The Tao of Masonry

The number 300 now being associated with half-naked, well-muscled Spartans, I didn’t want to confuse anybody with the approximate number of  Masons who attended the Grand Lodge semi-annual communication in mid-October of this year. Last year I complained a bit about the people who come to these meetings and then leave as soon as possible, so I’m not going to revisit that topic. I was, however, pleased to see that all of the lodges were represented, with only one exception — a marked improvement over the last few years. It might be cynical of me to mention that some lodges may have been motivated this year by one of the items to be voted on: the increase in a monetary fine to those lodges that fail to send any representation from $25 (barely the cast of gasoline and lunch) to $250.

I got there about a half hour before the session started, got a coffee (no donut, thanks), and chatted with people I hadn’t seen in a while. When I finally went inside the main room to find a seat, I discovered that the Deputy Grand Master had gone to the hospital the previous night for chest pains (at this point, it seems that he’s fine), and would not be attending. The rest of the officers were in a mild panic because they would have to move up a chair in order to open the Grand Lodge session.  Why is this a problem? Because the nine members come from different lodges, and most of those lodges have peculiar traditions and customs. Since Grand Lodge officers don’t have any rehearsals (ahem), it’s not unusual for somebody to miss a cue. And even for those officers who are familiar with what passes for standard Connecticut ritual, it might have been years since one of them actually sat in that respective chair in a Blue Lodge. What with the rituals for York Rite, Scottish Rite, Eastern Star, Rainbow, the Shrine, etc., in our heads,  it’s a wonder that half the Masons remember as well as they do.

During the break, I twittered “Who certifies Grand Lodges officers, anyway?” This is a reference to my one actual duty as a District Grand Lecturer (as opposed to those duties which I’ve made up for myself), that being to watch a potential Master properly go through the ceremony for opening and closing a lodge.  I meant it to be funny, but after the session when people got home, some of them commented about this  on my Facebook page. Soon, it became  a (yet another!) discussion about the perception that Grand Lodge is perhaps out of touch with what the real needs are in the lodges.

Comments about the ritualistic slip-ups were good natured ribbing, however, one brother brought up some good points on the relatively new practice we have of setting standards (and giving out certifications) for anyone aspiring to be the Master of a lodge.

Brother Frank expressed the general frustration that I’ve heard from others around the state.

“There’s so much emphasis on getting these little certifications these days. Does anyone actually look at a Warden and evaluate whether or not he’d actually BE a decent WM? No. But if he’s good at ritual, and can regurgitate the stuff on the little tests, then he gets the nod of approval. Granted, you need to be a decent ritualist, but that’s only 25% at best of what the job is.”

And he’s right, of course. Being able to memorize a few paragraphs of ritual doesn’t make you qualified to run a lodge. Neither, in fact, does your attendance at a couple of half-day seminars, nor your ability to memorize the various rules and regulations that the Grand Lodge has codified.
Frank sums this up nicely:

“[Grand Lodge] is overly concerned with certifications these days and not concerned enough about whether the Master is making lodge … Read More ENGAGING for this great crop of new Masons we have coming in. We should be concentrating on giving these new guys a great sense of fraternity, and in many lodges that is missing. Passing the WM certification does not guarantee that a WM can LEAD a lodge — and LEADERSHIP is the key.”

Ironically, the Grand Lodge would agree. That’s why in the last couple of years, we have changed the format of our officers seminars from serial lectures to mini-team building exercises. Aspiring Masters and Wardens are arranged in small groups and mentored through various tasks. The exercises are not arbitrary; all of them are based on developing the kinds of programs that have been shown to work well in lodges. Even better, each officer has a chance to talk to the others in his group about possible issues he might face in implementing such programs in his own lodge, and to get input from those in different circumstances.

Does even this type of education guarantee that someone will be a good Master? Of course not. But it’s a step in the right direction, because it makes potential Masters aware that there are various ways to approach developing a program for their year.

I am so tired of the hype about the new Dan Brown book “The Lost Symbol,” that I have declared a “Brownout” at The Tao of Masonry this month. That’s right, I’m not going to be writing about Dan Brown or his new book for the rest of the month.

