Brethren All
I begin this month by sending congratulations from the Province to our Grand High Almoner, W Bro Bharat Khetani, member of the Court of Unity at Witesie, on becoming High Sheriff of Cambridgeshire. Now, that is an appointment to aspire to! Read more here. Bharat is to be doubly congratulated - also on his recent appointment to the rank of Past Junior Grand Deacon in the United Grand Lodge of England.
Easter has come and gone, and we now have the King’s Coronation to look forward to, with its associated Bank Holidays. The weather is improving, and the weeds are growing rapidly, therefore, I should be spending more time in the garden, but Freemasonry appears to be getting in the way.
Perhaps now is a good time for reflection – what did I do? what didn’t I do that I should have done? and what could I have done better, during the last year?
This premise led me to think about recent years in the Province of East Anglia.
It was on the 9th January 2019 that I was asked to undertake the duties of “Deputy Provincial Grand Master in Charge of the Province of East Anglia”. Where have the last four years gone?
So what have we collectively achieved or implemented since January 2019?
- Consecrated the new Court of Keith Ansell at Grantebrycge
- The Chevalier Ramsey Lecture Award Winner in 2021
- Regular Provincial Executive meetings
- Provincial Website
- Live Provincial Yearbook – updated after every Installation Meeting and posted on the Provincial Website members’ section
- Provincial Tri-fold leaflet
- Direct emailing of members of important information, rather than via the Court Secretaries.
- Marshals Handbook
- Provincial Popup Banner
- Moved the Court of Earl Godwyne from Luton to Biggleswade
- Created an unbelievable camaraderie brought about during the Covid pandemic, facilitated by our weekly Zoom meetings, and which has continued ever since.
I thank you all for making the above and plenty more happen.
On the downside, whilst ceremonies in general are very good, there are areas where we appear to have regressed, and areas where we could do better.
Since Covid, there has been a noticeable increase in the use of Ritual Books and extensive use of crib sheets. Ritual books should only be used by Court Marshals, or a dedicated prompter. Inobtrusive use of Crib sheets, if necessary, should only be used as a last resort. Ritual should not be read as a matter of course, but it may be necessary if an Officer has had to step in at short notice.
From a positive perspective, it is great to see so many new “Instructees” coming into the Order, and we need to keep them, and all Court members who are not in Office, interested and involved where possible, in our ceremonies. Therefore, I would ask all Court Worshipful Masters, Marshals, and Secretaries, to get together and encourage their members to consider learning parts of the ceremony such as:-
- The Symbols and Emblems (normally carried out by the Deacons)
- The Rosetta Stone lecture (normally carried out by the Junior Warden)
- Explanation of the Cyningstun 10 – 90 (where applicable)
- Presentation of the Grand Court Certificate
- Installation Address
- Secrets of the Order
The latter two preferably being done by Past Masters.
I haven’t witnessed many “Original” Lectures or Papers recently. What better opportunity is there than to encourage newer members to participate in the meetings, by giving a short paper.
Part of the ethos of the Masonic Order of Athelstan was that research and study should play an important role in the development of the members. Hence “Knowledge, Wisdom, and Understanding” is the key tenet of the Order.
It is therefore my intention to raise the profile of the delivery of original papers in our meetings. These papers can be of the Anglo-Saxon era, but not exclusively. They can also be of a more general Masonic interest. They can be of subjects such as, the Heptarchy, Kings, Queens, Princes and Earls, Battles, Armour, Weapons, Places, Dynasties, Celtic Crosses, lifestyles, etc. Papers should be no more than 2,000 words in length and be delivered in 20 minutes, or less, including a question-and-answer session. I intend to give a nominal prize for the best each year.
Here are a few other possible starting points, In East Anglia alone we have Ditches and Dykes, Snape Cemetery, Spong Hill, Sutton Hoo, St Bene’t’s Church in Cambridge, All Saints Church in Earls Barton, St Mary’s Church near Swaffham, the Trumpington Cross, Flag Fen, West Stow, the North Folk, the South Folk, etc.
Why not have a go and send me your best endeavours to
My recommended reading for those researching and intending to write a paper on Anglo-Saxon history is as follows:-
- Anglo -Saxon England by Frank Stenton
- Athelstan, The First King of England by Sarah Foot
- The Anglo-Saxons by Marc Morris
What areas do you think that we can change, or implement, to improve your enjoyment at our meetings? Please let me know.
We are currently exploring the possibility of a new Court to be established at Corby. If anyone is interested in becoming a Founder member, please contact Danny Ellis, Eddie Moore, or myself.
Finally, I miss our Zoom meetings – do you? If so, let me know and I will consider resurrecting a few during the next 12 months if we can establish suitable dates and times. In the meantime don’t forget to look at the Athelstan YouTube videos, and both our Grand Court and Provincial websites.
Have a great Summer, look after yourselves, and your families, and I anticipate seeing you all again soon.
Yours sincerely and fraternally
Alex Allan
April 2023