2024 Conference of Grand Master Masons of North America Opens in Seattle

by Christopher Hodapp

The Conference of Grand Master Masons of North America (more affectionately known as COGMNA) officially kicks off its annual meeting in Seattle, Washington today. It's an opportunity for regular, recognized grand masters in our end of the Masonic world to meet each other and learn from each others' successes, failures, programs, catastrophes, and more.

The Conference is being held at the Seattle Westin Hotel and will continue through Wednesday.

Membership in the Conference currently consists of the 52 state or "mainstream" grand lodges of  the United States of America, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico; the 10 Provinces of Canada; the State of York, Mexico; and the American-Canadian Grand Lodge of Germany, representing some 2 million Freemasons in North America. It's the largest such confederation of regular Masons in the world.

If you're new to the fraternity, you may not have heard of this gathering, but it's not really designed for the edification of rank and file Masons. Grand masters, deputy grands and grand secretaries all have responsibilities and situational issues that can really only be understood and intelligently discussed with other grands and past grands. In addition, COGMNA is also where programs from other jurisdictions get talked about, and often spread throughout the Masonic world. And I'd be less than candid if I didn't mention that it's also where fads occasionally get started in Masonry. One-day classes, CHIPS programs, bikes-for-books projects, the adoption of grand lodge computer services like Grandview and Amity, the founding of the Masonic Service Association, even the beginnings of Prince Hall recognition and the national support to build and maintain the George Washington National Masonic Memorial – they all came out of presentations made at COGMNAs of the past. 

One of the highlights of the Conference each year is the report of the Commission for Information on Recognition. The Commission is charged with investigating questions of regularity between grand lodges and issuing their own findings in a summary. Individual grand lodges often receive requests for recognition from different grand lodges all over the world. More often than not, it's difficult for every single grand lodge to have the resources or ability to investigate the history, practices and regularity of faraway jurisdictions, especially if they don't provide sufficient background documentation in English to make a judgement. It's also quite common for there to have been a schism in a foreign country that results in rival grand lodges, both claiming proper regular origin. The Commission has no enforcement powers, it doesn't settle disputes, and it doesn't tell your grand lodge who they can or can't recognize as regular. They merely investigate and make a determination as to the regularity of a grand lodge in question (or the lack of regularity, as the case may be). But most grand lodges in the Conference respect their findings.

You'll find the Commission's previous annual reports since 2004 online HERE.

Masonic Grand Secretaries have their own unique sets of problems, concerns, solutions and success stories, so they hold their own conference-within-a-conference at COGMNA – in case you're wondering why your state's grand lodge office seems so empty next week. Everybody's in Seattle.

(And in case you were thinking of asking, grand masters of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Affiliated (PHA) grand lodges have their own Conference of Grand Masters that's been held each year since 1909.)

Just to trumpet our Indiana team's presence, our longtime grand secretary, MW Richard Elman, PGM (2004-05) has been the president of the Conference of Grand Secretaries for many, many years. Our current grand master, MW Gary Brinley will also be speaking at one of the sessions.  And MW Roger VanGorden PGM (2002-003) is heavily involved with the Masonic Renewal Committee and will be giving their presentation on Sunday afternoon. (Last year, Roger was also named as the Scottish Rite NMJ's "Active" Deputy representing Indiana on the Supreme Council.) 

And just to round out the list of influential Indiana grand masters in leadership positions within their various Conferences, MW Eugene Anderson, Jr., Past Grand Master of the MW Prince Hall Grand Lodge F&AM of Indiana, is the president this year of the Conference of Prince Hall Grand Masters, which will be held May 15-19 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Florida vs. Paraguay: Masonic Regularity, Recognition, Muddles and Mayhem

by Christopher Hodapp

Ever wonder what "regular, recognized" means when it comes to the many grand lodges of Masons all over the world, and just who decides such things? 

I'll warn you here at the outset: this is one of those Masonic stories that will make your eyes glaze over. It has little or nothing to do with most everyday Masons all over the world, and it's rooted in Freemasonry's three-century-old methods and policies that grew out of 18th century European government and religious diplomatic traditions. This story will be like reading all the supporting documents and commentary of the International High Seas Biodiversity Treaty negotiations, without nearly as many punchlines.

The Requirements of Regularity and Recognition

The majority of regular grand lodges extend or withdraw relations with foreign jurisdictions based on a set of conditions: 

• that their constituent lodges admit men only; 
• that their lodges work in view of a volume of sacred law and under the auspices of the Grand Architect of the Universe; 
• that discussion of religion and politics are prohibited in their lodge meetings;
• that the grand lodge has legitimately and provably descended in some way from the earliest of grand lodges in England or Scotland; 
• that the grand lodge is considered completely sovereign over its members and territory, sharing it only by treaty with other regular grand lodges (such as in state grand lodges that coexist with Prince Hall Affiliated grand lodges in the U.S.; or when English, Scottish and Irish lodges are still at work in what were once the far-flung colonial outposts of the British Empire in Asia, Africa or the Middle East). This is referred to as "exclusive territorial jurisdiction."

