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KNIG

HTLY TOPICS Winter 2017-2018Issue 34

IN THIS ISSUEProvincial Prior 2-3Galilee Goes to Paris 4Great Priory 5Installation of a Knight 6-9King Edward VII Preceptory 9Provincial Golf 10Common Misconceptions 11-12From the Ritual Book 13Family Carol Service 13Caravaggio : Knight of Malta 14Diary 15Regalia Exchange 15Contacts 15

EDITORIALSo we have a new Grand Master and anew Great Vice-Chancellor. We wishthem every success in their newappointments. The details are in theGreat Priory section on page 5.

I have articles about the visit to Franceof a Knight from our Galilee Preceptory[page 4], and the Installation of aKnight [pages 6-9] and CommonMisconceptions [pages 11-12] from E KtAngus Rhodes.

There is a report on the Provincial Golf,as well as a piece about Caravaggio[page 14], the Diary, Regalia Exchangeand Contact addresses and numbers onpage 15.

The Passionate Man’s Pilgrimage, a 16th centurycentury poem, usually attributed to Sir WalterRaleigh, outlines your mode of dress as a RoyalArch Mason, on your entry to the Order.

My scallop-shell of quiet,My staff of faith to walk upon,My scrip of joy, immortal diet,

My bottle of salvation,My gown of glory, hope's true gage;

SIR WALTER RALEIGH

As E Kt Angus Rhodes writes, the scallop shell be-came the badge for pilgrims when many Christianswere flocking to Santiago de Compostella in Spain.

Wealthy pilgrims could afford to purchase expensivemementos of their visit.

The less well-heeled and the poor could not affordto do so. Instead the tradition arose of visiting thebeach and obtaining a scallop shell, which was thenstitched to one’s robe or hat as a sign of completingthe pilgrimage.

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Sub-Prior alongside both Jack and Alf duringthe ten years from 1992 to 2002.

Of those four key figures – Jack, Alf, Eddie andDavid – only David is here with us today; sadly,Jack passed to the Holy City some years ago.Nevertheless, on your behalf, Brother Knights,I thank them all for their immeasurableservices to this Province and our great Order.

It is an unfortunate fact that there has neverbeen any sort of published history of theProvince, in spite of attempts during Alf’sreign to collect relevant information as thebasis for an historical record. However, anattempt is now being made – with the help ofDavid and Eddie – to rectify the situation andsuch a record, albeit inevitably brief, is beingfinalised that I hope will be published asperhaps a special edition of Knightly Topics inthe near future.

Our Province is not a static entity and evolvesfrom year to year as Provincial Officers changein a process of natural succession to bring innew faces and new abilities as a result of themerits they have displayed.

I therefore thank all those Knights, who haveserved the Province during the past year andwelcome those who are either continuing inoffice or are new to their respective offices.

The marked boost to our membership in2015/16 resulting from the Consecration of ournewest – and Italian – Preceptory, SecretumTempli Londinium No 695, has now workedthrough the system. But our membership hasremained at about 960 since then, with newmembers still pretty well balancing anunusually large number of losses during thepast year.

Our Provincial accounts show that the Provinceis in a healthy financial position that willenable us, with contributions from ourPreceptories, to make a very generousdonation to the St John’s Eye Hospital inJerusalem to mark our 25th Anniversary.

Brother Knights of the Province of London, I nowhave both the opportunity and the honour toaddress you all.

We celebrate today - early by a single day - the25th Anniversary – the 25th birthday – of theProvince. 25 years is not a long time in the greatscheme of things; far less than many of theProvinces in England and Wales that date theirorigins to around the middle years of the 19thcentury. Even Middlesex, before London, thebaby among the Provinces, predates us by 22years – but, in 1992, we then assumed that mantle.

