Educational Resources
College Scholarship Opportunities
The Scottish Rite of Freemasony for the Southern Jurisdiction has an active scholarship program for high school graduates and college students. One of these programs supports students attending Texas A&M University in College Station and is sponsored by a Texas Freemason and member of the Houston Scottish Rite.
Scottish Rite Research Society - ‘Studying our past to illuminate our future’
The Scottish Rite Research Society was formed on May 8, 1991, when fourteen Scottish Rite Freemasons were granted a charter by the Supreme Council, 33°, S.J. The administrative offices of the Society are at the House of the Temple in Washington, D.C., under the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite. Activities and publications of the Society are governed by a Board of Directors, who are all Life Members of the Society, representing Scottish Rite Valleys across the country.
Since its formation in 1991, the Society has become one of the most dynamic forces in contemporary Masonic research, pursuing a publication program that emphasizes quality—both in content and in physical form. The Society has grown to over 4,000 members worldwide since inception. Its publications have redefined the standards of Masonic scholarship. Anyone who is interested in deepening his or her understanding of Freemasonry would benefit from Society membership. One need not be a member of the Scottish Rite, or even be a Mason, to join the SRRS. Life Memberships are available.
The benefits of membership in the Scottish Rite Research Society are many. Some are intangibles, such as the potential for interaction and discussions with the brightest minds in contemporary Masonic philosophy and debate. The most important benefit is the availability of what we all came here for, which is more light in Masonry. This is manifest most particularly in SRRS publications and Masonic conferences.
For more information on the Scottish Rite Research Society visit the website: http://scottishriteresearch.com/
Freemason Network
The Freemason Network is a social networking site that connects you to thousands of other Masons around the US and 147 countries around the World! It’s simple to use, gives you the latest news and opinions about Masonic topics and connects you to your Brothers near and far.
Free membership includes Masonic news and events from all over the United States, an opportunity to share the Light in discussion forums, creation of your own personal blog, and sharing of Masonic pictures and videos. Also you may have the opportunity to join a discussion group dedicated to specific Grand Lodges!
The Freemason Network is hosted by The Supreme Council, 33° 1733 16th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20009-3103. You must be a Mason to join the Freemason Network.
For more information on the Freemason Network visit the website: http://www.freemasonnetwork.org/home
Tyler’s Podcasts
The Tyler’s Place is a collection of stories, lessons and interviews by Masons, for Masons and about Masons. Each episode offers a variety of topics on Masonry, like interviews with interesting and inspiring people, historical facts and insights, and tips, tricks and life-hacks for the modern Mason. And, The Tyler’s Place podcasts are short enough to listen to while you’re driving to work, headed to a lodge meeting, or just relaxing at home.
For more information on Tyler’s Place Podcasts visit the website: https://scottishrite.org/about/media-publications/tylers-place/
Scottish Rite Master Craftsman
The Scottish Rite Master Craftsman (SRMC) program is an exciting, by-mail correspondence course designed and administered by staff at the House of the Temple in Washington, DC, under the guidance and leadership of the Supreme Council, 33°, of the A&A Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction, USA. Upon completion of each program listed below, the participant will be rewarded with a medal or a pin. Currently, there are three programs that are meant to be taken in the following order:
Program I: The Symbolic Lodge will familiarize students with aspects of the development of Blue Lodge Masonry and explore some of its developing symbolism. This will reveal that the “High Degrees” began to develop soon after formation of the Premier Grand Lodge (1717). Albert Pike’s book, Esoterika: The Symbolism of the Blue Degrees of Freemasonry, along with Arturo de Hoyos’s Scottish Rite Ritual Monitor & Guide (3d ed.) will be used to demonstrate a rational and philosophical interpretation for much of what is found in Craft Masonry.
Program II: Scottish Rite Ritual and History consists of six lessons, utilizing the Scottish Rite Ritual Monitor & Guide by Arturo de Hoyos, 33°, Grand Cross, and A Bridge to Light (4th ed.) by Rex Hutchens, 33°, Grand Cross, as its textbooks.
Program III: Scottish Rite Philosophy uses Albert Pike’s Morals & Dogma, Annotated Edition, by Arturo de Hoyos, 33°, Grand Cross and returns to the ritual of the Scottish Rite to re-explore it on a deeper level, by looking for the moral lesson imparted in each degree and then applying that lesson to one’s everyday life.
