Arkansas GM Extends Olive Branch to the State's Shriners

Arkansas Grand Master Thomas Lampirez

 

byChristopher Hodapp

Ever since November 2012, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas F&AM has forbidden the Masons in its jurisdiction to be members of the Shrine. The Grand Master at that time, Robert L. Jackson, issued a letter that declared the Shrine "clandestine" in Arkansas, and all Masons in the state were immediately ordered to either quit their Shrine membership, or "self-expel" themselves from Masonry (i.e. Quit).

After fourteen years of separation, this year's Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas, MW Thomas Lampirez, has just issued an edict that restores Shriners International in that state to the status of an"affiliated organization." (Click the image below to enlarge.)

Edit No. 3 reads, in part:

"An affiliated organization, while still not fraternal, carries with it a significant increase in status and trust. An affiliated organization is more formally connected to the larger fraternal, governing body and signals that the shrine in Arkansas is no longer operating loosely on its own, but is more connected to the Masonic fraternity through its mission, values, and structure. While progress has been made, I also believe this shall be the last act of good faith given by the Grand Lodge of, Arkansas toward this shrine in Arkansas until ALL non-Mason Shriners's are Freemasons."

The situation came about in 2012 over an Arkansas Mason who held a dual membership in another state, along with belonging to an Arkansas Shrine. He was brought up on Masonic charges and expelled in Arkansas, but was not suspended by the Shrine at that time because his other state's Grand Lodge had not taken any action against him. The Shrine's position was that he was still legally a Freemason outside of Arkansas, and therefore was still entitled to remain a Shriner. MW PGM Jackson disagreed, ordered the Shrine to expel him, they refused, and so he issued his edict.

(If you don't understand about relationships between Masonic groups and why membership status affects them across the board, see the explanation below about why this is an issue in the first place.)

The result was an enormous drop in Masonic membership in Arkansas that far exceeded the comparative membership losses that any other Masonic jurisdiction has suffered in the U.S. The sheer number of expulsions in Arkansas between about 2013 and 2019 was staggering.

Jackson's order might have meant the end of the only two Shrines in Arkansas (Scimitar Shriners and Sahara Shriners). Because of the untenable situation in which they found themselves, Shriners International changed its bylaws and carved out a loophole only for Arkansas that permitted non-Masons to become Shriners there. That by-law change has been in place since 2013. 

Meanwhile, PGM Robert Jackson went on to become the Grand Secretary of Arkansas in 2016. Numerous Arkansas Masons reported that his office allegedly stopped issuing letters of good standing to fleeing Arkansas Masons who attempted to transfer their membership to jurisdictions in other states like Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and elsewhere in protest. The Grand Lodges of Oklahoma and Kansas both withdrew amity with Arkansas, partially over these issues.

Jackson was suspended in 2017 by then-GM Carl E. Nelson, along with Grand Treasurer, PGM Ronnie Hedge.

But a new wrinkle developed in 2019. The outgoing 2018-19 Grand Master Bradley Phillips issued a Grand Master's Recommendation at the 2019 Arkansas annual meeting that proposed a way to end to the needless impasse with the Shrine. It reclassified the Shrine in Arkansas from a clandestine organization to a civic one for the next three years; permitted non-Mason Arkansas Shriners to petition lodges and self-expelled Arkansas Masons to petition for reinstatement, along with all other Masons in the state who had previously been expelled by former Grand Masters or trial commissions over their Shrine memberships or activities. At the end of three years, if all members of Arkansas Shrines had become Masons in that state (or in another jurisdiction recognized by Arkansas) once again, the Shrine would be classified as a fully recognized fraternal organization under Arkansas Masonic code. All remaining Shriners in Arkansas who had NOT become Masons by the end of the three year period were to be suspended by the Shrine, and the non-Mason loophole created by this whole imbroglio by the Shrine would be ended. 

In response, Shriners International passed a resolution during its 2019 Imperial Session, again requiring that all new initiates for Shrine membership in Arkansas must be Master Masons in good standing.

But apparently, the problem of existing non-Masonic Arkansas Shriners was never sufficiently solved, and the Shrine remained classified as a civic organization with no connection to Freemasonry at all.

Fast-forward to today. Private informal meetings have been held in recent months between leaders to attempt to find a solution that would finally bring the Shrine back into Arkansas' Masonic fold while addressing the problem of these new non-Masonic Shriners. Lampirez' last sentence makes it clear, however, that this is as far as the Grand Lodge will extend the olive branch until the Shriners can figure out how to make all of the non-Masons who joined the Shrine over the last fourteen years join a Masonic Lodge. Hopefully, they haven't built a box they can't escape from, and I suspect Tampa will get involved now that this edict has been issued.