Those 25 years have certainly seen some changesas the original 24 largely independent LondonPreceptories, already re-arranged into the Duke

and James Groups since1990, settled down undera new Provincial régime in1992. Doubtless, in theearlier years there were afew teething problems, butunder the first ProvincialPrior, R E Kt Jack Dribbell(later GCT), an orderlytransition was completed.Within the first two

months, Jack consecrated the first newPreceptory of the Province of London – St Johnat Ealing No 576 on 11 November 1992. I mentionthat particular Preceptory for a special reason:like the Province, they celebrated their own 25thAnniversary on 4 November this year. I hope thatmany of the Officers whom I have appointedtoday will join me in forming a Provincialdelegation to attend that meeting – which I havedeclared as an Official Visit.

Successive Provincial Priors have followed JackDribbell in working to establish a coherent bodyof Preceptories efficiently and sensibly managedwithout undue formality and in a spirit of friendlyco-operation: R E Kt Alf Day (1997-2006), throughR E Kt Eddie Goodwin (2006-2012), to the presentincumbent.

I must also mention the contribution that R E KtDavid Williams KCT has made as Provincial

PROVINCIAL PRIORPROVINCIAL PRIORY MEETING: 29 SEPTEMBER 2017

The fact remains, however, that we cannotstand still. Over the last five years, I have laidcontinued emphasis upon social interactionsbetween our members and in particular ourProvincial Officers. We still have our traditionalannual Mess for Registrars; and our traditionalFamily Carol Service at Christmas promises apossible re-birth (appropriately, perhaps) sincewe moved to the Church of St Botolph withoutBishopsgate last year. More recently, we haveinstituted an annual lunch for active ProvincialOfficers and their companions (wives andpartners); our Provincial newsletter KnightlyTopics goes from strength to strength under theclever editing of E Kt Stuart Henderson; and ourrelatively new web site is advancing in leaps andbounds thanks to the outstanding work of itsoriginal designer, E Kt Keith Towner, who hasmore recently been ably assisted by Kt VernonKing – both are enthusiastic members of myBodyguard.But communications among our members, whilehelpful, are not enough and we must make everyeffort to promote our Order and our Province.During the past few months we have initiated aleaflet campaign as a first step towardspublicising the Province to members of Lodgesand especially Royal Arch Chapters. If itencourages Lodge members to join Chapters, asthe route into our Order, so much the better.The campaign is spearheaded by E Kt BrianFrancois, Commander of my Bodyguard.

A further initiative, being worked up by E KtAntony Legge, one of our Provincial DeputyMarshals, is the formation of a group of Knightsof the Province who will be prepared to offertheir services to Preceptories that struggle, forone reason or another, to perform theirceremonies; the emphasis is particularly onenriching the experiences of candidates forinstallation. The group of Knights, reminiscentof the strolling players or troubadours of the11th-13th centuries, we have chosen to call‘Knights-Errant’ – more particularly reminiscentof the original nine Knights of our historic Order.More of this anon.Bro Kts, it has always been important to giveproper recognition to Knights of the Provincehonoured by Great Priory.

This year, promotions were awarded to V E KtHoward Beber (Sancta Maria, No 183) and to EKt John Stewart (Golden Square, No 291); firstappointments were awarded to E Kts AlexanderMaclean Bather (Public Schools, No 209), DavidThompson (Public Schools, No 209), JimFletcher (Empress, No 178), Michael Griffith(Mount Calvary D), Chris Smith (Galilee, No 185)and Michael Porter (Studholme, No 140). Theyhave all earned their honours through servicesto their Preceptories and to the Province. OtherKnights of the Province who received GreatHonours through services either to otherProvinces or to Great Priory were E Kts RichardCooper (King Edward VII/Empress, No 173/178)and Simon Lincoln (Mount Calvary D). Icongratulate them all.I have also mentioned on previous occasions ourGolf Society, which is always ready to welcomenew members. The Knight to speak to is E KtJohn Bond, our new Provincial Registrar,Referring back to the meeting in November ofSt John at Ealing Preceptory reminds me thatfor several years I have tried to encourageProvincial Officers to participate in our OfficialVisits to Preceptories and visits to otherProvinces during each year. You will see, fromsome of our distinguished visitors from theProvinces of Sussex, Surrey and especially Kent,that their Provincial Officers do visit otherProvinces and I urge all the active Officers thatI have appointed today to take advantage ofthese opportunities whenever practicable. Theannual programme of Official Visits within theProvince has been posted on the Provincial website and details of the annual meetings of otherProvinces will in future be posted there too.Those wishing to take part in Official Visits toour Preceptories should contact E Kt John Bond.Those interested in visiting other Provincesshould contact E Kt Ian Brooks.Brother Knights, I have said enough, perhapsmore than enough. There will always bechallenges ahead, but challenges are alsoopportunities and we must strive to make themost of them.Thank you all for your support andencouragement – and may God bless both youand your families.

