Southern California Research Lodge

Fraternal R eview
F eb ruar y 2017

Masonic
Ladder
and
Stairs

W h e re d o t h e y l e a d ?
EDITOR’S WORD
SCRL Fraternal Review

A N e w Ye a r ’ s A s c e n s i o n February 2017
As we welcome the new year, I can’t help but feel grateful
for the love and acceptance the new Fraternal Review has Volume 58 Number 1
received. We took a chance and it paid off. At the California
Grand Lodge Annual Communication this past October, for PUBLICATION STAFF
the first time in our history, we sold more monthly
publications than books! This revived appreciation for our Editor In Chief - C. Douglas Russell
Photo by Scott Gilbert

magazine only makes the countless hours we put into its

production much more meaningful. Expect nothing less Managing Editor - Dago Rodriguez, PM
from the Southern California Research Lodge in 2017. If Copy Editors - Brett Fisher, Jeriel Smith
you live in the Los Angeles area and would like to join the
Fraternal Review team please send us an email or attend Layouts: Dago Rodriguez PM

one of our quarterly meetings held on the third Mondays of January, April, July, and Ramiro Montes De Oca
October. Notice of the April meeting is on the next page.
Webmaster: Kenneth Thomas
The next ten issues will encompass as much Masonic inspired education as we can fit COVER PAGE
into their sixteen pages. If you have not subscribed or renewed your subscription now is
the time to do so. We also reached out to all the lodges in California about our special- Painting
three-issue-lodge-rate subscription. If you haven’t heard about this new and special offer “Master of Puppets”
please ask your Lodge Secretary about it, or email us: editor@theresearchlodge.org. By Julia Grey


To kick off the new year we

“ascend” through the Masonic “Thank you for making this publication
Ladder and the Staircase as we possible. We look forward to serving your SCRL OFFICERS
explore the philosophy and
symbols in the many steps of our Masonic educational needs in 2017.” Master - Jeriel Smith
Senior Warden - Dago Rodriguez, PM
Masonic journeys. Please email us Junior Warden - Brett Fisher
with suggestions for articles to reprint or for writing something original for a future issue. Secretary - John Seletos
Here’s a list of exciting topics we will be discussing: Asst. Secretary - Tom Sheehan
Treasurer - Eric Hamilton
Observant Freemasonry, Grand Lodge Origins, Art of Memory, Anti-Masonry, Noachite Masonry, Chaplain - Charlie Fisher, PM
The Flower of Life, The Force and The Light (the Star Wars issue), and Temple, Body, and Psyche.
Senior Deacon - Adrian Fulle
Junior Deacon - Michael Laidlaw
On a final note, at our quarterly meeting held on January 16, 2017 we installed the new Senior Steward - Julio Luna
SCRL line of officers—all from different areas in Southern California, making this Junior Steward - Kenneth Thomas
research lodge representative of the eclectic mix of Masonic scholars in the Southern Marshal - C. Douglas Russell
California region. Once again, the Fraternal Review would not exist if it wasn’t for the Tiler - Brandon Satterlee
kind support of readers like you. Thank you for making this publication possible. We
look forward to serving your Masonic educational needs in 2017. Have a happy and
healthy new year! H AV E A N A R T I C L E ?
SHARE IT WITH US.
Fraternally,
We might include it in a future
issue or post it on our website.
Bro. Dago
Rodriguez, PM www.TheResearchLodge.org
SCRL Managing
Editor
VISIT US
www.TheResearchLodge.org
The official SCRL website. Read past
issues and pay your dues.

LIKE US
A CLASS ACT Get up-to-date information on
2017 SCRL line of upcoming issues and lectures.
officers installed https://www.facebook.com/
January 16, 2017 Southern-California-Research-
Lodge-116782435016421/?fref=ts

2 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017

 Contents

4 Jacob’s ladder
Jacob’s Ladder is the connection
between earth and heaven, and a
symbol that has appeared in the
Masonic philosophy for over two
hundred years.

6 Symbology
A look at the Ladder and Winding Staircase as
artists have portrayed them in tracing boards.
An esoteric perspective on the Winding Staircase by W.L.
8 Q&A
The Fraternal Review sits down with Gerald Werch of
the J.P Luther Masonic supply company, who describes
Wilmshurst. Read it on pages 11-12.

the evolution of their Winding Staircase floor cloth.

9
Travels
The mystic symbolism of the ladder is traced back to
12 A Stairway and Ladder
William Moseley Brown, PGM “lights the way” in
his interpretation of the Masonic Winding
the great cultures of antiquity. Staircase.

FINAL WORD
11 Masonic Pop Culture
The book pick of the month and a preview of our newly
launched Instagram account.
16 The Winding Staircase and its symbolic meaning of
courage according to Allen E. Roberts.

FeBRUARY Dates Notable events, gatherings, and lectures in the

Southern California area. Check ‘em out!

