The Women go crazy...

[Windrider]

The building committee rented the dining hall of our Masonic Building to the city for the first evening of Lowell Winterfest. The event going on during our lodge meeting upstairs was a microbrewery beer tasting. Being an officer, I was dressed n my tux. After lodge closed, I decided to see if ZZ Top was right about the women going crazy about a sharp-dressed man.

I can confirm that ZZ Top had it right. I was handed beer by women wherever I turned and in some cases, in preference to others. Whenever I asked, the women confirmed that indeed, they were going crazy over a sharp-dressed man.

I have decided to wear my tux at all times now

 

[jaya]

I wish we could have beer in our lodge......I live in the town voted Beer City USA for the last 3 years and can not enjoy a beer on lodge property.

 

[Bob Franks]

I wish we could have beer in our lodge......I live in the town voted Beer City USA for the last 3 years and can not enjoy a beer on lodge property.

...and lodges were mostly started in UK and the North American colonies in rooms rented from taverns!
Thank our puritan forefathers and those who believed Prohibition would solve problems!

S&F

 

[kblair210]

If drinks were allowed (referring to AFTER official business is completed, and the lodge closed) while lounging around the dining area of the lodge, how many fewer brothers would look for that type of 'hanging out with the brothers for a drink or two' in the Shriners versus just staying at the lodge a bit longer after meetings completed? Yes yes, I know, you don't need alcohol to enjoy your brothers company and all that. But there's something to be said about enjoying a beer with a brother during a game of pool, or cards, or whatever.

And of course you then need to be concerned with someone drinking too much and it coming back on the lodge, etc. But I still stand by my personal preference that you could hang around with a brother for a shot of scotch and a nice cigar without having to relocate from the lodge property.

Just thinking aloud, hopefully nobody takes offense.

 

[jaya]

Drinking to much should not be a problem. We should be able to subdue our passions and not drink to excess. Our lodge just voted to go completely tobacco free however. I have also heard from a few brethren that they would leave if alcohol was allowed in lodge. Those same brethren do not realize that alcohol was allowed in lodge from the beginning. It was not until prohibition that it was ruled unmasonic to have in the lodge building. We are adults. We should be able to act as such.

 

[Custer148]

Drinking to much should not be a problem. We should be able to subdue our passions and not drink to excess. Our lodge just voted to go completely tobacco free however. I have also heard from a few brethren that they would leave if alcohol was allowed in lodge. Those same brethren do not realize that alcohol was allowed in lodge from the beginning. It was not until prohibition that it was ruled unmasonic to have in the lodge building. We are adults. We should be able to act as such.

Just because the lodge would allow alcohol, it doesn't mean you would be forced to have any. It is your choice.

 

[jaya]

No one said it would be forced on someone. Forcing something on someone would be unmasonic and fllat out wrong. That is part of subduing our passions. We should be able and willing to abstain from something if we so choose. It should be left up to each individual lodge to choose if it is allowed there or not. We can go out to a bar together after a meeting but not able to have a drink at the lodge.

 

[Custer148]

I was reading through the GL of NE Constitution & Bylaws, and it states that a subordinate Lodge room cannot be on the floor above a tavern or a dance hall. I found this amusing.

 

[PatrickWilliams]

I was reading through the GL of NE Constitution & Bylaws, and it states that a subordinate Lodge room cannot be on the floor above a tavern or a dance hall. I found this amusing.

Yep. Another page from our dark history. Many, many Lodges in 'the old days' were in rooms above a tavern or a dance hall. Now, of course, we're too squeaky clean for that.

 

[Bob Franks]

Yep. Another page from our dark history. Many, many Lodges in 'the old days' were in rooms above a tavern or a dance hall. Now, of course, we're too squeaky clean for that.

"dark?"
That bothers me.

[RANT=begin]
The self-righteous prohibition crowd has many believing that alcohol is evil and the consumption of it is bad and sinful.

The college I went to many years ago was run by an arm of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, and I was told by many that drinking was a sin. I retorted that "Jesus was a wine maker." [the Miracle at the wedding at Cana]

I fully agree that we are responsible for our acts, whether sober or drunk, and consumption of ethanol is no defense for the lame, boorish, and sinful behavior many (and I am included) have done when disinhibited.
I take issue with the idea that anything connected with drinking is bad. If I want to to have a glass of wine with dinner to aid the digestion (1Tim5:23), or a beer or two after work, those acts alone are blameless.

Even the founder of my church, Martin Luther, is know to have enjoyed and make beer!

I would have no issue with:
festive boards after lodge
renting the lodge out to groups that might have light alcohol consumption as part of their festivities [ie, wedding couples' champagne toast]
having lodge in a room over a tavern.
[/RANT]

S&F

 

[Windrider]

"dark?"
That bothers me.

