Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite in Romania Stelian Nistor, 33, gave an interview Il. Fr. CLAUDIU IONESCU, 33, the director of the magazine Masonic Forum. We reproduce this interview as it originally appeared in the magazine mentioned above. 

For a start, Most Powerful and Illustrious Sovereign Grand Commander, please tell us what your Masonic creed is.

It is necessary to believe in something, to believe in someone… The Masonic belief is revealed, for each of us, starting with the quality of Masonic master, in the symbolic lodge. In Freemasonry, I believe that arithmetic is not respected and there is no question that a degree 4, from a rite of perfection, is greater in importance than the degree 3 given by a symbolic lodge. But even the 3rd degree is not higher than a 4th degree from a rite of perfection, because the initiation steps are a reality.

It was a joke when the production of a car had started in Romania, it was said that, out of Romanian fudulie, "all four places will be in front". But during this time, only one holds the wheel. You see, in the RSAA in Romania not all places are in front, but you know that after a fair active participatory expectation you can get ahead. The rite promotes the elites and promotes its elites. The Sovereign Grand Commander of the 33rd and Last Supreme Council of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Romania performs the leadership, administration, justice, diplomacy and Masonic policy of the Rite.

In Romania, in the almost 50 years it has been absent from social life, being banned, Freemasonry has acquired in people's perception hyper-occult dimensions, dark, even gloomy, of secret parastatal and cross-border organization, which deals with the organization and leadership of shadow of the world for their own benefit. Thus, some have seen in the Scottish Rite an opportunity to join as a party that is always in power, which, starting the very next day, can make you at least a minister. Others even maintained and sold, literally, this illusion. We break up with them. They will not go on. Do you know the announcement at the station with "those who accompanied the passengers on the train are asked to get off the wagons"? We are also beginning to make this announcement about our Rite.

It is said that Freemasonry takes a good man to make him even better. But there is no unit of measure of our goodness, there is no objective apparatus or commission to quantify something so subjective: how good we were at entering Freemasonry and how good we became after a while: a month, a year, ten years, one life. I sometimes give an example from a fact of life: a few years ago, the wife of a friend of mine became a mustache. She came quickly from school where she was a teacher, put on her headscarf and went to church. She sat there, as they say, until God forgot her. She did this every day, neglecting her child, her husband, her house, who, deprived of her presence in the family, went crazy. I asked her, in this context, "what does your God teach you"? What do you mean my God? she replied. The one you communicate with so often and often. She tells me that God teaches her to be better. Stop: start with your family, I replied. Be better with your child, your husband, your home. You can't be better just like that, from words, in the air, like radio waves in the air! Be good in concrete, in everyday life, by deeds. Behind us, the name may not remain, as we sometimes have the pride to believe, but our good deeds may remain.

I believe that being a mason does not just mean going mechanically to outfits. After a number of participations in outfits, you start to notice that in the first minute one beats the hammer en masse, that one passes by with a candle, that one asks what time it is and that the answer has nothing to do with the clock. That's five or six or ten times. That's how you learned by heart what happens during a ritual and that's not bad. But when, based solely on that, you end up saying to yourself, "God, how much Freemasonry I know!", It can be bad. You also come home after the outfit with the pretense that the whole family will go to the top because "my father is tired after leading the destiny of mankind tonight"! Without realizing it, without any bad intentions, we can actually just mechanize ourselves into being participants in outfits instead of getting better. Not only do we get better, we only become professional participants in outfits, and that's not enough. The ritual is the way to communicate between us, and it subtly conveys to us that the outfit must be lived by each participant inside, in the silent self. And Silence…, Silence is what unites us. Listen, from time to time, to the silence… Listen to the silence in the temple, she is our strength…

A few months ago, the sole owner of the Odeon National Sessions, a former mason, out of a desire to hurt us, to take the secular world away from us, posted a part on the internet. Some panicked, as if they were recognized as members of the Rite, and… suggested to me that it would be good to take legal action on Youtube to get those movies out. However, things turned in our favor: in fact, the world saw some well-known and esteemed actors uttering deeply moral texts, universally valid, with Christian valences. The world has, in fact, been able to see the cleanliness of our practices, in contrast to certain aberrant preconceptions about us. My answer for the "shy" hypocrites was and is: if you are ashamed of us, stay home! Although the purpose of these recordings was for them to bear witness over time to those of today, for the time being I have decided not to film at the Odeon in the future.

