From the Wardens

Who was Hiram Abif?

Of our three ancient Grand Masters, he, Hiram, is the one shrouded in mystery and legend. The Holy Scriptures speak much of King Solomon, of both his wisdom and greatness in Israel and of his eventual downfall due to his descent into idolatry and lust. Hiram, King of Tyre, is known as King Solomon’s friend, a monarch of vast wealth whose strength in both men and materials made it possible for the Temple to be built in the first place. Hiram Abif, however, was a commoner of extraordinary skill and devoutness. King Solomon was Grand Master by virtue of being hereditary sovereign of Israel from his father, King David, and the chief architect of the overall plan of the Temple. Hiram, King of Tyre’s wealth and friendship with King Solomon secured him the position of Grand Master, but Hiram Abif earned his position by reputation and demonstrated excellence in the skills of craftsmanship. In particular, he was a skillful artificer in working with gold, brass, bronze, silver, and other precious metals, fashioning beautiful things out of the finished and tempered ores. These skills he learned from his father through the traditions and teachings of Tubalcain, the first known artificer in brass and iron and 6^th in line from the descendants of Cain. It appears from a study of the ancient Pentateuch, and other books on the history of the Ancient World according to the Hebrews, that the descendents of Seth, 3^rd son of Adam after Cain and Abel, became farmers and herders, whereas the descendents of Cain ultimately organized and formed the great cities of the ancient world, including those wicked cities destroyed by God in the Great Flood, and later, Sodom and Gomorrah. The Holy Scriptures speak of a mark having been placed on Cain and his descendants to protect them from revenge for the wicked slaying of Abel by Cain, and later to protect Lamech, father of Tubalcain, who also murdered a young man for striking him. The exact nature of this mark is unknown, but our ancient brethren widely believed that it was the mark of dark or black skin, which gave rise to a heretical tradition in Freemasonry, still practiced today in some parts of our country and the world, of refusing to admit black men to lodges solely on the basis of the color of their skin. However, as we see from the example of our Most Excellent Grand Master, Hiram Abif, this is both wrong and un-Masonic. Regardless of the moral fiber of his ancestors, Tubalcain appears to have greatly enriched the world with his useful arts and the science of metallurgy, which has so greatly beautified our world, improved our lives, and provided a practical application to the knowledge of geometry, the very basis of our craft. To deny any man a place in our fraternity solely on the basis of his skin color, is to symbolically deny a place to the very man whose knowledge and science made it possible for Grand Master Hiram Abif to accomplish his designs and beautify the Temple in accordance with the plan of God, as envisioned by King Solomon and his father, David, before him. 

Having schooled himself in the detailed and difficult sciences of Master Tubalcain, Hiram had labored long to produce objects of such usefulness, beauty, and value that he became known to King Solomon as a celebrated artist, even though he lived in Tyre as part of the Hebrew diaspora. He was personally selected by King Solomon to assume the overall responsibility for the entire interior design of the Temple, and the design and production of all the holy vessels for the temple except the Ark of the Covenant, that having already been created under the watchful eyes of the Prophet and Law Giver, Moses, in accordance with a design provided by the Great Architect of the Universe, Himself. Unlike the other two ancient Grand Masters, Hiram labored with the workers in the Temple, most often being found either in the Clay Grounds where the holy vessels were cast, or on the ground floor of the Temple assisting and supervising the workers as they finished the interior walls and rooms of the Temple. His skill as an architect and metal worker was exceeded only by his devotion to Deity. Each day towards mid-day, he would climb the scaffolding on the South side of the Temple to its highest point to observe the sun climb to its meridian height, at which time, by order of King Solomon, he would call the craft from labor to refreshment, giving them a break from their labors in the heat of the day to rest and refresh themselves with nourishment and drink. While the workers were thus on break, he would go into the unfinished Sanctum Sanctorum or Holy of Holies, where he would pray, for most of an hour, frequently fasting in his prayers. After which, he would draw his designs on the Trestle Board, for the workers for the afternoon and the next morning, including specifying what size and shape of blocks and timbers would be needed from the quarries, and the designs for the molds for the vessels, the dimensions of the fabrics and hundreds of other details, all done in proper sequence, to accomplish the grand design of the House of the Lord. When the time for refreshment had ended he would again climb the scaffolding and give notice to the workers to resume their labors, which he would resume with them. In the evening, after the workers had gone home for the day, he would consult with the other two Grand Masters, update them on the work accomplished for that day and plan with them the completion of the Temple to be the Glory of Israel and the greatest man-made wonder of the Ancient World. 

Most of the details of his life, even his age, are shrouded in mystery. The Holy Scriptures only devote a few lines to him and allude darkly to the tragedy that ultimately befell him. One detail, however, stands out. He is referred to as “a widow’s son of the Tribe of Naphtali.” (1 Kings 7: 13-14). The significance of his being a widow’s son is lost on most who do not know the connection between several seemingly disconnected passages of Holy Scripture. It is the Widow’s Son who is the symbol of Resurrection and Eternal Life in the Holy Scriptures. The Prophet, Elijah, who became known as the greatest prophet in Israel, brought back to life the son of a widow who had cared for him as is described in 1 Kings 17. A similar episode occurs with Elijah’s successor, Elisha in 2 Kings 4, although in that case, the woman was not quite a widow, her husband being very old but still alive. In the New Testament, we find Jesus restoring life to the widow’s son of Nain, as Elijah had done almost a millennium before out of pity and compassion for her, for she was both a widow, and he was her only child. Finally, we find an interesting parallel between Hiram and Christ, Himself. Like, Hiram, Christ was in the building trades, being a carpenter, taught by His earthly father, Joseph, even as Hiram was taught by his father. Even as Hiram beautified the interior of the Temple by what he wrought and placed inside it, so Jesus cleansed and restored its beauty by casting out the money changers and animal sellers from its precincts. According to Holy Tradition, Christ, too, was the only son of His mother, Mary, His brothers in fact being half-brothers, sons of Joseph from a previous wife who had died. Holy Tradition also tells us that Joseph died at approximately the time that Christ was 15 years of age, thus rendering Mary a widow. Since Christ became, at least for Christians, the Author of Resurrection, conquering death by death, the symbol of the Widow’s Son is inexorably linked to resurrection, not just to this life, but to the glorious life to come. Thus we find the answer to the rhetorical question of Freemasonry surrounding our Most Excellent Grand Master, Hiram Abif. The help for the widow’s son is the Widow’s Son. So mote it be.