Bro Wilson, What subordinate Lodge and Grand Lodge are you a member of? I'm just curious.....and, I would strongly encourage you to educate YOURSELF on your rights as a member of a Masonic Lodge, via your Consitution/By Laws of the Jurisdiction to which you belong. With respect to your WM, once you become a brother who is well versed on his Const./By Laws, you won't have to depend on anyone else's word for interpretation of Masonic guidelines, regarding what you can do, who you can visit, and what your rights are as a member........that is, if you are a member of either a Mainstream or Prince Hall Affiliated Grand Lodge in your area........
And, my two cents and change on Bro B Upton's questions......Brother Upton, my personal feeling is that the more educated we become about one another as Masonic Grand Lodge bodies, the less we will have to worry about clandestine Masonry. They will continue to exist, as they always have, but if our names (GLoTx and MWPHGLoTX) are put together in a positive way in our communities, Men seeking positive LIGHT will always be pointed in the right direction. And yes, I think Mutual Visitation along with Recognition will go a long way toward curbing the membership in clandestine Lodges. Once a Man learns that he is LIMITED in his "travels" as a member of that clandestine Lodge, and is unable to visit or affiliate with any PHA or Mainstream Lodge, a red flag SHOULD be raised in the mind of a thinking Man, like it did in mine.
Once he discovers that the ONLY affiliation and recognition he will EVER have is within his own "Grand Lodge", he should WANT to reaffiliate in order to be able to enjoy the "rights, lights, and benefits" that come along with being a member of a REGULAR AND RECOGNIZED Lodge. Sadly though, some Men are content with JUST being a "Mason", and being a part of something, without REALIZING the importance of regularity and recognition. They are also content with the friendships and camaraderie in that particular Lodge, and to THEM, THAT is more important that recognition, lineage, and regularity. Trust me, once I made my decision to leave and get Square, I learned from different Brothers in my Old Lodge that was their reasoning behind being hesitant about leaving and petitioning to be "healed", like I chose to do.
Men wishing to be Masons usually join where they know someone, and that is true for clandestine Lodges as well. Once they get in, if they are self motivated to read and research TRUE lineage and regularity/recognition for themselves, the TRUTH and the LIGHT will become apparent, and they will realize that they will have to reaffiliate in order to find it, just as I did. EDUCATION is the key, Brother Upton.......As Masons, living Square and upright lives, we are all very good at attracting members, but how good are all of our Lodges at educating and KEEPING our Brothers, and sharing FURTHER Light with them, beyond the Degree Work, once that is completed? A good parallel is the old adage that in order to make a good marriage BETTER over time, you must continue to do the SAME things it took to get your Wife, in order to keep her happy.....Masonry is the same way. Continue to give a Man the education we stress during his Degree Work, and once he's done, and he will continue to attend, if he joined for the right reasons.
With respect and exception to active Brothers' work schedules and family obligations, the attrition rate among others can sometimes be connected to one of a few main reasons---inability of effective communication between generations of Brethren, disharmony within the Lodge, lack of continuing education and lecture/discussion/study groups, and too much emphasis on fundraisers and bills. Business is a very important component of a functional Lodge, but Brothers will sacrifice the time to meet at the Lodge, if they realize they will always leave having learned something which they didn't know upon arrival. There is too much knowledge and wisdom within Masonic Ritual, History, and Philosophy, for a Man to leave a meeting with an empty mind and a full stomach.
My hope is that as BOTH Grand Lodges move in a more progressive direction, our positive community exposure (joint fellowship and community projects) will also increase, and attract quality Men who desire to become BETTER Men, because of the role models they see representing our Lodges............hope that my two cents and change helped you, Brother Upton........
Bro. Vincent C. Jones, Sr., Bayou City Lodge #228, PHA, F&AM, Houston, Texas
