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Yes, we actually do call ourselves Freemasons and members of our Grand Lodge have been doing so 25 years longer than yours, a little more than 200 years to be exact. My personal lodge members have been calling themselves Masons for 213 years.

My usual reply is "you're right, it isn't like the wine today, it was probably a whole lot stronger!" Yes, grape juice or any other fruit can ferment. That's why yellow jackets are so mean during the summer time. They get to eating fermented apples and grapes that have fallen on the ground and...

I have a question for my own enlightenment and education about other jurisdictions. (I have done searches and still have some questions) It seems to be a big deal among Texas Masons about "code books." In Tennessee, the "code book" is the laws of the Grand Lodge and should be on or near every...

As far as etiquette goes, just watch the others and do as they do. As for education, every time you are in Lodge, start doing every officer's part in your head as they do it. Learn early. That way, when the time comes for you to be called to sit in a chair, you've already got your work down...

Browncoat, the beauty of life is that folks can agree to disagree. If I recall, you and fell on similar sides of the fence in the discussion about whether or not EAs and FCs should wear jewelry. That's OK. That's what makes the world go around.

Here, stated meetings and degree work are totally separate. The stated business meetings usually last 45 mins to an hour. Our is the first Tuesday of each month. Degree work is done on other nights as needed. As we wouldn't confer different degrees on a single night, there wouldn't be any reason...

OK, when you said you "sat in the south" ... here that means either where the JW sits or the south side of the lodge where all the sideliners sit. If you are opening/closing on multiple degrees on a single night, how long do the meetings last?

Darren, Unless I misunderstand, there is a huge difference in Australian Masonry and my jurisdiction, or at least in terminology. Do I understand you have EAs and FCs sitting in open lodge during MM degree work? As for the time, here it is 28 days between degrees - based on the lunar calendar...

Freemasonry isn't fast food. The fact I had to wait a few months to be a "full" member, as it were, didn't deter me. In fact, I see it as a method of putting a fire under someone to get their lectures turned in and get their degrees. Freemasonry is a progressive science, and knowledge is...

Our petitions from the Grand Lodge ask: Are you a member of a church? _____. Give its name ___________. So, you would have that information when the petition is read in open Lodge. I don't think it would mater, but members would know. In 20 years as a Mason, I can think of one petition where...

Re: Can a Jewish Brother Wear a Yamaka in a Lodge It's not a true "crown" in the sense of something made out of metal and jewels. It's something similar to this.

Don't even get me started on what they think if you play cards!

This is complete speculation, as I do not know the workings of the GL of NC but do know many NC Masons, but while I doubt it's written in stone, I suspect that many individual Lodges would reject a Mormon because of the whole polygamy thing. Yes, the practice is officially outlawed by the Mormon...

Re: Can a Jewish Brother Wear a Yamaka in a Lodge I will start out by saying I have never seen this issue come up, and in my current location it likely won't in my lifetime. As far as I know, the closest Jewish house of worship is in Knoxville more than an hour away. If it did, my personal...

Welcome to the forum, and it is always good to meet a fellow Companion active in the York Rite.

Re: Fraternal Greetings from a very wet London Eng Welcome to the forum and greetings from a cold East Tennessee where it hasn't been above freezing in four days!

Welcome. I've passed through your way several times on the interstate, and I've known a number of people who have gone to college at Berea. Glad to have you join us.

It's unnecessary. Here, EAs and FCs don't pay dues and wouldn't have a vote in any lodge business. As Zack said, if hearing how much the electric bill is or listening to a two-month debate on where to hang a picture inspires someone more than degree work, something is wrong.

I would never say receiving a degree a second time is watering it down. I always tell newly made Masons of any degree to go see one as quickly after yours as possible. There is just so much going on, and along with general excitement of the moment, there is no way to fully appreciate it the...

Here is something interesting on the construction: according to Mackey's Book of the Chapter, $3.9 billion was put aside for the building of the temple (bottom of page 71). That was written in 1863. Correct that to a current Consumer Price Index, $74 billion in 2014 dollars were spent on...