Question:
1. What is Masonic Relief?
2. Where did the word trowel originate?
3. Can any Master Mason vote or hold office in the lodge?
Answer:
1. To be eligible to apply for relief, a Mason must not be under the sentence ofsuspension or expuision and he must be deemed worthy. Missouri holds to theprinciple that the adult child of a Master Mason is not considered an orphan.Also it is a generally accepted principle that the widow of a Master Mason,upon remarriage, forfeits any claim to Masonic consideration on the membershipof her first husband. A Master Mason is obligated to a brother and to his widowand orphans. A lodge which finds a Mason, his widow, or orphans in destitutecircumstances should afford them temporary relief, in the meantime notifyingthe lodge to which he belongs, thereafter being governed by its instructions.When a stranger representing himself as a Mason applies for relief to anotherMason, the usual practice is to refer the needy brother to the WorshipfulMaster of the lodge. Oftentimes this is the means of detecting imposters. 2. At a time long before that of the Greek there was a word which meant "tostir." The Greeks adopted it as the name for a spoon or ladle with which awoman would stir a pot. When it was taken over into latin this became trua, aflat ladle, a small-sized one being called a trulla. The latter word travelledacross France into England and there became the word trowel. The trowel used bythe operative mason had a point, a flat blade, and an offset handle, but evenso it maintained two of the original meanings, for he used his implement tostir up his cement to a smooth consistency, and to ladle itintothe stone. Intime it came to signify the last step in constructing a wall, and therefore isan appropriate working tool for the last degree in Ancient Craft Masonry.
3. Until a Master Mason has shown suitable proficiency in that degree, he is notpermitted to vote or hold office in the lodge. A Master Mason must showsuitable proficiency within one year or he is automatically suspended.
