Based in my observation of successful, viable lodges across the U.S.
After a recent presentation the brethren and officers closed their lodge and retired to refreshments. Refreshment moved on to further refreshment, which amounted to some rather fine Oliva Churchills. Everyone except the Most Worshipful Master. He happened to be in attendance for the event—along with most of his line. The Grand Master shook his head ruefully and talked about the problem of retention. He was genuinely troubled.
“It’s not just about new members,”
He looked at his cigar as if perhaps, somehow, it may hold the answer to his problem. “We’re doing fine with new members. It’s what comes after the degree. We’re seeing a dramatic fall off after the first year of attendance.”
This wasn’t the first time I’d heard this. I have the great fortune of visiting lodges all over the U.S. I often find myself outside a classic lodge building after a fine dinner smoking a cigar with my brothers. As the crowd says their goodbyes,the early risers stub out their smokes. We shake hands. They get in their cars and drive away. Then, there is a core group of men remaining who don’t have to get up early in the morning. They have—we have—perhaps, a lot of experience under our belts. Our conversation turns, inevitably, to the apparent demise of our fraternity.
It’s always about retention.
And the solution that arises through the blue smoke and the moonlight falls into the domain of lodge education. Which, I would like to be very clear about, it’s a mighty important thing. As a guy who gets booked specifically to assist a lodge in delivering a blisteringly engaging night of education, I know just how important quality education is to the edification of brethren.
But education alone will never be enough.
I know what you’re thinking. He’s gonna tell us booking a great speaker is the best way to fix a lodge’s leaking roster… I’m not. Because it isn’t. It would be good for me if that were true. But an occasional popular talk and lively discussion is no balm for masonic membership retention. Because it’s not about education.
It’s about culture.
The lodges I’ve visited lately which are growing and enjoying strong, above average retention have one thing in common. Their lodge culture is vibrant, warm, deeply fraternal, and more than anything genuine. The new masons—men in their 20s to 30s—talked about their excitement for lodge. They looked forward to it. Even the guys cleaning the kitchen were all smiles.
Deep into conversation with the weary MWB from above, he told me he’d asked the brothers of the vibrant, anomalous lodges a simple question. It wasn’t why did you join Freemasonry. It was:
Why do you keep coming back?
The answers he received tended to cluster around a central theme. Lodges with solid retention are focused on creating an inclusive, warm, welcoming, and more than anything memorable lodge experience. They uphold those Masonic traditions that have endured through hundreds of years. But those traditions were not their aim. The traditions acted as vehicles for the simplest reward we can offer our members. Real, true, warm, authentic, genuine love for one another.
Brotherly Love is the cornerstone of enduring, magnetic lodge culture
At White Plains Lodge 473, captained under the busy and attentive gaze of WB Michael Padro, I watched from the East as the lodge enacted their opening ceremony and was impressed by their ritual and floor work. I was impressed by a brilliantly organized and well-managed Dais of officers working at the top of their game. I was impressed by how they participated in a lively discussion, how they dove into discussion feet-first and truly reveled in discourse. The formal toasts of the festive board which followed were only slightly better than the excellent repast. But after all of that, after all the material good stuff, what stays with me, what struck me in my brief visit with these extraordinary brothers was the true and genuine love they felt for each other.
And they’re not alone in their success.
AI was called up by MWB Karl Hinkle to give an extemporaneous presentation to Enlightenment Lodge 198 in Colorado Springs. Their lodge furnishings: the Egyptian columns, the décor, the thoughtful, useful ornamentation of each officer’s station had me turning in a slow circle in the middle of the lodge to better ogle its sheer spectacle. Enormous, dramatic, and stately, the interior of their lodge was nevertheless, perhaps strangely, restrained. Afterward, after another perfectly presented and rather lively festive board, after cigars, after being whiskey away to the airport and after coming all the way back to Chicago what I took away had nothing to do with ornamentation, but with the dignity of a leadership focused on the experience of lodge and the genuine power of depth of their love.
Two very successful and viable lodges with 1,834 miles between them. Two leaders with a good 30 years difference in experience. Two rosters of men from wildly different demographics. And yet they were nearly the same, not in Masonic furnishings but in the quality of their culture. They shared a philosophy of providing a rich, meaningful, inclusive experience at every meeting.
In my own lodge, it’s the culture that keeps me coming back.
I can’t wait to go to lodge. I am furious when one of life’s endless learning experiences forces me to miss. It’s my locus of regeneration, my reset, my fortress of bon homme. I belong in that room and that room waits patiently for me to attend—me and every other member. Our retention statistics are exceedingly above average for the same reason as those other fine lodges: we love each other, we tell each other, we show each other. We are a family. No cap.
Here are three ways I believe a struggling lodge can improve their culture in a way that automatically improves masonic membership retention.
- Make Regular Space for Informal, deep Masonic discussion: This is the number one change lodge leadership can make to develop or improve lodge culture. Brethren–new and established-are hungry to talk about the craft, to participate in a discussion, to hear what their fellow brethren think, and to be heard.
- Set and Maintain the Highest Operational Standards: Perfecting ritual and floorwork builds a deep sense of shared accomplishment. When upcoming generations see a well-managed Dais working at the top of their game, they naturally yearn to step up and participate.
- Nurture Connections Through Dedicated Traditions: Do not let the experience end when the lodge closes. Whether it is sharing a fine cigar, engaging in lively discourse during a festive board, or organizing structured community initiatives, the traditions must serve as vehicles for true, authentic brotherly love.
- Give Every Single Brother a Job: Ensure no mason feels like a passive spectator. From managing library collections and organizing educational nights to simply helping clean the kitchen, giving members a true purpose fosters a culture where everyone feels they genuinely belong.
Don’t we already have standards for ritual and ceremony?
Yes, but understand those standards have been developed over decades by the Grand Lodge in an effort to impose clear standards while also allowing for lodges that have fallen behind. It’s the only way they can keep those struggling lodges open. Otherwise, they’d have to merge.
By looking for standards that are closer to perfect, your lodge will naturally develop a sense of accomplishment which suffuses your work. Young brothers will yearn to become officers, will ask to perform ritual, and from what I’ve observed, they will adopt the standards your lodge expects of them.
It’s a good idea to look to the existing culture of the upcoming generations–not what you read about on social media, not the negative stories and digs; look instead to the men themselves and look to what they’re searching for in their work, in their avocations, and in their life. Quite a lot of them are looking to exemplify the very same ideals that drew you into the craft.
Not every member really cares about culture.
They will. When they get a taste of it. When they’re embraced for their experience and wisdom you will observe a growing ember of satisfaction in their hearts–satisfaction at being truly useful. Satisfaction in seeing young men take on the ritual and ceremony they’ve been holding up.
We’re more a social club at our lodge
That’s ok. Freemasonry is a big tent (you’ve seen the slides). There is room for all kinds of interpretations and execution of our principles and our craft. But honestly, how are your numbers? If your lodge is healthy and your retention is strong then do us all a solid and write an article like this one and put it out there. Hell, I’ll publish it. But if your lodge is stagnant, if you’re barely hanging on, if you’re opening on the third because you only have four guys show up, then what’s the harm of trying something new?
I’m no expert. Really. I’m barely qualified to stand up and talk. But…
As I speak at more and more lodges, I am increasingly touched by the energy of new members. In the lodges where education (which is why I’m there) is only a part of their effort to build a lodge worth attending, where they understand the value of culture, what they’re developing isn’t only a lodge that passes the minimal requirements of being successful and viable, they are building an edifice of fraternity, a place where their brothers are enthused to attend—a lodge where they know they belong.
They’re creating an enduring cultural heritage.