IT
SPEECH OF THE GRAND ORATOR AT THE END OF THE GRAND LODGE VOTING SESSION
If we refer it to the past or the present, March 25 is not an ordinary date.
If we go back in time, March 25 is the day that many scholars indicate as the beginning of Dante’s adventurous journey, along with poet Virgilio, in the Beyond. A path of improvement that presents many analogies with our initiatory journey. In a more recent past, on March 25, 1957, a treaty was signed in Rome which laid the foundations for the birth of a community, which later became a union, among the European peoples who had chosen to be governed with a liberal and democratic method.
As for the present, today’s March 25 has at least three surprises in store for us: two astronomical and one meteorological. This date, in fact, coincides with a rare alignment of the planets of the solar system which, starting from tonight until the end of the month, will offer a spectacular representation, making themselves visible to our eyes, at the West, in the twilight light, from the elusive Mercury to the fascinating Saturn, with its shining rings. This phenomenon calls to our conscience the harmony of the universe that surrounds us.
It is not enough. March 25 coincides with the last Saturday of the month. On this night the day-light-saving time will give us the joy, albeit apparent, of a longer day light, thus honouring the beginning of the beautiful season, sanctioned by the recent equinox.
The equinox is the maximum expression of the concept of “balance” between day and night, extendable, in a metaphorical sense, to good and evil. Evil is darkness, chaos, the evil spirit of those who want to divide, preferring destructive action to the unitary vocation. Finally, from a meteorological point of view Turin, yesterday gray and sad, today gave us the Fohen wind, a strong and dry wind that comes from the north and then slips on the Alpine ridge, warming up. It gives good weather, sweeps all impurities from the air and forces the cloud masses to stay on the northern slope. It seems to offer us the easily decipherable admonition not to look at the dark clouds standing on the horizon, but to enjoy the sunlight that lights up our valley.
We can therefore hope that all of these coincident “oddities” are the good viaticum for the initiatory journey of all of us, for our new Grand Master, for all those who will join him and for the Worshipful Masters who have the responsibility to keep away the Lodges from restorative and divisive temptations.
Jazz lovers know a sweet and optimistic melody, tinged with melancholy, entitled “On the sunny side of street”. The great Louis Armstrong, the undisputed giant of this musical genre and great Initiate, made it immortal.
It is an invitation not to indulge in pessimism, even in the worst moments of one’s existence. Our road always has a side illuminated by the sun, it is enough to know how to recognize it from the dark side where the losers, the slothful, the resigned roam.
Finally we all have a duty, without exception, to remember that ours is a MIXED, LIBERAL and ADOGMATIC Masonic community.
Consistency with the first adjective was sublimated in the purely meritocratic choice of electing our esteemed sister Luisa as Grand Master. A person equipped with all the fundamentals to keep us on the right track.
Consistency with the liberal vocation leads us to remember that rules that limit our freedom of thought and action are unacceptable.
The choice to be dogmatic teaches us that within us no one can assume the role of father-master, single-minded decision-maker, sole censor of the behaviour of others.
We all run the risk of making wrong decisions, we all have a duty to look within ourselves before criticizing our brothers, we all have to commit ourselves to uniting our minds in a joint effort to improve ourselves and thus contribute to the improvement of society. society we live in.
Thank you, Brother Marco, for having taught us, with your elegance, that arrogance and self-centeredness can never inhabit a true Freemason; thank you, Luisa, for placing your experience and your proven qualities at our disposal! Thanks to all the members of the outgoing board who have shown their attachment to our institution even in the most difficult moments. Lastly, thanks to our Lebanese brother David who honours us with his presence and keeps our torch alight in a Country where different cultures coexist with difficulty. Best wishes to my successor Renato, with his vast culture and his innate passion, who will be able to play the role of great orator to the fullest!
The Grand Orator, March 25, 2023
