Zero mentioned 'em on another thread and it set the cogs in motion. I've never bothered to look them up properly. Guess i don't really care enough.
Plus it's one of those things i prefer to hear the stories than know the facts kind of thing if that makes any sense? Entertaining to hear about, not that i know very much about them.
Got one in the family, ex-copper, fairly bigoted, mild racist but otherwise top guy. I understand this is the picture perfect profile of a mason, fair comment?
I've never been invited. Kind of let down a wee bit since i'm the kind of leading light out of his choices available. I'd refuse if offered but it's more the point i've not been offered's got me goat :-)
Saw a picture of a guy in ropes on one leg with his shirt ripped, supposedly some kind of initiation? Could be hocus though, didn't pay enough attention or question it.
Anyone know anything about them now that i've casually torn them apart without even knowing anything about them :-) No offence meant to any masons, i am genuinely a wee bit curious, and they've never done me any wrong, that i'm aware of.
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sen the setup
not for me
some nice guys go though in my nearest town
i dont need contacts,thats the main thing and this is what its all about
obviously if you do a good hokey kokey and can stick your left leg out it helps
oh and they like sandwiches
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>>but it's more the point i've not been offered's got me goat :-)
...or rather, didn't get you a goat (and a pinny).
A colleague did once intimate that he could propose me. But listening to him it became clear that for him it was about 'getting on' in the bank we worked for, and I lost interest. Not to claim any moral superiority, I just wasn't at all ambitious then (or now). Funny thing is, as I recall, the proposer has to vouch that the candidate is not joining to get any sort of advantage through membership!
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Couple of my close friends are Masons. One joined because a number of his mates were in it, mainly local councillors. The other - I don't know how or why he got into it but it certainly wasn't so he could get on. He doesn't see it as bringing any particular advantage. As with any club, if another member has a skill which you nee then you are likely to turn to them rather than Yellow Pages. But he's employed by a large company and can't explain what he gets from it, other than he enjoys it. He's quite open about it - there is a lot of ritual, and some lodges stick to the original ways of doing things where others have moved with the times a bit. I think he's becoming a bit fed up with it - there is lots of learning lines and procedures, and he's starting to resent the time it takes. But his lodge has quite an active social side which he enjoys.
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One of my best friends, now deceased, was a mason.......retired bobby, served from '56 to '86
He helped to found a lodge locally, ' The Old Blue Lamp ' lodge.
Me and 'Er got invited to a couple of ' dos ' there. Not for me...too formal.
We went to a ladies evening with them and another, non masonic, couple.
The highlight was when some spiv type in a white suit, red dicky bow and greasy hair seranaded the ladies with ' Only a rose '.
I couldn't take much more and, apparently, I was overheard by SWMBO and her pal to mumble ' I can't believe I'm here doing this '
This got the pair of them giggling at a most ' serious ' moment.......roses were being presented to the girls in the room.
I wasn't invited again !
Ted
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Craig, you're brave asking that question in the West of Scotland on the day the Pope is here!!! :)
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I'm kind of disappointed its more of a wee club than anything else :-( i wanted a Dan Brown type story involving the illuminati!
I didn't know the difference between "the lodge" and "the orange lodge" until a couple of years ago, heard a quip that there is no difference though... :-) I just don't get involved in any of it.
The bigotry in Lanarkshire is unreal, thankfully its not as bad as it was in the 90s i remember it being a lot worse then.
True story (for the folks that don't know the area), Moss the Chemists in Larkhall, Google Streetview --> bit.ly/9QGvph is blue. Despite their corporate colour being green (with a hint of blue).
There aint much green on that high street. Just noticed the Subway (another very green brand) a few doors down is black. They've a history of torching green things in that neck of the woods. In fact the council painted some railings green over there and the locals painted them blue overnight. I remember the kerbstones being red white and blue but streetview says they're not anymore. I don't have any ties to Larkhall.
I now live in what was historically a very Catholic village / town. I live right on the border with a slightly larger town that was (still a few hints that it is unfortunately) staunchly protestant. It's ingrained.
Last edited by: Skoda on Thu 16 Sep 10 at 23:35
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Late father-in-law offered membership to me every Christmas when he'd had one too many. Both brother-in-laws accepted, despite one being R/C. I never did.
I saw late FIL receive brown paper envelopes stuffed with ---- which was enough to deter me (he was a clerk of works on buildings).
