I've been asked to join the Freemasons
Discussion
Mon Ami Mate said:
It's not the sitting in the chair bit that worries me, it's the prospect of expecting myself to get every ceremony word perfect for the year.
That and the likely response from my wife at the Ladies Festival...
Yes, looking at what we are projected to be doing next year I might even have to handle a double ceremony. Word perfect is beyond me, but I will give it my best shot.That and the likely response from my wife at the Ladies Festival...
My wife is not looking forward to having to make a speech either.
Fer said:
Mon Ami Mate said:
It's not the sitting in the chair bit that worries me, it's the prospect of expecting myself to get every ceremony word perfect for the year.
That and the likely response from my wife at the Ladies Festival...
Yes, looking at what we are projected to be doing next year I might even have to handle a double ceremony. Word perfect is beyond me, but I will give it my best shot.That and the likely response from my wife at the Ladies Festival...
My wife is not looking forward to having to make a speech either.
Fer said:
Yes, looking at what we are projected to be doing next year I might even have to handle a double ceremony.
Good luck with that - it's not as daunting as it sounds and there are lots of ways of doing it. We did a double 3rd, called off/on then did a double 2nd at one meeting. Long old day but worked out well. Not a huge fan of doubles but in this case it was at the request of the candidates. Last night was my first meeting in the chair of my Red Cross of Constantine conclave - we did the Appendant Orders (2nd degree effectively) for 4 (!) candidates. Took a lot of organising re floorwork but didn't go too bad at all.Let me know about your installation
Mon Ami Mate said:
It's not the sitting in the chair bit that worries me, it's the prospect of expecting myself to get every ceremony word perfect for the year.
That and the likely response from my wife at the Ladies Festival...
We're looking at doing a double first in March next year, and i'm due to be JD, that would be my first meeting in that role too That and the likely response from my wife at the Ladies Festival...
...
rednotdead said:
Good luck with that - it's not as daunting as it sounds and there are lots of ways of doing it. We did a double 3rd, called off/on then did a double 2nd at one meeting. Long old day but worked out well. Not a huge fan of doubles but in this case it was at the request of the candidates. Last night was my first meeting in the chair of my Red Cross of Constantine conclave - we did the Appendant Orders (2nd degree effectively) for 4 (!) candidates. Took a lot of organising re floorwork but didn't go too bad at all.
Let me know about your installation
Blimey, your lot dont mess about eh??? Good on you, that must take a heck of a lot of dedication to be able to work to that sort of level. Let me know about your installation
andyjo1982 said:
rednotdead said:
Good luck with that - it's not as daunting as it sounds and there are lots of ways of doing it. We did a double 3rd, called off/on then did a double 2nd at one meeting. Long old day but worked out well. Not a huge fan of doubles but in this case it was at the request of the candidates. Last night was my first meeting in the chair of my Red Cross of Constantine conclave - we did the Appendant Orders (2nd degree effectively) for 4 (!) candidates. Took a lot of organising re floorwork but didn't go too bad at all.
Let me know about your installation
Blimey, your lot dont mess about eh??? Good on you, that must take a heck of a lot of dedication to be able to work to that sort of level. Let me know about your installation
No i haven't yet. I've only been a member for just over 3 years. We are quite a small lodge, only just over 20 members. Dont think i could stick it if i had that sort of work load. Once i was raised, i started doing my offices as soon as i could. I've got 1 more meeting as IG, then with the work i've got lined up for next year, thats more than enough for me to just be doing one ceremony at a time...
andyjo1982 said:
No i haven't yet. I've only been a member for just over 3 years. We are quite a small lodge, only just over 20 members. Dont think i could stick it if i had that sort of work load. Once i was raised, i started doing my offices as soon as i could. I've got 1 more meeting as IG, then with the work i've got lined up for next year, thats more than enough for me to just be doing one ceremony at a time...
I'm currently IG too. Loved every minute of it.It's a great job to start with as you're involved in the ceremony, but without having too much to learn.
andyjo1982 said:
Blimey, your lot dont mess about eh??? Good on you, that must take a heck of a lot of dedication to be able to work to that sort of level.
We don't do too bad for a small lodge of 23 members. We're known for our high standard of ritual but at the same time we really enjoy it. An active and vibrant LoI really pays dividends too - the newer members get a lot of confidence from that.Se here for starters: http://www.ugle.org.uk/what-is-masonry/. This covers Freemasonry in England and Wales.
rednotdead said:
andyjo1982 said:
Blimey, your lot dont mess about eh??? Good on you, that must take a heck of a lot of dedication to be able to work to that sort of level.
We don't do too bad for a small lodge of 23 members. We're known for our high standard of ritual but at the same time we really enjoy it. An active and vibrant LoI really pays dividends too - the newer members get a lot of confidence from that.rednotdead said:
Se here for starters: http://www.ugle.org.uk/what-is-masonry/. This covers Freemasonry in England and Wales.
Thank you for that link 
andyjo1982 said:
Sounds pretty similar to our lodge. We have a core of about 10 guys who've been members for 20 years plus, some have been through the chair 3 or 4 times, simply to keep the lodge going. We seem to be getting a few new members, so fingers crossed we can grow over the next few years.
We're not quite at that level of 're-cycling' yet, I'm the only member to do 2 years in the chair and that was successive for various reasons. We do well with new members, we've had 7 in the past 5 years, it might not sound much but we only meet 4 times a year so that's a steady stream of work to do. It's our 50th anniversary in January and looking back over old records we've never had more than 28 members, sometimes small is beautiful! More here if you're interested: http://www.moremajorum.orgrednotdead said:
andyjo1982 said:
Sounds pretty similar to our lodge. We have a core of about 10 guys who've been members for 20 years plus, some have been through the chair 3 or 4 times, simply to keep the lodge going. We seem to be getting a few new members, so fingers crossed we can grow over the next few years.
We're not quite at that level of 're-cycling' yet, I'm the only member to do 2 years in the chair and that was successive for various reasons. We do well with new members, we've had 7 in the past 5 years, it might not sound much but we only meet 4 times a year so that's a steady stream of work to do. It's our 50th anniversary in January and looking back over old records we've never had more than 28 members, sometimes small is beautiful! More here if you're interested: http://www.moremajorum.orgescargot said:
rednotdead said:
andyjo1982 said:
Sounds pretty similar to our lodge. We have a core of about 10 guys who've been members for 20 years plus, some have been through the chair 3 or 4 times, simply to keep the lodge going. We seem to be getting a few new members, so fingers crossed we can grow over the next few years.
We're not quite at that level of 're-cycling' yet, I'm the only member to do 2 years in the chair and that was successive for various reasons. We do well with new members, we've had 7 in the past 5 years, it might not sound much but we only meet 4 times a year so that's a steady stream of work to do. It's our 50th anniversary in January and looking back over old records we've never had more than 28 members, sometimes small is beautiful! More here if you're interested: http://www.moremajorum.orgGassing Station | The Lounge | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff