Ocean Lodge No.89, F.&A.M

New Jersey: Old Masonic temple full of mysteries
By Alex Biese

16 February 2008

ASBURY PARK PRESS, NJ

If these walls could talk, they wouldn't say much. Three stories above Manasquan's Norman Rockwell-esque downtown, there silently sits a scene right out of "Indiana Jones" — a nearly century-old temple built by a secret society that left it behind more than 50 years ago.

The Masonic Temple, at 168-170 Main St., was built by the Goodwin Royal Arch Chapter of the Freemasons in 1923, but was lost in a sheriff's sale in 1953. While impressed by the grandeur of their third-floor, one-room temple, current building owners Gerhard and Christine Angersbach of Brick said they're not exactly sure what remnants — such as orb-topped columns, hieroglyphic-covered walls and the triangular symbol on the tile floor — mean.

Although brought to the forefront of popular culture thanks to recent works such as the book and movie, "The Da Vinci Code," and the film "National Treasure," the Free and Accepted Masons remain shrouded in mystery. And they also remain part of a myth almost as old as America itself — that the Great Seal of the United States, complete with an all-seeing eye and an unfinished pyramid, is the stamp of the Masons, a fraternal society, that has existed for ages.

On Tuesday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the current custodian of the seal, which also can be found on the back of a $1 bill, inaugurated an exhibition to commemorate the seal's 225th anniversary and to trace the history of its symbolism. The exhibit debunks the group's role, noting that founding fathers and known Masons George Washington and Benjamin Franklin had no role in designing the final seal, and that although Masons do share some of the seal's symbols, the markings have never been exclusively the domain of the order. "You can't buy publicity better than what The History Channel is now furnishing us," said Harris J. Goldstein, senior warden of Ocean Lodge 89 in Spring Lake Heights, of the amount of attention Masons have garnered in recent years. Goldstein, 48, of Brick, described Masonry as "a beautiful system of morality veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols, and the further you explore it, the more simple it seems."

Due to increased media exposure, the popularity of Masonry has boomed in recent years, with the number of New Jersey members jumping from 30,000 to 35,000 in the past two years, he said. Mason and Stafford resident Frank Rutkowski, who has visited the Manasquan temple, offered some advice on Hollywood's take on the society: "Don't believe too much about it. "The thing is, these things are sprinkled with part-truths, so you can't really deny 100 percent, but if you really want to dig into it, you really have to dig into it," he said. Rutkowski, a Mason for 10 years who has reached the rank of Excellent King with Goodwin-Hiram Chapter 1 in Toms River, said the basic explanation is simple. "The thing is, it's related to the Old Testament of the Bible and the rebuilding of the temple," Rutkowski, 67, said of the temple symbolism. "If you want to know about the people and the ritual, go back to the Bible."

Standing in the Manasquan temple Friday, Goldstein said the room was designed to be a representation of the temple of King Solomon. The two columns, one topped with a globe and another with an orb depicting stars, would traditionally be placed on either side of a door that was only used by candidates for Masonry. The candidates would have to walk through the door and between the columns three times during their initiation process, he said.

The Masons use symbols traditionally used by builders, including the square and compass, to teach moral lessons such as to "square your actions," Goldstein said. The Manasquan temple was used by both the Royal Arch chapter and Wall Lodge 73 of the Masons until the group hit financial hard times during the Great Depression. The temple's carved mahogany furnishings, Goldstein said, bear the same inscriptions as the temple walls and can now be found in his Spring Lake Heights lodge. Over the years, the lodge has taken in the remnants of Wall Lodge 73 and others from Spring Lake, Ocean Grove and Belmar and now has 300 members.

Rutkowski said the third floor's large room would have been used for regular membership meetings and the conferring of degrees to members.

"It's still well-preserved. It's a beautiful area," he said of the temple. However, when asked about the meaning of the hieroglyphics on the walls, Rutkowski said, "I really don't know if I can tell you that. Some of that stuff I can't even read. It's the cryptic part of the Masons." But, he added, "It's all scriptural, it's all out of the Bible." Gerhard Angersbach, 65, said the building was sold for $50,000 at a sheriff's sale in 1953, and the first floor for many years served as Weir's Pharmacy, while the second and third floors went unused. Angersbach's travel business, Angersbach International Tours Inc., originally was located down the street, and in 1985, he and his wife bought the former temple, moving their business into the second floor.

Over the years, first-floor tenants came and went, Angersbach said, including a record shop, dress shops and The Broadway Grill, which has been in the building since 1991. The third-floor room is currently used for storage because, in order to open it for other purposes, Angersbach would have to see to a lengthy list of renovations, including a sprinkler system, heating and cooling, possibly an elevator. "All of that would run into several hundred thousand dollars, so we haven't done anything with that yet," he said. "We're still contemplating."

Masons through history

The Masons are a very charitable organization, according to Rutkowski. "Across the board, Masons are probably the largest philanthropists in the world," he said, noting that the organization donates money to causes such as medical research and development. "Freeborn" men ages 21 and up who are "of good reputation" are eligible to join the organization, Rutkowski said.

Beachwood resident Dennis L. Stewart, secretary of the Goodwin-Hiram Chapter, said there are more than 2 million Masons in North America today. Stewart, 59, a member for 18 years, said several of his childhood heroes and other famed figures, such as Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Gen. George S. Patton, Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Rudyard Kipling and Boy Scouts founder Robert Baden-Powell, all were Masons.

"Masons are probably the oldest, largest continuing existing fraternity known to man," Stewart said, noting that the organization is responsible for about $2 million in donations to charity annually, unknown to most members of the general public. "Masons are, predominantly I would say, the silent majority. They are confident and capable of doing what they do without the public recognition," Stewart said. "Their main goal is to make the world a better place to live in."

Christine Angersbach, 48, said several Masons have toured the building over the years, but none has expressed an interest in helping to restore it. "They sound melancholy about it, but no one steps up and says, "We should do something about it,' " she said. There was even some talk a while back of turning the building's third-floor hallway into a Masonic history museum in an attempt to raise funds to restore the temple, all to no avail, she said. The Masons "would love to restore it, but we don't have the funds," Rutkowski said. "Someday, we might, but at this point it would just be a dream."