STB-FE83
Music by J.L.F. Mendelssohn
SOLICITATION RULE
by AIphonse Cerza, P. M.
This paper was previously printed in The New
Mexico Freemason and The Oklahoma Mason.
We are indebted to Brother Cerza for permitting
its use as a Short Talk Bulletin.
Every Freemason knows in a general way
that there is a rule in Freemasonry which prohibits its members from soliciting non-members
to join the Craft. But it is a rule that is
misunderstood and is misinterpreted by too
many of our members. Many will be suprised
to learn that there never has been and there is
no rule at the present time which states "You
shall not solicit anyone to join the Craft." In
England the rule is stated that there can be no
improper solicitation of a non-member to join;
unfortunately, this creates the impression that
there is a "proper" way to solicit but that is not
true. The trouble arises because of the use of
the word "solicitation."
The correct statement of the rule is that each
non-member must seek membership in Freemasonry of his own free will and accord. This
is easy to understand and eliminates the necessity of the word "solicitation." But the statement
of the rule in the negative is so ingrained in the
minds of many of our members that it calls for
a careful explanation.
This rule is so strictly construed by some of
our members that they will not, under any circumstances, discuss Freemasonry in any way
with a non-member. This may be due to the
fact that the member remembers part of his
Obligation and also believes that Freemasonry
is a "secret society" or that he has an ingrained
fear that he may say something that would be
considered improper. For too long we have failed to discuss this subject fairly and completely
so that our members may be correctly informed
of the meaning and application of this rule.
The rule that a person must seek membership in the Craft of his own free will and accord
has been the traditional rule of the Craft for
many years. It is not a Landmark of Freemasonry, however. This rule makes our
organization unique and it has worked well
over these many years. Occasionally some of
our members who are amateur physicians announce that they have the instant cure for our
loss of net membership. They prescribe that
this rule should be repealed and that we emulate
the work of some of the service clubs which
have membership drives and award prizes to
members who bring in the largest number of
petitions. They fail to recognize that many of
these organizations are having the same problems that we have. These enthusiastic innovators fail to recognize that we have been
successful as an organization and have survived
these many years because we are unique and
that we have many benefits to offer our
members that do not exist in other groups.
They also fail to recognize that too often the
trouble arises because this rule is misunderstood and therefore wrongly applied. Furthermore, if we made all the changes urged by some
of our members, we would no longer be a
Masonic organization but would be converted
into something else.
From a practical standpoint the rule is that a
non-Mason must desire to become a member of
his own free will and accord and that no Mason
should give him a "sales talk" to join the
Fraternity. This does not mean that a Mason
must remain silent if a non-member inquires
about the nature of our organization, its
history, its philosophy, or its work. Certainly it
does not prevent a member from explaining to a
non-member the qualifications needed to
become a Freemason. And, above all else, when
an interest is shown by a non-member we ought
to make it clear that our organization never
issues invitations to non-members to join.
When questions are asked by a non-Mason you
cannot disclose the modes of recognition or the
details of our degrees. Such matters are private
and can be of no concern to the non-Mason.
But there are many things than can be explained, such as that Freemasonry is a serious
organization, that its ceremonies contain no
horseplay, that the fundamental principles of
Freemasonry are based on the Fatherhood of
God and the Brotherhood of Man, that religion
and politics are divisive subjects and are barred
from Masonic meetings, and that the Craft
engages in many charitable projects. You can
give details of the social programs that are conducted by the lodges and the appendant bodies.
Engaging in this sort of discussion with a non-
member is merely conveying information and is
not soliciting or giving the non-member a sales
talk.
When a lodge presents an Open House Program at which members explain the nature of
Freemasonry, its history, its philosophy, and its
work this is not solicitation. Telling the persons
present we do not have membership drives and
never extend invitations to non-members to
join our Fraternity but must come of their own
free will and accord is not soliciting but is intormational; it will prevent a person who joins the
Craft from saying "I did not know about your
rule and would have applied ten years ago lor
membership. I have been waiting all this time
for an invitation and was beginning to feel that
I was not qualified to become a member."