To that end, the Conference of Grand Masters of Masons in North America's (COGMMNA) Commission on Recognition meets every February to investigate Masonic regularity of various grand lodges around the world, or to decipher various controversies of regularity and recognition, in order to issue a report that attempts to determine these sometimes very complicated matters of who's legit and who isn't.

But – 

The COGMMNA Commission on Recognition does not - and CANNOT - force anybody’s grand lodge to recognize, “de-recognize” or just ignore another jurisdiction when it comes to permitting its members to visit foreign lodges. That decision is completely up to every individual grand lodge or grand orient on its own. But let’s not pretend there isn’t such a thing as Masonic peer pressure. A diplomatic problem can arise when a grand lodge (or a group of them) decides to depart from the majority of opinions within its Masonic region and recognize what the others regard as “the wrong grand lodge.” 

Which brings me casually moseying around the barnyard over to Florida.

Florida and the CMI

The Grand Lodge of Florida’s announcement last week that it was withdrawing Masonic relations from 11 different grand lodges is rooted in a disagreement with a large federation of Masonic jurisdictions known as the Confederación Masónica Interamericana, or CMI (the Inter-American Masonic Confederation). In fact, those 11 are only the latest ones Florida has cut off – the total is 13 because they had already severed relations with grand lodges in Argentina and Uruguay a couple of months before. (Click the letters below to enlarge.)

 

The CMI is a cooperative association made up of 94 participating grand lodges, and was established back in 1947. CMI acts in a similar way as COGMMNA, with its membership generally comprising grand lodges and grand orients deemed to be Masonically “regular” by the vast majority of the Masons in the world. CMI's concentration is mostly in Central and South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean, but there are a handful of CMI-member grand lodges outside of those regions, like the Grand Lodges of New York, New Jersey, the District of Columbia, plus Spain, Portugal, the Grand Orient of Italy, and France's Grande Loge Nationale Française (you can see the list of CMI’s 94 members HERE). 

Two Paraguay Grand Lodges Walk Into A Bar...

Bear in mind that there are many conflicting (mostly unrecognized and often irregular) grand lodges also at work in the Central and South America which are NOT members of the CMI, and this is the part of the story when Paraguay suddenly bursts into the bar and Florida says, “Order me another frozen banana daiquiri while I go handle this.”

It seems that this whole sticky pickle began after the Grand Lodge of Florida recognized a different Masonic grand lodge in the country of Paraguay than either CMI or a growing number of mainstream, regular grand lodges around the world do. Florida maintains amity with the older Gran Logia Simbólica del Paraguay, while CMI members mostly recognize the newer Gran Logia Simbólica del Paraguay, which was established in 2006 after a schism occurred in Paraguayan Masonry. 

Seal/logo of the "newer" Symbolic GL of Paraguay
features the date of 1869

Unfortunately for those of us who have a tough time keeping them straight, both grand lodges have exactly the same name, and both are headquartered in the city of Asunción. This fight first started back in 2006, and it's been a big problem for Paraguay Masons ever since. 

The newer grand lodge had as its founding Grand Master, MW Bro Euclides Acevedo, and this is how many articles and reports often distinguish between the two groups – by simply mentioning Acevedo's name. Its seal features the date of 1869.

Photo:Gerardo Malvetti

The address of this grand lodge is Avda. de la Victoria, No. 690 esq Lopez Moreira, Asunción (photo above). 

Seal of the "older" Symbolic Grand Lodge of Paraguay
features the date of 1895

The "older" Gran Logia Simbólica del Paraguay features the date of 1895 on its seal. Go figure. I'm also told that the older organization is sometimes referred to as the "centennial" grand lodge, as it celebrated the 100th anniversary of its 1923 REfounding in 2023. Image below is their headquarters on Palma Street in Ascunción.

Home of the older "Centennial" Grand Lodge. Photo: Gustavo Machado  

This mess has also been a thorny issue for the COGMMNA's Commission on Recognition for almost 20 years. And woe betide outsiders who attempt to make heads or tails of the whole mess.