4 SATURDAY
Masonic Meditation Class 22Lecture
Wednesday
Series Night
NEXT SCRL

 Art Weiss, PGP, Electra and Her MEETING:
Led by Douglas Russell, Certified Importance to The Order, 7:30pm
Meditation Instructor 10:00am.
Masons only. Free. Casual attire.
Open to the Public. Free. Please
RVSP to Maryann at 626-443-4792 or
secretaryoes21@gmail.com
17 APRIL
Monday
South Pasadena Lodge No. 290 Southern California Research Lodge
1126 Fair Oaks Avenue South Pasadena Chapter of the
Eastern Star Quarterly Meeting
South Pasadena, CA 91030
1126 Fair Oaks Avenue Masons Only. Free.
MONDAY South Pasadena, CA 91030
6 The Illumination Lecture Series South Pasadena Lodge No. 290

Philip Deslippe, The Kybalion of

23 Collegium Solvitur Ambulando
THURSDAY 1126 Fair Oaks Ave.
South Pasadena, CA 91030
William Walker Atkinson, 7pm
Douglas Russell
Open to the public. Free. Dinner Masonic Ladder and Stairs, 7:15pm Please email your Lodge’s
to Follow.
Masons Only. Free. Casual attire. special dates to:
South Pasadena Lodge No. 290 Hollywood Lodge 355 master@theresearchlodge.org
1126 Fair Oaks Ave. 19620 Ventura Blvd. Please do so at least a month in
South Pasadena, CA 91030 Tarzana, CA 91356 advance.

February 2017 ~ TheResearchLodge.org ~ 3

 Ladder
of
V i rt u e s

CO V E R S TORY

“[Jacob’s ladder] is not the only ladder known as a symbol of moral, intellectual, and
spiritual progress. There have been many, for the belief in the existence of a ladder leading
from earth to heaven was common at one time throughout the world. Jacob's Ladder was a
prominent symbol in the early days of speculative masonry, and we find it on many breast
jewels of the 1760 period. The number of rungs, or steps, in the various ladders was
generally seven, which has been a mystic, or sacred, number for thousands of years. There
were, for example, seven sacred planets; seven days in creation; seven ages in the life of
man; among the Hebrews every seventh year was Sabbatical. The number of steps in Jacob's
Ladder in Freemasonry should apparently be seven: Temperance, Fortitude, Prudence,
Justice, Faith, Hope, and Charity. But often it is only three. In an Irish ritual of the year 1796
the ladder is shown with eleven rungs. As might well be expected, the emblem has been
found capable of varied and elaborate explanations. It was supposed to lead the thoughts of
the Brethren to heaven; its rungs each represented a moral and religious duty; if there were
three rungs, they represented Faith, Hope, and Charity, with which the whole earth could be
encircled.”
Bernard E. Jones

[Excerpted from Bernard E. Jones, Freemasons’ Guide and Compendium. (Nashville: Cumberland House, 1950), 405-406.]

4 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017

 M a s on ic F r ag m e n t s
The Winding Stairs & Jacob’s Ladder
The door for the middle chamber was in the right side The ladder has ever been a prominent Symbol in
of the house [Solomon’s Temple]: and they went up Masonry. It is drawn on the Tracing Boards, and,
with winding stairs into the middle chamber, and out as the Ladder of Perfection, it is a conspicuous
of the middle into the third. object in the higher degrees of the Ancient and
[I Kings 6:8, Holy Bible, Master Mason Edition. (U.S.A.: DeVore
& Sons, Inc., 1991), 385.] Accepted Rite. From time immemorial it has
been employed as the symbol of progressive
Statements in Masonic ritual about a winding staircase ascent on the Intellectual, Moral and Spiritual
in Solomon's Temple cannot be wholly supported by planes. The number of steps varies from three
historical or archaeological evidence. In the Bible it is upwards. The ladder reaches from Earth to
mentioned only once, as quoted above. Sometimes Heaven and it is thus a type of the Union of the
translation of biblical Hebrew text can involve Terrestrial and Celestial Kingdoms, and of the at-
guessing at the true meaning. “Winding stairs” in I one-ment between God and man, which
Kings may be incorrect. In Ezekiel 41:7 side chambers throughout the ages has been the constant theme
—storage areas in the Temple—described as winding of the Mysteries, as well as of Philosophy and
upward about the structure, were apparently located in Religion.
[Sir John Cockburn, quoted by Leon Zeldis in “Jacob’s
the thick walls of the sides of the Temple. No stairs are Ladder in Masonic Iconography,” Ars Quatuor
mentioned. It is possible that the authors of I Kings Coronatorum Vol. 101. (London: Butler & Tanner, Ltd.,
and Ezekiel were describing different buildings. 1989), 227.]
[Excerpted and paraphrased from Bro. A. L. Shane, “The Mystery
of the Winding Staircase,” Ars Quatuor Coronatorum Vol. 81.
(York: Ben Johnson & Co., Ltd., 1969), 340-348.]

Hargrave Jennings, in [The Rosicrucians: Their

Now the spiral, an example of which is the winding
Rites and Mysteries (1870)] says, according to
staircase, is one of the most ancient and most powerful
the Kabbalistic view, Jacob's Ladder is a
symbols; so ancient is it indeed that it is pictured as
metaphorical representation of the powers of
long ago as in Palaeolithic times; in other words, from
Alchemy operating through visible nature. It was
the beginning of man as man. Now what is remarkable
a rainbow, or prismatic staircase, set up between
is that the spiral (which since the days of early man
earth and heaven. It implied a history of the
has been regarded as the symbol of the creative force)
whole Hermetic creation.
is in actuality the pattern of creation. It is the pattern
What is said of it in the Book of Genesis
of the solar systems, the suns and planets, and the
[28:12] is only this: "And he dreamed, and lo! a
pattern of the galaxies—themselves created by the
ladder set upon the earth, and the top of it
inward spiraling of inter-stellar gas. What is even more
reached to heaven: and lo! the Angels of God
remarkable is that this ancient symbol of the creative
ascending and descending on it.” Nothing about
force is, in fact, the exact pattern that the DNA
its having three rounds or seven rounds.
molecule assumes to determine life: the double helix, [Arturo de Hoyos, Ed., Albert Pike’s Esoterika.
or double spiral. (Washington D.C.: The Scottish Rite Research Society,
[Bro. Edgar Jones, “The Mysteries and the Winding Staircase,” 2008), 237.]
Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, Vol. 103, London: Butler & Tanner
Ltd., 1991), 173.]

