Short Talk Bulletin

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl H. Claudy and first published in February 1947. Freemasonry uses many common English words in a sense other than that of their usual definitions. For the new Mason, and perhaps for the older brothers who have been less attentive, here are 100 […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode is from the golden pen of MW Bro Carl H. Claudy and first published in July 1946. Sometimes when we go to Lodge there is a guest speaker. Sometime dinner is so good and the speaker so boring that one falls asleep. Sometimes that sleep is occasioned by […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by RW Bro Fordham D. Tabor and first published in May 1977. As has become tradition on this day of remembrance in cities and towns across our land, we pause to remember and give tribute to those who have given the ultimate sacrifice in defense of […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl H. Claudy, and first published in September 1931. “Pro” meaning Outside, and “Fanum” the Temple; literally the profane is one who is “outside the Temple.” In a Masonic sense, it refers to one who has not been initiated. Here we find an […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode is from the golden pen of MW Bro Joseph Fort Newton, and was first published in June 1924. Here we find an excellent exploration of these tools of the Fellowcraft, which teach equality and rectitude of conduct. Enjoy, and do share all of these Podcast episodes with your […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Ray Burgess, PGM – LA, and first published in July 1991. Here we find an interesting discussion of one of the lessons from the Fellowcraft Degree, one that is worth a visit no matter how far one advances in the Craft. Enjoy, and […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl Claudy, first published in February 1956. Here is an excellent discussion about how symbols contained in our degrees reach back into antiquity to draw timeless truths into the present space of our minds, and The Broken Column is a prime example. Enjoy, […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro Alan E. Roberts, a prolific Masonic writer, and is brought to us by MW Bro Russ Charvonia, PGM – CA. Leadership must be the key that unlocks the door of Masonry's potential, digesting and using ideas that are the backbone of leadership. Enjoy, and […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by RW Bro Rex R. Hutchins, PGJW of AZ. Political revolution and Freemasonry is a complex subject. Here we find an interesting discussion from the days immediately following 9/11, and one that is a good listen for us all. Enjoy, and do share this and all […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by RW Bro C. C. Faulkner Jr, PDGM – IN and PGM – DeMolay, and is brought to us by MW Bro Russ Charvonia, PGM – CA. Youth, those all important formative years, is one of the few things that all mankind have in common. All […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro Howard R. Cruse, first published in May 1928. Here we find a most excellent exploration of one of the key symbols in the Master Mason degree, one that we may all give serious contemplation to in the pursuit of our profession. Enjoy, and do […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Ralph Pollard, PGM – ME, and delivered as an address to the annual communication of the Grand Lodge of Maine. Indeed, there has been conflict between our gentle Craft and the major churches in the world; and yet, some of our wisest leaders […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Rev Dr Bro Joseph Fort Newton, one of the most brilliant and prolific elder statesmen of the Craft to ever put pen to paper. Spring brings us to Easter Day, the festival of memory and hope. It is as if the seasons of the soul […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro J. Hugo Tatch, and is the very first STB to be sent out to every Lodge in January 1923. Since we have arrived at the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the famous ride of our brother, it seems like a good time to […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by WBro Zelwyn B. Eaton of Adair #366, Kirksville MO, and is brought to us by VW Bro. David Koncz, PM – United #8, Brunswick ME. Here, we are informed and instructed about the work of this committee, which is perhaps the most important work having […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by PSGW Bro Stewart M. Pollard, Past Executive Secretary of the MSA, and is brought to us by VW Bro David Koncz, PM – United #8, Brunswick ME. Here we find an excellent discussion of the various encounters MW Bro Pollard had while travelling throughout most […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl H. Claudy, and first published in April 1933. Here we find an excellent discussion of one of our oldest and most misunderstood ritualistic symbols. As many have wondered, and still wonder, what is it with the removal of shoes, either singly or […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl H. Claudy, and is brought to us by VW Bro David Koncz, PM – United #8, Brunswick ME. Recently, I had the honor of participating in the raising of a new Master Mason, and it is to him that this episode is […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro S. J. Daniels, PGM – Ontario, and first published in May 2017. Here is made a compelling case that education and Freemasonry are really the same thing. Enjoy, and do share this and all of these Podcast episodes with your brothers and your […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl H. Claudy, first published in August 1925. Here we find an excellent discussion of our third, or Sublime degree, and what makes it such. Like the 47th Problem, which contains the germ of every scientific and mathematical truth, so too does the […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Conrad Hahn, first published in November 1971. Here we find an excellent discussion of what the Fellowcraft brother will find when talking with older, more experienced Masons, and what we should all strive to contain in our daily lives. Enjoy, and do share […]