To order a Master Craftsman program visit the Scottish Rite Store website: http://www.scottishritestore.org/
The House of the Temple
Opened to great fanfare on October 18, 1915, the House of the Temple in Washington, D.C., has since functioned as the headquarters of the Supreme Council, 33°, Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Southern Jurisdiction, USA. The Temple, which includes a library, archives, and museums, is open to visitors for guided tours. The library—which was the first library open to the public in the District of Columbia and remains so today—contains books on Freemasonry including history, philosophy, symbolism, poetry, lodge proceedings, and periodicals.
Designed by renowned architect, John Russell Pope, the House of the Temple was his first monumental commission. It garnered him the attention of the architectural community, leading to many awards and commissions in the District, such as the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, National Archives, and the National Gallery of Art—West Building.
For more information on the House of the Temple visit the website: https://scottishrite.org/headquarters/about-the-temple/
The House of the Temple Library
The House of the Temple library which is located in the House of the Temple on the main floor, is the oldest library in DC that is open to the public and houses over 250,000 precious books, manuscripts, and other publications. Two of its rarest volumes include Benjamin Franklin’s 1734 re-printing of Rev. James Anderson’s The Constitutions of the Free-Masons and an Incunabulum titled, Sermones de tempore et de sanctis, by Albertus Magnus, printed in Ulm, Germany in 1479. Whether or not you are a Mason, the House of the Temple’s library is a treasure for researchers and anyone who loves books.
For more information visit the website: https://scottishrite.org/headquarters/library/
House of the Temple Museums
The House of the Temple is home to several unique museums, exhibits and collections. It has been accessible to the public for tours since 1915, when the building first opened its doors. The building’s design was widely praised by contemporary architects, and it won John Russell Pope the Gold Medal of the Architectural League of New York in 1917. Fiske Kimball’s 1928 book American Architecture describes it as “an example of the triumph of classical form in America”. In the 1920s, a panel of architects named it “one of the three best public buildings” in the United States, along with the Nebraska State Capitol and the Pan-American Union headquarters building in Washington, D.C. In 1932, it was ranked as one of the ten top buildings in the country in a poll of federal government architects. The House of the Temple is designated as a contributing property to the Sixteenth Street Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
For more information on the House of the Temple Museums visit the website: https://scottishrite.org/headquarters/museums/
Guthrie Scottish Rite College of the Consistory
The College of the Consistory is a free self-study program for Scottish Rite Masons of all Orients offered by Valley of Guthrie Scottish Rite. The curriculum is facilitated by the Guthrie College and made available to all enrolled members. The College distributes to its members a syllabus of each degree of the Rite, which will provide ideas for essays and research papers. Each member can choose a topic from the syllabus, or is free to select a subject not included in the syllabus, provided that it represents a theme or topic concerning that degree.
Meetings of the College of the Consistory are called Festive Boards. Papers chosen the by Board of Adepts, or the leadership of any Valley campus, will be presented. Fine dining, festive toasts, and fraternal songs accent the evening’s blend of education and fraternalism. All College members and invited guests are welcome.
For more information on the Guthrie Scottish Rite College of the Consistory visit the website:
http://www.guthriescottishrite.org/default.aspx?pg=d3b2481b-c418-497b-bcf9-86b9f55ed23e
Fort Worth 4th Thursday Masonic Education
Suspended until further notice
The Fort Worth Scottish Rite hosts an annual festive board on Spring each year featuring a presentation by a distinguished Masonic Speaker with fine dining and toasts.
For more information on these activities contact the Fort Worth Valley office at 817/335-6004 or visit the website: https://fortworthscottishrite.org/
Scottish Rite Degrees
The preeminent learning experiences for Scottish Rite Masons are the twenty-nine Scottish Rite Degrees.
The Scottish Rite Degrees are one-act plays often staged with costume, scenery, special effects, and the full rigging of any production. Their purpose is to examine different philosophies, ancient religions, and systems of ethics. Through all of these, people have tried to answer certain universal questions. The Degrees of the Rite do not tell a person what he should think about these questions. Instead, they tell him about what great thinkers and civilizations of the past have thought, and they try to create a situation in which the candidate or Brother can gain insight. Agreeing with Socrates that the unexamined life is not worth living, the Rite helps with this self-examination by providing reference points.
The degrees are of equal importance to Scottish Rite Masons and candidates receiving the degrees for the first time. While each degree is complete within themselves Class Directors serve to amplify and explain the degrees as they are presented. Each degree is intended as a platform for discussion.
The Degrees are presented twice annually in Fort Worth by members of the Fort Worth Valley.
Fort Worth Scottish Rite Monthly Meetings
At each monthly meeting presentations are made as to the Scottish Rite Degrees and other Masonic topics.