March 2016 ~ TheResearchLodge.org ~ 5

 symbology
Symbols, Secrets, Significance
W. Kirk MacNulty
The tracing board of the First Degree illustrates many of the basic
metaphysical principles of the Renaissance. It is said that God made the
Universe, and Man, in his own image. The overall picture is of the
Macrocosm, the entire Universe. The three columns, Wisdom, Strength and
Beauty, communicate the idea of paired opposites, the blossoming Beauty
of the Corinthian Column and the severe Strength of the Doric Column,
held in balance by Wisdom, the Ionic Column. The ladder and the diagram
on the pavement represent the Microcosm or Man. The Ladder stands
between the Two Parallel Lines on the pavement. The Lines originally
represented the Saints John whose days are mid-summer and midwinter,
paired opposites. The Ladder of consciousness between them holds them in
balance. This is a Cabbalistic interpretation. In both the Macrocosm and the
Microcosm there are four levels. The lowest of these is the physical world,
symbolized in the Macrocosm by the Chequered Pavement and in the
Microcosm by the theological virtue Faith. The second level up is that of
the psyche which is represented in Macrocosm by the central area of the
board with most of the symbols, and in the Microcosm by the theological
virtue Hope. The third level up is the Spirit, represented by the Heavens
and by the theological virtue Charity. The fourth level is Divinity. It is
represented in the Heavens by the Star that contains the ‘All-Seeing Eye’ of
the Deity; and It, the Source of all things, is the fourth level and the Source
of both the Macrocosm and the Microcosm.

The tracing board of the Second Degree illustrates the task to be

accomplished by the Fellow Craft. It is, in fact, a detailed drawing of part
of the First Degree board. Of what part? Of the Microcosm, or of Man.
The two columns are paired opposites because they are topped with the
celestial and terrestrial spheres, and the ladder between them has become
a Staircase. The structure is a representation of Solomon’s temple, but we
can understand it in the context of the question in the Great Light, the
Bible, ‘Know ye not that ye are the Temple?’ It is a picture of the
Candidate, and the climbing of the Stairs is a representation of the start of
the mystical ascent. The Middle Chamber at the top of the Stairs is the
place where the Fellow Craft conducts most of his work.

[W. Kirk MacNulty, Freemasonry—Symbols, Secrets, Significance.

(London: Thames & Hudson, Ltd., 2006), 160 & 166.]

6 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017

Three, Five, and Seven Steps
Allen E. Roberts
You began your symbolic journey to the Middle Chamber by climbing three steps. These were representative of the
three Stationed Officers of the lodge, the Worshipful Master, Senior and Junior Wardens. This assured you that you
were not traveling alone. You were being assisted by the Craft everywhere. Then, too, you had God with you. Three is
symbolic of Deity. You have become a vital part of the Mystic Tie that is Freemasonry.
The five steps are symbolic of the Fellowcraft Degree as a whole. It takes five to hold a Fellowcraft's Lodge; there
are five Orders of Architecture; Geometry is the fifth science; there are five Human Senses, and so on. But the points
that were stressed to you were their representation of the orders of architecture and the human senses.
You learned that the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian were the original orders of architecture. These were invented by
the Greeks. The Romans added two, the Tuscan and the Composite. But there must be much more than pillars in the art
of architecture. Buildings are erected stone by stone. The stones must be chipped away until they are suitable for use.
Properly mixed cement must be used to hold them together. But first of all there must be a plan, a goal to reach for.
The symbolism is evident. There are five orders of
architecture, signifying there are many plans a man may
follow to build his Spiritual Temple. You are free to select
your goals without any interference from Masonry. But
Masonry does want you to choose wisely. Don't build
aimlessly.
Freemasonry is a well-rounded plan for living. Without
the five senses, a man couldn't live as a man. He couldn't
plan. He couldn't learn. He can get along without one or
two, provided he makes those that are left more sensitive.
But there is another factor that helps man use his senses
in his relations with life. That's his mind, or soul, or spirit.
Through his mind and senses man acquires knowledge.
Through them he seeks education. And it's the seeking of
knowledge and education that is stressed throughout the
Fellowcraft Degree.
You are taught that the seven Liberal Arts and Sciences
are Grammar, Rhetoric, Logic, Arithmetic, Geometry,
Music, and Astronomy. All of these, and more, the Mason
should understand. But Masonry stresses the need for
knowledge in the fifth science—Geometry. In the
Seventeenth Century these studies were regarded as the
basic curriculum of a liberal education. Concepts have
changed. Astronomy is interrelated with mathematics and
physics. Other sciences such as electricity, chemistry, and
biology were unknown when the Masonic ritual was born.
Because the ritual has remained the same doesn't mean
that you should. You must grow. You can't stand still. Why
not consider all methods of communication as a part of
Rhetoric and Grammar? Logic, a method of reasoning?
Arithmetic and Geometry visualized as all science? Music
as all sweet and harmonious sound, all poetry, beauty, art,
nature? Astronomy, a study of all that's beyond earth?
Taken all together, the practice of the truest brotherhood?

