2B1Ask1 (To be a Mason, Ask a Mason to
join)
v The Grand Lodge of Iowa, A.F. & A.M. appreciates your interest in Freemasonry. By seeking this information you have taken the first step to becoming a member. It's really that simple. To become a Mason you need only "ask", meet the qualifications, and be accepted by a Lodge.
Membership
Video
v The Grand Lodge of Indiana has produced a video about membership in the Masonic Fraternity. Please return to this page after watching the video if you would like. By clicking here to Watch Video, you will be presented with a webpage that lets you choose the video format to use as well as programs to download, if needed, to watch the video.
v
For further information email the Grand Lodge of Iowa or call 319-365-1438 or
fax at 319-365-1439. You can also send mail to Grand Lodge of Iowa, A.F. &
A.M,
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If you are in the
What Does the Grand
Lodge of Iowa Do?
Masonic
Information and other Articles
ü In the business it is honesty.
ü In society it is courtesy.
ü In work it is fairness.
ü Toward the unfortunate it is pity.
ü Toward the wicked it is resistance.
ü Toward the weak it is help.
ü Toward the strong it is trust.
ü Toward the penitent it is forgiveness.
ü Toward the fortunate it is congratulations.
ü Toward God it is reverence and Love.
What is a Mason?
ü A Mason
is a member of the world’s largest fraternal organization. He can enjoy the friendship of other Masons
in his community, and he will be welcomed as a “brother” by Masons anywhere in
the world.
Ø
Over two hundred
years ago, the great principles of operating masons were adopted by countless
others who did not necessarily work in stone.
Ever since, still others have joined voluntarily in thousands of local
groups called “lodges” that are dedicated to the same principles of
brotherhood, rectitude, sobriety, charity and invigorated by a common
dedication to high ethical and spiritual purposes.
Ø
Employing the words
and titles of the ancient craft of masonry allegorically, Masons today band
together for building not structures of stone but men of character. There is a dynamic force in the ancient
institution of the “lodge” that continually gives fresh impetus to a man’s
individual striving.
ü A place where you
can confidently trust every person and trust your family with them also.
ü A place where,
within moral and civil guidelines; free thought, free speaking and the
spiritual growth of man, can grow into its fullest potential.
ü A place to meet outstanding individuals
from all walks of life, that a person would not otherwise have had the
opportunity to know and call brother.
ü A place to be part
of an organization which has for its principal tenets – Brotherly Love, Relief
and Truth.
ü A place that
provides self-development opportunities, leadership training and experience,
and to improve public speaking skills.
ü A place you can go
to seek support as well as give it.
ü A place where moral
virtues are taught and through these teachings a regular reinforcement of the
moral virtues is experienced.
ü A place to spend
time with a group of brothers, who by acting as good men, make me want to
become a better man. Not better than
others, but better than I would have otherwise been.
ü A place to become
better equipped to serve Church and community.
ü A place to
meet with established members of the community and to become a part of the
community.
What does
Freemasonry Do?
ü
Freemasonry develops your
ability to speak before groups and to be a true leader of good men.
ü
Freemasonry allows all good
men – regardless of external qualifications to mingle in true Masonic
fellowship.
ü
Freemasonry teaches truths that
are timeless. Her Ritual teaches the
great and important lessons of brotherly love, relief, and truth.
ü
Freemasonry lifts her members
out of the hustle and bustle of today’s society and reveals the more important
virtues of temperance, fortitude, prudence, and justice.
ü
Freemasonry demands nothing
of her petitioners beyond a deep rooted belief in a Supreme Being and a desire
to be serviceable to their fellowmen.
ü
Freemasonry teaches us to
practice charity in word and deed, to forgive and forget the faults of our
brethren, to hush the tongues of scandal…to care for the crippled, the hungry
and the sick…and to be fair and just to our fellowmen.
ü
Freemasonry tells us that regardless of where we travel in this world
we and our loved ones are under the protection of every Mason on earth who has
sworn to protect and defend us…just as we have sworn to protect and defend
them.
ü
Freemasonry promises that should we ever be overtaken by misfortune,
sickness, or adversity through no fault of our own, the hands of every member
of our great fraternity will be stretched forth to aid and assist us.
ü
Freemasonry also promises (if we so desire) that when our
final exit from the stage of life has been made – there will be gathered round
our lifeless body – friends and brothers who will recall to mind our virtues –
though they be but few – and will forget our faults – though they be many.
What does Grand
Lodge of
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa supports the Masonic
Charitable Education Corporation.
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa presents scholarships
each year to a group of deserving high school seniors.
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa operates the Rowley
Memorial Masonic Home in Perry
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa cares for its members
who have met chronic illness at the Iowa Masonic Health Facilities in
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa supports the Iowa
Masonic Library (one of the greatest in the world).
