Don’t fear what man can do to you
“In God I have put my trust: I will not be
afraid of what man can do to me. “
Ps 56:11
The first word uttered by a candidate for Masonic degrees upon entering a Masonic Lodge declares his faith in God. Without that statement, the shape and beauty of a lodge would be hidden from you forever. So would the hidden beauties of Freemasonry. That statement also professes the candidate’s eternal trust in God, a trust that is symbolically tested during the ritual used in each of the three degrees of Masonry.
In the first degree, the candidate is handed over to the custody of a person whom he cannot see and, as a blind man, is led along paths he has never traveled before. Your manager identifies you simply as a true and trustworthy friend in whose faithfulness you can trust, with the utmost confidence. The candidate is taught a very important lesson about Freemasonry: it is safe to trust a Brother Mason; as sure as trusting God.
During the Second Degree, the candidate is taught the importance of the symbolic Middle Chamber of the Temple of King Solomon, which he can only enter if he proves his worth and knowledge. Here, Freemasons learn that knowledge is a gift from God and that the benefits we receive from knowledge must be shared with every man, woman, and child with whom they come in contact. That is so, because Divine Wisdom is at the root of all that we can hope to learn and know, the comforts of which cannot be denied to any of God’s creatures.
However, it is during the Third Degree that the candidate learns to trust God, not to fear what man may do to him. During the ritual, the candidate learns that he will no longer have anyone to pray for him. You must do it yourself. The true and trustworthy brother who had previously served as his guide is replaced by the invisible presence of Deity. Here, Freemasons are prepared to travel abroad or in the social and professional circles of their life outside of a Masonic Lodge.
When we reflect on the progression of Masonic lessons on trust in God, we recall the parallel lessons taught during the natural state of human existence. A child is born into the world unable to take care of himself. Throughout his early years, he receives loving care from his caring parents and thus learns to trust someone to make him feel safe, protected, and highly loved. There comes a time when the child must leave that safe environment and travel alone into the world. It is then that the child truly learns who to trust.
Throughout human history, nothing has rendered men more powerless than fear. Those who assumed authority over others or embarked on a path to do so quickly learned that the imposition of fear on men made them easy to subdue and manipulate. Kings, legislatures, churches and employers have used fear on various occasions to gain power, maintain power and achieve the fulfillment of their different demands. In doing so, they acted as enemies of freedom, because men who act or do not act out of fear are never truly free.
What is it that makes you fear? Is it poor health or the steps you need to take to maintain good health? Could you bear the humiliation and pressures of losing your job? Does your religion make unreasonable demands on your behavior and emotions so that you fear falling from God’s grace? Now, are you afraid that others don’t like you? This disorderly thinking can also lead to anger and resentment, two products of fear, and lead to loss of friends and loss of peace of mind.
Albert Pike wrote about how essential it is for men to embrace virtue and honor in their lives. He wrote that good men improved by doing so and that those around them also greatly benefited from the resulting acts of kindness, charity, and goodwill. He also wrote about how quickly virtue and honor fade when fear is allowed to creep into the consciousness of man. A kind word is often quickly and irrationally replaced by unjustified harsh criticism. The helping hand is suddenly withdrawn and replaced with an empty, indifferent air. Those who were normally quick to instill harmony where the dispute once reigned, now look over their shoulders to see who is spying on them and who will report them to those who might harm them.
With such consequences clearly in focus, it becomes easier to fully understand the importance of not being afraid of what man may do to you. As Freemasons, we learn to pray as if everything depends on God and to act as if everything depends on us. Therefore, Freemasons have recognized since time immemorial that prayer and action are two well-known secrets to help achieve good mental and physical health. It is essential to know that both must act together. Prayer without action of the one who prays is as useless as faith without actions.
Fear is a natural reaction to what we are not familiar with. When pain is potentially involved, it is more natural to at least feel great uneasiness. Imagine for a moment the plight of Grand Master Jacques De Molay as he awaited some torture, since he had clearly already been told precisely which instrument would painfully probe which delicate parts of his body. No doubt he was afraid. However, as ancient history informs us, he eventually overcame that fear, declared that he would not profess the misdeeds attributed to him and his Knights Templar, and was subsequently burned alive at the stake.
What is it that enables men to overcome fear? The heroic efforts of the soldiers on Iwo Jima, or those who stormed the cliffs in the Normandy invasion, stand out for generations as examples of unwavering bravery. For the military, the answer is clear: fight for his comrades in arms. But why do we resist fear? Most of us are not in combat and therefore we are not at war. The answer is that we have so conditioned our faith and our minds that we know that, like all men, we will die. Our passage of this material life was ordered before we were born. It does not matter so much how we die, but how we live.
Freedom is a gift from God. We can accept it or reject the whole premise. Fear forces us to make a decision. Many choose slavery and give in. Others believe that freedom is a matter of choice and therefore choose to act freely, even though they may be in a terrible state of fear. The man is of little time here on earth. However, his spirit lives forever. We should not worry so much about our well-being here on earth that we sacrifice the great gift of freedom that God has given us.
Brave men are free men. Fearful men are enslaved men. The Holy Scriptures are replete with allegories about liberation from slavery, not submission to slavery. We have been created to become men of God, not men submitted to the will of those who would use fear to strip us of our natural spirit of freedom.
When ill health strikes, fear not. You will live. You can even live a little longer here on this plane. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t matter, because it has always been and always will be a life force.
When your fortune fails and you worry about how to live from one month to the next, fear not. No one has guaranteed you a life without problems. However, you have been guaranteed that God will give you strength. Pray and act like you are successful. If you feel threatened, be it by a patron, a priest or a saint, or a bully, do not fear. God has not empowered any man to impose his own selfish desires on another man. The only way that is successful is when man allows it to succeed.
My brethren, Freemasonry offers us a plan on the best way to be successful in life. That plan focuses on the four cardinal virtues of temperance, fortitude, prudence, and justice. None of these virtues can be successfully practiced by a fearful man. Therefore, Freemasonry advises us to be firm, not fearful. Had Hiram Abif feared death, he would have quickly revealed the secrets of a Master Mason when the ruffian first assaulted him at the south gate.
How fast do you give up?