There are many good reasons why a nonMason should not be given a "sales talk," to
join the Fraternity. If one is urged to file a petition and he does not pass the ballot box he will
probably become angry with the friend who
gave him the "sales-talk" and look upon our
group with an unfriendly feeling. He can properly ask himself "Why have I been placed in
this position?" On the other hand, if he passes
the ballot box in the course of our ceremonies,
he will be asked on a number of occasions if
this is of his own free will and accord. If he has
been given a 'sales-talk" how can he answer
this question in the affirmative? And if he
answers with a "no" the ceremony must end at
this point. If this takes place how will he feel
towards his friend who "sold" him on the idea
to seek membership and on the organization
that rejected him because of some rule not
known or understood by him?
What will be considered as a "sales-talk"
will depend on the relationship between the persons involved and all the surrounding cir-
cumstances. For example, it would be improper
in the first instance to ask a non-Mason "Why
have you never become a Mason?" It would be
improper to tell him "You have all the
necessary qualifications to become a Mason
and I will be glad to sponsor you for member
ship." Clearly and emphatically the first step
must always be taken by the non-Mason indicating in some way his interest in the Craft
and his desire to become a member. When this
occurs the time has arrived to tell him that he
has the necessary qualifications for membership and that you will secure a petition for him.
The Grand Lecturer of Colorado, Right
Worshipful Brother Billy J. Stallworth, had
this to say regarding solicitation:
The free will and accord rule should not be
changed. It has been said, "that it is the man
alone, divested of all outward recommendation
of rank, state or riches, that Masonry accepts
and that it is his spiritual or moral worth alone
which can open for him the door of our
Masonic Temple."
The essence of Freemasonry is "UNCHANGEABLE." Change is written upon
everything of human construction and upon
everything in the material world. But, back of
and behind all this are God and His Laws and
the soul of man. With these relations Masonry
deals. The astronomer with his telescope may
sweep the heavens and say he finds no trace of
God; the anatomist with his strongest
microscope may say he finds no trace of a
human soul; but, to quote from Fiske:
"The conception of God as imminent in
the world of phenomena, and manifested
in every throb of its might rhythmical life.
The practical effect of the doctrine of evolution is not to abolish, but to strengthen
and confirm it. For into whatever province
of nature we carry our researhes, the
more deeply we penetrate into its laws
and methods of action, the more clearly
do we see that all provinces of nature are
parts of an organic whole animated by a
single principle of life that is infinite and
eternal. I believe it is with these principles,
infinite and eternal, that Masonry has to
do. Masonry, by the nature of her constitution and her chosen field must be and
remain unchanged and unchangeable.''
It is said that ideals rule the world, and we
are told that, "as a man thinketh in his heart,
so is he. " Keeping constantly in mind that
Masonry deals with man's relationship with
God and his fellowman will certainly tend to
give us a clearer idea of what we should be doing while engaged in Masonic work and of the
kind of Temple we are building. The spiritual
building that each one is erecting for himself
will bear the stamp of his thought. "As a man
thinketh in his heart so will be his spiritual
building." By keeping this ideal in mind we
keep Masonry pure and in a way help to bring
about that ideal condition of things toward
which its teachings point and then be less liable
to be tempted to make innovations.
If each of us would live each day by thc
precepts of our institution, practice its
teachings, truly love one another, our great
Fraternity will flourish.
Masonry has no report of progress to make
to the world, no new message to give to the
world, or the promise of any. This world has
not outgrown her teachings. Masonry has not
lost her place nor is she likely to. When the
doctrine of Masonry is recognized and acted upon,
instead of being simply a beautiful theory,
when the words, "Brotherly Love, relief and
truth," make a sweeter music for the ears of
men, when this white apron we so proudly wear
shall be more highly honored by all nations, instead of the bloodstained banner of war, then
and only then, without any change, will
masonry be universally accepted among men.
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