2025 U.S. Masonic Cons and More

by Christopher Hodapp

Grab your Masonic Calendar as the Masonic conference season kicks into full swing. Freemasons are organizing fun and educational events all over the country. 

The Grand Lodge of New York started off the year with their Masonic Con back in mid-January, but as the weather warms up, other jurisdictions are announcing their own similar events. Please alert me if yours isn't listed below and I'll add it to this list.

Montana Masonic Con April 25-26, 2025 – Great Falls, Montana

NOTE! This event has been cancelled as of April 15th.

Esotericon 2025 in Virginia has been postponed
www.esotericon.net

Midwest Conference on Masonic Education – May 2-4, 2025 – Indianapolis

http://www.mcme1949.org/

Hudson Valley Masonic Con – June 7th, 2025 – Middletown, New York

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/hudson-valley-masonicon-2025-tickets-1298075571979

Masonic Con Kansas – July 18-19th, 2025 – Kansas (FREE this year!)

www.MasonicConKansas.com

John Skene Masonic Conference – August 23rd, 2025 – Plainfield, New Jersey

https://www.facebook.com/events/1005564854738595/

Texas MasoniCon – November 14-15, 2025 – Texas
www.TexasMasoniCon.com

Camp Cornerstone – August 22-24, 2025 – Arizona
www.flagstaff7.org

Masonic Con South – October 18-19, 2025 – North Carolina

www.MasonicConSouth.com

San Antonio Esoteric Summit - June 7, 2025 – Texas
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0E44ADAB2FA2FB6-51446264-lodges#/

AMD/Masonic Week 2026 - February date not yet determined – Alexandria, Virginia

https://amdusa.org/wp/masonic-week-2025/

Midwest Conference on Masonic Education in Indianapolis May 2-4, 2025

by Christopher Hodapp

Don't forget to register for the Midwest Conference on Masonic Education May 2-4, 2025 in Indianapolis. 

Here's the lineup for what is shaping up to be a truly terrific program.

This year's conference will be held at the historic Indianapolis Masonic Temple, located at 525 N. Illinois Street.

Indianapolis Masonic Temple

Be sure you visit the Masonic Library and Museum of Indiana on the 5th floor of the Masonic Temple. It will be open throughout the day on Saturday.

Don't forget that Brent Morris and I will kick off this conference on Friday night at the Rathskeller Restaurant.

While you're in town, be sure to visit our other two downtown landmark Masonic buildings: the Indianapolis Scottish Rite Cathedral, just north of the Temple at North and Meridian Streets; and the Murat Shrine Temple at 502 North New Jersey Street.

Indianapolis Scottish Rite Cathedral

Murat Shrine

No one will be bored in this town, I promise. If this is your first time in Indianapolis, don't just chain yourself to the hotel. Downtown Indianapolis is FILLED with 300 restaurants, so you will find an embarrassment of riches when hunting somewhere to eat dinner. Better yet, this is a walking city, and loads of business areas are interconnected with covered walkways, including the Circle Center Mall (which is undergoing major transformation over the next couple of years). Take in a baseball game at Victory Field or basketball at the Fieldhouse. And there are several major and minor museums downtown, as well. The downtown club scene is pretty vibrant, too.

Check out the Downtown Indy website for ideas.

And before you leave town, mosey down to the south lawn of the Statehouse and take your picture next to the statue of George Washington in his Masonic regalia as the founding Master of Alexandria lodge in Virginia. He appropriately faces Washington Street.

I hope you have a great time in my home town! Great Masonic ideas and practices got their start in Indiana, and we have much to be proud of here.

Welcome to Indianapolis!

Wisconsin MasoniCon in Eau Claire This Saturday April 12th

by Christopher Hodapp

The MasoniCon season is heating up. Join me this Saturday, April 12th at the Wisconsin MasoniCon in Eau Claire, where I'll be speaking along with Steven Harrison of the Midnight Freemasons blog and author of Freemasons–Tales from the Craft.

The day will kick off at 10AM with a special meeting of the Silas Shepherd Lodge of Research #1843. Steven and I will speak after lunch.

This event takes place at the magnificent Eau Claire Masonic Temple located at 616 Graham Avenue, from 10AM to 6PM.

You can't beat the price - admission is free and lunch is provided. After the event, BBQ dinner from Famous Daves is a paltry $20.

For reservations and more information CLICK HERE. Technically, reservations are closed because of the lunch and dinner catering requirements, but the admission is free and organizers won't turn you away (as long as you feed yourself...)