For readers who do not understand the connection between the two groups, it needs to be explained that all those guys wearing red fezzes in Shriners Hospitals ads, or marching and puttering around in little race cars in parades are all members of a local Shriners organization AS WELL AS a Freemason’s lodge. Everywhere else in the world outside of Arkansas,  Shriners International requires men to first join a local Masonic lodge and undergo the three initiation degree ceremonies before they are allowed to then petition the Shriners for membership. Further, almost all regular, recognized grand lodges have rules that say if a man is dropped from Masonic membership for any reason - voluntarily or otherwise - he must also resign from all Masonically related, appendant or concordant organizations. If he doesn’t, that group’s administration is supposed to suspend or expel him to comply with Masonic regulations (informally referred to as the "suspended in one, suspended in all" doctrine).

Unlike state-wide grand lodges we have throughout the US, Canada and Mexico, the Shriners don't have state administrations. Local Shrine clubs and Shrine centers must answer to their national leadership in Tampa, Florida, which is also responsible for the 22 children's hospitals located in North America.

BREAKING: GL of Arkansas Recognizes Arkansas Prince Hall

by Christopher Hodapp

The Old Fashion Masonic Podcast is reporting on its Facebook page tonight that the Grand Lodge F&AM of Arkansas has just voted in favor of recognizing the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Arkansas. 

The vote was 79% Yay / 21% Nay

As of today, only the Grand Lodges of South Carolina and Mississippi are the last two remaining US jurisdictions that have not achieved some form of Prince Hall recognition. However, the Grand Lodge of Mississippi reportedly has the question on its annual meeting's agenda later this month.

For clarification, the GL of Louisiana has recognized the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Maryland, and the GL of West Virginia has recognized the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Kentucky.

This story will be updated.

TempleLive Abruptly Closes; Operated Former Masonic Temples in Four Cities

by Christopher Hodapp

A bold vision to try and save historic Masonic temples has tragically failed, apparently. Or at least struck a sizeable reef. News sources in Cleveland, Ohio reported last week that TempleLive, the company operating the Cleveland Masonic Temple and several other landmark Masonic theater venues, seems to have folded. Shows have been canceled, performers have been unable to get responses, and the company isn't answering phone calls. The company website is also down. 

If they really have folded, it's a sad setback for the historic Masonic temples in Cleveland, and Columbus, Ohio, along with Wichita in Kansas, and Ft. Smith in Arkansas, all recently renovated by TempleLive to the tune of tens of millions of dollars. But TempleLive wasn't owned or affiliated with the two or three mega-promotion companies that monopolize the concert business in the U.S. Squeezed out of the most lucrative acts in show business, they have fallen into the economic reality of trying to do things independently.

Cleveland Masonic Temple

The company was started several years ago by Lance Beaty's Beaty Capital Group and Rob Thomas, who had two goals for their venture. One was to preserve, renovate and operate theaters, specifically in endangered Masonic halls. Like so many of us, they realized these incredible, one of a kind temples built by our brethren a century or more ago needed to find new life in order to be saved from the wrecking ball. Their secondary notion was to serve smaller towns outside of the usual lineup of big cities for touring music, theater, comedy and other entertainment acts. Their first purchase was the 1928 Fort Smith Masonic Temple, and all of the venues they took over had large stages and auditoriums built originally for fraternal productions. Our forefathers also intended for these beautiful theaters to be used by their communities, not just a couple of annual events for Masons only.

Fort Smith Masonic Temple

An extended story in Crain's Cleveland Business on Monday quoted an Arkansas interview with the company's founder, Lance Beaty, who placed a lot of blame on being in independent concert promotor in a world dominated by a few massive, monopolistic corporations who control the business:

BCG CEO Lance Beaty told Arkansas news outlet Talk Business & Politics (TB&P) over the weekend that TempleLive operations are being shuttered in short order. This follows Beaty previously indicating just a few days prior that owners were looking at ways to keep the concert promoter going.

“We determined it was best to be definitive so the decision was made to pull down the remaining shows,” Beaty told the outlet.
Beaty cast blame on a mix of factors for TempleLive’s apparent struggles, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and a ticketing system that can put independent promoters at a disadvantage. 

“We are simply an outsider in an insider’s business,” Beaty told TB&P. “No matter how much money you throw at it or how creative you think you are, if you’re not on the inside, you’re not in.”

