The United Grand Lodge of England

Address by the MW The Pro Grand Master
The Most Hon. the Marquess of Northampton, DL
at the Annual Investiture of the United Grand Lodge of England
on 28 April 2004

Brethren, it is good to see so many of you here today for this annual investiture, which must surely qualify as the happiest Masonic event of the year and I bid you a warm welcome. On behalf of the Grand Master, I congratulate all those whom I have invested with their new ranks. These have been given in part for what you have already done for the Craft, but more importantly in the hope that you will continue, with your new status, to do your utmost for the good of Freemasonry for many years to come. I am delighted to say that a few of the recipients of their first Grand Rank today have been in their 80's, as have many of those getting promotion, including one Brother in his 90's. All these Brethren are still going strong and continue to have much to offer.

It is customary at this meeting for the Presiding Officer to talk about the state of the Craft, which, because of declining numbers, has not always been a very happy story. As you may know, at the end of each year, London and the Provinces provide many statistics which are then collated by the Grand Secretary's department. This year has proved an exciting one in many respects, and while some Provinces are still suffering a decline in numbers, the overall figures are better than they have been for many years.

The most encouraging statistic is the increase of 286 in the number of initiations to 8,391, which is 3.5% up on last year. Apart from a small increase of 18 in 2001 this is the first annual increase in initiations since 1988.
Recruitment is important for our future but so is retention, and it is also encouraging that the figure for resignations and exclusions is 487 lower than in 2002. Overall membership of the Craft has contracted by less than half a per cent to 319,725, while the number of individual masons has risen by 0.7% to just over 274,000.

Interestingly, there are no clear membership trends in terms of size, geography or characteristics, but the smaller and more rural Provinces tend to have a larger average lodge membership, and seem to be more successful in recruiting and retaining members. It is also clear that Provinces who have an active policy of reducing the number of their Lodges in line with a reduction in members, are starting to report increases in initiates and reductions in the level of resignations and exclusions.
While I would be wary of saying that the membership decline of recent years appears to be bottoming out, nevertheless there are genuine signs of growth in many Provinces, which I hope we can build on this year.

There are many reasons why a Brother resigns from his Lodge and although most of them we can do little about, some of them we can, particularly when it comes to making his Lodge night a more enjoyable and meaningful experience. I have talked a lot this past year about how Freemasonry must adapt itself to fit the pressured lives of its newer members, bearing in mind that an initiate is likely to be in his late forties when he becomes a Master Mason.

For rituals to be entertaining and relevant they must be performed well and in a manner that holds the attention of the Candidate and the audience. I particularly like going to meetings where the work is shared among different members of the Lodge, because it adds variety and increases the sense of brotherhood among those taking part. None of our ceremonies should take more than one and a half to two hours or we have passed the attention span of most people, and yet we all know Lodges where meetings can last for considerably longer.

I am, therefore, delighted the Board has proposed measures to lessen the time taken to ballot for the WM and Treasurer, by allowing it to be by a show of hands, if there is only one candidate and no-one objects. However, other savings in time will have to be contemplated by Lodges if they are to retain the interest of their members. There are many things we do which are not part of the actual ritual. These 'extras' crept into our ceremonies in the days when members could happily take a whole day off work for their Lodge meetings and time was not of concern. Society has changed, and so must we if busy professional men are going to enjoy their masonry to the full. We must use the time available for the rituals and, if necessary, cut back on other parts of the meeting. Whatever we do outside of the rituals we should ask ourselves firstly whether it is really necessary, and secondly, whether it is enjoyable for our guests?

In some Provinces it has become the norm to salute every level of rank present at a meeting, which takes up much valuable time. Why not salute only the most senior mason present and let him reply on behalf of everyone else? There are many ways of making our meetings shorter and more enjoyable for everyone and all I ask is that Lodges are encouraged to debate this issue. In the ceremony of dedicating a new Temple the Dedicating Officer says 'we trust that those who enter here for ceremonial work may go away raised and uplifted.' Surely, Brethren, that should be our goal and the criterion upon which we judge the success or otherwise of what we do at our meetings.

I make no apology for mentioning the Royal Arch at this annual Craft Investiture. I know that tomorrow the ME 1st Grand Principal will be talking about the suggested changes which, it is proposed, will be voted upon at Supreme Grand Chapter in November. I would, however, like to make two points which I think are particularly relevant to the Craft. If the proposals are accepted, the Royal Arch will no longer be explained to potential candidates as the completion of the third degree and I know that this is a concern to many of you. However, this change does not mean that it stops being the completion of pure Antient Freemasonry. The Provincial Grand Chapter of Nottinghamshire has published a flyer on Royal Arch masonry which explains its relationship to the Craft very clearly.

It says 'In Craft Masonry, a Brother acknowledges a belief in a Supreme Being, yet this relationship is never explored.
In the Royal Arch, the mason continues and completes his education and knowledge of Craft Masonry and is invited to consider his relationship and dependence on God. Therefore it may justly be claimed to be the climax of Freemasonry and no Brother can consider his Masonic life complete until he has joined the Royal Arch.'

Many Companions have pointed out that the proposed changes will not help to recruit candidates but that was never the primary object of these proposals.

The Strategic Working Party was originally tasked with looking at ways of promoting the Royal Arch and defining its relationship with the Craft.

Subsequently, a ritual sub committee was formed to consider whether more could be made of the most important and dramatic parts of the ceremony. It went on to look at the lectures and, as a result of its deliberations, has tried to make them shorter and more understandable without losing their essential message.

The recruitment of new candidates is a matter for individual members and whether they are successful or not will depend on their own enthusiasm for the Order.

However, the importance of the Royal Arch is a message we should all stress to Master Masons, because until they take that final step their masonry will always remain incomplete.

Brethren, on your behalf, I would like to thank the Grand Secretary and all those who work in this building for the efficient way they run our organisation, particularly those who are responsible for today's investiture which entails a considerable amount of extra work. I would also like to express our thanks to the Grand Director of Ceremonies and his team for the very professional way they handle our ceremonial work. And finally Brethren to all of you who have attended today and made this such a happy and special occasion.