Philosophical Piece by W Bro Lee White
One of the most frequently quoted statements in Freemasonry is that “The Royal Arch is the completion of the Master Mason degree.”
To understand why, we must look at the symbolic story that unfolds within the Craft degrees.
The journey of a Freemason begins with the Entered Apprentice, where a candidate takes his first steps toward moral improvement. The Fellow Craft degree expands that journey, encouraging intellectual growth and the pursuit of knowledge.
By the time a Mason reaches the Master Mason degree, he encounters one of the most powerful allegories in Freemasonry — the story of loss and the search for that which has been lost.
This allegory leaves the Mason with an important lesson: that truth and wisdom may sometimes be hidden, obscured, or even forgotten.
But the story itself is not fully resolved within the Craft degrees.
This is where the Royal Arch becomes significant.
In the Royal Arch, the narrative continues. The setting shifts from the construction of Solomon’s Temple to the period of rebuilding following its destruction. During this rebuilding, something long hidden is discovered — something of immense symbolic importance.
Where the Master Mason degree teaches the lesson of loss, the Royal Arch symbolises recovery.
This symbolic recovery represents the rediscovery of truth, knowledge, and divine understanding. It completes the philosophical lesson introduced in the Craft.
For this reason, many Masonic authorities have described the Royal Arch as the natural completion of the Master Mason’s journey.
Rather than being separate, the Craft and the Royal Arch form two stages of the same symbolic story — one teaching the search, and the other revealing the discovery.