Authorities in the evolution of Freemasonry tell us that the Master's Degree was not present in the Old Operative Lodges. It is evidently the creation of the founders of Speculative Freemasonry.

The two degrees of Entered Apprentice and "Fellow of the Craft", or Fellow craft, were the only ones used by the Operative Lodges. The importance of the Master Mason's Degree to the Speculative Lodges can be seen in the opening lesson taught to the candidates; "Brotherly love, morality and relief. The most important tenets of Freemasonry are contained between the points of the compasses when properly extended."(1) We find in the Great Light of Freemasonry these same lessons in many places: "And this commandment we have from him, that, he who loves God should love his brother also" (1 John 4:21); "Blessed are they that keep judgment, and he that doeth righteousness at all times" (Psalms 106:3): "For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying. Thou shall open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land" (Deut. 15:11). In the First and Second Degrees the symbols of operative masonry and architecture were used to teach the candidate the lessons of those degrees.

In the first degree he was taught to symbolically use these tools to build his own character. In the second degree he was taught to build a better society by a study of the liberal arts and sciences and application of them. In the Third Degree he is taught the essential principle of the immortality of the soul. The third or sublime degree of a Master Mason is a dramatic tragedy. Each man is caused to play a part just as he is a player in the dramas of daily life. It is enacted in and about the Temple, and the Tragedy of Hiram Abif is part of its ritual. Hiram Abif was an historical figure and many legends exist about him, but our Hiram Abif is a symbol of the human soul and portrays what happens in the life of every man. It is the story of the journey that every man must take for himself.

The candidate for Master Mason is conducted on his journey, admonished by the message of the 12th chapter of Ecclesiastes, verses 1 through 7: "Remember now thy creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shall say, I have no pleasure in them, while the sun, or the light or the moon, or the stars be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: in the days when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders shall cease because they are few, and those that look out of the window be darkened, and the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird and all the daughters of music shall be brought low, also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and mourners go about the streets: or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it".

As Master Masons we are admonished to remember God and his service while we are still able because as we grow older our senses and physical abilities will not allow us to serve. No man who has received the Master's degree can forget the admonition to serve God in his youth as death may come quickly and rob him of the opportunity to serve. But at the same time we are taught that God is the God of old age and the soul after death just as much as He is of youth.

The working tools of a Master Mason are all of the tools of Freemasonry, for the Master must be able to use all of the tools before he can teach those who are less skilled than he in the arts of the craft. But the special tool reserved for the Master Mason is the trowel (Ed. note: American ritual). Operative masons use the trowel to spread the cement that unites and bonds a building together. As Master Masons we are taught to symbolically use the trowel to spread the cement of brotherly love and affection. This is the cement that binds a society of friends and brothers together in work and agreement.

The climax of the sublime Degree of Master Mason is the Tragedy of Hiram Abif. The lessons of the degree are many and are only discovered after years of reflection but there are several important points concerning this drama that should be clear in our minds.

Always remember that this ritualistic drama is as serious as a prayer before the altar. It is not a rite of initiation to test the courage and endurance such as those employed by savage and primitive peoples. Freemasonry is neither savage nor primitive. It is not a cruel game of horse play such as might be carried out by boys in school. Freemasonry is neither cruel nor juvenile. The presentation of our ritual should be serious and solemn. It should be taken seriously and no one either watching or participating in it should act trivially or unceremoniously.

Hiram Abif represents the human soul. His enemies came from within the circle of those who should have been his friends. Our greatest enemies are from within.

The Great Light teaches us: "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart: and they defile the man" (Matt. 15:19). And as the temple is representative of our soul, we learn that the completion of the temple is impossible because of the confusion caused by these enemies from within. Until the soul is restored and is raised from self-defeat to self- victory, the building of our spiritual temple will cease. This victory comes from within by the search for the truth as portrayed in our drama.

The completion of this degree is only the beginning of a man's Masonic Education. It gives hints and suggestions. The Master Mason represents a man fully grown, capable of thinking for himself. He has reached the apex of his journey in the Symbolic Lodge but only the beginning of his studies. The serious Mason will reflect back on the preparation Room lecture given him before his first entrance into a lodge of Masons. "Freemasonry is a beautiful system of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols". Through serious study and contemplation of the ritual of our degrees, and conversation with more experienced brethren, each man will remove the veil and discover the "mysteries" of our craft.

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(1) Masonic Manual of the Grand Lodge of Georgia, Macon, Georgia, 11th Ed., 1983, p. 64.