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FROM BRITAIN TO AMERICA, HOW?
In a time when travel was by horseback and sailing ship, Masonry spread with amazing speed.
By 1731, when Benjamin Franklin joined the fraternity, there were already several lodges in
the Colonies, and Masonry spread rapidly as America expanded west. In addition to Franklin,
many of the Founding Fathers -- men such as George Washington, Paul Revere, Joseph Warren,
and John Hancock -- were Masons. Masons and Masonry played an important part in the
Revolutionary War and an even more important part in the Constitutional Convention and the
debates surrounding the ratification of the Bill of Rights. Many of those debates were held in Masonic lodges.
WHAT IS A LODGE?
The word "lodge" means both a group of Masons meeting in some place and the room
or building in which they meet. Masonic buildings are also sometimes called
"temples" because much of the symbolism Masonry uses to teach its lessons comes
from the building of King Solomon's Temple in the Holy Land. The term "lodge"
itself comes from the structures which the stonemasons built against the sides of the
cathedrals during construction. In winter, when building had to stop, they lived in these
lodges and worked at carving stone.
If you've ever watched C-SPAN's coverage of the House of Commons in London, you'll notice
that the layout is about the same. Since Masonry came to America from England, we still
use the English floorplan and English titles for the officers. The Worshipful Master of
the Lodge sits in the East. "Worshipful" is an English term of respect which
means the same thing as "Honorable." He is called the Master of the lodge for
the same reason that the leader of an orchestra is called the "Concert Master."
It's simply an older term for "Leader." In other organizations, he would be
called "President." The Senior and Junior Wardens are the First and Second
Vice-Presidents. The Deacons are messengers, and the Stewards have charge of refreshments.
Every lodge has an altar holding a "Volume of the Sacred Law." In the United States
and Canada, that is almost always a Bible.
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see also: 100 Questions About Freemasonry
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