December 22, 2025 • 27 mins
He might jokingly call himself a "Masonic has-been," but RW Chad Kopenski is one of the most forward-thinking Masonic educators today. A Past Master, including the Ohio Lodge of Research, and a founder of the Royal Scofield Society for the Grand Lodge of Ohio, Chad brings his professional lens as an educator to the Craft to ask a fundamental question: What is the purpose of our Ritual? In this episode, Bro. Kopenski unpacks his powerful program, "Rethinking Ritual." Using the vivid and relatable analogy of a traditional family Christmas dinner, he challenges us to look beyond mere memorization and see our ceremonies as a conscious, intentional act of identity-building and connection.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Commons. Opinions and views shared during this program are
of those individual Freemasons and do not reflect the official
position of a Grand Lodge, Concordant Body, Appendant Body, a
Masonic authority, or Craftsman Online dot com.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Hey, welcome back to the Craftsman Online Podcast, the only
Masonic podcast, and George by the Grand Lodge of New York.
I'm your host right worship for Brother Michael Arsa, and
we are at the final episode at least our last
guest episode for twenty twenty five. Geez, season five? Where
did that go? Amazing? Before we get started with our
guests this week, I want to thank all of you
(00:50):
who have decided to jump up and support the show
on Patreon. I really do appreciate that we're pushing for
twenty new subscribers to close out the end of this year.
You can join us on Patreon at Craftsman Online Podcast.
We got a seven day trial for you to see
if it's a good fit. Just five dollars a month,
you get ad free episodes, plus access to all of
our subscriber extra episodes, which is basically extra time with
(01:14):
some of our favorite guests, like this week's guest. You
can start your free trial by opening up the link
and the notes for this episode. Well, it's always interesting
when you get a guest who calls himself a Masonic
has been turns out to be. He's one of the
more forward thinking Masonic educators today. He's a past Master
of the Ohio Lodge of Research, a founder of the
(01:35):
Royal Schofield Society for the Grand Lodge of Ohio, and
a right worshipful brother. We're happy to have him on
as a first timer. Brother, Chad Kopenski, Welcome to the
Craftsman Online Podcast.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
It is an honor to be here. I'm kind of
sequestered in Ohio at this point, and so the only
way I get to get out is usually electronically.
Speaker 2 (01:52):
This way, same thing, Dude. I can't tell you how
many brothers I have virtually met, and then when I
do get a chance to actually see them in person.
Now I'm like, oh, this is kind of cool, Like
it's crazy, this new way of making friends, the concept
of rethinking ritual, just hearing your background story, now, knowing
more about your passion with the craft, your professional you know,
skills all mirrying together here. When I started going through
(02:15):
your deck, I was really kind of impressed that you
compare your kind of your framing devices. You're comparing the
Sonic ritual to a family's Christmas dinner, and that's a
fantastic analogy. I never would have ever thought that before.
Can you walk us through this and why is it
such a powerful statement.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
I think that our brethren have sort of lost the
idea of what ritual was supposed to be, Like what
the purpose of our ritual is. We think about it
as this performative thing. We think about it as this
thing of like I have to go there. I have
to get my words right. I have to, you know,
I have to. I have to. I have to. I
have to. And I want brethren to take a second
(02:56):
and think about it differently, and I want them to
think about our ritual like it's Christmas dinner in most families.
It's one of those things where people come together at
one time, and there's certain things that only happen at
that time. Right, the good china comes out, you dress up,
certain foods happen, certain stories get told, certain traditions happen.
(03:17):
There's a both a descriptive and a prescriptive element of this.
The story that I use to kind of frame this
all is my twin sister bringing her then boyfriend into
my family, having him go through three different family events.
My other brother in law sort of took him aside
and said, all right, here are the players, here's the
things you need to do. Here's how you're going to
(03:38):
get through this particular event. Here's stuff you need to know.
All right, we got you go do We do these
things at these times and only these times as a
descriptive element is to say, this is who we are.
These are the things that we value. We value these stories,
these items, these things. But it's also a prescriptive thing.
(04:03):
If you want to come into our family, you got
to know what you're getting into. We got to know
that we value these items. We value these ideals, We
value these times, these moments, these stories, these people, and
we do those things because what we are doing is
(04:24):
we are forging, maintaining and celebrating these meaningful connections that
transcend things like time, distance, and death. And so what
that means for us as Mason's when you just stop
thinking about our ritual as lifeless, you think about it
like a Christmas dinner. We are bringing somebody into our family.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
It's the performative part of the ritual. You're putting in
the meaning of the ritual, but also you're injecting your
lodge's DNA, that culture into the new brother, the candidate
that's coming through, and now they're being You're showing that
them how to be a Mason. And it's a conversation
I've had. I need to start writing my theories down.
There's like the uh way to do things, and then
(05:07):
there's the way to do things. And of course our
ritual says this, this, this, this, But the way that
we perform it and talk about it that's the Masonic
education part. That's how we're transferring that knowledge to the
next guy.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
What I also talk about in this is that, like,
what's the purpose of our proficiencies. We think about it
as like I'm going to teach you those rituals and
you better learn it. No, no, no, no. Think about a proficiency
like you are walking through your mom's house or your
grandmother's house and look at the pictures on the wall.
