4.05.2010

(The) Worshipful Master

He who has attained the third degree in Freemasonry is a Master; and he who don't work in the so-called high degrees, has attained the summit of his profession.  None but Fellowcrafts who have been found worthy can obtain this degree.  As a Master Mason he has a voice in all the consultations of the officers of the lodge, and he may, if possessed of sufficient Masonic skill, be appointed to any office in the Lodge, even that of Worshipful Master.  This (the Worshipful Master) is the highest position a Mason can obtain in St. John's Masonry, through the three degrees of which every candidate for the Master role must have passed.  If there are any members in the lodge who have the higher degrees, they can also be elected Worshipful Master, but although it is by no means necessary to possess those degrees to enable a brother to be elected by his brother Master Masons for one year.  The greatest care and caution ought to be used by the brethren at this election to prevent the lodge being injured by the election of an improper person.  He must also be well acquainted with the Order, its doctrines, its secrets, its history, and constitution, and must possess the power of communicating his own reflection upon all these subjects, in a clear, comprehensive form, to the brethren. Only the Master that has been a Senior Warden or a Junior Warden can be elected to the highest position in the Lodge. Exceptionally the Grand Master can entitle a Master that haven't occupied these roles, to be appointed as a Worshipful Master. The office, contrary to a certain vulgar interpretation, is not a privilege or a title; it is as office to servE the Lodge and the Brethren and that is the reason why its tenure is short. In some constituencies the occupation of the Solomon Chair for two or three years is allowed, but normally this situation is considered evidence of lack of officials training or a lack of renewal for leadership. When the Worshipful Master finishes its mandate he may, transitorily, occupy a seat in the East, at the right of the new Worshipful Master; he acts herein as a special counsellor of the Master. After the first year "out of the chair" he should fill another function, normally Inner Guard, a position in ancient Lodges filled usually by Past-Masters. This is a sign of humility, a quality that any freemason should not de-private himself. 
Picture: George Washington Lodge