Brethren, this is a special and unusual Podcast episode that I hope you enjoy. Recently I was contacted by the host of the Tyler's Place Podcast, a production of the Scottish Rite Supreme Council, Southern Jurisdiction, about being interviewed for their next episode. It seems they wanted to know about me, and the Short Talk […]

this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by the Rev Dr Bro Joseph Fort Newton, and is brought to us by RW Bro Peter Cutler, PDDGM 14th ME. The Cable Tow is wholly Masonic in usage and definition according to the dictionary. This illustrates that Masonry has some of it's own vocabulary, not or […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl Claudy, and is brought to us by WBro Donald Cyr, PM – Freeport #23, ME. Here we find an excellent discussion if seven Masons, one from each of the original Grand Lodges in the US, and all of whom should be striking […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Conrad Hahn, Past Secretary of the MSANA, and is brought to us by WBro David Koncz, PM – United #8, Brunswick ME. In the Acts of the Apostles there is recorded a thought-provoking story about Paul, on the occasion of his visit to […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by WBro Allen E. Roberts, PM – Babcock #322, Highland Springs VA, and is brought to us by Bro Rich Gravelin, United #8, Brunswick ME. The merciful role Freemasonry was to play during the bitter years of reconstruction started on the day Confederate General Robert E. […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by the Rev Dr Bro Joseph Fort Newton, one of the Craft's greatest writers. Here we find his wisdom clearly expressed: timeless, timely, and poignant in ways few modern writers achieve, exploring that religion in which all men agree. Enjoy, and do share this and all […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro H. Dwight McCalister, PGM – SC, and is brought to us by MW Bro Russ Charvonia, PGM – CA. The first annual meeting of The Masonic Service Association was held on November 11–13, 1919, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. At the fiftieth annual meeting […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Sidney Kase, PGM – WA, and first published in November 1990. Why should our gentle Craft concern itself with students attending public schools? Here, we find an interesting and compelling argument for why we should. Enjoy, and do share this and all of […]

Brethren, this was one of the very first STBs that were sent to every member Lodge in April 1923, and was prepared by Clara Richards. As the future of public education is now a hot topic among the leadership of the United States, it seems like a good time to revisit how our forbears though, […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Conrad Hahn, Past Secretary of the MSANA, and first published in March 1964. The Attentive Ear is one of the Jewels of a Fellowcraft, and especially poignant in these days of division. Listening to understand is so much more important than listening to […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro Howard R. Cruse, and is brought to us by RW Bro Pete Cutler, PDDGM 14th, Maine. In Masonic symbolism the lambskin apron holds precedence. It is the initial gift of Freemasonry to a candidate, and at the end of life's pilgrimage, it is reverently […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro Howard L. Cruse, first published in May 1928. Ancient Craft Masonry attains its climax in the symbolism of a lost word and a quest for its recovery, but in our ritualistic work there is little attempt at explanation. Here, we find remedy for this […]