The Columbus Athenaeum was built in 1899 as a Masonic temple. 

After an expansion in 1913, it was claimed to be the largest specifically-Masonic building in America (a mantle that was soon surpassed in the fraternal building craze of the 1920s).

Wichita Scottish Rite

The article continued:

According to the 2025 State of Live report from the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA), 64% of indie venues did not turn a profit in 2024.
“Their survival is threatened by inflation, monopolistic pressures, and predatory ticket resale practices,” NIVA writes. “Yet their economic footprint is vast, their community impact is undeniable, and their importance to the national economy is backed by hard data.”

A debt collection complaint has been filed against BCG by Arkansas’ Partners Bank for an alleged default on a $1.5 million line of credit, according to Phillips County Circuit Court records. That related promissory note was signed in October 2023 and matured on May 2, 2025.

BCG established its TempleLive subsidiary upon acquiring and renovating a Masonic temple in Fort Smith, Arkansas, in 2017. This set a blueprint for TempleLive for purchasing similar Masonic auditoriums in other markets, improving them and opening them as concert and event venues.

As it expanded, TempleLive’s footprint grew to include additional venues in Cleveland and Columbus as well as Peoria, Illinois and Wichita, Kansas.
The Masonic Auditorium at 3669 Euclid Ave. in Cleveland was purchased by TempleLive in March 2017 for $725,000, according to county property records. In the years since, upwards of $14 million has been pumped into renovating the space over at least a couple of phases of redevelopment. Plans at the site also at one time included a vision for a massive adjacent hotel, the project for which was estimated to be around at least $60 million.

Freemason and Odd Fellows Exhibit at Historic Arkansas Museum in Little Rock

by Christopher Hodapp

A new exhibition on Freemasonry and the Odd Fellows opened this evening at the Historic Arkansas Museum in Little Rock: "Mystery and Benevolence: Masonic and Odd Fellows Folk Art from the Kendra and Allan Daniel Gift to the American Folk Art Museum."

The exhibit is on loan from the American Folk Art Museum in New York.

From the exhibit's description:

Mystical, evocative, and sometimes simply strange, the art of fraternal practice is rich in symbols that are oddly familiar yet strikingly uncommon. Through arcane and alluring artifacts, Mystery and Benevolence brings to light the histories of the Freemasons and the Independent Order of the Odd Fellows, two fraternal secret societies with deep roots in American history. The over eighty carvings, textiles, sculptures, and adornments that constitute this exhibition were used from the late eighteenth through mid-twentieth centuries, and retain their clandestine allure to this day.

The Historic Arkansas Museum is located at 1100 North Street, Little Rock, Arkansas. Hours are Tuesday – Saturday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM; Sunday 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM. For admission and more information, visit their website at www.arkansasheritage.com

Masks on! Masks off! Masks on! Masks off!

by Christopher Hodapp

Regardless of what your personal opinion may be concerning news about the resurgence of COVID infections and the controversies swirling around masks, lockdowns and vaccines, one thing is certain: if you're a Grand Master, anything you say or do (or choose to NOT do) concerning these topics will result in hellfire and brimstone raining down on your head from your membership. 

No matter what you say or do, there will be a great gnashing of teeth. (And fortunately, thanks to federal COVID funding, if you find yourself toothless, teeth will be provided.)

To wit:

Last Wednesday, August 11th, the Grand Master of Arkansas, MW William R. Frizzell, issued an official edict (Edict #3) requiring the Masons in his jurisdiction to return to wearing masks and distancing at lodge meetings, and recommending they get vaccinated against the virus. Irksome? Certainly. But probably prudent if you're the guy responsible for an organization with thousands of members, of which a substantial number are senior citizens who are more at risk than the rest of the population:

The edict was circulated electronically so it could be immediately disseminated to all members. And it's pretty obvious that the members' responses were immediate, too. One can only imagine the statewide caterwaul over the return to masking that poured into the Grand Master's email inbox, and the nonstop ringing of the office phones in Little Rock.

So, on Thursday morning, Grand Master Frizzell issued Edict #4, which was a clarification of Edict #3, explaining the difference between his requirements for in-person lodge meetings, his requests, and his recommendations:

To quote the Bard, "Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown," or the lap that's covered by the purple apron, in this case. It's clear that the protests of the membership became a deluge. 

GM Frizzell's Edict #5 was issued that very same afternoon, rescinding #3 and #4, signing off with just two words, "Good luck!" 