PROVINCIAL PRIOR [continued]

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GALILEE GOES TO PARIS

It is frequently said that visiting is the lifebloodof masonry. So, Brother Knights,how many ofyou have visited overseas?

On Saturday 22 April, the Most Eminent andSupreme Grand Master of France, ME KnightChristian Alain Pajolec, Past Great 2ndConstable here in England, installed hissuccessor as Grand Master of the Great Prioryof France (GPF).

Sadly, there was no official delegation from theGreat Priory of England or the Provincial Prioryof London, although there was an officialdelegation from the Grand College of KnightTemplar Priests. On the bright side, that madeit even more special for a lowly knight from thePreceptory of Galilee No 185.

Yes, I was that lowly visitor, who left home at04:15 to catch a train from Milton Keynes toLondon, then the 0618 Eurostar to Paris, justtwo days after the attack in Paris in which apoliceman was killed.

ME Kt Christian, a member and Past Preceptor,seldom, if ever misses a Galilee meeting. It wasa pleasure and, as it turned out, a great honourand privilege, to be in Paris for this bitter-sweetoccasion.

Three years ago, in April 2014, E Kt Chris Smithand I visited GPF when ME Kt Christian, who,until then, had been for some years the VeryHigh and Right Eminent Great Seneschal ofFrance, was installed in a colourful ceremonyas the ME & S GM. This time, it was heperforming the installation ceremony.

I remember Christian telling me at the time ofhis installation that he had promised his wifethat he would remain ME & S GM for only 3 yearsand, yes, he has been true to his word. It’s anexhausting office, as I’m sure you’re all aware.

The installation on Saturday morning is normallypreceded on the Friday evening by a sumptuouswhite table event. This year, due to a RoyalArch convocation in Milton Keynes, I was unable

to be present, but I understand it was no lesswonderful than on previous occasions.

If the installation this year was less wellattended than on previous occasions, that didnot detract from the quality of the ceremony.Christian did a superb job.

A light lunch of paté, followed by crayfish on abed of rice, and it was time for France’s GreatMalta meeting, at which a candidate wasadmitted. And that’s where the great honourwas experienced by this lowly knight.

The Great Prior of Malta, RE Kt DominiqueMadej, and the Deputy Great Mareschal, actingthat afternoon as Great Mareschal, E Kt BernardWakim (both also members of Galilee) invitedme to assist by acting as Bearer for the Bannerof Candia during the ceremony. So I not onlypaid for my supper (well, lunch anyway): I sangfor it as well.

A good day was soon over and it was time toreturn to England.

Of course I had no idea that, whilst theceremonies were taking place in northern Paris,there were further incidents and demonstrationstaking place in the centre of Paris. It was notuntil I had returned to England that I learnt ofthem. So near, yet so far …..

If you get the opportunity, I would recommenda foreign visit.

Wonderful.

by E Kt Joseph Le Roi-Smith, Prov A-de-C [London]

L to R:E Kt Joseph Le Roi-Smith, RE Kt Dominique Madej, ME Kt Christian Pajolec

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GREAT PRIORY

At Great Priory on 17 May 2017, Tim Lewis GCT was succeeded, after six years inoffice, by Paul Clements GCT, who was duly installed as Most Eminent and SupremeGrand Master. He was proclaimed by E Kt Stuart Henderson, Great Herald, of MountCalvary Preceptory D TI in the Province of London.