The proficiency is a way for us. It's a mechanism
(05:40):
for a brother to talk to a new brother and
teach him how to be a Mason and how to
be how to be a Mason and a member of
that launch. The proficiency is just the mechanism, but the
intention behind it, a purpose behind it isn't just being
able to recite that Catechism word for words so that
(06:01):
when the guy I'm you know, mentoring, says say, hold on,
what does this mean? And we talk about, well, here's
what that means, and here's what this here's what I
think it is, or I don't know, let's go find
this out together. One of the best conversations I think
a lodge can have. I've said, brother, I want you
to think about your EA degree. Tell me a moment
(06:24):
that life is really important to you, it really sticks
with you. And the brethren start talking about it, and
they all have different things for me. When they brought
me in and somebody said arise, follow your guide and
fear no danger for a second, I thought to myself,
hold on, nobody talks like that, and that means that
(06:44):
probably more than likely that there have been generations where
they realize that this is kind of a weird thing,
what you're doing, being blindfolded and less than clothes and
in a room where it's really uncomfortable for me. That's
the moment that means a lot to me. And so
(07:05):
as I'm talking to the breath and I'm like, you know,
I really want to make sure that our candidate kind
of has the same sensation that I do. And another
guy will say, you know what it was for me
when they put the apron on me for that first time.
My dad did it. And when he did it, he
just yanked on that you know, that string, and I
(07:25):
really I felt that weight or that pressure of the
apron around my waist and I understood, especially with what
they were saying that I was now bound as a lodger.
Were like, whoa, that's awesome. And as we talked about this,
now we think, okay, well, how do we make sure
(07:50):
that our new guy's coming in that they have a
similar experience when the education officer talks to him afterwards,
let's talk about why we did that. This is something
that we value is a lot.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Well, you kind of provide some stare steps for brothers
to follow in your program because it's built around the
three pillars of intentional ritual, and you make some key points.
I want to hit the first one here, which is
know your role. And this is really for the officers
the brothers that are there the Degree team. What do
you mean by know your role? I'm guessing it's more
(08:22):
than just know your part.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
There's nothing passive about our ritual. It drives me nuts
when I see a third of the guys get up
and leave the room right before the lecture starts, or
they are on their phone, or the one that bothers
me the most is when they start practicing, you know,
(08:45):
their ritual while everything else is going on. I'm thinking,
you know, if you are an officer, right, you have
a role there during this during the degree kind of
like a Christmas dinner. Right you're doing the cooking, you're
carving the turkey, like you have a particular job that
you need to do. But the candidate also has a
(09:09):
particular role right there. They're the new guy coming in
and there's people around him to kind of keep him
safe and make sure that things go well. But the
people on the sidelines also have a particular role. If
we do these things at these times to forge, you know,
strengthen and celebrate those connections that transcend things like time,
(09:31):
distance and death. That's what your job is in the sidelines.
Your job is not to check out. Your job is
to recognize that there's somebody new coming into your family,
and that in a way, I mean, this is the
weirdest sort of you know thinking, but that candidate at
the altar is in many ways it's also you. Right,
(09:53):
there's you just to think about the time that you
know of that alter the experience. You had to remember
what those obligations and those lessons were to celebrate that
there is this person coming into our family. If if you,
if I were to tell you that there's a we're
doing conferring a degree tonight, how quickly can you come
(10:13):
up with excuses that will get you out of coming
to that that degree? Now, if I tell you that
Christmas dinner is tonight, what in the world are you
going to be able to say to your mom or
your dad or your siblings that will excuse you from
being at that table once you realize, wow, sorry, we
(10:35):
have a we have a huge storm outside.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
And so okay, I thought I was wondering what that was,
and was like, either it's my neighbors throwing their garage
their garbage cans up and down the road, or.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
No, we have a huge storm. Luckily, my dog isn't freaking.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
Out I'm a theater person.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
This is all for a fact. I brought this all
for you. There's a great book that I think that
everybody who considers themselves a ritualist should read. It's a
book called The Empty Space by Peter Brook. He is
a theater practitioner. It's a series of essays about the
nature of theater, the dangerous theater, the poor theater, and
(11:45):
there's one that he calls the Holy Theater. And what
he talks about is that in the Holy theater, the
actors know they're their lines, know what they're having to
do so well, they've trained in such a way, and
(12:06):
they're doing things with such an intention. If that special
spark happens, that might be what he called the quickening,
where there might be it's so amazing and so perfect
that you pierce the veil and you glimpse the divine
or glimpse the infant. You have to know the words,
like you have to know about your lines. See it,
(12:27):
I'm talking about ritual in such a way. This is
like you know, press and web, and it's not focusing
on the words, it's focusing on the message. Right. I
think so many brethren gets so worked up on the words,
and that's why they start saying I'm sorry, I'm sorry,
I'm sorry, or they start messing up if you focus
on the story that you're trying to tell, right, what
(12:48):
is more important? Is it more important that you tell
the story of Grandpa with Harry Truman the way that
I tell the story, or is it more important that
you tell the story about Grandpa with Harry Truman? Like,
there's not any real one right answer. But when it
comes to our ritual, in my mind, I'm thinking I
would much rather as I'm talking to this, if I'm
(13:10):
giving a lecture, if I'm helping, you know, work with
the other officers to create this experience for the candidate,
I want to focus on the experience and focus on
the story, and focus on the journey, as opposed to
whether I say Harris or harass.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
Let's get to the third the third point you talk
about focusing on the connections, and this part of your
presentation I was really interested in because here's the issue
that we run in right now, is this modern instant
gratification society, and we have these guys coming in for
this transformative experience and we're trying to, you know, make
that connection with them, give them the best experience that
(13:48):
they could possibly have. How do we what's your advice
on how we can focus on that connection during the
rituals so that it's not transactional stuff of an experience,
it's it's something meaningful.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
So it's Christmas dinner transactional. No, it is right, It's
that time that you get to spend with cousin Mike
you never get to see and you get to just
reconnect and retalk to them. It is that time to
walk through your mom's house and be like to hear
those stories, to play you know, a card game with
(14:23):
your siblings and to laugh and to tell it and yeah,
there's going to be fights, but honestly those are some
of the stories too.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Well. You have guys that are looking to be a
part of something bigger than themselves. This has been a theme.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
Okay, so we're doing all these things where we're I mean,
we're doing these one day classes and there's nothing it's
one day classes. There's actually a way to do them
in such a way that they you know, they they're useful.
