The FELLOWCRAFT
AN ADDRESS TO NEW MASONS, LOOKING AT THE THREE CRAFT DEGREES
by
Raymond Hollins
Published in MQ MAGAZINE - OCTOBER 2005
When the
‘Operative Mason’ came to the end of his Apprenticeship, and his record was good
and had proved his proficiency under test, he was formally released from his
bond and became known as ‘A Fellow of the Craft’. The term that Freemasons, as
‘Speculative Masons’ use of ‘Fellowcraft’ is actually a shortening of the
expression, and a Freemason is termed a Fellowcraft after having passed to the
Second Degree.
During the
ceremony the Fellowcraft assumes its Obligations and is subsequently registered
in the records of the Lodge as such, and can now sit in either a Lodge of
Entered Apprentices or a Fellowcraft Lodge.
Because the
Fellowcraft lies between the Entered Apprentice and the Master Mason Degree, he
must not fall into the error of considering it a halfway station, a mere
transition from one to the other. On the contrary, it has the same
completeness, the same importance and definite purpose as each of the others.
Unless the Fellowcraft clearly understand its teachings, he will not obtain a
full understand of the secrets and mysteries of the Craft.
The Entered
Apprentice represents youth standing at the portals of life, his eyes fixed on
the rising sun. The Master Mason is a man of years, already on the further
slope of the hill with the setting sun in his eyes. But the Fellowcraft is a
man in the prime of his life – experienced, strong and resourceful, able to bear
the heat and burden of the day.
The Degree is
the opportunity for the Fellowcraft to equip himself so that he may prove to be
adequate for the tasks of adulthood, which life will lie before him. The
ceremony gives him at least three answers. The first is that the Fellowcraft
must gain experience from contact with the realities of life that surrounds his
existence.
A man gains such
experience only with the passage of time. Each day he comes into contact with
facts, year after year, until at last, through his senses of seeing, hearing and
touching he comes to understand the world around him, and how to deal with it.
The second
answer is education. This is symbolised in the Second Degree by the liberal
arts and sciences. Perhaps during the ceremony the Fellowcraft is surprised to
hear what is said about grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, music
and astronomy and wonders what such schoolroom topics have to do with
Freemasonry.
The explanation
of these subjects, like so much in our Order, is that they are actually symbols
signifying all that is meant by the word ‘education’. It is our training by
others in skill and knowledge, to do or to understand the world about us.
The third answer
is wisdom. Experience gives us awareness of the world at points of immediate
contact; knowledge gives us competency for tasks in the arts, professions and
all callings and vocations. However, a man’s life is not confined to his own
immediate experiences, which is so conspicuous in passing through the Second
Degree. Throughout, the ceremony is a symbol of wisdom. By the experience of
his various senses, combined with the knowledge gained of the liberal arts and
sciences, the candidate is called to advance up the winding staircase to a
position that is the balanced wisdom of life in which the senses, emotions,
intellect, character, habits and soul of a man knit together in a balanced
unity.
Such are the
secrets and mysteries of the Degree of a Fellowcraft that a man discovers that
he need not shirk from his toil, nor faint from the heat and burden of the day,
because he has learned that his competency as a human being will be equal to the
demands made upon him.
The striking and
important allegories peculiar to this Degree lead the Fellowcraft to act the
part of a man approaching King Solomon’s Temple. He is led into the outer
precincts, passing between the two pillars. He climbs the winding staircase and
at last enters the Middle Chamber, the place where our ancient brethren received
their wages. It is here that the Fellowcraft’s attention is drawn to making the
liberal arts and sciences his future study. It will soon become clear to the
Fellowcraft that the underlying lesson to be learnt is the development of
maturity and manhood through the acquisition of knowledge and constructive
work. This is why the scientific facts and the theories of art that are so
beautifully contained in the explanation of the Second Tracing Board, but more
importantly, in the various sections of the Second (or Middle Chamber) Lecture
that should become the vital source of his future study.
Ignorance is one
of the greatest evils to mankind, enlightenment is one of the greatest goods.
It is this reverence for knowledge and its moral teachings and usefulness which
are the real secrets and mysteries of the Second Degree. The ritual stresses
the need for studying and for learning throughout the period of manhood. It
illuminates the idea that you must search for knowledge about the liberalising
ideas of morality and brotherly love.
A brother thus
far in his journey through the Craft of ‘Speculative Freemasonry’ has reached
the stage when, if he does pursue his studies, he can truly become a Master
engaged in building “a house not made by earthly hands”. He will then have
learnt and understood the meaning of achieving a universal tolerance and
understanding of the world around him. Such is the meaning of the symbolic
entrance into King Solomon’s Temple as a candidate for the Second Degree. As
knowledge and understanding grows of this remarkable Degree, the whole becomes a
living power by which to shape and build our lives, not only in the Lodge room,
but also into the world of human experience of which the Lodge room itself is a
symbol.
The first duty
of a Fellowcraft is to live according to the Obligations of the Degree, to be
obedient to the Master, his Wardens and the officers of the Lodge, and to learn
to observe the rules, regulations and laws of the Fraternity.
The ideals and
the teachings of the Second Degree, as with the other degrees of the Craft,
continue always to be binding. If a Mason is to understand and to possess
Freemasonry in its entirety, it is necessary for him to have a full grasp of
Fellowcraft Masonry, and to begin in earnest to make a daily advancement in
Masonic knowledge.
Running through
all degrees in Freemasonry are the privileges of fellowship, goodwill, kindness,
brotherly love, benevolence and charity that we all try continuously to
cultivate and develop in our own character. The method of teaching in
Freemasonry is unlike that of schools, colleges and universities. Instead of
employing teaching staff and textbooks, our lessons take the form of ritual,
expounding its teaching in words and actions, almost like a play.
Our stories are
full of symbolism and what we call allegories – these are stories or fables in
which the characters are in fact symbolic. This is not as easy to follow as
‘the school room method’, but it has a unique advantage.
It makes a
Brother study and learn for himself, forcing him to search out the truth, even
compelling him to take the initiative, as a grown man should, so that the very
act of learning becomes of educational value.
The purpose of
secrecy is not to keep the candidate in the dark, but to stimulate him to seek
the light. The symbols and emblems of our Order do not conceal the teachings –
they reveal them – but in such a manner that a man finds truth for himself. It
is only when this happens to the individual that such findings will remain with
him as a cherished permanent possession.
A Fellowcraft
should ask his Proposer, Seconder or Lodge Mentor to provide him with a copy of
the Second Degree ritual, including the Tracing Board – he should not have to
wait until after taking the Third Degree.
The Fellowcraft
may find that the former explains very little, and the later only adds to his
confusion – take it slowly, try to understand, and do not be afraid to ask
questions. It will not be until the Fellowcraft has extended his personal
research to read and understand the Second Degree Lecture – often called the
Middle Chamber Lecture (it runs to 40 pages) that he will be able to fully
comprehend the secrets and mysteries of the Second Degree.
From what appears to
be at first view but a ‘stepping stone’ from the First to the Third Degree, will
surely become a spectacular learning experience.
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