WEBVTT
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The Scottish Rite, he says enthusiastically, definitely is the college
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of Freemasonry. Hello and welcome to the Scottish Rite Journal podcast,
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an audio presentation of the Scottish Rite Journal, brought to
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00:00:19.879 --> 00:00:22.980
you and published by the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite,
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Southern Jurisdiction, Mother Supreme Council of the World. Be sure
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to like, subscribe, share, and comment on this article, and
7
00:00:30.550 --> 00:00:34.159
don't forget to hit the notifications bell. This week's article is...
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00:00:34.630 --> 00:00:39.079
Doing It the Right, Right Way, by Brother Thomas Pope Jr.,
9
00:00:39.310 --> 00:00:43.210
33rd degree, read by Brother Matt Bowers, 32nd degree, and
10
00:00:43.310 --> 00:00:49.159
comes from the September-October, 2026 issue of The Scottish Right Journal.
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00:00:50.880 --> 00:00:54.640
It didn't take long for Jeff Thompson to realize something
12
00:00:54.700 --> 00:00:59.520
wasn't right about his introduction to the Masonic Fraternity. The
13
00:00:59.579 --> 00:01:02.579
meeting was not in a hotel conference room, not a
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lodge setting. there were only five brothers doing the degree
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work for all three degrees. The entire process lasted a
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couple of hours. Within two months, Jeff was certain he
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had mistakenly joined a clandestine Masonic lodge in the area
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near Fort Lee, Virginia, where he was stationed as a soldier.
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The ensuing meetings he attended were never held at the
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same venue. His lodge suddenly seemed to have merged with
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another and a new worshipful master chosen without Jeff having
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ever been notified. During the degrees, no one knew what
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they were doing. They didn't know how to do anything.
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Jeff's mistake was an honest one. I didn't know then
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what looked right and what didn't, he said. The guys
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from work that recruited me into it told me it
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was legitimate. Dismayed and feeling betrayed, Jeff forgot about Freemasonry
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for more than a dozen years. Retiring after 20 years
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in the service, he settled with his family near Stedman,
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North Carolina. In 2025, a simple conversation with a fellow
31
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Army retiree at a gym rekindled his interest. That man
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was Brother Glenn Nieves, a member of Stedman Lodge No. 730.
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At the time, Jeff thought that having once been a
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clandestine Mason, he could never become a legitimate one. This
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is incorrect. Brother Nieves asked his lodge secretary to reach
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out to Jeff, who in no time was filling out
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Form 40, Renunciation of Clandestine Membership, to file with the
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Grand Lodge of North Carolina. With that form approved by
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the Grand Master, Jeff petitioned Stedman No. 730 to seek
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Masonic membership in a legitimate, authorized lodge. On March 16, 2026,
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Jeff became a Master Mason, this time the right way.
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Before he left the lodge that night, he filed a
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petition to become a Scottish Rite member in the Valley
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of Fayetteville and New Bern and became part of the
45
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class at New Bern's spring reunion. I grew up not
46
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far from the old Scottish Rite temple in Portsmouth, Virginia.
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I saw it every day and on my way to church,
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said Jeff, now properly Brother Thompson, whose great-uncle, Howard Hathaway III,
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had been a member of the Valley of Portsmouth. I
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was told by a brother that that the lessons of
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the reunion would be like drinking from a fire hose.
52
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There's so much information. And that's true. But I loved
53
00:03:30.849 --> 00:03:34.550
it all. The backdrops, the temple, how supportive everybody was,
54
00:03:35.009 --> 00:03:38.460
and how hard the degree teams were working. Eager to
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become a part of one of those teams, Brother Thompson
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will play a key role in the seventh degree that
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Fayetteville will perform at its 2026 fall reunion. By participating
58
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in this way, Brother Jeff knows he'll understand the lessons
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00:03:53.180 --> 00:03:58.479
even more. The Scottish Rite, he says enthusiastically, definitely is
60
00:03:58.840 --> 00:04:04.379
the college of Freemasonry. On the previous article of the
61
00:04:04.430 --> 00:04:08.669
Scottish Rite Journal podcast, 200 Years Missing, a new documentary
62
00:04:08.810 --> 00:04:12.400
on William Morgan, I mistakenly stated that it was published
63
00:04:12.500 --> 00:04:16.240
in the July-August 2026 issue of the Scottish Rite Journal,
64
00:04:16.560 --> 00:04:20.750
when it was in fact published in the September-October 2026
65
00:04:20.750 --> 00:04:23.250
issue of the Scottish Rite Journal.
1
00:00:05.290 --> 00:00:10.429
The Scottish Rite, he says enthusiastically, definitely is the college
2
00:00:10.810 --> 00:00:15.980
of Freemasonry. Hello and welcome to the Scottish Rite Journal podcast,
3
00:00:16.339 --> 00:00:19.839
an audio presentation of the Scottish Rite Journal, brought to
4
00:00:19.879 --> 00:00:22.980
you and published by the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite,
5
00:00:23.379 --> 00:00:27.269
Southern Jurisdiction, Mother Supreme Council of the World. Be sure
6
00:00:27.320 --> 00:00:30.510
to like, subscribe, share, and comment on this article, and
7
00:00:30.550 --> 00:00:34.159
don't forget to hit the notifications bell. This week's article is...
8
00:00:34.630 --> 00:00:39.079
Doing It the Right, Right Way, by Brother Thomas Pope Jr.,
9
00:00:39.310 --> 00:00:43.210
33rd degree, read by Brother Matt Bowers, 32nd degree, and
10
00:00:43.310 --> 00:00:49.159
comes from the September-October, 2026 issue of The Scottish Right Journal.