But instead of thinking about it as a destination, right
like I want to get it. I want to get
something I want to put it on a shelf to
do have practice in those connections. Why do guys stay?
It's because of the guys who has the experience. We
(15:06):
there are guys we talk to who live across the
street from a lodge and they don't go, but they
would drive three hours to a to lodge or a
lodge that really focused on education. Oh wait a minute,
so they will. They won't cross the street or something
that isn't meaningful, but they'll drive three hours to something
(15:29):
that is. In some ways, you can't expect every single
lodge to give you everything you need. So we realized
that there were guys who, yeah, they live across from
a lodge and they go there because well, you know,
on Thursday nights. But when I really want to see
a good degree, I want to go over to this
lodge because man, they just use work or man, you've
got to go to this lodge when they are talking about,
(15:52):
you know, this education series. And so for guys to
realize what it is that is important to them and
then to find those lodges or those seeds that provide
the experience. And that's why, honestly, for Better or for
Worse podcasts and conventions have done wonders because, like we
said earlier, all of a sudden, people have access to things,
(16:16):
to ideas they didn't are connections they didn't even know before,
and that that's okay. So instead of feeling frustrated because
there's a lodge that isn't giving it what you want,
there's a way to get what you want by focusing
on the connections. And what I mean by that is
understand what you know our rituals for and what our
(16:36):
proficiencies are for. Don't just yelled the guy to you know,
get those words right. I don't know. I always like
to pair the newest entted apprentice with the oldest, crabbiest
past master I can find, right, Or how about this,
as silly as it sounds, don't let anybody sit alone
(16:56):
in your lodge. If somebody comes into your line, make
sure there is somebody who sits next to him that's
within about like two or three feet. In Ohio, we
we can do business in any degree, but you know
there's certain things you can only do in fellowcraft, you know,
like a fellowcraft return. So you got to send an
EA out in the hallway, Well, hell, have somebody go
(17:19):
sit with the dude. We spend all this time saying,
you know, you're part of a brotherhood that will always
be there, and like oh yeah, by the way, you
can't see this go out in the hallway. And as
silly as it sounds, probably one of the best ways
to think about this is just the Mason's meaning. Focus
on the connections. Focus on that experience, you know, what
(17:40):
is the what kind of experience were you looking for
and did you want coming into the law When you
are walking on the lodge and you see those things
up on the wall, you know, instead of when somebody says,
who's that picture? You go, oh't you know? I don't know.
Let's find it out together. Like, focus on the connection
is between the brothers and their community, the lodges that
(18:04):
are struggling. One of the things I tell them about
our ritual is if they're sitting there freaking out about like, well,
that's great chat, you're saying these things, but I don't
know enough guys to open lodge. Fine, I get that.
So with the guys, you have commit yourselves to one thing,
but really true things, something internal and then something external,
(18:26):
something internal that's just for the brethren just to again
focus on those connections, focus on you know, maybe it's
dinner before long. Two really cool examples I've heard of,
but there's so many that just think about the brethren
of your lodge, what's something that's just them? I mean
(18:47):
maybe it's t shirts, right, they all have the same
like lodge or that they wear. But two cool examples
that I just I love to death. There are masters
in Ohio where the master and the senior wardens stand
inside the door and they shake a brother's hand as
he walks into lots like hey, glad you're here. And
(19:07):
then when it comes time to do the purge and
say like hey, it's time to start, they close the doors,
take their seats, you know, rather than take this and
you talk about loneliness, think about how many men go
through their day without anybody actually making physical contact with them.
But here's somebody who shakes their hand and takes a
second and says, hey, man, I'm really glad you're here.
(19:29):
It's a second. But just how much that means to
that guy, And as a master and as a as
a senior warden, how great it is just in terms
of like controlling your meeting. I actually used to do
this with my students. I would stand out in the
hallway and like shake their hand as they came into class.