PAUL CLEMENTS IS NEW GRAND MASTER

GREAT VICE-CHANCELLOR

ACTIVE RANKSGrand Master’s Banner Bearer Alexander Maclean Bather 209Great Aide-de-Camp Richard Tanner Cooper 173,178Great Captain of Guards David James Thompson 209PAST RANKSPast Great Registrar Howard Andre Beber 73,183,219,632Past Great Herald John Stewart 219Past Great Aide-de-Camp Robert William Bull 131Past Great Aide-de-Camp James Norman Fletcher 173,178,632Past Great Aide-de-Camp Michael Edward Griffith DPast Great Aide-de-Camp Simon Lincoln DPast Great Warden of Regalia Christopher Anthony Smith 185Past Great Chamberlain Michael Henry Porter 140

GREAT RANK Appointments & Promotions

These Knights were invested by the Most Eminent and SupremeGrand Master on 17 May 2017 at the Great Priory meeting. Theywere also invested with the equivalent Malta rank at the GreatPriory of Malta meeting on 21 November 2017. Both meetingswere held at FMH in Great Queen Street.

The Great Vice-Chancellor is now VE Kt Ryan Williams. He is based at MMH. He sayssays he feels “confident that we are well placed to face the challenges of 2018 andwith your support I am sure we will have another successful year.”

The First degree, your initiation, representedBirth, the Birth of man, and the Christmas storyof God made man: The Son sent by The Fatherout of love for all mankind. This degree intro-duced you to the basic duties of a good man andFreemason, especially espousing the virtues ofFaith, Hope and Charity;

The Second further explores our life on earth,the beauties of God’s creation and the duties ofman, which may allude to, and are guided by,our Lord’s period of life on earth and ministry;

In the Third degree, via the allegory of ourGrand Master, Hiram Abif, is representative toChristian Masons of the death and resurrectionof our Lord, Jesus Christ. It is He from whom wederive “… a Holy confidence that the Lord ofLife will enable us to trample the King ofTerrors beneath our feet and lift our eyes tothat bright morning star whose rising boughtpeace and salvation to the faithful and obedi-ent of the human race.” Through this shiningexample, we are further reminded of our dutiesto one another.

The Sublime Degree of the Holy Royal ArchChapter of Jerusalem expands upon the previ-ous instruction in relation to man’s relationshipwith man, to more fully explain man’s relation-ship with God. It is therefore, a fitting prepara-tion for your entry to this Christian and KnightlyOrder. A further allusion may become apparentafter your Malta ceremony.

The Knights of the Preceptory warmly acceptedyou as a candidate for installation as a KnightTemplar in the confidence that your generalbenevolence to date demonstrates that youhave the potential to truly exemplify the vir-tues of Christian Knighthood.

INSTALLATION AS A KNIGHT

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Your preparation, as in the Craft, was both internal and external.Internally, you were prepared by your experience as both a Craft andRoyal Arch Mason as well as by being a Christian professing a belief inthe Holy Trinity. The symbolism of these Degrees may now mean moreto you as a Christian Freemason.

Externally, you were prepared as a Christianpilgrim on his way to Jerusalem, the Holy City.The Passionate Man’s Pilgrimage, a sixteenthCentury poem, outlines your mode of dress.

Please note that the explanations of the Ceremonyand Symbolism herein contained are the opinion ofthe author based on research and contemplation.They may not represent the opinion of the Provinceor Great Priory: the only official representations inrelation to the meaning of our Ceremonies are pro-vided in the Ritual itself.

E Kt Angus Rhodes PPrStdB(B) (Somerset).

This is the warfare you symbolically undertook,“the constant warfare with the lying vanitiesand deceits of this world in which it is necessaryfor us constantly to be engaged.”

At this stage, you assisted the Marshal to unveilthe Cross and were instructed to notice the scrollthereon. The Eminent Preceptor observed to youthat this scroll bears the initials of the inscrip-tion placed above our Blessed Saviour at HisCrucifixion, namely “I.N.R.I.” symbolising “IesusNazarenus Rex Iudæorum” or Jesus of Nazareth,King of the Jews.

The Charge was then delivered explaining to youyour progress to date and informing you of theyear of penance to come.

Penance and Mortification – twice a year Chris-tians are traditionally expected to be peniten-tial. There is the lesser period of penitenceduring Advent, the first season of the Churchyear, where we are preparing for the Christmas-tide and, paradoxically, both the birth of ourLord and His coming again.

