Shrine in Arkansas drops MM requirement

[XUSMICO]

Don't know where I'm at with this. Most join to become a shriner, and you never see them back in a blue lodge, except for attending a 3rd degree, so they can recruit for the Shrine. I find this just a waste of time to do the ritual for someone that will never come back to lodge.

Exactly so. A Shriner will carry BL petitions with them, when asked how one becomes a Shriner, it looks like fun. The Shriner will say one has to first be a Mason. How do I become a Mason? You ask one. (the reason a hate the 2be1ask1 stickers) Can I become a Mason? The Shriner whips out the BL petition. Is it legal under the Masonic Code? Yes. Ethical NO. I can state this as FACT as I personally see happen, more than once. Is it petitioning a lodge for mercenary motives? IMHO if joining the BL only to member of the Shrine, YES. I will not waste my time coaching such a person.

 

[XUSMICO]

https://freemasonsfordummies.blogspot.com/2013/01/south-carolina-suspends-relations-with.html

Just found this. Anyone have additional info.

 

[Warrior1256]

22-40 meetings? Blimey! Is that actual open lodge meetings or does it include rehearsals and committees?

One of the lodges that I belong to, Suburban 740, meets every Thursday evening for regular lodge meetings. On months that have a 5th Thursday they have a family night dinner.

 

[Brother JC]

https://freemasonsfordummies.blogspot.com/2013/01/south-carolina-suspends-relations-with.html

Just found this. Anyone have additional info.

It was seven years ago, I’m sure you could search and find lots more recent info.

 

[Brother JC]

22-40 meetings? Blimey! Is that actual open lodge meetings or does it include rehearsals and committees?

My California lodge opens twenty-four times a year every year, plus any Degrees we might do outside of that (rare). We also have twelve educational meetings. All thirty-six are required unless excused by the Master.

 

[XUSMICO]

I'm a mason and former Shriner. I hate to say it but the shrine in Arkansas is in a pit I don't see them climbing out of. Not only did they drop the requirements, the diluted the ceremony to nothing. When I entered the shrine, they took all the candidates to the center of lodge and read a short 2 page "summary" and told us the passwords etc. It took maybe an hour.

I asked why they did it and was told it was due to younger initiates joining, and not having the time or desire to memorize lengthy parts that might be considered boring.

My fellow brothers, I find this very disturbing. So much is at risk of being lost forever. With how much it has progressed thus far, the future of the shrine in Arkansas appears dismal.

Years ago, after I left the Shrine, they began to have "open" initiations where family, girlfriends could attend what was previously closed rites. Next Shriner's wives began to put on "pink lodges" where they insulted the BL degree work by putting skits of what they thought the BL degrees were. I threw down the flag and was privately told, by Shriner's to back off it was just for fun. My retort: Don't make fun of BL sacred work. These are the same Brothers who ignore the rituals to substitute things they thought should be said and done over what was supposed to be said and done. All for "fun" not for the true meaning of the degree work. Took the fight to GL. That was useless as all the GL Officers were Shriners. Lost that fight. Short of bringing up 2/3s of the lodge on charges, that would have been a waste of time I began to look for a lodge that was true to the Masonic work. Those lodges are getting hard to find. If a Master tries to bring order back, the Shriners either make work too difficult or simply stop attending lodge until a Shrine friendly Master is in the chair.
SHrine International bylaws require good standing in a BL. excommunicated Masons whom the SI allows to stay means SI is in direct violation of its' own rules. Things being what they are, SI needs to get out of Masonry, just as they did by dropping the SR or YR membership. Yes BLs will loose members but what have they lost? I know very few active Shrines who are regular active members of the BL. Not all but most raerly attend their BL after Shrine indoc.

 

[Scoops]

My California lodge opens twenty-four times a year every year, plus any Degrees we might do outside of that (rare). We also have twelve educational meetings. All thirty-six are required unless excused by the Master.

Most lodges here open once a month and go dark during the summer, so that's usually 8 meetings a year.

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[Glen Cook]

......
SHrine International bylaws require good standing in a BL. excommunicated Masons whom the SI allows to stay means SI is in direct violation of its' own rules. Things being what they are, SI needs to get out of Masonry, just as they did by dropping the SR or YR membership. Yes BLs will loose members but what have they lost? I know very few active Shrines who are regular active members of the BL.....

Actually, Shrine bylaws do allow an expelled mason to remain a Shriner if the underlying offense was not a Shrine offense. We haven’t had that circumstance since Michigan in 2011.

