WK News - Issue 13 (2) - Flipbook - Page 27
GENERAL NEWS
ISSUE NO.13 SUMMER 2024 | WEST KENT NEWS 28
KEYBOARDISTS
THE MASONIC APRON
REQUIRED!
A BADGE OF HONOURABLE LABOUR
By Adrian Grant
The Order of the Golden Fleece
was founded by Philip, Duke of
Burgundy in 1429. In 1477 it was
passed to the House of Hapsburg
and has been continued under
the Spanish branch of the family
to the present day.
Keeping live music in our
assemblies becomes an even
greater challenge as time goes
on.
We need assistance from you.
If you only have a basic ability it
does not matter, even if you only
played as a schoolboy. We are
not looking for virtuosos, we are
looking for people who are willing
to give this a try and we will help
you every step of the way.
The Roman Eagle dates back to
100 BCE and was Rome9s
symbol of power and ensign of
might. In Roman mythology, the
Eagle is associated with the God
Jupiter. Many years later the
Prophet Mohammed, the founder
of Islam, adopted the Roman
Eagle for need of a flag to muster
his troops.
Bernard, our Provincial Grand
Organist, will be pleased to
informally teach what is needed,
and more importantly, which
buttons to press!!
The Order of the Garter, arguably
the world9s foremost Order of
Chivalry, was founded in 1349 by
King Edward III of England, for
himself and twenty-five Knights
of the Garter. To this day the
recipients are chosen personally
by The Sovereign. Hence to the
Freemason the statement that
the Apron is more honourable
than
the
Garter
when
it
represents to a Brother all that it
teaches is exemplified in the life
and behaviour of the wearer.
Contact:
Essentially, the Masonic Apron is
the badge of honourable labour.
The right to wear it is given only
to tried and tested men. The
claim that the Masonic Apron is
more ancient than these is a
provable fact. To declare that it
is more honourable, the premise
8when worthily worn9 is implied.
Let us, therefore, put the use of
the apron into an historical
perspective. The wearing of an
apron is very old indeed, far
older than as a garment to
protect the clothing of the
operative
craftsman,
or
to
provide him with a convenient
receptacle in which to keep his
Bernard
Tilley
by
btatomic@aol.com
emailing
Or
Adrian
Grant
by
aggrant68@gmail.com
emailing
tools. The Arch Druid clothed
himself in a white apron as far
back as 75 BCE when he cut the
most sacred Mistletoe; a symbol
equivalent to our Acacia. In the
Far East the Japanese used
aprons in their Religious Worship
called Shinto that dates to the first
Millennium BCE. Candidates for
the mysteries of Mithras, a
Persian secret society which
existed before the birth of Christ,
were invested with aprons.
Though the principal honour of the
apron may consist in its reference
to innocence of conduct and purity
of heart, yet it certainly appears
through all the ages to have been
a
most
exalted
badge
of
distinction.