Admittedly, I didn’t write anything all summer long, but still — I’m upholding a principle.

The hype actually started back in 2006 when “The DaVinci Code” movie was released, and the rumors abounded that Brown would soon — perhaps as early as that fall — be publishing a follow-up book called “The Solomon Key.” Frankly, back then I was pretty excited. Freemasonry was getting some very public PR, and not from Freemasons themselves, nor because of some scandal. “National Treasure” was still talked about and it was looking like that dusty, old club that your grandfather used to visit a few times a month was getting a much-needed makeover. Most Freemasons waited for the next Brown book, hoping that it would continue to add to the mystique — and to draw in a few members.

Three years later, Brown is set to release the most long-awaited sequel since Thomas Harris’ “Hannibal Rising.” I’m going to avoid the temptation to compare the intriguing and complex character of Hannibal Lecter with the cardboard cutout of Robert Lang. You know why?

Because this is a No Dan Brown month at The Tao of Masonry, remember?

For weeks, Freemason bloggers and other members of the e-Mason community have been offering suggestions that our fraternity be ready for the huge tide of public interest. What are we going to tell people who ask us about Masonry? What kinds of responses will we have if Brown writes something unflattering? What will we have to offer if Brown writes something that sparks interest? Essentially, we are being told that we should turn on the porch light and bake a batch of cookies for the potential visitors — except for those who are saying that we should batten down the hatches for the potential storm.

Please.

How many movies in the last ten years had some slight reference to Freemasonry? Let’s see: Two National Treasure movies, The DaVinci Code, From Hell, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Magnolia. So, a film every couple of years, with the more recent ones are the most referential. In fact, National Treasure has more Masonic references, and arguably a much more favorable perspective than the other movies combined.

Our Grand Lodge website has been tracking the numbers of those interested enough in the Craft to ask to be contacted. If I recall correctly (and I’m sure somebody will correct me if I’m wrong), the numbers amounted to approximately one person per day.

I think that we can handle the influx of inquiries.

Look, it’s great that some groups are printing up material that brothers can use in case somebody decides to ask them about Freemasonry. But it occurred to me after last night’s Masonic Central podcast that we are expecting people to ask questions such as “What is Freemasonry” and “Why do you have those symbols?” and “Where can I get a petition?”

As if.

In my own experience as a student of human nature, I think that the questions are going to be more along the lines of “Do you really drink blood out of a human skull?” or “What’s with the goat? Do you really have some kind of demon worship?” or “Don’t you feel silly dressing in those old-fashioned costumes?” or “What’s with the secrecy? Do you guys really stick together to fix parking tickets and stuff?” or “What’s the deal with the Holy Grail, the lost Templar Treasure, and the Denver Airport?” and of course, “Why is it that when Masons turn up in books and movies, there’s always a secret plot, and people end up getting killed?”

I’m just saying that maybe some of us might be over-preparing for the wrong questions.

Driving to work this morning, I was thinking about the Masonic Central show, and about some of the questions that co-host Greg Stewart posed, which he believed would be important for Masons to think about in the face of the possible public relations stories that might come of this. He asked things like “What is Freemasonry? What do you get out of it? How does it make you a better person? What about the fraternity has kept your interest? What good things do you see it providing?”

Fellow guest Tim Bryce had a great explanation of our fraternity, almost elegant in its simplicity:

“Freemasonry is a Brotherhood of men who share common values, and who are interested in improving themselves, their community, and the world at large.”

After hearing this, it made me think that perhaps it’s more important for us, as Freemasons, to answer these questions for ourselves. Only when we know the answers to our own questions will we be able to answer — in the most positive light — the questions of the interested and curious.

Those of you following my Twitter or my Facebook accounts know that I’ve spent a lot of time working over the summer. Either I’m working at my business, trying to keep things running in this economy (and I’m fortunate to have a few excellent and dedicated people with me); working around the house, taking care of repairs and maintenance that I hadn’t gotten around to during the spring (and how the hell can I have so many trees and bushes to be cut down? Where do those things come from?); and working on myself, not in the esoteric sense, but physically, by exercising my butt off — or more correctly, trying to exercise that last 15 pounds of middle-aged gut that has taken up residence and refuses to leave.