Then there is the great penitence at Lent inpreparation for the Sacred Triduum and Easter,representing Christ’s Crucifixion and Resurrec-tion.

Traditional methods of penance and mortifica-tion have included through fasting, the wearingof uncomfortable garments, such as hairshirts,acts of charity and penitential pilgrimages suchas you symbolically undertook.

Taking up the skull and lighted taper, the em-blems of life and mortality, to assist your medi-tation, you then performed a year of penance byproceeding slowly around the Preceptory.

Your physical admission into the Preceptory,was a result of you proving yourself a HolyRoyal Arch Companion to the Captain ofGuards, Constables and Eminent Preceptor.

You were then invited to partake of bread,the staff of life, and water, which were theonly refreshments we could then offer you.You then professed your faith in God and ourBlessed Saviour, Jesus Christ, and offered toundertake any task, however perilous, whichwould entitle you to admission under thePreceptory’s Banner as a Soldier of theCross.

The Eminent Preceptor therefore enjoinedyou to undertake a Seven Years’ Pilgrimage.This was a symbolic pil-grimage undertaken byproceeding seven timesaround the Preceptory.Your obvious zeal per-suaded the EminentPreceptor, at the re-quest of the SecondConstable, to shortenthe pilgrimage to threeyears.

Pilgrimages are traditionally undertaken forseveral reasons, but perhaps the principaltwo are as an act of faith and an act ofpenance. In this case it symbolised theformer, you were proving your faith in Godand our Blessed Saviour, Jesus Christ. Theobligation was taken on the Holy Gospels.

Your investiture as a Novice and Crusader wasdescribed by the reading from St.Paul’s letterto the Ephesians (Chapter 6, verses 10 to 17).

You then made the traditional professionsconfirming that your intent to defend theHoly Christian faith, all Knights Templar andall relatives and connections of Knights Tem-plar.

A Seven Years’ warfare was then demandedof you. Obviously Knights were expected togo to war. However, the Knights Templarfulfilled two roles as warriors and monks. Byfar the harder task, which monks and priestsare expected to undertake, is spiritual war-fare.

Perhaps the most famous example of a peniten-tial pilgrimage, was that of King Henry II follow-ing the murder of St.Thomas Becket in 1170, byfour of the King’s Knights.

The King sought forgiveness from the Pope andthen walked barefoot to Canterbury Cathedral topray on his knees. He appointed monks to whiphim, whilst he prayed, as a further act of publicpenitence.

INSTALLATION [continued]

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On arriving back at the west of the Precceptory,you symbolically called upon the spirit, whichonce inhabited the skull, to rise up and testifyagainst you if you ever willfully violated yourobligation. You then extinguished the light, whichwas a symbolical reminder of fate of Judas afterhis betrayal of Christ. Having been entrusted withthe means to gain re-admission to the Preceptory,you retired.

The traditional method of preparing for Knight-hood was by the Knight making a good confessionto a priest in order to cleanse himself spiritually.He would then take a bath to cleanse himselfphysically (something not often undertaken inmedieval times) followed by a period of rest in abed covered with clean white sheets.

Having risen from the period of rest, the prospec-tive Knight would spend the night undertaking avigil of prayer and meditation in a chapel, in thepresence of God and his own thoughts alone.

Perhaps the best literary description of this maybe found in Sir Knight of the Splendid Way byW.E. Cule, which is also highly instructive in thesymbolic journey, virtues and duties of a goodChristian, including the warfare mentionedabove.

It is this vigil that you symbolically undertook. Oncompletion of the same you were readmitted.

The reading from the first letter of St Peter,Chapter 2 [verses 11 to 17] was then presented toyou and I strongly exhort you to study and con-template the instructive words of the same.

INSTALLATION [continued]

The Cup of Memory was then presented toyou and you drank seven times to the mem-ory of:

the three sets of three Grand Masters whopresided over the original three Grand Lodg-es you are familiar with by now from Craftand Chapter and need no further explana-tion.

St John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christwho prepared the way: “I am the voice ofone crying in the wilderness, Make straightthe way of the Lord.” John 1:23.

St John the Evangelist, the Apostle andGospel writer, who completed by his learn-ing the task commenced by St John theBaptist’s zeal.

“the pious memory of all those valiantknights, who sealed their faith with theirblood, under the banner of the Cross.”

All Knights Templar wheresoever dis-persed… This is the equivalent to the Tyler’sor Janitor’s Toast.

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INSTALLATION [continued]

The white stone, as referred to in the passagefrom the Book of the Apocalypse [Revelation ofSt John] which was read to you, was then pre-

sented to youtogether witha pen and youwere asked toenter into theancient cere-mony of sign-ing your namein your blood.This was pure-ly a test ofyour commit-ment, and theceremony wasdispensedwith otherthan you sign-ing your ini-tials on thestone, atwhich point

the new name referred to in the reading wasrevealed to you.

The Marshal then presented you with a smallerWhite Stone, as a memorial of your entry to theOrder and to enable you to present the same,and to describe how you received it, in order togain admission to other Preceptories.

A procession was formed with the Standardsand Constables of the Order, and the Marshalled you to the East, where you were made aKnight of the Order and instructed to beloyal, brave and true.

You were then clothed with the sash, jewel,star and mantle of the Order, which wereexplained to you, and your sword was pre-sented with the charge: “never draw it with-out cause nor sheath it without honour.”Having been instructed in the modes of rec-ognition restricted to the members of theOrder, you returned in procession to theWest, where the Heralds proclaimed yourKnighthood… and you were saluted in thetraditional manner of the Order.

We have in London a Preceptory of Improvement, held under the auspices of theKing Edward VII Preceptory. It is open to Knights of all Provinces. Newer Knights inour Preceptories are urged to make the effort to attend at least some of the sessions.Details can be found on cards available in the Reception area on the GF at MMH.The Preceptory meets five times each year, in MMH. The next meeting is Tuesday9 January 2018. No regalia is required, as swords and belts are provided.

The Registrar is Dennis Fountain, Gay-Reel, Allhallows Road, Lower Stoke, Rochester,Kent. ME3 9SL. 01634 270587. dennisfountain1941@talktalk.net

KING EDWARD VIIPRECEPTORY

PROVINCIAL GOLFChobham Golf Club has been the home of the London Knights TemplarGolf Society’s Annual Provincial Prior’s Cup, which this year saw V EKt David Ashbolt snatch the trophy from the winner of the two previousyears, E Kt Kevin Jones, in a hotly contested match … well the sun wasshining, although Kevin didn’t actually make the cut!Asked what his favourite shots of the day were David replied, “That’s easy. Myfavourite shots were the practice swing and the conceded putt!”

The London KT Golf Society Open is a friendly social fun day that also raises moneyfor charity. With grateful thanks to E Kt Jerry Gangadeen, who despite a pendingfoot operation, managed to play the course and provide us with two fantastic cakes- one for eating and one for auction.  This year we raised money for the MarkBenevolent fund and the Eye Hospital.

We’ll be returning to Chobham Golf Club on Thursday 23 August 2018. Put the datein your diary now. The KT Golf Society is open to all Knights Templar, their masonicfriends and neighbouring KT provinces.

We meet at 1000 hrs. for a bacon butty & coffee and tee off from 1100 hrs. Afterplay we gather for drinks and a two course meal and prize giving by our Provincialow and high handicap players alike. It is laid out on naturally undulating parklandset amongst mature oak woodland and has six strategically placed lakes which comeinto play on nine of the eighteen holes.  So put golf balls on your Christmas list.

We look forward to seeing you on the fairways next year.

John Bond

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In Malta, the majority arise in the short-ened form of the Installation of the Emi-nent Prior.

Firstly, do not forget to confirm the min-utes of the last regular meeting of thePriory! How often this is overlooked.

Based on the ritual book, the Captain-General and Lieutenant-General (theGenerals) do not need to be replaced oreven go back to the seats they weresitting in for KT if they have moved.

