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Social and Behavioral Sciences

Selected Works

Paul J. Rich

Fraternal Studies, Symbology, Ritology, Freemasonry

Articles 1 - 28 of 28

Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities

My Work And Foucault's Genius: Foucault, Barthes, Said, Paul J. Rich Dec 2009

My Work And Foucault's Genius: Foucault, Barthes, Said, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

Recent comparison of some of my work to that of Foucault is really a huge exaggeration of its importance but does point to a point that Foucault made, which is that research into small or obscure topics can have a high yield in terms of insight. Critics for example are interested in the role I have explored of Freemasonry in education.


Bibliography Of Fraternalism: Film Clip, Paul J. Rich Jun 2009

Bibliography Of Fraternalism: Film Clip, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

Not all materials are going to end up on the Web. Some will always be only on paper. In Washington we have a wonderful library at the House of the Temple, a Scottish Rite Masonic institution. I am always glad to introduce visitors to its treasures.


Robert Burns, Charles Kirkpatrick Sharpe, And The Mystery Of The Master’S Apron, Paul J. Rich Apr 2009

Robert Burns, Charles Kirkpatrick Sharpe, And The Mystery Of The Master’S Apron, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

No abstract provided.


Rivals At War Over Burns's Apron, Paul J. Rich Apr 2009

Rivals At War Over Burns's Apron, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

No abstract provided.


The Merits Of Secrecy, Paul J. Rich Dec 2008

The Merits Of Secrecy, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

This is one of the talks which I give on occasion to a lodge, and often it is delivered after an initiation. It addresses the problem of secrecy, which in a free society is both a right and a difficulty. Undoubtedly one of the public relations hurtles for Freemasonry is its perception as a covert group.


Masonic Vocabulary, Paul J. Rich Dec 2008

Masonic Vocabulary, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

This is another of my talks that I frequently give to a lodge. Since the aim is participation, I generally start with a short little potted history of Masonic dictionaries and vocabulary, and then invite the audience to put forward words from the ritual for discussion -- "cowan" is one that always can launch things.


More About The Apron That Wasn't, Paul J. Rich Dec 2008

More About The Apron That Wasn't, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The Times, both in Scotland and London, had a real field day with the story of how I along with others felt the Masonic apron of Robert Burns wasn't the Bard's. It isn't often that an academic paper gets on the front page of the Times, so I certainly relished the whole incident.


The Lost Secret, Paul J. Rich Dec 2008

The Lost Secret, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

This is taken from my study of Freemasonry viz Dan Brown's The Lost Secret


The Mexican Viceroy's French Cooks: Masonic Mysteries In The Palace Kitchens, Paul J. Rich Dec 2008

The Mexican Viceroy's French Cooks: Masonic Mysteries In The Palace Kitchens, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The hitherto obscure eighteenth-century history of Freemasonry in Mexico is illuminated by the records of the Roman Catholic Inquisition, whose courts were active in torturing, trying, and punishing anyone suspected of Masonic activity. The Viceroy himself was not exempt from inquiry, and on a couple of occasions his French employees in his palace in Mexico City fell prey to the tribunal.


Robert Burns's Apron (Power Point Presentation), Paul J. Rich Dec 2008

Robert Burns's Apron (Power Point Presentation), Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

No abstract provided.


The Lost Symbol And Dan Brown: Masonic Secrets Of Washington, Paul J. Rich Dec 2006

The Lost Symbol And Dan Brown: Masonic Secrets Of Washington, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

This was originally a talk given in British Columbia in 2007, then in Geneva, and a revised portion of it appears in the Scottish Rite publication Plumbline, also found on this site. The Inquisition records are a great source for Masonic activities...a sort of early Roman Catholic rebuttal to Dan Brown's DaVinci Code and The Lost Symbol, if a rebuttal can precede an accusation. The article is a suggestion -- by presenting research based on actual Masonic activity I thought I might show that despite the enjoyment we get out of Brown's books, there is a more scholarly side to …


Masonry And Orangeism: More Fraternal And Less Vitrolic In A Changing Scene, Paul J. Rich Dec 2003

Masonry And Orangeism: More Fraternal And Less Vitrolic In A Changing Scene, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The Orange Order has figured in Irish history and in the problems of Northern Ireland for two centuries. Although it has many Masonic affinities, it is an international movement (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, parts of Africa) with it sown distinct culture, and its rituals at times have supported a virulent Protestantism.


Brotherly Love In Philadelphia: Reports Of Its Demise Are Exaggerated, Paul J. Rich Apr 2003

Brotherly Love In Philadelphia: Reports Of Its Demise Are Exaggerated, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

While concentrating on Philadelphia, the paper by inference supports the idea that the study of associationalism, social capital and fraternalism can profitably be done on a city by city basis, and that the view that society affiliations have succumbed to television-induced aloneness may be overstated.


Masons And Greeks: A Brief Lodge Address, Paul J. Rich Dec 2002

Masons And Greeks: A Brief Lodge Address, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

In any large city there are dozens of lodges, and they often are looking for a speaker. i think my popularity has been based more on my brevity than my eloquence, but in any event this tlak on Greeks and Masons always elicits a discussion because there will be individuals in the audience who joined a fraternity in college and subsequently became Freemasons, so they can appreciate the comparison.


The Shriners, Paul J. Rich Jun 2002

The Shriners, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

This interview i gave to the Vancouver Sun bring up some of the controversies surrounding the Shriner, a Masonic organization that is widely known for its hospitals for children and its sponsorship of circuses and parades. Although I "walked the hot sands", i.e. am a Shriner, I cannot say oi have been enthusiastic about some of its nuances. The article perhaps reflects that.