Let's talk about the facts you want to stay.

Last October, I said, as an echo of the wishes of the brothers of the RSAA in Romania, that in the almost 25 years since the Restoration of the Lights, “Rite did not paint a Temple room, did not whitewash a hospital room, did not a scholarship to a deserving child, he did not take care of an old woman ”. We all wanted to change that. And I started. The Supreme Council develops the Ritual Bodies of the Scottish Rite (Lodges of Perfection, Rosary Chapters and Kadosh Councils) so that they have the capacity to perform authentic Masonic attire, not focusing on the mechanical practice of rituals but on the development moral and spiritual of the members who compose them, so that they can contribute, as elites, to the development of the communities in which they live, because the whole ritual tells us that "the work of a Freemason never stops".

I recall only a few of the projects announced by the Supreme Council in December 2015. The first, already completed, is the renovation of a surgery room at Elias Hospital in the capital, as part of a medical support project for members of the Scottish Rite and their families (parents, spouses, children and grandchildren). A symposium was organized with the representatives from all over the country of the medical brothers members of the Rite, so that they can agree on the formula for the operation of the "virtual hospital", until the RSAA in Romania will have its own form of medical unit.

The second project consists in supporting deserving children in delicate family situations (parents with very low incomes or going to work abroad). This means organizing meditation circles, held by Masons or non-Masons (retired teachers) who want to supplement their income. The Scottish Rite will support financially and participatively - across the country - this project, which is addressed to students in grades VIII and XII, so before admission to high school and college. We have all had, at least once in our lives, the benefit of support. Whoever says he succeeded alone is either stupid or takes you for a fool.

In the winter, the big heating bills come, so we started a program, "Winter Aid" to support the families of the Rite brothers who have moved to the Eternal East and the brothers in need.

We are meant to invest in Romania's future. With symbolic value, I decided to support financially on her way to the great performance of a very talented gymnast, only 8 years old. She is a special child, who later, in her first two participations in national competitions, won all the gold medals at stake. We, the members of the Rite, proudly took as our parents the achievements of Roberta Radu as an auspicious sign for what we set out to do. The sign that we are not on the wrong path, but that we are on the right track!

You have been on two official visits, to London and Frankfurt. You recently had as guests the Sovereign Grand Commanders of Greece, Turkey and Cyprus. What is the current situation of Romania in an external context, in the Scottish Rite?

We are a legitimate part of the universal Masonic chain and we are recognized as such. I emphasize: we are recognized by the whole Masonic world. Only the Supreme

The Council of Italy suspended (did not withdraw) the recognition of our Supreme Council, without any Masonic explanation. But I am confident in the wisdom of the new Supreme Council of Italy that it will reconsider this decision. At no time did the issue of withdrawal of recognition arise. It was just an attempt at intoxication! On the contrary, we have come to give new recognition to others at their request (eg Cyprus). The great powers of the Scottish Rite in Europe noticed us for a while, listened to us and then assumed us. We had discussions that proved to be enlightening, putting an end to speculations "interested" from the outside, fueled by the Russian lobby with the support of two or three villains from the inside, on the realities of the RSAA in Romania, the reports Rite with MLNR etc. We fought with all Masonic "weapons" to overcome the effects of Russia's hostile and sustained lobby, and we succeeded.

Between October 7-9, 2016, Romania will host the Conference of Sovereign Grand Commanders of Europe and Associated Countries. I had in this reckless action, which is correct, it is correct, the total, dedicated and extremely efficient support of the Grand Master of MLNR, Radu Bălănescu. Concretely, it was a difficult piece in the big league of Masonic diplomacy, it proved how much it means for Romania to be represented and especially well represented at the top in Universal Freemasonry. Honor him! The theme I proposed for this conference is: “Freemasonry and Vanity. The Challenges of the 21st Century for the Scottish Rite in Maintaining Regularity in Universal Freemasonry ”.

You have thus suggested to me the following question: what is Freemasonry facing today on a universal level? What fights does he have to fight?

