Scottish Rite Temples

Scottish Rite Temple:

'via Blog this'

One of the most unusual buildings in the eclectic Sixteenth Street Historic District is the Temple of the Scottish Rite at 1733 16th Street. The building, designed by John Russell Pope who also designed the National Archives and the Jefferson Memorial, was constructed between 1911 and 1915. It was built to headquarter the Supreme Council of the Southern Jurisdiction of the 33rd Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Rite of Freemasonry. An international fraternal order, the Masons have claimed a number of past Presidents, such as George Washington and Harry Truman, as members. Pope used the tomb of King Mausolus at Halicarnassus, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, as his model for the Temple. Outside, guarding the temple doors, is a pair of monumental sphinxes that represent wisdom and power. The Temple is laced with symbolism in its design and decor, much of which requires close attention and may not be obvious to non-Masons. In 1931, the building was voted the fifth most beautiful building in the world by a group of members from the Association of American Architects. The library, the first public library in the District of Columbia, contains one of the world's largest collections of materials on and by Scottish poet Robert Burns, who was a Freemason. The Library was opened to the public at the request of Albert Pike who donated his personal collection of books with the stipulation that they be available for use, free of charge, by the general public. One of the most striking monuments in the nation's capital, the imaginative facade of the Temple creates a visual experience worth viewing.

The Scottish Rite Temple is located at 1733 16th St., NW, between R and S Sts. Tours are offered on weekdays from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. Appointments must be made to peruse the library's collections. For further information, please call 202/232-3579. Metro stop: Dupont Circle

http://scottishrite.org/photocontest/

It is a place where the glory of the Grand Architect of the Universe is celebrated and the aim of human progress is affirmed--a place of study and education, recreation and fellowship, learning and reflection, charity and compassion. A place where one can expect the human spirit to be lifted and the brotherhood of man embraced.

Here, men come together because they desire to model excellence in heroes, leaders, protectors, providers, servants, and role models of humankind. Such endeavor is the real celebration of life.

What is the Scottish Rite?

The Scottish Rite is a Masonic organization that continues a Master Mason’s education of the first three degrees.  Other examples of Masonic affiliated organizations are: The Shrine (Shriners); York Rite; Grotto; Eastern Star, DeMolay International, Job’s Daughter’s, International Order of Rainbow for Girls and the Tall Cedars of Lebanon.  The Scottish Rite consists of the 4°–32° and an honorary 33°, which is awarded for exceptional service.

Why is it called the House of the Temple?

The name “House of the Temple” is traditionally associated to the word Heredom, a significant word in high degree freemasonry, a derivation of which, suggests the Greek words hieros-domos, meaning “Holy House”, thus referring to the Temple of Solomon, which is central to Masonic ritual and symbolism.

Architecture

Having been inspired by the architecture of Karnak, the building features several forms seen in Ancient Egyptian architecture.^[4] The building itself is in the form of an Egyptian pylon. The monumental entrance, inspired by the Bab al-Amara Gate at Karnak, is flanked by a pair of sphinxes, by the sculptor Allen W. Barr.^[5] The roof is surmounted by two protruding obelisks that originally functioned as chimneys.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morals_and_Dogma_of_the_Ancient_and_Accepted_Scottish_Rite_of_Freemasonry

Everyone is entirely free to reject and dissent from whatsoever   of Historic Places Scottish Rite Temple from the corner of N. Claiborne and St. Francis Streets. herein may seem to him to be untrue or unsound.

”

Though it discusses the minutiae of Masonic ritual at length, it is written so as not to reveal the Masonic secrets. Ritual motions and objects are named and elaborated upon, but not described. In hisallocution of 1947, Pike's successor, Grand Commander John Henry Cowles, noted that some Masonic publications had used large extracts from the text, which practice he sought to curtail by adding the following words to the title page: 'Esoteric Book, for Scottish Rite use only; to be Returned upon Withdrawal or Death of Recipient' (Transactions of the Supreme Council, 33°, S.J. (1947), p. 38). Although Morals and Dogma is an esoteric book, it was not a secret one; Pike's original preface was clear that any Mason could own the book, but only Scottish Rite Masons would be encouraged to own one. Canada

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".

Northern Masonic Jurisdiction

The Lexington, Massachusetts-based Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, formed in 1813, oversees the bodies in fifteen states: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Wisconsin and Vermont. It uses only the term Valley.^[28] Each Valley has up to four Scottish Rite bodies, and each body confers a set of degrees.

In the Northern Jurisdiction, the Supreme Council consists of no more than 66 members. All members of the Supreme Council are designated Sovereign Grand Inspectors General, but the head of the Rite in each Valley of the Northern Jurisdiction is called a "Deputy of the Supreme Council."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJkSAUAmOM0

United States

Scottish Rite Cathedral in Indianapolis, Indiana

In the United States of America there are two Supreme Councils: one inWashington, D.C. (which controls the Southern Jurisdiction), and one in Lexington, Massachusetts (which controls the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction). They each have particular characteristics that make them different.