I was invited to a Ladies night once. When asked I told them I worked for the inland revenue, I was never invited back.
Late FIL and one BIL needed medical treatment. The masonic hospital was unable to offer help to either despite both being prolific contributors to masonic funds. This produced surprising disillusionment in the respective families.
Too many estate agents and used car dealers (sorry Bb) for my liking.
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>>Late father-in-law offered membership to me every Christmas when he'd had one too many. Both brother-in-laws accepted, despite one being R/C. I never did.
I think it's technically obligatory to be a believer in a Supreme Being but they don't mind which one (think about it). That would debar me anyway.
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Skoda - You will find all you need to know here........don't listen to the carp from people who do not know . have a read and then make your mind up.
www.ugle.org.uk/how-to-become-a-mason/
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I wholeheartedly concur with retpocileh; Read that link and ignore some of the garbage in this thread.
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>> Skoda - You will find all you need to know here........don't listen to the carp
>> from people who do not know . have a read and then make your mind
>> up.
>>
>> www.ugle.org.uk/how-to-become-a-mason/
I know next to nothing about Freemasonry (which is why I've stayed out of this thread), and being honest here, after reading that link, I still know next to nothing.
Yes, there's lots of good stuff in there about charity donation, making new acquaintances, and finding out about the history of freemasonry (a good synopsis of the latter is provided in the document), but by the same token, I can do all of those things without becoming a Freemason, and I am quite unclear as to what (to use a hateful marketing term) the "value add" of Masonic membership is (excuse the term, I hate it, but it's concise). I don't mean to be difficult, but is really is all quite vague to an outsider.
I would be genuinely interested to know, for example, what would be on a typical meeting agenda, what would be some typical discussion topics, and so forth.
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I remember years ago when I was involved with running clubs for the mentally and physically handicapped, we used to use catholic church halls in Lanarkshire and the local Masons were good supporters of us.
I don't know much about it , I think it is a "scratch my back and I will scratch your back club" although the concern in the past has been how much control it can get at top levels of council, politics etc. In some ways, no different to networking lunches but there is definitely also a hard core who use it for "religious " reasons.
In my local village the Masonic and the Orange Lodge are adjacent to each other.
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>> The bigotry in Lanarkshire is unreal, thankfully its not as bad as it was in the 90s i remember it being a lot worse then.
I come from an English catholic family. My parents still go to church on Sunday, and most of their various grandchildren have been christened (any excuse for a party), but that's about it in the family with the God stuff. My sister was together with a guy from a staunch Northern Ireland protestant family for about 5 years, up to 2002. His parents steadfastly refused to meet her for the first 3 years or so, as well as threatening to disinherit him. One of his brothers also stopped talking to him. It always amazes me how much time and energy people waste with this sort of mindless bigotry.
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I delivered the Astroturf granules to St Francis of Assisi school near Glasgow and was amazed to be told that the children who attended were not allowed to play or associate with non catholic children.
Pat
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A late friend of mine who was a lapsed Freemason taught me some of the rituals years ago and as a journalist I found them, on occasion, very useful.
To my surprise, I was once offered sponsorship into the old boys' lodge by one of my former schoolteachers. I declined.
My father became a mason after he decamped to Australia on his retirement but he always insisted it was for social reasons and masonry is different there. He even - I understand - had a masonic funeral. Luckily, I wasn't confronted with the choice of whether or not to attend.
You may be interested to know that 'Franc Maconnerie' (can't do the cedilla on the c) excites just as much controversy over here.
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>>My father became a mason after he decamped to Australia on his retirement but he always insisted it was for social reasons and masonry is different there
If he joined there, how did he know what is, or was, like here ? And do you have any idea what he perceived as the differences ?
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Well Pat, whoever you spoke to was telling you blatant lies.
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I did some research into masonry before rejecting it. There appears to be some serious stuff that goes on if you progress beyond the 'third degree'. There's plenty of information about it freely available.
Many years ago I reset the password on a communal, works computer (it forced you to now and then and I was using it at the time) to jahbulon. The effect was interesting. One person got very upset and insisted it couldn't be used as a password, a few raised their eyebrows, but kept their own counsel, the rest were bemused by the whole episode. I was called for an interview by a senior manager who asked some probing questions, I knew what he was doing but made it clear I wasn't one. I never got promoted again!
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>>There appears to be some serious stuff that goes on if you progress beyond the 'third degree'.<<
3 of my buddies are Mason's,
A 2nd hand car dealer in Nth Cornwall, A Leather goods merchant in Sth Cornwall, A Grocer in Plymouth.