Really, for the last couple of months I’ve put most thoughts about the fraternity out of my head; not for any particular reason, except that, as A.C. points out:

“The Masonic summer break restores that sense of renewal that we all used to enjoy as students… when we go out into the real world, life often turns into a 365-day-a-year grind.While you still don’t get a summer break from your day job (unless you happen to be a teacher,) taking a couple of months away from the Lodge gives you a nice opportunity to reflect on the proceedings of the preceding year, and contemplate the upcoming one.”

So, on Tuesday, I reminded my wife (who had been enjoying my summer hiatus) that the lodge meetings were going to be starting up again. On Wednesday — the first Wednesday of the month — I happened to glance at my Google calendar and saw that the space for Wednesday evening was blank. Dang, I must have accidentally deleted the items for the rest of the year, instead of just the summer. I re-entered the deleted items, and set a reminder to leave work early; a reminder to which I actually paid attention. No, really.

I made it home, and decided to forgo the Ice Cream Vendor Grand Lodge uniform, and changed into business casual. I grabbed my keys and noted the time — only 7:01, plenty of time to socialize beforehand — and as I walked to to my car, I contemplated the probability of a parking space in the middle of the week.

No, wait. Something’s wrong. There haven’t been any parking issues all spring. Why was I thinking about that now? With Southington’s Music on the Green, and the new restaurants on the block, why didn’t I have any trouble parking a few months ago? What changed? Why…

Oh dang! I’d put all thoughts so far out of my mind that I’d completely forgotten that back in January we changed our meeting nights to the 1st and 3rd Mondays.

Well, it wasn’t a total loss. I spent some extra time with my lovely wife (we went grocery shopping), and had some time to think about some of the things I need to do for the upcoming year.

Hopefully, I’ll remember what they are when the time comes.

It was really only five years ago that I was the new guy, the young Mason attending Grand Lodge – or more correctly, the reunion and hospitality suites the night before Grand Lodge session. I’d taken the afternoon off from work and we’d spent the time prepping tons of food and drink for the wandering brothers. Several of the older, more experienced brothers took me around to visit some of the other rooms and introduce me to the brothers from other districts; I met a lot of nice people during the first year, and remembered most of them over the next several years. Grand Lodge is sometimes like the get-togethers you have at weddings and funerals: it’s the one time a year you might have to catch up on news and gossip. And I don’t know when it happened, but I’m no longer a new Mason. Last night Sunday night, it was my turn to be the older guy and take one of the new brothers around, and to explain how and why things work.

Yesterday Sunday evening, while most of the lodge parties were just getting underway, I met up with several other of the Connecticut Freemason bloggers. This was the end result of six months of emails and phone calls which began “Hey, we should all get together for dinner some night and talk about blogging.” After half a dozen missed opportunities, we managed to agree to meet the night before GL at the restaurant in the hotel. Fueled by the vapors of distilled grain, I had several hours of conversation with 3M of Northeastern Corner, the esteemed Traveling Man of Movable Jewel, and the Very Worshipful Charles Tirrell of Masonic Renaissance. We were missing MF (Metaphysical Freemason), whose father-in-law had to be taken to the hospital that morning. The pressures of work, family, geography, and of course our Masonly duties made scheduling one night a much more difficult task than you would have thought.

I’ve spent a little bit of time in and after meetings with both VW Brother Charles and with MJ, but this was the first time we’d been able to hang out without any particular agenda. And none of us have been able to spend much time with 3M, mainly because his district is down in New York (well, it seems that way anyhow). A pleasant and thoughtful young man, 3M was only raised a couple of years ago, making him the newbie. Nobody else from his lodge was able to make the trip up.

VW Charles brought up some officers from his own lodge, also younger Masons, and we spent a pleasant couple of hours having drinks and sandwiches, and just getting to know a little about each other. All of us being Connecticut Masons, we had the opportunity to discuss not just blogging and internet Masonry, but also topics concerning local, district and state events. Table conversation ranged from praising (and poking) other well-known bloggers and some of the recent topics, internet Masonry and how it can be better utilized to the benefit of the Craft (we’re in favor of more of it), District Blue Lodge Council meetings (some people find them to be a waste of time), the state of ritual (to some degree), and some of the items up for discussion at Grand Lodge (oh yeah, there’s a session).