[edit]Southern Jurisdiction

Based in Washington, D.C., the Southern Jurisdiction (often referred to as the "Mother Supreme Council of the World") was founded in Charleston, South Carolina in 1801. It oversees the Scottish Rite in 35 states, which are referred to asOrients, and local bodies, which are called Valleys. ^[25][26][27]

In the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States, the Supreme Council consists of no more than 33 members, and is presided over by a Grand Commander. Other members of the Supreme Council are called "Sovereign Grand Inspectors General" (S.G.I.G.), and each is the head of the Rite in his respective Orient (or state). Other heads of the various Orients who are not members of the Supreme Council are called "Deputies of the Supreme Council." The Supreme Council of the Southern Jurisdiction meets every odd year during the month of August at the House of the Temple, Scottish Rite of Freemasonry Southern Jurisdiction Headquarters, in Washington, DC. During this conference, closed meetings between the Grand Commander and the S.G.I.G.'s are held, and many members of the fraternity from all over the world attend the open ceremony on the 5th of 6 council meeting days.

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Birth of the Scottish Rite

Although most of the thirty-three degrees of the Scottish Rite existed in parts of previous degree systems,^[18] the Scottish Rite did not come into being until the formation of the Mother Supreme Council at Charleston, South Carolina, in May 1801. They were known as "The Eleven Gentlemen of Charleston", the Founding Fathers of the Scottish Rite .

John Mitchell - Received a patent April 2, 1795, from Barend Moses Spitzer granting him authority as Deputy Inspector General to create a Lodge of Perfection and several Councils and Chapters wherever such Lodges or Chapters were needed. Born in Ireland in 1741, he came to America at an early age, was Deputy Quartermaster General in the Continental Army, and the first Grand Commander of the Supreme Council.

Frederick Dalcho - A physician. He served in the Army and for a while was stationed at Fort Johnson. He formed a partnership with Dr. Isaac Auld, another of the original members, in 1801. He was an outstanding orator and author. In 1807 he published the 1st Edition of Ahiman Rezon. He became an editor of the Charleston Courier, was a lay reader and deacon in the Episcopal Church and in 1818 was ordained a Priest.

Alexander Francois Auguste de Grasse Tilly - A son of a French Admiral, and perhaps the most famously connected of all the original eleven. He was the youngest of the members and was named to become the Grand Commander of the West Indian Islands. He later moved to France and established the Supreme Council of France.

Jean Baptiste Marie deLaHogue - He was a native of Paris and was a member of La Candeur Lodge in Charleston.

Thomas Bartholemew Bowen - Was the first Grand Master of Ceremonies of the new Supreme Council. He was a Major in the Continental Army and a printer by trade.

Abraham Alexander - Was one of the first Sovereign Grand Inspectors General. He was born in London in 1743, immigrated to Charleston in 1771. He was a very prominent Jew and had been described as "a Calligraphist of the first order", which may account for his election as the first Grand Secretary General.

Emanuel de la Matta - A Sovereign Grand Inspector General. He was by trade a merchant and auctioneer. He was a member of Friendship Lodge and was reported to be quite devoted to the study of Jewish Literature and Masonic Study.

Isaac Auld - An eminent physician, associated in medical practice with Dr. Dalcho. He was a rigid Congregationalist.

Israel de Lieben - A Sovereign Grand Inspector General and the first Grand Treasurer General. He was born in Prague and emigrated to America upon reaching Majority age. He was known as "the liberal-headed Jew", who was "tolerant in his religious opinions and was considered to be intelligent, enterprising, liberal and generous.

Moses Clava Levy - Was born in Krakow, Poland. He was a prosperous merchant, was generous and helpful to the unfortunate and devoted to his adopted city and country.

James Moultrie - Was the only native South Carolinian among the original members. He was a Doctor of Medicine, and according to Albert Pike, "was one of the foremost Citizens of South Carolina".

Isaac De Costa, one of the deputies commissioned to establish Morin's Rite of the Royal Secret in other countries, formed constituent bodies of the Rite in South Carolina in 1783, which eventually became, in 1801, The Supreme Council of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction. All regular Scottish Rite bodies today derive their heritage from this body.

Subsequently, other Supreme Councils were formed in Saint-Domingue in 1802, in France in 1804, in Italy in 1805, and in Spain in 1811.^[19]

On May 1, 1813, an officer from the Supreme Council at Charleston initiated several New York Masons into the Thirty-third Degree and organized a Supreme Council for the "Northern Masonic District and Jurisdiction". On May 21, 1814 this Supreme Council reopened and proceeded to "nominate, elect, appoint, install and proclaim in due, legal and ample form" the elected officers "as forming the second Grand and Supreme Council...". Finally, the charter of this organization (written January 7, 1815) added, "We think the Ratification ought to be dated 21st day May 5815."^[20

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_Rite

Scottish Rite Temple (Mobile, Alabama) - Wikipedia, the free ...

en.wikipedia.org/.../Scottish_Rite_Temple_(M...

The Scottish Rite Temple, now known as The Temple Downtown, is a historic former masonic building in Mobile, Alabama, United States. It was built to serve as ...

Welcome to the Oakland Scottish Rite’s Fraternal Website

As Freemasons, we seek to strengthen our Bay Area community by being men of integrity and good character and exalting the dignity of every person to live a civic life maximizing his service to humanity.

All Scottish Rite Masons are Freemasons. Of the 1.7 million Freemasons in the United States, approximately 550 thousand are Scottish Rite Masons.  The Oakland Scottish Rite was built in 1883.

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