The Prior and Chaplain need to move tothe table in the SE with a Bible thereon,plus the Mareschal and Deputy Mareschalneed to continue to sit in the W.

The Chaplain, Mareschal and Captain ofOutposts all need to be PPs for the Instal-lation of EP. The only real issue is to swapthe Captain of Outposts for a PP, as in theKT Installation, so that a PP is in place forthe Inner Working.

An alternative, for speed, would simplybe for a PP to occupy the position fromthe start.

The most recent misconception is that theofficers need to all be brought up to thePrior to be individually invested.

That is certainly the case if the Priory isopened in the longer form , but is not thecase where the shortened Opening andClosing is used directly after the KT meet-ing.

Following a period of uncertainty andChinese whispers, the Great Vice Chan-cellor, issued the following clarification

on 22 September 2016 in relation to theprocedure for the investiture of Offic-ers after the Installation of a new Emi-nent Prior:-

When a Preceptory has a combinedmeeting of Installation of the EminentPreceptor and then, follows the abbre-viated form of Installation of the Emi-nent Prior in the associated Priory, it isquite permissible to announce that theofficers of the Preceptory take thecorresponding offices in the Priory,once the Prior is Installed.

The Registrar/Chancellor will read thelist and the officers rise and acknowl-edge their appointment with the signof the Order.

When a Preceptory has a separate fullmeeting of the Priory to Install thePrior and, maybe work the ceremony ofthe Installation of a new Knight, thenofficers that are appointed should bepresented for appointment in the nor-mal manner.

I thought this made the situation clear,but still found a good deal of ongoingdiscussion on this issue.

I therefore contacted the Great ViceChancellor’s office on 21 February2017, which provided me with a swiftand most helpful response on the sameday.

I can confirm that where the shortenedform is used either of these methodshas been confirmed as being permissi-ble.

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONSINSTALLATION OF E PRIOR

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By E.Kt. Angus Rhodes, PPrStdB(B) (Somerset)

Option 1: the above method wherebythe Registrar will read the list of offic-ers with each officer rising and salutingthe Eminent Prior with the Sign of theOrder. and then being seated oncemore. The Sign of the Order should notto be confused with the P Sign of aKnight Templar and should be executedproperly to the chine not chin.

Option 2: the following short formulamay be utilised instead:-

Mareschal – Eminent Prior, is it yourwish that the officers of the Preceptorytake the corresponding offices in thePriory?Eminent Prior – It is.Mareschal – Eminent Prior, that con-cludes the appointment and investitureof your officers.

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS[Continued]

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As you can see, it is not necessary forthe Generals to be individually investedif they have already been invested asConstables that day. Either by thereading of the list or by simply beingappointed by the short formula above,they count as having been appointedand invested just by being present. Ifit is your wish to return the Captain ofOutposts to his place for closing thenyou may do so, but otherwise the Maltacan simply be closed as is.

You may take the view that you needthe KT layout of officers in order tofollow the usual KT manner of retire-ment processions. The Malta retire-ment procession takes a different form,although the book does only specify amethodology for the longer form ofclosing. Because Provincial Prioriesdiffer as to how they teach the proces-

sions even the splen-did King Edward VIIPreceptory of Im-provement does notteach a specific for-mat.

If you do agree touse the KT form ofprocession after theshortened Malta In-stallation, but wish

to use one of the above short methodsof investiture, you could always agreebeforehand that the Generals will sim-ply return to their places after they arere-admitted.You will then be ready to retire asquickly as possible and enjoy a convivialevening together (via the Bar).

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CAROL SERVICEwords by John Bond : picture by Niall Johnston

The Family Carol Service was held on 14 December 2017 at St Botolph, offBishopsgate, and was well attended. Knights and their families afterwards enjoyedeach other’s company in the Parish Hall for refreshments and a finger buffet.

The article Which Order in the last issue was wrongly ascribed to E Kt Angus Rhodes,PPrStdB(B) (Somerset). It was the work of E Kt Roger Farley Past Prov V-C.

