The North Carolina Mason

July/August 2019 The North Carolina Mason Page 9 By Jonathan Underwood Assistant to the Grand Secretary e rise and fall of the North Carolina Lodge of Research No. 666 has been a topic of debate, intrigue, and speculation almost since its inception. In spite of its contradictions and criticisms, much of the research it published was groundbreaking. e lodge was the first lodge of research in the United States and inspired the creation of dozens of other research lodges. Yet, the lodge's fall from grace, its founder's reputation as an occultist and spiritualist, his abrupt depar- ture from the fraternity, the lodge's distinctive numbering (666), and the scarcity of the lodge's publications continues to foster a paradoxical mystery for a lodge intended to foster illumination. In 1930, several Masons from across North Carolina sought to create a lodge whose purpose was to explore the more academic aspects of Freemasonry – its meaning, history, legends, mysteries, myths, and rituals. Members were encouraged, if not expected, to conduct research and write papers on such topics. e North Carolina Lodge of Research No. 666 (NOCALORE as it was affectionately known) was chartered on Jan. 21, 1931, in Monroe, and was very successful in attracting capable men seeking to illuminate the fraternity's knowledge of its own nebulous parts. e lodge's principal founder, John Raymond Shute Jr., envisioned that the lodge proceedings, including members' research papers, would be printed as a resource for Freemasonry across the state, country, and world. Shute's tireless drive to attract talent and build a library of Masonic scholarship did not disappoint. By the end of 1932, Shute collected, collated, edited, contributed to, and published a two-volume compen- dium of Masonic research touching on a range of subjects from the historic landmarks of Freemasonry to the psychology of Masonic thought. By 1949, Shute published 19 volumes of research papers, correspondence, and anecdotes on behalf of the lodge. Much of the research focused on North Carolina's Masonic history and legacy. Shute himself transcribed thousands of pages of original lodge and Grand Lodge records and wrote dozens of articles docu- menting all aspects of Freemasonry's heritage. In spite of NOCAL- ORE's pioneering research and publications, the lodge was not without its problems. e lodge's creation sidestepped or contravened several regulations of the Code, including the prohibi- tion of dual membership. Shute and his adherents argued that since the lodge would not perform degree work (something many perceived to be an irregular innovation), its dual- affiliated members would not be in competition with the jurisdiction of any other lodge. Without offering an official opinion or proposing any amend- ments to the Code, Grand Master E.W. Timberlake Jr. endorsed NOCALORE's new model of operation and granted the lodge a dispensation to operate. However, in light of the lodge's new mode of operation, its dues and per capita became confused and raised the ire of several surrounding lodges that regarded the lodge as a place of refuge for those wishing to evade their financial obligations. e lodge was born at the end of an era and generation fascinated by esotericism and the occult, and many of its members wrote and spoke on such topics. By the 1940s, those subjects were generally shunned by most Masonic scholars and authori- ties in favor of more civic- and community-centered topics and projects. e lodge's association with such "superstitions" made it a target of ridicule and derision. Shute's commanding personality, forthrightness, and flair for the dramatic became a liability as the lodge's popularity waned. Shute was sometimes critical of North Caro- lina Freemasonry's transformation following World War II – inflated membership and the cultural shift away from small, intimate lodges of friends to a saturation of large, civi- cally formulaic Masonic associations that competed with civic clubs. Shute also overextended himself by founding and joining dozens of appendant bodies, traveling exten- sively to represent those bodies, and, as the sometimes head of one or another, calling himself Grand Master or Past Grand Master, though Shute was never Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of NC. By World War II, the work of the lodge began to wane. Lodge atten- dance and submissions for publica- tion dwindled. By 1950, creative differences among the lodge's lead- ership, poor attendance, and a shift in the fraternity's philosophy eroded the last functioning vestiges of the North Carolina Lodge of Research. Defeated and angry, Shute left Free- masonry to pursue other interests. Following a damning report made by a committee of investigation in 1953, the lodge was charged with acting irregularly and in contraven- tion to its own bylaws as well as e Code. e report revealed that in its last years, Shute and the few remaining members of the lodge would meet around his dining room table, situated around a miniature model of the lodge, and hold meet- ings. Its charter was arrested by the Grand Lodge on Dec. 31, 1954. Shute remained a pillar of his community after his departure from Masonry. Interestingly, in 1986, the late David Hargett of Monroe coaxed Shute back into Monroe #244, two years before his death in 1988. In 2018, the Grand Lodge's Library Committee chose to republish NOCALORE in the hope it will help redirect a light on some lost Masonic scholarship and inspire a new generation of Masonic thinkers, philosophers, and seekers of light. e books can be found on Lulu.com by keyword searching "NOCALORE". NOCALORE e tale of a short-lived lodge for Masonic research Lodge principal founder John Raymond Shute Jr. led an effort to do deeper research on topics involving Freemasonry and saw to the publication of several works.

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