After a dinner of sandwiches and frits (the French word for “fries,” I was informed), we retired upstairs to VW Charles’ room, where 3M treated us to some finely crafted hand-rolled cigars, which we enjoyed out on the balcony – smoking being prohibited in the hotel rooms. While enjoying the aroma, not to mention the invigorating New England air, we continued our discussions. The non-blogging junior officers lost interest, and retired to the warmth of the room, where they kept themselves occupied with a Wii, iPods, laptops, and various other electronic gear.

As Charles mentioned in his own post on this subject, we found it surprising that with Connecticut being such a small state, the four of us had managed to develop notably differing ideas and opinions about Freemasonry. This wasn’t so obvious when discussing our ideas for how to improve the quality of meetings and Masonic education, but was more noticeable when we discussed our positions on those states which have yet to fully recognize the Prince Hall jurisdictions, and how our UGLE-related fraternity intersects with orders that have long since split off: La Droit Humain, Grand Orientes, and Co-Masonry. Fortunately, real Masons manage to subdue their passions when discussing such potentially divisive subjects, and we soon veered off those topics to discuss the proposed legislation and some of the rumors that had been making the rounds. We also traded stories about some of the lodges that we’ve seen that are doing it wrong (and some that are doing it right), and kicked around some of our own ideas for what could make for better lodges.

Charles is a very progressive-minded brother who has a number of great ideas for lodges on his own site, including utilizing Pay Pal or similar services to collect dues money. We also thought that the dreaded dues increases would hurt less if we allowed the members to pay in monthly or quarterly installments; we noted that most dues are, um, due right around the holidays – just when people are already ticked about paying bills. Perhaps a subscription service might be a better way to go for some of the brethren. We also discussed having some of the brothers “pay” in service, rather than in coinage; some brothers could agree to a certain number of hours doing maintenance, cleaning, repairs, etc., in exchange for some abatement on dues. We also – and I hope he doesn’t mind my mentioning it here – tossed around the idea of recording video interviews with notable brothers; not necessarily the oldest or famous, but brothers with an interesting perspective on the fraternity. Any Connecticut brothers with video editing experience who are interested in lending some help might want to contact VW Bro Charles.

Eventually we had to go home – at least, some of us did. TM wandered off to his car, and I took 3M for a tour around the hotel to meet the members of Friendship Lodge. A couple of brothers were at the room, and others appeared as we were having a drink. I left 3M in the fraternal care of our SW Eric, who promised to look after him, and I left for home around midnight. Since 3M was staying overnight, I wa
s reasonably certain that he wouldn’t get into much trouble. I later found that natural supposition to be erroneous, but that’s a topic for another article.

The four of us got together out of curiosity – indeed, we’ve been trying to find some way to get together for months, but just haven’t been able to get our schedules together. When we decided to meet, it was because we thought that we had two things in common: Freemasonry, and a desire to share our experiences and perspectives via this medium. There are five of us who blog about the Craft, not counting the few people who mention Freemasonry on their MySpace and LiveJournal pages. While it doesn’t sound like very many, it does, in fact, make up a significant portion of the Craft-bloggers extant on the internet; more impressive when you consider the size of our state. In an age in which internet communication is becoming more utilized by new and potential members, I’m glad that such a great group of brothers has been able to spread some light through this new medium, and I’m sure that all of us look forward to doing this in the future.

Tao of Masonry | Freemasonry | Masonry

Internet Masonry is not new; in fact, even seven years ago when I first started researching the fraternity, it was easy to find websites with papers, articles, and reprints on subjects ranging from rules and regulations to the esoteric. More importantly for me, however, were the various discussion groups. Yahoo had several groups, as did MSN. I also discovered that some of the hard-core BBS guys had taken the old Compuserv/Prodigy board and opened up a Usenet group. According to legend, within an hour after the group’s initial posting, a troll posted an Anti-Masonic message to the group.

