This article is taken from the September & October 2020 dual issue of Fraternal Review titled, “The Masonic Style”.

Does what you wear matter? Is smart clothing important to the Masonic experience? After all, Freemasonry is concerned with the character of the individual and with the internal work of bettering ourselves.

Over the last half a century or a little more—though increasingly concerned with image—Western society has become increasingly casual in its dress. Wearing a tuxedo to the ball game has long gone. Dressing smartly for church on Sunday is no longer required. A prominent billionaire even wears jeans and a hoodie for television interviews.

Yet, the spiritual teacher Frithjof Schuon claimed that, important to the spiritual way of life is “beauty: beauty of forms, of surroundings, of dress, of comportment.” The cathedral, synagogue, mosque, and temple are all designed to be beautiful—for one simple reason. Beauty elevates our consciousness and makes us more aware of the Divine. It lets us know that what we are doing in this place, or with these people, matters.

SYMBOLISM IN DRESS

From the Indian sari to the turban, the monk’s robe, the nun’s habit, the hijab, and the white dress of the Sufi, clothing has significance—it signifies; it is symbolic.

Just as we have come to see our culture as essentially meaningless, and our lives as a series of equally meaningless choices, so we have come to think, mistakenly, that our clothing is “just clothing,” signifying nothing important.

However, inside the lodge, everything has significance. The white apron means something. The gloves worn in some Masonic lodges—especially in England—mean something as well. The Master’s hat means something. And the clothing we wear to lodge says something, not only to our Brothers, but to ourselves.

REPRESENTING YOURSELF

When we dress sloppily we signal to ourselves that this isn’t important for us. When we dress smartly, we signal to ourselves that the event we are attending, or what we are doing, is important.

In a 2019 edict, M.W. Michael H. Wilson, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Georgia, F&AM, noted that Brothers had been “wearing attire much too informal to maintain the decorum of a Masonic Lodge.” We could focus on the edict’s prohibition of wearing t-shirts, etc., to lodge; but more important is the statement of M.W. Wilson’s desire that “harmony prevail.” It is a familiar phrase to every Freemason.

HARMONY

It is essential that our outside be in harmony with our inside, so far as it is possible. But, lodges have typically had a dress code, formal or informal, so that there would be harmony between the Brothers in attendance—harmony in terms of our Brotherly love and in terms of our visual appearance.

In the Japanese tea ceremony (chado), the host pours tea into the guest’s cup and rotates it so the most beautiful side faces the guest. Then, after he or she has received it, the guest rotates the cup so that the most beautiful side faces the host. Showing the most beautiful side also shows respect.

When we elevate our dress we may be doing this partly for ourselves but we also do it for those around us.

This issue of Fraternal Review is intended to highlight the symbolism and history of Masonic clothing and to help our contemporary Brethren step up their game so that we can each match our outer appearance to our inner self.

Hopefully, it also shows that we do not live in a meaningless world and that even something as “materialistic” as clothing can have profound significance and a profound psychological effect.

Written by Angel Millar, Guest Editor

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