I was reminded of a famous incident at Bastogne, Belgium in December 1944 when the Germans sent an ultimatum to the commander of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne, Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe, demanding the immediate surrender of his woefully outnumbered forces. His reply to the German commander was simple and to the point: 

"Nuts."

Imperial Potentate Issues Update on Shrine in Arkansas

Recent efforts to restore the Shrine's Masonic connections in Arkansas are yielding some new developments this week (See GL of Arkansas and Shriners International May Be Burying the Hatchet At Last). 

Since November 2012, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas has forbidden the Masons in its jurisdiction to be members of the Shrine, and expelled numerous Masons over it.

On Tuesday, the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas, Jesse D. Sexton, issued an edict recognizing Shriners International as a “civic organization.” The result of this decision permits Arkansas Masons to again be members of Shriners International for the first time since 2013.

Yesterday, the Imperial Potentate for Shriners International, Jeffrey L. Sowder, circulated a letter to all Arkansas Shriners to announce the new changes.

"In response to significant positive steps taken by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas at its February 2019 Grand Communication, Shriners International passed a resolution during its 2019 Imperial Session, that as of July 16, 2019, all new initiates for Shrine membership in Arkansas must be Master Masons in good standing.

"The resolution has no current impact on Arkansas Shriners who are not currently Masons. However, Arkansas Masons are now immediately permitted to petition for membership in our two Arkansas Shrine Temples, Scimitar Shriners and Sahara Shriners."

Click to enlarge

As reported last week, the recommendation first proposed by PGM Bradley Phillips (now Grand Secretary) and accepted by the members of the Grand Lodge lays out a transition period of three years so that proper steps can be taken to return the Shrine to its former status as a "fraternal organization that predicates its membership on Masonic membership." If all goes well, at the end of three years all Arkansas Shriners should be Freemasons again, or they will be suspended by the Shrine at that time.

Arkansas Masons wishing to enquire about the current status of the Shrine should contact Grand Secretary Phillips in Arkansas directly. Arkansas Shriners who were previously Masons or now seek to more information should contact Brian Van Norman, Chief Membership Officer for Shriners International in Tampa.

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UPDATE 7/18/2019 3:00PM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Arkansas Masons Can Become Shriners

The Grand Master of Arkansas, Jesse D. Sexton, issued an edict on Tuesday, July 16, 2019 that recognizes Shriners International as a “Civic Organization”. The result of this decision permits Arkansas Masons, for the first time in more than five years, to be members of Shriners International.

Arkansas Masons are now permitted to immediately begin petitioning for membership in the Shrine following the decision of the Grand Master of Arkansas. In response to significant positive steps taken by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas at its 2019 February Communication, Shriners International passed a resolution during its 2019 Imperial Session. As result of this resolution and resulting action taken by the Grand Lodge, as of July 16, 2019, all new initiates for Shrine membership in Arkansas must be Master Masons in good standing. The resolution has no current impact on Arkansas Shriners who are not currently Masons.

The 145th Imperial Session of Shriners International adjourned on July 4, 2019. In addition to the historic action taken by the Representatives related to requiring a masonic prerequisite in Arkansas, Imperial Sir Jeff Sowder was elected Imperial Potentate for the 2019-2020 year. Imperial Sir Sowder is the first Past Grand Master ever to serve as the Imperial Potentate of Shriners International. “We welcome our brothers from the Grand Lodge of Arkansas to take advantage of the opportunity that now exists to become a Shriner”, said Imperial Potentate Jeff Sowder.

As a Past Grand Master and as a long-time Shrine Membership leader, Imperial Sir Jeff Sowder is extraordinarily well equipped to lead the Shrine through this period of productive transition. Both organizations are strengthened by the continuing collaborative efforts that have established a pathway for mutual success.

About Shriners InternationalShriners International is a fraternity based on fun, fellowship and the Masonic principles of brotherly love, relief and truth with nearly 200 temples (chapters) in several countries, and thousands of clubs around the world. For more information, please visitshrinersinternational.org.

GL of Arkansas and Shriners International May Be Burying the Hatchet At Last

(Some details of this story have been updated as of 11AM 7/7/2019.)

It's not over yet, but the long-running feud between the Grand Lodge of Arkansas and Shriners International may at last be coming to a positive resolution.

Since November 2012, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas has forbidden the Masons in its jurisdiction to be members of the Shrine. The Grand Master at that time, Robert L. Jackson, issued a letter that declared the Shrine "clandestine" in Arkansas, and all Masons in the state were suddenly ordered to either quit their Shrine membership, or "self-expel" themselves (a curious, irreversible procedure that few - if any - other grand lodges practice).

