I have to agree with a few others who have pointed out the flaws with your study. Aside from a high school level research paper, the methodology used here simply wouldn't hold up as a valid form of research. I'm not sure that any worthwhile data could be gathered, and it's validity is suspect at best. I think your intentions are noble, but I also think the results (if ever completed) would be so inaccurate that they would overshadow the purpose of the study. Realistically, several key factors are unknown:
- Are respondents real Masons?
- Are the questions being answered with factual data or opinion?
- If factual data, can it be sourced and referenced?
Additionally, many of the questions are inconsistent. One minute, you're asking for a single person to speak for an entire jurisdiction, the next, at the local lodge level, and the next on a personal level. This alone invalidates the study for all practical reasons because the demographic hasn't been zeroed in.
Again, I will agree with others and say that it seems like you're trying to paint a picture with a snowblower. Restructure your questions. Refine your study. Redefine your purpose.
= = = = =
To Browncoat, James and whoever else may read this:
As I promised to James yesterday, the following is the information I received from Masons in two jurisdictions, so far representing the most successful and the worse. I will at the end comment on your posts.
Study on the present conditions of Freemasonry in the world.
The purpose of this research is to form a
snapshot of the
Present Conditions of Masonry in the world,as compared to the past, and draw from it lessons that may help us Masons work to address present issues, recognize successes or failures, and find solutions for the better future of our Craft. The sources of the information I may receive will remain completely confidential. At the conclusion of this study I will disclose my findings, but not the sources, to all those who have contributed, and they will be free to use this information as they deem it proper.
Information received from one European Jurisdiction [See Note 1 below]
Questions:
- 1. Total number of members in your Grand Jurisdiction - Are the numbers up or down? (As compared to 10 - 20 years ago)
A. 22,000 members, growing [16,000 in 204; 22,223 in 2014; in 834 lodges, of which 22 newly chartered in 2014]
- 2. On the whole, do you feel the lodges in your jurisdiction are prospering or declining?
A. Prospering, but the education's level is mostly unsatisfactory
- 3. What are the causes of this prosperity, or decline?
A. Many young people hope to find their values, because they are deluded by politics and religion.
- 4. Which segments of the population/professions constitute the membership in your area?
A. Graduates, mid-class and professionals, some students. Few blue collars.
- 5. What is the average age now found among the members? Is the age average now changed (up or down) as compared to the past?
A. Average 50 years old, moving toward 40
- 6. What is the average membership size of yourLodges?
A. 25-30
- 7. What percentage of the membership is usually present at the lodge meetings?
A. 50 - 60%
- 8. How often do members meet, in lodge or socially, each month?
A. Twice a month as lodge.
- 9. Do your lodges meet in the summer months?
A. Sometimes
- 10. With the exception of members who can not attend the meetings, due to illness or distance, what remedies or sanctions are enforced against the defaulting members (e.g. complaint, summons to appear and to justify their absence, expulsion or other ....); how common are these cases?
A. Not very common. Often complaints, very rarely expulsion due to absences or misbehavior (these Brethren are urged to demit).
- 11. Are the temple’s building generally the property of the lodge, co-owned with other lodges, or rented from others (commercial enterprise)?
A. In the biggest cities they are owned by a company controlled by Grande Lodge: in small towns they are rented.
- 12. Are the membership fees sufficient to pay for the maintenance of the Temple, or are some of the Temple facilities rented to the public, to balance income and expenses?
A. They are sufficient; fully covered by membership fees.
- 13. What is the average cost of a) admission (Initiation), and b) the annual fees? Are there additional fees charged for c) each degree?
A. a) 500 - 800 euro; b) 500 euro; c) yes, 250 - 270 euro
- 14. What are the most common reasons today in your Grand Jurisdiction that entice a petitioner to join a Lodge?
A. Good reputation, good culture and interest in our traditions. Desire to become a better man, in every respect. The quest of spirituality, fee from dogmas, plays a significant role, too, even if not for the majority of petitioners.
- 15. Must the Petitioner be known to one or more members of the Lodge?
A. Preferably yes, but not necessarily. A Brother must sign the petition, vouching for him. If unknown, the time for acceptance is longer. [See Note 1 below]
- 16. What investigations about the Applicant for membership are conducted by the lodge after receiving an application for membership – how thorough are these investigations?
A. Usually, three Brethren have a chat with him, trying to understand the very reasons of his request, plus: Police report and investigations at his workplace, and within his family.
- 17. Are Applicants ever rejected - What are usually the reasons for rejection?
