Would you still be looked at the same?

[Benjamin Baxter]

I have a question for some of you plural/dual members. I belong to a lodge that is fairly small, around 200 members they say. I have never seen more than 30 different brothers at any event that I have been to there. A lot of these brothers are old and in bad health, so I understand that lodge is not there principal concerns. We meet once a month typically unless we have a called meeting of some type. We are active for some rural standards i guess. I have applied for dual membership in the town where I live now one town over from my home lodge. It has four to five, sometimes six, events a month. They are what I would consider very active. There is at least one called meeting a week. I will probably go through the chairs at my home lodge, I have been proteming a chair at the last five meetings/months. I work a rotating shift at a power plant and can't make it every week to the new lodge, but could make it to stated meetings. Would I stand a chance at going through the chairs there as well? Are you required to make all meetings as a officer or for sure all stated meetings? It is not that I don't want to be there, it my usual vocations fault.

 

[jwhoff]

Yes, you could travel the chairs in both lodges.

But that doesn't appear to be your root question, or answer brother.

Remember this little phrase, "best work and best agree."

More often than not, the optium word here is "work."

I believe a man should be committed once he assumes the Senior Deacon's chair to make the meetings, called and stated, as often as possible through his handing over the gavel to the next Worshipful Master. Many say that committment should begin when he is in the Junior Warden's station.

The question is, will it place a burden on the lodge if you can't make all or many called meeting for degrees or other tasks? If you've been in the East, you would probably be able to answer that one quickly. Otherwise, search your own heart.

Sometimes helping out too long places a terrific burden on the lodge when one reaches the upper chairs. Unless your work schedule changes, you and your lodge may be in the uncomfortable position of answering this question sooner than later.

I was discussing this very topic today with a group of respected past masters who meet Friday mornings for a study group at one of my lodges. The conclusion reached by the group was that it is never okay to place a bandaid on the situation. Because the situation was not settled and that it would return to haunt the lodge later, when the correcton would be much harder to make.

I know of one past master who went through the SD's chair and then dropped out of the line for 26 years before resuming his journey to the East. His situation was very similar to yours. His journey to the East was very successful for both himself and the lodge.

Talk this issue over with members of your lodge that you trust. Think it over and come up with the right decision for both the lodge and yourself. Remember, being available as a pro tem is a wonderful benefit to any lodge! If you are able to run the chairs, even more!

I trust that you will find the answer and be pleased with your results.

God bless and keep you!

 

[Brother JC]

First, I don't consider a lodge of 200 members to be "fairly small," and I'm honestly glad that's not the case here. My "little lodge" has but forty-four members (as of today).

To address your question, I personally believe that if you are going to make yourself available as an Officer you should be just that, available. I feel you should attend every communication you can, and give your Station or Place the attention it deserves. As to going through the chairs of two lodges simultaneously, it can be difficult to give the needed attention to both lodges. My own recommendation would be to pursue the line in one lodge, and use the experience learned later in the other lodge.

 

[Benjamin Baxter]

First, I don't consider a lodge of 200 members to be "fairly small," and I'm honestly glad that's not the case here. My "little lodge" has but forty-four members (as of today).

To address your question, I personally believe that if you are going to make yourself available as an Officer you should be just that, available. I feel you should attend every communication you can, and give your Station or Place the attention it deserves. As to going through the chairs of two lodges simultaneously, it can be difficult to give the needed attention to both lodges. My own recommendation would be to pursue the line in one lodge, and use the experience learned later in the other lodge.

They have 200 that are not delinquent on their dues, like I said only about 30 or fewer active members.

 

[part on the square]

I belong to a very active lodge and am also an officer in my lodge. Before I started as an officer I was a single father of one child. Fortunately my mother was always more than happy to keep my son while I attended my bi-weekly meetings. When we had a special meeting or degree most times my mother was able to watch my son. Now I am married with two additional children and being an officer is a little harder. I feel it's my duty to be at the lodge for everything possible. Now that my small family of two has grown to a nice size of five I have missed a few meetings which rarely happened in the past. When election time comes this November I will step down from my chair as I can't dedicate my full attention as I use to. I will still be an active member and my wife is very supportive of me and masonry. But I belong to the shrine, and consistory as well so I keep a full plate. I'm still Fairly young (36) so I have time when my kids get older to go back in the chair rotation.