They are only Apprentices, like Pawns on a Chess board really (foot soldiers)
There are degrees beyond the 3rd, and some are very secret indeed,
Connections to The Bilderbergs/Illuminati/ even Skull and Bones, I don't know but - I wouldn't be at all surprised.
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>>I worked for the inland revenue, I was never invited back.
>>I never got promoted again!
Gosh, we had it in for you, didn't we. And imagine, being a member of HMRC barring you from Masonry. Mind you, that may well come as a bit of a shock to one guy I know, being senior in both organisations.
And for sure we'd make certain you were never promoted in your job again for using some word as a password. That sounds quite plausible.
And I'm equally sure that the reason you were never invited back to a function, and the reason you were not promoted at work, was most certainly not connected to paranoia, a persecution complex or a deep belief in conspiracy theories.
On the other hand Dan Brown might be right, we might kill for transgression, in which case you might want to watch yourself.
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The only reason people make up such rubbish about Masons is because they havent been invited and therefore dont know anything about it and where there is a vacuum, intellectual or otherwise, people spout any old junk they can dream up.
Alot of my customers are Masons and perhaps oddly or not, almost all of those are also Rotary clubs members, not sure the connection but I assume its the same bunch of people.
The 21st century version of Masonry is membership to the local golf club so far as I can tell - equally strange rituals and clothing, plus alot of business done and little golf.
Still, you can laugh, but I bet they are all doing quite well, nobody does something for nothing.
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I repeat to anyone interested in Freemasonry , read the link I provided above and make your own mind up.
The section on Charity is particularly interesting.....all the charity money comes from donations by members.
To anyone who lives in London or the South East who is interested in Freemasonry and architecture , a visit to Freemasons Hall in Great Queen St including a tour of the halls and museum is a very interesting day out.
If you are interested you can also just ask someone who is a Freemason and you will find that local Masonic Centres are much less secretive these days and much more welcoming , even holding open days and tours of their Lodge rooms .
Check it out, you get out of it what you put in.
Yes - I am a Freemason of 33 years standing and am proud of it.
Last edited by: retpocileh on Fri 17 Sep 10 at 11:52
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>> Yes - I am a Freemason of 33 years standing and am proud of it.
After your first post in this thread? you didnt need to confirm it.
I see Mark is a Mason as well.
Dont start beating me up by reply, I didnt start the thread or comment on it one way or the other.
You and Mark must be lousy poker players..... ;)
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>>I see Mark is a Mason as well
Yes, its no secret. My friends are mostly aware and, of course, some of them are Masons also.
>>You and Mark must be lousy poker players
You carry on thinking that, it makes my life so much easier.
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Well Zero for once you are absolutely correct , I must be a lousy poker player for the simple reason that I have never played poker in my life, ever.......
I do not broadcast my masonic membership precisely to avoid the sort of stupid and ignorant comments we have had in most of this thread......
Anyway ,now you are retired Zero ,why not consider joining your local lodge? You might just learn something of interest and find that you enjoy it......
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>Anyway ,now you are retired Zero ,why not consider joining your local lodge?
I'm not sure that Zero would be found to be of good repute ;-)
Kevin...
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>> You carry on thinking that, it makes my life so much easier.
Wow you flatter me. Here was me thinking that I had no effect on your life in any way whatsoever.
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>>Here was me thinking that I had no effect on your life in any way whatsoever.
You are my hero and I hide my deep love for you for fear of disappointment.
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>> >>Here was me thinking that I had no effect on your life in any way
>> whatsoever.
>>
>> You are my hero and I hide my deep love for you for fear of
>> disappointment.
I understand, its a burden many like you have to bear
Keep taking the pills
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[sigh] I try to keep going, and the pills do help a bit........
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Is that so Bobby?
It was the site foreman who was localish, and he was remarking on the amount of money being spent on a Catholic school as opposed to the others.
I got bogged down on the site so was there some time!
Pat
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Is a site foreman a moderator ? :-0
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Well, he didn't have a wand and a tutu:)
Pat
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My late FIL used to think I was mad declining invitations to the Masons and Rotary, as he'd done a lot of business that way. I've always been much happier trying to avoid mixing work with our social life. Guess it's just another case of - takes all sorts ....
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Paul, do not confuse Masonry with Rotary.