The 1st Masonic Con New York – 'Freemasonry in the 21st Century': January 17-18, 2025

by Christopher Hodapp

The very first Masonic Con New York is coming to the magnificent New York Masonic Hall on the weekend of January 17, 2025. Built around the theme Freemasonry in the 21st Century: Self and Society, this premiere Masonic Con will showcase experts discussing the urgency of Masonic teachings and the importance of Brotherhood in our lives and communities. If you are familiar with the U.S. Surgeon General’s recent study on the epidemic of male loneliness in American society, or with any of the various news reports on this problem, you may wish to hear from these speakers and glean ideas for preparing for Freemasonry’s future.

(Click to enlarge)

 

The weekend will begin the evening of Friday, January 17 with the legendary Mariners Lodge 67 Maritime Festive Board and Beefsteak Banquet inside the Masonic Hall's spacious Grand Lodge Room at 6 p.m. If you have yet to experience it, prepare to be amazed by the camaraderie of Masonic feasting and singing in harmony.

A Mariner's Lodge Festive Board & Beefsteak Banquet

On Saturday the 18th, the speakers program, open to the public, will begin at 9 a.m. Keynote speaker Maj. Gen. William Green, Jr., the U.S. Army’s Chief of Chaplains, will speak to America’s loneliness epidemic and man’s need for fraternal connections in life.

(Click to enlarge)

 

Additional featured Speakers:

• Dr. Heather Calloway, Executive Director of Indiana University’s Center for Fraternal Collections and Research, will discuss the cultural relevance of fraternal orders in America.
• Bro. Chuck Dunning, of Texas, the nationally renowned author and educator on the subject of meditation and mindfulness techniques, will impart ways Masons and our lodges may profit from these practices.
• Bro. Bull Garlington, of Illinois, is famous for his journalistic essays on how he overcame loneliness in adulthood by discovering Freemasonry.
• Bro. Michael LaRocco, Executive Director of our Livingston Library, will share his expertise in the craft of self-actualization.
• Bro. Jim Loporto will close the speakers program with his dramatic presentation “The Elephant in the Room.” This will be open only to regular Freemasons—and we especially encourage Apprentices, Fellows, and new Master Masons to experience it.

 

There will also be tours of Masonic Hall and the Livingston Library, Masonic vendors, and plenty of networking opportunities.

Masonic Con will close with a special cocktail reception, where attendees can mingle with the guest speakers and Grand Lodge leadership while also supporting New York’s Brotherhood Fund 1781 Society.

For more information, to purchase tickets, sign up for vendors' tables or make hotel reservations, visit https://masonicconnewyork.com/

(H/T Thanks to Grand Secretary Richard Schultz for passing this along)

 

Kansas Masonic Con This Weekend - July 26-28

by Christopher Hodapp

There's still time to sign up and attend the Kansas Masonic Con this coming weekend, Friday - Sunday, July 26-28, 2024, at Rosedale Lodge 333 in Mission, Kansas (near Kansas City).

Speakers will include:

• Chad Thomas – “Freemasonry: Form vs Function”
• Jon Ruark – “Stoic Resilience in an Age of Uncertainty”
• Nicholas Laine – “The Creation of Enlighteners in Lodge”
• James R. Morgan III – “The Lost Empire: Black Freemasonry in the Old West”
• Duane Marshall – “The Journey of a Mason”
• Chad Kopenski – “The Power of Masonic Myth”
• Lincoln Wilson – “How Much Masonry Do You Want?

Rosedale Lodge 333, Mission, Kansas

There will be a Friday evening 'meet and greet' with the speakers, with the bulk of the program on Saturday, followed by a masquerade festive board Saturday night, and wrapping up with an outing on Sunday. Tickets can be had for each event individually, an all program pass, and for virtual attendees who wish to watch online. 

CLICK HERE for registration and ticket information.

Upcoming 2023 Masonic Conventions

(Image: Brother Steven McKim)

by Christopher Hodapp

In the mid-2010s, American Freemasons started falling in love with the concept of state or regional Masonic Cons – large-scale Masonic conventions that bring together guest speakers, education presentations, seminars, and discussion groups, replete with vendors, commemorative swag, podcasters to cover the activities, and a grand celebratory dinner. Similar types of Masonic education events have gone on for over a century and a half, but the 'Masonic Con' branding (reminiscent of science fiction, comic, and mystery lovers' "Cons") seemed to kickstart imitators and provide new enthusiasm that has become infectious. (See my article from 2019, Masonic Con and the Power of Great Ideas.)

Coming up this year there are at least three that I know of, in Oklahoma, Kansas and Illinois. Alert me if I missed yours.