The argument at that time concerned an Arkansas Mason who held a dual membership in another state, along with belonging to an Arkansas Shrine. He was brought up on Masonic charges and expelled in Arkansas, but was not suspended by the Shrine at that time because his other state's Grand Lodge had not taken any action against him. The Shrine's position was that he was still legally a Freemason outside of Arkansas, and therefore was still entitled to remain a Shriner. MW PGM Jackson disagreed, ordered the Shrine to expel him, they refused, and so he issued his edict. 

The result was an enormous drop in Masonic membership in Arkansas that far exceeded the comparative membership losses that any other Masonic jurisdiction has suffered in the U.S. The sheer number of expulsions in Arkansas since 2013 has been staggering.

Jackson's order might have meant the end of the Shrine in Arkansas. Because of the untenable situation in which they found themselves, Shriners International changed its bylaws and created a loophole for Arkansas that permitted non-Masons to become Shriners there. That by-law change has been in place since 2013. 

Meanwhile, PGM Robert Jackson went on to become the Grand Secretary of Arkansas in 2016. Numerous Arkansas Masons reported that his office allegedly stopped issuing letters of good standing to fleeing Arkansas Masons who attempted to transfer their membership to jurisdictions in other states like Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and elsewhere. The Grand Lodges of Oklahoma and Kansas both withdrew amity with Arkansas, partially over these issues.

Jackson was suspended in 2017 by then-GM Carl E. Nelson, along with Grand Treasurer, PGM Ronnie Hedge. Hedge is now one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Grand Lodge of Arkansas (which is a whole different story). At the end of his term as Grand Master in 2018, PGM Nelson was elected as Grand Secretary. 

But a new wrinkle developed earlier this summer. The outgoing 2018-19 Grand Master Bradley Phillips (photo) issued a Grand Master's Recommendation at the 2019 Arkansas annual meeting that finally has proposed a way to end to the needless impasse with the Shrine. 

The Recommendation reclassifies the Shrine in Arkansas from a clandestine organization to a civic one for the next three years; permits non-Mason Arkansas Shriners to petition lodges; permits self-expelled Arkansas Masons to petition for reinstatement, along with all other Masons in the state who had previously been expelled by former Grand Masters or trial commissions over their Shrine memberships or activities; and the decisions to reinstate such expelled Masons will rest in the hands of local lodges, not the Grand Lodge or its officers. At the end of three years, if all members of Arkansas Shrines have become Masons in that state (or in another jurisdiction recognized by Arkansas) once again, the Shrine will again be classified as a fully recognized fraternal organization under Arkansas Masonic code. In return, all remaining Shriners in Arkansas who have NOT become Masons by the end of the three year period will be expected to be suspended by the Shrine, and the non-Mason loophole created by this whole imbroglio by the Shrine will be ended.

(I have only seen page one of the Recommendation. Click image below to enlarge.)

The attending delegates at the annual meeting overwhelmingly voted in favor of the proposal, and Phillips was also elected as their new Grand Secretary, replacing Carl Nelson.  The adopted recommendation also has the support of current 2019-20 Arkansas Grand Master Jesse Don Sexton. 

This past week in Nashville, Shriners International held its 145th annual Imperial Session. The Arkansas Recommendation was partially re-drafted as a Resolution for the Shrine, and was enthusiastically adopted by their delegates. This has now resulted in the Shrine organizing a working group from the Grand Lodge of Arkansas and members of the Sahara and Scimitar Shrines in Arkansas to begin the transition process outlined. 

By the time you read this, if I understand the original Recommendation correctly, the Shrine is no longer considered "clandestine" by Arkansas, and is merely to be treated as a civic organization now. (Please contact the Grand Secretary's office to verify this, as I may be misunderstanding the actual timing.)

Further, Shriners International will move forward with a plan to restore regular Masonic membership as a prerequisite for becoming a Shriner once again into their bylaws, as it historically has been before. The working group's complete report is due no later than the end of this year.

And then, if all goes well within the proposed three year time frame, all of this stürm und drang will finally come to an end, and Masonic careers of countless dedicated Arkansas brethren that have been devastated by this feud may be restored at last.

(The adopted Shrine Resolution can be seen below. Click to enlarge.)

Oklahoma Masons Withdraw Recognition of GL of Arkansas

THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED AT 12:30AM 11/11/2018:

Oklahoma Masons have just voted to withdraw recognition of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. Late this evening I have received several messages out of the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma that took place in Guthrie today. 

The vote was overwhelming: 558 Yes to 179 No. 