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[dfreybur]

Bro Bennylee,

Different lodges have different experiences. When I read your post I concluded that your small lodge needs activity of all sorts and is likely struggling to keep PMs out of its line. I concluded that your large lodge already has plenty of active members. There are many ways to look at that. Do you want to make a bigger difference in the lodge? Then be more active in the smaller one. Going through the line in a lodge with a small core of active members is a very bonding experience building a few very deep and long friendships. Do you prefer the broader fellowship of being a part of a clan? Getting active in a few of the repeating events at your larger lodge can give you a mixture of close friendships with the brothers active in those events and a wider group of friends that aren't as intense.

As long as you balance your time and effort strategically on a time scale of a decade you can do both. If lodge is your only major activity other than family, work and church you might be able to juggle them both in parallel. Consider that you have the rest of your life to be able to do both. You can dive deep in both, dive deep in one and tread water in the other. Either order. No hurry. Doing them in sequence is what I've done over the years and it worked great for me.

 

[Benjamin Baxter]

Well I had a good feeling that I would be asked to be junior deacon in my smaller lodge and I was. I was planning on not accepting anything at my larger lodge just yet. A few guys had to exit the line at the larger lodge for various reasons. Needless to say there were more open spots than available new brothers that wanted in the line. I suppose some are content to be on the sidelines for a while. I was asked again because of this reason. So I will be senior steward at the larger one and hope I can even get 1/2 as close to serving the lodge as good as the exiting SS. He is going to Junior warden so I should have some help. As long as every thing goes smooth I should be good in the east at least one for two.

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[MarkR]

Yes, you could travel the chairs in both lodges.

That depends on jurisdiction. Up until this year, you could not hold elected office in two lodges simutaneously here in Minnesota. At GL this year, it was voted to change that to not being allowed to hold the same elected office in two lodges simultaneously.

 

[Warrior1256]

I believe a man should be committed once he assumes the Senior Deacon's chair

I know of one past master who went through the SD's chair and then dropped out of the line for 26 years before resuming his journey to the East. His situation was very similar to yours. His journey to the East was very successful for both himself and the lodge.

I agree. Once you reach the SD chair the lodge is depending on you to be there regularly. If your vocation will not allow this then put off going through the chairs until regular attendance is possible.

 

[Brother JC]

I agree. Once you reach the SD chair the lodge is depending on you to be there regularly. If your vocation will not allow this then put off going through the chairs until regular attendance is possible.

IF your lodge has a progressive line. Not all do.

 

[Warrior1256]

IF your lodge has a progressive line. Not all do.

I am a relatively new MM (little over a year) and did not know this. I just assumed that all lodges had a progressive line. Thanks for the info brother.

 

[Bloke]

Firstly, anything here over 50 members is a big lodge.. anything under 25 is probably a small lodge. When I joined my mother lodge had a membership in the low 20's with 14 attending. Folk thought we were doomed. 13 years on, we're still going strong.

Next, if you take an office which had a part in ritual, opening, closing or degrees, i think it should be your goal to have 100% attendance.

This post is old.. I wonder where our brother OP is now... For me, you need to make sure you are not hitting the chair in two lodges at once. There, JW is seen as really locking into the chair, but all should be in the progressive officers to take the chair, but things happened. I found myself with the privileged of being in the chair a few years ago when our MM SW could not take it due to work commitments...

As to each "progressive line" , how that works might vary from lodge to lodge, but the "standard" progressive chairs are fairly uniform.

 

[Warrior1256]

Next, if you take an office which had a part in ritual, opening, closing or degrees, i think it should be your goal to have 100% attendance.

Totally agree! I have only missed one meeting this year and this was to attend a Grand Lodge function.