This website is intended for the Master Mason who may be seeking further involvement in Freemasonry beyond that provided by his Craft Lodge. The following information has been compiled in
order to provide a focal point where those who are keen to participate in the Consolidated Rite can access information about this wonderful appendant association.
FURTHER LIGHT IN MASONRY
The Consolidated Rite is one of the appendant systems that a Freemason may pursue in order to expand his knowledge beyond the three Degrees of the Craft. Its purpose is to elaborate and supplement the three Degrees of the Craft as administrated by the United Grand Lodge of England. The United Grand Lodge is a sovereign and independent body practising Freemasonry only within the three Degrees of the Craft and only within the limits defined in its Constitution. It does not recognise or admit the existence of any superior Masonic authority, however styled. While the Consolidated Rite is therefore not accorded official recognition, there is no prohibition against a Freemason electing to participate in it.
The Consolidated Rite holds that the system of Masonic instruction contained in the three Degrees of the Craft is complete. Any additional degrees worked beyond the 3rd Degree (which is commonly known as the 'Sublime Degree of Master Mason') are evidence of a Brother's desire to engage in continued Masonic instruction rather than of having achieved a higher rank within the Masonic fraternity. While no Masonic degree is of higher value than that of Master Mason, there are additional degrees that a dedicated Brother may pursue for further exposure to the principles of Freemasonry. The Consolidated Rite is one such system. It enables a Master Mason to seek a more complete interpretation of the moral and spiritual principles of Freemasonry by building a superstructure on the Degrees of the Craft, and so provides a means whereby he may receive a deeper understanding of Freemasonry.
Aims and Relationships
The Consolidated Rite encourages a particular path that a Brother may wish to follow for further exposure to the principles of Freemasonry. It is open to any Freemason who has attained the 3rd Degree, Master Mason, in a regularly warranted lodge recognised by the United Grand Lodge of England and who professes a belief in the Trinitarian Christian Faith.
The Consolidated Rite is a recommended 'course of action' for the individual Freemason, rather than an organisation in its own right. It encompasses the three Degrees of the Craft, the three elements of the College of Instruction and the Rose Croix Degrees, all of which are administrated separately but are considered to form part of the Consolidated Rite. The constituent components are conferred by various individual Masonic organisations or bodies, each of which operates independently under the control of its own central authority.
Pursuing the Consolidated Rite is at all stages voluntary and there is no formal membership of the Consolidated Rite itself: it does not administrate Masonic ritual, exercise a central authority or have its own governing bodies. The Consolidated Rite also does not charge subscription fees. Each of its constituent components is controlled by a different organisation under a separate authority and is governed by its own regulations.