CMI Tries To Make Order From Chaos

The Confederación Masónica Interamericana is a big organization, and it’s divided into several regional zones. CMI’s Zone 6 (which largely covers South America, plus Spain and Portugal) issued a declaration that the "newer" Symbolic Grand Lodge of Paraguay (whose current Grand Master is José Miguel Fernandez Zacur) is the one true “regular” one, and "urged" (not demanded or ordered, but "urged") all of the jurisdictions within their conference to agree with them. But Florida disagreed with with CMI's declaration that the "newer" was the legitimately regular one to be recognized. (Click the Spanish-language documents below to enlarge)

 

Florida isn't even a member of the Confederation, so why they chose to meddle in CMI's business is anyone's guess. But Florida has declared that any grand lodge signing the CMI's Zone 6 agreement to abide by its conclusion was allowing an outside organization to impose rules and shove them around. That smelled like violation of Masonic sovereignty to Florida: ergo, those grand lodges are obviously NOT sovereign if they let some outside group of buttinskys tell them who to recognize or not recognize; ergo, if said grand lodges AREN’T sovereign anymore, that means THEY obviously AREN’T regular anymore; ergo, Florida issued a demand that all the CMI signatories with whom they were in amity explain their wimpy, weak-sister genuflecting to Florida’s satisfaction, or face the loss of Masonic relations between them. And that’s what resulted in the current list of 13 grand lodges from whom Florida has now withdrawn relations over this issue (the eleven named last week, plus Argentina and Uruguay).

It might be a perfectly legitimate line of logical thinking Florida followed, but as we all know, grand lodges and grand masters have the power to do things that they shouldn’t necessarily exercise when it comes to the practicality of Masonry's altruistic notions of harmony among brethren. Unleashing lightening bolts from their terrible swift swords ofttimes wind up causing more harm than good among the rank and file brethren, along with creating very bad publicity for what is supposed to be an organization dedicated to worldwide brotherhood and improvement of the human condition. Florida hasn't just cut off visitations between their own members and Masons from the now-shunned grand lodges when they visit the Sunshine State; they are also demanding that any Florida Masons who hold joint memberships in any of the shunned jurisdictions must resign from one or the other.

Florida’s Past Grand Master from 2012, RW Jorge Aladro, seems to be at the center of this situation, and it should come as no surprise that he also pops up as this year’s chairman of the COGMMNA’s Commission on Recognition, which convenes in February – likely why Florida’s deadline for responses to its ultimatum was timed for late January. He’s also the chairman of Florida’s committee on foreign fraternal relations. (Aladro may be best remembered by the Masonic community as the grand master who passed edicts during 2012 forbidding Wiccans and pagans from Masonic membership in Florida lodges, and essentially declaring that all Florida Masons must be monotheistic.)

What in hell goes on in Paraguay?

Back in 2005 or so, the Supreme Council of the AASR in Paraguay created an internal uproar when it expelled the sitting Grand Master of Paraguay, which kicked in a rule within the Grand Lodge that expulsion from one Masonic body meant expulsion from all. Effectively, the Supreme Council's action forced the removal of the Grand Master from his elected office, which looked and smelled to the Masonic world like the appendant body was really in charge of a subservient and compliant grand lodge.

Let me quote the COGMMNA's Commission on Recognition's report from 2008:

A split has developed in the Grand Lodge of Paraguay. A group of dissidents have now proclaimed themselves to be the Grand Lodge Symbolic of Paraguay. After a questionable investigation, the Interamerican Masonic Confederation has declared this group headed by Mendoza Unzain to be legitimate. This was an unusual act since the by-laws of the CMI prohibits the interference in the internal affairs of a Grand Lodge. This ruling is being contested by the existing [older] Grand Lodge of Paraguay, but they have not allowed [us] to see the report of the investigation, or to offer a response. Nemecio Lichi was legally elected to be the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Paraguay, and the Commission is of the opinion that this Grand Lodge is still the only Grand Lodge in Paraguay that meets the standards for recognition.

But by 2013, the United Grand Lodge of England had recognized the "newer" Gran Logia Simbólica del Paraguay , which also had the support of many CMI members. By 2014, the COGMMNA Commission on Recognition's report came to the conclusion that the newer body was now the "only Grand Lodge in Paraguay that meets the standards for recognition."

In 2016, the Commission reiterated its conclusion that the newer GL was considered to be the regular one. Because the two groups have exactly the same name, the Commission reported specifically that "The current Grand Master of the Symbolic Grand Lodge of Paraguay [in 2022] is M∴W∴ Bro. Edgar Sanchez Caballero. The address of that grand lodge is: Gran Logia Simbolica Del Paraguay Avda. de la Victoria No 690 esq Lopez Moreira Asuncion - Paraguay." 

(BTW, their most recently elected Grand Master who will serve 2022-2026 is now MW José Miguel Fernández Zacur.)

