 Become a Freemason in England.
Google is asked how to become a Freemason thousands of times every month. The truth is that if you consider yourself to be a moral person it is likely to be much easier to join than you might imagine. Every Lodge s constantly seeking suitable people to join and continue the moral and charitable aims of our organization everywhere.
What is the Craft, all about?
For a long time Masons have had a reputation for being a secret society which is very far from the truth. We do have secrets but these are generally limited to forms of recognition such as the famous handshake. In recent years Grand Lodge, which is a kind of headquarters, has tried to be much more open and publishes detailed accounts which does a lot to define what we are all about. One of the major corner-stones of our order is charity and a willingness to try to help those less fortunate than ourselves. There are many noble and charitable institutions in this country, such as the Lions and Round Table who do good work but it may surprise you to know that only the National Lottery disburses more money to charity in the UK than we do. Anyone who wants to join us should realize that charity is not always about money, sometimes it can be as simple as providing an ear to listen, but every person thinking of joining the Craft should give some thought to whether his life is such that he can devote a few hours a week to Masonry and it's aims.
If I become a member will it help my career.
Lots of people imagine that as soon as someone joins the Masons, doors which were hitherto closed, will magically open. In general terms that simply is not true. Using one's membership for business purposes is very much looked down on. Indeed anyone trying such a course would be likely to find it made matters much worse for him. Similarly there are stories about Freemasons being treated more leniently in courts. Again that is rubbish. As someone with over 30 years experience I can tell you that the attitude of almost all Masons I have ever discussed this with, have said that if they were on the bench and a Mason came before them they would hammer him harder not less, on the basis that he should have known better.
It would be wrong though for us to imply that if you join Freemasonry it will not help your career. It will not help in the type of situation I just mentioned, but many men grow in stature and confidence simply from following the precepts of the Craft.
What will it cost?
Each Lodge sets it's own fees and dining costs and these can vary depending on how many meetings the Lodge has each year. Usually there are between four and six meetings a year and in some lodges the cost of the dinner after each meeting is included in the annual fees and in other cases it is not. When you join there are generally three different costs. There is a fee payable for your initiation and you will need to pay your annual fees which in your joining year will depend on how far through the calendar things are when you join. As a broad 'guesstimate' it would be reasonable to think of a cost of about £300 in your first year.
On top of this you will be asked to donate to charitable causes but each of us gives only according to our means and usually nobody will know what you gave.
What are the qualifications necessary to become a member.
People often imagine that to become a Mason you have to have a successful career, which is just not true. All Lodges look for good men they can help to make better and this has nothing to do with money or career success.
You do need a belief in a higher power but Masonry is not a religion and it matters not what religion you might be. You can be C of E, Roman Catholic, Jewish or Islamic if you believe in some form of a God that is enough.
Another aspect you will be asked about is whether you support the Monarchy. The reason for this question is very straight forward. For hundreds of years Masons have been associated with royalty and many monarchs have themselves been initiated into the Craft. Members of Masonry simply want to be very sure that the Craft never becomes subversive in any way.
Why does anyone become a Mason?
After all, you tell me that if I become a Mason it will cost me a chunk of money. Is likely to take a chunk of my time and you were honest enough to say it isn't going to directly help me in my working life, so why do people join in the first place? I believe there are a few very solid reasons and I would like to take this opportunity to try to explain.
You already know that the Masons give a lot of money to charity but let us not forget that charity begins at home. There are schools for both boys and girls which take on the education of children whose Mason father has died or become unable to support his family. These schools take both day pupils and boarding pupils and are totally supported by Masons in the UK. The Royal Masonic School for Girls .Each Lodge has someone whose job it is, is to see that any member of the Lodge who falls sick is getting the best care possible. This extends to the widows of Lodge members also and it is usual for Lodges to send each widow a Christmas box.
All of which is nice but perhaps not enough to make someone want to join. The real answer is in the fraternity and friendships that you will form in the Lodge. After each meeting we have there is a dinner and it is at these dinners that we can let our hair down and form friendships that are likely to last for the rest of your life.
You can learn more by clicking this link which will automatically create an e-mail to the Secretary of Rye Lodge who will furnish you with more information on how to become a Freemason secretary@rye2272.org.uk
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Rye Lodge meets on the 1st Monday in October (Installation), 2nd Monday in February, the 4th Monday in May and November at the Mumbai Square Masonic Centre (Corvinos) 7 Middlesex Street, London E1 7AA.
