The Miracle Of Romanian Freemasonry On May 30-31, 2003, Masonic dignitaries from across Europe and the United

States gathered in Bucharest to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Scottish Rite Freemasonry in Romania. Chief among those celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Scottish Rite in Roma nia were (l. to r.) Ill. Constantin Iancu, 33, S.G.C., Supreme Council of Romania ; Hon. Ion Iliescu, President of Romania; Ill. C. Fred Kleinknecht, 33, S.G.C., S upreme Council, 33, S.J., U.S.A.; and Ill. Earl E. Ihle, Jr., 33, Director of Deve lopment, Supreme Council, 33, S.J. Photo: Lucian Tudose "Romanian Freemasonry is a miracle." These were the words of Sovereign Grand Com mander C. Fred Kleinknecht, 33, on May 30, 2003, in Bucharest, Romania, at the gr andest Masonic celebration in the recent history of continental Europe. May 30th is highly symbolic for Masonry, for on that date, Frederick the Great constitut ed the first Supreme Council in the world. This year, that anniversary coincided with a celebration marking ten years since the rebirth of the Scottish Rite in Romania. Nearly 2,000 guests attended the occasion's several events, and an entire wing o f the majestic Palace of the Parliament became for two days the world's largest Masonic Temple. The ceremonies were held in the Alexandru Ioan Cuza Conference R oom, a name of great significance for Romanians. In 1856, Brother Cuza was the P rime Minister of the first government to begin the construction of what is now m odern Romania. Many Sovereign Grand Commanders and Masonic dignitaries from across Europe gathe red in Bucharest to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Scottish Rite in Roman ia. Photo: Lucian Tudose Far more important than the sheer splendor of the festivities was the overwhelmi ng attendance of international Masonic dignitaries, including Ill. Kleinknecht, Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme Council, 33, of the Southern Jurisdictio n, U.S.A., Mother Council of the World. It was this Supreme Council that made th e first Scottish Rite initiations in Romania a decade ago in May 1993. Also, the Supreme Council of the Southern Jurisdiction stood by its Romanian Brethren in the difficult years that followed. That is why Ill. Kleinknecht was particularly warmly welcomed in Bucharest. Ill. Robert O. Ralston, 33, Sovereign Grand Comman der of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite, U.S.A., and Ill. Robert W. Woodward, 33, G.C., Deputy for the American Military Scottish Rite Bodi es, Orient of NATO Bases, S.J., also accepted the invitation of the Romanian Sup reme Council led by its Sovereign Grand Commander, Ill. Constantin Iancu, 33. Ger many, Austria, Russia, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, and Bulgaria sent both their Gr and Masters and Grand Commanders. The ceremonies, which continued on May 31, wer e also attended by hundreds of Romania's leading Masons and notable artists, jou rnalists, scientists, and politicians. The Star of Romania, that country's highest award, consists of a medal and ribbo n (left) and a badge (right). On May 30, 2003, this great honor was conferred on Grand Commander Kleinknecht by the Hon. Ion Iliescu, President of Romania, duri ng Masonic ceremonies held at the Palace of the Parliament in Bucharest. Photos: Bain Pugh and Associates The ceremonies from the first day were impressive. The formal opening was marked by the powerful sound of a trumpet fanfare from representatives of the Romanian Armed Forces and the moving strains of the Black Sea Philharmonic Orchestra. Th e first to enter the Temple were the members of the Supreme Council of Romania f

