JCmasonSquared
Registered User
Just a vent...our Lodge has a couple of different lodges who pay us rent and use our building. One of those lodges was on the brink a few years back due to a lack of membership, often times not having enough present to open lodge. In order to save the lodge, a number of Brothers from our lodge joined the failing to help keep them from disappearing. Nice enough right?
Recently, EA from our lodge let me know that his friend would like to join, a few days later I got an email from the friend requesting information. When I called him back to setup a meeting to sit and chat about him and masonry he informed me that he had already spoken with someone, filled out a petition, and had a date set to be investigated.
Come to find out, the brother who had contacted him was one of those who took on dual membership to help the failing lodge, and had taken the petition to them. I contacted the gentleman and asked him what lodge he wanted to join, and he said the one his friend was a member of, our lodge....
When I broached this situation with the brother who introduced the petition to the other lodge his response was snappy, bitchy and someone along the lines of "we've already had a first reading and an investigation, it's not my problem, he should have told me he wanted to be in your lodge"
So we've contacted the grand secretary for advice, who says since there has been a reading of the petition there MUST be an investigation and ballot, and THEN the candidate must request, in writing, that his petition be destroyed, and them petition our lodge, first reading, investigation, second reading, ballot all over again.
Not only does this seem to be a terrible first impression for the potential new candidate, it also seems to be a very unmasonic way of dealing with this.
I'm considering allowing them to keep the candidate, bring our brothers to their degrees to help with the work, allow them to keep his feed and dues, and have him demur from their lodge and join ours after raised. Any thoughts or ideas from the peanut gallery?
Part upon the square.
Recently, EA from our lodge let me know that his friend would like to join, a few days later I got an email from the friend requesting information. When I called him back to setup a meeting to sit and chat about him and masonry he informed me that he had already spoken with someone, filled out a petition, and had a date set to be investigated.
Come to find out, the brother who had contacted him was one of those who took on dual membership to help the failing lodge, and had taken the petition to them. I contacted the gentleman and asked him what lodge he wanted to join, and he said the one his friend was a member of, our lodge....
When I broached this situation with the brother who introduced the petition to the other lodge his response was snappy, bitchy and someone along the lines of "we've already had a first reading and an investigation, it's not my problem, he should have told me he wanted to be in your lodge"
So we've contacted the grand secretary for advice, who says since there has been a reading of the petition there MUST be an investigation and ballot, and THEN the candidate must request, in writing, that his petition be destroyed, and them petition our lodge, first reading, investigation, second reading, ballot all over again.
Not only does this seem to be a terrible first impression for the potential new candidate, it also seems to be a very unmasonic way of dealing with this.
I'm considering allowing them to keep the candidate, bring our brothers to their degrees to help with the work, allow them to keep his feed and dues, and have him demur from their lodge and join ours after raised. Any thoughts or ideas from the peanut gallery?
Part upon the square.