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Hey Ryan,

I bet those same brethren would have a similar opinion and objection about me writing this newsletter. The truth is, these brethren, as much as they are our brothers and we still have to love them, doesn't mean they are correct or right. In fact, most of them are wrong about pretty much everything Masonic because they've never bothered to interrogate our ceremonies, constitutions, laws and regulations of the order beyond their superficial misunderstanding of it all.

These brethren are probably the same ones who's give prompts from the PM's bench in the east, where most of their prompts are wrong or come from a book made on parchment.

If you follow their advice, you will end up like them.

So, if doing something that is well inside of our laws and regulations, is going to help you, do it.

Because they're misquoting the part or parts, point or points from the obligation, which pertains to the Secrets. Not to the text of the ritual, which your Grand Lodge already wrote down in full.

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I think I had a unique experience in the First Degree. When I was “voided of all metals” they took my glasses and hearing aids!… Our guide was Scottish with a heavy brogue and a very loud voice and the only thing I really remember from him is him saying, “Do as I do and do as I say”… and everything else was a mystery. The whole thing was made worse by the fact that my Degree partner, even though he was a very good school teacher, was dyslexic!

Thank God our coach was super and we proceeded through well.

Shortly after our being Raised, I took on the dual task of Secretary and Treasurer and proceeded with administration as my task (I did this for 14 years as mentioned in another comment).

Here in Mexico the Lodge has been very lax in its expectations of memorization of the work or Lodge Ritual… there are a lot of older (retired) gringos in the Lodge… including new members. I, like you, believe the memory work to be very important.

My little town has 3 very good live theatre groups with very skillful actors and actresses… one day I asked a lady who is very esteemed by others in theatre how they went about memorizing the tons of lines they do in plays and she suggested an app!… That app is linelearnerlite and is available for free… I tried to get others to try it but to absolutely no avail.

I showed it to a seasoned actor who recently came down here from Canada where he has made a career of acting and is super… he got it immediately and has used its information and is very pleased.

Linelearnerlite… I would think by the name there are more complex apps from the same source… check it out on Google!

PS - my ritual book from Canada is already written in a coded fashion and certain parts (you know what I mean) are omitted completely and passed mouth to ear!

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