What is your "Great Work"?

[Admiral Yi]

Does your father consider that Methodism has failed him?

No.

The explanation is that he lacks introspection.

[Martinus]

I don't know if many masons exist under the age of 80 or so.

Hard to estimate- they don't usually advertise it so much.  That boss I worked for is in his mid-40s, though.  Also, a friend of mine in my grade in high school married a guy two years ahead of us who is a mason, for a couple of examples that they're still around.

Fun fact: my mom was actually a member of the female equivalent: the Order of the Eastern Star, so maybe I'm a little tuned to it, since I grew up around that stuff.  I actually considered freemasonry, but the sticking point is that I'm really not sure whether or not I "believe in a supreme being."

That is why I am considering joining the Grand Orient.

Poland has three grand lodges - the Grand National Lodge of Poland (which follows the ancient and recognised Scottish rite),  the Grand Orient Lodge of Poland and the Polish Grand Lodge "Droit Humaine".

The Grand National Lodge is too conservative for my tastes. The Grand Orient is most leftist/liberal and it does not have a requirement to believe in the great architect. Droit Humaine is the smallest one (it also accepts women).

[Syt]

What about Rotary or Lion's Club?

[Martinus]

What about Rotary or Lion's Club?

It's more of a big money/wealth snobbery thing here (and freemasonry is a more of intellectual/academic/ideological snobbery here, which is much more up my alley). I also like that freemasonic lodges have a bit of that mystical/spiritual element without going full religious. I miss that part of my life from when I was a catholic (and later got involved in occultism) but now I have an aversion to organised religion and am unable to treat occultism seriously.

[Syt]

Have you considered founding your own religion?

[Martinus]

Have you considered founding your own religion?

Yes, but that's too much work and usually you need to get martyred. The thing is, over the last 15 years or so I tried Trident Catholicism (but found it lacking for obvious reasons) and then had a brief fling with gnosticism (too far fetched). At college I took a brief interest in one of the academic fraternities (which are more like conservative associations than US-style frats) but it took me two meetings to realise they are a bunch of antisemitic assholes who trace direct origin to nationalistic pre-war student organisations who used to beat up Jewish students. Then I dabbled with Wicca, Thelema, Chaos Magick and Rosicrucianism, but realised that it is practiced mainly by weirdos who, given that one of the stated goals is the mastery of the material and spiritual plane, seem incapable of getting their way out of a wet paper bag and are much less successful on the "material" plane than I am. I tried LGBT activism but found it populated by vapid people. I considered joining a political party but each prove to be full of cynical assholes and lost my vote before I even applied. I tried (and still practice) kundalini yoga but while it is good for stretching your muscles and calming your mind, it is hard to build your life around it.

I guess what I got as a result is a really great conversation piece of a bookshelf.

I suppose now it's masons or bust.

Edit: Ok, I guess Languish is one group that kept my interest long enough. 

[Eddie Teach]

Then I dabbled with Wicca, Thelema, Chaos Magick and Rosicrucianism, but realised that it is practiced mainly by weirdos
<snip>
Edit: Ok, I guess Languish is one group that kept my interest long enough. 

[Martinus]

Then I dabbled with Wicca, Thelema, Chaos Magick and Rosicrucianism, but realised that it is practiced mainly by weirdos
<snip>
Edit: Ok, I guess Languish is one group that kept my interest long enough. 

But you guys are more interesting weirdos. Imagine a group where everybody is like mongers.

[Lettow77]

 Martinus, you could always just worship Stannis.

[Savonarola]

One day I will help Ide make a very poignant political statement.

Destruction of liberal arts degrees leading to the establishment of a totalitarian state based on air power and surveillance as explained through movie reviews.  The Ide manifesto.

[Savonarola]

Don't feel bad, you could always change your major to math, like this guy:

I am two months from graduating and damn me if I ever see another classroom after this.

How did I turn into derspiess? 

All jokes aside, you should consider graduate school before you take your PE exam.  You're not going to be doing the sort of problems they ask on the exam as part of your career; but you will in graduate school.

[PDH]

No real great work for me.  The one thing I do that seems to have larger noticeable effects beyond me is teaching.  Most of the students are drones or brain dead, but some come up to me in the years following their freshmen experience of Western Civilization and thank me for helping.

Really, if all I get out of this is a few kids that think a bit more, push themselves a bit more, and experience a bit more of life and the human story, I have done something.

It is like having kids but not caring that 99% of them are morons.

[mongers]

No real great work for me. The one thing I do that seems to have larger noticeable effects beyond me is teaching.  Most of the students are drones or brain dead, but some come up to me in the years following their freshmen experience of Western Civilization and thank me for helping.

Really, if all I get out of this is a few kids that think a bit more, push themselves a bit more, and experience a bit more of life and the human story, I have done something.

It is like having kids but not caring that 99% of them are morons.

Well I think that's a pretty worthwhile and cool thing to be doing.

Also, there's quite a lot wisdom in what DG said further up the thread. Often it's enough that you behave in a civilised manner within society, paying taxes and contributing by default, by not being a destructive/obstructive force in the civilizations we're unconsciously building/maintaining.

[Martinus]

No real great work for me. The one thing I do that seems to have larger noticeable effects beyond me is teaching.  Most of the students are drones or brain dead, but some come up to me in the years following their freshmen experience of Western Civilization and thank me for helping.

Really, if all I get out of this is a few kids that think a bit more, push themselves a bit more, and experience a bit more of life and the human story, I have done something.

It is like having kids but not caring that 99% of them are morons.

Well I think that's a pretty worthwhile and cool thing to be doing.

Also, there's quite a lot wisdom in what DG said further up the thread. Often it's enough that you behave in a civilised manner within society, paying taxes and contributing by default, by not being a destructive/obstructive force in the civilizations we're unconsciously building/maintaining.

But that is not the point of this thread. I did not say people who do not have a "great work" are worthless or less than people who do - I am just saying that I feel a need of something like this at this point in my life, and asked if people also feel that need and how they fulfil it.

[grumbler]

I don't think "great works" are accomplished because someone sets out to accomplish a "great work."  I think almost all of them are accomplished as a byproduct of people pursuing their own passions, when those passions motivate people to work the work needed to create excellence.  Da Vinci didn't paint the Mona Lisa as a "great work."  In fact, he didn't think of himself as a painter much at all (noting in a letter that he sculpted, and "paint a bit").

I think that people who set out to create a "great work" won't do it, 'cuz they're doing it wrong.  Do what you care about with as much excellence as you can muster, and let the chips fall where they may.