{"id":1515,"date":"2013-08-10T07:26:01","date_gmt":"2013-08-10T14:26:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theeduca.mywhc.ca\/?p=1515"},"modified":"2013-08-10T07:26:01","modified_gmt":"2013-08-10T14:26:01","slug":"bread-golf-parenting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/bread-golf-parenting\/","title":{"rendered":"Bread ; Golf & Parenting"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bread, Golf & Parenting. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/span> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 presented by M.W. Bro. D. Garry Dowling: Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This talk is about what may appear to be three unrelated topics which, with a little imagination, can be woven together to convey a message.
\nFirst: Bread.<\/span> <\/strong>
\nYou have all heard the expression \u201cIt\u2019s the greatest thing since sliced bread\u201d. Well, has anyone noticed a difference in sliced bread lately? First there was 3 grain, then five. Someone then upped the ante and we had the 7 grain \u2013 obviously a Masonic baker looking for the \u2018perfect\u2019 loaf. We went from standard, always the same size & thickness, to the large Texas style slices to make us consume more. Where we once had white, brown and rye, now we have everything under the sun.\u00a0 Sometimes you just want to go to the bakery manager and say \u2013 where is the chemical laden, fluffy, soft, delicious, no-good for me, plain white bread that I can smother with peanut butter and just sit back and drool.
\nSo\u2026 bread is bread is bread\u2026 or is it? Same core ingredients, different loaf! The point is, we still use the expression, \u201c it\u2019s the greatest thing since sliced bread\u201d, but sliced bread has changed.
\nIf Masonry is the greatest thing since sliced bread, maybe with the core ingredients remaining the same, Masonry needs to change too!
\nSecond: Golf.<\/strong><\/span>
\nA ball, a stick, a flag, a hole and a set of gentlemen\u2019s rules. Golf is defined in the Rules of Golf as “playing a ball with a club from the teeing ground into the hole by a stroke or successive strokes in accordance with the Rules.”
\nGolf\u2019s rules\u2019 are internationally standardized: they derive from the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews founded in 1754, and the United States Golf Association founded in 1894 (not that long after the start of modern Masonry in England in 1717). The underlying principle of the rules of golf is fairness. As stated on the back cover of the official rule book: \u201cPlay the ball as it lies, play the course as you find it, and if you cannot do either, do what is fair\u201d. There may not be any other sporting event where the participants themselves identify infractions of the rules. The officials are there just to apply the penalties.
\nHas golf changed since the early 1900\u2019s?\u00a0 The object, the rules, the penalties haven\u2019t changed much. But the game has indeed changed. Think about the Jones era, the Palmer era, the Nicklaus era, and the changes in the last decade alone.
\nTiger Woods took golf to another level in terms of physical fitness and endurance. In his dominant era, the players all increased the length of their drives so significantly that courses had to be re-engineered to accommodate. There were only a few at the top of the game who could compete at that level of fitness. Same game, same rules, but what a difference!
\nWe could say that Golf hasn\u2019t changed much in a hundred years. The same core values and fundamental principles, but what a change in the players! I venture to say that Masonry retains the same core values and principles on which it was founded. But look around Brethren, the players have changed.
\nThird: the art of raising children:<\/strong><\/span>
\nLet\u2019s take a quick look at the process of raising children. By and large, it\u2019s the same as it was when our great grandparents did it, when our grandparents did it and when we did it \u2013 right?
\nWe all read the current books (remember Dt. Spock?), we all bought the current toys, clothes, dolls, etc. Remember Cabbage Patch dolls? Sailor suits? Easter bonnets? Red Ryder BB guns, PF Flyer bicycles. Remember all the rules about what age they are supposed to be crawling, teething, walking, speaking. Remember how you felt when your son or daughter wasn\u2019t falling within preset parameters?\u00a0 And of course all the toys, cribs, walkers, high chairs and so on that you kept in the basement waiting for that grandchild to arrive\u2026 only to be told that none of them are now CSA (Canadian Standards) approved.
\nAnd what about those car seats? Remember chucking the kids in the back seat untethered until they would fit the seat belt\u2026 not so much any more \u2013 and those car seats are now engineering marvels.<\/p>\n

How many of you have bitten your tongues when your sons and daughters weren\u2019t doing what you would have done in a given situation?\u00a0 But our grandparents survived, our parents survived, we survived, our children survived and I expect our grandchildren will eventually survive despite their grandparents. Raising children\u2026 same basic principles, same core values throughout the decades. But parents adapt to the times, the locations and the culture.
\nI suggest that Masonry retains the same core values and principles, but we need to adapt to the times, the location and the culture. Maybe as Past Masters we need to bite our tongues on occasion.<\/p>\n

Well, there we have it bread, golf and parenting: three separate and distinct topics woven together by a (perhaps hidden) common theme \u2013stated thus\u2026\u00a0 \u201cthe ongoing existence of things that evolve from a core set of underlying, yet unvarying principles, the implementation of which has to be tempered by change to adapt to current conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n

In summary, Freemasonry is indeed as good as sliced bread. Freemasonry can be enjoyed like a good round of golf and Freemasonry, while never a match for the joy of watching our children and grandchildren grow, can be rewarding in its own way as we mentor our new Masons.
\nBut, my Brethren, the moral of the story\u2026 in order to be all of these, Freemasonry must change.
\nNot the core values and the principles on which it is founded, but in the way it is practiced in today\u2019s world.<\/p>\n

Masonry is as relevant today as it ever was. But, to become current in the 21st Century the practice of Masonry must change.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The catalysts for such change are among us like hidden gemstones.
\nThey are the progressive Worshipful Masters, they are the venerable Past Masters that see the promise of the future and know that they must pass the torch.
\nThey are the members in our Lodges that will return in force if interest is shown in them.<\/p>\n

M.W.Bro. D. Garry Dowling, Grand Master<\/p>\n

Comment \u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong><\/span>This paper is certainly provocative, however, I suggest that, before writing it off as an extreme position by just one Mason, we all take a very careful look at what is being suggested. It is very possible that there are many very simple thoughts & ideas that, without doing damage to our Rituals, could be implemented for the benefit of all.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Maybe it could be as simple as ensuring that our current generation KNOW that they have a voice and are being heard.<\/p>\n

Have a wonderful Day & God Bless\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Norm<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bread, Golf & Parenting. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 presented by M.W. Bro. D. Garry Dowling: Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This talk is about…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-educator"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":null,"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"MasterMason","author_link":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/author\/mastermason\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"The Educator<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"Bread, Golf & Parenting. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 presented by M.W. Bro. D. Garry Dowling: Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This talk is about…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/76"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1515"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1515\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}