Masonic Muscle

Why does Saint John the Baptist Day matter in Freemasonry? In this short talk from our June 2022 stated meeting, I point out some correlations between Saint John the Baptist Day , the summer solstice , Masonic symbolism, light, time, and the rhythm of the Craft. Saint John the Baptist Day falls very close to the summer solstice, and that should make a Mason stop and think. Freemasonry is full of s...

Do you know the origin story of your own Masonic lodge? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I read and discuss the early history of Palm Springs Lodge No. 693 , including the local men, places, events, and conditions that helped form the lodge. Every Masonic lodge has a story. The problem is that too many Brothers never learn it. A lodge is not just a building. It is not just a charter on the wall...

Did Catholic monks help preserve the building craft that later influenced Freemasonry? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I read and discuss an article from The Philalethes Magazine titled “Another Thought About the Origins of Freemasonry,” published in 2003. The article continues a theme I have been exploring: the possibility that Catholic monks, monasteries, builders, architects, and stone cons...

Why must Masons define their terms before having serious conversations? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , we continue Part 2 of our discussion with Shane Arch and Brother Matt Jackson on the Trivium as practiced at Palm Springs Lodge No. 693 . We begin with Sister Miriam Joseph’s book, The Trivium and the first discipline of serious discussion: defining terms. Before men can argue, agree, disagr...

How can the Trivium transform Masonic education? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , we introduce the Trivium as practiced at Palm Springs Lodge No. 693 and explain how grammar, logic, and rhetoric can help Masons, prospects, and community members think more clearly, speak more carefully, and search for truth together. We begin by talking with a prospect who recently received an application at Pal...

Is Freemasonry mystical and esoteric, or is it just a social club? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I read and discuss another article from the respected Philalethes Magazine , published in December 1993. The article explores one of the biggest arguments inside the Craft: whether Freemasonry contains a real mystical and esoteric dimension, or whether it should be understood mainly as a social f...

How should Masons face death? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I talk with Juan Ascencio , creator of the L.E.O. Method — Life Energization Optimization , about fear, death, Memento Mori, Freemasonry, inner energy, and the hard reality that human beings have been wrestling with mortality from the beginning. Death appears throughout scripture, ancient texts, myth, philosophy, ritual, and human m...

How do healthy habits, hard lifting, gratitude, and Freemasonry help build a better man? In EP 59 of Masonic Muscle , I continue my conversation with my best friend David Perez , also known as Darkness , about healthy living, commitment, discipline, positive thinking, hard training, family, gratitude, and the parallels between Freemasonry and working out. David and I talk about what it takes to bu...

What does esoteric actually mean in Freemasonry? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I read and discuss an article by Brother Shawn Eyer on esoterism from a Masonic perspective . This is one of those hot-button topics in the Craft. Some Brothers hear the word “esoteric” and immediately think nonsense, fantasy, or conspiracy. Others use the word so loosely that it loses all meaning. Brother Eyer he...

What is one of the most important books for serious Masonic ritual research ? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I briefly talk about Masonic Con 2022 at South Pasadena Lodge No. 290 , then turn to a book every serious Masonic researcher should know: The Early Masonic Catechisms by Douglas Knoop, G. P. Jones, and Douglas Hamer . Originally published in 1943 and later reprinted in 1963 with import...

IWhy do prospects choose Freemasonry today? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I interview two prospects at Palm Springs Lodge No. 693 , John Strozier and Steve Grasha , who recently received applications for the degrees of Masonry. We discuss what their experience has been like so far, what attracted them to the lodge, what surprised them, and why the Trivium Discussion Group helped them see Fre...

Which Masonic origin theory is true? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , we examine ten major theories on the origins of speculative Freemasonry summarized by Bro. Roeinton B. Khambatta in his inaugural paper delivered to Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076 on November 9, 2000. Khambatta’s paper reviewed views expressed in Ars Quatuor Coronatorum during the twentieth century on the origins of speculat...