It's amazing. The stuff that would get solved before the
bell ever rang is that hey, gopensy, I got to
(19:50):
run and do this like yep, go great, thank you
good to see it like it. So the other cool
thing that I saw, And it would take a very
special lodge to do this. As they're closing, before they
do the final rap, they send all the visitors out
and all the brethren of the lodge come and they
stand around the altar in a circle and the masterress
like reminds them of their you know, obligations and says, guys,
(20:13):
all right, what's going on, Like what's good, what's bad?
And you know, sometimes guys will go around and say like, yeah,
things are going on well, like I got this you know,
emotion at work. But then there are guys who at
the meal before lodge will are like everything's great, But
in that moment where they are just being brethren to
each other, they're like, hey, my wife and I are
(20:35):
fighting and it's going kind of hard, or you know,
I'm having this legal trouble. I'm not quite sure what
to do or to talk to or I just went
to the doctor and I really rid about this. But
this is this moment at our lodge where it's just us,
the Brethren, being there for each other. So that's something
internal and then something external. We talked about guys want
(20:57):
to be useful, right, I just want to be good
on a good team. You know. That's the other part
I talk about when I talk about our ritual is
you know, ask anybody who's ever been in a really
good theatrical show or been a running football team, and
they'll talk about it. Why because they were good on
a good team, and that that it's a moment that
means something to you.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
Have you ever watched the TV show The Bear at
all on FX? It's on Hulu as well.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
The Bear I have. That's a hard show to get
into sometimes that's not really a comedy.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
No it's not. And so that I'm so refreshed. I'm
so thankful. It's refreshing that you have watched the show.
Because I'm going to make an analogy here and well,
you're talking about Christmas dinner and rethinking the ritual. It's
the second season, the Christmas episode. Yes, man, I was
sweating it and stressing it watching that with the just
(22:14):
the anti family, just bad behavior that was happening there.
So I'm sitting here thinking like, okay, the idea of
making our lodge experience like a Christmas dinner, how do
we start that. What's the one simple thing that we
could we could try to put into place to get
our brothers in that mindset of let's make our ritual
like having Christmas dinner with a family.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
The way that I started with lodges is you can
be able to do this with the entire lodge, but honestly,
I have seen most lodges be successful with this. As
an officer team, you get your main officers, you go
out to dinner or you grab a pizz'sifth lodge and
you start talking about what does it mean to be
(22:58):
a member of this line? Like what and if? If
that's a hard question to start with. Start with the ritual, guys,
was that one thing you remember, like what if you
were going to create like the perfect ea, Like what's
the one moment you want to show that we don't
mess up? And then started that conversation and then maybe
start about talking about well, okay, so what does it
(23:20):
mean to be a member of our lodge, Like, what
is it that is really important to us? Is it
important to us that we all wear tuxes? Okay? Well
then what does that? Is it important to us that
we are out of here by?
Speaker 1 (23:30):
Like?
Speaker 3 (23:30):
What what does it mean to be a member of
this family? Okay? And maybe it is a set of
principles or it is a set of ideas or questions
or Ohio has a has a thing we use called
the roadmap for Improvement, and there's Michigan has something similar
and so many other places do too. Of just like
a way to talk about value. Identify what your lodge values.
(23:52):
And that's not a conversation that only happens once, I
because and it's not something that you get perfect right away.
It's something that's ongoing and developing. And if you're master,
you're not gonna you're gonna get it. You're gonna you're
gonna take your thing three yards down the field and
(24:17):
it's not going to pay off for years, but at
least you've done your three yards and you have that
kind of plan. Who are we as a lodge? What
does what does it mean to be a member of
this lodge? And how do we make members of this
and focus on those connections, tell the stories, make them,
make them see masonry the way that you do. But
(24:39):
first off, maybe figure out what you guys as your lodge.
But how do you see masonry? What's important to you?
Go from there.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
It's the simplest question, because it's the hardest thing to
do is to start making that idea into action and
like where do we begin? And that's the best thing,
is like to get the leaders together and say, okay,
like you said, what does it mean to be a
member of this lodge? Like what do we know that
we can do? And let's just focus on doing that
and being awesome at it.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
I'm fascinated by this guy named John Shearer, who's this
like lithographer from the eighteen hundred and I have been
to so many lodges where they have this great Shearer
print up on the wall, and I asked you guys,
like what is do you guys know what this is?
They've walked by it one hundred times, they have no clue.
(25:25):
And here's this piece I've been looking for for ten years.
You know that isn't supposed to exist hanging on their wall,
Like do you not realize how cool this is be
a tourist in your own lodge. I mean all those
things you take for granted. I think about it like
a new member. You know, they don't know the stories,
(25:45):
they don't know why these things happen the way they happen.
So do think about it like do think about it
like this is this is your daughter's fiance coming to
your house. Okay, all right, dude, at some point this
is all going to be yours. We say what it
(26:05):
needs to be a member of this family. Here's the grill,
Here's what the tools are, Here's how we cook chicken.
And you know, I'll stay with you and we'll figure
this all out together. Does better get that chicken right?
Think about that way, focus on the connections in the family,
and everything else might not get fixed, but at least
it'll be better.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
Hey, if you've enjoyed this episode with worship of Brother
Chad Kopenski, well, he talked about making the lodge kind
of like a Christmas dinner. You get some desserts. If
you're a Craftsman Online Patreon subscriber, we will get some
bonus time with him and a subscriber extra episode. You
can join us on Patreon For just five dollars a month,
get ad free episodes and access to that full back catalog.
