WHY? WHY? WHY?

Nelson King

It has become the established usage and custom of York Council No.133 of the Allied Masonic Degrees of America, at the installation of the Sovereign Master, to have the Sovereign Master deliver a paper to the Council. The paper that I am going to deliver to you may in some cases may shock you, some of you will agree with me, some of you will not, some of you may even get angry. But I would hope that you will receive this paper with an open mind.

North American Freemasonry is on a decline, in fact it is in a downward death spiral the likes of which have never before been seen. Why? Why is membership declining so rapidly? Why are new Masons so hard to keep interested in Masonry? Why? Why? Why?

I am of the firm belief that North American Grand Lodges, have for years not been making Masons, but rather gathering members. Listen to any Past Master and you will hear him say."In my year I Initiated X number of candidates." The number of members of a Lodge or a Grand Lodge has become the mark by which success has been measured. We have for to long been playing a numbers game. The mentality has been those with the greatest number win.

We have forgotten the primary reasons for the existence of Freemasonry - BROTHERHOOD - FRIENDSHIP - CLOSENESS. We idolizing bigness. A Masonic Lodge should be small to promote the purpose for the existence of the Fraternity. For example today we have Lodges that still have 200 - 300 members, but if 20 - 30 come out for a regular meeting we consider this a successful meeting. Why? Is it not because we have made members, not Masons? Would it not be better to have a small lodge where everyone knows each other? Lodges were Brotherly Love, is the first order of business. Small Lodges work, ask any member of UGLE, where once a Lodge has 50 Masons it must think about starting another Lodge, and must split when the number of Masons reach 75. And yes the Lodges in the provinces are growing, faster than the urban Lodges, again because in the smaller communities everyone knows everyone and true Masonry can be practiced.

However, today Grand Lodges are still playing the numbers game. Decline of membership is so great that some Grand Lodges are panicking Some are holding Grand Master Classes. Classes in which anywhere from 100 - 800 plus members are given the 3 degrees in one day. Classes in which if held on a weekend the new members of the Craft, can be held over to be give all the AASR Degrees in one more day, and then onward to the Shrine. They in my opinion are making members, NOT MASONS.

We have had these one day Masons try to visit Lodges in Ontario, but they have been unable to pass a simple Board of Trial. They have a dues card but no knowledge of Craft, they have been refused entry into our Lodges, because they cannot answer the simplest of questions from the Board of Trial.

The philosophy has been and still is members, members and even more members. Number of new members equals success. We have lost our Masonic direction. Because of this we have lost what it means to be a Mason. This phenomena of numbers has produce Lodge Officers, Masters, and Grand Lodge Officers, who have no or little idea of what it means to be a Freemason. We pass candidates from one degree to the next, from one chair to the next chair, who have not learned what it means to be a Mason. Oh sure some of them can do ritual, but ritual does not a Mason make. We elect Masters, not on merit, but due to the fact that he progressed from one chair to the next, and maybe he is a good ritualist, but is he knowledgeable, is he a good Mason, is he a leader, does he have merit? In a majority of cases the answer is no. Is it any wonder so many Lodges are in trouble? Is it no wonder attendance is poor?

We elect Grand Lodge Officers not because of merit, but because of the old boys' system. Politics are a banned discussions in Lodges, but we play politics when we elect our Grand Lodge Officers. How often have we all seen DDGM's who do not have clue as how to run Lodge, or a District? DDGM's who have little or no concept of what Freemasonry is all about, DDGM's some of who don't even know when to sit or stand during the opening and closing of a Lodge. DDGM's who are elected because it was his Lodges turn, or because he had the "right" people backing him. Is this leadership?

Let me share with you a comment made by a well-respected Mason in another Jurisdiction.

" . . . the problem is that all too many senior Grand Lodge officers today seem to have managed to escape from learning by the experiences of the Mastership of the Lodge. They believe that a few terms in ceremonial teams and some pleasantly comfortable years at the center of power is what it is all about. These are the people who presume to rule over the remainder of the Craft. To impose their views and opinions in a most unmasonic way."

He goes on to say.

"Many senior Grand Lodge officers seem to have no other motive than the collection of Gold braid and Royal Blue cloth. To see them strutting about and reveling in their own self importance can be an utterly sickening sight. But even worse is to realize that many of these men who are supposedly shining examples of virtue and knowledge are nothing more than two legged egos looking for their next fix at the altar of their exclusive little mutual admiration society. Their knowledge and understanding of Freemasonry is woefully, even criminally poor. To think that these are the guardians of such a sacred trust as the mysteries of the Craft is, to say the least, disconcerting."

My Brethren is it not time for us to revert to the Ancient Charges of a Freemason? These charges which can be found in our Book of Constitution, and ought be read in open Lodge at least once a year.

One of the Charges state:

"All preferment among Masons is grounded upon real worth and personal merit only, so that the lodges may be well served, the brethren not put to shame, nor the royal Craft despised; therefore no Master or Warden is chosen by seniority, but for his merit."

Is it not time that we reverted to being Freemasons and once again following the Ancient Charges? Why are we always trying to reinvent Masonry? There is nothing wrong with Freemasonry.

Do I have an answer? No. But I have the privilege because of my job, of knowing what other Grand Lodges are doing. For example one Grand Lodge, the fee for joining is in excess of $1800.00 US. The annual dues run from $500.00 to $1000.00 US. You can expect to wait 1 to 3 years after making application before you are initiated. You must attach a written police report to your application. You will be interviewed by the Lodge in the Lodge room, 2 to 5 times before your application is even voted on. After initiation you will spend anywhere from 18 months to 36 months before you are passed to the second degree. You will write papers on what it means to you to be a Mason, and deliver these papers in open Lodge. You must understand what it means to be a Mason. You will then be voted on before receiving the next degree. The same procedure is carried on for the third degree. You will spend anywhere from 2 to 5 years before you are a Master Mason. Very rarely do members miss meetings. If they do, they phone the secretary to advise him why they are missing. They have long waiting lists of men who want to become a Mason. This Grand Lodge doubles in size every 9 years, many of the Lodges are young. The average size of a lodge is 45 members, and the largest has 120 they normally split in two, creating a new lodge when they reach 60 Masons. From the average of 45 members, about 30 to 35 attend every time. They have an average of 5 candidates per year. The candidates are generally between ages 25 and 40. They say the two major reasons for their success is keeping the lodges' small, so they know each other well, and the papers and lectures they have at each meeting. Yes to them it means something to be a Mason. It is a way of life.

This a far cry from a Lodge that has 500 members and only 12 show up for regular meetings.

I realize that I have more questions than answers, but our Gentle Craft in North America is dying. I have only one more question. What are you going to do about it?