Miami Commandery No. 13

What are the Orders of the Commandery?

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The Commandery carries the Mason beyond the Temple and into the inner work of transformation, where recovered Light is tested through faith, discipline, and self sacrifice. Drawing upon the sacred traditions of Christian knighthood, its Orders teach that divine truth must not only be revealed and preserved, but lived and defended in a fallen world. Here the initiate learns that the highest mysteries are not hidden in vaults or symbols, but written upon the heart through service, humility, and unwavering devotion to the Divine will. The Commandery stands as the consecration of the York Rite journey, calling the Mason to embody the Light he has sought, guarded, and sworn to uphold.

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The Illustrious Order of the Red Cross

 

The Order of the Red Cross continues or reverts to the period of the Royal Arch Degree when the Israelites were returning from Babylon to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple. Zerubbabel, their leader prevails upon King Darius to restore the Holy Vessels to the new Temple. They had been carried away by the Babylonian armies when the first Temple was destroyed. In presenting his plea before the King, the companion gives a powerful testimony to the almighty force of Truth.The ritual places the candidate in the role of Zerubbabel and follows him through his journey to King Darius in Persia and his role in the Immemorial Discussion, as found in the apocryphal book, 1 Esdras. The purpose is to bridge the gap between Royal Arch Masonry and the Chivalric Orders as well as between the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Illustrious Order of the Red Cross teaches the lessons of the triumph of truth.

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The Order of Malta

 

The Maltese Cross, symbol of the Order of Malta.This degree is universally associated with the Masonic Knights Templar. In the York Rite system it is conferred before the Templar Degree; in the 'stand-alone' tradition it is conferred subsequently to the Templar Degree. It is known by varying degrees of formality as the Order of Malta, or the Order of Knights of Malta, or the Ancient and Masonic Order of St John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes, and Malta. In practice this last and fullest version of the name tends to be reserved to letterheads, rituals, and formal documents.The ceremony for conferring the degree (which is always worked in full) contains a mixture of masonic tradition, historical accounts of the Order of St John, moral teaching, and the communication of modes of recognition between members. A series of banners is employed in the ceremony, each representing one of the great battles of the historic medieval Order of St John, whose story is the basis of the moral teachings of the degree.

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The Order of the Temple

 

The original medieval Order of Knights Templar was established after the First Crusade, and existed from approximately 1118 to 1312. There is no known historical evidence to link the medieval Knights Templar and Masonic Templarism, nor do the Masonic Knights Templar organizations claim any such direct link to the original medieval Templar organization. Though it has been said that its affiliation with Masonry is based on texts that indicate persecuted Templars found refuge within the safety of Freemasonry, the order itself states that "there is no proof of direct connection between the ancient order and the modern order known today as the Knights Templar." The official motto of the Knights Templar is "In Hoc Signo Vinces", the rendition in Latin of the Greek phrase "εν τούτῳ νίκα", en toutōi nika, meaning "in this sign you will conquer".The Knight Templar degree is associated with elaborate regalia the precise detail of which varies between nations. The ritual draws upon the traditions of medieval Knights Templar, using them to impart moral instruction consistent with the biblical teachings of the Christian tradition.