Of course, Freemasonry is based on generous, beautiful ideas, which, as in any type of organization, are implemented by people. Success, truth or falsehood depend on the vocation to do good or the lack of this vocation. Of course, vanity has always accompanied mankind. Destructive and hollow pride has perverted many beautiful ideas over time. There was always someone who wasn't good enough and wanted to break a wing, to call someone "boss" too! However, it is necessary to believe in something, to believe in someone. We, Masons from all over the world, have been gathering since the beginning of time, around the same beautiful, generous, moral ideas. These ideas are not dead. We, as people, yes, we have a beginning and an end. That's why I like to say that some have watches but the Scottish Rite has time. This is what I replied to the Sovereign Grand Commander of Russia in Frankfurt, when he tried to take away our right to host the Conference: you have a watch, I have time!

The RSAA in Romania does not sell degrees, but lends us the dignity of being members during our lifetime. Of course, we are organized in a hierarchy and there is a legitimate desire to go through the stages of knowledge, validated by going through the hierarchy. It's not, I still think, just the desire to become higher in rank. RSAA promotes its elites.

I think there are two moments of special emotional charge in the Scottish Rite: entering the Scottish Rite in the 4th degree and "exiting" the Rite on receiving the 33rd degree. and the exit from the life of the Rite. I used this word - exit - for those who consider that, once you have obtained the 33rd degree, you have nothing to do. Fake! Only then does it begin! The metaphor and the unwritten "degree 34", which exists only after our deeds. If we do not define what we feel, what brings us together, we will not even know how to cross the street. But does a mason cross the street differently? Yes, because he has respect for the rules, for the social norms. What we do in the lodge is part of the training for what we do in our profane life. Our outfits are what for others is going to the gym, there we accumulate to be "beautiful in the city". This is what I propose to the Scottish Rite - to accumulate and develop those qualities that will serve us profanely, so that we can truly become role models in our daily lives. Being a Scottish rite mason should become a way of life. I want to see the following scene, in which a neighbor tells his neighbor a mason: “Sir, I noticed how you behave, how you take care of your family, home and career. Is that because you are a mason in the Scottish Rite? I would also like such a development for my child ". I think it is possible. It is necessary to believe in something, to believe in someone…

Do you think that today's world still needs Freemasonry as it was in the past?

Yes, I firmly believe this. It is not Freemasonry of the past and Freemasonry of the future, it is, as the centuries bear witness, only… Freemasonry! Everything that comes from Tradition (not from tradition) cannot forget or, worse, deny its past, its roots. Unfortunately, the world no longer needs the past in general, the world runs after the future, neglecting its present. But the world needs the basic principles of Freemasonry, moral purity, but the world no longer needs a past. You know the saying, when someone doesn't know their past, they can't control their present or prepare for the future. The interest for the beautiful part of Freemasonry, for the clean part, did not diminish. Maybe the number of those who can't understand its meaning has only increased… have you thought about that?

Why can Freemasonry no longer influence society as it did in the 19th and 20th centuries?

But who says no? It is necessary to believe in something, to believe in someone… I give the example of a moment with a very good friend from my student days - he was a passionate and extremely talented student of Architecture. At the beginning of the '80s, a directive had come for a while by which the professionalism of architects could be practically annihilated: it left them only to choose from a few standardized projects the one to be done, and that's about it. Creativity was killed. He dreamed of designing a pyramid-shaped building with the top down (speaking of the pyramid, one of our symbols). I told him not to stop, to continue to prepare for the highest parameters, because the time will come when he will be allowed and need to make such constructions and when that time comes, to find him ready. . So, we have to do our daily "training" of masons, for the moment when society will need us more than it has now, although even now every mason can influence the world in his immediate neighborhood. There have been such moments in history, life is complex. Obviously, society can be influenced for the better by us, because there are Masons everywhere, we are not a camp on one side of the street and on the other side there are different people!

Are you a follower of a national or international masonry? `

For about 12 years I had a kitchen magazine and I learned the following: there is no beef stroganoff from Bucharest and one from Berlin. It's the same, it has to have the same recipe. Freemasonry is universal! Of course, you can serve your country as a mason, everyone in the world does that. Our oaths, of the RSAA members taken under the country's flag, begin like this: "I swear allegiance to my country, Romania". The oath of the mason for the country is not less than the oaths for the Country of other legally constituted organizations and structures. But the mason's devotion and sacrifice for the Country can sometimes be greater! The whole modern history of Romania has proved this. We are going forward!

