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History of the Scottish Rite
of Freemasonry In the
Orient of California
The exuberance of early Masons can hardly be exaggerated. Following the formation of the Grand Lodge of England in 1717, an
explosion of new degrees took place. By the middle of the 16th Century there were more than a thousand; most of them of dubious
character. Out of the chaos came the Lodge of Perfection; French in origin, not Scottish. It was an amorphous collection of 25 degrees
including the first three degrees of the Symbolic Lodge. The Fourth, or "Scottish" Degree may have given its name to the Rite. (1)
Scottish Rite Masonry came to the United States by way of the West Indies. Etienne Morin, a French Merchant brought the Rite to
Kingston, Jamaica in 1763. Eventually it arrived in Charleston, South Carolina, where it took root. The Lodge of Perfection had remained a
rather parochial low profile Charleston activity for more than 50 years when Albert Pike joined the Rite in 1853. Soon after he Joined he
was encouraged by his Masonic friend, Albert Mackey, to rewrite the ritual, which Pike had declared "...for the most part a lot of worthless
trash." (2) His tremendous work, Morals and Dogma, has since become the "bible" of Scottish Rite Masonry. He became the Grand
Commander on January 1, 1859 and under his strong and energetic guidance, Scottish Rite Masonry spread throughout the world with
the Mother Supreme Council of the World located in Charleston.
The Masonic Charity and Education Gene
The early operative lodges were schools that taught not only the mason's trade, but also taught moral and ethical behavior. Even
before 1717 great emphasis was placed on the importance of benevolence within the Lodge. With the formation of the Grand Lodge of
England each member who attended lodge paid his dues into the "box" to guarantee assistance to each other. There was no welfare state
nor insurance; members were expected to help brothers and their families in need.
The "Ancients" in 1798 and the premier Grand Lodge in 1808 had each established charitable funds and after the union of the two, in
1823, a centralized Charity Fund was formed. Soon four major charities were formed in England. The Royal Masonic Institute for Girls was
instituted In 1778 and the Royal Masonic Institute for Boys opened in 1865. The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institute for Aged and Decayed
Freemasons and their Widows was established in 1850 (the word "Decayed" has since been dropped from the title). The Royal Masonic
Hospital appeared in 1932. All four rely totally on the generosity of individual brothers for financial stability. (3)
This rich background in Masonic philanthropy is evident today in the most benevolent fraternity on earth. Every concordant and
affiliated body including our youth groups place great importance on charitable programs. The majority of these programs are aimed at
assisting children. The recipients of more than 60 per cent of Masonic benevolence are not affiliated in any way with Masonry. In most
cases assistance to children is given without cost to families. This is true of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry Childhood Language
Disorders Clinics, Centers, and programs and the Shrine Hospitals for Children. They are said to be the only hospitals "without a cash
register." (4)
Scottish Rite Charities and Civic Activities
Every Valley in California contributes not only to the Scottish Rite Memorial Fund, but also to maintaining their local charitable and
educational funding programs. California Scottish Rite Masons support a wide range of charitable and civic activities. At every well-
ordered meeting or degree the "box of fraternal assistance" is still passed to fund the Almoner's charge to assist the needy, much as our
ancient brethren did. The Bodies are a patriotic group who support our Constitution with an annual observance. Many support or
sponsor Flag Day on or near June 14 each year. Many Valleys have programs to recognize area law enforcement officers, teachers and
students, sometimes with monetary awards. They support the Blue Lodges and encourage closer bonds with the York Rite and Shrine. In
recent years there has been renewed effort to include families and non-Masonic friends in special events.
Education
The Supreme Council issued a strong statement to "support free and compulsory education with Instruction in the English language
only, financed by public taxation". (5) This pledge, made in 1920, still guides the Scottish Rite today. In 1927 the Supreme Council
established a $1 million endowment enabling George Washington University to assist graduate level students who major in fields leading
to government service or education professions.
Except for a brief interruption, grants are still awarded from an enlarged endowment.