You now know another Shriner who is an active blue lodge mason. In fact, all but two potentates of my Shrine Temple in the last 15 years are PMs. Two are PGMs.

 

[Bloke]

I think one of the wonderful things about Freemasonry is it affords many places for a man to find *his* place. I think Craft Lodges should be grateful for the support non-attending but financial members give it. I think that happens for a lot of reasons, but if one is because the Craft is not interesting enough to hold those members to it, that is not the "Other Orders" or members failing, it's the Craft Lodge's failing.

I don't blame other orders for "taking our members away", I take responsibility for making my Craft lodge interesting and enjoyable so people want to come, and if they cannot, then making them feel it is important enough not to resign, not because they need it to be a member of another Order, but because the Craft needs to be supported because it is so important.

I encourage men to join other Orders, but also to find their own path and time frame in that, especially as the Craft is deep and takes time to really comprehend - and you need to be able to do that to properly live its values.

 

[Pscyclepath]

Is there anything new on this matter between the GL of Arkansas and the Shrine?

Things are finally cooling off. The Grand Lodge of Arkansas has reconciled with the Shrine, and as of about two years ago, the Shrine is once again a recognized organization. We have had a sizable purge within the ranks of past grand masters, and the election of some more progressive grand masters with good leadership traits and a whole lot less ego. It's been some tough years, but hopefully we're on a path to recovery of what Masonry is all about.

The Shrine passed a rule back in 2013 or so which allowed members to join with out having to be a Master Mason; that allowance has been revoked (as of late July, 2019) and the new rule establishes a time limit where former Shriners who demitted or were expelled from the Grand Lodge, or those who joined without becoming Master Masons, to petition a local lodge and restore (or accomplish) their blue lodge membership. Masons in good standing are allowed to petition and join the Shrine in good standing, just as it was before the Great Breakup.

I went to a Shrine dinner and membership recruitment meeting last Friday evening in company with several of our lodge members, and was greeted by none other than our immediate past grand master (in his fez). It was a good meeting, with a lot of good fellowship, and a very positive impression...

 

[jermy Bell]

I wish masonry would separate from the shrine. To me they are just a embarrassment.

 

[Glen Cook]

I wish masonry would separate from the shrine. To me they are just a embarrassment.

I haven’t experienced that.

Note, those who are the embarrassment are all masons. Each were voted into a lodge. So, perhaps it is masons who shouldn’t exist?

It would also appear that the behavior would still exist, as the individuals involved in the behavior would still be masons.

 

[Winter]

Wow. This thread has been going for almost 8 years. That was some bit of reading to catch up! Grumble grumble necro something grumble. lol

I've never been shy about my view that the Shrine should drop it's MM requirement. They do great work with their hospitals and while I've never been a member, I did play in a Shrine band and they seem to have fun. But the Shrine isn't part of emblematic Freemasonry. Let them be their own organization and stop forcing men to maintain a membership in a Craft Lodge when they have no interest in Freemasonry whatsoever. The Shrine members who want to remain part of Freemasonry will still do so.

 

[Glen Cook]

Wow. This thread has been going for almost 8 years. That was some bit of reading to catch up! Grumble grumble necro something grumble. lol

I've never been shy about my view that the Shrine should drop it's MM requirement. They do great work with their hospitals and while I've never been a member, I did play in a Shrine band and they seem to have fun. But the Shrine isn't part of emblematic Freemasonry. Let them be their own organization and stop forcing men to maintain a membership in a Craft Lodge when they have no interest in Freemasonry whatsoever. The Shrine members who want to remain part of Freemasonry will still do so.

I do agree that Shrine doesn’t advance the Hiramic legend.
But does KT?

 

[Winter]

I do agree that Shrine doesn’t advance the Hiramic legend.
But does KT?

I went through the KT degrees 20 years ago. While the degrees are beautiful and enriching, I don't know that they really add anything to the Hiramic legend from what I recall of them, being overtly Christian in nature and dealing more with those themes. The same with the Cryptic degrees, which I hardly recall at all. But I am a big fan of the Capitular degrees in the Chapter and think every Mason should experience them.

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[Warrior1256]

I do agree that Shrine doesn’t advance the Hiramic legend.
But does KT?

Good point! However, I love the York Rite but would strongly resist any attempt to separate it from the Masonic appendant bodies by dropping the Master Mason requirement in order to join.