The Commission on Recognition's report from 2018 enlarged upon the origin story of the newer Paraguayan grand lodge a bit, but threw their hands up over the mess, recommending a treaty or some other solution to jointly share the territory, whether they got along with each other or not:

In 2005, the Grand Master of Paraguay was suspended by an appendant body [Paraguay's Supreme Council of the AASR]. Pursuant to treaty, this lead to his suspension from symbolic or craft Masonry. In 2006, there was a schism in Paraguayan Masonry. For a number of years, attempts were made to reconcile the two grand lodges. In 2014, when such efforts repeatedly failed, this Commission found that the newer grand Lodge met the standards for recognition. This was, in part, because the prior Grand Lodge did not demonstrate sovereignty, as an appendant body functionally controlled the craft. The Commission has now been presented evidence that in 2017, a new treaty was entered into with the appendant body, preserving the sovereignty of the craft. While both grand lodges appear to be practicing regular Freemasonry, before the Commission makes further recommendations, we encourage both parties to discuss a treaty to share the jurisdiction regardless of whether they formally recognize one another Masonically.

As a result, I believe just over a dozen U.S. grand lodges recognize ANY grand lodge of Masons in Paraguay at all. The rest are sitting back and waiting for some sanity to prevail. But Florida is, to my knowledge, the ONLY one sticking with the older organization. Meanwhile, the newer Symbolic Grand Lodge has posted a packet of online documents that demonstrate the worldwide support they have continued to receive over the years. They can be seen HERE.

Of course, the really ironic bit of unintentional pratfall comedy here is that the schism with the original Symbolic Grand Lodge of Paraguay began 20 years ago over the accusation that an outside group (Paraguay's Supreme Council of the AASR) was calling the shots for them – proof that they were no longer a sovereign grand lodge that governed itself. And now, Florida has split from these thirteen GLs in CMI because Florida questions their sovereignty by agreeing to CMI's definition of regularity. 

To finally wrap this up, below is the official English-language response to Florida issued on Saturday by Paraguay from 2022-26 Grand Master Zacur. (Click to enlarge)

  

This episode is the sort of thing your own grand lodge's Foreign Fraternal Relations Committee has to peer into every year, and their report is usually buried deep in the proceedings of your annual meeting – just in case some grand master gets it in his head to appoint you to that committee...

Amity's 'The Acacia Book 2023' Is Available for Individual Orders

by Christopher Hodapp

The VERY BRIEF bulk ordering window for Amity's updated 2023 international listing of regular, recognized Masonic grand lodges and lodges ended on Saturday. They first started taking orders back on June 15th and the deadline for bulk orders ended on July 15th. But you can still order single copies at the regular price of $27 apiece.

If you're a Mason and you don't know what I'm talking about, Amity's Acacia book is a comprehensive listing that's custom printed (on demand), specifically for your jurisdiction. It replaces the now defunct Pantagraph List of Lodges (Masonic) that ceased production a couple of years ago. (Pantagraph published their annual book for 115 years, but closed in 2021.)

Amity's version of the listing has made vast improvements and uses their updated database of grand lodges around the world. If you're a grand lodge's grand secretary, a local lodge secretary, a member of your GL's foreign fraternal relations committee, or just a well-traveled Mason who wants a quick reference book to find a regular lodge meeting wherever you go, this is the guide you can't do without. And because of the way they tailor each copy to your own specific jurisdiction, you won't find yourself trying to visit a lodge that's unrecognized by your grand lodge.

Amity is also a phone app that allows you to enter your grand lodge information and instantly find recognized lodges anywhere you travel.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER (You'll need to log in or open a new account.)

Here are the details from their latest mailing:

2023 Pricing

You may order books after the bulk order has closed. The standard price for the 2023 edition remains $27.00 USD per book (no change from last year), and includes related costs such as taxes and basic shipping.

New in 2023

Your feedback continues to help improve the Acacia Book. Based on your suggestions we've made a wide variety of improvements, including:

• Expanded Support for Accents and non-Roman Characters
• Automated Lodge Updates (for Some Member Management Systems)
• More Masonic Education Throughout

And, of course, that's on top of the other groundbreaking features of the Acacia Book:

• The Whole World: Amity is still the only system that accurately documents all of the world's regular Grand Lodges.
• Custom for You: Every Grand Lodge gets its own version, with its own seal on the cover and a curated list of recognized Grand Lodges inside.
• Translated Names: All Grand Lodge Names are listed in the Grand Lodge's native tongue, and translated into English.

Flash! GL of Louisiana Votes in Favor of Prince Hall Recognition... Sort Of

by Christopher Hodapp

NOTE: This story will be updated as more details are received.

This afternoon at its 211th Annual Communication in Lake Charles, the Grand Lodge of the State of Louisiana F&AM successfully voted in favor of joint recognition with a Prince Hall (PHA) grand lodge, which reduces the number of states without reciprocity of recognition down to just four now.

Sort of.

