Russ Charvonia’s The Civility Mosaic, written with Michael Ashley, is a 21st Century treatise on restoring civility as a matter of our survival. As past Grand Master of Masons in California, Charvonia provides readers with a first-of-its-kind, insider look at Freemasonry and how the practical application of its underlying ethos of Brotherly Love, Relief, and Truth can help us rise above the world’s bickering and violence to create a more compassionate, more humane, and more civil society.
“Without civility, our world is doomed to a hell of its own making. With it, all things are possible.”
—Russ Charvonia
The Urgency of Civility
Civil discourse is in a state of crisis. Public dialogues today are celebrated not for what they accomplish, but for whom they divide. Incivility has become the new normal just as humanity faces existential, political and environment challenges that will require unprecedented global cooperation. The Civility Mosaic by Russ Charvonia with Michael Ashley is not only an urgent call to restore civility but it is also an instruction manual on how we might save ourselves from our most destructive impulses.
Written with screenwriter, author, and fellow Freemason Michael Ashley, The Civility Mosaic teaches us to take self-responsibility for transforming our troubled world by applying the cornerstone principles found in one of the world’s oldest and most influential societies—Freemasonry.
“Civility is more than good etiquette or polite behavior. It is about recognizing the inherent dignity and value of everyone we meet.”
—Russ Charvonia
Mason on a Mission
As Grand Master of Masons in California in 2014-15 serving some 50,000 members, Russ Charvonia is on a mission to make the transformative principles of Freemasonry accessible to most anyone. Fortifying his book with real-world guidance and end-of-chapter exercises, modern readers will be challenged and empowered to take the matter of restoring civility into their own hands.
Charvonia’s past provenance as a Grand Master, along with his current work as President of the Worldwide Civility Council, are combined to forge a dual vision of how to heal our world. The result is a set of visionary yet practical techniques that everyone can use to raise the mantle of our shared humanity and offer it as a universal cornerstone for social transformation.
“The authors of this book have reached into the core of Freemasonry and found the living and guiding principle of Civility.”
—Walter Macdougall, FPS, PGM (Maine) and Dean Emeritus of the Maine Masonic College
Russ Charvonia
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Michael Ashley
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The Civility Mosaic