GRAND ORIENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Education for the Semester

 Science, Technology and Wisdom

March 29, 6009

 Free-Masonry, by its oldest definition is a Peculiar System of Morality. Thus, as Masons, we have certain moral obligations to humanity that go beyond those of the common man. For far too long we have shrugged off this heavy burden and responsibility and instead chose to focus on Free-Masonry itself as if it were something of value in and of itself. A Free-Masonry devoid of meaning followed through with by purposeful action is without value to anyone!

 Today we must re-ignite the flames of intellect and begin to ask ourselves the most difficult and challenging questions that face all of humanity. Science and technology have opened Pandora’s Box with the forces of unbridled reason. The moral implications of these actions go unquestioned. It is no longer a question of “can we” but “should we” pursue knowledge in every direction? Do we have the wisdom necessary to utilize the many discoveries of science and technology for the betterment of humanity, or are we doomed to be destroyed or enslaved by our own creations?

 Nanobots, Genetic Engineering, Mapping the Brain, are just a few of the issues that we must open for discussion and debate in our lodges. For instance, nanobots could be used to cure heart disease or attack cancerous cells, but they could also be unleashed as a lethal, and potentially uncontrollable, weapon destroying all life on planet Earth. Should we continue to pursue nanobot technology? What are the moral implications of this? Do we, as human beings, have the wisdom to control this technology?

 Both Science and Reason found their first welcoming home in the Masonic Lodges of the eighteenth century. Free-Masons helped to unleash the Light of Reason against the darkness of superstition in the hope that enlightenment would free mankind to rise to its full potential. Reason, however, must be tempered with Wisdom, and like anything else, when taken to the extreme it ceases to serve as a tool, and instead becomes a god.

 The Education for the semester will be to open investigations and openly debate the necessary balance between science/technology and wisdom, and to ask the difficult and complex moral questions involved. We must then begin to publish papers stating the position of the Grand Orient of the United States of America on these matters.