It seems that the mainstream Grand Lodge of Louisiana (established in 1812) has passed joint recognition of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge F&AM of Maryland (PHA, established in 1876), NOT Louisiana. I think this may be the first time this has happened in the history of American Freemasonry regarding Prince Hall amity agreements.

However, the voting members of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana decided NOT to recognize their own state's Prince Hall counterpart at this time. Their decision was based upon the preponderance of evidence of ongoing irregular activities carried out by the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge F&AM of Louisiana (established in 1869) and its MW Grand Master Ralph Slaughter. 

I've been told that GM Slaughter has allegedly issued charters outside of Louisiana in jurisdictions of other existing regular grand lodges with already established territories, which violates Masonic ground rules involving regularity and recognition. I'm still seeking clarifications of that. Slaughter was also involved in a coup that split apart the MW Prince Hall's Scottish Rite Southern Jurisdiction* into two parallel groups and resulted in lawsuits over legitimacy and ownership of the organization.

With this development in mind, I can't really say "And then there were four..." regarding amity agreements between mainstream grand lodges and their Prince Hall counterparts, but I can take them off the list of the last holdouts in the U.S. So I made Louisiana a neutral gray color on the map for the moment.

The last four remaining states without any recognition between mainstream and Prince Hall (PHA) grand lodges whatsoever are: Arkansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, and West Virginia.

This story will be updated.

*Th actual legal name of their legitimate Scottish Rite SJ is the United Supreme Council, 33 Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Prince Hall Affiliation, Southern Jurisdiction of the United States.

Slaughter's illegitimate group is ALSO calling itself the United Supreme Council, 33 Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Prince Hall Affiliation, Southern Jurisdiction of the United States.

Masons Everywhere Want to Help Ukrainian Brethren

by Christopher Hodapp

Ukrainians woke up last week and found themselves suddenly in the middle of a full-scale invasion against one of the largest military forces in the world. People are fleeing their homes, taking up arms against the invaders, and placing their lives on the line to protect their sovereignty, their homes, and their freedom. Consequently, Masons from around the world have wished to offer their sympathy, prayers and more tangible support like money, medicine and food, especially to Masonic brethren there.

Many Masons may have done some Internet research and discovered that the Grand Lodge of Ukraine (Великої Ложі України) is widely recognized as regular and is in amity with most of the regular grand lodges around the world, including the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE), the National Grand Lodge of France (GNLF), and forty U.S. grand lodges. Ironically, the Grand Lodge of Russia even got around to recognizing the Grand Lodge of Ukraine four years ago, in 2018. So it's absolutely a lousy (and arguably tasteless) thing to enter something as meaningless as Masonic recognition rules into a discussion of helping fellow human beings in a war. 

Now there are a growing number of grand masters and individual Masons around the world issuing official letters of support for Ukraine and denouncing Russia for its hostile military actions. Masons everywhere are wondering how to help. Individual brethren have suggested GoFundMe campaigns to collect money in order to send to the GL of Ukraine. At the beginning of the week, even the George Washington National Masonic Memorial was bathed in blue and yellow light, the colors of the Ukrainian flag.

(Photo: James Cullum from ALXNow website)

It’s frustrating to have to give a bureaucratic explanation to a question about extending aid and charity to Masons in any war-torn nation. However, our members need to remember that all communications at a grand lodge level must be conducted properly by going through our own Grand Lodge Secretaries, and not directly from our members. In fact, the Grand Secretary of the GL of Ukraine has already politely said in a form letter response being circulated online that he and their grand lodge have been overwhelmed by the volume of communications from Masons around the world, and he is unable to reply to them personally. I suspect they've been deluged with messages.

(Just so you know, there was no bank account info attached to the letter, despite him referencing it. Honestly, I suspect the Russians would love to have their bank account information, so it's just as well he didn't include it.)

The Grand Lodge of New York is asking for donations to their Brotherhood Fund, earmarked for Ukraine:

Dear Brethren and Friends,

We at the Grand Lodge of New York are trying to do our part towards answering the call of the distressed in providing a source of much needed help to those adversely affected by these unprovoked acts of violence and war against the good citizens of the Ukraine. These unprecedented assaults and aggression are especially traumatic and harrowing to the population of children and the elderly residing in both the cities and countryside of the Ukraine.

Your Grand Master, Most Worshipful Richard J. Kessler, and the Grand Lodge of New York, in a strong showing of solidarity with our fellow brethren of the Grand Lodge of the Ukraine, we look to the members of our noble Craft to demonstrate their heartfelt compassion and empathy for our fellow human beings during this their hour of darkness. Together, we will emerge from this tragic and dispirited experience united with a renewed zeal of bringing back peace, harmony and brotherhood throughout the world. The essence of True Masonic Brotherhood will be a beacon of hope for all to see and emulate.

