Ancient & Accepted Scottish Rite
Ohio Consistory
Valley of Cincinnati · NMJ USA · Est. 1853
Spes Mea In Deo Est
My Hope is in God
Our New Home · 2026
The Phoenix Rises Anew
Beginning in 2026, the Valley of Cincinnati AASR moves into the beautifully restored Phoenix Building in the heart of downtown, a landmark structure and fitting symbol of renewal for Scottish Rite Masonry in Greater Cincinnati.
The phoenix rises from its ashes: renewed, immortal, magnified. So too our fraternity finds new life in this grand new home, with expanded lodge rooms, event spaces, and a setting worthy of our legacy.
The Phoenix Building
Valley of Cincinnati · AASR · Opening 2026
A Symbol of Hope & Regeneration
The Mythology of the Phoenix
Ancient Origins
The phoenix story traces to ancient Egypt: the Bennu bird that died in flames only to see its offspring emerge from the ashes, related to the word weben, “to rise or shine brightly.”
Universal Symbol
Across many cultures (Greek, Christian, Native American as the Thunderbird, Chinese as Feng-Huang, Japanese as Ho-Oo), the phoenix endures as the timeless emblem of resurrection, renewal, and the eternal nature of the soul.
A Mason’s Symbol
A phoenix was the first image on the Great Seal of the United States in 1780, later replaced by the eagle. To the Mason, the phoenix offers the chance to renew with the wisdom of a thousand lives lived.
Est. 1853 · Valley of Cincinnati
A Heritage of Light & Brotherhood
The Valley of Cincinnati has called the historic Cincinnati Masonic Center at 317 East Fifth Street home for generations. It is a landmark in the heart of downtown Cincinnati, and a stage for some of the most distinctive officer traditions in all of Scottish Rite Freemasonry.
Ohio Consistory governs the Consistory degrees, 19° through 32°, and stewards a body of ritual found nowhere else in the Masonic world.
Once Consistory, always Consistory
We are committed to the relief of the distressed through charitable service and the support of worthy causes, extending compassion and aid to those in need. Through continuous pursuit of Light and reflection, we seek to advance the moral, intellectual, and spiritual growth of our members.
Mission · Ohio Consistory
The Consistory Degrees · NMJ
The Chivalric & Philosophical Degrees
Dramatic presentations of Masonic philosophy: each a moral allegory, each a mirror of the human condition. The degrees of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction.
Brother of the Trail
Oregon Trail, 1840s, a pioneer faithfully fulfills his obligation to care for his brother wherever integrity is honored.
Master Ad Vitam
Benedict Arnold seeks pardon for treason. Masonry extends no mantle of charity over treachery.
Patriarch Noachite
Knights and Nobles unite to punish wrongdoing, reward virtue, and protect the innocent.
Prince of Libanus
A Brother is tested on his willingness to set aside rank and privilege. Honest labor is honorable in the sight of God.
Knight of Valor
The heroic WWII sacrifice of the Four Chaplains, faith expressed through love of fellow man, even unto the ultimate sacrifice.
Brother of Tolerance
A Native American petitions for membership in a colonial Symbolic Lodge, Freemasonry is a universal Brotherhood without borders.
Master of Achievement
The life and example of Brother Benjamin Franklin illustrates that a Mason’s rewards are earned through honorable conduct toward others.
Friend and Brother Eternal
Civil War officers on opposing sides remain faithful to Masonic principles. Unity transcends conflict.
Knight of Jerusalem
Pope Honorius III vs. Emperor Frederick II, when church and state conflict, conscience must guide.
Knight of the Sun
Masonry’s evolution from operative craft to speculative moral fraternity. Tools as moral instruments.
Knight of St. Andrew
Masonic tolerance resolved Europe’s religious wars. No single religion holds a monopoly on truth.
Grand Inspector
A 14th-century English civil trial. Justice requires attentiveness, impartiality, and fairness in judging others.
My Brother’s Keeper
Brothers Warren and Dawes at the Green Dragon Tavern come to the aid of an injured brother.
Sublime Prince of the Royal Secret
The choice between personal ambition and service to humanity. The triumph of the spiritual over the material within man, the culmination of every lesson that preceded it. Man has the Royal Secret: the eternal gift of God, Love.
An Essay · The Royal Secret
The Importance of the Thirty-Second Degree
Sublime Prince of the Royal Secret · Northern Masonic Jurisdiction
The Thirty-Second Degree, known as the Sublime Prince of the Royal Secret, stands as one of the most important milestones in Scottish Rite Freemasonry, not for its place in a hierarchy, but for what it asks of every Mason who receives it.
The Scottish Rite was created as a system of moral education. Emerging from European high-degree traditions, it was organized into thirty-three degrees not to convey rank, but to develop a Mason’s moral, philosophical, and spiritual understanding.
In the United States, the Rite divided into the Northern and Southern Jurisdictions. While both share the same degree structure, the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction emphasized reflection, clarity, and relevance to modern life.
Within that system, the Thirty-Second Degree represents the culmination of the journey from the Fourth Degree forward. This culmination is not about completion, but integration. The earlier degrees introduce lessons on justice, morality, leadership, faith, tolerance, and truth. The Thirty-Second Degree brings those lessons together into a unified understanding.
The title Sublime Prince of the Royal Secret invites an important question: what is the Royal Secret? In the Northern Jurisdiction, it is not understood as hidden knowledge, but as a symbolic realization. The truth we seek is not found in mystery, but in how we live.
The Royal Secret is the art of living well: justice guided by mercy, strength tempered by compassion, knowledge governed by humility.
This degree reinforces that true advancement in Freemasonry is not authority over others, but mastery of oneself. It brings the educational purpose of the Rite into focus by asking a simple but challenging question: what will you do with what you have learned?
The Thirty-Second Degree teaches that knowledge without action is incomplete. A Mason who receives this degree is expected to apply its lessons by:
I.
Living with integrity
II.
Serving others sincerely
III.
Practicing tolerance & respect
The journey does not end here. While the Thirty-Second Degree is one of the highest regularly conferred, it marks a transition from learning through instruction to learning through experience. The real work begins outside the Lodge.
The Thirty-Second Degree is essential to the identity of the Scottish Rite. Without it, the earlier degrees would remain individual lessons. With it, they become a unified philosophy centered on responsibility, humility, and personal growth.
In closing, the Thirty-Second Degree is important not because of its place in a hierarchy, but because it clarifies the purpose of our journey. It calls us to live with purpose, to practice wisdom through action, and to carry the light of Freemasonry beyond these walls and into the world.
Spes Mea In Deo Est
Children’s Dyslexia Center of Cincinnati
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Ohio Consistory’s mission commits explicitly to relief of the distressed through charitable service and the support of worthy causes.
Visit CDCoC.org ↗“We are committed to the relief of the distressed through charitable service and the support of worthy causes, extending compassion and aid to those in need.”
Ohio Consistory Mission