St. Martin, the Eleventh, and the Masonic Spirit of Brotherhood
It’s November 10th, and tomorrow thousands of children will brave the rain with paper lanterns in hand. Meanwhile, in the southern Netherlands and across the Rhineland, carnival season kicks off on the Eleventh of the Eleventh. The forecast calls for layers and waterproofs. But why do people venture out at all, despite the cold and the wet? And what does that deep human urge to take to the streets together have to do with an ancient tradition of brotherhood? Let’s sit with that question for a moment — as if gathered around a warm table for a good conversation. Why Do We Go Outside When the Weather Fights Us? It’s a question most of us ask ourselves on a bitter November evening. The wind tears through the streets, the rain threatens every paper lantern, and yet parents and children stand shoulder to shoulder, singing at their neighbors’ doors. The same is true for the thousands of revelers who flood cities like Maastricht, Den Bosch, and Eindhoven on November 11th to herald the new carnival season — often in costumes that are anything but waterproof. The answer is both simple and profound: human beings are wired for connection. Not despite difficult […]