In the name of this charitable and humanitarian effort in support of our brothers and their families in the Ukraine, we are grateful to receive your contributions, both large and small, as checks payable to the Masonic Brotherhood Fund earmarked for the Grand Lodge Emergency Relief Fund. Please mail your checks directly to the Masonic Brotherhood Fund, 71 West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10010-4149. Rest assured that every penny received will be distributed to those in need and absolutely no monies will be deferred to cover expenses and related costs incurred by the Grand Lodge.

CLICK HERE TO PAY ONLINE 

In anticipation of your most generous support, please accept the warmest fraternal thanks on behalf of the Grand Master, the officers and members of the Grand Lodge for your kind-spirited gift to the Grand Lodge Emergency Relief Fund. The noted humanitarian and physician, Dr. Albert Schweitzer said it best, “There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed.” In memory of the many victims who are injured, maimed or have perished during this calamity, and in cohesion with their families and fellow countrymen, we gratefully bear witness to your genuine and unselfish expression of charity.

In closing, I would like to share a short but true story that is most apropos today as it was when originally told in 1941. During the height of World War II, the Pro Grand Master of Finland, R:.W:.Brother Marcus Tollet, spoke of a little boy at a local seaport in Finland who looking at the various sailing ships noticed one flying a strange flag on its masthead, asked his father, “What flag is that?” He knew the flags of the Scandinavian countries and of all the countries that border on the Baltic, but this was a different flag; and his father replied, “It is the Freemason’s Flag – It is the Stars and Stripes of the American Flag”.

Thank you once again for your thoughtfulness and generosity for our fellow human beings during these trying times.

Fraternally,

Richard T. Schulz
Grand Secretary

Grand Lodge of F & AM Of the State of New York
Masonic Hall - 17th Floor
71 West 23rd Street
New York, NY 10010-4149 U.S.A.

Meanwhile, the Grand Lodge of Missouri this afternoon issued the following statement to its members:

 

The Grand Lodge office recieved an email request from the Grand Lodge of the Ukraine this morning.

The Grand Lodge of Missouri considers requests from other jurisdictions for emergency aid and assistance, however, those requests must be recognized by the Masonic Service Association (MSA), that is a part of the Confrence of Grand Masters of North America.

This request has been forwarded to the MSA for their consideration. Understandiably, with the volitity of the situation in the Ukraine, and the posability for fraud, the validity of the request has not yet been established.

THEREFORE, it is the order of the Grand Master that NO Missouri Lodges contribute any lodge funds to this, or any similar request(s), at this time.

If you or your lodge has recieved a similar request for assistance, please forward a copy of this request to the Grand Lodge of Missouri grlodge@momason.org so it may be forwarded to the MSA for their verification.

Once the request for assistance has been verified by the Masonic Service Association, another notice will be sent out through the Missouri portal, permiting donations to the MAS for donation to Ukaine.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the Masonic Service Association has NOT issued a Masonic Disaster Relief notice. This is likely because the GL of Ukraine has not formally or informally requested it. (I think we can all probably understand that they are a bit preoccupied right at the moment.)

U.S. Brethren are cautioned NOT to attempt to set up their own independent fundraising plans in the name of their individual lodge or grand lodge, or even just identifying oneself as acting on behalf of other Masons – that is the prerogative of your grand lodge and the MSA. 

Further, the message from the Grand Secretary of Ukraine cites their most pressing need right now to be, not money, but a place to stay outside of the country as Ukrainian refugees continue to pour out across borders, followed by food and medicine.

This story will be updated if there are any substantive changes.

A word about recognition of the Grand Lodge of Ukraine

Masonic diplomacy and governance can be a tricky thing to understand, especially for newer Masons. Many Masons online have expressed dismay when they discover the GL of Ukraine isn't recognized by their own grand lodge. Indeed, in my own situation, the Grand Lodge F&AM of Indiana is one of eleven U.S. grand lodges that does not recognize the Grand Lodge of Ukraine at this time. The reason is simple, and there’s no underlying animosity for it. The Grand Lodge of Ukraine never formally applied to us in Indiana for recognition after it was regularly constituted in September 2005. We were initially informed of their founding by their Grand Secretary at that time, but the Grand Lodge of Indiana has a longstanding waiting period at least five years following the formation of a brand new grand lodge before taking up the matter of its recognition. Waiting periods are designed to make sure a newborn GL isn't contested by others already in amity with us, as well as to let enough time lapse in case of bitterness or ego inflation, since so many spurious GLs come into being under hotheaded situations.

Further, established Masonic protocol expects that the newer grand lodge must formally request recognition of the older established one. But the GL of Ukraine never followed through with us, and we could not unilaterally extend recognition to them without their formal request to do so. It’s unfortunate, as our assembled grand lodge would have doubtless extended mutual recognition to them any time after 2010, had they asked. 

This is partially why the MSA was created in the first place. In the advent of a catastrophe, MSA acts as a single voice of North American Freemasons, instead of 51 (or 100) grand lodges and more than a million of us who all think we need to chime in on every given topic these days. If the MSA is contacted by the GL of Ukraine and its board of governors decide to act on their request for donations, those of us in the eleven GLs who don't recognize Ukraine's grand lodge are still able to contribute legitimately as Masons, and in a much greater collective capacity than any GoFundMe page you or I could ever set up.

Amity to Publish 'List of Lodges Masonic'

by Christopher Hodapp

As reported here last week, Pantagraph Publishing and Stationery has announced that they will not publish a new edition of the List of Lodges, Masonic for 2021. After many decades of printing the List, Pantagraph is finally calling it quits. 

But there is good news to be reported. For several years now, Pantagraph has been working with the brethren who created the Amity smartphone app, knowing this day would come, sooner or later. While the timing of Pantagraph's decision this month came as a surprise, Amity has just announced that they will soon be offering a print-on-demand, up to date book version of the List of Lodges, Masonic. They are expected to start calling for orders in December.

Many rank and file Masons may not know about this indispensable book created annually to identify regular, recognized lodges and grand lodges, but it is used by grand lodge offices and lodge secretaries everywhere as a quick reference. More than 180 grand lodge jurisdictions all over the world are listed, along with the names, numbers and locations of more than 30,000 lodges around the world. It's especially handy to verify lodge names and affiliations when out of state visitors show up for a meeting. It also has included reference charts to check various aspects of membership requirements, certain rules, customs and requirements that can vary from place to place. If you've never seen one, ask your lodge Secretary - he doubtless has a copy.

Amity had already created a new website for Pantagraph to sell the book at www.listoflodgesmasonic.com, as well as an Internet portal to make it simpler for grand lodge secretaries to upload their annual information and any changes. (There are a limited number of 2020 editions of the List still available from that site.)

With this new change and the cooperation of Pantagraph, all of this is a net plus to the fraternity. The old List had info from 180 jurisdictions. The new edition will now contain almost twice as many grand lodges from all over the world and 40,000 lodges, with the up to date information about regularity, recognition and amity included for each one. That makes it of enormous value, not just to traveling Masons and lodge Tylers, but to Masonic researchers everywhere. And of course, all of that information is also included in the Amity smartphone app. 

Amity is available for smartphones at no charge from both the Apple and Android app stores, and there are no subscription fees of any kind.

And one great aspect of the on demand version is that it can be updated instantly as new, revised information comes in from the grand lodges. Each book can reflect the newest info when the print button gets pushed.

As with the old editions, anyone can purchase the List - you don't have to be a secretary to order it. In my more energetic traveling days, my apron case copy would be pretty battered and torn by the shank of the year. I have a second one on my desk at all times, and consult it at least twice a week.

The projected single copy price of the book is expected to be $27. Because of the nature of any print-on-demand book, that single copy price is higher than a mass-produced book of the same size.That $27 single price can be reduced if a larger number of copies is ordered at one time. And remember, this new version has almost twice as many listings now.

One final note to grand lodge secretaries: Because Pantagraph has given its blessing to Amity with this plan, the Amity folks need your help to make the new version of the List as accurate as possible.  Please make use of their online administrative portal to provide Amity with your latest information, just as you would have with Pantagraph each year. As with the old list, it can only be as correct as the information you provide for your jurisdiction.

Michael and Jeremy at Amity sent out an announcement last week with some added details. So I reprint it below.

Dear Brother,

By now you've surely heard the news: Pantagraph Publishing and Stationery will not publish a new edition of the List of Lodges, Masonic for 2021.

I'm happy to share some great news with you, though: Amity will print up-to-date books for any Grand Lodge -- and any Freemason -- that is interested.

Why Amity?
You already know Amity as the world's only digital complement to the List of Lodges. You may not know, however, that we've worked closely with Pantagraph for several years. For example, we operate ListOfLodgesMasonic.com on their behalf, where individual books can be purchased online.

We've also developed Push to Pantagraph, the only way to send updates to Pantagraph electronically. We've disabled this feature based on the recent news, but we'll use the same technology to let you send in your updates for the 2021 book.

A Strong Step Forward
For those who enjoy having a book on their desk to reference -- and for all of the Grand Secretaries who make the book happen -- our 2021 edition has a few features that we know you'll like:

• 65% More Grand Lodges

Amity's book will cover 306 Regular Grand Lodges around the world... 122 more than found in the List of Lodges.

• Last Minute Updates

Our advanced technology allows you to submit updates as late as January! Our 2021 edition will be the most current book ever printed.

• No More Paper!

