Jim Tresner, 33°, Grand Cross
P.O. Box 70, Guthrie, Oklahoma 73044–0070
Book Reviews Editor, The Scottish Rite Journal

Traditionally, the November book review column is the "stocking-stuffer" issue, with suggestions for gifts to give your Masonic friends or yourself. This year, in celebration of the opening of the Albert Pike Museum in the House of the Temple during the Biennial Session in October, we're focusing on material related to that man, whom Masons in the late 1800s called "the best and best-known Mason in the world." Most of the items come from the Online Store at the Supreme Council web site, so ordering could not be easier.

Why not give yourself or a friend a membership in the Scottish Rite Research Society (SRRS)? You can download an application from the web site. Membership in 2003 costs very little ($30 a year), and you get more than your money's worth in books and bonus each year. In 2003, for instance, you get a free Biennial Session Medallion and a copy of the new videotape A Visit with General Albert Pike. Also, once you are a member of the SRRS, you get a 10% discount on all orders from the Supreme Council list, so it's a very good deal indeed.

Second, please consider a contribution to the Albert Pike Museum. You can find information on that as well at the web site. For a gift of $75, you will receive a crystal block 3"x4"x1". Engraved inside is a three-dimensional carving of the crowned double-headed eagle Pike used as his personal jewel. I have one, and it is truly impressive; you really have to see it and feel the heft of the thing to appreciate its quality. For a gift of at least $100, you will also receive a lighted, revolving display stand for the crystal. It makes a beautiful gift or a very nice addition to your own collection of Masonic memorabilia.

Now on to the books. As with the above items, you can order online at http://www.srmason-sj.org or from a publications list available from the Supreme Council, 1733 Sixteenth St., NW, Washington, D.C. Call 202-777-3136, for a free copy.

Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma, 1080 pages. $50.00 used. Only used copies are available because the book has been out of print for some years.

This is it, the great book which is "cussed and discussed" by almost every Masonic writer. It contains the lectures of the Degrees and a lot more. One of the first books ever written on comparative religion and philosophy, it has the reputation of being a hard book to read. I'll grant you that it isn't easy, but it isn't all that hard, if you approach it the right way. Just assume you are only going to read a few pages-it isn't a book to try to read through in a sitting. Rather, it is designed to make you think. Here's a hint that I know works-read it out loud to yourself. Pike was a famous orator, and his prose has a spoken style. If you read it out loud, you'll soon find yourself falling into the rhythms of natural speech, and that, in turn, will make understanding the book a lot easier.

Rex R. Hutchens, 33°, Grand Cross, A Glossary to Morals and Dogma, 538 pages, hardbound, and illustrated. Listed at $22.00, the book is being offered at a special holiday price of only $11. A real bargain!

I wish I had had this book at hand when I first read Morals and Dogma. Dr. Hutchens has traced all of Pike's allusions and references, and he presents them here in clear and easy-to-use format. It makes reading Morals and Dogma much easier. Highly recommended. When you visit the web site, you will find a number of other books by Dr. Hutchens. They are all good, but this one is especially helpful.

Albert Pike, The Book of the Words, $35.00, hardbound, 217 pages.

This is a facsimile of the 1879 edition, with a very good introduction by Ill. Arturo de Hoyos, 33°, Grand Archivist and Grand Historian of the Supreme Council. This is not, I admit, a book for the casual reader. Its audience consists of those Brethren who are interested in the special words Masons use. Where did those words come from? Why were they used and not others? What is their symbolic function? This classic work deals with these topics and much more.

Jim Tresner, Albert Pike: The Man Beyond the Monument, hardbound, 254 pages, many photographs and illustrations, $17.00.

I called the book "an anecdotal biography" because it was not written with the detachment of a true biography. Rather, it was written to share my fascination with and admiration of this most complex and intriguing of men. Pike was an explorer of the American frontier, a newspaper editor, a humorist, a short-story writer, a military leader, an orator, one of the most prominent lawyers in the South, a recognized expert on comparative law, and the man who gave the Scottish Rite its present form. And that is only part of his contribution to America and our Order. But we often lose the man in the plaster image. This book tries to show the fire and passion which were so much a part of him.

