The Universal Language of Freemasonry - ArchiMeD - Johannes ...

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Chapter 10 - Conclusion
Strange as it may seem, unification of rituals would historically be un-
Masonic, that is, uniformity of ritualism is not characteristic of the
Society - diversification is. No great inconvenience exists by reason of
diversity and no particular benefits would flow from absolute
unification. The Masonic ritual is such that its beauties could not be
reflected in any one draft, and the attempt to crowd all into one version
would result as did Preston's in one too long and verbose for use, or
would require the discard and permanent loss of much valuable and
expressive material. 2026
As beautiful as Coil's conception is, in one point he is mistaken; it has well
meant a "great inconvenience" for several brethren to have a different ritual,
especially when they were visiting foreign lodges. To illustrate the nonconformity
of rituals of different countries, states or American jurisdictions, I
would like to enumerate some incidents which took place in the 19 th century and
today sound peculiar to us, which, however, have brought with them great
embarrassment and inconvenience for the people then involved. Thus, in The
New Age Magazine from July 1916, we find a little anecdote called "The Strange
Case of Brother P.W. Shepheard" about a brother who had been made an Entered
Apprentice three times, a Fellow Craft twice, and a Master Mason once, before
he became the first Master of Mt. Moriah Lodge No. 44 in 1853 - and all that
because he got so mixed up with his English, French, and American versions of
the ritual that he had to take the degrees anew:
Brother Shepheard was a master mariner. He received his first degree in
a cave near Alexander, Egypt, from a French Lodge, Masonry at that
time being under the ban of the Turkish Government. Before being
passed to the degree of Fellow Craft he was ordered to proceed to the
West Indies for a cargo. He applied for his second degree to a Lodge at
Kingston, Jamaica, but upon examination was found to know 'work'
so radically different from that practiced by the English Lodges,
that he was initiated again. Before he could be passed he was ordered
to New York where he again made application for the second degree.
He encountered the same difficulty here and was again required to
be initiated in the American 'work.' He then sailed to California as
master of the ship Arkansas. He stopped at Rio de Janeiro, where he
applied for his Fellow Craft degree, and received it in St. John's Lodge
No. 703. When he arrived at San Francisco he petitioned California
Lodge to be made a Master Mason. He had so mixed his French,
English and American versions of the 'work' that he was required
to take the second degree again, and was in due time raised. 2027
2026 Ibid, p. 567.
2027 The New Age Magazine, 1916, p. 336.