Rotary is about business I believe but I am not a member of Rotary so I will not venture an opinion on something about which I know very little or nothing - unlike some on here........
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FIL was both a Mason and Rotarian and did a lot of business with contacts from both organisations
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Of course masons scratch each others backs, they're no different to anybody else in that respect. People will continue to do business with their friends, whether they are masons or not.
But it would be ridiculous to suggest that (many) people don't join as a means of "networking".
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From the outside looking in, Freemasonry looks very similar in one respect to the Roman Catholic church.
Once they've got their talons into you, they won't let go.
Banking brother is quite big into masonry.
He tells me the conspiracy theories don't apply to his lodge because they are all too old to have any influence or pull any strings.
Seem to be a lot of time spent visiting one masonic brother or another who is ill in hospital.
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An anecdote.
In the mid eighties I was working as a manager in a suburban County Court. Quietish Thursday afternoon with the Registrar doing small claims hearings in chambers. The registrar concerened, a former solicitor, was quiet and efficient and something of a favourite with the staff. The usher showed the parties to the next case into his room for their hearing. Shortly after there was the sound of a brief and very angry exchange followed by one of the parties exiting the public door sharply. Mr Registrar then appeared, apoplectic, in the office and asked for the case to be re-listed before a colleague.
Seemed that either by his tie or a handshake the plaintiff he had intimated that he was a mason. At the time there was a campaign in the Guardian about freemasonry in the judiciary and whether he was a mason or not, our guy was not going anywhere near the firing line!!
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Fri 17 Sep 10 at 15:29
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Bromptonaut , I am sure that story is true from my own experience over the years , many members of the judiciary and police are also Freemasons and IMO are very unlikely to do any favours to a fellow Mason.
Generally with the police and judiciary , it gives them the chance to socialise with like minded people without having to worry about ( normally ) the character of the people they are associating with when off duty.
Having said that ,like any other organisation there are good ( Winston Churchill / Mozart) and bad ( Dr Crippen / Kenneth Noye).
I give and expect no favours and have fallen out quite severely with some people who thought that way ....
I suggest that if you join up expecting favours you are joining for the wrong reason ......
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>> Having said that ,like any other organisation there are good ( Winston Churchill / Mozart)
>> and bad ( Dr Crippen / Kenneth Noye).
Crippen and Moye were Masons?
I never knew that. About that invitation to join a lodge, I quite fancy the one they were apprenticed to.
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>>Crippen and Moye were Masons?
I never knew that. About that invitation to join a lodge, I quite fancy the one they were apprenticed to.
Wiki says:
"Noye was a freemason, a member of the Hammersmith Lodge in London."
Is Noye no longer a Mason?
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I would imagine he was kicked out, I know of a Police Officer who was kicked out after being arrested on an assault allegation.
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Bit of inside knowledge there Pu?
I wonder, is he, or isn't he? ;>)
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I dabbled for a while - just before I retired, not for me. Nothing negative just doesn't suit me.
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...Nothing negative just doesn't suit me...
I've decided the same, but have shortened the decision making process by missing out the dabbling stage.
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The advantage I suppose that I formed an opinion based on what I experienced. I wouldn't criticise anyone either way. All part of lifelong learning.
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...was quiet and efficient and something of a favourite with the staff...
And he sounds like a proper judge from the way he dealt with an attempt to influence his decision.
Happily, there are still quite a few around.
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Pat, yes we have separate catholic and non-catholic schools. However for someone to say a sweeping statement that "the children who attended were not allowed to play or associate with non catholic children." I think is way, way over the top.
Yes, you will always get the parents with extreme views but the vast vast majority will let the kids play with their pals, no matter what the background is.
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...but the vast vast majority will let the kids play with their pals...
How thoroughly modern, inclusive and understanding of them. :)
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Thanks for that explanation Bobby, it's stuck in my mind for the last couple of years and I would prefer to think that your version is nearer the truth.
It seems so very wrong, to me, to brings kids up to be segregated by their parents religious beliefs, and can only serve to perpetuate the prejudice.
Pat
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Yeah Pat, in some ways I agree with you but I know there are all sorts of historical reasons for it which I won't go into just now.
I went to Catholic school, best pals were non-catholics, still are and we had no problem. Yes,as kids you wonder why one is going in one direction to school and your pal the other. But with the right parents, and right explanation, and right upbringing, it doesn't become an issue.
