FROM THE ROSE TO THE SWORD: Reflections on the Higher Degrees of the Scottish Rite (A.A.S.R.): From Materialism to Transcendence

Society at the dawn of this twenty-first century is undergoing a profound mutation, deeply unequal, fraught with uncertainty and social violence. Its demographic evolution questions everyone on the destiny of peoples in general, and on the meaning of life in particular.
Does the Masonic approach in this fractured world still have a role to play? Is it a bearer of hope when societies tend to privilege war over peace? Faced with so many questions, individuals often find themselves lost, lacking landmarks. Yet, this situation is by no means inevitable, for within life itself lie all the potentialities to build a destiny with joy and in the enthusiasm of one's birth, regardless of family or ethnic backgrounds.
This book analyzes and describes some of these potentialities through my personal experiences as Knight of Eloquence (Chevalier d'Éloquence) in the Chapter La Prudence at the Valley of Geneva, and as Grand Orator (Grand Orateur) in the Areopagus La Concorde in the same Valley over a dozen years. At times, the discourse wanders through the twists and turns of an overly fertile imagination, yet it remains deeply marked by the chivalric ideal and the arcana of the A.A.S.R.
I am conscious that birth upon this earth is an extraordinary grace, and that everyone must seize it with gratitude to undertake, with Strength, Wisdom, and Beauty, all the actions that lead to living harmoniously and responsibly with oneself and with others.