Scottish Rite
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry is a Rite within the broader context of Freemasonry. It is the most widely practiced Rite in the world.[1][2][3] In some parts of the world, and in the Droit Humain, it is a concordant body and oversees all degrees from the 1st to 33rd degrees, while in other areas, a Supreme Council oversees the 4th to 33rd degrees.
It is most commonly referred to as the Scottish Rite. Sometimes, as in England and Australia, it is called the Rose Croix,[4][5] though this is just one of its degrees, and is not to be confused with other Masonic related Rosicrucian societies such as the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia. Its name may vary slightly in various jurisdictions and constitutions. For example, the English and Irish Constitutions[6] omit the word Scottish.[7][8]
The Scottish Rite stands as a full Rite of Freemasonry and not an appendant body.[9] Master Masons from other rites may, in some countries, join the Scottish Rite's upper degrees starting from the 4th degree due to its popularity.[10][11] This Rite builds upon the ethical teachings and philosophy offered in the Craft (or Blue) Lodge through dramatic presentations of its individual degrees. It is crucial to note that the term "Blue Lodge" refers to the first three degrees of Masonry, regardless of the Rite being practiced. In the Scottish Rite system, the first three degrees are considered Blue Lodge degrees rather than "Red Lodge".[12]
History[edit]
Scots Master Degree[edit]
There are records of lodges conferring the degree of "Scots Master" or "Scotch Master" as early as 1733.[13][14][15] A lodge at Temple Bar in London is the earliest such lodge on record. Other lodges include a lodge at Bath in 1735, and the French lodge, St. George de l'Observance No. 49 at Covent Garden in 1736. The references to these few occasions indicate that these were special meetings held for the purpose of performing unusual ceremonies, probably by visiting Freemasons.[16]: 5 The Copiale cipher, dating from the 1740s[17] says, "The rank of a Scottish master is an entirely new invention..."[18]
Myth of Jacobite origins[edit]
French writers Jean-Marie Ragon (1781–1862) and Emmanuel Rebold, in their Masonic histories, first claimed that the high degrees were created and practiced in Lodge Canongate Kilwinning[19] at Edinburgh, which is entirely false.[20]
Estienne Morin[edit]
A French trader, by the name of Estienne Morin, had been involved in high-degree Masonry in Bordeaux since 1744 and, in 1747, founded an "Écossais" lodge (Scottish Lodge) in the city of Le Cap Français, on the north coast of the French colony of Saint-Domingue, now Haiti. Over the next decade, high-degree Freemasonry was carried by French men to other cities in the Western hemisphere. The high-degree lodge at Bordeaux warranted or recognized seven Écossais lodges there.
In Paris in the year 1761, a patent was issued to Estienne Morin, dated 27 August, creating him "Grand Inspector for all parts of the New World". This Patent was signed by officials of the Grand Lodge at Paris and appears to have originally granted him power over the craft lodges only, and not over the high, or "Écossais", degree lodges. Later copies of this Patent appear to have been embellished, probably by Morin, to improve his position over the high-degree lodges in the West Indies.[16]: 31–45
Morin returned to the West Indies in 1762 or 1763, to Saint-Domingue. Based on his new Patent, he assumed powers to constitute lodges of all degrees, spreading the high degrees throughout the West Indies and North America. Morin stayed in Saint-Domingue until 1766, when he moved to Jamaica. At Kingston, Jamaica, in 1770, Morin created a "Grand Chapter" of his new Rite, the Grand Council of Jamaica. Morin died in 1771 and was buried in Kingston.[21]: 16
Rite of 25 Degrees[edit]
Early writers long believed that a "Rite of Perfection" consisting of 25 degrees, itself the predecessor of the Scottish Rite, had been formed in Paris by a high-degree council calling itself "The Council of Emperors of the East and West". The title "Rite of Perfection" first appeared in the Preface to the "Grand Constitutions of 1786", the authority for which is now known to be faulty.[16]: 75–84 The highest degree in this rite was the "Sublime Prince of the Royal Secret".
It is now generally accepted that this Rite of twenty-five degrees was compiled by Estienne Morin and is more properly called "The Rite of the Royal Secret", or "Morin's Rite".[16]: 37
However, it was known as "The Order of Prince of the Royal Secret" by the founders of the Scottish Rite, who mentioned it in their "Circular throughout the two Hemispheres"[22] or "Manifesto", issued on December 4, 1802.[23]
Henry Andrew Francken and his manuscripts[edit]
Henry Andrew Francken, a naturalized French subject born as Hendrick Andriese Franken of Dutch origin, was most important in assisting Morin in spreading the degrees in the New World. Morin appointed him Deputy Grand Inspector General (DGIG) as one of his first acts after returning to the West Indies. Francken worked closely with Morin and, in 1771, produced a manuscript book giving the rituals for the 15th through the 25th degrees. Francken produced at least four such manuscripts. In addition to the 1771 manuscript, there is a second which can be dated to 1783; a third manuscript, of uncertain date, written in Francken's handwriting, with the rituals 4–25°, which was found in the archives of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Lancashire in Liverpool in approximately 1984; and a fourth, again of uncertain date, with rituals 4–24°, which was known to have been given by H. J. Whymper to the District Grand Lodge of the Punjab and rediscovered about 2010.[24] Additionally, there is a French manuscript dating from 1790 to 1800 which contains the 25 degrees of the Order of the Royal Secret with additional detail, as well as three other Hauts Grades rituals; its literary structure suggests it is derived from a common source as the Francken Manuscripts.[25]
Scottish Perfection Lodges[edit]
A Loge de Parfaits d' Écosse was formed on 12 April 1764 at New Orleans, becoming the first high-degree lodge on the North American continent. Its life, however, was short, as the Treaty of Paris (1763) ceded New Orleans to Spain, and the Catholic Spanish crown had been historically hostile to Freemasonry. Documented Masonic activity ceased for a time. It did not return to New Orleans until the late 1790s, when French refugees from the revolution in Saint-Domingue settled in the city.[21]: 16
Francken traveled to New York in 1767 where he granted a Patent, dated 26 December 1767, for the formation of a Lodge of Perfection at Albany, which was called "Ineffable Lodge of Perfection". This marked the first time the Degrees of Perfection (the 4th through the 14th) were conferred in one of the Thirteen British colonies in North America. This Patent, and the early minutes of the Lodge, are extant and are in the archives of Supreme Council, Northern Jurisdiction.[21]: 16 The minutes of Ineffable Lodge of Perfection reveal that it ceased activity on December 5, 1774. It was revived by Giles Fonda Yates about 1820 or 1821, and came under authority of the Supreme Council, Southern Jurisdiction until 1827. That year it was transferred to the Supreme Council, Northern Jurisdiction.
