Daan van Dijk, Grootmeester van de Odd Fellows Grootloge Nederland en België, én lid van de Johan Willem Friso loge in Heerenveen, mocht dit weekend bij de Europese Grootloge Zitting in Stockholm een kunstwerk in ontvangst nemen van de Odd Fellows in Oekraïne.
Na de inval van Rusland in Oekraïne hebben de Odd Fellows in Heerenveen met diverse acties geld opgehaald om de Odd Fellows in Oekraïne te helpen met het aanschaffen van o.a. medische apparatuur om de oorlogsslachtoffers te kunnen helpen. Ook een donatie-website Odd Fellows for Ukraine heeft er toe geleid dat veel andere loges in Nederland geld hebben gedoneerd. In totaal werd er meer dan 10.000,- opgehaald. Ook alle andere Europese Grootloges kregen dit kunstwerk.
Odd Fellow symboliek
Het kunstwerk bevat veel Odd Fellows-symboliek. In een toelichting wordt deze symboliek uitgelegd:
People who are interested in the Order stand firmly, shoulder to shoulder, very tightly, close to one another. No one will pass by them to the encrypted symbolism that is the subject of their admiration.
Their visual image resembles the entrance arches of cities, the gates of houses, or the doors or windows of apartments. Inside the arches there are openings — this shows their openness to the world.
However, with their brotherly circle, they guard their mountain with the symbols of the lodge from a stranger’s eye.
Brothers, gathered around a common idea, gradually rise from the bottom upward, along the steps of development and improvement. While rising to higher levels, they intertwine with each other, supporting one another on the turns. Whoever does not hold on to the Brothers risks getting lost and falling from the height. On higher steps, the connection with the Brothers becomes stronger.
Each side of the pyramid symbolizes the next degree of initiation and has its own signs connected with the mystery of that degree.
Reaching the top means spiritual maturity, which is the goal of the “ODD FELLOWS.” It is symbolized by a circle with three links: Friendship, Love, and Truth. On them rests the crown of the Chapter with seven towers.
Above all rises the main tower — this is the Master of the Lodge. Upon him lies the responsibility to watch over the Brothers’ path toward development.
In their spiritual journey, each Brother strives to reach the highest degree. And although not everyone is destined to get to the very top, everyone has a chance to gain spiritual maturity, which is the goal of the “ODD FELLOWS.”
V.P + A.S + O.K
Daan van Dijk was een van de sprekers bij de Europese Grootloge Zitting in Stockholm