Jan 3, 2015 2 min read

The Second Saturday Civil War Series will resume Jan. 10 at the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall when members of the Scottish Rite Valley of Pittsburgh perform the “The Lincoln Degree” at 1 p.m. in the music hall.

“The Lincoln Degree” is the former 26th Degree of Scottish Rite Masonry for the Northern Masonic jurisdiction of the United States. The rite has been decommissioned and released for public viewing.

This is the first of several programs the library and music hall have planned in 2015 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War and of Lincoln’s assassination. The ACFL&MH’s rare Civil War room, the Captain Thomas Espy Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, is open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. every Saturday.

“The Lincoln Degree” is a three-scene miniplay that runs about half an hour. It features Lincoln, a presidential aide, a field hospital doctor, a young Southern boy and his older brother, who is a wounded and captured Confederate officer. It teaches the lesson that Masonry was a house undivided, even during the nation’s worst internal conflict. Even though it’s a fictional rendition, the program incorporates historic Lincoln readings and is set in the context of historically documented facts. It celebrates both American history and core Masonic values.

Before the performance, there will be a brief introduction to Masonry.

The program is free. Doors open at 12:30 p.m. Light refreshments will be served in the reception hall after the performance.