11
00:00:50.880 --> 00:00:54.640
It didn't take long for Jeff Thompson to realize something
12
00:00:54.700 --> 00:00:59.520
wasn't right about his introduction to the Masonic Fraternity. The
13
00:00:59.579 --> 00:01:02.579
meeting was not in a hotel conference room, not a
14
00:01:02.600 --> 00:01:06.670
lodge setting. there were only five brothers doing the degree
15
00:01:06.709 --> 00:01:11.099
work for all three degrees. The entire process lasted a
16
00:01:11.200 --> 00:01:15.359
couple of hours. Within two months, Jeff was certain he
17
00:01:15.400 --> 00:01:19.219
had mistakenly joined a clandestine Masonic lodge in the area
18
00:01:19.299 --> 00:01:22.680
near Fort Lee, Virginia, where he was stationed as a soldier.
19
00:01:23.540 --> 00:01:26.340
The ensuing meetings he attended were never held at the
20
00:01:26.390 --> 00:01:29.909
same venue. His lodge suddenly seemed to have merged with
21
00:01:29.950 --> 00:01:33.629
another and a new worshipful master chosen without Jeff having
22
00:01:33.689 --> 00:01:37.730
ever been notified. During the degrees, no one knew what
23
00:01:37.769 --> 00:01:40.290
they were doing. They didn't know how to do anything.
24
00:01:40.829 --> 00:01:44.829
Jeff's mistake was an honest one. I didn't know then
25
00:01:44.930 --> 00:01:47.819
what looked right and what didn't, he said. The guys
26
00:01:47.859 --> 00:01:50.180
from work that recruited me into it told me it
27
00:01:50.219 --> 00:01:55.280
was legitimate. Dismayed and feeling betrayed, Jeff forgot about Freemasonry
28
00:01:55.359 --> 00:01:59.359
for more than a dozen years. Retiring after 20 years
29
00:01:59.420 --> 00:02:02.500
in the service, he settled with his family near Stedman,
30
00:02:02.540 --> 00:02:08.210
North Carolina. In 2025, a simple conversation with a fellow
31
00:02:08.349 --> 00:02:12.650
Army retiree at a gym rekindled his interest. That man
32
00:02:12.729 --> 00:02:17.990
was Brother Glenn Nieves, a member of Stedman Lodge No. 730.
33
00:02:17.990 --> 00:02:20.569
At the time, Jeff thought that having once been a
34
00:02:20.780 --> 00:02:25.680
clandestine Mason, he could never become a legitimate one. This
35
00:02:26.139 --> 00:02:30.379
is incorrect. Brother Nieves asked his lodge secretary to reach
36
00:02:30.439 --> 00:02:32.840
out to Jeff, who in no time was filling out
37
00:02:32.900 --> 00:02:37.400
Form 40, Renunciation of Clandestine Membership, to file with the
38
00:02:37.439 --> 00:02:41.180
Grand Lodge of North Carolina. With that form approved by
39
00:02:41.219 --> 00:02:45.360
the Grand Master, Jeff petitioned Stedman No. 730 to seek
40
00:02:45.419 --> 00:02:52.120
Masonic membership in a legitimate, authorized lodge. On March 16, 2026,
41
00:02:52.120 --> 00:02:55.909
Jeff became a Master Mason, this time the right way.
42
00:02:56.719 --> 00:02:59.340
Before he left the lodge that night, he filed a
43
00:02:59.379 --> 00:03:01.819
petition to become a Scottish Rite member in the Valley
44
00:03:01.860 --> 00:03:04.379
of Fayetteville and New Bern and became part of the
45
00:03:04.430 --> 00:03:07.629
class at New Bern's spring reunion. I grew up not
46
00:03:07.729 --> 00:03:10.729
far from the old Scottish Rite temple in Portsmouth, Virginia.
47
00:03:11.289 --> 00:03:13.430
I saw it every day and on my way to church,
48
00:03:13.530 --> 00:03:18.560
said Jeff, now properly Brother Thompson, whose great-uncle, Howard Hathaway III,
49
00:03:18.860 --> 00:03:21.759
had been a member of the Valley of Portsmouth. I
50
00:03:21.800 --> 00:03:23.949
was told by a brother that that the lessons of
51
00:03:23.990 --> 00:03:26.650
the reunion would be like drinking from a fire hose.
52
00:03:26.990 --> 00:03:30.810
There's so much information. And that's true. But I loved
53
00:03:30.849 --> 00:03:34.550
it all. The backdrops, the temple, how supportive everybody was,
54
00:03:35.009 --> 00:03:38.460
and how hard the degree teams were working. Eager to
55
00:03:38.500 --> 00:03:41.740
become a part of one of those teams, Brother Thompson
56
00:03:41.780 --> 00:03:44.330
will play a key role in the seventh degree that
57
00:03:44.430 --> 00:03:49.389
Fayetteville will perform at its 2026 fall reunion. By participating
58
00:03:49.490 --> 00:03:53.039
in this way, Brother Jeff knows he'll understand the lessons
59
00:03:53.180 --> 00:03:58.479
even more. The Scottish Rite, he says enthusiastically, definitely is
60
00:03:58.840 --> 00:04:04.379
the college of Freemasonry. On the previous article of the
61
00:04:04.430 --> 00:04:08.669
Scottish Rite Journal podcast, 200 Years Missing, a new documentary
62
00:04:08.810 --> 00:04:12.400
on William Morgan, I mistakenly stated that it was published
63
00:04:12.500 --> 00:04:16.240
in the July-August 2026 issue of the Scottish Rite Journal,
64
00:04:16.560 --> 00:04:20.750
when it was in fact published in the September-October 2026
65
00:04:20.750 --> 00:04:23.250
issue of the Scottish Rite Journal.