I returned to the heraldry from the beginning, to the insignia of 1881. I changed the song that accompanies the bringing of the national flag in the temple, because the one that was before, also by Ciprian Porumbescu, became since 1912 the official anthem of Albania. I can't bring the flag of my country on the anthem of another country, whatever it is, smaller or bigger… I changed with "Three colors", which is also by Ciprian Porumbescu, composed around 1881, the year it was founded Scottish Rite in Romania. We put only two stanzas, the first and the last, with the original lyrics of Andrei Mureşanu, since then: “I know three colors in the world / What I keep as a holy scent / They are colors of an old reputation / Remembering a good people. // And when, brothers, he takes me / From you, I will die / You will lay me on the grave / Our proud tricolor ”. Is there anything unclear in this message?

What message do you want to send to the Scottish Rite masons in Romania, but also to those abroad?

For those in Romania the message is: "Let's get to work", and for those abroad it is "We, here, we keep busy".

Finally, please present us with a short Curriculum Vitae, both profane and Masonic.

I was born on September 29, 1958, in Fălticeni, Suceava County. I went to school in Suceava, where I stayed until I was 18, when I went out into the world. I entered the Institute of Theater and Cinematography "IL Caragiale" in 1981 with 9.09 and I graduated with 9.49. After I finished college, I was stopped at the National Theater in Bucharest, it was a great honor. I then moved, through a competition, to the Nottara Theater, where, later, I held (also through a competition) the position of artistic director. I starred in 15 feature films of the time. In 1985 I won the Male Performance Award of the Association of Filmmakers - Romanian Oscar, for the lead role in a film directed by Andrei Blaier. I had a career in television, having the chance to be part of the first set of what is called ProTv today.
As a theater director, in the late 1990s, I intervened to settle a conflict, a gesture that turned me into an accused. Humiliatingly and hard, I won in court, but I lost my love for that world. I have entered a new world. You know that the business world is somehow like France: everyone has heard of France, but few non-French people have lived there. For almost 20 years I have changed the day I take my salary with the day I give salaries.
I had to reformulate. I did it out of necessity, out of desperation. I unwrapped it like a radio, put the parts on the table, then put them back together, but some parts remained outside during the assembly and there was a time when I wondered how God works without them. , then came a time when I wondered how I could work with them for so long, and I haven't wondered about this for a long time. I have known and experienced despair, hope, love, success, pride, defeat, sickness, humiliation, betrayal, and love again. I didn't always know what to do with them. That saved me. I met extraordinary people, both good and bad, from whom I would surely have something to learn. I still don't know if I've learned anything.

I have a daughter, she is a master student at the National University of Theater Arts, which she graduated last year, having previously graduated from the Faculty of Law. Obviously, I support her on her way. But Catinca Maria is talented in both directions and that confuses us a bit…

For five years I have been part of the development of the "Majoritas" project, as a co-founder with Lucian Despoiu. It's about online political marketing. We work discreetly, exclusively abroad. 5 presidents, 8 prime ministers and 20 parties in the portfolio. We have 15 big campaigns so far, with 14 victories. In the presidential elections in Indonesia, for example, our candidate won with 53,88%, ie 70,997,833 voters voted for him. We lost in one country, in Brazil, in the presidential elections, but it just turned out that the vote was actually rigged to the detriment of our candidate, so… let's move on!

"Majoritas" is a huge satisfaction, it's like a mature love, it's like a dream that happens. I have a problem with the term "dream", because dreaming means sleeping, and "Majoritas" does not let us sleep, either because we have offices in Washington, Rio de Janeiro, San Salvador, Manila, Tokyo, Accra. (Ghana)

In 1981, in the secret of the conditions of that time, I was told for the first time about Freemasonry. In 2015, I received, sitting with emotion along with some of those with whom I was initiated, the Diploma for those over 20 years of Masonic activity. I am a member of a single rite of perfection - the Scottish Rite, which this year will celebrate 135 years since its establishment in Romania. On June 6, 2005, I received the 33rd degree. On September 25, 2015, I was elected the Sovereign Grand Commander of the RSAA (by unanimous vote, no.).
We are going forward!