Red River Masonic Con will be held June 23-24, 2023 in Sulphur, Oklahoma at the Chickasaw Retreat and Conference Center. Sponsored by the Oklahoma Lodge of Research, speakers will include:

• Robert C. Davis
• Josef Wäges
• Chuck Dunning
• Daniel Hanttula
• Alex G. Power

(See the schedule HERE) An informal 'Friday Night Philosopher's Guild' gathering will kick off the event, described as "a guided discussion of the meaning of modern day Freemasonry and a group exploration of the needs and wants of 21st century fraternalism." It will last from 6pm-9pm, and they are limiting it to 30 participants.

Tickets are on sale now. General admission is $99. There's also a $15 ticket if you only want to attend the Friday Night Philosophers Guild discussion (includes pizza). Wives, spouses, significant others and non-Masonic guests are encouraged to participate in a $99 non-Mason activity program that includes a Cultural Center Tour and Lunch (11am-2:30pm), Dinner at the CRCC with the Masons. the Nine O’Clock Toast, and commemorative glass.

Sulphur, Oklahoma is located about a 2 hour drive south of Oklahoma City off I-33, and it's a fascinating place to explore all by itself - it was the home of a prospering hot springs tourist area 

Masonic Con Kansas will be held July 28-30, 2023 at the hall of Rosedale Lodge 333 in Merriam, Kansas. To start, there will be a Friday Meet 'n Greet and celebration of the 100th anniversary of nearby Overland Park Lodge 436 that kicks off the event.

Speakers and panelists include:

• Jason Richards from Virginia
• Ryan Flynn from New Hampshire
• Matthew Parker from Nebraska
• Brad Drew from Kentucky
• Mikel J. Stoops from Kansas
• Kansas' own Darren Kellerman will be master of ceremonies

If you're making lodging plans, the two venues are:

• Rosedale Masonic Lodge 333, 6161 Slater Street, Merriam, Kansas
• Overland Park Lodge 436, 8109 Overland Park, Kansas

Tickets are available now. General admission (no swag) $52.32; General admission WITH swag $78.22; Virtual pass $21.23; Virtual with pass WITH swag $47.14.

Masonic Con Chicago will be held September 16th, 2023 at the historic Libertyville Masonic Temple in Libertyville, Illinois (north of Chicago, about seven miles south and west of Waukegan). The convention is organized by the brethren of Spes Novum Lodge 1183 and the Whence Came You podcast crew. 

No speakers have been announced yet, but tickets are on sale now at $80 for general admission and $120 V.I.P. level. Event is open to EAs, FCs, MMs and the general public. There will be no virtual tickets for this event.

And just because I somehow missed knowing about this year's Ohio event in April, the 2024
Midwest Conference on Masonic Education will be held next year at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, May 3 – 5, 2024. These Midwest Conferences have been going on since 1949, and they move around the region every year. Somebody remind me to put it on my calendar.

South Pasadena Masonic Lodge's Masonic Con 2022: "Masonry in the New Millennium" July 22-24

by Christopher Hodapp

Beginning next Friday, July 22 through Sunday July 24th, I'll be in Pasadena, California to take part in the South Pasadena Masonic Lodge's Masonic Con 2022. The theme of this year's event is "Masonry in the New Millennium." 

Masonic scholars from across the country will participate in discussions on various topics geared to enlighten the listener on the far-reaching impacts Freemasonry has among men, and the best practices for Freemasons to become better equipped in the New Millennium. There will also be three panels of well-qualified Masons discussing topics such as: Innovations in Freemasonry; Masculinity and The Craft; and The Masonic Legacy Society,

This event will be open to all Masons and to the interested public. The weekend kick's off on Friday evening with a gala Festive Board that will include a seven-course meal—punctuated with traditional Masonic toasts and songs.

In addition to myself, speakers include:

• Jaime Paul Lamb - "The Archetypal Temple"
• Robert G. Davis - "It is Time to Cross the Rubicon and Battle Our 20th Century Ruffians"
• Chuck Dunning - "Nurturing the Renaissance of Masonry in the 21st Century"
• Brad Drew - "The Masonic Legacy Society"
• Chris Murphy - “Upon the Tablets of his Heart”: Creating Harmony through Masonic Myth-making"
• Kirk White - "Nones in the Temple"
• Akram Elias - "The Masonic Legacy Society"
• Michael Jarzabek - "The Masonic Legacy Society"
• Angel Millar - "Manhood and Freemasonry"
• Rod Duncan - "Innovations In Masonry"
• Cesar Rubio - ""Innovations In Masonry"

Three Masonic films will be screened during this weekend, followed by an audience Q&A featuring at least one of the filmmakers.

• Brian T. Evans - "The Masonic Table: The Art of Dining in Freemasonry"
• Mitch Horowitz - "The Kybalion: Hermeticism(s) and Modern Spirituality"

Moderators for the weekend include:

• Erik Strom
• Robert Johnson
• Ian E. Laurelin

For tickets and information, visit the Masonic Con website HERE.