The one year rule and other questions.

[Brian Damage]

I have been interested in joining the masons since I was a teenager but I have a lot of questions as you can imagine. First off it seems that the masons want more members, considering I saw the advertisement for this website on myspace.com, people don't usually market their organization to not get members, but it seems there are a few hurdles. First, I do not know any masons, I believe it is correct that I have to know a mason for at least a year, how do I go about joining if I know in advance I'm sort-of disqualified. Secondly, I am not a christian, I do believe in God, but I don't subscribe to any organized religion. I used to be a Christian but I simply cannot believe that the earth is only 6k years old, dinosaurs are a trick form the devil, or that Jonah lived for weeks in the belly of a whale. I don't believe in the literal version of the bible. I hope that doesn't disqualify me. Third, (sorry so many questions in one post) I'm 24 and I lost my job at an automotive glass supplier, in the mean time I have returned to college, and my wife works full-time. My spare time is usually spent with my children, how much time per week am I required to be at the lodges and such, and if for some reason I can't make meetings, will I be kicked out? Or if something life changing comes up and I no longer have time can I quit? O.k. sorry this post was so wordy and has so much info but I want you all to just get a feel for my situation and my personality, I look forward to your responses.

 

[Ashlar2006]

First , the advert. you viewed was for this web site which does not represent any Masonic Jurisdiction . It is only a place for Masons and non-Masons to meet and converse . We do not recruit . Some jurisdictions have commercials , billboards and open houses , but thankfully mine does not .

I have never heard of the one year rule , but some jurisdictions have different rules . We do like to know our petitioners before we ballot on them . If they are someone no one in my lodge knows personally , we have them come to a few dinners and other lodge functions open to the public to get to know them a little better . But it is up to an investigation committee to find out as much as they can about said person .

As long as you believe in a Supreme Being is all we ask . We do not care how you worship , what you believe , when and/or if you go to church or what religion you are .

We meet once a month(some lodges meet twice a month or more) unless we have a called(special) meeting for putting on degrees . Freemasonry does not demand a lot of your time . You are to put your family before the Fraternity and we would not expect you to put the Fraternity ahead of them or take time away from them . We also do not care how much money you make or what you do for a living . We all meet on the level . In lodge , you will find lawyers , judges , doctors and business owners setting with carpenters , plumbers , a store clerk from Wal-Mart and students among so many others , all friends and brothers .

 

[Deadhead Derek]

As always, Brother Ashlar has summed it up perfectly. If you want to be a Mason, call the Lodge and see where the path takes you. I hope it is as wonderous a path as I have found.

 

[BG_TRBL]

As Ashlar has answered, everything is as it should be. I will add a small morsel to Ashlar's answer however. As Ashlar has stated, family should always come before Masonry, it becomes your decision as to how much time you spend at the lodge. Masonry should never burden, or put a hardship on you and your family. There is a cost for membership in the fraternity, if you don't feel that you can continue with these responsibilities, and it may affect your family, it may be better suited to wait until you are better enabled.
I do not wish to turn you away, just advising you that family should always come before the fraternity.
Hope this helps a little bit with your quest.