A. Some 10% are rejecteddue to bad information from Brethren, for not believing in a supreme being. A petitioner is also rejected if he appears to be neither a free man nor of good report.
- 18. How does an Apprentice qualify for the next level; and the Fellow-craft for the Master's degree? How long does it take for these qualification as a rule?
A. It depends on the lodge. Some lodges require his regular attendance, some others ask for a paper, too. Generallythe behavior of the Apprentice and Fellow in the Lodge and outside the Lodge is a factor. For the Fellows the quality of their Papers in the Lodge is also a factor. The elapse of time between each degree is one year, but in some lodges it is longer, typically 3 years from Apprentice to Fellow; 1 to 2 years from Fellow to Master.
- 19. Is a Candidate required to present in lodge one or more Papers (Lectures) to qualify for the next level? [See answer above]
- 20. Are apprenticespermittedto speakinLodge?
A. Not at all. Unless asked by the W. M.
- 21. Is the belief in a “Creator” an indispensable condition for the admission of an applicant?
A. Yes.
- 22. Are any believers of other (not mainstream) faiths excluded from membership?
A. No.
- 23. Is the belief that the Scriptures (of any religion) constitute the will of God - a determining factor for the approval of an applicant?
A. No. The sense of transcendence is sufficient.
- 24. Universality. – As an Example, would a just, righteous and reputable North American Indian (true believer in its traditional spirituality) be admitted in a lodge of your Grand Jurisdiction? - such an Indian having no Bible or equivalent Holy Scriptures, but his spirituality and his faithfulness is represented by the Eagle Feather, holding which he swears and feels bound by it. You will find the reasons for this strange question here: http://www.freemasonryresearchforumqsa.com/the-eagle-feather.php
A. Yes
- 25. Besides the Bible, what other holy writings are permitted to be displayed on the altar of the Lodges in your Grand Jurisdiction?
A. Those requested by the Brethren.
- 26. Except for the conferral of degrees (Rituals), what other activities are usually undertaken by the lodge?
A. Discussion on lectures or papers on a wide variety of topics, except Politics and Religion, delivered by Brethren and candidates for advancement. All the Brethren (except Apprentices) are encouraged to participate in the discussion.
- 27. What public activities for the benefit of the community do the lodges carry on?
A. Public meetings (conventions). Also, we do charity work both at the central level (GL) and at the local level, based on the economic capabilities of the lodges and of the regional district. We do help individuals and also have institutions for helping homeless and people in need.
- 28. What is the perception of Freemasonry by the general public in your area? (City, State, Province or Country)
A. Bad, in times and the regions where the Catholic Church or political parties demonize Freemasonry as a secret society with ulterior purposes. But the GL is actively pursuing the goal to change this sentiment through transparency, good behavior and public activities.
- 29. Does the assertion: “Masonry is not only the most ancient, but the most moral human institution that ever existed” sounds true to your members? [Note: this question was not present in List of Questions when this study was initiated.]
- 30. Does this assertion sound true to the general (profane) public in your area? [Note: this question was not present in List of Questions when this study was initiated.]
- 31. Is any activity of the lodge made public in the media?
A. Rarely.
- 32. Do lodges advertise in their website or in the media, to entice new candidates to join the lodge? (To join Freemasonry.)
A. No the lodges, but the GL does.
- 33. After a Brother has completed his term as Master of the Lodge, does he keep his W. Bro. title, or is addressed simply as Brother?
A. Simply as Brother.
- 34. How common is the resignation of a brother? What are usually the reasons for resigning?
A - It is uncommon (2 to 3%). A Brother resigns if he did not find what he had sought. Some people look for political aid, some others for occult mental powers, others hope to facilitate their business.
Is there any other information about the present practice of Masonry in your Grand Jurisdiction that would render this study more complete and useful? [None received.]
NOTE 1: The information received from the second European Jurisdiction is in all aspects very much similar to the first reported above. Noteworthy in this jurisdiction are two lodges directly known to me (I have attended their meetings) of which in one the brethren usually regularly meet 8 - 9 times per month.