[Allen E. Roberts, The Craft and Its Symbols. (Richmond, VA:

Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply Company, Inc., 1974),
51-54.]

February 2017 ~ The ResearchLodge.org ~ 7

Q & A:
Brother Gerald Werch, J.P. Luther Co.
BRO. WERTZ HAS SERVED IN MANY CAPACITIES WITH A COMPANY IN
WISCONSIN THAT MAKES & SELLS A UNIQUE DIGITAL WINDING STAIRWAY
FLOOR CLOTH, APRONS, AND MUCH MORE, AT WWW.JPLUTHER.COM.
HE SAT DOWN WITH THE FRATERNAL REVIEW FOR A QUICK “Q&A.”

INTERVIEW B Y C . D O U G L A S R U S S E L L

Q: Can you tell us about the founding lecture. Some lodges still use Lecture
and growth of the J.P. Luther Company? Charts in their degree work.
A: In 1865 Justus P. Luther was in the Q: How would you describe the digitized
business of making buggy whips in Winding Stairs floor cloth
Berlin, WI. In 1867, he invented &
patented a machine to make team & A: Our Fellow Craft Winding Stairs is a
buggy whips, saving 75% of the labor faithfully reproduced print 40” x 168”
costs of handmade whips. As many as showing the three, five and seven steps of
thirty thousand whips were made each the Fellow Craft degree with the
year, and distributed all over the country. waterford scene. It is printed on 18 oz.
The company also made driving gloves, white reinforced vinyl.
work gloves, and mittens. In 1902 J.P.
Luther Co. was incorporated and started Q: What can you tell us about the
in the Masonic supply business. With a background of the floor cloth and it’s
number of different owners over the digitization?
years, the business was purchased by my
father Melvin R. Werch in 1963 from A: For many years we had a local artist
PGM Clair Little. make the stairway cloths through a
combination of screen printing and hand-
Q: What has been your involvement painted embellishments. Because of the
Q: What led you to join Freemasonry? with the company and what is your role failing health of our artist, we had to find
now? another way to make the stairway. We
A: My Father was a Mason and it discovered a local company that could
excited my curiosity. A: My involvement in the business digitize the stairways and reproduce them
started in 1973. I started out cutting the in the size we needed.
Q: Where and when were you made a lambskin leather used in the presentation
Mason? aprons. I have worn many hats over the Q: Does the company
years and took over as manager in 1983. make other floor cloths,
A: I was raised on 12/14/85 in Berlin In 1976 we came out with a full color and how are they different
Lodge No.38, F. & A.M., Berlin, WI. catalog. In 1982 we added a toll-free from one another?
phone number. In 1984 we started
Q: What has been your involvement in computerized mailing lists and went to A: We only offer the
various Masonic bodies? fully computerized order entry in 1986. Fellow Craft Stairway.
In 1992 we started producing our first
A: My main involvement has been in computerized embroidered aprons. In Q: Have you personally
Berlin Lodge No. 38. It is a small 2000 we established our website http:// done the Fellow Craft
Lodge and it takes a very dedicated www.jpluther.com with full web staircase lecture, and how
group of Masons to keep a small Lodge ordering by 2005. My sons and daughter would you describe the
in a small town going. I have been a are now involved in the business, as I experience?
Lodge Officer 31 years of the 32 years slowly try to sneak out the door.
that I have been a Mason. In 1985 Bro. A: I do not personally do
Arden Longcroft left an endowment to Q: Can you tell us some history about the Fellow Craft degree
Berlin Lodge with the charge that all the use of floor cloths in the Fellow stairway lecture, but have
income therefrom be used to benefit the Craft degree? seen it many times. Seeing
youth of Berlin. In the last 35 years the full-length stairway
Berlin Lodge with the help of the Izna A: Before the advent of slides, and during the lecture gives the
& Arden Longcroft Masonic Trust has PowerPoint, the Lodges used candidate a more
distributed over $300,000.00 in emblematic carpets to show the impressionable
scholarships and grants to the local candidates in the Entered Apprentice, understanding of the three,
youth and youth groups of Berlin, WI. Fellow Craft, and Master Mason degrees five and seven steps
and in the Fellow Craft Winding Stairs involved in the degree.
8 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017
 T R AV E L S
The symbolic and psychological meaning of the
ladder as a paradigm of spiritual ascent dates from
the earliest antiquity. In a bas-relief from the 3rd
Dynasty of Ur, dated c. 2070-1960 B.C., there
appears a seven-rung ladder, ‘suggesting initiation
leading from lower to higher realms of
consciousness: above the initiate is the conjunction
of a crescent moon and sun, symbolizing the union
of masculine and feminine principles as the central
meaning of initiation’.

We find here the core of an explanation for the use

of the ladder as a symbol in the First Degree in
Masonry, in preference to the others. We should
note, as well, this early example of the conjunction Ancient Pyramids: Steps toward the Divine
of the ladder with two other important symbols in
the Lodge: the sun and the moon.

The spiritual ladder is found in the Pagan Mysteries of Mithras, and in the Mysteries of Brahma. Dr Oliver found it in
the Scandinavian Mysteries. Among the Cabalists, the ladder was represented by the ten Sephirot, though it usually
included only seven steps.

The Egyptian god Horus, son of Isis, was known as the god of the ladder, and small ladders were worn as amulets.