Brethren, when the Short Talk Bulletin “9 Questions” was released in 1938, the response was robust and enthusiastic, and the author and MSANA Secretary, Carl Claudy, was encouraged to write more like it. We have had the same result with the Podcast, so, here we find the follow-up to “9 Questions”, specifically “9 More Questions”, […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl H. Claudy, and is brought to us by Bro Colin Briton, Freeport #23, Maine. There are certain questions that most Masons, and many non-Masons, have about our gentle Craft, that aren't clarified by ritual. For example: why must we never cross between […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by WBro Bates Lagrande, PM – Richardson Lodge #1218, Richardson TX and member of the Texas Lodge of Research. Just last night I was privileged to participate in a new brother's EA degree, which, of course, included the reading from Scripture while the candidate was being […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Conrad Hahn, and is brought to us by MW Bro Russ Charvonia, PGM – CA. Oftentimes, the duties of members of an investigating committee are taken lightly. Here, we find instructions given to a particular Lodge, that reinforce the seriousness of the business […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Ray Burgess, PGM – LA, and is presented here to honor MW Bro Darrell Fremont, Executive Secretary of the MSANA, and also President Jimmy Carter, who might not have been a Mason, but who exemplified every lesson in the Craft. The Worshipful Master, […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by WBro Stewart M. L. Pollard, son of MW Bro Ralph J. Pollard, PGM – Maine. This past week, I had the honor and privilege of participating, as the Wayfaring Man, in the raising of three new Master Masons. Something not explained in the ritual is […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin was written by MW Bro Carl Claudy, and is brought to us by Bro Erick Weiss, Freeport #23 and Bristol #74, Maine. To relieve the distressed is a duty incumbent on all, but particularly on Masons, who are linked together by an indissoluble chain of sincere affection. To soothe the […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Dr WBro Steven Greenberg, PM and Fellow – Illinois Lodge of Research, and is brought to us by WBro John Rock, PM – Solar Star #14, Bath ME. Bro Cerza is one of the towering figures of Masonic literature, and the MSANA maintains several digests […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Carl Claudy, and is brought to us by Bro Colin Britton, Secretary, Freeport @23, Maine. The distinction between a right and a privilege is often misunderstood by those trying to define either, but they are the same sort of word-pair as, for example, free […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro James R. Johnston, PGM – Japan, and is brought to us by WBro John Rock, PM – Solar Star #14, Maine. The Great Kanto Earthquake occurred at two minutes before noon on September 1st, 1923, and has been described as the worst natural […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro J. Hugo Tatsch, and is the very first STB sent to every Lodge of every member jurisdiction in January 1923. The intent was to provide a common stock of vetted Masonic material to give unity to our common purpose. “Listen my children, and you […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written and is brought to us by Bro Chuck Clampett, Mt Etna Lodge #333, Huntington IN. Judging military leadership from a military perspective becomes a daunting task. What makes a General great often depends on if he was on the winning side, commanded in famous battles, or […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by MW Bro Carl Claudy, and is brought to us by WBro John Rock, Solar Star #14, Bath ME. Freemasonry has many curiosities, and indeed, many mysteries as yet unsolved. Among the former are several often misunderstood words with odd or involved meanings. Here, we find […]

Brethren, as has become tradition at this time of year, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro Dr Joseph Blau, in remembrance of his father. May we all receive the gift of Emmanu El, God with us, this season. Enjoy, and do share this and all of these Podcast episodes with your […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written in 1975 by Rev Bro Oscar Alan Gwyn. On this winter Feast of St. John the Evangelist, let us remember why each of our Saints John so well represent the duality of our efforts in the Craft. While St. John the Baptist represents the fiery call […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro Robert Morris, GL of MA, and is brought to us by Bro Colin Britton, Freeport #23, ME. Born Israel Beilin to Jewish parents in Czarist Russia in 1888, the family escaped persecution and emigrated to America when he was still a child. His father […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Rev Bro James A. Allen, and is brought to us by MW Bro Russ Charvonia, PGM – CA. This significant message concerning Freemasonry in the modern world was delivered by Rev Allen at a service celebrating Union Lodge's 175th anniversary. Enjoy, and do share this […]

Brethren, this Short Talk Bulletin Podcast episode was written by Bro Edward N. Thompson, and is brought to us by WBro David Koncz, PM – United #8, Brunswick ME. Each year, the Christmas season is brightened by the Poinsettia, which has become the traditional Christmas flower. It is named for the American statesman who first […]