ollowed by Sovereign Grand Commander Constantin Iancu, accompanied by Honorary S overeign Grand Commanders Marcel Schapira, 33, and Arnold Hermann, 33. Then came t he foreign delegations, each led by its national flag as its national anthem was played by the orchestra. The delegation of the Supreme Grand Chapter of Royal A rch Masons of Romania followed, led by M.E. Grand High Priest Stefan Masu, and t he delegation of the National Grand Lodge of Romania, led by M. W. Gheorghe Coma nescu. And, finally, a most important delegation entered, that of the Supreme Co uncil, S.J., Mother of the World, led by Ill. Kleinknecht who was accompanied by Ill. Dwight A. Hamilton, 33, Grand Treasurer General of the Supreme Council and S.G.I.G. in Colorado, along with Ill. Earl E. Ihle, Jr., 33, Director of Developm ent. Grand Commander Kleinknecht and the American delegation, including Ill. Robert O . Ralston, 33, Sovereign Grand Commander, N.M.J., U.S.A., enter Romania's majesti c Parliament building, transformed for the occasion into the world's largest Mas onic Temple. Photo: Bro. Bogdan Manolache, 30 An extremely poignant moment came when S.G.C. Constantin Iancu, together with Ho norary S.G.C.s Marcel Schapira and Arnold Hermann, lit the candles from the thre e intersected triangles in the center of the room while the Grand Orator read th e names of the Brethren, foreign and Romanian, who had passed to the Eternal Ori ent, beginning with Frederick the Great and Nicolae Balcescu. The moment ended w ith the sound of everyone in the hall kneeling for a moment of silent recognitio n and meditation. Then, in this solemn atmosphere, the guests were shown a short film about the hi story of Romanian Freemasonry. This brought everyone into the spirit of the addr ess by S.G.C. Constantin Iancu which followed the film. Ill. Iancu underscored t he capacity and cultural and spiritual right of Romania to take full part in the Masonic chain of Universal Brotherhood. He also accented the importance of unit y to Universal Masonry in fulfilling its important fraternal mission. After lunc h, Grand Commander Iancu presented awards to the Romanian Ritual Corps and many other worthy Romanian Brethren. In the evening, the foreign delegations, together with the members of the Suprem e Council of Romania, were invited to Cotroceni Presidential Palace, where the P resident of Romania, Ion Iliescu, received them. In his speech, President Iliesc u spoke of the role of Masonry in the world and its particular importance in the development of modern Romania. The guests appreciated the insights of President Ion Iliescu who, at the beginning of the 1990s, recognized the vital role of Fr eemasonry in the process of the democratization and the development of Romania. Grand Commanders C. Fred Kleinknecht, 33, and Constantin Iancu, 33, cut the first slice of the cake celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Scottish Rite in Roma nia. Photo: Bro. Bogdan Manolache, 30 The speech was followed by an impressive awards ceremony where Ill. Kleinknecht received from President Iliescu Romania's highest decoration, The Star of Romani a in the rank of High Officer. Numerous personalities from the economic, cultura l, political, and military circles, who had the opportunity to converse with the foreign guests, attended this ceremony. The evening ended with a dinner at the famous Club McMoni's where all the foreign guests were invited. The second day began with the parade of the Romanian Ritual Corps, each with its own banner, an overwhelming moment for all participants. Then, in the presence of the Illustrious guests and the Romanian Brethren, the Supreme Council of Roma nia honored 250 leading public personalities, Mason and non-Mason alike. Artists , writers, doctors, politicians, scientists, and leading journalists received be autifully crafted memorabilia. This was an excellent opportunity to create bridg es, to communicate, and, most importantly, to provide an opportunity for non-Mas

ons to learn more about our Brotherhood and its noble goals. For lunch, guests went to the Prime Minister's Palace where the Minister of Fore ign Affairs, Mircea Geoana, former Ambassador of Romania to the United States, w elcomed them. The Romanian Prime Minister, Adrian Nastase, arrived and warmly re called the reawakening of Romanian Free-masonry after 1989, a movement in which he was directly involved as Foreign Minister in 1990. Ill. C. Fred Kleinknecht addresses an assemblage of well over 1,000 distinguishe d Freemasons and guests at the tenth anni-versary of the Scottish Rite in Romani a. Note the screen in the background. The ceremony's colorful events were televi sed for close-up viewing by the many present and by a general public audience vi a television broadcast. Photo: Bro. Dorin Prunariu, 32 The festivities of the 10th anniversary ended that evening with an impressive ba ll in the Union Ballroom of the Parliamentary Palace, another symbolic name for the unity of Romanian Freemasonry and also for Universal Freemasonry and humanki nd. The Philharmonic Orchestra and Romania's premier dance company, the Oleg Dan ovski Ballet, performed Vienna waltzes and dance sequences from Tchaikovsky's Sw an Lake before the distinguished guests. This was followed by a traditional folk loric group, the Capalna Maidens, accompanied by Dumitru Farcasu, whose evocativ e style prompted Ill. Kleinknecht to again express his admiration of Romania. Tr aditional songs by Nicolae Furdui Iancu, the "Golden Transylvanian Voice," and M ioara Velicu, the "Nightingale of Romanian Folk Songs," combined with dances by the "Crown of the Carpathians" folk ensemble to create an evening that brought j oy to everyone. In this sumptuous atmosphere, replete with indoor fireworks and the chords of Be ethoven's "Ode to Joy," the 10th anniversary cake was wheeled in. S.G.C.s Iancu and Kleinknecht, as well as other distinguished guests, sliced the cake. Then ev erything was transformed into a traditional social dance of Romania during which everyone embraced in fraternal harmony. Another musical group, the National Big Band conducted by Ionel Tudor, then came to the stage, and professional Romanian dancers provided spots of color among t he guests as they danced late into the evening. It was an unfor-gettable night f or all of the guests and a crowning moment to this important Masonic anniversary . Ill. Constantin Iancu, 33, S.G.C., Supreme Council, 33, of Romania, greets Grand C ommander Kleinknecht in the Masonic East with its 33 golden thrones, during the tenth anniversary celebration of the Scottish Rite in Romania. Ill. Dwight A. Ha milton, 33, Grand Treasurer General and S.G.I.G. in Colorado, is to the left in t he photo and within the image being broadcast to the general public by Romanian television. Photo: Bro. Dorin Prunariu, 32 Freemasonry has a long history in Romania, going back as far as 1734. That is on ly 17 years after the constitution of the United Grand Lodge of England and two years before the birth of the Scottish Rite. Many key moments in Romanian histor y-including the country's unification and independence-were strongly influenced by Masons. The National Grand Lodge of Romania was founded in September 1880. On e year later, in 1881, the Supreme Council of Romania was created. For the next half century, Freemasonry was the driving force behind Romania's rapid progress. Those were years of great achievement and change. Romania emerged as a modern n ation with a democratic government, a booming economy, and a rich cultural life. Those hopeful times abruptly ended with the beginning of World War II. But the w orst was still to come. It arrived with the Soviet tanks that imposed a communis t regime in Bucharest, thus marking the beginning of a nightmare that would last