In the Mysteries of Mithras, the ceremonial ladder ‘Climax’ had seven rungs, each made of a different metal, and
corresponding to the seven planets or ‘heavens’: the first was lead (Saturn), then came tin (Venus), bronze ( Jupiter),
iron (Mercury), ‘monetary alloy’ (Mars), silver (Moon) and gold (Sun). While ascending this ladder the initiate
traversed in effect the seven heavens to reach the empyrean, in the same way that the last heaven was reached by
climbing the seven floors of the Babylonian ziggurat. The initiatory ladder was placed in the Centre of the Universe
and was the Axis of the World. The reason for placing the foot of Jacob's Ladder on the altar, as depicted in the tracing
board, above that central point within a circle, now becomes clear.

The source of the connection made in Freemasonry between the ladder and the moral virtues can be traced back to the
Greek philosophers: Man's arduous ascent to God is represented as a ladder. John Klimakos (died c. 600 and whose
name means John of the Ladder) laid the foundation for this graduated conception, rooted in neo-Platonism.

The relationship between the ladder symbol and initiation, already noted, can also be traced back to classic antiquity.
In 'The Golden Ass' of Apuleius, which is an account of a symbolic initiation, there appears a Stairway of the Seven
Planets.

The initiation of late classic syncretism, already saturated with alchemy (cf. the Vision of Zosimos) was particularly
concerned with the theme of ascent, i.e. sublimation. The ascent was often represented by a ladder. The idea of ascent
through the seven spheres or planets symbolizes the return of the soul to the sun-god from whom it originated.
[Excerpted from Leon Zeldis, “Jacob’s Ladder in Masonic Iconography,” Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, Vol. 101. (London: Butler & Tanner,
1989.]

February 2017 ~ TheResearchLodge.org ~ 9

MASONIC POP CULTURE
READ IT
The Winding Staircase
By Huw Pritchard
Lewis Masonic Publishing
2014 - 96 Pages

Freemasonry is one of the World's oldest secular

associations with its modern origins dating to the
remnants of the medieval stonemasons' guilds in the
late seventeenth century. Today it is a major
contributor to charities and promotes high levels of
moral conduct and integrity in its members, who
number about a quarter of a million in England and
Wales. In the past, over-zealous notions of privacy
created an impression of secrecy and mystery which
led to misplaced accusations of corruption and
improper behaviour by its members; the resulting
and very welcome, official policy of openness and
transparency has led to a wider understanding of its
aims and ideals. One of the most important aspects
of Freemasonry is to provide its members with tools
to enable them to embark on a voyage of self-
discovery and self-improvement, ultimately enabling
them to gain a better understanding of their
spirituality. Huw Pritchard breaks down the
symbolism of The Craft, in particular the meaning
behind The Winding Staircase.

[Excerpt from the book description.]

WATCH IT
follow us
Mysteries of The Bible -
SoCalResearchLodge Jacob’s Ladder
Instagram 44min Published Dec. 31, 2012
Launched January 2017
From the Biography Network a biblical insight into Jacob
As with all things social media, the
and his impact in the Holy Writings. The story of Jacob’s
Southern California Research Lodge
magnificent stairway to heaven, includes a trip to the
has recently launched its first
Middle East to explore 4,000 year old ruins that some
Instagram page. Follow us to get previews of upcoming
believe were the actual locations where stories of Jacob and
issues, articles and also, upcoming lectures and
his son took place.
symposiums in the Southern California area. Search for
SoCal ResearchLodge and give us a follow.

10 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017

Th e L a dde r
A n E s o t e r ic
Pe rpectiv e
B y W . L . Wi l m s h u r s t

A most important part of the curriculum of the ancient

mysteries was instruction in cosmology, the science of the
universe. The intention of that instruction was to disclose to
candidates the physical and metaphysical constitution of the
world and the place and destiny of man in it. They were
shown how the complex human organism reproduces the
great world and summarizes it in small, so that man may see
himself to be a microcosm or miniature copy of it. …

Skepticism, freedom and independence of thought about

matters of a more or less occult nature have their undoubted
place and value in the outer ways of the world. But they are
foreign to and inconsistent with the mental attitude
appropriate to those who, on entering a hall of initiation, are
supposed to tyle the door to the outside world and its
conceptions, and, divesting themselves of all ideas there pre-
acquired, to offer themselves as humble teachable pupils of a
new and authoritative order of knowledge. Where everyone
claims to be already possessed of a sufficiently satisfactory A Painting of
Jacob’s Ladder
explanation of the universe and his place in it, or is content to by William Blake
get along without one, and in either case prefers his private
judgment to any other that may be offered him, the soil for making initiates in any real sense is distinctly
unfavorable. For such, however, these pages are not written. They are offered only to the minority of brethren eager to learn what
Masonry has to teach them upon matters in which they earnestly seek knowledge and guidance.

Masonry, then, in exhibiting to them a simple ladder offers them a symbol the significance of which is calculated to open widely
the eyes of their imagination. It is true that in the Instruction lecture the ladder is expressly referred to that of Jacob in the familiar
biblical episode, and that that ladder is then given a moral significance and made to suggest the way by which man may ascend
from earth to heaven by climbing its symbolic rungs, and especially by utilizing its three chief ones representing the virtues Faith,
Hope and Charity. This moral interpretation is warranted and salutary. But it is far from exhaustive, and conceals rather than
reveals what "Jacob's ladder" was really intended to convey to the perspicuous when the compilers of our system gave it the
prominence they did. We may be assured they had a much deeper purpose than merely reminding us of the Pauline triad of
theological virtues.

