Thursday April 29, 2010

Well, an envent that had been in the back of my mind since I was elected to the Divan came to fruition this fine evening. For the first time in a long, long time (no one can remember if it has every happened), the Divan of Marracci Temple AEONMS # 13, the Divan of Moslem Shriners and some Past Potentates sat down in the Noble's Lounge, broke bread, partook in some Camel's milk and had fun.

Marracci Temple is comprised of Prince Hall Freemasons, and they are located in Detroit. Their Temple has been a long time supporter of our Shrine Circus, purchasing large blocks of tickets every year. A good friend of mine, who served as an officer of his masonic lodge during the same time frame as I served my lodge, is the Grand Lodge of Michigan's official liaison to the Prince Hall Grand Lodge. We have been discussing ways of bringing the two shrine temples together for many years, and we finally achieved our goals.

We begung the evening with a tour of the building, and then sat down (ensuring that both divans sat at various tables), listened to a beautiful invocation of the Supreme Architect, and enjoyed a delicious dinner by our famous chef.

I beleive that by the end of the evening, we both learned much more about each other's organizations, but more importantly, that we both share a common bond, that we travelled similiar paths in life, beset by ruffians, and we continue to strive for further light.

I had the honor of bestowing an Honorary Membership to the Illustrious Potentate of Marracci, and I am convinced that this simple get together is going to be the beginning of a vibrant relationship. I sat back and watched each of our Divan officers speaking to their counterparts, and overhearing united plans for several events over the next several years. I am so proud of this group of Board Members, who, at every stage, grasped on to my sometime out of the ordinary ideas, and put their succesful twists onto the thread of success.

On a personal level, I was made aware when I first ran for the Divan that I would be the 4th Potentate of Middle Eastern descent (out of 116 Potentates), and that a certain burden fell upon my shoulders to make those preceeding me proud of that fact. In my short time as a Shriner, I have heard disparaging comments by ignorant people as to my heritage, which is not to say that it is an endemic problem of the Shrine alone, but something I will never forgive. Although I have been taught to subdue my passions and to whisper good counsel in the ears of my fellow brothers, moments and events such as this evening's get-together far surpass and negate those who relent to live in some bygone era of hatred. I truly beleive that the vast majority of our membership understand the true principles of our philosophy and tenets of brother love, releif and truth. I hope that I can espouse these tenets and continue the path that they lead.

Enough, enough, it is the Weekend and time for another new venture for Moslem Shriners. On saturday about 25 Nobles have been selected by the Leadeship Search Committee to attend a special leadership training program, conducted by one of our own, who happens to also serve our craft as an Officer of the Grand Lodge of Michigan. I cannot wait to see the outcomes of this initial step in building leaders that eventually be the force in our continuing success in the future.

More on this later.

Have a Great Weekend.