Lodge
of Perfection Degree Descriptions
The Degree
description below is reprinted with the permission of the
Scottish Rite Journal.
Eighth Degree
Intendant of the Building
Jim Tresner, 33°, Grand
Cross
Photo: Oil
painting by Bro. Robert H. White, 32°
Purity, zeal, hope for the future. White, red
and green. Those themes and colors resonate throughout the Scottish
Rite.
PURITY is
of many kinds--personal integrity, a focus on things of the spirit
rather than the flesh, a moral refusal to exploit others.
ZEAL
can be the earnest dedication of the cloistered scholar determined to
find the truth no matter where it lies or the unswerving opposition of
the lover of freedom to all forms of intolerance.
HOPE FOR THE FUTURE may be the individual’s hope of the
afterlife, the belief that this world can be made better and more
compassionate, or a commitment to leave for future generations at least
as much as was left to us.
The colors of the 8th Degree apron (pictured
above) represent purity (white), bordered by hope or regeneration
(green), and lined with zeal (red). On the apron is a nine-pointed
star, which symbolizes the Divine truth God revealed to the first men.
This is the first appearance in the Scottish Rite Degrees of the
symbol which will become the Triple Interlaced Triangle of the 32nd
Degree. Above the star is the balance, again symbolizing both
equilibrium and justice, major
keys in understanding the path to Divine truth. On the flap is an
equilateral triangle, symbol of Deity, containing at each of its
corners Phoenician letters which mean, apex letter, S for the Hebrew
words shekinah, the divine presence; left, the letter B for Ben-Khurim,
meaning son of nobles or freeborn; and, right, the letter A for Ahad,
meaning The One, our only God.
The cordon is red or crimson, and the jewel
hangs from it by a green ribbon. The jewel is a triangle or delta of
gold. One side contains the Phoenician word for
“nobles” or “freeborn” which
Pike tells us is intended to indicate the sons of Hiram. The other side
has Samaritan letters which are interpreted to mean “One God,
Source of all things.” Thus the jewel reinforces the theme of
the Degree, for Hiram was a worker, and his sons, noble and freeborn,
work not because they are forced to, but from zeal, from a love of
accomplishment.
Work is central to the Degree. One lesson is
that a man cannot make real progress in Masonry without study. The
Degree further teaches us that great undertakings are cooperative
efforts. The Degree also teaches the valuable lesson that knowledge is
easily lost unless it is carefully preserved and passed on to future
generations. We have an obligation to teach, just as surely as we have
an obligation to learn. And all of us have something of value to teach.
The Scottish Rite Journal
- August 1997
Jim Tresner
is Director of the Masonic Leadership Institute and Editor of The
Oklahoma Mason. A frequent contributor to the Scottish Rite Journal and
its book review editor, Illustrious Brother Tresner is also a volunteer
writer for The Oklahoma Scottish Rite Mason and a video script
consultant for the National Masonic Renewal Committee. He is the
Director of the Thirty-third Degree Conferral Team and Director of Work
at the Guthrie Scottish Rite Temple in Guthrie, Oklahoma, as well as a
life member of the Scottish Rite Research Society, author of the
popular anecdotal biography Albert Pike, The Man Beyond the Monument,
and a member of the steering committee of the Masonic Information
Center. Ill. Tresner was awarded the Grand Cross, the Scottish Rite's
highest honor, during the Supreme Council's October 1997 Biennial
Session.