Freemasonry And Phi Beta Kappa, Paul J. Rich May 2002

Freemasonry And Phi Beta Kappa, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

In Washington my offices actually permit a glimpse of the offices of Phi Beta Kappa across the street. i would have to climb on the roof to see one of the Masonic temples in the city, but they are also close. So too both the Greek honor societies and Greek social fraternities are linked historically with Freemasonry, a connection little understood and little explored, and which this article helps to explain.


Social Change And Freemasonry: The Scottish Rite's Primacy Rite, Paul J. Rich Apr 2002

Social Change And Freemasonry: The Scottish Rite's Primacy Rite, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The rural or urban setting helped to determine the Masonic rite which grew and prospered in the area, and this is illustrated with the growth of American cities. Jane Jacobs can be related to the Scottish Rite, surprising as the notion seems.


Cliometrics Of Freemasonry, Paul J. Rich Dec 2001

Cliometrics Of Freemasonry, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

Attention to the membership statistics of fraternal groups has been given much importance because of the use of such figures by Robert Putnam and others in their contributions to the so-called Bowling Alone debate over the alleged delcine of American associationalism. The subject is much more obtuse and complex than has been appreciated, and this paper touches on what could be the focus of many doctoral theses.


National Differences In Freemasonry: The Gap Between America And Mexico, Paul J. Rich Dec 2001

National Differences In Freemasonry: The Gap Between America And Mexico, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The Columbia book Freemasonry on Both Sides of the Atlantic included a number of papers which are found in Selected Works, suitably -- one hopes -- aged and vetted and amended. This is one on the national differences in Masonic practice, which led me to remark that we should talk not about Freemasonry but about Freemasonries.


The Egyptian Influence On Nineteenth Century Freemasonry, Paul J. Rich Dec 2000

The Egyptian Influence On Nineteenth Century Freemasonry, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

No abstract provided.


Scottish Rite Research Society, Paul J. Rich Dec 2000

Scottish Rite Research Society, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The Scottish Rite Research Society is one of many Masonic historical groups, but certainly one whose publishing record justifies special notice. The guiding spirit has been Dr. Brent Morris, an immensely learned scholar.


Freemasonry, The Greeks, And Stepping, Paul J. Rich Dec 2000

Freemasonry, The Greeks, And Stepping, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

No abstract provided.


The Ku Klux Klan As An Influence Outside The Deep South, Paul J. Rich Dec 2000

The Ku Klux Klan As An Influence Outside The Deep South, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The Ku Klux Klan is a ritualistic fraternal organization, which puts it into the same category as the Moose, Eagles, Elks, and other animal crackers -- but only is one way. As I have said in several places, the Mafia is also an ngo. There are aberrant groups like the Klan that have seized some of the magic of fraternalism and ritual to entice members, as this somewhat controversial paper shows.


The Mystery Of Mathew Carey, Paul J. Rich Dec 1999

The Mystery Of Mathew Carey, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The discovery of letters in the archives of the Historical Society in Philadelphia led to new insights into early American publishing and its links with the struggle for Mexican independence. At the center of the story was Mathew Carey, who as a young irishman escaped British authority by going to France, where he met Lafayette and subsequently with a loan from the marquis traveled to America where he established a publishing house that spuriously produced books that were smuggled to Mexico.


The Cardenista Masonic Rite, Paul J. Rich Dec 1999

The Cardenista Masonic Rite, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

First as a conference presentation and in the pages of Heredom, and then in another version in the Columbia University Press volume "Freemasonry on Both Sides of the Atlantic", this study of what was frequently asserted was a separate Mexican rite of Freemasonry proved to be an opportunity for debunking a longtime assertion and placing in perspective a Mexican president's Masonic career. As we eventually became confident enough to claim, it was a rite that wasn't. Curiously, as with the poem and apron that weren't those of Robert Burns, we seemed to get attention for putting old saws to rest.


Orangeism And Freemasonry, Paul J. Rich Dec 1993

Orangeism And Freemasonry, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The Orange Order has figured prominently in Irish political history and particularly in the problems of Northern Ireland for two centuries. Although it has many Masonic affinities, it is an international movement (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, parts of Africa) with its own distinct culture, and its rituals at times have supported a virulent Protestantism.


Narrowing The Gap Between Numismaticists And Masonic Jewel Enthusiasts, Paul J. Rich Dec 1992

Narrowing The Gap Between Numismaticists And Masonic Jewel Enthusiasts, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

This was probably the first article to appear in Diadem, the journal for Masonic medal collectors or collectors of "jewels of the Craft", that tried to bridge the gap between the hobbyists with their enthusiasms for Craft awards and decorations, and the numismatists and schoalrs.


The Supposed Universal Hospitality Of Lodges, Paul J. Rich Aug 1992

The Supposed Universal Hospitality Of Lodges, Paul J. Rich

Paul J. Rich

The important point about this contribution to an email list is the date, 1992. At the time, i was a research fellow at the University of Western Australia. In the years since, although there have been some changes, a large number of American Masonic organizations remain closed to black members. For example, it will be a very long time before one sees black leaders in a number of Southern states' Masonic bodies like the Shrine, Commandary, Eastern Star, and so on. In contrast one must add that certain jurisdictions such as Washington D.C. are integrated. But they grant recognition to …