From the Venerable Master (May 2024)
My Brethren,
I will start my article by always saying Hi, and hope that I find everyone in good health. The April Stated Meeting was a good turnout and the Meal was excellent as always. I thank everyone again for the good turnout for Maundy
Thursday.
In this article and in future articles I will be writing about our Special Event on June 29th, 2024. Remember this is going to be our Dinner and Musical Songs of the 50's and 60's. This event will be to raise funds for our Rite Care Clinic. Dinner at 6:30 PM and the Musical to start at 7:30 PM. Please call the Scottish Rite Office and make your reservations. The meal and show are to be prepaid. It will be a lot of fun, and for a great cause. Our Clinic needs our support.
In this Month's Rite Word, I would like to quote an Article on a Masons Obligation's. It's taken from a book called Masonry Defined.
Obligation: The solemn promise made by a Mason on his admission into any degree is technically called his obligation. In a legal sense, obligation is synonymous with duty. It's derivation shows its true meaning, for the Latin word obligatio literally signifies a tying or binding. The obligation is that which binds a man to do some act, the doing of which thus becomes his duty. Hence the Romans called the military oath which was taken by the soldier his obligation, and hence, too, it is said that it is the obligation that makes the Mason. Before that ceremony, there is no tie that binds the candidate to the Order so as to make him a part of it; after the ceremony, the tie has been completed, and the candidate becomes at once a Mason, entitled to all the rights and privileges and subject to all the duties and responsibilities that endure in that character. The jurists have divided obligations into imperfect and perfect, or natural and civil. In Masonry there is so such distinction. The Masonic obligation is that moral one which, although it cannot be enforced by the courts of law, is binding on the party who makes it, in conscience and according to moral justice. It varies in each degree, but in each is perfect. Its different clauses, in which different duties are prescribed, are called its points, which are either affirmative or negative, a division like that of the precepts of the Jewish Law. The affirmative points are those which require certain acts to be performed; the negative points are those which forbid certain other acts to be done. The whole of them is preceded by a general point of secrecy, common to all the degrees, and this point is called the Tie.
May you always have Love to Share, Health to Spare, and Friends who care. May you be Blessed.
San Jose Lodge of Perfection Art Pasquinelli, 32° KCCH 2024 Venerable Master
From the Wise Master
(May 2024)
First off, I want to thank everyone that attended our Maundy Thursday last month. It is nice to not only continue a long-standing tradition for the Valley but see it grow a bit. Additionally, a big thank you to the brothers of the Chapter and Ill. Richard Fisher for a very nice degree work. And special shout out to Degree Director Honorable Brandon Dueñas for an exceptionally smooth planning & execution of the degree, everything was in order, always makes it easier.
As we move into May, I was doing some research and I find that May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month .....as well as National ALS Awareness Month, Bicycle Month, National Brain Tumor Awareness Month, National Burger Month (I like that one), Community Action Awareness Month (North Dakota only), National Electrical Safety Month, National Foster Care Month, National Golf Month, Jewish American Heritage Month, Haitian Heritage Month, Hepatitis Awareness Month, Mental Health Awareness Month, National Military Appreciation Month, National Moving Month, National Osteoporosis Month, National Stroke Awareness Month, National Water Safety Month, Older Americans Month
So, if any of you are Asian, Pacific Islander, Haitian, of Jewish American Heritage take some time to appreciate our military, use your good mental health and get checked for Hepatitis, Osteoporosis, ALS and any strokes or brain tumors. Then take your bicycle out to get a cheese burger and take some older folks to go golfing while watching for water hazards, practicing water safety and taking the time to appreciate our Military (because we can never do enough of that) and any Foster parents & kids you know. This would be a great service to you and our community and remember, no sticking your fingers in any electrical sockets.
Otherwise, May is the beginning of Spring, and I am happy to report that I have gotten my garden planted for the year. Also in May, in the southern hemisphere it is the beginning of Fall. Isn’t that always weird? Like they have Christmas in the middle of summer there. I just can’t see Santa in shorts getting a tan. Imagine how hot he must get in that big coat. Turns out that April 1st is National Fun day, I missed it so consider this my contribution albeit late. Perhaps that was a groundhog problem.