[RANT=begin]
The self-righteous prohibition crowd has many believing that alcohol is evil and the consumption of it is bad and sinful.

The college I went to many years ago was run by an arm of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, and I was told by many that drinking was a sin. I retorted that "Jesus was a wine maker." [the Miracle at the wedding at Cana]

I fully agree that we are responsible for our acts, whether sober or drunk, and consumption of ethanol is no defense for the lame, boorish, and sinful behavior many (and I am included) have done when disinhibited.
I take issue with the idea that anything connected with drinking is bad. If I want to to have a glass of wine with dinner to aid the digestion (1Tim5:23), or a beer or two after work, those acts alone are blameless.

Even the founder of my church, Martin Luther, is know to have enjoyed and make beer!

I would have no issue with:
festive boards after lodge
renting the lodge out to groups that might have light alcohol consumption as part of their festivities [ie, wedding couples' champagne toast]
having lodge in a room over a tavern.
[/RANT]

S&F

You should move to Massachusetts We have beer and scotch after our meetings along with a light meal. We rent the dining hall (downstairs from the lodge rooms) out frequently and obviously have no issue with moderate alcohol consumption. Our game room has many card tables, four pool tables, a large TV and wireless internet. Come to think of it, the lodge is a bit of a man-cave

 

[Ashlar2006]

We are all adults , yes , but we also VOLUNTEERED to join a group with a prescribed set of rules that were set in place long before any of us ever thought of being Masons and if everyone else was like me , I was informed that there was to be no alcohol on the lodge premises . If I did did not like that rule , I could have withdrawn my petition and joined the Elks or the Moose . But I found drinking in the lodge building after a meeting to be unimportant as to why I was becoming a Mason .


I have nothing against having a drink or three (or more) with my brethren , but we do it in each others homes with our wives as our drivers . A bunch of us get together once a month , the wives make a big feast and after dinner they retire to one room while we brothers retire to another where we throw back some good scotch , Irish whiskey , Kentucky bourbon and German beer and talk about Masonry , religion , life , or just tell stories . This way we do not have subdue our passions , we can get drunk as monkeys if we like .

I also find those who think all Masons will subdue their Passions as naive . I know of too many two fisted , hard drinking older brothers who would tell a 20 something JW where to get off if he tried to cut them off at lodge . And all this would do is turn into a hassle of bringing charges against some of the brethren . It is better to leave well enough alone and let the brethren drink at home , the bar etc; etc; .

 

[jaya]

I agree that we knew the rules when we joined. I have heard brothers argue that it has always been this way. That is not actually true. There was alcohol in our lodges many years ago. During prohibition is when it became an issue.

 

[jason]

I agree that we knew the rules when we joined. I have heard brothers argue that it has always been this way. That is not actually true. There was alcohol in our lodges many years ago. During prohibition is when it became an issue.

Didn't the Morgan Affair come into play for that too?

 

[Windrider]

We are all adults , yes , but we also VOLUNTEERED to join a group with a prescribed set of rules that were set in place long before any of us ever thought of being Masons and if everyone else was like me , I was informed that there was to be no alcohol on the lodge premises . If I did did not like that rule , I could have withdrawn my petition and joined the Elks or the Moose . But I found drinking in the lodge building after a meeting to be unimportant as to why I was becoming a Mason .


I have nothing against having a drink or three (or more) with my brethren , but we do it in each others homes with our wives as our drivers . A bunch of us get together once a month , the wives make a big feast and after dinner they retire to one room while we brothers retire to another where we throw back some good scotch , Irish whiskey , Kentucky bourbon and German beer and talk about Masonry , religion , life , or just tell stories . This way we do not have subdue our passions , we can get drunk as monkeys if we like .

I also find those who think all Masons will subdue their Passions as naive . I know of too many two fisted , hard drinking older brothers who would tell a 20 something JW where to get off if he tried to cut them off at lodge . And all this would do is turn into a hassle of bringing charges against some of the brethren . It is better to leave well enough alone and let the brethren drink at home , the bar etc; etc; .

The way we handle it is with brotherly love. If any of us seems to be a bit too happy to drive, several brothers will strongly encourage him to stay and have coffee or accept a ride home. We watch one another and, with a kind and brotherly hand, whisper counsel when needed.

 

[jaya]

Didn't the Morgan Affair come into play for that too?

I have not seen anything showing the Morgan Affair having to do with the elimination of alcohol from the lodge. I would love to see if that is true. Everything I have seen has indicated that prohibition was the main concern. However, I have only looked at NC in any detail. I am still trying to find the exact date of the change and reason.