I learned quite a bit about Masonry from hanging out at those various discussion groups. It’s one thing to read about the Craft and it’s workings; it’s quite another to discuss it with experienced Masons from various jurisdictions. Before I joined, I learned about things that most members of the fraternity rarely even hear about. I learned about recognition and regularity, about Prince Hall, that there are women Masons, and most importantly, that the impression that you have of Masonry from your lodge is only an impression – that rituals, ceremonies, even signs and tokens are not the same around the world, yet the essence of brotherhood somehow manages to shine through from everywhere you find a square and compasses.

Blogging is a great pastime for those of us who are egomaniacs inclined to write, but the medium does not lend itself well to discussion. Yes, one can leave comments on an article, but the narrow column format of web logs makes following a discussion difficult, especially lengthy ones. Even worse are side discussions that inevitably grow out of lengthy discussions – it often seems “rude” to hijack a comment discussion on a blog belonging to someone else. So, as much as I enjoy popping in on my new blogging friends, I often prefer to hang out at several of the various web-based Masonic discussion forums.

But before I mention those forums, I should first give a nod to the Usenet groups – the grandfathers of Internet Masonry. Although Outlook Express, Mozilla Thunderbird, and Forte Agent are probably the most common clients for accessing Usenet groups, I suspect that most people only stumble across newsgroups using Google Groups now. Usenet groups – a widely propagated text-only medium (think: message board) – are devoid of the flash, graphics, Java, and even HTML. Text-only messages are sent out and distributed by various news servers where they are picked up by the various Usenet service providers. Several years ago, AOL dropped their own coverage of Usenet groups, and most people simply found web-based groups. Many Usenet groups have been overrun with spammers and trolls. However, a few die-hards still frequent news://alt.freemasonry (the oldest Masonic Usenet group, now caught in a flaming cross-posting war between trolls on other groups) and news://soc.org.freemasonry ( a “Moderated” group which relies on human moderators to keep the spammers and trolls out, and to make sure that members don’t allow their passions on certain subjects to go out of bounds). Both can be accessed via Google groups: http://groups.google.com/group/alt.freemasonry/topic and http://groups.google.com/group/soc.org.freemasonry/topics

Yahoo members have a lot of choices: a quick search turned up well over 300 groups having something to do with Freemasonry, many of which are moderated and some of which will only allow verified Freemasons to join the group. I subscribe to about a dozen Masonic Yahoo groups; I find it convenient because I can read the messages at the website, or have them delivered via email. Admittedly, though, I rarely frequent any of them since I began blogging. But anyone with a yen for Masonic discussion should register for a Yahoo ID and join some of the very good groups that have been active for years. I even set up my own group a few years ago, just to test the email capabilities for Friendship Lodge.

I have long lost count of the various web-based groups, sometimes called “bulletin boards.” Several hosting companies now offer up great group discussion software, making a discussion board fairly easy to set up and maintain, even for newbies, which is probably why there are any number of small web forums, and a growing number of larger ones. The better forums have several moderators who generally try to maintain order, keep out spammers and trolls, and encourage harmony when brothers begin to get a bit heated over certain subjects. At times, some moderators will “lock” the discussion threads, which prevents any more people from posting to them while tempers cool. A Google search for Masonic web forums turns up several hundred potential hits, and thousands of references to them. I subscribe to about a dozen of them, although – as with the Yahoo groups – I haven’t been active in any since I started blogging.

But lately I’ve been in the mood to have some discussion, so I’ve been looking at the some of the more well-known forums. My new favorite hangout has been The Three Pillars; I find the groups to be fairly young-minded and the regulars seem open to discussing controversial subjects. The forum also has men and women Masons from jurisdictions that are unrecognized by the mainstream GLs, and I find that my own understanding of Masonry is enhanced by their perspectives. Having run across a number of forums that do not allow members of non-mainstream Masonry, I find their inclusion to be an asset.

A few other forums of note are The Masonic Forum of Light, The Trestleboard, and The Lodgeroom International, (with a separate forum for our British brethren) and a newer forum, Novus Ordo Saeculorum which was just started last year. All forums are active with plenty of side discussions on a wide enough range of subjects to keep any Mason informed and entertained.

Sometimes I want to have a discussion with people from Connecticut, and instead of getting my butt off the chair and going to lodge, I can surf over to www.friendshiplodge33.org, where the l33t web team at Friendship Lodge set up a great website while the GL sites were under construction. They put up a forum page, although the only people who use it are Friendship members. Similarly, I sometimes head to my own Grand Lodge website and log into the GL-CT forums. They really aren’t active (I suspect that I’m the most active member aside from the moderator), but I’m hoping that more people will discover them.

On a different scale are the Social Networking sites. These are sites in which members can participate in forum discussions, post simple blog articles, and more importantly, form groups based upon common interests. You can search a database of interests and when you find someone who matches up with your own, you can “friend” them, or add them to your group. LiveJournal is one of the oldest of these, and I’ve had my own LJ account for a while, although I don’t really use it. LJ has a small Masonic community, which does not attract the kind of traffic that a web forum would do.

Last year I started a MySpace account because I had a number of family members who had them and we thought it would be great to communicate that way. It turns out that MySpace is a great way to waste a lot of time, look at ads for things you don’t want, and to be flooded with emails from people you don’t know, most of whom want you to subscribe to a porn site, a dating site, or to buy what can euphemistically be termed “male enhancement drugs.” MySpace has a number of Masons, though, and the list keeps growing.

Recently, I joined a social networking site developed strictly for Freemasons: The Working Tools, hosted on the site of the online magazine of the same name. While similar to MySpace and LiveJournal, TWT was started by Cory Sigler, a moderator at The Three Pillars. In his words,

I started it to give Masons a place to meet each other in a fun comfortable manner without the hassle of having anti’s bother us with nonsense.

I noticed a huge gathering of Brothers on Myspace & Facebook so I figured [I would] give them a place to go for just us.

I rather liked the idea of having a Social Network that was already composed of Masons; presumably it would be ideal for discussions and questions. I joined right before Christmas and copied my favorite blog posts from the past year over to the TWT blogging area. There is a forum area, however it’s a bit sparse at the moment; I’m sure it’s because TWT is only a few weeks old and despite having over 400 members, not everyone has discovered all of the features yet. The Working Tools magazine is an excellent read itself, and because January issue picked one of my articles as the Blog Post of the Month simply enhances my opinion, in addition to making me ever so much more humble and modest than I already am. Here’s hoping for the success of this venture.

I can’t imagine anything now replacing the fascination I had for the Usenet groups seven years ago, but I still enjoy finding new Masonic web groups. Even when I don’t participate, I find that I learn something new about the Craft just from reading the discussions. I recommend these and other groups to new Masons as a way to increase your knowledge, and to more seasoned brothers who might be interested in learning how things are done elsewhere.

Tao of Masonry | Freemasonry | Masonry

Pierpont Edwards Award given at Friendship Lodge in Southington

On Saturday, September 1st, Friendship Lodge No. 33 in Southington held a Ladies Appreciation Dinner. WM David Hubbs wanted to take the opportunity to laud the wives and partners of the lodge members who support Friendship Lodge, either by coming down to the various events and pitching in to help, or by “allowing your husbands to come out and play” as he quipped.

But there was another event planned for the day that everybody knew about – except for the honoree.

At the end of the wonderful dinner (prepared mainly by the officers) WB Peter Boychuck was surprised to be called to the podium by the Grand Master, where he was presented with the Pierpont Edwards Medal in Bronze. On hand to present the award was MWGM William Greene, accompanied by most of the Grand Lodge officers, and the officers of the 5th District.

The Pierpont Edwards Award is one of the highest given by the Grand Lodge of Connecticut. It is awarded to commemorate outstanding service. A little more about it can be found on the Grand Lodge of Connecticut website.

Yes, it’s hard to believe that even the Masons could keep a secret that big for over two months, but WB Boychuck had no idea that he was to be honored for his hard work and dedication to the CTCHIP program in his capacity as the State Chairperson for the last five years. WB Boychuck has been active with the CTCHIP program right from the start, and helped in virtually every capacity, from setting up booths to running the equipment, to coordinating events with local fairs and schools. Peter has been instrumental to the success of the program, and certainly deserves to be honored for his labors.