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa contributes to the Masonic
Service Association.
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa extends Masonic Charity
through the Masonic Relief Association.
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa publishes and sends
free of charge to any member, wishing to subscribe, the Grand Lodge Bulletin.
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa proudly acclaims one of
the finest systems of Masonic Education and its per capita of proficient
members is envied by many jurisdictions.
ü Grand
Lodge of Iowa provides Field
Financial Aid to its members whenever and wherever needed.
What Do Masons Do Today?
In Public Life
Ø
Charity in the
largest sense is a fundamental precept of modern Masonry and is evident in
every community in its support of socially necessary institutions. In some states it is hospitals for cancer, or
other malignant diseases, or for crippled children. In others, it is homes for the aged or
institutions for geriatrics, or youth guidance.
In some countries, all of this is shown by the acts and conduct of individual
Masons sponsoring and fostering socially beneficial legislation. In the world over, Masonry ministers to the
poor, the handicapped, the displaced, the derelict.
Ø
Masonry moves quietly
to alleviate human suffering and increase the stature of man and women as
children of God. Creeds have their
rightful function in every land. Yet it
is not creed but action that Masonry emphasizes. Masonry buttresses the good works of all
religions in community service. Men of
all faiths wear the “square and compass” of this fraternity
Ø
No Mason will
wittingly permit another Mason – or any man – to go hungry, to suffer
indignity, to be a slave, or lose his high position as a son of God.
In Personal Life
Ø
Masonry employs
allegory in its teaching in the “lodge” to illustrate moral and spiritual
values. Derived from man’s historical
development, it is on these values that man’s very existence today and in the
future depends.
Ø
In the family of
nations – whose present instrument is the United Nations – the honoring of these
values and their practice would materially aid in solving today’s grievous
conflicts.
Ø
Courage is one of
these values. Citing the bravery of
great men of past centuries who stood firm – often alone – against oppression,
tyranny, fanaticism, usurpation of power and intolerance, Masonry inspires men
today to stand firm against similar evils – from whatever source – that
threaten our freedoms.
Ø
Masonry emphasizes
personal responsibility for one’s own conduct and for that of his family as
another of these moral values. By
example, a Mason extends the sphere of influence of the moral values to his own
community and nation.
Ø
The Mason employs the
tools by which the ancient craftsman in stone – the mason – gauged the accuracy
of his building. The ancient mason used
a level, a square, and a plumbline. With
these symbols, a Mason tries to live “on the level” and “upon to square” in all
dealings with other men.
Ø
For centuries the
plumbline has been used and is still used in construction to erect
perpendiculars in a building. Similarly,
the plumbline has a moral significance in Masonry that affords a gauge of
upright conduct. Masonically, the gauge
serves not as a static guide but sets a standard of rectitude of behavior to
which every Mason must aspire.
How to Become A Mason?
ü Masons
do not put on drives for membership, but in
ü The
application form, called “Petition for Degrees,” requests information about a
man’s character, personal history, and his family status.
ü The
applicant signs the petition form, and two Masons sign it as recommending him
for membership. Obviously, the Masons
who sign as sponsors should be well acquainted with the petitioner.
ü Each
Lodge has an established membership fee which is to accompany the petition.
ü The
applicant gives the petition to his Masonic friend who turns it in to the
Master or Secretary of the lodge. The
petition is read in the Lodge, after which the Investigating Committee is
required to make diligent inquiry into the character and fitness of the
applicant. This Committee will report at
the next regular meeting of the Lodge, and then the Lodge will act upon the
petition.
ü Following
election by the Lodge the candidate will be informed by the Master of the
Lodge, who will send him a booklet explaining further steps in becoming a
Mason.
ü The
basic tenets of Masonry are taught in three Degrees. These Degrees are First, Entered Apprentice;
Second, Fellowcraft; Third, Master Mason, and they consist of ceremonies of
serious nature in which each candidate takes part with dignity and solemnity.
ü When
a man has been raised to the Degree of Master Mason he will enjoy the
friendship of a find group of men in his community and be recognized all over
the world as a “brother.” Moreover, he
can participate in the activities and fellowship and social events in every
lodge in his own State, in the Nation, and in fact, all over the world.
Masonic Information and
other articles
· Reading Courses in Freemasonry.
·
New Acquisitions 1999 to 2000 for the
library.
·
New Acquisitions 2000 to 2001 for the
library.
·
New Acquisitions 2001 to 2002 for the
library.
·
New Acquisitions 2002 to 2003 for the
library.
·
New Acquisitions 2003 to 2004 for the
library.
·
New Acquisitions 2004 to 2005 for the
library.
· New Acquisitions 2005 to 2006 for the library.
· VCR Tapes
available through Grand Lodge.
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