While in New York City, Francken also communicated the degrees to Moses Michael Hays, a Jewish businessman, and appointed him as a Deputy Inspector General. In 1781, Hays made eight Deputy Inspectors General, four of whom were later important in the establishment of Scottish Rite Freemasonry in South Carolina:
Exceptions, specificities, and disagreements[edit]
In many jurisdictions, there are also specificities, generally minor but sometimes more significant. These mainly concern which degrees are actually practiced, with other degrees being transmitted through "communication," following the common 18th-century practice, meaning that the ritual for the degree is not actually performed. Today, in some jurisdictions, it is common to have only the 4th, 9th, 12th, 13th and 14th performed by the Lodge of perfection (Green degrees),17th and 18th performed by the Chapters (Red degrees), 22nd, 26th, 28th and 30th on the Areopagus or (Black degrees) and the 31st, 32nd, 33rd degrees on a Consistory (White degree) level. Although some valleys or jurisdictions confers many more, while some other jurisdictions confer all of the degrees insisting on communicating none.
Moreover, the U.S. and Canadian system progresses much more rapidly than in other countries, allowing one to reach the 32nd degree in a relatively short span, whereas in Europe and South America, such progression requires diligent practice over more than two decades. For this reason, several European and South American jurisdictions do not automatically recognize the high degrees received by their members during their stay in the United States and will sometime bar U.S. 32nd degree members from attending their meetings.
The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite by country[edit]
General practices[edit]
In most parts of the world the Scottish Rite is practiced as a full Rite, starting with the Blue Lodge degrees, under the jurisdiction of a Grand Lodge, then becomes an invitation only body for "upper" degrees divided in groups, the candidate must then wait a period of time after being made a Master Mason of three to five years depending on the jurisdiction (sometimes must be past-master), then may be honored with an invitation to the Green Loges (4th-14th), if the brother shows diligence and hard work he may then become invited to the Red Lodges (15th–18th) and receive the degree, again after hard work and dedication he may be invited to the Black Lodges (19th-30th) and received the degrees, then be invited to the white Lodges (31st-33rd). This process takes an average of 25 years to accomplish if the brother is invited to every group and only a very small fraction can make it all the way to 33rd degree. It is worth noting that in the United States of America, the Scottish Rite process is a lot different than the rest of the world and tend to be a lot faster (only a few days or weeks), and the Master Mason can petition to receive the upper degrees,[75] although a new observant movement is developing and the idea of forming an "observant Valley" that would take more time and be more selective is being explored to curb falling membership numbers.[76][77]
The Droit Humain does not make a jurisdictional distinction between Blue degrees to upper degrees and holds an international jurisdiction over its Scottish Rite system.
Scottish Rite Masonic Calendar[edit]
The Scottish Rite Masonic calendar celebrates the creation of the world (Anno Mundi), 3760/3761 years before the beginning of the Common Era (C.E.) and is based upon the older, Hebraic (Hebrew) calendar, which begins the civil year in September rather than the Gregorian calendar which begins the new year in January (current date +3760), thus after September of the current year, add 1 year more (date +3760 +1), as by example displayed in 'The book of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry' (revised and enlarged edition, 1899, chapter: Hebrew Calendar, page 612), written by Charles T. Mcclenachan, 33°, Grand Master General of Ceremonies of the Supreme Council, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, U.S A.
North America[edit]
Canada[edit]
In Canada, whose Supreme Council was warranted in 1874 by that of England and Wales, the Rite is known as Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite. The council is called "Supreme Council 33° Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of Canada". Canada's Supreme Council office is located at 4 Queen Street South in Hamilton, Ontario. There are 45 local units or "Valleys" across Canada.[99]
United States[edit]
In the United States of America there are three Supreme Councils: one in Washington, D.C. (which controls the Southern Jurisdiction), one in Lexington, Massachusetts (which controls the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction) as well as the Supreme Council of Louisiana.[100] They each have particular characteristics that make them different. In the United States, members of the Scottish Rite can be elected to receive the 33° by the Supreme Council[101] and is conferred on members who have made major contributions to society or to Masonry in general.