The ladder, then, covertly emphasizes the old cosmological teaching before referred to. It is a symbol of the universe and of its
succession of step-like planes reaching from the heights to the the depths. It is written elsewhere that the Father's house has many
mansions; many levels and resting places for His creatures in their different conditions and degrees of progress. It is these levels,
these planes and sub-planes, that are denoted by the rungs and staves of the ladder. And of these there are, for us in our present
state of evolutionary un-foldment, three principal ones; the physical plane, the plane of desire and emotion, and the mental plane or
that of the abstract intelligence which links up to the still higher plane of the spirit. These three levels of the world are reproduced
in man. The first corresponds with his material physique, his sense-body; the second with his desire and emotional nature, which is
a mixed element resulting from the interaction of his physical senses and his ultra-physical mind; the third with his mentality,
which is still farther removed from his physical nature and forms the link between the latter and his spiritual being.

The ladder, and its three principal staves, may be seen everywhere in nature. It appears in the septenary scale of musical sound
with its three dominants; in the prismatic scale of light with its three primary colors; in our seven day scale of weekly time, in the
septenary physiological changes of our bodily organism, and the similar periodicities known to physics and indeed to every branch

February 2017 ~ TheResearchLodge.org ~ 11

of science. The perfect lodge has seven members,
including three principal officers. The advancement
of the third degree candidate to the East is by seven
steps, the first three of which, it will be
remembered, are given special significance.

Thus the universe and man himself are constructed

ladder-wise, in an orderly, organized sequence of
steps. The one universal substance composing the
differentiated parts of the universe "descends" from
a state of the utmost ethereality by successive steps
of increasing densification until gross
materialization is reached; and thence "ascends"
through a similarly ordered gradation of planes to its
original place, but enriched by the experience
gained by its activities during the process.

It was this cosmic process which was the subject of

the dream or vision of Jacob and which accounts for
“Jacob's ladder” being given prominence in our
symbolism. What was “dreamed” or beheld by him
with super-sensory vision, is equally perceptible
today by any one whose inner eyes have been
opened. Every real initiate is one who has attained
an expansion of consciousness and faculty enabling
him to behold the ethereal worlds revealed to the
Hebrew patriarch, as easily as the uninitiated man
beholds the phenomenal world with his outer eyes.
The initiate is able to “see the angels of God
ascending and descending”—that is, he can directly
behold the great stairway of the universe and watch
the intricate but orderly mechanism of involution,
differentiation, evolution, and re-synthesis,
constituting the life-process. He can witness the
descent of human essences or souls through planes
of increasing density and decreasing vibratory rate,
gathering around them as they come veils of matter
from each,
until finally this lowest level of complete materialization is
between the real self and the unreal selves and veils built and from that newfound center he will see and know and find
round it, has to be fought out on the checker-work floor of our the answer to all his needs. For, in the words of an ancient
present existence, among the black and white opposites of record of initiation:
good and evil, light and darkness, prosperity and adversity.
And he can watch the upward return of those who conquer in the sleep of the body becomes the awaking of the
the strife and, attaining their regeneration and casting off or soul, and the closing of the eyes true vision, and
transmuting the “worldly possessions” acquired during their silence becomes impregnated with God. This
descent, ascend to their Source, pure and unpolluted from the happened to me when I received the supreme
stains of this imperfect world. But to no man comes such authentic Word. I became God-inspired. I arrived at
vision as this unless he too be a Jacob who flees from the Truth. Wherefore I give from my soul and whole
clash and hurly of secular activities into the solitude of his strength, blessing to the Father. (Hermes,
own soul, and in that barren wilderness interrogates himself Poemandres, 1.30.)
and struggles agonizingly to penetrate the mystery of his
existence, to read its purpose, and tear out the last secret of his Jacob's vision and ladder, therefore, exemplify the attainment
own being. So, perchance, he may fall asleep, his head at last of initiation, the expansion of consciousness that comes when
quietly pillowed upon that hard stone, against which hitherto the Light of the center is found, and the cosmic vision that
he has been blindly dashing it. And then by the surrender of then becomes possible.
his own will and mental activities, and in the silence and
[Excerpt from W. L. Wilmshurst, The Masonic Initiation, Revised and Expanded
quietude of the senses, his own inmost great Light may break, Edition. (San Francisco: Plumbstone, 2007), 51, 54-56.]

12 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017

S h o rt Ta l k B u l l e t i n :

A Stairway and
A Ladder
By William Moseley Brown, PGM

I hold it truth with him who sings

To one clear Harp in divers tones
That men may rise on stepping stones
Of their dead selves to higher things.
-Lord Tennyson

