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Visitor Welcome

Silver Star Lodge #286

Free & Accepted Masons of Washington

Welcome Visitor,

I am Jon Gill, Master or president of the Silver Star Lodge #286, Free and Accepted Masons. As you navigate the site, the first item to catch your attention is the terms used in the titles and descriptions of our organization. Without a little background I expect you will hit the back button to Google or home and will quickly clean out your history, cookies and cache. We use terms and words from the 18^th and 19^th centuries because of tradition. The same words and work that my great grandfather, grandfather and dad learned and used, I use in our group. In my view it serves two purposes; the first is a tie to my the men in my family and the second, like reading Shakespeare, the use of terms and words no longer used in common English, requires you to concentrate and dig for the meaning.

With that said, here are some terms and their present day meaning you should be aware of as you navigate the site:

Lodge – branch of union or organization: a local branch or chapter of a fraternal organization.

Lodge - a hall or other meeting place used by a branch of a society.

Fraternal - showing friendship and mutual support between people or groups with the same interests or aims of fraternities; relating to or organized as a fraternity

Worshipful - used as the honoring adjective in the titles of some dignitaries such as mayors, and of the ancient guild companies of the City of London

Master - a title used to address a man who is a leader or teacher (sometimes considered offensive)

Warden - an official who makes sure that regulations are enforced (game warden)

Degree - educational title: a title awarded by a university or college following successful completion of a course of study or period of research, or a similar title granted as an honor

Recognition - act of recognizing: the act of identifying somebody or something on the basis of a past sighting or experience, the ability to do this, or the fact of being identified through having been seen or experienced before

Secret Society - organization that keeps activities secret: an organization that requires its members to keep all or some of its activities secret from nonmembers

Freemason (Mason) - a member of a worldwide society, the Free and Accepted Masons, that is known particularly for its charitable work and its secret rites

Allegory - the symbolic expression of a deeper meaning through a story or scene acted out by human, animal, or mythical characters

With these terms in mind (go to MSN Encarta for the full definitions), I can now explain Masonry; our vision, mission and goals; and if you are interested, how to contact us.

Freemasonry is a world wide fraternal organization, with local independent chapters administered by Lodge Masters and Wardens. As a fraternal group, we are interested in helping each other through supporting our communities, members and families. We accomplish this through attracting members; conducting a screening process; and if admitted, the candidate is then taught the moral and ethical lessons or degrees of Masonry. As a man moves through the degrees or lessons, they learn ideas which ask them to reflect on how to improve their conduct in homes, social and professional roles. Each degree is a different lesson of allegory, and the candidate is instructed to keep parts of the experience secret only to the fraternity. Thus, when traveling and meeting other members of the fraternity, they can quickly recognize a member through mutually shared experiences or degree work.

Now that you know what we do, the following are a few of our rules that over the centuries Masons have learned to keep out of the lodge setting:

We do not discuss partisan politics in the lodge. Masons are encouraged to be active in our communities, vote and be active in supporting our country. However, we have learned that partisan politics have no place inside the lodge and will cause divisions in a fraternal organization.

We do not discuss religion (believe it or not after reading some of the websites out there regarding the Freemasons). For the similar reasons cited regarding politics, religious differences divide men. However, every Freemason must believe in a higher or spiritual being. The rest is between you and your creator not your fraternal organization.

Our lodge does not serve alcohol. We eat well (check the photos).

We do not recruit members. We welcome members and enjoy sharing the ethical and moral lessons of our work; giving men the chance to move up in a lodge and acquire management and leadership skills from professionals in the community in a non-threatening environment (make your mistakes with us, we understand but your boss may not); and providing a way for men to give back to their communities. Many a man comes to Masonry late in life or never makes it at all because their father, grandfather, uncle or friend did not ask them, and by not being asked the person thought they were seen as not being worthy. Instead, we simply do not recruit and sometimes we have not done a good job at explaining that membership is asked for. Once you ask, the process takes off.

In closing, please take a few minutes to look around our site and see what we are doing in lodge and in Battle Ground. If you have questions, please feel free to email or call.

Fraternally,

Jon Gill

Master of Silver Star #286 F&AM

If your interest is peaked, you may want to contact any one of the fifty-one Grand Lodges across the United States by visiting "Other On-line Lodges" and "Grand Lodge of Washington". Also, the "Trestle Board" will provide you with announcements of activities around Silver Star Lodge.

"Contact Us" will give you an opportunity to send direct e-mail to the Brethren of our Lodge. Tell us how our Masonic Fellowship might serve some special need in your community, or assist a family member struggling and in need of an attentive ear, an instructive tongue, and a faithful friend.