The link to start your seven day trial is in
(26:49):
the notes for this episode, I'm right worship for Brother
Michael Larci Geez. Next week, we're gonna start counting down
the ten most popular episodes for twenty twenty five. Until then,
peace and harmony prevail.
The Commons. Opinions and views shared during this program are
of those individual Freemasons and do not reflect the official
position of a Grand Lodge, Concordant Body, Appendant Body, a
Masonic authority, or Craftsman Online dot com.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Hey, welcome back to the Craftsman Online Podcast, the only
Masonic podcast, and George by the Grand Lodge of New York.
I'm your host right worship for Brother Michael Arsa, and
we are at the final episode at least our last
guest episode for twenty twenty five. Geez, season five? Where
did that go? Amazing? Before we get started with our
guests this week, I want to thank all of you
(00:50):
who have decided to jump up and support the show
on Patreon. I really do appreciate that we're pushing for
twenty new subscribers to close out the end of this year.
You can join us on Patreon at Craftsman Online Podcast.
We got a seven day trial for you to see
if it's a good fit. Just five dollars a month,
you get ad free episodes, plus access to all of
our subscriber extra episodes, which is basically extra time with
(01:14):
some of our favorite guests, like this week's guest. You
can start your free trial by opening up the link
and the notes for this episode. Well, it's always interesting
when you get a guest who calls himself a Masonic
has been turns out to be. He's one of the
more forward thinking Masonic educators today. He's a past Master
of the Ohio Lodge of Research, a founder of the
(01:35):
Royal Schofield Society for the Grand Lodge of Ohio, and
a right worshipful brother. We're happy to have him on
as a first timer. Brother, Chad Kopenski, Welcome to the
Craftsman Online Podcast.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
It is an honor to be here. I'm kind of
sequestered in Ohio at this point, and so the only
way I get to get out is usually electronically.
Speaker 2 (01:52):
This way, same thing, Dude. I can't tell you how
many brothers I have virtually met, and then when I
do get a chance to actually see them in person.
Now I'm like, oh, this is kind of cool, Like
it's crazy, this new way of making friends, the concept
of rethinking ritual, just hearing your background story, now, knowing
more about your passion with the craft, your professional you know,
skills all mirrying together here. When I started going through
(02:15):
your deck, I was really kind of impressed that you
compare your kind of your framing devices. You're comparing the
Sonic ritual to a family's Christmas dinner, and that's a
fantastic analogy. I never would have ever thought that before.
Can you walk us through this and why is it
such a powerful statement.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
I think that our brethren have sort of lost the
idea of what ritual was supposed to be, Like what
the purpose of our ritual is. We think about it
as this performative thing. We think about it as this
thing of like I have to go there. I have
to get my words right. I have to, you know,
I have to. I have to. I have to. I
have to. And I want brethren to take a second
(02:56):
and think about it differently, and I want them to
think about our ritual like it's Christmas dinner in most families.
It's one of those things where people come together at
one time, and there's certain things that only happen at
that time. Right, the good china comes out, you dress up,
certain foods happen, certain stories get told, certain traditions happen.
(03:17):
There's a both a descriptive and a prescriptive element of this.
The story that I use to kind of frame this
all is my twin sister bringing her then boyfriend into
my family, having him go through three different family events.
My other brother in law sort of took him aside
and said, all right, here are the players, here's the
things you need to do. Here's how you're going to
(03:38):
get through this particular event. Here's stuff you need to know.
All right, we got you go do We do these
things at these times and only these times as a
descriptive element is to say, this is who we are.
These are the things that we value. We value these stories,
these items, these things. But it's also a prescriptive thing.
(04:03):
If you want to come into our family, you got
to know what you're getting into. We got to know
that we value these items. We value these ideals, We
value these times, these moments, these stories, these people, and
we do those things because what we are doing is
(04:24):
we are forging, maintaining and celebrating these meaningful connections that
transcend things like time, distance, and death. And so what
that means for us as Mason's when you just stop
thinking about our ritual as lifeless, you think about it
like a Christmas dinner. We are bringing somebody into our family.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
It's the performative part of the ritual. You're putting in
the meaning of the ritual, but also you're injecting your
lodge's DNA, that culture into the new brother, the candidate
that's coming through, and now they're being You're showing that
them how to be a Mason. And it's a conversation
I've had. I need to start writing my theories down.
There's like the uh way to do things, and then
(05:07):
there's the way to do things. And of course our
ritual says this, this, this, this, But the way that
we perform it and talk about it that's the Masonic
education part. That's how we're transferring that knowledge to the
next guy.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
What I also talk about in this is that, like,
what's the purpose of our proficiencies. We think about it
as like I'm going to teach you those rituals and
you better learn it. No, no, no, no. Think about a proficiency
like you are walking through your mom's house or your
grandmother's house and look at the pictures on the wall.