Walter Lee Brown, Ph.D., A Life of Albert Pike, hardbound, 610 pages, 25 photographs, $35.00.

On the other hand, if you want an outstanding biography of Pike, written by an academic historian with unimpeachable credentials, this is the book for you. But don't assume from that description that it is dry and dusty-it is anything but that.

Albert Pike was the subject of Dr. Brown's doctoral dissertation, and it was a massive work. I had the privilege, many years ago, of reading a copy in the archives of the House of the Temple. Now retired from active teaching, Illustrious Brother Brown has reworked that study into this great book. The place I go for information on Pike's life, it makes fascinating reading. $35 for this large book is a great price.

William L. Fox, Editor, Valley of the Craftsmen: A Pictorial History, Scottish Rite of Freemasonry in America's Southern Jurisdiction, 1801-2001, hardbound, 287 pages, large size (101/2"x12"), hundreds of color illustrations, and b&w photographs, $45.00

You really should own this book. Photo-graphs have been collected and reproduced here which are not in print elsewhere, and many of the color illustrations have not seen print in more than a hundred years. There are few words in this book, just enough to set up and explain the illustrations. Mostly, the images tell the story. There is a long and excellent section on Albert Pike and his accomplishments. In fact, there is material on the accomplishment of a number of Masonic leaders. The book generates a real feeling of pride in the Rite, and it makes a really elegant gift.

Robert G. Davis, 33° & Jim Tresner 33°, G.C., A Visit With General Albert Pike, videotape, 52:33 min., $10.00.

Produced by Bro. Jack B. Rucker, 32°, of Studio Centre, the video pictures a contemporary Mason, Ill. Davis, who goes back in time to visit General Pike, ask about some things he doesn't understand in Masonry, and learn Pike's thinking on some contemporary issues. It was great fun playing Pike in this video, and it will, we hope, help people see the humanity of Pike. This videotape has been sent to 2003 Scottish Rite Research Society members as a bonus.

A Visit With General Albert Pike, DVD Edition, approx. 2 hours, $10.00

If you have a DVD player, it makes good sense to buy the DVD. Not only is the quality of the image better, but the DVD contains material not included on the videotape. Extra material includes: the composition of the fanfare which opens the videotape, Pike as a political and social activist, Pike's humor, and a special section about Vinnie Ream-the remarkable young woman who sculpted the U. S. Capitol's statue of Abraham Lincoln and to whom Pike wrote the "Essays to Vinnie."

To order any of these materials, make a donation to the Albert Pike Museum, or download an application to the Scottish Rite Research Society, go to the web site of the Supreme Council. Click on "Scottish Rite Store" to order books or videos, or to contribute to the Museum. Click on "Scottish Rite Research Society" to download the membership application.

I always like to include something from the Masonic Service Association of North America (MSANA) in the "Stocking Stuffer" column, primarily because the materials published by MSANA cover such a wide range of good information at rock-bottom prices. Be sure to ask for a free catalog. You'll find literally hundreds of informative pamphlets, Short Talk Bulletins, and other materials here. You can get a feeling for the range of topics from the index divisions of the materials: Leadership, Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft, Master Mason, About Individuals, Body of the Craft, Bypaths, Civic and Patriotic, Historical, Inspiration and Charity, In the Lodge, Literature, Philosophy, Religion and Ethics, Symbols and Symbolism, and The War and After.

Under "About Individuals," MSANA offers three Short Talk Bulletins on Albert Pike: Albert Pike (#7-23), Albert Pike-Man of Fire (#1-96), and Albert Pike-The Man Not the Myth (#6-90) Be sure to include the number. Short Talk Bulletins are 50 cents each, plus postage. On orders up to $5.00, the postage and handling is $2.50. You can download an order form by going to the MSANA web site at www.msana.com. Or your can e-mail them at msana@ix.netcom.com and request a free catalog. Or you can write to MSANA, 8120 Fenton Street, Silver Spring, MD 20910-4785.