In these lines, the poet has expressed a fundamental

Masonic teaching. What more vivid imagery could be
used to illustrate the lesson of Hiram Abif’s legend than
these words, especially the lines: “That men may rise on
stepping stones / Of their dead selves to higher things”?
Note the words dead and higher. What is the plain
implication of these words of our text?
First, the old self must undergo death before the new
self can take its place. This figure of regeneration is
used not only in Freemasonry, but also in most of the
ancient mysteries as well as in religions, ancient and
modern. They all teach the virtue of "climbing" or rising
in some manner above the conditions and circumstances in which we find ourselves at any given time. In Masonry (which is
not, however, a religion) we find the same idea taught by the symbols of a Stairway and a Ladder. The Stairway plays a
prominent part in the Fellowcraft Degree, as does the Ladder in the Entered Apprentice Degree.
Second, while there is no suggestion that there is anything phoenix-like in human development, the idea of self-
immolation and self-sacrifice is a plain teaching of the Masonic Fraternity. Looking a little closer, we find that the individual
is both the sacrifice and the sacrificer simultaneously. There is no suggestion that the process in his case resembles the
incident of Abraham's sacrifice of his son Isaac, nor is there the notion of anything like suicide. Indeed, the individual
becomes a sort of High Priest who presides over the very act of sacrificing himself, as is implied here. In other words, we
find ourselves by making of ourselves a sacrifice for others. And the human being is the only creature who can do this and for
whom this can be done.
Third, there is the idea of ascent, that is, that we should climb ever higher and higher. There is no limit to our climbing or
self-improvement except perfection itself. The essential thing is that we should keep climbing. This is the same idea
expressed by Longfellow in his poem, Excelsior: "A youth who bore mid snow and ice / A banner with the strange device,
Excelsior! Excelsior!"
Fourth, there is the inevitable law of life and death that everyone must reckon with. In one branch of Masonry, we are
reminded of “Memento mori” (liberal translation, “We are born to die”). This motto appears in the meeting places of many
European lodges. In Sweden occurs the variation: "No life without death: no death without life." Here, then, is the inevitable
teaching of the two greatest events in a human being's experience. Further, there is no more reason to assume that death is
final, any more than that life is so. Either conclusion is as much a product of human reasoning — logic — as is any other.
Fifth, there is no such thing as "pulling oneself up by one's bootstraps." The mental indulgence in this sort of
rationalization is in reality incompatible with every teaching of Freemasonry. A few moments of reflection will demonstrate
this fact.

February 2017 ~ TheResearchLodge.org ~ 13

April 2016 ~ TheResearchLodge.org ~ 9
 The Winding Stairs in the Fellowcraft Degree lead us a caring what happens to the rest of mankind? In saying
part of the way up to the Light of Truth, but it remains for “everybody's doing it” as a reason (rationalization) for our
the ladder “extending from earth to heaven” in the Entered doing the same thing? Is it really harmless to “get away
Apprentice Degree to show us the rest of the way. The with it” because no one sees or hears it?
latter is much more than a theological ladder. In former Cutting corners in morals, religion, business, or other
times the word theological meant not so much “religious” relationships is coming to be the more or less accepted
as “philosophical.” Note, too, that the ultimate aim of our standard of life and conduct. The saying that “we have to
climbing is heaven; our ascent is not made on a Tower of live with ourselves” means little except that we are willing
Babel. Our objective dare not to live with almost any kind of person.
be a smaller or lower one. Yet, in the face of all
This means that every Mason, this, we have the
to be worthy of his calling, uncompromising statement
must be a perfectionist. in Masonry's Great Light:
We are told in the Great “Blessed are the pure in
Light in Masonry that the heart: for they shall see
citizenry of the Kingdom of God.” (Matthew 5:8)
Heaven consists of perfect Guilelessness has almost
beings, and this perfection is ceased to be a virtue worth
set for us: "Be ye therefore mentioning; guile
perfect, even as your Father (nowadays often called
which in heaven is “diplomacy” or “business
perfect." (Matthew 5:48) The acumen”) is the order of
citizen of the Kingdom is to the day. Who will make us
be perfect himself; he cannot hold the torch high and
be the source of any imperfect demand of ourselves and
thing. This injunction would others the highest
be a hollow mockery if it standards of living and
pointed us to an unattainable action?
goal. The Supreme Architect It is not enough to wish
of the Universe does not make for things or merely to
of Himself the promulgator of plan to do them.
impossibles! For the Mason, Psychologists have a name
therefore, the motto is “Ne for this sort of thing; they
plus ultra,” “Nothing farther.” call it “wishful thinking”
In the Scottish Rite the or “rationalizing.” Many
first fourteen degrees persons who indulge in
constitute what is called the these to an excessive
“Rite of Perfection.” The extent are said to be
whole teaching of the Scottish abnormal or mentally sick.
Rite is the attainment of what There is another thing
we regard too often as that must not be
unattainable. To rest content overlooked. Kant had no
with shoddy work and corner on “categorical
piecemeal morals must be a imperatives.” Freemasonry
thing of the past. has at least one of them:
A Mason must give serious consideration to the moral self-improvement. This is obligatory and is no mere tinsel
judgments involved in questions such as these: the use of or window-dressing of Masonic ritual. A Mason is bound to
atomic bombs on civilians, whether in time of war or better himself in spirit, mind, and body—always and in
otherwise; a nation at peace maintaining strict censorship every way. If he slips from the pathway by saying or doing
over its citizens; not giving financial support to charity something that lowers him in his own and his fellowman's
when the individual is financially able; not taking the estimation, he has derogated from his profession. It is not
trouble to vote at elections; disbelieving in God; a doctor expected that he will be able to reach the pinnacle of
allowing a badly deformed baby to die when he could save perfection by himself, but the help of God is always
its life but not cure its deformity; falsifying an income tax abundantly available.
return; driving an automobile while drunk, but without Consequently, we find that individual initiative and
accident; living on inherited wealth without attempting to private enterprise are not enough. We have
render service to others; etc. responsibility to the whole of human society. “... Masons
Are we justified in looking out for “No. 1,” without are linked together by an indissoluble chain of sincere

