This article is taken from the May 2020 issue of Fraternal Review titled, “Temperance.”
The lesson about temperance taught in Masonry is a lesson in the consequences of mankind’s exercise of free will. The Major League baseball player who freely chooses to ingest unlawful performance-enhancing substances can expect to be suspended from playing the game he loves best.
The corporate executive who chooses to cheat on his taxes or to steal from his company’s stockholders can expect a lengthy prison sentence. Similarly, the man who gives of his own bounty to others can expect to see hungry people become well-fed, sick people healed and poor people provided with the necessities of life. In short, the consequences of good choices are good results.
But, lest one come to believe that the lesson about temperance is solely a lesson about how man may benefit his life by his own conduct, it should not be forgotten that Freemasonry also teaches the truth about the wonderful consequences of personal labor performed in conjunction with perfect faith in God.
Faith, too, is a product of man’s exercise of his innate free will. One either has faith in the Great Architect, or he does not have such a faith—the choice is up to the individual. Men who eventually become Masons openly profess their faith in God and are thus expected to behave as men of faith — not like animals, brutes or misfits.
PRAYER & GOD’S BLESSING
Freemasonry inculcates the practice of invoking God’s blessing before embarking upon any great or important undertaking. Prayer, such as this, is also a matter of choice — one either prays, or one does not pray. Masons pray, not only when gathered together, but also when alone at work, at home, or abroad in the society in which each lives.
Masons are also expected to behave as men of prayer — men who act in conjunction with their faith in God. The truly temperate soul practices prayer and faith so regularly that those behaviors become ingrained and the basis upon which the exercise of free choice is made.
Temperance, then, is nothing less than the constant application of virtue and morality to each and every act done by a human. Is it an impossible standard? Nothing that pertains to God is ever impossible. However, if the virtue is never practiced, it will never become a part of the fabric that becomes man’s decision-making center.
Masons know that simply because something is difficult to accomplish does not mean that an effort to accomplish should never be made. If that was a Masonic byword, there would be no hospitals for indigent children, homes for indigent aged people, or clinics for children who cannot properly be understood when they speak. Temperance, then, is also about making an effort to make a difference.
A MAN OF VIRTUE
As a creature made in the image of God, man is supposed to become healthy, wealthy and wise. To become temperate does not mean that one also becomes sullen, withdrawn, or impoverished. Those are not the conditions associated with the consequences of better behavior. Rather, they are the consequences of ignorance. Although it certainly is the case that virtuous and moral humans can have as much suffering in their lives, as do the unvirtuous, suffering is less noticeable.
The man of virtue is forever cheery, uplifting to others and an inspiration to those around him, regardless of his own personal sufferings. While he may be unhealthy in body, he is healthy of spirit and of more value to Creation than the healthy man who exercises unhealthy habits.
Written by John R. Heisner, Grand Master of California, 2016-17