Greetings, Brethren.  I hope you all experienced a good February and are prepared for March.  Remember, beware the Ides!

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As I prepared for our first degree ceremony of the year, I often contemplated the purpose of the seemingly vast amounts of memorization work we undergo as Freemasons.  Although I have felt a positive influence in my life from this endeavor, I frequently found myself considering the meaning behind why we attempt to remember so much of the ritual “by heart.”

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A good friend and Brother summed up the purpose of our memorization in excellent terms.  Speaking of the importance of study to Freemasons, he said, “This is the work WE do.”  He alluded to the fact that Free and Accepted Masons no longer build cathedrals and castles with our hands; we build and shape our hearts and minds to fit in the “building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” (2 Corinthians 5:1).  The memorization work we do is the method by which we internalize the principles and virtues of Freemasonry, and this is how we change ourselves into “living stones, fit for the Builder's use.”

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In his paper, “Three Uses of Memorization in Freemasonry,” Worshipful Brother J. Scott Kenney explains further reasons for our memorization work.  He states, “…the active memorization…has a progressive impact upon who and what we are…What I am suggesting is that we do not only memorize material, we gradually internalize it from the outside in – and in so doing gradually act to change who and what we are in a more moral direction.”

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I have definitely seen this change within my own life.  The memorization work often seems daunting to me; when I begin, I often feel I will never be able to accomplish it.  It appears too large a task for my miniscule brain, but I begin in faith, realizing that many, many others have accomplished this task.  I use their example as motivation (Master’s trestle board).  I set out time to study, often while I lay in bed at the end of the day, when the world is quiet and I can be alone with my thoughts (gather tools and materials).  I start slowly, establishing a foothold on the basics (foundation).  The work progresses slowly at first as I make mistakes and have to start over, but then an awakening occurs…I find that word by word (stone by stone) my mind (temple) begins to grow (build).  I remember more and more day by day.  As long as I continue to work, the ritual forms in my mind and I am amazed at how much I am able to remember.  And finally, I look up and see that the temple is finished, knowing that it is the handiwork of the Supreme Architect much more than the work of human hands.

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Because I am fallible, I know the work is never complete.  There are always improvements to be made.  A missed word or phrase here, a misstep or stumble there.  The ashlar will always require smoothing.  But the Supreme Architect loves a doer, and he blesses those that work to improve, especially when we are humble enough to know that we will always fall short. (Psalm 103:13-14)

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It is my hope that you continue constructing your temple.  Do not merely learn the words, learn what they mean to you.  If built worthily, your temple will grow and change, becoming perfected, and it will be a house acceptable to the Supreme Architect of the Universe.

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Keep building, Brother.