14 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017

affection.” What is the purpose of this? “To relieve the “going up,” of “ascending”; and the end is at the top, not at
distressed is a duty incumbent on all men, but particularly some point at a lower level.
upon Masons ... to soothe the unhappy, to sympathize with Again we turn to Claudy's Pocket Encyclopedia of
their misfortunes, to compassionate their miseries, and Masonic Symbols:
restore peace to their troubled minds, is the grand aim we The revised edition of the Bible reads “love” in
have in view.” This is the ticket, so to speak, without which place of “charity,” which makes the Masonic ritual
no passage is obtainable. of Jacob's ladder more understandable. That
Dr. Charles G. Reigner in The Degrees of Masonry calls “charity extends beyond the grave through the
the Winding Stairs “the stairway of life.” He says: boundless realms of eternity” seems an
The pathway of life is not a straight or level road overstatement, if charity is thought of in terms of
on which we can travel without exertions. On the putting a ten cent piece in a blind beggar's cup. But
contrary, it is a ‘winding’ path. It is beset with if it is “love” which extends through eternity, the
difficulties that are the common lot of humanity. conception is at once beautiful and Masonic, since
But for the thoughtful Mason, the road he travels, brotherly love is one of the great teachings of
however steep or winding it may be, still leads Masonry.
onward to a higher sense of what life is and what it One further admonition must be mentioned. Beware of
is meant to be. frustrations, barriers, and detours on your progress through
Thus, the Winding Stairs become a symbol of the Mason's Masonry. The Fraternity does not guarantee to eliminate or
mental and spiritual life and growth, of learning, study and to overcome these obstacles for the zealous and industrious
enlarging horizons, of courage and Masonic character. brother. He himself must assume this responsibility
The late Carl H. Claudy wrote in his Pocket The Entered Apprentice is admonished that he is to erect
Encyclopedia of Masonic Symbols: his “future moral and Masonic edifice” on certain tenets,
The Winding Stairs are the symbol of the realities virtues, and principles. Without them he cannot build; he is
of the Masonic career. A straight stair, a ladder, like the man building his house upon the sand instead of
hides neither secret nor mystery at its top. But the upon the rock.
stairs that wind hide each step from the climber; We find, then, that we are all face to face with the
what is just around the corner is unknown. The inevitable necessity of making our choice between the sand
Winding Stairs of life lead us to we know not and the rock as our foundation. As one recent writer said:
what; for some, a Middle Chamber of fame and “We are the first people in human history to possess the
fortune; for others, of pain and frustration. The power of total self-destruction:” Actually, as never before,
Angel of Death may stand with drawn sword on Masonry finds among its more serious obligations, the
the very next step for anyone. demonstrating of the correct answer to this dilemma. In the
Yet man climbs because he has courage; because he has proper ascent of the Stairway and the Ladder, materially,
faith, because he is a man. So must the Freemason climb. mentally, and spiritually, and in arriving at the summit, we
The Winding Stairs do lead somewhere. There is a Middle shall become Masons worthy of the name!
Chamber. There are wages of the Fellowcraft to be earned. On the campus of Williams College in Massachusetts
But the objective of all our striving must not be lost sight stand the "Hopkins Memorial Steps." They were erected in
of. For the purpose of our climbing is the “starry-decked memory of Mark and Albert Hopkins, two famous
heavens where all good Masons hope at last to arrive:” educators of the last century. Mark Hopkins was the
Wages as such are not vouchsafed here, for the reward is brother who became President of William College and of
the ultimate one of heaven itself. Is there any greater? It is whom it was said, “Mark Hopkins sitting on one end of a
the Supreme Architect of the Universe, who gives His final log and a boy on the other constitute a university.”
approval in the “Well done, good and faithful Supposed to have been written by Professor Albert
servant.” (Matthew 25:23) Hopkins, the other brother, these lines were placed on the
There is the further thought that “the three principal Memorial Steps after having been found among his papers
rounds of the ladder are faith, hope, and charity.” Perhaps after his death:
we should also note that these are not the only rounds of
the ladder — all the Masonic virtues are likewise to be Climb high;
made the objects of our endeavors. There are kindliness, Climb far,
honor, liberty of both conscience and body, righteousness, Your goal the sky,
wisdom, loving-kindness, patience, fidelity, trust, Your aim the star.
manhood, gentleness, humility, and a host of others, all of
which enter into the make-up of what we call human Can anyone—Mason or profane—have a finer or greater
character. theme for his life?
One further observation may be worth mentioning here.
The word ladder in the Greek language is climax. The [The Short Talk Bulletins III, Volume 40, Number 11, November 1962.
(Burtonsville, MD: The Masonic Service Association, 2013), S. Brent Morris,
word means “the highest point,” or the “point of greatest Ed., 523-526. The author is a Past Grand Master of the state of Virginia.]
interest,” “the summit.” There is always the notion of

February 2017 ~ TheResearchLodge.org ~ 15

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FINAL WORD
“Man's greatest virtue is his courage. It takes
courage to face the unknown. A straight
stairway can be climbed with an easy mind.
You can see what's ahead. Not so with a
winding stairway. You can't tell what's just
around the bend. The Winding Stairs you
travel to the Middle Chamber are symbolic
of life. We don't know what lies ahead. Each
individual must climb his own stairway to
his destiny. Seldom will the way be straight.
Man will always climb because he has
courage. His faith will lead him upward.”


Allen E. Roberts
[Allen E. Roberts, The Craft and Its Symbols.
(Richmond, VA: Macoy Publishing and Masonic
Supply Company, Inc., 1974), 54.]

16 ~ SCRL Fraternal Review ~ February 2017