NOTE 2: In this Jurisdiction the application for membership must also include the
curriculum vitae of the Applicant; certificate of residence; Police clearance; a number of photos (this number varies depending on the place of residence); all the information, including the photo and the scheduled dates for the ballots (2 ballots are taken), is transmitted to the district and to GL; an office in charge of these matter then distributes this information to all lodges in the Jurisdiction. Many other steps follow, but for the purpose of this study, I put forward three most peculiar: 1) the first ballot is taken in lodge at the date announced in the circulation of information mentioned above; the second ballot is taken on the following regular meeting of the lodge. 2)
Visitors can and
must cast their ballots on the application. 3) In this Jurisdiction one is and can be a member of only one lodge. 4) The preparation (education) of a candidate is executed by weekly study sessions conducted by 3 M.M.s with the candidate, covering a large amount of material contained in books (not like our black booklets) issued by the GL, the Apprentice’s 195 pages long; the Craftsman’s 170 pages; the Master’s 270 pages.
= = = = = = = = =
Information received from one North-American Jurisdiction
Questions:
1. Total number of members in your Grand Jurisdiction - Are the numbers up or down? (As compared to 10 - 20 years ago)
A. Our membership has been on a steady decline since 1960. Historically we have always had the second smallest Masonic membership in this Jurisdiction. This was in part due to its ethnic makeup, which precluded membership among Roman Catholic men. In 1960 we had 8,961 members, as at December 31, 2014 we had 2,842 members.
2. On the whole, do you feel the lodges in your jurisdiction are prospering or declining?
A. [See above]
3. What are the causes of this prosperity, or decline?
[See above]
4. Which segments of the population/professions constitute the membership in your area?
A. Unknown.
5. What is the average age now found among the members? Is the age average now changed (up or down) as compared to the past?
A. The average age is around 65 years.
6. What is the average membership size of yourLodges?
A. 72 members.
7. What percentage of the membership is usually present at the lodge meetings?
A. We tend to use the rule of thumb that 20% of the members are active and attend lodge. Of course this varies from lodge to lodge.
8. How often do members meet, in lodge or socially, each month?
A. Typically members meet once a month at lodge meetings. A few of our lodges have regular social events but they are not monthly.
9. Do your lodges meet in the summer months?
A. We have a couple of lodges that meet in the summer. The rest of the lodges recess for the summer months.
10. With the exception of members who can not attend the meetings, due to illness or distance, what remedies or sanctions are enforced against the defaulting members (e.g. complaint, summons to appear and to justify their absence, expulsion or other ....); how common are these cases?
A. None.
11. Are the temple’s building generally the property of the lodge, co-owned with other lodges, or rented from others (commercial enterprise)?
A. The bulk of our lodges own their building. There are four lodge buildings in the jurisdiction that house more than one lodge. (Three of these have two lodges using the building and in the case of the Masonic Temple in XXXXX there are six lodges that meet there.) There are at least four lodges that meet in a public type of building where they pay a rental fee.
12. Are the membership fees sufficient to pay for the maintenance of the Temple, or are some of the Temple facilities rented to the public, to balance income and expenses?
A. Generally speaking lodge dues are far too low in this jurisdiction. The Masonic Temple in XXXXXX has commercial properties on the ground floor of the building.
13. What is the average cost of admission (Initiation), and the annual fees? Are there additional fees charged for each degree?
A. Initiation fees range from $75.00 to $250.00. Annual dues range from around $60.00 to $150.00. There are no additional fees charged for each degree.
14. What are the most common reasons today in your Grand Jurisdiction that entice a petitioner to join a Lodge?
A. Unknown.
15. Must the Petitioner be known to one or more members of the Lodge?
A. No.
16. What investigations about the Applicant for membership are conducted by the lodge after receiving an application for membership – how thorough are these investigations?
A. A cursory investigation takes place.
17. Are Applicants ever rejected - What are usually the reasons for rejection?
A. Rejection of an applicant is a very rare occurrence in this jurisdiction.
18. How does an Apprentice qualify for the next level; and the Fellow-craft for the Master's degree? How long does it take for these qualification as a rule?
A. In this jurisdiction there is a proficiency requirement consisting of an examination and in some lodges reciting the obligation is also required. All of our lodges with the exception of one (my lodge, XXX No. X) employ the 3X3 rule, three degrees in three months. In my lodge there is a minimum of three months between degrees.
19. Is a Candidate required to present in lodge one or more Papers (Lectures) to qualify for the next level?
A. There is only one lodge in this jurisdiction that has that requirement and that is my lodge.
20. Are apprentices permitted to speak in Lodge?
A. In certain circumstances yes.
21. Is the belief in a “Creator” an indispensable condition for the admission of an applicant?
A. Yes.
22. Are any believers of other (not mainstream) faiths excluded from membership?
A. Not that I am aware of.
23. Is the belief that the Scriptures (of any religion) constitute the will of God - a determining factor for the approval of an applicant?
A. Generally speaking yes.
24.
