Masonic Treasure

Paper 06/2007 Title Masonic Treasure Author Bro Keith Zech – United States of America I would like to share with the Craft what I have noticed about the greatest benefit of our Masonic Associations. It is the issue of ‘Masonic Treasure’. There are two rec ent examples of w hat many of us and especially non-Masons consider ‘treasure’: National Treasure, and The Da Vinci Code. The story of National Treasure is one of the origins of a great treas ure of riches. This story starts with a grandfather embellishing a st ory of Masons and Knights Templar to his grandson. This starts, and continues, as a journey that tests not only the grandson’s resolve to uncover a mystery, but the strength of a family and of even Masonry to find what is a gr eat ‘treasure’. The grandson has obviously received a wonderful education as an historian and possibly archaeologist and has to use this knowledge to uncover/find the ‘treasure’, one of riches. Our next example of ‘treasure’ is the Da Vinci Code. This story revolves around the guarding of a treasure so great that it w ill destroy the foundation of th e Western World. As we follow this ‘treasure’ it focuses on a secret order of men that have many dubi ous practices and frightful examples of cruelty in their maintaining the guarded secret of ‘treasure’ and a very educated man t hat discovers it. My mentioning this story is to merely re late the concept of ‘treasure’ as it is seen for a popular value. This whole story is based on a ‘conspiracy theory’ and secrets hidden from humanity and the world. It treats ‘treasure’ as something guarded and dangerous, a secret, of revelation that can be used for destruction.
Here is where I start to link the two stories. All of us have seen some common threads in the previous ‘treasures’. The one constant link is that of knowledge a nd education, or for Masons, ‘Light’.
This is the link of the two stories and that it is knowledge/’Light’ is true treasure, not the only treasure, but a bonafide treasure all the same. As Masons we are constantly taught to improve ourselves in Masonry and seek ‘Light’. The question that we as Masons have is where do we receive ‘Light’? Is it just from the Blue Lodge? Is it from the extended rites of Freemasonry? Is it from our religion, our sc hools? I do not want to question anyones education, nor do I want to challenge any of the ways to seek ‘Light’. I do want us, especially as Masons, to realize that there are many ways to fi nd ‘Light’ and some of the beauty of Masonry is this knowledge. Next turn…. ‘Light’ and knowledge are NOT the only ‘treasures’ that we as Masons have. Here is another and possibly the most important part of what I consider worthy and Masonic ‘Treasure’. It is the ‘treasure’ of Brotherhood that touches our lives as True Treasure. Meeting Brot hers, all Brothers, on the Level, acting on the Plumb, and parting on the Square.