The
Widows Sons Vest Lecture
Brother *****
I now present you with a leather vest; It neither is a cut
nor is it called colours. It is an emblem and a badge of a
Widows Son. It is always to be worn with equal pleasure to
yourself and honour to this fraternity. On the back, you
will see the working tools of Masonry. The Square, trowel,
level, and the All Seeing Eye.
The Square: is a symbol of morality. This is
its general signification, and is applied in various ways:
It presents itself as one of the Three Great Lights. It is a
reminder to always square our actions.
The Trowel: By this implement, and its use in
Operative Masonry to spread the cement which binds all the
parts of the building into one common mass, we are taught to
spread the cement of affection and kindness, which unites
all the members of the Masonic family, into one
companionship of Brotherly Love
The Level: The level is that on which there are
no in-equalities, hence in Masonry it is correctly used’ as
a symbol of equality. “We meet upon the level” because
Masonic rights, duties, and privileges are the same for all
members without distinction.
The All seeing Eye: the open eye was selected
as the symbol of watchfulness, and the eye of God as the
symbol of Divine watchfulness and care of the universe.
The words: Meet on the level & part upon the Square:
Is a reminder to always be on the level with your
brothers and squaring your actions and departing as friends
and with brotherly love.
In Ancient Craft Masonry, the title applied to Hiram, the
architect of the Temple, because he is said, in the first
Book of Kings (vu, 14) to have been "a widow's son of the
tribe of Naphtali." The Adonhiramite Freemasons have a
tradition which Chapron gives in the following words: "The
Freemasons call themselves the widow's sons, because, after
the death of our respectable Master, the Freemasons took
care of his mother, whose children they called themselves,
because Adonhiram had always considered them as his Brethren
'As the wife of Hiram remained a widow after her husband was
murdered, the Freemasons, who regard themselves as the
descendants of Hiram, called themselves Sons of the Widow."
which makes Hiram himself the widow's son.
Now Brother *********. You have divested your time
and earned the right into the Widows Sons.
There is no other group of Freemasons with the eyes of the
public on them more than the Widows Sons. By becoming a
Branded Brother of our Order, you will find a much greater
opportunity to enlarge your circle of Masonic friends beyond
the scope of your home in the Blue Lodge. Know that, while
riding with the Widows Sons, you will be among Brothers who
are both dedicated to the great moral precepts of our Mystic
Fraternity and who enjoy the blessings of the G.A.O.T.U.
from the saddle of a motorcycle.