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I have a colleague who is a Mason, and through that has ended up becoming a Magistrate (I don't mean the Masons "fixed it for him" just that some of his fellow Masons were also Magistrates)
He is a throughly decent chap and I think he has a very good line in sentencing, but due to his considerable use of custodial sentences has been tapped on the shoulder and told to tone down the punishments. Shame really as I think he was shaking up some of the local undesirables.
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.
Last edited by: Mike Hannon on Fri 17 Sep 10 at 21:04
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So all you Masons out there, if the work you do is mostly charitable and social networking and nothing sinister, why don't tell us non Masons about the secret handshake that identifies one Mason to another.
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Here you are: www.ephesians5-11.org/handshakes.htm
I discovered several different interpretations when I looked into it. Try Google.
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Time to step off the fence.
I know quite a few masons, probably about 10, (another 5 who I know are but wont admit it) in various social strata. Without exception all joined a lodge because it was financially prudent to do so, none joined for purely altruistic or social reasons, although the combination of both is attractive.
On that basis I dont buy the "we only do good" guff, but nor do I buy the "the world is ruled by evil masons" guff. Failure to join a lodge does not condemn one to a life of social injustice or poverty, nor does non membership ensure you can never achieve success purely on the back of your own ability or effort.
Membership will make it easier however and certainly will never be a barrier to that success, will enable those who are not quite such achievers up a rung or two, but no more. Membership wont allow you to break the law, get off that parking ticket, or allow you to flout planning permission. It probably will get you into certain golf clubs, and it certainly provides new markets, contacts, and opportunities.
Masonic orders will certainly do nothing that would open up the society to more criticism or investigation, and therein lies the crux of it, the self regulatory control.
Like PU, I dabled briefly, it was not for me, and non membership was never a hindrance to my career or lifestyle.
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"Like PU, I dabled briefly, it was not for me"
Any chance yourself or PU would elaborate on why it didn't suit?
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It was lined up as something to do really after I retired, I was invited, I thought about it and accepted, the members were a tad older than I expected maybe that had an influence on my decision - anyway my life changed and it was one of the things I decided to ditch.
As an afterthought to add - I was invited many years ago but didn't want to at that time - and was probably a rabid anti-mason.
Last edited by: Pugugly on Sat 18 Sep 10 at 17:11
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>> "Like PU, I dabled briefly, it was not for me"
>>
>> Any chance yourself or PU would elaborate on why it didn't suit?
As PU said and AC indicated further down, they were all so serious and po faced. I couldnt see myself getting happily drunk with them at the various "dos", all the joining up rigmarole, the need to respect all the hierarchy and seals of office, it was just all too much effort, and nothing really in it for me.
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Could I just say that Peachy has gone south for the week?
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I have to go now, sir... I have to meet a man at marwar junction.
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Someone asked me to join some sort of introductory sub-group once. As soon as I read the blurb I could tell it wasn't my thing. Too damn respectable and po-faced by half, I then thought.... all those expensive dull suits and boring silk ties.
I knew I wouldn't like it, and something told me that it wouldn't really like me after it had taken a good look.
Oddly, since the Jesuits and freemasons were supposed at one time to be at daggers drawn, the only person I know who has said they are a freemason is someone I was at a Jesuit school with in the fifties. When he told me just a few years ago I expressed surprise, but he assured me that those were oriental orders or chapters or temples or whatever they are called, his one was perfectly all right and its top man is the Duke of Kent. Actually my schoolmate is now a duke too, albeit a French one. Is there a Dukes-only order one wonders?
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I'm not negative about it - each to his own.
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As I mentioned earlier, banking brother, late 50s, found the brothers in his lodge 'a tad old'.
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I believe that there the need for "young blood" is a national problem.
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I think DP asked a fair question to which the official answer is usually 'you get out what you put in' or 'it will make you a better man'. It's still too vague for me. Over the last 15 years or so I've looked into Freemasonry several times, read various books on the subject (by FMs NOT Dan Brown) and spoke to FMs.
I'm still undecided.
As far as I can tell these are some of the USPs (in no particular order) :
Increased social life
Chance to progress through the ranks
Learning of the history and ritual
Networking
Improve your public speaking
Charitable giving
Festive Board
Spending time with like-minded individuals
I think that up until the 1970s/80s becoming a FM was probably aspirational and then it tailed off for some reason. It's now in a state of declining, elderly membership where potential new members in their 30s don't have peers who are FMs and don't know what it really is about and what the commitment entails.
