Has the time come to reach out and ask for new members?

[Winter]

Every time I repair statement like this I feel compelled to point out that it seems like the number of Masons who know the actual purpose of Freemasonry is either few or none. Those who claim to know the actual secrets are keeping them so secret that they never pass them on. This leaves each man to guess at the secrets as best he can and make his Masonry the best way he can. We call it a fraternity but in my experience Freemasonry is a very lonely road. Or perhaps I am just to dense to get it.

This bothers me because our purpose isn't a secret at all. It's laid out pretty clearly in the degrees. I think the problem lies in that so many Lodge's see the degrees as a hurdle to get over so the new initiate is a dues paying member rather than seeing the rituals for what they are, the blueprint for our Masonic journey. Yet, so many Lodges never revisit the teachings set out in the Work after their Raising. But I guarantee there are half a dozen Brothers putting a petition in their hand for this appendant body or that.

 

[Brother RG]

Those are all laudable endeavors. But none of them are the actual purpose of Freemasonry. It seems like you are portraying the Craft as a charity/volunteer group.

Sounds to me like all you want to do is stay in your lodge with the rest of the brothers, by all means go for it, but one of our greatest tenants is Charity! Why wouldn't you want to be part of a community! Freemasons do good in the world and if it takes going out and volunteering I'm okay with that! Please don't assume that i'm portraying anything! You speak of a blueprint for our Masonic journey but isn't this journey supposed to be Making good men better? If your journey means keeping yourself behind that door in your lodge, eating dinner and going back home then hey good for you. You also mentioned something about "change the problem that is causing people to not come find you"... maybe not being part of the community is the problem since no one knows you exist.

If my response bothered you then I would love to know what your answer would be if someone approached you with the question of "what do freemasons do".

 

[Winter]

Sounds to me like all you want to do is stay in your lodge with the rest of the brothers, by all means go for it, but one of our greatest tenants is Charity! Why wouldn't you want to be part of a community! Freemasons do good in the world and if it takes going out and volunteering I'm okay with that! Please don't assume that i'm portraying anything! You speak of a blueprint for our Masonic journey but isn't this journey supposed to be Making good men better? If your journey means keeping yourself behind that door in your lodge, eating dinner and going back home then hey good for you.

If my response bothered you then I would love to know what your answer would be if someone approached you with the question of "what do freemasons do".

Please reread my post where I clearly stated that charity and volunteering are laudable activities but are not our actual stated purpose as laid out in our degree work. My statement was challenging your patently false accusation that Masons who know our purpose are few or none. If it is that way in your area, I am sorry. But that is not the case in every jurisdiction. I am trying to read your post "assuming positive intent" but your wording and several exclamation points is making it hard for me to take your replay as anything other than as an insult.

 

[Pointwithinacircle3]

There appear to be, as often happens, two topics under discussion in this thread. One being “How do we make good men better” And the other being “How do we conduct ourselves as better men”. Both topics are valuable.

 

[Bloke]

Sounds to me like all you want to do is stay in your lodge with the rest of the brothers, by all means go for it, but one of our greatest tenants is Charity! Why wouldn't you want to be part of a community! Freemasons do good in the world and if it takes going out and volunteering I'm okay with that! Please don't assume that i'm portraying anything! You speak of a blueprint for our Masonic journey but isn't this journey supposed to be Making good men better? If your journey means keeping yourself behind that door in your lodge, eating dinner and going back home then hey good for you. You also mentioned something about "change the problem that is causing people to not come find you"... maybe not being part of the community is the problem since no one knows you exist.

If my response bothered you then I would love to know what your answer would be if someone approached you with the question of "what do freemasons do".

I am focusing on

....If my response bothered you then I would love to know what your answer would be if someone approached you with the question of "what do freemasons do".

Here is a challenge for you Bro, talk about Freemasonry without mentioning charity. Why ? Because Freemasonry is neither a charity nor a service organisation. In my opinion, talking about Freemasonry without mentioning charity will refine your understanding of it.

... , but one of our greatest tenants is Charity! ...".

I agree - charity is one of our greatest tenets. (And I will help you as someone once helped me when I made the same easy mistake, it's not "tenents" but "tenets" - it's super easy to slip the extra "n" into "tenets"). Lodges do not exist as a fund raising body or a workgroup for community service, they exist because of the ceremonial and social aspect and for education and self development. Charity and Benevolence are core activities of most Freemasons, and they certainly are core values, but they are not the reason Freemasonry exists, at its core, improvement of the individual is why lodges exist, and we do that together as a social group supporting each other in that goal - but ultimately is an individual pursuit.