For many Grand Lodges, information is updated automatically. For others, keeping Amity up-to-date is as simple as the click of a mouse. Get started today at our administrative portal.

Change is never easy. We're working hard to make this seamless, though, and we look forward to providing the same high caliber of service that you've come to expect from our friends at Pantagraph.

 

What's Next?
We'll send another email in December, when it's time to place your order. For now, all you need to do is take a look at our portal, where you can update your recognition status with any other Grand Lodge in the world, and see all of the information that we have in our system.

Change is never easy. We're working hard to make this seamless, though, and we look forward to providing the same high caliber of service that you've come to expect from our friends at Pantagraph.

 

17th Paris Masonic Book Fair This Weekend 11/16-17

Albert Mackey once lamented that American Freemasons don't read, and the handful of Americans who have made a stab at being specifically Masonic publishers can tell you it's an ideal formula for going broke slowly. French Masons aren't afflicted with that character quirk. If you've ever visited a Masonic bookstore in Paris you know that the French have an insatiable appetite for books about Freemasonry. Consequently, each year, the Institut Maçonnique de France (Masonic Institute of France) hosts an enormous book fair in Paris for the purpose of promoting Masonic literature throughout the entire French speaking Masonic community. 

It's a shame that we don't have anything similar in this country.

The Salon Maçonnique du Livre de Paris (Masonic Salon of the Book in Paris) on November 16-17 will be its 17th year. This year's venue will again be at La Bellevilloise at 19 Rue Boyer, in Paris' 20th Arrondissement.

From a prior press release:

Organized by the Institut Maçonnique de France, this event is a unique opportunity for all audiences to discover Freemasonry by the prism of culture and literature in contact: from a village composed of the 16 main persuasions of French Masonry of over 60 authors and designers of many publishers of books, magazines, comics.

To answer all your questions, you will be able to meet and attend and participate in ten roundtables, three conferences, as well as the many signing sessions.

The Masonic Salon of the Paris book is free and open to the public

• 16 French persuasions present
• 8 round tables
• 3 conferences
• dozens of book publishers, magazines and comics
• scores of authors 
• books to win
• catering on site and many restaurants and breweries nearby

What's always been interesting about French Masonry is how diverse (Oy! that word...) it is. While U.S. grand lodges only recognize the Grande Loge Nationale Française, the GLNF is NOT the largest or the oldest. There are no less than sixteen substantial grand bodies and obediences of Freemasons at work in that country – male, female and mixed, regular and irregular. And they all participate in this annual literary gathering.

In the U.S., most Masons are blissfully (or deliberately) unaware of obediences outside of their own and those that are declared regular and are recognized by their own grand lodges. In this country, that's pretty easy to do. If you're in a mainstream lodge, you probably don't think very much about it. If you're in a Prince Hall lodge, it's sometimes a tighter circle, but you're still probably at least aware of what the mainstream world is doing, and in all but a few remaining states, you also have options to intervisit. But virtually no one in these two largest Masonic blocs in America have any idea what goes on in the other various independent, female or mixed Masonic obediences here, and all of our paths cross so infrequently (apart from online, perhaps) that the subject almost never arises at all.

That's not the case when it comes to France. Instead of deliberately ignoring each other and pretending that the others don't exist, French Masons tend to be far more cordial and, well, laissez faire than we are. There are numerous cultural and historical reasons for that which simply don't exist elsewhere in the Masonic world. As a result, an event like this annual book fair brings all of them together and gives Masons the opportunity to informally discuss the things they share in common and the ways in which their fraternity variations diverge in a cordial and un-pressured atmosphere. Combine that with the longstanding French tradition of academic curiosity and philosophical thought, and you get an enormous and exciting trove of material  each year that explores Freemasonry's philosophy and history that has no equivalent in the English-speaking world.

Anyhow, the complete 2019 of the Masonic Book Fair in Paris program can be found HERE.

On Sunday they will announce various annual literary awards specifically for Masonic books and publications. And this year they've added a new category for Best Masonic Magazine.

For news of the Masonic Book Fair in Paris:

Facebook: the page of the Masonic Book Fair in Paris
Twitter: https://twitter.com/IMFsalonParis
Facebook: the IMF Group: Masonic Institute of France
Website of the Masonic Institute of France: http://i-m-f.fr


A video of the 2015 event can be viewed on the GLNF Facebook page HERE.


By the way, don't be put off by La Bellevilloise as a convention venue. Yes, there is a hammer and sickle of the Communist Party over the door. Paris is a very big and very old city, and they tend to reuse old buildings instead of tearing them down as we do in the U.S. The historic building has been home to several different organizations over the decades, which explains the hammer and sickle. 

So no, if you cruised in here looking for dirt, it doesn't mean that Freemasons are Communists. It means the rent is cheap and there's a Metro station close by.