Official Visit Strong Lodge #423 – November 10, 2009
By R.W. Bro. Terry M. Hornibrook, DDGM

The Relevancy of Masonry Today

Brethren, for many years we have complained and moaned about the loss of members, the number of lodges going dark or amalgamating and shrugged our shoulders as if there was nothing we could do at the lodge level. It was always, "what is Grand Lodge doing about it?" Indeed the idea that Grand Lodge is some how to blame for this situation is still prevalent. However lodges have a reat deal of freedom to arrange their own affairs.

When we ask the question, is Freemasonry relevant, we need to define what we mean by the word. A carpenter would use a hammer to drive a nail, a tool that would be relevant to the task while a crowbar would not be. Having defined relevant we need to ask to whom is Masonry relevant or appropriate. There are probably three different groups to consider: I would define them as attendees, non-attendees and the public.

I characterize attendees as those who are older, have been in the Craft for a while and attend meetings regularly. I am sure that many of you here are in that group. You consider Masonry as an appropriate institution to belong to. The second category is the one that should concern us the most. It seems that the non-attendees are responding with their feet. By either failing to attend their lodge or taking demits. If the join a lodge but never show up at the meetings it clearly means that the activities in the lodge have no interest for them or the lodge has not shown enough interest in them.

Lets have a look at a typical lodge meeting. Degree work is usually the only activity taking place and the quality of work is often less than satisfactory. New Masons are often left to fend for themselves after being admonished to make a daily advancement in Masonic knowledge. There is very little attempt to explain or examine the Ritual or discuss the philosophy and symbolism. Members seem to be in a hurry to get their work done and be out the door as fast as possible. Enjoying a social time together after lodge is less common than it used to be. Taken collectively, the result of this for many brethren is a rather depressing and unfulfilling experience. No wonder the new brethren don't attend lodge. Going to lodge should be an uplifting experience; it should be a completely rounded evening. More than just degrees should be included in the evening, education, innovation, participation and enthusiasm are just as important. doing these together and giving members a sense of pride and of belonging to something meaningful and unique. Clearly the lodge experience for these members falls well short of relevant.

The third category, the general public, may not even be aware of Freemasonry or if they are they likely have a negative view. How can we convince them that we are relevant today. To put it another way, if the  public was aware of the virtues of masonry, would they consider the things we do, the way we behave outside the lodge to be relevant. Meaning appropriate to society. Before we can decide whether Masonry is relevant however we  need to agree on what we actually do or try to do in society. This is not an easy question to answer because the importance of the Craft to you will depend on your own interpretation of what it does or doesn't do. Masonry has been described as fraternal, as a charitable society or a moral society. We may be fraternal, but that can't be the whole story as there are many other organizations that are fraternal in nature such as the Lions, Rotary, Kinsmen etc. We may also be charitable, but if we restrict ourselves to this definition we join the 22,000 other registered charities operating in Canada as well as non-registered ones which do good works in numerous local areas. Finally if we define ourselves as moral we compete directly with all the religious institutions that claim to teach moral codes of behaviour.

So what kind of society are we? If ewe can't define ourselves we have an identity crisis. We love to describe ourselves as a beautiful system of morality veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols, which sounds convincing rolling off our tongues but what does it actually mean? Do any of us really understand? We get all bound up in high-flown phrases and in the process tend to lose sight of their meanings. It is nice to think that we are a system of morality so where do we go from there? I suggest that we're fraternal, charitable and even moral in a general sense but these are just words. We have to get back to the ground level, to basic principles to understand what Masonry really is. We are to take good men and not make them better -but give them the tools; active encouragement, and the support to make themselves better: to improve their characters, to get rid of vices and start focusing on virtues. That's the basis of Freemasonry and we should never forget it.

We have not discussed the glaring gap between what lodges do and what they are intended to do. Remember the charge to the newly installed master where he is told to charge his brethren to practice outside the lodge those excellent precepts, which are inculcated within. That statement hits at the core of what we are and what distinguishes us from all the other organizations. To inculcated means to persistently impress an idea upon somebody. This suggests that there ought to be an active process within every lodge to impress Masonic principles onto the brethren, especially the newer ones. What steps are being taken in our lodges to do this?

There are tools available in the lodge for every brother to see and use but their meanings will need explaining. That is the job of the worshipful master and the senior brethren. Having the tools is good, but the explanations and mentoring are every bit as important. This is what inculcating our precepts means. so after being given the necessary support and encouragement if we are not practicing our precepts outside the building we are simply playacting. Playing lip service to something we don't really believe or which we don't really understand. All other characteristics flow from this: charity, fraternity, morality and so on. So, what is the relevance of Freemasonry to the general public?

I would answer thus. Freemasonry and its principles are absolutely vital to society, especially in today's world when moral conduct seems to be declining, courtesy is less in evidence, many of our young people lack good role models. Honesty, uprightness and fair play are no longer considered important. Putting Masonic principles into action outside the lodge as well as inside will make Masonry relevant to society in general and to our non-attending brethren as well. I challenge all of us to go forward and do our utmost to make our beloved Fraternity relevant now and for future generations.