Brethren,
Congratulations, 2012 Officers! The installation ceremony was well attended and went smoothly. Thank you to those of you who attended and helped.
The DeKock’s provided a wonderful dinner for the Stated Meeting. There are still a few more months available this year if you are willing to help out. We had a productive meeting afterwards. We voted in one affiliation and a candidate for the degrees. We even received a very generous donation from one of our brothers.
I also would like to share some excerpts from the education presentation we had about the secret ballot:
“There was a time when rejected petitions were quite common. Past Grand Master and Grand Secretary Dwight Smith from Indiana published a paper in 1965 stating that if a lodge isn’t rejecting every third petition, the members aren’t guarding the west gate. Times have changed in 46 years. We cannot afford to be that selective today. There are just too many places for a young man to spend his leisure hours.
What is the west gate of a Masonic Lodge? The west gate; and as Masons we are all charged with guarding it. How is it guarded? We are guarded by our ballot.
In a large jurisdiction like ours it is impossible to personally know every man that may petition our lodge. That is the reason we have an investigation committee system. Its sole purpose is to determine the prospective members eligibility and to check the prospects credentials.
When the committee reports favorably on a petition, it is our duty, as Masons, to accept the committees report and cast a favorable ballot. Should you have information that the prospect lied on his petition or personal knowledge of a flaw in his character that would cause you to shun him as a member, it is your duty to cast a negative ballot. This is your lodge and you are not required to vote for someone that you wouldn’t take by the hand and say, “Welcome, Brother.â€
The Masonic Code of Iowa is very clear when it comes to voting on a prospective member:
- Every member present must vote.
- The secretary is charged to do a head count for participation.
- Should there be a single negative ballot, the Master calls for a re-ballot.
- If the second ballot is negative, the prospect is rejected.
- If you ask a brother how he voted, that is a punishable Masonic offense.
- If a brother tells you how he voted, that is a punishable Masonic offense.
- If a brother tries to influence your vote, that is a punishable Masonic offense.
- If you are unable to attend the stated meeting when a petition is being voted upon and you are opposed to the petitioner you have the right to object to the petition by contacting the Master prior to the stated meeting, voicing your objection and that has the same effect as a negative ballot. It is a Masonic offense for the Master to ever disclose the name of the objector. The secretary returns the fee and that is the end of it.â€
I hope you all find this as helpful as I have.
Please check out the calendar on our website for upcoming Masonic related activities.
WM – Jason M Bumgarner
