Historian

History is the analysis and interpretation of the human past that enables us to study continuity and change over time. It is an act of both investigation and imagination that seeks to explain how people have changed over time. Historians use all forms of evidence to examine, interpret, revisit, and reinterpret the past. This includes not just written documents, but also oral communication and objects such as buildings, artifacts, photographs, and paintings.

Historians are trained in the methods of discovering and evaluating these sources, and the challenging task of making historical sense out of them. Nevertheless, historians do
not always agree on the interpretations of the past.

History prepares us to live more humanely in the present and to meet the challenges of the future because it provides us with an understanding of the human condition. History is a means of disseminating and comprehending the wisdom and folly of our forebear’s. History fulfills our desire to know and understand ourselves and our ancestors. History allows one to vicariously experience countless situations and conditions, which stimulates the imagination and creativity of historians.

Historians debate the nature of history and its usefulness. This includes discussing the study of the discipline as an end in itself and as a way of providing “perspective” on the problems of the coming future.

Our identity as Masons must include work on ourselves both as individuals and as a brotherhood. Our decline in membership over the past 50 years is merely a symptom of the loss of Masonry’s relevance to our lives and our communities. We have individually and collectively allowed our lethargy to entrust the jewel of Masonry, which has been bequeathed to us to pass on to the future.