I am looking forward to getting into some serious Masonry for our Spring Reunion and will have a full report next month.
Remember “People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
~ Brother Theodore Roosevelt
San Jose Chapter of Rose Croix Mark Burger, 32° KCCH 2024 Wise Master
From the Commander of Kadosh (May 2024)
The 22nd degree is called Knight of the Royal Axe or Prince of Libanus. Libanus refers to Lebanon and is a common term in masonic circles. My wife’s grandfather belonged to Libanus Lodge No. 154, in Monticello, Indiana for 60 years. Its popularity in masonic symbolism stems from Lebanon’s renown cedar forests, which famously produced the timber for KingSolomon’s Temple. These forests and the craftsmen who harvested it, explain the names for this degree, which emphasizes the dignity of labor as its primary lesson.
As it is worked now, the zeal of the workers of Tyre to assist in holy works, is meant to model admirable masonic behavior. In its original form, as part of the Royal Secret degrees, the same example was provided, not by the Tyrians, but instead by the Sidonians, who the Bible says were the most skilled at falling timber. Along with any mention of the Sidonians, the revised degrees also left one very interesting part of the original work. The early degree refers to the cedars of Lebanon having provided the material for three projects; Noah’s ark, the Ark of the Covenant, and King Solomon’s temple. In each of these cases, according to the early degree, the Sidonians were enlisted for their service.
Predating any modern concerns for conservation, the ax, a prominent feature in this degree, was seen as a symbol of human progress. Mastery over the forest, converting its raw materials into works both great and fine, symbolized our climb out of the wilderness and the forging of civilization. Solomon’s Temple represents this, as do the two symbols which were lost from the original; Noah’s Ark and the Ark of the Covenant. Aside from being built from Lebanese cedar, the three share several other important details in common. All involved a covenant with God, all were ordained with very specific instructions, and all required a significant amount of work.This is a fine symbol for life and masonry. To keep true to our convictions, to honor our promises, to live up to our agreements and partnerships, takes work. At times the work will be difficult and may even sound impossible. The details might be copious and the directions hard to follow. Temptation and doubt lurk always. To live any type of meaningful life, is to work at it, to contend with the world and to earn your place in it. So it is work, and the willingness to do it, which masonry celebrates above all other traits. Therefore, it is the highest compliment to say to a brother, as I do to all of you now, keep up the good work!
Until Next,
San Jose Council of Kadosh Peter Cardilla, 32° 2024 Commander of Kadosh
From the Master of Kadosh (May 2024)
Greetings, Scottish Rite Brethren.
On April 13th, we had the Consistory Spring BBQ downstairs at the Lounge. The weather did not cooperate so we ate indoors, but we had a nice turnout anyways. Thank you to everybody who came.
The Consistory trip this year to the HillerAviation Museum will be on Sunday July 21st, the day after the 55th anniversary of the first manned lunar landing back in 1969. We were originally going to have it on July 20th, but the Cornerstone Awards are that evening, so we moved it to Sunday. Stay tuned for more information.
Continuing our series on Geometry, there is a particularly interesting and useful value used extensively in architecture, as well as found in nature. As in previous articles, I include an excerpt from “Sacred Geometry – Deciphering the Code”, by Stephen Skinner (© 2006 by Octopus Publishing Group Ltd, paperback by Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., ISBN 978-1-4027-6582-7), this time about the Golden Mean.
From Chapter 1 of Sacred Geometry, page 34 (and following):
<excerpt>
The Golden Mean: the arithmetic of growth
Johannes Kepler (1571 – 1630) called the Golden Section ‘one of the two great treasures of geometry,’ and it was likened by him rather poetically to a precious jewel. In the 16th century it was called the Divine Proportion and in the 19th century it was given the title Golden Number or Golden Ratio or Golden Section. We will call it the Golden Mean.
