A Mason's Work

Brian
00:01

Another second degree tool that you pick up along the way is the square. Now it's interesting, it's the first mention of the square is actually in the first degree, at least in this jurisdiction that I'm in, when it is mentioned as one of the great lights of freemasonry. But two square are actions against the square of virtue really means that your actions are virtuous, right? Which again, is a almost of a cop out kind of definition by essentially repeating the same thing backwards. But when you look at whether or not your actions are virtuous, I think it's important to understand what that means. And so like morality and other concepts about how we interact with each other, having virtue stand out virtue means something a little bit different than strictly speaking than moral, right? So, so one's actions being moral means that they are acceptable in a social context.

Brian
01:09

Virtuous is something else altogether, it seems to be a higher order of morality. And so when you are squaring your actions against that square of virtue, it really means that you're, the things that you're choosing to do, the work you choose to undertake, really is, is almost super moral, right? It's bringing a extra dimension of value to the environment that you're operating in. And that that also means that you can't, the, the morality question has to kind of be almost that ground. Like, okay, so my actions that I'm undertaking right now are strictly speaking their moral, so now I can now evaluate them against that. Are they, are they not only the moral, are they virtuous?

Brian
02:05

The, the promise of being virtuous as well starts a different conversation. And so if your actions are virtuous, they're, in many cases it's important to separate the outcomes from the behavior. So the results of your actions may or may not be important when evaluating them against the square, right? Your intended outcomes and the mechanisms by which you achieve those outcomes have to both be virtuous, right? You have to both be trying to create a positive outcome, but you have to do it in the right way as well. And I think that's one of the big gifts of the square. As you go through your kind of masonic journey and start reflecting on it, it does help really put some, some understanding around what you're trying to deliver.

(Generated by Podcast Show Notes at podcastshownotes.ai)