for 50 years. Romanian Freemasons paid a heavy price. They were persecuted, arr ested, tried, sent to jails, or forced into labor camps. In 1948, Freemasonry wa s outlawed by the communist regime. At that time, more then 1,500 Brethren were registered by the Romanian Grand Lodge. No more then a few hundred were still al ive in 1964 to benefit from a general amnesty, and by 1989 only 10 Masons living in Romania survived the communist regime. There were, of course, a few Romanian Brethren living abroad. After almost half a century of ruthless dictatorship, a miracle occurred. Commun ism collapsed and so did the dictator Ceausescu's regime. It was a rebirth for t he whole nation and a time of great need. And so it was, of course, time for Fre emasonry to step in again. The Grand Orient of Italy and the Grand Lodge of Cali fornia reconstituted the first Romanian Lodge in 1990 with the assistance of the Grand Lodges of France and Austria. Three years later, the National Grand Lodge of Romania was reopened, and S.G.C. Kleinknecht and his Supreme Council initiat ed the first Master Masons into the Scottish Rite. In October 1993, the same Mot her Council of the World reconsecrated, in Washington, D.C., the Supreme Council of Romania, Portugal, and Poland. Romanian Brethren were grateful then, and the y remain so to this day. In particular, they are pleased that Ill. Kleinknecht a nd his distinguished delegation were able to attend and help celebrate the 10th anniversary in post-communist Romania. This celebration has closed a difficult c hapter and has opened a new one in which genuine Brotherhood and Unity in Europe and the world must and shall triumph.

An Acknowledgement Of Continuity And Gratitude The Honorable Ion Iliescu, President of Romania Just one decade ago, in May 1993, it was here, in Cotroceni Palace, that I met t he delegation of the Supreme Council of the Southern Jurisdiction, Mother of Cou ncil of the World, headed by Sovereign Grand Commander C. Fred Kleinknecht. The success of these dedicated men in re-establishing the Scottish Rite of Freemason ry in Romania is a new testimony of the regenerating power and vitality of our n ation. It enhances our confidence in our ability to rebuild the traditions that have contributed to Romanian spiritual life, while connecting us to the democrat ic evolution of Europe and the world. We are all aware of the worldwide role played by Masonry and its contribution to the creation of modern Europe, especially in the wake of the 1848 revolutions. In particular, Masonry has contributed to the establishment of modern Romania an d its unitary statehood. Yet, these facts were kept hidden in Romania for the la st 50 years. Today, we recognize that many stages in our history can be ascribed to outstandi ng Romanian Masons who were keen statesmen, prodigious intellectuals, and enligh tened figures. By their vision, they outlined the destiny of our nation, and the ir ideal of unified statehood, shared by all Romanians, came true in 1918, again at the initiative and with the contribution of patriotic Freemasons. In the context of globalization today, the future of a modern and civilized nati on cannot be viewed outside dialogue. We need as many bridges as possible to fac ilitate cultural exchange. Freemasonry is part of this process. It is a communic ating vessel for all the forces willing to work for the welfare of the Romanian nation, its development, and full assertion. Tonight's glorious ceremony is meant as an acknowledgment of the continuity of R omanian Freemasonry and an expression of gratitude for all the Romanian Masons h

ave accomplished. Please accept my heartfelt congratulations and best wishes for every success now and in the future. The above text consists of extracts edited from a speech given by President Ilie scu on May 30, 2003, at the tenth anniversary celebration of the re-establishmen t of the Supreme Council, 33, Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, and of the National G rand Lodge of Romania.