Universality. – As an Example, would a just, righteous and reputable North American Indian (true believer in its traditional spirituality) be admitted in a lodge of your Grand Jurisdiction? - such an Indian having no Bible or equivalent Holy Scriptures, but his spirituality and his faithfulness is represented by the Eagle Feather, holding which he swears and feels bound by it. You will find the reasons for this strange question here:
http://www.freemasonryresearchforumqsa.com/the-eagle-feather.php
A. Good question. Not sure what the response would be in this jurisdiction.
25. Besides the Bible, what other holy writings are permitted to be displayed on the altar of the Lodges in your Grand Jurisdiction?
A. Besides the VOSL of the Jewish faith I am not sure that any other VOSLs are in use at the current time. We did have a Muslim member in my lodge but he has moved west. During his time in lodge the Koran was opened on the altar.
26. Except for the conferral of degrees (Rituals), what other activities are usually undertaken by the lodge?
A. Some of our lodges have been making an effort to include some form of Masonic education as part of their programming. In the case of my lodge and one other we hold a number of Agapes each year.
27. What public activities for the benefit of the community do the lodges carry on?
A. The primary activity in this Jurisdiction are [is] fund raising efforts for Camp Goodtime, a yearly weeklong camp for children afflicted with Cancer that is put on by the XXXX Cancer Society. This camp is fully funded by the Masons of XXXXX through our charitable arm the XXXX Masonic Charities and Housing.
28. What is the perception of Freemasonry by the general public in your area? (City, State, Province or Country)
A. Not sure that the general public is all that aware of Freemasonry in this Area and further to that not all that sure that they want to be. The general public really does not care as to whether we exist or not.
29. Does the assertion: “Masonry is not only the most ancient, but the
most moral human institution that ever existed” sounds true to your members? [Note: this question was not present in List of Questions when this study was initiated.]
30. Does this assertion sound true to the general (profane) public in your area? [Note: this question was not present in List of Questions when this study was initiated.]
31. Is any activity of the lodge made public in the media?
A. On a very limited basis the answer is yes. Certainly the amount of press that Freemasonry receives is greatly diminished from what it was years ago.
32. Do lodges advertise in their website or in the media, to entice new candidates to join the lodge? (To join Freemasonry.)
A. Our Grand Lodge web site has a section on how to join as do the websites of the few lodges that utilize this technology. There are frequent inquiries to our webmaster from individuals who are interested in joining. Our webmaster forwards those inquiries to a lodge closest to the individual who has made the inquiry.
33. After a Brother has completed his term as Master of the Lodge, does he keep his W. Bro. title, or is addressed simply as Brother?
A. In this jurisdiction rank is retained at both the lodge and Grand Lodge level.
34. How common is the resignation of a brother? What are usually the reasons for resigning?
A. By resignation I assume that you are referring to taking a demit. In this jurisdiction we are seeing approximately 2.5% of our membership requesting and taking a demit each year. There has been a significant increase in the number yearly number of demits since 2007. Not sure why.
Is there any other information about the present practice of Masonry in your Grand Jurisdiction that would render this study more complete and useful?
A. I could go on for hours and hours on this subject. Certainly it is far too long to type out and I am not sure that I would want it recorded for posterity anyway. Freemasonry in this jurisdiction is in a great deal of trouble and over the next five years is going to be greatly diminished from what it is now with far fewer lodges.
= = = = = = = =
Now, if you really believe the information contained in the answers above is useless, because the method in obtaining it was designed in a high-school-like fashion, and faulty in innumerable ways, then smile amused in your doctoral satisfaction, keep what you know about these questions for yourself, and move on. But if, perchance, you feel any of this information could be useful to your Brethren and your Lodge, to stop the decline into irrelevance, or to prevent falling into it, by all means: make use of it, even if was collected by a third grade Masonic student, who knew not how professionally dress his questionnaire. After all, Browncoat, I did not propose myself to research and write a doctoral treatise, but just to take a “snapshot.”
Too often ideas or initiatives proposed by others are dismissed a priori if they appear too ambitious, or lacking a certain degree of elegance, the measure of which rests usually in the eyes of the critic. Another often present reason for the dismissal of ideas and initiatives rests in the easy to take way out: why bother – it won’t work anyway – and do nothing.
Those Brethren who answered my questions did not question my method. If you have any information regarding my questions for your area, what harm is there in sharing it with me? – After all, I am not asking you to speak for your Grand Lodge – but only for yourself. And if you really want to help: ask my questions to your Grand Secretary! You are allowed to – while, I am not.