MasonicMinute.com

aedifico42| On Responsibility…

Posted at: 12:24 pm

The Master of his Lodge is responsible for everything.  From Ritual to Education to Administration to Plumbing…a Lodge’s decisions are never complete until the Master begins the process of execution.  What then, I ask, is the role of the Secretary?

Too often we see the Secretary as the base and foundation of power.  He is the man with the institutional knowledge…often a Past Master himself…and he controls the flow of information.  The Secretary is usually referred to as the power behind the power.  But is this the right way to go?  Should the less responsible man control the Lodge?  I would say no…absolutely not.

The Secretary is naturally a subordinate officer.  Even our Ritual requires that from his own mouth flow the following words; “To observe the will and pleasure of the Worshipful Master…”  So why is it, then, that so many Secretarys run their Lodges with an Iron Fist?  Why is it that Masters allow their subordinates to run the Lodge, even when the decisions made by the Secretary may not be in the best interest of the Lodge?

It’s called laziness.  Masters who don’t assert their authority are too lazy to follow-through with the required effort to make their decisions and run their Lodges.

Now, to be sure, there are plenty of Lodges…mine included…who have a Secretary that simply pulls the Master aside, makes a suggestion, and happily obeys whatever decision the Master makes.  This is a mature and dignified surrender to the responsibilities he has as a brother and an officer in the Lodge.  He does not force his opinion - although he certainly has one - on anybody.  He knows that the long march of time can cure almost any mistakes that a one-year Master may make.  But more importantly, our Secretary knows that it is not his responsibility to run the Lodge. 

Masters and their subordinate officers must take great care to discuss, with maturity and discretion, their respective roles in the Lodge.  Our influx of new brothers require the guideance that we can give them through good examples.  Masters must assert themselves - not just skating their way through ‘their’ year - by fulfilling their obligations as the responsible man in the Lodge.

I often hear about a Secretary here or there in our jurisdiction being the de-facto Master of their Lodge.  It amazes me that any man would sit in the East and let a subordinate tell him what to do and how to do it.  This is not a man…this is a place-holder.  The eb-and-flow of the Blue Lodge is a natural consequence of the structure of our fraternity.  But when you are elevated to the Oriental chari, you MUST be the boss.

I am thankful that my Secretary is NOT one of those corner-sitting-Tyrants who would presume to know better simply because he has been around for a while.  To those types, I simply say this; If you want to be the Master, stop being the Secretary!

The insidious nature of that kind of character - sitting around year-in-and-year-out while controlling the strings from behind the scene - is anathema to Masonry.  Sure, some Secretaries have forgotten more than their Masters will ever know…but what kind of lesson is it to dictate decision making?  Let your Master be the Master.  Gently remind him of deadlines and correspondence.  If he falls on his face, it’s his fault.  But as Secretary, you have a responsibility to the Craft that is best illustrated by the Compasses.  Keep yourself circumscribed!

Lastly, I will repeat again, Masters must rule.  For better or for worse, because it is the will of the Lodge that THAT man for THAT term is the Master.  If we all look carefully to the opening ritual, and we all do what we are supposed to do, much of the petty bickering and politicking that occurs in our Lodges will dissapear.  Only then will we have the capacity to concentrate more on practicing our Craft, and less on running the Craft.

MasonicMinute.com