Childhood Language Disorders Programs
The early endeavors of the Denver, Colorado Scottish Rite Foundation, founded in 1953, has become the jewel of Scottish Rite
philanthropy. They first recognized the need to help children who suffer from a severe language handicap generally known as "aphasia."
Aphasia is the inability of children to form words and sentences to make themselves understood. They are often doomed to a lifetime of
withdrawal, unable to communicate with family and schoolmates. They are frequently labeled as retarded, contrary and asocial. On the
contrary they are often of above average intelligence. The affliction is not unlike that suffered by adult stroke victims. It can be greatly
alleviated or cured with prompt and proper treatment by professional speech therapists.
The idea of helping this neglected group of children was picked up by the Orient of California. In 1972 arrangements were 2 California
with funding assured by the Rite. Because of a falling out between the Rite and the University it was decided best to use local fund raising
and implement regional centers. As a result, many of the 18 California Valleys now have on-site Scottish Rite of Freemasonry Clinics,
Centers and Programs for Childhood Language Disorders or they contribute to schools or hospitals to support clinics indirectly.
Clinics have since been formed throughout most of the Orients of the Southern Jurisdiction. In recent years several centers have
opened in the Northern Jurisdiction independent of the Southern Jurisdiction. In 1955 there were 112 centers and by 1997 there were 150
centers in the combined Jurisdictions treating about 10,000 children a year. (6)
An Ancient Fraternity In an Infant State
In 1850, a year before California became a state, the population was only a bit more than 92,000. In those early years there were
many Masons from the East who were interested in getting the Fraternity under way. California Freemasonry got started after fifteen
Grand Lodges had issued charters and dispensations for the formation of Blue Lodges. Representatives from five of those jurisdictions
assembled in Sacramento to officially form the Grand Lodge of California which began at once to grant Charters to the Craft Lodges. Just a
decade later there were 130 Blue Lodges with a membership of 5,055.
The Rite Comes to California
The Scottish Rite spread throughout the eastern and southern states during the first half of the 19th century. Sovereign Grand
Commander Albert Pike, 33º, was determined to introduce the Rite to the West Coast. In the spring of 1861, the Supreme Council
established a Grand Consistory in California. Shortly thereafter Civil War delayed the activities of the new Grand Consistory until 1866. In
the ensuing four years there were constituted nine Lodges of Perfection, four Councils of the Princes of Jerusalem, four Chapters of Rose
Croix and two Councils of Kadosh. Yerba Buena Lodge of Perfection No 6 was organized July 8, 1868. In 1870 the Supreme Council
chartered the Grand Consistory of California in San Francisco. At that time Commander Pike stated, "....we have nowhere a body of
Masons more intelligent and socially respectable than in the Great Empire State of California."
Be that as it may, during the next few years most of the California bodies were declared inactive and surrendered their charters or
had them revoked. (7)
By the turn of the Century San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles and Pasadena each had an active Consistory, Council, Chapter and
Lodge of Perfection. In addition there were Lodges of Perfection in Sacramento, Marysville, Visalia, Redlands and San Diego. Scottish Rite
Masonry was well established and rapidly growing. In 1950 there were 15 Scottish Rite Bodies with a combined membership well above
50,000.
Bibliography Sources
My thanks to all those, names and nameless,
who helped me amass the materials used in compiling
this history of the Orient of California.
Ill:. Robert D. Haas 33°
1. William L. Fox, Lodge of the Double Headed Eagle
University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, AK 1997 p. 74
2. Lodge of the Double Headed Eagle p. 16
3. John Hamil, History of English Freemasonry p. 135 ff
Lewis Mason Book, London, England 1994
4. S. Brent Morris, Masonic Philanthropies 1997
Supreme Councils, 33
o
, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction and Southern Jurisdiction
5. Lodge of the Double Headed Eagle p. 192
6. Childhood Language Disorders Clinic brochures 9th printing.
7. Arthur R. Anderson, 33
o
and Leon Whitsell, 33
o
, California's First
Century of Scottish Rite Masonry, Supreme Council, 33
o
, Ancient & Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction
1962 p. 11 ff.
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