The Grand Lodge of Oklahoma VERY briefly withdrew recognition of Arkansas before  in 2016 by an edict of their then-grand master, but that quickly lapsed and amity was restored that same year. The Grand Lodge of Kansas also suspended recognition of Arkansas earlier this year.

The continuing saga with the Grand Lodge of Arkansas F&AM is too complex to explain simply here. According to reports from Oklahoma tonight, the principal justification for the withdrawal of amity has been an ongoing lack of due process for Arkansas Masons, which has made it difficult if not impossible for their former members to seek membership in other states. Reportedly, the final nail in the coffin today was an impassioned speech by a Medal of Honor recipient from Arkansas who begged Oklahoma to take this action.

The "Yellow Book" of Oklahoma's 2018 Reports and Resolutions is available online, and contains a summary of the situation on page 34, and the Resolution voted upon today, which reads in part:

Since 2012, the Grand Lodge F. & A.M. of Arkansas is known to practice removing members of the Craft from their jurisdiction who have not committed a masonic offense (e.g., cannot be a Shriner and an Arkansas Mason), and without due process (in essence, no right of appeal of sentence, or other remedy for grievances permitted). The basic due process of law is a citizen's right, guaranteed by the U. S. constitution (Fifth Amendment, ratified September 25, 1789; and Fourteenth Amendment, ratified July 9, 1868), and cannot be excluded under the guise of a trial process of a sovereign fraternal entity.

As no remedy has evolved over the past six years and none is foreseen, the committee recommends the Grand Lodge of A.F. & A.M. of the State of Oklahoma suspend recognition of the Grand Lodge of F. & A.M. of Arkansas, until the provision of due process of law is provided for by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas; and that the Grand Secretary notify their Grand Master accordingly.

Should the Craft adopt this recommendation the following impact would take
effect for Oklahoma.

First, no impact would be felt on the interactions of the Adult and Youth Orders, as Oklahoma and Arkansas Masons would be performing their roles as Masters Masons in their Adult and Youth Orders capacity, and they would not be involved in a tyled Masonic Lodge.

Second, no impact would be felt on the interactions of an Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite or York Rite functions, as they also meet in the role of their Order. They may meet in a Lodge facility but not in the tyled recesses of an ancient craft Lodge.

Lastly however, an impact would be felt with Oklahoma and Arkansas Masons meeting in each other's tyled recesses of a lodge.

Meanwhile, little information has managed to trickle out of Arkansas over the last 18 months or so. A Facebook site run by an anonymous Arkansas Mason continues to report that their trial commission retains its 100% suspension and expulsion record. I remain more than willing to print any communication, explanation, or response here by the Grand Master of Arkansas or their members at any time. 

This story will be updated if new information becomes available.

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UPDATE 11/20/2018: DOCUMENTS ADDED

Click images to enlarge.

GL of Kansas Suspends Recognition of Arkansas and Cuba

The following message just came early this afternoon from the annual communication of the Grand Lodge of Kansas AF&AM meeting today in Topeka:

"During the Committee on Foreign Relations report, it was recommended that fraternal relations be suspended or withdrawn from two Grand Jurisdictions.

"With no discussion, the Craft of Kansas voted almost unanimously to suspended recognition with the Grand Lodge of Cuba.

After minimal discussion, the Craft of Kansas voted overwhelmingly to withdraw recognition of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas."

Without further details, I presume the action taken over Cuba stems from ongoing disagreements over Florida. In February 2017, the Grand Lodge of Florida F&AM's Grand Master Stanley Hudson withdrew recognition from the Gran Logia de Cuba for their failure to "renounce the clandestine lodges operating" in Florida's jurisdiction. Their brief period of recognition by Florida had lasted just three months.

That controversy stems from lodges operated within Florida made up of exiled Cuban Masons who are not affiliated with the Grand Lodge of Florida F&AM. They obviously see this as an invasion of their territory by Cuba, and this discussion apparently has gone on for a while. Florida largely looked the other way at the operation of the exile lodges with an understanding that they would cease once relations between the island nation and the US were normalized and the two Grand Lodges reconciled. That apparently did not happen, at least as quickly as the GL of Florida wanted it to. Here is a link to a letter regarding the matter from 2014 and to the story from February 2017. Now it seems that Kansas has decided to weigh in on the matter, as well.

As to the continuing saga with the Grand Lodge of Arkansas F&AM, it is too complex to explain simply here. The Grand Lodge of Oklahoma VERY briefly withdrew recognition of Arkansas in 2016 by an edict of their then-grand master, but that quickly lapsed and amity was restored. Now, Kansas has suspended recognition officially by the vote of the Grand Lodge.

