Brethren, I'm sure the majority of you have heard the expression "Minding the West Gate". How do you personally go about doing this?
When I encounter a man of quality who I wish were a Brother I tell him "Are you aware that there are generally no invitations to become a Mason? Anyone who waits for an invitation will never get one." At which point my wife says "He may be forbidden by his lodge's rules to invite you to become a Mason but I'm not. I invite you to join the Masons."
Thank you for insulting every man who has petitioned in the last several decades...
What a bizzare attempt at changing the topic. How is the fact that Masonry without invitations depends on the quality of petitioners an insult to those good men who by random chance decided to ask? This is the sort of knee jerk reaction that happens when someone encounters the unknown and reacts in fear. "We've never done it that way before".
To not understand why one must NOT be invited, is to not understand Freemasonry, in my small and humble opinion.
There are entire jurisdictions in Europe who functioned by invitations. Please take a step back and consider that you just claimed that our brothers in those jurisdictions don't understand Masonry.
Maybe "We've never done it that way before" in your jurisdictions or mine but Masonry is world wide so in Masonry "we" means the world. In the world "we" have absolutely done it that way before and it has worked very well.
I think a lot of masons confuse initiating a mason by invitation with inviting them to come and learn more about masonry of their own accord. The former conflicts with several precepts and promotes cronyism while the latter is just plain smart for the successful growth of the craft IMO. Over-enforcing the ban against the former, I feel, discourages the latter as an unfortunate consequence.
Seeing a man who lives masonry at heart in his daily life and him never becoming a mason because I never said a word to him and he didn't think to ask is just a shame. I don't have to "invite" him, but telling him that I see something in him and he could certainly be a great fit in our society I see as something to be encouraged. It would hardly be construed as a mercenary motive to join and he still has to ask and join on his own and not by outside pressure. My thoughts.
I suggest folks may be confusing what an invitation means. The principle has always been that a man must come to our doors without any pressure. I don't know what you think about invitations but to me the word has never included any hint of pressure. I invite people to my birthday party and if they fail to answer there's no punishment.
A well-worded approach breaks no one's vow ... as pointed out by a past Grand Master of a few years back here in Texas.
An invitation to a good and true man to explore the craft from a distance. Not a bad proposition in my book.
A tale told by a Deputy Grand Master of California now long since MW PGM -
There was a card club in his neighborhood and for years he had enjoyed the social company of one of his neighbor families at these games. The table discussions had long included mention of lodge events and events at other societies. At last the neighbor exclaimed "All of these stories of lodge events but you've never invited me to become a Mason!" The RW Brother answered "There are no invitations to become a Mason. Never. It's against our rules." He didn't say if his neighbor petitioned. Think of this my Brothers - A member of the progressive grand line in a state with a large Masonic population and he was losing petitioners for not knowing how to gracefully handle the rule that forbids invitations.
My tales -
I was at a family wedding. At our table was a man wearing a Masonic ring. I asked him about it. He was an Inspector (DDGM in the terminology of most jurisdictions). We chatted about Masonry for a while. The part I remember is when he said "Most men don't know that there are never any invitations to become a Mason. The only way to join is to go to lodge and ask for a petition".
A couple of years later I told a friend that I was considering joining some fraternal order or service club. I knew my friend to be a 50 year Mason. He told me "I can invite you to join the Elks, but I can't invite you to become a Mason".
It took me a while but I added those two conversations together and I went to lodge and asked for a petition.
My conclusion remains - The best way to guard the West is to grow up out of the idea that an invitation in any way includes pressure. The result of our lack of invitations is the need for criminal background checks because we don't know who knocked on our door. The result of our lack of invitations is so many eminent men who never join because they were never invited.
There are entire jurisdictions that have always worked by invitation and it has served them well. Invitations - WE have ALWAYS done it that way in those jurisdictions.