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John Wayne Chapter #3667 Order of DeMolay

The Code of the Gentleman

4/12/2010

"Without a strict observance of the fundamental Code of Honor, no man, no matter how "polished," can be considered a gentleman. The honor of a gentleman demands the inviolability of his word, and the incorruptibility of his principles. He is the descendant of the knight, the crusader; he is the defender of the defenseless and champion of justice.... or he is not a Gentleman."

Taken from Virginia Military Institute's "Code of the Gentleman."

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Learn Your Obligations Soon

4/1/2010

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When you knelt at the altar, you pledged yourself in the presence of God and your fellow members of the Order, to be loyal to the great ideals expressed in your obligations. Memorize your obligations in the Initiatory Degree and in the DeMolay Degree as soon as you have received them. Memorizing your DeMolay obligations is important, but it is even more important that you learn the meaning behind the obligations as well. The Chapter will provide you with competent instruction in the obligations. When you have learned both obligations and have passed an examination thereon, you are entitled to an Obligation Card showing that you have done so. Ask your Scribe for it.

You cannot lawfully vote on petitions for membership or become a Chapter officer until you have memorized and passed the examination on both obligations and received your Obligation Card. Once the Chapter is opened on a particular Degree, only those who have received that Degree can remain. Those members who have received only the Initiatory Degree cannot remain once the Chapter begins opening on the DeMolay Degree to go into its business session.

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Dad Peebler

I am proud to be an 11th generation American, 5th generation Texan, 3rd generation freemason, and 1st generation DeMolay. Suffering from dyslexia as a kid, reading and writing were never naturals for me. I began to compensate early on by memorizing things. That experience not only improved my memory skills, but gave me a strong will and the ability to deal with hardships. Some might even say I was headstrong or very opinionated. My grandmother noticed it right away, tagging me with the moniker "testaduda",or hard head in Italian. The good memory skills came in handy when I became the youngest DeMolay in Galveston Chapter three weeks after my 13th birthday, and competed in 4th Section (a lengthy ritual part) at the Texas State Conclave a few months later. I was instantly hooked on DeMolay, and still love it today. Though not always active in DeMolay, the 7 Cardinal Virtues of a DeMolay have been a guiding force throughout my life. I became active again last summer when my son turned 12. We soon found out to our horror that DeMolay membership had dropped significantly since I became inactive. While not the only one to let the ball drop, I am embarrassed that I was away so long. With my love for the order renewed by an energetic son, I find myself excited about DeMolay, constantly thinking of things I can do to share this wonderful experience with our youth. Today's result is this blog, so there you have it!

John Wayne Chapter #3667 Order of DeMolay

The Code of the Gentleman

Learn Your Obligations Soon

Dad Peebler

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