The common Greek letter for the Golden Mean used to be tau, which comes from the Greek word ‘to cut’ or ‘section’. Since the early 20th century it as been expressed as phi, Φ, which is the first letter of the name of the most famous Greek sculptor Phidias (490 – 430 B.C.), as a commemoration of its occurrence in various beautiful forms. [ In his book Sacred Geometry, author Stephen Skinner then refers to later material within the book which makes use of in various works of art ].
Creating the Golden Mean
Φ (phi) is a sacred number with a value of 1.6180339887... . It can be used to divide a line or rectangle into two unequal parts, so that the proportion of the two new parts is the same as the proportion of the larger part to the original line. Lateral thinking shows that division by the number is like cell division: the division of the line in this proportion causes the creation of another line proportionally identical to the original line. You could think of this produced line as the ‘child’ of the original line. The fact that Φ enables this process to continue indefinitely suggests its involvement in replication and hence in growth.
Let us do this division in a more formal way with the line AB:
Where
Cut it at Y into parts A Y and YB. For these two parts to be illustrative of the Golden Mean, the ratio between A Y and YB must be exactly the same as the ratio between AB and AY. This ratio is always 1.6180339887... to 1.
This decimal recurs forever, so its value cannot ever be expressed perfectly in decimal form. It is therefore an ‘irrational number’. Irrational numbers are numbers that cannot be expressed by either an ending or a regularly repeating pattern of numbers after the decimal point. Another irrational number is pi, p (3.1415926...). Even though it is an irrational number, Φ in its relationship with itself can form whole rational numbers. In geometry, it is an integral part of the generation of many polyhedra (see pages 56-57 [of Skinner’s book] ), and many sources show this as it is used extensively in nature to construct life forms.
[ Pages 35 and 37 of Sacred Geometry have additional illustrations showing how to construct the Golden Mean geometrically, and also its application in drawing pentagrams and pentagons, some of which we will visit next month. ]
Some Golden Mean (F) equations
Φ = (Ö5 + 1) / 2 = 1.618
Φ2 = (Ö5 + 3) / 2 = 2.618
1/Φ = (Ö5 - 1) / 2 = 0.618
Φ = (cosecant 18°)/2
= 1/(2 sine 18°)
= 2 cosine 36°
= 2/(secant 36°)
= 2 sine 54°
= 2/(cosecant 54°)
= (secant 72°)/2
= 1/(2 cosine 72°)
From inspecting the above, you can see that 18, 36, 54 and 72 are key numbers. Now, as these are all multiples of 18, this number is intimately associated with Φ.
</excerpt>
We will continue with our discussion of Φ next month.
See you at the meeting and dinner!
San Jose Consistory Helmuth Litfin, 32° 2024 Venerable Master of Kadosh
From the Chief Knight (May 2024)
Spring is in full swing and we celebrate all those special mothers out there, past present and expecting. Here is also a friendly reminder to set aside some time for remembrance around Memorial day.
Congratulations to our newest members here in the Valley of SanJose, Orient of California. Your conferral through the degrees, to the 14th and all the way up to Masters of the Royal Secret, is just a stepping stone. I would encourage you all to continue learning by taking advantage of the Master Craftsman study.
Like most masonic organizations, there are many ways to get involved with your new home that you have committed yourself to, like officer positions and degree teams. One of the ways you can get involve in our Valley is the KSA. The San Jose chapter of Knights of Saint Andrew (KSA) is primarily a service group within the Valley of San Jose that helps out during meetings, reunions and other events. The KSA also assists with activities in other valleys and masonic bodies around the bay area, like flag presentations and arch of steel presentations. No kilt required.
For more information, ask anyone in a KSA hat, or join us for a meeting. We meet regularly on the 3rd Sundays, at noon.
San Jose Knights of St. Andrew
Michael Lammer, 32°
2024 Chief Knight, KSA
The Knights of Saint Andrew 2024 Officers
First Knight | Bro. Chris Boyes 32º |
Chief Knight | Bro. Mike Lammer 32º |
Knight of the Watch | Bro. Alan Porjesz 32º |
Secretary | Bro. Tim Lynch 32º |
Monk Knight | Bro. Adrian Otero 32º |
Sentinel | Bro. Angelo Encarnacion 32º |