Visiting in the Royal Arch Degree
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The Royal Arch is the continuation of Craft Freemasonry, and therefore falls into the category of being a concordant body in relation to Craft Masonry.
Its members, called Companions, meet in Chapters under a Grand Chapter, in our case the Supreme Grand Chapter of Scotland, but there are several other Grand Chapters. Individual Chapters are ruled over by a First Principal in much the same way that the Right Worshipful Master rules over a Craft Lodge.
Sometimes referred to as "The Red" in contrast to Craft Masonry being referred to as "Blue Lodges".
The overall organisation of the Royal Arch is very similar to that of Craft Masonry. For example I will compare my Mother Lodge of Freemasons to my Mother Chapter
| Lodge | Chapter |
|---|---|
|
Grand Lodge of Scotland ↓ Provincial Grand Lodge of Aberdeenshire East ↓ Lodge St. Andrew #518 |
Supreme Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Scotland ↓ Provincial Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Aberdeenshire ↓ St. Andrew Royal Arch Chapter #146 |
In 2009 the Grand Master Mason and the Grand First Principal were the same person, Charles Iain Robert Wolrige Gordon.
Freemasonry is a progressive science, after completing the degrees of Entered
Apprentice, Fellow Craft and Master Mason in a
Craft Lodge it is necessary to complete the Royal Arch degrees before you can go any further in your Masonic career.
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