Religious Tolerance

My parents were raised Southern Baptist. My brother is Catholic and my sister is Jewish. I was baptized in a generic Christian church. My soul, I think, is Jewish. I feel more at ease among Jews than any one else.

I remembered that recently when I went to my nieces' Bat Mitzvah in New York. I felt more like myself there.

The cultural differences between New York and South Haven are vast.

Item: I was having a drink with a couple of brothers and one complained about the prices a local merchant charged, then said "I know that, on Sunday, he goes to Synagogue". I pointed out that Jews celebrate the Sabbath on Saturday. I left the rest of my rant unspoken.

Item: a relative was talking about a big event at her church. It seems that the Jewish family that belongs to the church is going to hold a Seder so that everyone can see what the Last Supper was like. We recommended against bringing a ham.

(I am not making this up)

I explain to people that when I was young, I went to Jewish Community Day Camp, because (according to my Mom) that was the only nearby day camp with swim lessons. My parents were so traumatized by the Baptists that they couldn't bear to take us kids to church, so JCDC became my Bible school. But there's more to it than that. My Mom and Grandmother used yiddish terms like "kibitz" or "meshugga". I didn't realize they weren't English until I moved to Orange County, California, so unless I was hanging out with people who had heard Yiddish, I'd sound odd. I don't use Yiddish much any more, but I miss it.

I'm a goy and my wife is a shiksa, and if I said this out loud here I would get no smiles, no understanding, no recognition.

There have been (and may still be) Jewish members of my lodge. Our lodge isn't as diverse as Ruyrad Kipling's (In 1925, he wrote in the London Times, "I was Secretary for some years of Hope and Perseverance Lodge No. 782, E.C. Lahore which included Brethren of at least four creeds. I was entered by a member of Bramo Somaj, a Hindu; passed by a Mohammedan, and raised by an Englishman. Our Tyler was an Indian Jew"). I am comforted to know that religious tolerance is one of the fundamental tenets of Masonry.

My wife asked me the other day, "why would anyone want to be a Mason?"

I think one good reason to be a Mason is because Masons believe that there are many ways to worship The Grand Architect of the Universe.