The proficiency is a way for us. It's a mechanism
(05:40):
for a brother to talk to a new brother and
teach him how to be a Mason and how to
be how to be a Mason and a member of
that launch. The proficiency is just the mechanism, but the
intention behind it, a purpose behind it isn't just being
able to recite that Catechism word for words so that
(06:01):
when the guy I'm you know, mentoring, says say, hold on,
what does this mean? And we talk about, well, here's
what that means, and here's what this here's what I
think it is, or I don't know, let's go find
this out together. One of the best conversations I think
a lodge can have. I've said, brother, I want you
to think about your EA degree. Tell me a moment
(06:24):
that life is really important to you, it really sticks
with you. And the brethren start talking about it, and
they all have different things for me. When they brought
me in and somebody said arise, follow your guide and
fear no danger for a second, I thought to myself,
hold on, nobody talks like that, and that means that
(06:44):
probably more than likely that there have been generations where
they realize that this is kind of a weird thing,
what you're doing, being blindfolded and less than clothes and
in a room where it's really uncomfortable for me. That's
the moment that means a lot to me. And so
(07:05):
as I'm talking to the breath and I'm like, you know,
I really want to make sure that our candidate kind
of has the same sensation that I do. And another
guy will say, you know what it was for me
when they put the apron on me for that first time.
My dad did it. And when he did it, he
just yanked on that you know, that string, and I
(07:25):
really I felt that weight or that pressure of the
apron around my waist and I understood, especially with what
they were saying that I was now bound as a lodger.
Were like, whoa, that's awesome. And as we talked about this,
now we think, okay, well, how do we make sure
(07:50):
that our new guy's coming in that they have a
similar experience when the education officer talks to him afterwards,
let's talk about why we did that. This is something
that we value is a lot.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Well, you kind of provide some stare steps for brothers
to follow in your program because it's built around the
three pillars of intentional ritual, and you make some key points.
I want to hit the first one here, which is
know your role. And this is really for the officers
the brothers that are there the Degree team. What do
you mean by know your role? I'm guessing it's more
(08:22):
than just know your part.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
There's nothing passive about our ritual. It drives me nuts
when I see a third of the guys get up
and leave the room right before the lecture starts, or
they are on their phone, or the one that bothers
me the most is when they start practicing, you know,
(08:45):
their ritual while everything else is going on. I'm thinking,
you know, if you are an officer, right, you have
a role there during this during the degree kind of
like a Christmas dinner. Right you're doing the cooking, you're
carving the turkey, like you have a particular job that
you need to do. But the candidate also has a
(09:09):
particular role right there. They're the new guy coming in
and there's people around him to kind of keep him
safe and make sure that things go well. But the
people on the sidelines also have a particular role. If
we do these things at these times to forge, you know,
strengthen and celebrate those connections that transcend things like time,
(09:31):
distance and death. That's what your job is in the sidelines.
Your job is not to check out. Your job is
to recognize that there's somebody new coming into your family,
and that in a way, I mean, this is the
weirdest sort of you know thinking, but that candidate at
the altar is in many ways it's also you. Right,
(09:53):
there's you just to think about the time that you
know of that alter the experience. You had to remember
what those obligations and those lessons were to celebrate that
there is this person coming into our family. If if you,
if I were to tell you that there's a we're
doing conferring a degree tonight, how quickly can you come
(10:13):
up with excuses that will get you out of coming
to that that degree? Now, if I tell you that
Christmas dinner is tonight, what in the world are you
going to be able to say to your mom or
your dad or your siblings that will excuse you from
being at that table once you realize, wow, sorry, we
(10:35):
have a we have a huge storm outside.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
And so okay, I thought I was wondering what that was,
and was like, either it's my neighbors throwing their garage
their garbage cans up and down the road, or.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
No, we have a huge storm. Luckily, my dog isn't freaking.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
Out I'm a theater person.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
This is all for a fact. I brought this all
for you. There's a great book that I think that
everybody who considers themselves a ritualist should read. It's a
book called The Empty Space by Peter Brook. He is
a theater practitioner. It's a series of essays about the
nature of theater, the dangerous theater, the poor theater, and
(11:45):
there's one that he calls the Holy Theater. And what
he talks about is that in the Holy theater, the
actors know they're their lines, know what they're having to
do so well, they've trained in such a way, and
(12:06):
they're doing things with such an intention. If that special
spark happens, that might be what he called the quickening,
where there might be it's so amazing and so perfect
that you pierce the veil and you glimpse the divine
or glimpse the infant. You have to know the words,
like you have to know about your lines. See it,
(12:27):
I'm talking about ritual in such a way. This is
like you know, press and web, and it's not focusing
on the words, it's focusing on the message. Right. I
think so many brethren gets so worked up on the words,
and that's why they start saying I'm sorry, I'm sorry,
I'm sorry, or they start messing up if you focus
on the story that you're trying to tell, right, what
(12:48):
is more important? Is it more important that you tell
the story of Grandpa with Harry Truman the way that
I tell the story, or is it more important that
you tell the story about Grandpa with Harry Truman? Like,
there's not any real one right answer. But when it
comes to our ritual, in my mind, I'm thinking I
would much rather as I'm talking to this, if I'm
(13:10):
giving a lecture, if I'm helping, you know, work with
the other officers to create this experience for the candidate,
I want to focus on the experience and focus on
the story, and focus on the journey, as opposed to
whether I say Harris or harass.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
Let's get to the third the third point you talk
about focusing on the connections, and this part of your
presentation I was really interested in because here's the issue
that we run in right now, is this modern instant
gratification society, and we have these guys coming in for
this transformative experience and we're trying to, you know, make
that connection with them, give them the best experience that
(13:48):
they could possibly have. How do we what's your advice
on how we can focus on that connection during the
rituals so that it's not transactional stuff of an experience,
it's it's something meaningful.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
So it's Christmas dinner transactional. No, it is right, It's
that time that you get to spend with cousin Mike
you never get to see and you get to just
reconnect and retalk to them. It is that time to
walk through your mom's house and be like to hear
those stories, to play you know, a card game with
(14:23):
your siblings and to laugh and to tell it and yeah,
there's going to be fights, but honestly those are some
of the stories too.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Well. You have guys that are looking to be a
part of something bigger than themselves. This has been a theme.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
Okay, so we're doing all these things where we're I mean,
we're doing these one day classes and there's nothing it's
one day classes. There's actually a way to do them
in such a way that they you know, they they're useful.