Tao of Masonry | Freemasonry | Masonry

In Connecticut, it’s common for lodges to shut down in July and August for a summer break (please do not call it “going dark”; that term applies to lodges that turn in their charter and close permanently), although often the various business committees continue to meet. I may have mentioned elsewhere that I forgot to duck when they voted on officers for this board, and my inattention has caused me to be President of the Southington Masonic Temple Corporation for the last three years. Earlier this month we had to get together for a couple of hours to go over some changes to the building and to talk about ways to introduce some new ideas to the rest of the lodge in September.

Generally, we meet on the first Monday of the month, but since most of the members were away on vacation, we rescheduled it for a Wednesday evening a week later. Since most of us would be coming straight from work, the Secretary ordered up some pizzas and beer (Rolling Rock, naturally. Why? The mysterious number “33″ on the bottle makes it the official beer of Friendship Lodge No. 33) and we all showed up around 5:30 (yes, even me) in order to get to work.

After an hour or so of yammering hammering out some details, the eight or so of us took a stretch break. Most of us were standing up, a few eating a cold slice of pie or hoisting a brew, when the door to the hall opened up. In walked an older gentleman who stopped and looked around quizzically.

“Can we help you?” several of us asked at almost the same time.

“Um, yeah, ” he said with just a trace of hesitation, “Weight Watchers meeting?”

“Next door, at the American Legion,” said one of our members, helpfully.

The gentleman nodded, and backed toward the door. He quickly eyed the beer and pizza and glanced pointedly at the large men scattered around the room. “Yeah, should have known,” he chuckled. He thanked us and quickly left.

Most of us being living testaments to the great meals that we serve regularly at our lodge, we laughed along with him. One of the brothers looked around at the rest of us, saying “Right, Weight Watchers. He won’t make that mistake again.”

I just closed my eyes and shook my head. “I am so blogging this,” I told him.

Tao of Masonry | Freemasonry | Masonry

In a recent conversation with a brother – a new officer of his lodge – the topic of “black balling” a candidate came up. Even non-Masons should understand that the term means a vote against allowing that person to join an organization. In Connecticut, most lodges actually use black cubes; presumably so that they can be more readily distinguished and prevent accidental or unintentional voting.

Please note I’m not saying that this practice has anything to do with the eyesight our aging brothers; the fact that the Friendship Lodge ballot box has a small LED light inside, and the fact that yours truly just recently started wearing spectacles is in no way related.

Anyway, the new officer mentioned that he’d never heard of anyone being black-balled (black-cubed?) in his lodge, and neither had anyone else, even the “old-timers.” He was surprised when I told him that it was my opinion that this was pretty much how it should be; that in fact, I could think of very few reasons why a black cube should be cast for a candidate.

Sure, we can all think of some hypothetical (and in some cases, actual) situations as to why one might cast a “Nay” vote for a candidate. But it’s my contention that, generally speaking, if the Master of a lodge finds a black ball cube in the ballot box, then the lodge is doing something wrong; namely, it is not communicating properly. While there are some circumstances in which this would be unavoidable, for the most part the Master of a lodge should not be surprised at the last minute to see a black cube in the box. Regular members should already know in advance that a particular candidate is being proposed, sponsored, and voted on; there is usually a decent interval during which all this happens, and if a lodge member has some reason to object to a particular candidate, he should raise the issue with either the investigating committee or with the Master well before the voting is to take place.

I have several reasons for this contention. One is that by raising the issue in advance, it gives the member with a concern an opportunity to address the issue to determine if it is indeed a legitimate concern. While one should never discuss openly how one should or would vote for a candidate, if you believe that a candidate (or his sponsor) is not being truthful with the information on a petition, then a discussion with the investigation committee gives them an opportunity to address that concern. Concerns of a more personal nature should probably be addressed in private with the Master, with the understanding that such concerns should be confidential.

Then, too, is the matter of the reputation and sensitivities of the candidate and his sponsors. Should a blackball occur, there is no further discussion; the candidate is simply sent a letter explaining that he was not accepted. But none of this happens within a vacuum; not only could a candidate become angry or hurt, it’s quite possible that he might actively engage in some public retaliation. It’s pretty easy to set up a blog or website and begin posting anti-Masonic rhetoric.

