Live as if you were to die tomorrow.

Learn as if you were to life forever

 

Revised  March  2013  

Welcome to the Committee on Esoteric Work. This committee is made up the Grand Lecturer and the District Lecturers. The duties of the members of the Esoteric Committee are listed below. In addition, we will strive to meet at least once per year to discuss matters of the ritual which might include recommendations to the Grand Master regarding resolutions pertaining to the ritual.

Remember that we are teachers of the ritual. It is our charge to help encourage learning. You are also part of your District Team, and should attend all district team meetings and District Meetings. Your District Deputy might even ask you to put on a presentation or say a few words at the meeting

Installation Charge to the District Lecturers “My Brothers, you will be responsible for the proficiency of the esoteric work in all lodges of your District. For this purpose you shall conduct a School of Instruction in every lodge in your District at least once, providing a report of each to the Grand Lecturer. Promote a desire among your lodges to attain proficiency in our ritual and encourage all to strive to earn a ritualist or proficiency card. It is your responsibility to annually certify all proficiency men and degree teams in your district. You shall be responsive to the Grand Lecturer and give additional instructions to any lodges under such terms as the Grand Master may direct.”

District Lecturer Defined in the Masonic Code 26.01 Shall Visit and Instruct Lodges. Each lodge in this Grand Jurisdiction shall be instructed at least annually by the Grand Lecturer or District Lecturer unless the Grand Master shall otherwise order. The Grand Master may, in his discretion, order additional instruction in any lodge upon such terms as he may deem proper. Lodges desiring additional instruction may obtain it by arrangement with their District Lecturer.

26.02 District Lecturer. The Grand Master shall appoint a District Lecturer for each Masonic District in the state. The Grand Lecturer shall recommend to the Grand Master names for possible appointment as District Lecturer. Each District Lecturer will be responsible to and under the supervision of the Grand Lecturer. The Grand Lecturer shall be responsible for the proficiency of the District Lecturers. A District Lecturer may be removed from office by the Grand Master without specification of charges. Any vacancy occurring by such action or by death, resignation, or any other cause shall be filled by appointment by the Grand Master for the unexpired term of office.

26.03 Vote of District Lecturer. The District Lecturers shall be entitled to vote on all matters presented to the Grand Lodge at its Annual Communication.

 

Revised  March  2013  

This chart lists the specific milestones to be achieved during the year. During the coming summer months, you will be assembling your school of instruction (SOI) schedules for the year. A Grand Lodge roster along with electronic copies of the necessary forms will be sent you before the end of June. It is very important that the schedules are in the hands of the Grand Lecturer for approval by September. Please review the milestone chart for setting your plan.

   

 

Revised  March  2013  

Agenda for the Schools Each year the agenda for the schools will change, but the goal is to standardize the learning. The important goal is to teach the ritual. Having lodges demonstrate without giving immediate feedback and help will not help the lodges grow in ritual proficiency. Usually the agenda is laid out for the year, but you may cover other items which may come up during a school. There will be mandatory material to teach.

Assembling Your Schedule A Grand Lodge directory will be sent to you. Use this information to retrieve data to contact the Master of the lodge that will be hosting the school. Our Grand Secretary is working on getting the lecturers access to MORI. In your discussions with the representative from the host lodge, find out if there will be a light supper before the school. If there is, you will be responsible in getting an accurate count to the Master of the Lodge.

Whether you hold area schools or individual lodge schools, your schedule must be set up before September. On the next page is a guideline for setting up the schools. Using this guideline will help you include all of the needed information. If you have questions, please feel free to contact the Grand Lecturer. By Masonic Code, schools cannot be scheduled on Sundays, and only have a school on a Friday as a last resort. Remember that we want to get the younger members at the schools, and Friday nights tend to be family nights. Schools are only held in the Master Mason degree. EAs and FCs cannot attend schools, because the material covered will also be due guard and signs from all three degrees.

After assembling your schedule, please return it electronically to the Grand Lecturer for approval and submission to the Grand Lodge Office. The Grand Lodge Office will publish your schedule.

 

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This  is  an  example  for  assembling  the  information  for  area  schools.  

 

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Example of a Published SOI Schedule from the Grand Lodge Office

 

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Reports of Schools of Instruction

 

Revised  March  2013  

Every School of Instruction must have a formal report submitted to the Grand Lecturer and he will submit it to the Grand Lodge office for publication to the following people or groups.

1. Grand Master 2. Deputy Grand Master 3. Senior Grand Warden 4. Junior Grand Warden 5. District Deputy 6. Individual Lodges of each School

Every Lodge in Wisconsin must have a school once during the year by code. A lodge is not eligible for the Lodge Excellence Award (LEA) without having a school. Plus attendance points are credited toward a lodge’s LEA. The District Lecturer’s report is the only evidence that a lodge has completed this requirement.

