The Grand Commandery Knights Templar
of the
State of Nevada
Welcomes you
 Sir Knight Paul E. Lunsford
Right Eminent Grand Commander
of the
State of Nevada
2012 - 2013
Friends, Brothers, Companions, and Sir Knights, Greetings: And, welcome to the Knights Templar website for Knight Templar Masons for the State of Nevada. Knights Templar have been a part of the State of Nevada since 1867. DeWitt-Clinton Commandery No. 1 was started in Virginia City, Nevada (given dispensation to open) on February 4th, 1867 and received its charter on September 15th, 1868. (DeWitt-Clinton Commandery was later moved to Reno, Nevada in August of 1905.) We now have 6 Knight Templar Commanderies in the State of Nevada (see Local Commanderies for a listing). Knight Templar Masonry is a part of the York Rite branch of Freemasonry and can only be joined after completing the "Blue Lodge" of Freemasonry and becoming a Master Mason. The York Rite of Freemasonry includes three major areas that must be completed in order:
York Rite Knight Templar Masonry is a continuation of the Blue Lodge and completes the process started as a Royal Arch Mason and a Cryptic Mason. The York Rite series of degrees culminate at the completion of the Knights Templar Orders. The basic description of the Knights Templar Orders are found on the right hand side of this page. For further information concerning Knight Templar Masonry in the State of Nevada, please contact us via the Contacts Page, see the About Us Page, or contact a Local Commandery. We look forward to your interest in the Knights Templars and hope that you will be contacting us soon to learn of how you can be a part of the York Rite of Freemasonry in Nevada. | Knights Templar  The Chivalric Orders are a set of three Orders culminating in the grade of Knight Templar, and controlled by that body. This body is markedly different from its foreign counterparts, in that it exhibits a paramilitary structure and outlook on Masonry, being the only branch of Masonry in the world that is a uniformed body. Its requirement that its members be professed Christians has led to calls of condemnation from other Masonic bodies and organizations both inside and outside the United States, claiming that the body is more of a Christian organization rather than a Masonic body. These have had little effect on the body, however, as many of the organizations criticizing the body have similar degrees among themselves. The American body is also arranged different from its nearest relatives in England. The American body includes the Illustrious Order of the Red Cross, which is not conferred in any other organization, though it has very close cousins in the Irish and American Order of Knight Masons and in the English Allied Masonic Degrees grade of the Red Cross of Babylon. Also, in the United States, the Order of Malta is conferred on members before being eligible to receive the Order of the Temple, whereas in England, the Order of Malta is an honorary grade bestowed on Knights Templar. In the United States, all business is transacted in the Order of the Temple, the other bodies only being opened for the conferral of the Orders. In England, the Order of Malta meets and operates as a separate body in addition to the Order of the Temple.  An Order emphasizing the lesson of truth. Elements of this Order were practiced in Ancient Lodges before the final form of the Master Mason Degree came into use. It is still practiced in the full ceremonial form by the Knight Masons of Ireland and the Knight Masons of the United States, and as the Red Cross of Babylon in the English Order of the Allied Masonic Degrees.  An Order emphasizing the lesson of faith. This Order requires the Mason to profess and practice the Christian faith. The pass degree of the Mediterranean Pass, or Knight of St. Paul prepares the candidate for the Order by introducing the lesson and example of the unfearing and faithful martyr of Christianity. The Order is centered on allegorical elements of the Knights of Malta, inheritors of the medieval Knights Hospitaller.  |