But instead of thinking about it as a destination, right
like I want to get it. I want to get
something I want to put it on a shelf to
do have practice in those connections. Why do guys stay?
It's because of the guys who has the experience. We
(15:06):
there are guys we talk to who live across the
street from a lodge and they don't go, but they
would drive three hours to a to lodge or a
lodge that really focused on education. Oh wait a minute,
so they will. They won't cross the street or something
that isn't meaningful, but they'll drive three hours to something
(15:29):
that is. In some ways, you can't expect every single
lodge to give you everything you need. So we realized
that there were guys who, yeah, they live across from
a lodge and they go there because well, you know,
on Thursday nights. But when I really want to see
a good degree, I want to go over to this
lodge because man, they just use work or man, you've
got to go to this lodge when they are talking about,
(15:52):
you know, this education series. And so for guys to
realize what it is that is important to them and
then to find those lodges or those seeds that provide
the experience. And that's why, honestly, for Better or for
Worse podcasts and conventions have done wonders because, like we
said earlier, all of a sudden, people have access to things,
(16:16):
to ideas they didn't are connections they didn't even know before,
and that that's okay. So instead of feeling frustrated because
there's a lodge that isn't giving it what you want,
there's a way to get what you want by focusing
on the connections. And what I mean by that is
understand what you know our rituals for and what our
(16:36):
proficiencies are for. Don't just yelled the guy to you know,
get those words right. I don't know. I always like
to pair the newest entted apprentice with the oldest, crabbiest
past master I can find, right, Or how about this,
as silly as it sounds, don't let anybody sit alone
(16:56):
in your lodge. If somebody comes into your line, make
sure there is somebody who sits next to him that's
within about like two or three feet. In Ohio, we
we can do business in any degree, but you know
there's certain things you can only do in fellowcraft, you know,
like a fellowcraft return. So you got to send an
EA out in the hallway, Well, hell, have somebody go
(17:19):
sit with the dude. We spend all this time saying,
you know, you're part of a brotherhood that will always
be there, and like oh yeah, by the way, you
can't see this go out in the hallway. And as
silly as it sounds, probably one of the best ways
to think about this is just the Mason's meaning. Focus
on the connections. Focus on that experience, you know, what
(17:40):
is the what kind of experience were you looking for
and did you want coming into the law When you
are walking on the lodge and you see those things
up on the wall, you know, instead of when somebody says,
who's that picture? You go, oh't you know? I don't know.
Let's find it out together. Like, focus on the connection
is between the brothers and their community, the lodges that
(18:04):
are struggling. One of the things I tell them about
our ritual is if they're sitting there freaking out about like, well,
that's great chat, you're saying these things, but I don't
know enough guys to open lodge. Fine, I get that.
So with the guys, you have commit yourselves to one thing,
but really true things, something internal and then something external,
(18:26):
something internal that's just for the brethren just to again
focus on those connections, focus on you know, maybe it's
dinner before long. Two really cool examples I've heard of,
but there's so many that just think about the brethren
of your lodge, what's something that's just them? I mean
(18:47):
maybe it's t shirts, right, they all have the same
like lodge or that they wear. But two cool examples
that I just I love to death. There are masters
in Ohio where the master and the senior wardens stand
inside the door and they shake a brother's hand as
he walks into lots like hey, glad you're here. And
(19:07):
then when it comes time to do the purge and
say like hey, it's time to start, they close the doors,
take their seats, you know, rather than take this and
you talk about loneliness, think about how many men go
through their day without anybody actually making physical contact with them.
But here's somebody who shakes their hand and takes a
second and says, hey, man, I'm really glad you're here.
(19:29):
It's a second. But just how much that means to
that guy, And as a master and as a as
a senior warden, how great it is just in terms
of like controlling your meeting. I actually used to do
this with my students. I would stand out in the
hallway and like shake their hand as they came into class.
It's amazing. The stuff that would get solved before the
bell ever rang is that hey, gopensy, I got to
(19:50):
run and do this like yep, go great, thank you
good to see it like it. So the other cool
thing that I saw, And it would take a very
special lodge to do this. As they're closing, before they
do the final rap, they send all the visitors out
and all the brethren of the lodge come and they
stand around the altar in a circle and the masterress
like reminds them of their you know, obligations and says, guys,
(20:13):
all right, what's going on, Like what's good, what's bad?