Getting out and helping makes us feel good. It helps others. But it is simply one small part of much wider lessons. That's why we speak of Charity AND Benevolence and not just charity.

 

[Bloke]

W

I rather think that the common use of the term Charity is not what is meant in the ritual. The Latin word Caritate is translated to Love.

Thus Faith, Hope and Charity is better as Faith, Hope and Love. After all "our God is a god of love".

Hence we have "brotherly love, relief and truth". We practice the first two but do not know how to practice truth. We have the remanent of practising truth when we are taught about the plumbline.

"JPS Tanakh 1917
And the LORD said unto me: 'Amos, what seest thou?' And I said: 'A plumbline.' Then said the Lord: Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of My people Israel; I will not again pardon them any more;"

Thus the plumbline is such a sure measure of what is true that the God of the Israel saw no need for forgiveness of sin.

Unfortunately Freemasonry can no longer prove what is true to what, having lost the practical aspects of Masonic Science.

But at least we can give away money to the worthy.

Perhaps that is a bit blunt. Just as well truth is last on the list.

We're topic drifting, but that's what good conversations do.

Bro James, why do you think we speak of both Benevolence and Charity. What's the difference ?

 

[Bloke]

Benevolence is literally wishing good thereby it is an attitude. Charity in modern (but not ancient) parlance is doing things that are intended be good for the target/recipient.

It is common that good deeds are done in a way that makes the doer feel good.

I read that a billionaire gave laptops to African villages that did not have electricity. Mostly charity is less obviously giver-oriented.

Thanks

 

[Brother RG]

I am focusing on


Here is a challenge for you Bro, talk about Freemasonry without mentioning charity. Why ? Because Freemasonry is neither a charity nor a service organisation. In my opinion, talking about Freemasonry without mentioning charity will refine your understanding of it.


I agree - charity is one of our greatest tenets. (And I will help you as someone once helped me when I made the same easy mistake, it's not "tenents" but "tenets" - it's super easy to slip the extra "n" into "tenets"). Lodges do not exist as a fund raising body or a workgroup for community service, they exist because of the ceremonial and social aspect and for education and self development. Charity and Benevolence are core activities of most Freemasons, and they certainly are core values, but they are not the reason Freemasonry exists, at its core, improvement of the individual is why lodges exist, and we do that together as a social group supporting each other in that goal - but ultimately is an individual pursuit.

Getting out and helping makes us feel good. It helps others. But it is simply one small part of much wider lessons. That's why we speak of Charity AND Benevolence and not just charity.

I appreciate the correction on the word Tenets.

I don't really want to keep this thread going but I guess i'm still somewhat cloudy on the topic that I was originally responding to which was "changing the problem that is causing people to not come find you". How are people supposed to know that a fraternity of "good men" exist if they aren't seeing it with their own eyes. Masonry is an individual pursuit but if no one knows a group that can help with that pursuit exists how will they come knocking? No one is promoting community services but are we to disregard it? Why learn how to be a great man and not apply it to the world... it seems to me like thats referring to keeping it bottled up inside because its an individual pursuit.

You made great points but I feel like the conversation went off somewhat, I never questioned the existence of Freemasonry all I stated was that one way we can change the problem that is causing people to not come find you is by being out there with the community. Of course its a self improvement but what good does learning a craft if we can't apply it. What good is a doctor if he doesn't want to heal people?

Like I said maybe i'm just not understanding where this conversation is going but I appreciate all of you brothers.

 

[Brother_Steve]

Invite:
make a polite, formal, or friendly request to (someone) to go somewhere or to do something.
"we were invited to a dinner at the Embassy"

Inviting people to join implies that they are already accepted. How disappointed would they be if they were then told there is a process to join and a possible rejection?

I am not opposed to hint that someone would make a good mason, but I would never lead them on to believe there was no vetting purpose.

 

[Todd M. Stewart]

This question takes me back to a more fundamental question that I think Freemasonry has been avoiding for too long. I spoke to it in reference to MWB Dwight L. Smith's essay's "Whither are we Traveling" and "Why This Confusion at the Temple" and "Laudable Pursuit: A 21st Century Response to Dwight Smith" from the Knights of the North in the thread here:
https://www.myfreemasonry.com/threads/are-you-a-born-again-fundamentalist-freemason.30565/

The thread also has all three essays attached.

 

[Bloke]

....Like I said maybe i'm just not understanding where this conversation is going but I appreciate all of you brothers.

I don't understand where it is going either.. but that's okay I like a good meandering conversation.

And I agree. We do need to be seen. We've picked up members by eating at the pub.... but I think the main thing is that people know about us and the best way is when good men own their membership by talking about it.

I'll PM you..