FROM THE RITUAL BOOKOPENING A PRECEPTORY

The salutes at the end of the opening are to be given slowly.“Exhorting you, my Brethren, to bear always in mind the solemn and sacred ties bywhich we are bound to the Order and to one another, I now, in the Name of theHoly, Blessed and Glorious Trinity

[All Knights come to recover]and in the name of

[the Eminent Preceptor pronounces these words slowly]Christ our Prophet, Christ our Priest, Christ our King, declare this Preceptory to beopen.”

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CARAVAGGIOBy E Kt Louis Cattan (Mount Calvary D)

Born in 1571 in Milano, Michelangelo Merisiwas from a family of traditional craftsmenwhich originated from Caravaggio, in the vi-cinity of Bergamo.

At the age of 13, he became an apprentice inthe workshop of Simone Pe-terzano, a disciple of Titian.He learned and mastered thetechnique of clair obscur. Histalent was recognized by Car-dinal Borromeo, the Archbish-op of Milan, who became hisprotector.

In 1596, he travelled to Rome,a city in which the Church invested considera-ble amounts in sumptuous pieces of art (ba-roque style) as a reaction to the Reformation.He became a member of the famous Academiade San Luca.

In 1597, he entered in the service of Cardinaldel Monte, who obtained important and pres-tigious commands for him.

In this booming city, night entertainment wasmainly concentrated in taverns. Caravaggiowas reputed to be a tough and violent man.

He killed Ranuccio Tomassoni in a brawl and hadto flee. He was condemned to death in hisabsence and he stayed in Naples, Sicily and Malta.

In Malta, in 1608, his talent was highly appreciat-ed by the Knights ruling the country and he wasconsequently elevated to the rank of Knight ofMalta. Amongst his various contributions to thedecoration of the cathedral in Valetta is theimpressive and monumental "Decollation of StJohn the Baptist".

His paintings combine a realistic observation ofthe human state, both physical and emotional,with a dramatic use of lighting and they had aformative influence on Baroque painting.

Unfortunately, Caravaggio continued his drinkingand brawling activities and he was dismissedfrom the Order one month after being elevatedas a Knight. He had to leave Malta, went to Sicilyand then went to Rome to beg the Pope forforgiveness. Before reaching Rome, he died in1610 in Porto Ercole, not knowing that the Popehad already granted him forgiveness. Reportsstated that he died of a fever, but suggestionshave been made that he was murdered or that hedied of lead poisoning.

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CONTACT LIST

Provincial Ian Brooks P Vice-Chancellor pvc@londonprovincekt.org 01582 524 953Finance Mathew Hampson P Treasurer matt@thehampsons.org 01277 823 667Ceremonial Keith Florence P Marshal keithflorence@btinternet.com 0208 567 8886Registrar & Golf John Bond P Registrar john.bond@jetsetholidays.co.uk 01923 234 516Regalia Exchange Roy Dennett P Regalia Officer roydennett7@gmail.com 0208 674 4518Knightly Topics Stuart Henderson Editor KT stuartdhenderson@btinternet.com 01844 344 960

DIARY DATES 2018Great Priory [Temple] Wednesday 16 May 2018Great Priory [Malta] Tuesday 20 November 2018

Provincial Priory [Temple] Saturday 29 September 2018Provincial Priory [Malta] Monday 29 January 2018Registrars’ Mess Wednesday 18 July 2018

REGALIA EXCHANGEPlease send your unwanted regalia, such as mantles, swords,and mantle badges to Roy at the Provincial Regalia Exchange.When successfully sold, part of the sale price will be passedon to you.Mindful of the costs of regalia, the Provincial Regalia Exchange [PRE] also offers apre-owned buy / sell and alteration service. The PRE will also advertise yourpre-owned regalia for sale.

Alternatively, the PRE can alter the centre of an existing badge. The PRE currentlyhas Great Priory mantle badges, in good to excellent condition, for Herald, Almoner,ADC [2], Standard Bearer [B], Chamberlain and Guard; and a London Provincial ADC’smantle badge.

For your first Provincial and Great Priory appointments, you will need to purchasea Provincial or a Great Officer’s Sash and a Mantle badge denoting your rank in theTemple; and a Mantle badge in Malta.

roydennett7@gmail.com