|
More Summerfest News!
|
Posted by Kyle Martin
Summerfest is going to be packed with fun and you can register now for 95
dollars. 95 dollars for 7 meals, 2 nights in the dorms, 4 different Clan Wars,
Paintball, Banquet, Dance, T-shirt, and the Chevalier investiture is pretty
cheap. If you don't plan on coming and don't have much else to do, you're
wasting your time!!! Register ASAP!!!!
Also at Summerfest, we will be electing and appointing NEW STATE OFFICERS.
Kyle Martin will be moving into State Master Councilor and Tom Bowersox will be
moving on to State Senior Councilor. However, this year, we have an unusual
situation that will no doubt be very interesting. For the last elected office
of State Junior Councilor we have FOUR candidates(in alphabetical order) from
three different chapters: Gabe Arne, Ephraim Cooper, Matt Risberg, and Brandon
Stone. They are all very qualified so its your job to come to summerfest to
have a blast and elect who you think is the right man for the job. Pay special
attention at the caucus and make your choice carefully because the winner of
this election could be the State Master Councilor in 2 short years.
Check the website here or
contact one of the many state officers.
|
|
|
Ok, Why? -- Fourth Preceptor Explained
|
Posted by Ryan Logan
Key People:
David: the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem, anointed by God as king of Israel.
Samuel: God's prophet in Saul's court.
Saul: Rejected by God as king of Israel.
Jonathan: Saul's oldest son, friend of David.
David and Jonathan
The Fourth Preceptor mentions two pairs of friends from antiquity: David and Jonathan, and Damon and Pythias. Most of us have heard the story of Damon and Pythias, and it is described in the back of the Ritual. But the story of David and Jonathan seems to have fallen out of vogue among DeMolays and so I looked up the story in I Samuel 16-20.
The story begins with King Saul of Israel and his prophet Samuel. God made Saul king of Israel, then commanded him to destroy the tribe of the Amalekites. Saul fought the battle, but kept much of the spoil and took their king hostage instead of killing him. For disobeying His commands, God stripped Saul of his kingship, and sent Samuel to Bethlehem to find a new king. Samuel found David and anointed him, signaling that he would one day be the next king of Israel.
David joined the camp of Saul as a musician. Soon David defeated the giant Goliath and won many battles as a commander, and became more famous and beloved than Saul. The people sang in the streets, "Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands." David also became friend and brother to Saul's oldest son, Jonathan.
Saul began to feel jealous of David's fame. He began making plans to kill David, to make the way clear for his son Jonathan to become King. But Jonathan would rather have David's friendship than Israel's kingship, so he warned David of these plans. David and Jonathan came up with a scheme to find out the King's true intentions, and established a code for Jonathan to warn David.
David hid himself away for two days while Jonathan attended dinner with Saul as normal. When Saul asked about David's absence, Jonathan answered, "I let David go to Bethlehem to observe a sacrifice with his family." Saul, who of course had planned to kill David, became angry and Jonathan left the table.
Jonathan returned to the field where David was hiding, carrying his bow and bringing with him a young boy. Jonathan shot a few arrows for practice, then sent the boy to retrieve them. As the boy searched, Jonathan called out, "The arrows are farther beyond you." This was the code for David to leave.
David fled to the wilderness, and Saul sent men to kill him. Jonathan twice warned David about these attacks, and David twice had opportunity to kill Saul but spared him both times.
In the end, Saul and his sons were killed by the Philistines, and David mourned them even as he led the kingdom of Israel.
So, Jonathan saved the life of his friend David, even though he knew it meant he would never be king. Jonathan was a true friend who put the welfare of his brother ahead of his own gains, and defied even his father, who wanted to harm a good man without cause. This is the essence of the virtue of Comradeship; the willingness to sacrifice-maybe not our lives, but wealth and prestige-for our friends, and to stand up against those who would harm them.
|
|
|
Fare Ye Well Buddy Ebsen
|
Posted by Eric Sandegren
Sr. DeMolay and DeMolay Hall of Fame Member Buddy Ebsen Dies at Age 95
____________________________________________
Buddy Ebsen, best-known as Jed Clampett on the television series The Beverly Hillbillies, died on July 6, 2003 at Torrance Memorial Medical Center in Torrance, California. He had been hospitalized near his home in Palos Verdes Estates for several weeks. His wife, Dotti, children Alexandra, Susannah, Cathy, Bonnie, Kiki, and Dustin, and six grandchildren were by his side at the time of his death.
Ebsen was initiated into John M. Cheney Chapter DeMolay in Orlando, Florida, in 1926. Ebsen was inducted into the DeMolay Hall of Fame on June 21, 1996.
Surprisingly, Ebsen hadn’t planned on becoming an actor. Ebsen was studying to become a doctor and had completed two years of pre-med studies at the University of Florida and Rollins College. Then the Florida land boom collapsed. His family lost a lot of money, and medical school was no longer a possibility for Ebsen.
Since Ebsen’s father was a dance teacher, all his children learned to dance. With that experience, Ebsen went to New York to try show business. On Broadway, Ebsen’s credits include “Whoopee,” 1928, “Flying Colors,” 1933, “Ziegfield Follies,” 1934, “Yokel Boy,” 1939, “Showboat,” 1945, and “Male Animal,” 1953.
Ebsen’s next venture was the movies. His principle film credits include “Broadway Melody of 1935,” with his dancing partner and sister Vilma, “Broadway Melody of 1938,” with Judy Garland,” “Born to Dance,” the Shirley Temple picture “Captain January,” “Banjo on my Knee,” “Lucky Star,” “Mail Order Bride,” and “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”
In 1962, while in his mid-fifties, Ebsen became a star when he was chosen to portray Jed Clampett in the television series The Beverly Hillbillies. The story of a hillbilly family that struck oil and moved to Beverly Hills was a hit. After the series ended, Ebsen had several movie roles and television guest roles before landing the title role in the series Barnaby Jones. Barnaby Jones was a mature, folksy, and scientific private eye, and the series was extremely successful. After retiring from acting, Ebsen became a folk artist. He painted landscapes, seascapes, and self-portraits. In 2001, Ebsen began writing, publishing a romance called “Kelly’s Quest,” that became a best-seller and “The Other Side of Oz.”
Ebsen was married to Ruth Cambridge, and they had two daughters. Later, Ebsen met and married his second wife, Nancy, while both were in the Coast Guard. They had four daughters and a son. Ebsen is survived by his third wife, Dotti.
Ebsen continued to play a part in DeMolay, even after his time as an active DeMolay. He was even present at a Southern California DeMolay function in 1995. At the time of his induction into DeMolay, Ebsen said:
“‘As the twig is bent, so grows the tree.’ Often the values of the influences imposed on us by our mothers and fathers, our teachers and certain friends, are not realized until years later, when we, as a sailor does, look back at our wakes to determine the course we have steered that got us to where we are. Today when I look back, then look around me to see with whom I am standing, I fully realize the influence on my life that must be credited to DeMolay.”
|
