The Oregon Scottish Rite recently held a marvelous function honoring its 33rd Degree Masons. It was an amazing and beautiful event. People of all ages where there; both Masons and their families from all over the state traveled in to take part in the festivities. The room was brimming with a regal energy and laughter fluttered over the banquet tables as the hours passed away. Oregon is blessed to have so many great Brothers within its body.

There have been debates throughout the ages about the highest Degree of Freemasonry. Masonry is something that exists in various levels of knowledge, mysterious, even to its very own initiates. A man must pass through the Degrees consecutively; only then will their work be considered for the honor of the 33rd Degree. There are three Blue Lodge Degrees a candidate must master before they can petition for admission into the Scottish Rite. Then a candidate may become a 32º Scottish Rite Mason. They may, at some future date be honoured with the conferral of the 32nd Knight Commander of the Court of Honour and possibly, maybe, the 33rd degree. To receive these is to receive “honors” few men ever get to achieve.

Where do the 33 Degrees come from? Manly Palmer Hall was a great Masonic Scholar and 32nd Degree Mason. He wrote of the roots of Masonry in his book “ The Secret Teachings of All Ages.” He was able to trace Masonic Roots all the way back to the studies of Pythagoras who himself speaks of learning in Persia, Egypt and Babylon before opening up his own Temple of Wisdom in Crotona Greece. There are also manuscripts found in Edinburgh Scotland who speak of a craft of mystical builders present at the construction of the Tower of Babel. These ancient mysteries are thought to be carried on in the Phoenician and Dionysian building traditions that spread through the Mesopotamian region before being picked up by priestly knights in France just prior to the Middle Ages. Some have credited Masonic influence to the principles of Enlightenment that inspired the Renaissance. This work is still visible in the great gothic cathedrals around the world, complete with the engravings of the Freemasons that labored to build them.

There is no doubt that the achievement of the 33rd Degree is a hard won badge of honor that stands on the shoulders of giants. It’s a symbol of dedication for the good of The Universal Order. Freemasons have often been the force of intellectual and civil might involved in inspiring some of the greatest movements of history. The very principles of the United States of America, so often overlooked in the hustle of daily grind, are the reasons a nation can aspire for a democracy that provides such freedoms to its people. These tenets of leadership and moral living, and the profound study and application of such is the very DNA of a good Scottish Rite Mason.

The Mason’s path is one that leads out of the darkness of ignorance in to the light of the Universal Fire, or creative force of God’s brilliance. Masonry is the journey of man’s understanding of the creator, and thus himself and how he is to make the world a better place through his own “work.” J.D. Buck author of “The Thirty-third and Last Degree,” himself a 33rd Degree makes this comparison of the highest offices of the Scottish Rite and that of the Vatican. “ The office and power of the Grand Master and Supreme Council may be compared point by point with the Pope and his college of Italian Cardinals.” He then goes on to say, “…they [Scottish Rite Bodies] will bestow honors where honor is due; not on empty titles or abuse of power, but as a guerdon of reward and appreciation of nobility of character and service to man-the very Crown Jewels of Wisdom, that nothing in the three worlds can ever dim or destroy.” These are powerful words! Travel well Brothers…