It is always denied but even if it is the case - what if all the usual stuff about 'getting on' and improving your career progression is irrelevant to you? What can FM offer you?
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I wasn't interested in the Career progression thing otherwise your 8 point plan seemed to sum it to me.
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>> I think that up until the 1970s/80s becoming a FM was probably aspirational and then
>> it tailed off for some reason.
In the 50's 60's and 70's it was, in some career areas and businesses, a requirement to be a Mason, in order to progress and/or flourish in business.
Thatchers 80s money society smashed great big holes through that, and the requirement declined rapidly.
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Some time ago, my widowed mother-in-law's property was broken in to. Among the items stolen was a ring that belonged to my late father-in-law. It was an apparently plain signet ring, but it had a reversible panel that disclosed a square and compass. I had to deal with the police and described the stolen items to them. This one item in particular was instrumental in nailing the scroat that nicked them.
The police recovered some items and insisted I took this ring 'as it wouldn't be safe here'.
I make no comment, only tell what I was told!
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I know many people who are either Masons or Rotarians or both, and have great respect for both organisations. Sadly the average age of members is indeed creeping up: Round Table (similar to Rotary but for the under-40s) is really struggling and in many areas clubs have had to close.
The public-spirited younger people are too busy (often having to work longer hours) and the less public-spirited go home to the TV.
Whatever the reasons may be for people joining them, these organisations raise huge sums for charity and the country will be the poorer if they wither on the vine.
Last edited by: Avant on Sat 18 Sep 10 at 20:05
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I was a Round Tabler from age 28 to 45 (leaving age was raised a few years back). It was reasonably formal at times, especially in the early years, but there was also a strong social side, and no secrecy/ Although I was "invited" to join, we used to run a membership stand at carnival and suchlike. I had may experiences in table which I would not have otherwise had, and met a good bunch of guys - and on moving to a new area it gave an instant new set of friends.
My local Table has nearly closed due to lack of new blood... I have a mate in Lions who are also having problems getting new members. People seem to have less time these days for community service type things.
Last edited by: smokie on Sun 19 Sep 10 at 00:55
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A possible reason for the decline in participation in organised groups of any nature is the increasing tendency for people to work longer hours or be commuting long distances to work.
Many organised bodies whether they be social networking groups or sports clubs or whatever thrived on local membership and the premise that people were available to attend on a regular basis at set times.
Perhaps my view is coloured by the nature of my own work and the circles I move in but the majority of people I know would claim at least to not have the time to commit on any kind of regular basis to a set weekly calendar event.
Tangential thought I know but the main reason I had to give up membership of a Rugby club years ago was not lack of interest but my realisation that I simply couldn't commit to attending training regularly enough to continue to be a useful member of the team.
Then we can also examine the role of community gatherings of all kinds in society. The decline in attendance at religious gatherings is no coincidence either. A major part of the motivation for attendance at any organised social gathering was the opportunity to be in some way entertained, informed, educated or whatever else one took from or gave to the group. The vast choices of the above we are now able to access without leaving our houses are bound to have had an effect on the pulling power of such events and organisations.
Perhaps we will indeed evolve into blobs of of brain matter in glass jars going nowhere and simply imagining our lives.
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>> Perhaps we will indeed evolve into blobs of of brain matter in glass jars going
>> nowhere and simply imagining our lives.
Bit like internet forums really.
Tho it has to be said, some of us have not managed to evolve from blob to human, let alone make the journey back again.
Last edited by: Zero on Sun 19 Sep 10 at 09:59
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True Z. I confess to sometimes being concerned about the amount of my time I spend faffing about on my computer. It does have a certain addictive quailty which could be considered unhealthy. Conversely if we accept that real social interaction is becoming more difficult to access then it could also be seen as a good if not perfect alternative. Cheaper than the pub anyway !
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>>Cheaper than the pub anyway !<<
But far easier to form a very inaccurate opinion of people.
Pat
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>> >>Cheaper than the pub anyway !<<
>>
>> But far easier to form a very inaccurate opinion of people.
>>
>> Pat
Ohh no, when I am in a pub after a beer or two I become loud and opinionated
ooopps.
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>Perhaps we will evolve into blobs of of brain matter in glass jars going nowhere and simply imagining our lives<
But, the funny? thing is, that you, would still be - you! (with a few bits missing).
And you wouldn't have to watch the TV ever again :)
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I see a great deal about people feeling that they need to be invited to join Masonic Lodges.
