Buzz Aldrin

Born: Monday, 20 January 1930
Died: Wednesday, 03 October 2018

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Buzz Aldrin was a scholar, fighter pilot, astronaut, and Freemason who brought Humanity's dreams for the future to the surface of the Moon.

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Freemasonry teaches us to always strive for new knowledge, to always seek new worlds and to never shrink back in the face of the unknown. Brother Buzz Aldrin, the first freemason on the moon, perfectly exemplified these qualities. A humble man, Buzz Aldrin was never one to brag or put himself first.

Buzz Aldrin was born in 1930 in New Jersey. His father was a pilot and dreams of flying free in the skies would come to dominate his destiny. An excellent student, Buzz graduated 3rd of his class at West Point and served as a fighter pilot in the Korean War, where he acquitted himself with distinction. Not content to merely rest on the laurels of being a war hero, Buzz went back to school, earning a doctorate in Aeronautics in 1963, just in time to become involved in NASA’s quest to land a man on the moon.

A lifelong Freemason, Buzz wanted to attach masonic significance to the moon landing and carry the banner of masonry to the stars. To that end, he received a special dispensation from The Grand Lodge of Texas to act as a special deputy on the Moon. It is unknown if he performed any masonic rituals there, but it is very likely he did. At the very least we know for a fact that he brought a flag from the Supreme Council Scottish Rite Southern Jurisdiction to the moon, and there are rumors he brought several masonic scarfs as well, which supposedly now sit in masonic lodges on Earth.

A humble man, Buzz neither insisted on taking the first step on the moon nor did he try to seize the limelight for the supreme scientific and technological accomplishment of lunar exploration. His scientific curiosity, persistence, moderation, and humility being virtues every freemason should embody, he is an exemplar of the craft, and the virtues and qualities it instills and expects in a Brother.