By Right Worshipful Brother Lloyd G. Lyon

In Masonry we often see and reference to the certain point within a circle bordered by two perpendicular lines, representing Saint John the Baptist and Saint John the Evangelist, and upon the vertex of the circle rests the Holy Bible.

The point represents the individual Brother and the circle represents the boundary line of his duty, beyond which he is never to suffer his passions, interests, or prejudices, to betray him.

In going around the circle, we necessarily touch on the two parallel lines, as well as the Holy Scriptures.

When a Mason keeps himself within these due bounds, it is impossible that he should materially or spiritually fail as a child of God. We strive for perfection but, as humans, we fall short of perfection.

According to the Book of the Law, as man, we are bound to certain frailties and failures. This keeps us all from becoming ideal men and ideal Masons, no matter how hard we may try.

We therefore hold for ourselves as the perfect form or ideal of a Mason, the two Holy Saints John.

Here we have two Saints John, very properly described as parallel figures. Both of great character and both projecting a strong influence, with words, symbols and life experiences, on the civilized world. Yet, they were so different as Saint John the Baptist was very dogmatic and rigid while the other Saint John the Evangelist, intelligent and esoteric. In both we find the integrity and unwavering fidelity so common to Masonic teachings, but, their manner of teaching, living and preaching those virtues were as different as night and day, darkness and light.

Even though we know they were not perfect and probably were not Freemasons as we are defined today. What we know of them shows them to be perfect examples of what a Freemason should be: kind, righteous, loving, passionate, zealous, filled with Light, and above all, faithful unto death, to the trust reposed in them. They are the Platonic Form or Ideal of the Freemasons, never to be achieved, but always to be emulated.

With this pattern of reasoning we can see the mythical Lodge of the Holy Saints John at Jerusalem as the Platonic Form or Ideal of a Masonic Lodge. It can and should exist as our ideal of what a Lodge of Masons would be if all its members achieved the Ideal Masonic life of Saint John the Baptist, dogmatic and rigid, and represented here by the Square within an upside down triangle, and,

Saint John the Evangelist, intelligent and esoteric and represented by the Compasses within a upright triangle.

Placed together the symbol for the Saints might look like this.

Perhaps the modern Mason can even see in that Ideal Lodge, God as our Master, the Saints Johns as Wardens and King Solomon as Marshal composing the leadership of the perfect Lodge. But, the symbol is not complete. We have found the Holy Saints Johns in our Masonic symbol but other parts are missing. This was the letter of God.

During ancient times, people were not allowed to spell out the word God, so they changed one letter. The Word now looked like this: YOD. This is the YOD symbol.

Let’s now place the YOD symbol together with the square & compasses.

Is this God and our Masonic symbol?

Today we used the letter “G” to represent Deity. The letter “G” also represents the Holy Scriptures, the Word. The Word is God. The Word is our rule and guide to keep us within the circle, that boundary we are never to cross.

Yet, there is still something missing.

What about that point that we find in that circle?

Why is it we do not remember that point on our Masonic symbol? Have you forgotten?

I would hope that everyone reading this could answer that question. If not, look in a mirror. Look at that reflection of you. Do you not see the point? Every time you wear a Masonic pin or cap or shirt or jacket or tie or ring, you become a part of the Masonic symbol. You are the completion of our Masonic Symbol.

Without you, the symbol would never be complete. The symbol would have no meaning. The symbol would have no purpose.