Zero and a few others point to a very good reason why you DON'T have to be invited.
As the UGLE website will tell you - you can ask to join.
Most people find out someone who they know in a lodge and that person proposes them and finds a seconder. That is how the process starts. There is however an enquiry form on their website.
Lodges don't have to accept proposals for membership. It's entirely down to the lodge.
The UGLE like it that way. It means that freemasons are discouraged from pressurising their acquantances to join.
It has to be said it's not for everybody. I know masons who joined late in life feeling that they weren't ready for it in their earlier years.
I also know masons who have stepped aside and suspended their membership for a variety of reasons.
We are all different and what suits one person won't suit another. It's like trade unions. Some will see the benefits and sign up, whist others won't want tobe involved for a number of reasons.
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Hugo is correct, you ask to join and a seconder vouches for you.
I joined after my divorce and move to Aberdeen, I found good people who were outwith my profession. I now travel and work in different parts of the world and have found good people from all countries and faiths. yes I have met people in my work environment who are Brothers but I do not show proffesional favor and never would......
Perhaps I am being lazy in not going out and looking for good people in bars and public places but when you are in the middle of nowhere it's good the have common ground/trust with someone who is not a work mate, collegue or neighbour.
Jim
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Well, proposer proposes your membership, and a seconder will add support.
There is nothing to stop a member suggesting a non member joins. The UGLE indicates that it is good etiquette (spelling anyone?) to ask someone if they would be interested, then a little while later remind him - then let the matter rest
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I have to say, this did seem rather like the minutes of a meeting at the lodge to decide the suitability of a new candidate.
www.car4play.com/forum/post/index.htm?t=2914
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...I have to say, this did seem rather like the minutes of a meeting at the lodge to decide the suitability of a new candidate...
Anyone seen my black ball?
I seem to have mislaid it.
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>> ...I have to say, this did seem rather like the minutes of a meeting at
>> the lodge to decide the suitability of a new candidate...
>>
>> Anyone seen my black ball?
>>
>> I seem to have mislaid it.
>>
>>
>>
>>
....now you know there's no need for that ;)
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As Groucho Marks said, "I would never join any club that would accept me as a member"
Or was it WC Fields?
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"As Groucho Marks said, "I would never join any club that would accept me as a member""
In that case you're not accepted -
Now, would you care to join? :D
Last edited by: Hugo on Wed 22 Sep 10 at 17:23
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>> Ah - Classic Catch 22.
Nah, just gatecrash the event, then once they don't chuck you out you can leave in disgust :))))
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If the bars free, I am going nowhere. Another pint of disgust please.
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....now you know there's no need for that ;)...
You're right, only kidding. :)
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I see the radio 4 play this afternoon is about the French revolution and how it may have been brought about by freemasons and illuminati.
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>>about the French revolution and how it may have been brought about by freemasons and illuminati<<
Wouldn't surprise me, The French dealt a mortal blow to the Knights Templar, they say.
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The French only acted on orders of he pope (he was French at the time as well I think). Everyone owed money to the Knights Templar, including the British crown and church. It was easier to kill them than pay them.
Wont work with the manager of your local RBS I am afraid.
Last edited by: Zero on Mon 27 Sep 10 at 09:32
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>>Wont work with the manager of your local RBS I am afraid<<
Worth a try though, if things get - desperate.
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Odd today - was doing some voluntary work for another organisation ( not the CAB) I;d briefly spoken to my contact yesterday and met him face to face today - usual bit of social posturing from him as he tried to suss me out, he made a coded reference to the Masons - which I openly answered - an hour later another guy rocked up and asked me the same question in te same coded way....very odd
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Nearly three years since the last post - close to the record?
Apropos, I notice that Skoda, Bagpuss and iffy are no longer around......
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skoda is loitering, he popped back in May, Iffy is in Jail for unpaid parking fines, and bag puss? his stitching came apart.
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"The French dealt a mortal blow to the Knights Templar, they say."
All except Simon who became a saint.
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What are the Free Masons about? Any free mason tell me.33 Degree is the top I believe and the rest are the working bees strange sect.
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It was 33 degrees in the Med recently and even the bees had to seek out the shade.
:}
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Only thing I know about the Freemasons is that my great, great grandfather was one and when he died at sea and his wife was living in Borneo with their children the Masons arranged for and paid to bring them back to England.
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Freemasons - Bellboy