How can a man take back his health after years of bad habits? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I introduce my best friend David Perez , also known as “Darkness.” After a hard workout in David’s dungeon, we sit down, pop open a beer, and have a real conversation about friendship, football, health, discipline, bad habits, diabetes, training, and Freemasonry. David and I have known each other sinc...

What are the three classes of Masons , and why should lodge officers care? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , we celebrate a major lodge moment: after much work, patience, and perseverance, three prospects receive applications for the degrees of Masonry at our lodge. Then we turn to William Preston’s Illustrations of Masonry , first published in 1772 , and read what he had to say about the three...

What does it mean to actually put in the work? In EP 53 of Masonic Muscle , I sit down with Daniel Duardo for a conversation about Palm Springs Lodge No. 693 , lodge culture, prospects, fitness, Freemasonry as hard work, and the esoteric side of the Craft. Daniel and I talk about his experience at the lodge, how he views Freemasonry, what we are trying to build at Palm Springs Lodge, and what happ...

Did Freemasonry develop from secret monastic cells trying to survive religious persecution? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , we continue Brother Cyril M. Batham’s theory that Freemasonry may have been shaped by monks, secrecy, hidden religious practice, and the dangerous political climate of England during the suppression of Catholic power. This episode asks one hard question: What if some part...

Did monks help create Freemasonry? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , we begin examining Brother Cyril M. Batham’s 1992 two-part lecture to the Philalethes Society , published through The Philalethes Magazine , one of the premier Masonic research journals in North America. Batham presented a bold theory: that the Craft may not have simply “transitioned” from operative stonemasons into speculative...

What is true failure? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I read an email from a Brother at Wendell Lodge No. 565 in North Carolina who shares his perspective on failure, effort, strength training, and why failure can be a good thing when it is understood and used correctly. He also introduces a workout system built from his own little lizard brain: Solomon Sets . Brother Cole takes Masonic langua...

Where is Freemasonry headed? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I sit down with Past Master George Whitmore , Past Assistant Grand Lecturer of the Grand Lodge of California , for a direct conversation about Freemasonry, leadership, ritual, moral decline, lodge standards, and the future of the Craft. Brother Whitmore shares what he has seen through years of service, what his research suggests abou...

How should a Masonic lodge guard the West Gate? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I sit down with Past Master Dago Rodriguez of South Pasadena Lodge No. 290 for a serious discussion about lodge standards, Observant Masonry, candidate education, Masonic education, and what it takes to build a stronger lodge culture. We talk about his time in the East, the process South Pasadena Lodge went through...

Is the Spring Equinox connected to Freemasonry? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , we look at the Spring Equinox as a symbol of renewal, balance, light, growth, and new life. Spring has always carried the sense that something is beginning again — but does that seasonal rhythm have any connection to Masonic symbolism? We also explore the Four Cardinal Virtues and ask whether astronomical knowledge...

How old is the Masonic Installation of Officers ? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I talk about Palm Springs Lodge No. 693 holding its 75th Installation of Officers on February 26, 2022 , while lodges across the country continue this important tradition of passing leadership from one group of officers to the next. But what does installation really mean? Is it just a ceremony? Is it a transfer o...

How does a lodge actually rebuild? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I sit down with Past Master Jeff Bayer , the original Curmudgeon Supreme and Wolverine’s Grandpappy, for Part 1 of a strong conversation about his 30 years in Freemasonry, his rise through the chairs at Palm Springs Lodge No. 693 , and what he observed about how Freemasonry was practiced in earlier years. Brother Jeff talks abo...

What are Masons supposed to speculate on? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , Brother Steve writes in, and we explore what it actually means to be Speculative Masons . Are we supposed to speculate on symbols? Morality? Conduct? Architecture? The origins of Freemasonry? The working tools? The builders who came before us? The age of the Craft? We also ask the hard historical question: How old is Fre...

What freedoms should Freemasons and American citizens defend? In this episode of Masonic Muscle , I read another email from a Brother back east, then turn to a 1948 article by Charles G. Reigner, M.P.S. , written in May of that year. Even though the article was written decades ago, its message still hits hard today. Reigner wrote about the essential freedoms that matter to Americans: liberty, free...