I did not have the opportunity to speak with Arkansas' newly elected (in February) Grand Master Brad Phillips when he was in Indiana for the Conference of Grand Masters, but things have been remarkably quiet out of Little Rock in recent months. Nevertheless, this action just taken in Topeka seems to confirm that Arkansas continues its policies of preventing their own members from receiving letters of good standing when attempting to demit and affiliate in adjoining states. Arkansas has been chaining the exit doors closed for several years now. But recently, Arkansas lodges have also been pointedly refusing to permit sojourning Kansas Masons from visiting meetings. The Grand Lodge of Arkansas has a past history of denying Masonic visitations from jurisdictions that have recognized their Prince Hall counterparts, and both Oklahoma and Kansas have been on the receiving end of this action. Apparently, Kansas has finally had enough of it.

Pertinent updates and links to past stories concerning Arkansas can be traced starting HERE or HERE. 


Meanwhile, here's a curious oddity on the GL of Arkansas website. Many grand lodge sites have a FAQ section to answer the most commonly asked questions. usually, they are questions that the public would be likely to want an answer to. 

Not so with Arkansas. Their FAQ page has just six questions (and answers) on it.

One of the six concerns the differences between withdrawing and demitting (or dimitting) from the GL of Arkansas. The other explains the difference between someone who lives in Arkansas who is willingly not a member of their grand lodge, versus a Mason who unwillingly is not a member.

I couldn't make this up:

They might consider addressing why those two questions in particular deserve such a prominent public answer, and why so many Arkansas Masons have been asking...


UPDATE APRIL 16, 2018:

During the Kansas 162nd Annual Communication held March 16, 2018, their Grand Lodge withdrew recognition of the Grand Lodge of F. & A.M. of Arkansas, stating "that the Grand Lodge of Arkansas has knowing and willingly abandoned two of the basic principal landmarks of freemasonry, that of the Right to Trial, and the Right of Appeal."

In their subsequent letter this week of April 13, 2018 announcing their decision to all jurisdictions who are in amity with the M􏰀 W􏰀 Grand Lodge of A.F. & A.M. of Kansas, they further stated: 

"The Grand Lodge of Kansas feels strongly that the jurisdiction of Arkansas has abandoned at least two of the core principals of Freemasonry, and continues to this day to tyrannize and oppress their members. We can no longer sit idly by while good Brothers are treated this way. The vote of the Craft in Kansas, and this action, is made, first and foremost, to secure the rights and membership of Kansas Masons living in Arkansas and Kansas Masons with dual membership with Arkansas."

Somewhere, Somebody's Laughing

The annual communication of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana was held this past week, and nothing especially unusual happened. Just the quiet, annual changing of the guard. But buried deep in the copy of the Advance Proceedings in the report on foreign correspondence was a small paragraph noting that a small, new Arkansas grand lodge was requesting recognition from Louisiana.

The Regular Wheaton Grand Lodge of Arkansas.

I am NOT making this up. I'll post an image when I can get one.

I'm assured that neither Louisiana's Grand Secretary and the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Recognition are the type who engage in pranks. It did actually make it into print.

The request was not brought to the floor for a vote...

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UPDATE: 7/4/2017

Click to enlarge.

GL Arkansas Lawsuit Dismissed

As mentioned here back in October, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas lost $500,000 in a failed real estate investment scheme dating back to 2008. They subsequently attempted to recover their losses by suing various parties involved in the fund in federal court in April 2015. But by last October, the judge in the Arkansas Eastern District court, Hon. J. Leon Holmes, had already thrown out all charges against four of the six defendants in the case.

Well, last Wednesday, January 18th, Holmes tossed out the case against the last two remaining defendants and dismissed the case "with prejudice." The documents are available online HERE (Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the State of Arkansas v. DCG/UGOC Equity Fund LLC et al) if you have a PacerMonitor subscription (they offer a free trial for 14 days, but be careful, as you could get charged $49 for the next month if you miss the email). Noteworthy across all of the judge's decisions is the repeated use of the phrase, "the Lodge has failed to carry its burden to show..."

(UPDATED LINKS to the pertinent documents: October 19, 2016 decision; and the January 2017 Decision)

Arkansas Masons have been asking whether the complete legal costs accrued by this Quixotic quest through the court system will be duly reported at next month's Annual Communication.

