Masonry

I read the following on the Masonic Society Forum this morning. It got me to thinking.

Because it is not just another meeting to discuss bills. Taking my lodge as an example, we have movie nights, cribbage night, and dinners open to family and friends on most stated communication nights and the members seem to be coming to these more often. But how does this tie into changing the thinking about getting new members.

When a lodge has different events, families get involved, and family involvement increases the members involvement and what they tell their friends about the craft

It got me to thinking. What is Masonry supposed to be all about? Is it a 'family affair"? We have family events at my lodge also and I enjoy them. They have been fairly well attended and they appeal to some of our members. We used to have ladies nights with a program for the ladies and of course there is always the ritual work and the stated meetings. Not always very well attended. My lodge has almost 200 members. Usually we have less than 30 people at the meetings. Members pay their dues and belong to Masonry but don't always attend.

For some members going through the chairs and being an officer or on a committee gives them something to do and they participate in those ways. Many people join because they like to participate in ritual. For some of them ritual is the only reason for the Lodge to exist. They treat the ritual as if it were sealed in amber. They correct any infraction of the almighty ritual and allow no mistakes. I call them the ritual gods. You know the Masonic Ritual has changed over time. It is not static. It is different now from what it was when it first started. In fact, Ritual in Iowa is different from Ritual in other states. So why do we worry about it so much? Why have we allowed the people in charge of ritual to bully (and some of them do) and make so much of a big deal about getting the almighty ritual exactly correct? I suppose because we don't think about it much. Ever since Webb put the ritual together in his time we have bought into the idea that it is unchanging and has been that way forever.

But as my friend John said in his paper - ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FREEMASONRY I LEARNED IN THE OPENING OF THE FIRST DEGREE

"Masonry is not ritual and ritual is not masonry."

So what is Masonry? John has his definition if you read his paper. Bob Davis of Guthrie, OK has the opinion (shared by Joseph Fort Newton) that Masonry is the place where men go to learn from other men how to BE men. I rather like that concept. Probably because I am an educator.

The ritual helps; it is (can be) beautiful when performed correctly - but it is not the end all be all of Masonry.

There are a lot of blogs about Masonry, a lot of discussion lists about aspects of Masonry. There are a lot of different definitions about what Masons are and what they do. All try to answer the question "What is Masonry all about?"

Well to me it is about life. Living it in grace and freedom with the close connection with my Brothers. It is about sharing and learning with them. It is about growing as a person and living up to my potential. It is about connections, closeness and caring for one another.

Masonry can take over your life if you let it. It can become a place where you go to feel important and it can not always be a good thing. But overall if you control your Masonry and make the choices which you should make, Masonry will be a benevolent influence in your life. It will help you to become a better son, father, brother, community member or uncle. Whatever your role Masonry can supplement and augment the experience.

So back to the brother at the beginning of the Post. I understand why some people think that we need to have lots more members (Grand Lodges who derive their funds from the number of members) but I don't necessarily think that bigger is always better. I would rather have fewer participating members who are close and like family than I would a large group where the members do not know each other or care for each other. I understand the guys who study the ritual and learn it and want to transmit it unchanged... but in reality historically the ritual has changed and perhaps Masonry did not suffer from that change.

I want our Fraternity to succeed. I want my lodge to reflect my needs and wants and your wants and needs. I want to know my Brothers and relate to them. I also understand that there will be those who don't like me and for me it is better that I do not associate with them. There is room for all of us in the fraternity and it is large enough that we do not have to rub shoulders and grate on each other. As I have said in the past Masonry has a large tent and there is a banquet waiting to be shared. Let Masonry be for you what you want it to be and remember that it may be something else to someone else. Let it be that way. That to me is the beauty of Masonry that it is multi-faceted enough that everyone should be able to find something they want in it. Just look.