One other thing that is rarely mentioned is the impact a blackball might have upon the brother who proposed or sponsored the candidate. The candidate’s sponsor or proposer could well feel insulted or embarrassed, especially if they have sponsored a family member, old friend, or business associate. Few sponsors, I would imagine, would be pleased at having some discussion beforehand that his candidate presents some concerns; but I can’t imagine any sponsor not feeling upset to be surprised by a “Nay” ballot. Not only would he have to face the candidate later, he must do so without being able to provide any explanation. Worse, wounded pride might cause him to act resentfully toward his brothers.

A lodge, in some respects, is like a small business. Successful businesses work toward good communication between employees, and have clear direction from the managers. But they also have good communication between the management and the employees. Good managers managers who foster open, clear lines of communication are rarely surprised by issues the employees have. Why would the “management” of a lodge operate any differently?

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Apparently, people around Connecticut who know me are saying to themselves “Well, if that bozo can blog, then so can I!”

Yes, Masons in the Nutmeg State (and when the hell are we going to get rid of that ridiculous nickname? Nutmeg was never grown in this state.) now have one more alternative to me and Moveable Jewel: Masonic Renaissance, a blog run by one of my Very Worshipful counterparts in the southern part of the state. I know it’s going to be good because he’s the guy behind the Masonic Scavenger Hunt.

The aim of Masonic Renaissance is to present ideas for lodges that are seeing a resurgence or an increase in membership. While he’s just getting it off the ground, so to speak, I’m sure that it’s going to be a great resource for officers and interested members.

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Masons membership begins to grow again

Here’s an interesting article in the Wednesday June 20, 2007 edition of the Meriden Record Journal, a newspaper that supports the central Connecticut region.

The article plays on some of the more interesting preconceptions and stereotypes of the fraternity. For example:

“They are painted equally with the brush of geriatric decrepitude and secret handshakes. They ride around in little cars for charity, but their origins are rumored to lie in the soaring cathedrals of Europe, or even the pyramids of Egypt.”

I found it interesting that while most people don’t seem to associate the Freemason with the Shriners, this reporter manages to make a connection.

Even more ironic was this:

“Few people know a Mason, but everyone’s grandfather seemed to be one. “

If I were editing this, I think that I would change it to read “Few people realize that they know a Mason…”

On the more positive side, the article did mention some of the great work that we’ve been doing here in Connecticut over the past few years. Eagle-eyed observers will note that the article does mention Worshipful Master David Hubbs of Friendship Lodge No. 33 - my own mother lodge – and the collections for the troops overseas that we have spearheaded for the Year of Giving.

“One of the major activities of the Masons is charity on the local level, such as the 3.5 tons of personal items collected for U.S. troops overseas by the Southington temple, but they also involve themselves in large-scale donations and projects like funding Masonicare in Wallingford, which is considered one of the finest senior healthcare facilities in the country, and the $2 million they donate every day to charities worldwide.

“Masonicare, which services the general public, was started with an original investment of $332 in 1895. What was then a home for a few dozen people on a working farm has become a facility that produces $128 million in revenue every year and assists 3,000 patients a day. “

I know that some Masons object to this kind of publicity because it makes our fraternity look to be merely a charity or benevolent society. However, we must admit that the charitable acts are generally the first, if not the only facet of Freemasonry that most people ever see; not that we, as Masons, need to justify our actions to anyone. But if we are to continue to attract members, I’d certainly want the people in my neighborhood noticing an article like this, as opposed to, for example, articles about the mistreatment of animals at a Shriner’s circus.

The article, though, does point out that in many lodges membership is indeed growing. Friendship Lodge has added about sixteen new members in the last six months, most of them younger men who are joining because they are looking for a solid, established community organization and recognize the serious nature of the fraternity. While some lodges in the hinterlands of the state are still not doing as well as we would like to see, lodges in the more populated areas have been showing similar growth. I’m hoping that this will lead to a new generation of men “discovering” Masonry.

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