Lewis Charge
By Worshipful Brother
Frederic L. Milliken
Worshipful Master, Brother Senior Warden,
Brother Junior Warden, Brethren all, I rise tonight to commend and record the
acceptance of a Lewis into this Lodge.
In today’s parlance “A Lewis” is a son of a
Mason. I say today’s parlance because the term Lewis or its derivative has
been around for centuries. The French called “The Lewis” a “Louveteau.”
The symbolic origin of a Lewis in English is an
iron clamp used to lift enormous boulders, a symbol that can actually be found
in the English Entered Apprentice ritual signifying strength.
The French origin of Louveteau is a young
wolf tracing its lineage back to the Egyptian Ancient Mysteries.
We read from “The
Builder,” November 1922*:
“In the mysteries of Isis, which were practiced
in Egypt, the candidate was made to wear the mask of a wolf's head. Hence, a
wolf and a candidate in these mysteries were often used as synonymous terms.”
If the candidate was a wolf in French
Lodges, then the son of a Mason was called a young wolf.
In certain Grand Lodges a Lewis has been
granted special dispensation to be admitted into the Craft at an earlier age
than the Constitution and bylaws of that Grand Lodge requires.
All this is brought to your attention tonight so
that all might realize that the Lewis is a time-honored custom. And that this
custom has enormous ramifications for the parties involved and the Masonic
Lodge that celebrates this tradition.
To recognize and follow the wisdom that
Masonry imparts to its members at such an early age that a Lewis can do is a
remarkable achievement for that young man. It is also a credit to the father
and his ability to mentor his son and to the fraternity that so longs for the
preservation of its philosophy and way of life.
The Short Talk
Bulletin of February 1935** quotes Albert Pike speaking about a Louveteau:
“It is one of the duties of Brotherhood,
arising out of that holy relationship, to guide and guard, and rear and
educate, if need be, a Brother’s children. Let us recognize this duty and add
to its obligation our solemn pledge to watch incessantly over this youth, to
avert from him pestilential influences, warn him against ill examples, and
rescue him from perils. Let us, according to our ancient custom, and by the
ancient and symbolic name, receive him as our Ward in the hope that he will in
due time become our Brother.”
We read In Proverbs 4:
20-23
20 My son, pay attention to what I say; turn
your ear to my words.
21 Do not let them out of your sight, keep them
within your heart;
22 for they are life to those who find them and
health to one’s whole body.
23 Above all else, guard your heart, for
everything you do flows from it.
There is an old saying:
HE WHO CAN BE A GOOD SON WILL BE A GOOD
FATHER.
This harkens to the Masonic desire for its
wisdom to be passed down from generation to generation and its symbolic
journey to live forever into eternity.
We read in the American
Preston Webb ritual:
“The attentive ear receives the sound
from the instructive tongue, and the mysteries of Masonry are safely lodged in
the repository of faithful breasts. Tools and implements of architecture –
symbols most expressive – have been selected by the Fraternity to imprint on
the memory wise and serious truths; and thus, through a succession of ages,
are transmitted, unimpaired, the most excellent tenets of our Institution.”
And so that transmission begins in this
Lodge, from father to son. The father has toiled many years in the building of
his temple, that spiritual building not made with human hands. Now the son
starts his journey in the building of his temple at an early age, all because
the father has passed his wisdom down to his son and the son has accepted his
father’s guidance. And thus, the tenets of Masonry are passed down within a
family and within a Lodge and within this great Fraternity to ensure that they
never, never, never die.
So Mote It Be
* As quoted in Masonic Dictionary
http://www.masonicdictionary.com/lewis.html
** Ibid Copyright © 2019 by Frederic L. Milliken.
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