And you know, sometimes guys will go around and say like, yeah,
things are going on well, like I got this you know,
emotion at work. But then there are guys who at
the meal before lodge will are like everything's great, But
in that moment where they are just being brethren to
each other, they're like, hey, my wife and I are
(20:35):
fighting and it's going kind of hard, or you know,
I'm having this legal trouble. I'm not quite sure what
to do or to talk to or I just went
to the doctor and I really rid about this. But
this is this moment at our lodge where it's just us,
the Brethren, being there for each other. So that's something
internal and then something external. We talked about guys want
(20:57):
to be useful, right, I just want to be good
on a good team. You know. That's the other part
I talk about when I talk about our ritual is
you know, ask anybody who's ever been in a really
good theatrical show or been a running football team, and
they'll talk about it. Why because they were good on
a good team, and that that it's a moment that
means something to you.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
Have you ever watched the TV show The Bear at
all on FX? It's on Hulu as well.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
The Bear I have. That's a hard show to get
into sometimes that's not really a comedy.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
No it's not. And so that I'm so refreshed. I'm
so thankful. It's refreshing that you have watched the show.
Because I'm going to make an analogy here and well,
you're talking about Christmas dinner and rethinking the ritual. It's
the second season, the Christmas episode. Yes, man, I was
sweating it and stressing it watching that with the just
(22:14):
the anti family, just bad behavior that was happening there.
So I'm sitting here thinking like, okay, the idea of
making our lodge experience like a Christmas dinner, how do
we start that. What's the one simple thing that we
could we could try to put into place to get
our brothers in that mindset of let's make our ritual
like having Christmas dinner with a family.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
The way that I started with lodges is you can
be able to do this with the entire lodge, but honestly,
I have seen most lodges be successful with this. As
an officer team, you get your main officers, you go
out to dinner or you grab a pizz'sifth lodge and
you start talking about what does it mean to be
(22:58):
a member of this line? Like what and if? If
that's a hard question to start with. Start with the ritual, guys,
was that one thing you remember, like what if you
were going to create like the perfect ea, Like what's
the one moment you want to show that we don't
mess up? And then started that conversation and then maybe
start about talking about well, okay, so what does it
(23:20):
mean to be a member of our lodge, Like, what
is it that is really important to us? Is it
important to us that we all wear tuxes? Okay? Well
then what does that? Is it important to us that
we are out of here by?
Speaker 1 (23:30):
Like?
Speaker 3 (23:30):
What what does it mean to be a member of
this family? Okay? And maybe it is a set of
principles or it is a set of ideas or questions
or Ohio has a has a thing we use called
the roadmap for Improvement, and there's Michigan has something similar
and so many other places do too. Of just like
a way to talk about value. Identify what your lodge values.
(23:52):
And that's not a conversation that only happens once, I
because and it's not something that you get perfect right away.
It's something that's ongoing and developing. And if you're master,
you're not gonna you're gonna get it. You're gonna you're
gonna take your thing three yards down the field and
(24:17):
it's not going to pay off for years, but at
least you've done your three yards and you have that
kind of plan. Who are we as a lodge? What
does what does it mean to be a member of
this lodge? And how do we make members of this
and focus on those connections, tell the stories, make them,
make them see masonry the way that you do. But
(24:39):
first off, maybe figure out what you guys as your lodge.
But how do you see masonry? What's important to you?
Go from there.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
It's the simplest question, because it's the hardest thing to
do is to start making that idea into action and
like where do we begin? And that's the best thing,
is like to get the leaders together and say, okay,
like you said, what does it mean to be a
member of this lodge? Like what do we know that
we can do? And let's just focus on doing that
and being awesome at it.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
I'm fascinated by this guy named John Shearer, who's this
like lithographer from the eighteen hundred and I have been
to so many lodges where they have this great Shearer
print up on the wall, and I asked you guys,
like what is do you guys know what this is?
They've walked by it one hundred times, they have no clue.
(25:25):
And here's this piece I've been looking for for ten years.
You know that isn't supposed to exist hanging on their wall,
Like do you not realize how cool this is be
a tourist in your own lodge. I mean all those
things you take for granted. I think about it like
a new member. You know, they don't know the stories,
(25:45):
they don't know why these things happen the way they happen.
So do think about it like do think about it
like this is this is your daughter's fiance coming to
your house. Okay, all right, dude, at some point this
is all going to be yours. We say what it
(26:05):
needs to be a member of this family. Here's the grill,
Here's what the tools are, Here's how we cook chicken.
And you know, I'll stay with you and we'll figure
this all out together. Does better get that chicken right?
Think about that way, focus on the connections in the family,
and everything else might not get fixed, but at least
it'll be better.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
Hey, if you've enjoyed this episode with worship of Brother
Chad Kopenski, well, he talked about making the lodge kind
of like a Christmas dinner. You get some desserts. If
you're a Craftsman Online Patreon subscriber, we will get some
bonus time with him and a subscriber extra episode. You
can join us on Patreon For just five dollars a month,
get ad free episodes and access to that full back catalog.
The link to start your seven day trial is in
(26:49):
the notes for this episode, I'm right worship for Brother
Michael Larci Geez. Next week, we're gonna start counting down
the ten most popular episodes for twenty twenty five. Until then,
peace and harmony prevail.
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The Burden
The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.