Large institutional organizations have problems from time to time. Any well-meaning one can make a poor investment through no fault of its own, and there's often nothing more damning about such an error or stroke of bad timing than, at most, maybe credulousness or bad judgement by an officer or two, who simply were out of their depth in the matter. The best of organizations are up front with their stockholders or members, promise to do better or change leadership, and get back to work. But Arkansas continues to rack up problem after problem, and they can't be hidden from their own members any longer. The practice of ejecting every single member who makes a critical observation out loud has taken on epidemic proportions: 23 expelled so far this year, and it's not quite the end of the term yet.

The question now arising is, will February's gathering in Little Rock erupt in a massive outburst of revolutionary anger, disgust, and exasperation? Or will some calming PGM or other admired Arkansas Mason emerge who rallies members to some noble cause and gathers their immediate approbation? Or will the assembled brethren simply sit quietly and watch it all unfold in emotional resignation - only to stop themselves at years' end when it comes time to write their dues check, and consign their notices to their shredders?

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UPDATE 1/30/2017: 

According to court documents filed by the Grand Lodge in the lawsuit against the Equity Fund investment company, half of their $500,000 loss came out of their Perpetual Membership investment fund. As a result, the loss of investment income will be felt by every lodge under the Grand Lodge of Arkansas in the reduction of payouts from lifetime memberships.

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To recap the entire Arkansas saga, here are the pertinent links:

3/13/10: Grand Lodge of Arkansas Pulls Charter, Files Charges Over Website
12/16/10: News From Arkansas
2/17/11: A Gathering Storm In Arkansas
2/18/11: More Sad News From Arkansas
11/9/12: Shrine Declared Clandestine in Arkansas
1/31/13: South Carolina Suspends Relations With Shriners International
6/19/16: Arkansas Rumblings
6/26/16: Reprehend With Justice
8/23/16: GL of Arkansas Suspends Grand Senior Warden
8/28/16: Grand Lodge of Arkansas' Yezhovshchina: Grand Line Officers Purged
9/3/16: More Antics Out Of Arkansas
9/11/16: Arkansas: Floggings Continue, Yet Morale Doesn't Improve
10/10/16: New Allegations in Arkansas

11/2/16: Grand Master of Oklahoma Suspends Recognition of GL of Arkansas
11/16/16: Oklahoma Edict on Arkansas Lapses: Amity Restored

12/19/16:  Arkansas's Holiday Surprises

"What If Freemasonry Disappeared Tomorrow?"

Kansas brethren, take note. 

On Saturday, February 11th, the appropriately named Justice Lodge 457 meeting in Alta Vista, KS will present a special, thought-provoking program entitled, "What if Freemasonry Disappeared Tomorrow?" Certainly a fascinating topic for us all to contemplate, and one that needs to be discussed on occasion in any jurisdiction or lodge, for the sake of periodically examining our own roles in our communities and the world at large.  How we are perceived - by the public, as well as by our own members and potential petitioners - is vitally important for us to examine. Those who fail to plan for the future are surely doomed to extinction, so this program is certainly a timely one.

Justice Lodge is unusual in that it is an affinity lodge. These types of lodges, made up of members who share a profession or hobby or other common interest, are far more generally found in the U.K. than in the U.S. Justice's meetings travel around their state, but they were indeed properly chartered by the Grand Lodge of Kansas in 2011. Justice Lodge limits its actual membership to 45 Master Masons who are past or present Law Enforcement Officers, which include federal, state, county, or city law enforcement officers, federal, state, county, or city corrections officers, and past or present federal, state, county, or city prosecutors. Their members follow a dress code and wear tuxedos, while guests are requested to wear a tuxedo or dark business suit and tie. As a traveling lodge they do not have “courtesy” or communal aprons of their own, so visiting Masons should bring their own apron to wear. Regular Masons in good standing are invited to attend.The tyled meeting will be held at the temple of Alta Vista Lodge 357, located at 707 Main Street, Alta Vista, KS. The program begins at 3:30PM, and will be followed by a Festive Board at Trails Day Café in nearby Council Grove, and the cost is $20. Registration for the event is requested NO LATER THAN JANUARY 31st by visiting the reservation page HERE. (Don't be confused - the reservation page is actually hosted by a different lodge, Hancock 311, as a favor, since Justice Lodge doesn't have a site of its own.) 

Alta Vista is located kind of in the middle of a lopsided triangle between Topeka, Salina, and Witchita (if you squint a little bit and stretch the definition of "triangle").

Oh, I'm sorry. I failed to mention the special guest speaker for the day's event. Silly me. My memory.

It will be former Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas, Patrick Carr.