 – 15: Scottish Rite Reunion, Scottsdale and
El Zaribah Shrine.
May 20: Dinner and a Movie, Angels and Demons, 7:00 PM, dinner in Red Fez at 6:00.
June 4-6: 128th Grand Communication,
Tucson. Registration forms are in Arizona
Masonry or from the Secretary.
June 10: Stated Meeting, 7:00 PM, dinner in Red Fez at 6:00. Dinner is on the Lodge.
June 24: Dinner and a Movie, 7:00 PM.
July 1: Stated Meeting, 7:00 PM, dinner in Red Fez at 6:00. Dinner is on the Lodge.
For more information on any of these events, please
feel free to contact the Secretary. Information and flyers are also available
in the lodge room. Or check out the web site.
Temple Talk is published by Thunderbird
Lodge No. 15, F.&A.M.
Submit
information for the next publication by the 15th of each month to:
Jim Drake, Editor
552
N. 40th Street, Phoenix, AZ 85008-6441
Or
by E-Mail to: jandvdrake@aol.com
Direct questions or comments to me at 480-756-1105
Contact List
Master: Jeff Grayson, C 520-979-7003 jdg323@msn.com
Secretary: Jim Drake, H
480-756-1105, C 480-495-2108 jandvdrake@aol.com
El Zaribah Shrine
Center: 602-231-0300
Website: www.thunderbird15.org
Thunderbird
Lodge No. 15, F.&A.M.
W.M. * Jeff Grayson PM Trustee 2010 Reza Farrokh PM
S.W. * Vacant Trustee 2011
VW George Stablein PM
J.W. * Gustavo Rodriguez Trustee 2012 Don Wilcox
Treasurer $ Vacant
Trustee 2013 Jay David
Secretary # Jim Drake PM
Chaplain Don Wilcox * Also Trustees Ex-Officio
Marshal Jay David $ Also Treasurer of Trustees
S.D. Vacant #
Also Secretary of Trustees
J.D. Michael Gattorna
S.S. Vacant
J.S. Bryan Campbell
Tyler Clint Molodow
Thunderbird Lodge No. 15 F&AM
552 North 40th Street
Phoenix, AZ 85008-6441