Muddled Meanderings of a Master Mason

The Rites

Rites are generally defined as being a specific way of doing something within a certain set of rules or parameters. A common example is Baptism within a church where by certain words and actions are insisted upon in naming and accepting a new member to the churches membership. The Masonic Lodge is no different other then the fact there are two Rites that are considered legitimate, the York Rite and the Scottish Rite.

For the most part the first three degrees in the United States are from the York Rite though it is not stated as such during the initiation process. It is felt that there are only three degrees and the Royal Arch degree. The Royal Arch is not given at the Third degree but rather later in both of the rites. 

The first three degrees relate to the ages of man and how they mature,for the most part. We don't see it as we go through the scenarios but it is there. In the Apprentice degree we see ourselves as the new man on the job and have never worked at this type of labor before, similar to that of the young person as they are growing up and learning about the world around them. As we grow into our job we start to remember what is right and what defines good and evil or even correct ways of acting in life. 

In the Fellow Craft degree we have now reached a level of maturity that allows us to work more independently of others while still realizing that we may need assistance at some point in our work or even our life long journey. There is always something to learn from the master/elder above us as we are also teaching the apprentice his new trade. Yes, living is a trade of sorts, we learn from others how best to live, love and learn.

In the Master Mason degree, the member is the one who has learned his art and is working on his perfection while making himself available to teach others and watch over them as needed. He knows his craft and is preparing the way for the others to follow his examples as laid out on the trestleboard . (A trestleboard is where the work is listed and how it needs to be done. Think in the terms of a builder and blue prints.)

After this point a member decides as to if he is going to go onto the higher degrees and as to if he is going to be going into the York Rite, Scottish Rite. One needs to realize that the blue lodge is Old Testament and its lessons come from just a few parts of that section of those books. 

The York Rite is the continuation of the Blue Lodge with an additional seven (7) degrees based on more texts of the Old Testament culminating with three Orders of Knighthood the last being that of a Masonic Knight Templar. The Royal Arch is found in the first four degrees following the Masters degree. To add some confusion to this thought line, there are additional degrees that one can obtain either by application, invitation, or by earning the right to be advanced. In addition to these seven degrees is the three investitures of knighthood, which is of Christian origin with the top being a Knight Templar.

The Scottish Rite consists of the 4th through 33rd degrees of which most only receive the 32nd at the top end. Between the 32nd and 33rd is the investment of the Knight Commander Court of Honor (KCCH) which is given for service to community or the fraternity. The 33rd is a conferred degree that may be given out after the KCCH for similar reasons with the title Sovereign Grand Inspector General (Honorary). The highest honor is the Grande Cross of Honor which follows the 33rd degree. All of these degrees are broken down into four/five (depends on jurisdiction) subdivisions, not for easier management but for what moral or ethical values are being emphasized within each area.

I have had it explained to me that one could liken the Blue Lodge to elementary school, the York Rite to that of high school, and the Scottish Rite as being the university level. It could easily be seen as such as to what is taught or rather what is expected in each organization.

Let me throw some confusion into this for a bit as it is relevant in a weird sense. The York Rite follows the following political arena, Tudor/Hanover/Windsor family line. The Scottish Rite is more associated with that of the House of Stuart. With the advent of the house of Stuart being forced out of the UK into France, so to did Freemasonry follow it. So, while the Scottish Rite came a circuitous route to the United States, the degrees were developed in France, went into the Caribbean and then into South Carolina. 

To add a bit more confusion to this, Freemasonry came to the United States by the British Army and Navy using two different versions, the Moderns and the Ancients. We see this today in how a Grand Lodge is titled as being either Ancient Free and Accepted Mason or Free and Accepted Mason. It wasn't until 1717 that they combined into UGLE and a common thread of work was published. Prince Hall Freemasonry (African-American) came by its very origins from this time in history by the British Army  lodges that were in the area. 

The United Grand Lodge Of England recognizes sovereign grand lodges around the world and verifies authenticity of their bonifides. Usually a Grand Lodge is now formed by a splitting of an existing Grand Lodge into two or more. A couple of examples is when the Washington Grand Lodge split allowing Alaska to form their own Grand Lodge. Similarly, California Grand Lodge split so that Hawaii could form their own Grand Lodge.

For the longest time, US Grand Lodges would not allow communication with Prince Hall Grand Lodges as they were considered "not regular and clandestine". This was because of a misunderstanding that had taken place during the birth of the United States. They had sent in their Per Capita tax to GLE (Grand Lodge of England before the consolidation) but apparently the boat sank on its way to England. They didn't receive the monies so they were not technically in good standing with GLE. The Prince Hall GL's have one interesting piece of paper in a bank vault, it  is the original Charter  that was granted to them by the GLE. All lodges that formed grand lodges in the United States gave theirs up as they were formed. 

The Scottish Rite in general tries to assist the member in his understanding of the world around us as related to government, religion, ethics and morality as well as being a good man made into a better one. It does not get into the debate of who should be the next leader of a country but rather what one should look for in picking a good leader who is going to do his or her best for the position they are seeking. 

It looks at the various religions and shows us the commonality of them all in the very basic of their tenets. That the same ten rules that are seen in the Bible of Christianity, Judaism and Islam can be seen in all the other religions of the world around us. Which even then can be brought down to two rules of life: Love your God and yourself. Love your neighbors and all those about you.

It asks the member to be humble in his dealings with those around him, to aid and assist where needed, to bring fairness and evenhandedness to his business affairs.

How the two Rites deliver their degrees to the candidate is different. Within the York Rite it is done individually  much as in the Blue Lodge program. There is one that is supposed to have three initiates during the process but will utilize stand in members to assist in the degree work.

Scottish Rite is theater or classroom theater to be more exact. While the Scottish Rite does have its own first three degrees, they recognize the first three of York Rite so as to expedite the process.  One member of the initiatory class is picked to represent the class in the degree work. Each degree would utilize a different class member. After each degree, a test is given to see if the new initiates understood what they witnessed before they move onto the next scenario. Also, one would think that with the additional 29 degrees it would take a lot of time to confer them. In most Scottish Rite Valleys, there is a limited number of members to provide the actors, so in many cases only the five most important degrees are presented (4th, 14th, 18th, 30th and 32nd). When a different Valley is offering a different degree other than those five, visitation is allowed to be able to get the degree as it is given.

What this all comes down to is how you want to learn more about yourself. By use of symbolism we learn to associate the traits that we desire in ourselves. The difference being that one is shorter and intense as it is one-on-one versus a classroom type presentation. You also have the difference in what is presented. York Rite is primarily Judeo-Christian versus Scottish Rites inclusivity of all religions and philosophy.

Ironically there is no requirement to make a decision to go to either rite. It is voluntary. Many Masons never leave the Blue Lodge and are perfectly happy to be there. They can't see having the extra expense. On the other hand, until the early 2000's, if you wanted to become a Shriner you had to go through one or the other rite to get to that group. You also had to keep up your membership in Blue Lodge, York or Scottish Rites in order to be in good standing with the Grand Lodge of your State.