An electronic copy of the District Lecturer’s Report of a School of instruction will be sent to you. Only use this form for reporting. The instructions for filling it out are captured below along with a snapshot of the report form. If you have any questions, please contact the Grand Lecturer.

Proficiency men and Ritualists should be listed on the report for credit and for receiving their certification. For Ritualists, be sure to list the degrees of proficiency.

For LEA points, give the following values. To receive these points, these officers or members must be present at the school.

• WM 3 points • SW 3 points • JW 3 points • SD 5 points • JD 5 points • SS 7 points • JS 7 points • All Other Officers and Members 1 point each

 

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Expense Reports As a District Lecturer, you are entitled to have certain out-of-pocket expenses covered and reimbursed. It is important that this report is submitted on a timely basis. Any expenses reported that are older than two months will not be reimbursed. As an example, if a report is submitted to the Grand Lecturer in the month of April and it includes expenses for the month of January, the expenses for January will be removed from the report and will not be reimbursed.

The following expenses will be covered in a report.

1. Mileage at the Current Rate Prescribe by the Grand Secretary 1.1. Within your district for the purpose of ritual work 1.2. Within your district for the purpose of attending District Team Meetings 1.3. Within your district for the purpose of attending a District Meeting 1.4. Any mileage for attending a degree competition

2. Cost of meals for any of the above events (expenses over $25 require a receipt to be submitted with the report)

3. Cost of any lodging authorized by the Grand Master (requires a receipt to be submitted with the report)

Expenses for visits to your own lodge will not be reimbursed unless the visit is for the purpose of attending a District Meeting or holding a SOI.

If you do not wish to be reimbursed for any or part of your expenses, you are still encouraged to submit the report and enter those expenses in the “Adjustments to Total” section. This will help the Grand Lodge Officers in developing an accurate budget projection for the Esoteric Committee.

 

Revised  March  2013  

Copy of a Blank Expense Report Listed below is a snapshot of the official Grand Lodge expense report. Fill out the yellow highlighted areas as necessary. The report must be signed and dated before sending it off. Electronic typed signatures are acceptable.

The most current copy of the expense report can be found on the Grand Lodge website at http://www.wisc-freemasonry.org/. Listed below are the instructions for retrieving a blank copy.

 

Revised  March  2013  

Retrieving a Blank Copy of an Expense from the Grand Lodge Website Open your internal browser and go to http://www.wisc-freemasonry.org/.

 

Revised  March  2013  

The expense form is a Microsoft EXCEL file. If you do not have EXCEL or are unsuccessful in retrieving the form, please contact the Grand Lecturer for assistance.

On this same page at the top, you can reference the Wisconsin Masonic Code.

 

Revised  March  2013  

Proficiency Men and Ritualists Proficiency men and ritualists are important to the Masonic fraternity, and they can also be assets to the District Lecturer. You should keep track of these brothers within your district. If you do not know who they are, contact the Grand Lecturer and he will send you a current listing.

Proficiency men and ritualists carry a card to designate their status. It is important that these brothers are carrying a card. If they are not, contact the Grand Lecturer and he will send you the necessary cards for renewing certification. Pictured below are three cards to designate a proficiency man, a ritualist, and Emeritus Certificate of Proficiency.

Page six of the Multi-Lettered Cipher explains how to obtain the Proficiency and Ritualist card and what is required. Please review this page for testing and certification. Once you have certified a brother, contact the Grand Lecturer for a card.

The remaining Emeritus Certificate of Proficiency card is an honorary card usually given to long term proficiency man who have served the craft in that position. As a District Lecturer you can recommend a member for this card.

 

Revised  March  2013  

Committee on Esoteric Work You are a member of this committee. We meet at least once per year. It is important that you make these meetings. Communication within our committee members is important. Attending this meeting is a good way to keep up to date on what is happening in Wisconsin regarding the ritual. When scheduled, strive to include these dates in your calendar and be in attendance.

Your Own Proficiency and the Pure Work It is understood that all District Lecturers are not proficiency men. It is important that you work to meet that goal. Pure work will be assigned to you to help with answering questions about the ritual. Please remember that this Pure Work is the property of the Grand Lodge and should not be duplicated or given out to any lodge out. Keep it in your possession at all times. It is only to be used to answer questions.

At the conclusion of the year, if you are not returning or are not being reappointed to the position of lecturer, you must return the Pure Work to the Grand Lodge Office or Grand Lecturer.

Welcome Aboard

Brother Lecturer, welcome aboard and thank you for your service to the craft and to the ritual. Strive to make the lodges in your district better than when you took the appointment. Teach the ritual with excitement and that excitement will become contagious.

If you need help, the Grand Lecturer is at your service. Work with your District Deputy and District Team. Those brothers have a wealth of knowledge to share. Good luck on this exciting journey.