The Decline in Masonic
Membership
It's not completely our fault
by James W Hogg
Preface
This article details the thoughts and perceptions of the
author, who grew up in the 1960's and 1970's, as a member of the baby boom
generation. It is not meant to assert that there is only one way of
viewing the events leading up to the present. Necessarily, some
generalizations have been made in presenting this material. Any good
lawyer will acknowledge that, for the most part, there is an exception to
every rule. Where reference is made to a "liberal" view, this describes a
philosophical theory or belief- not a political commentary. The author has
attempted to write in a politically neutral style. "Liberalism" is known
to transcend both of the political parties in our two party system of
politics in the United States. Members of both of these parties hold
liberal beliefs to various extent. There are many different ways to look
at things. The purpose of this article is to provoke serious thinking,
brought to your attention by a member of one group Masonry would like to
target for future membership growth. This article merely advances some of
these viewpoints as perceived by the author.
Agenda of social engineers of the
60's
Society has changed dramatically since the heyday of
Freemasonry after World War II. These were the days of unprecedented
growth in America's economy, bringing with it prosperity and a wide
variety of well paying jobs. During these years, it was possible for the
average wage earner to raise a family on one income. We were rebuilding
our economy in the wake of the war with many new manufacturing jobs. Back
in those years, America was the innovator and virtually all the well made
products came from the industrialized countries, such as the United
States, Germany, and Great Britain. "Made in the U. S. A." became a mark
of quality. Then came the 1960's. What changed? We had a new liberal focus
on the way things should be for a better future. Along with this came the
civil rights protests in the South, resulting in new laws being passed by
the legislature in Washington guaranteeing civil rights to everyone. This
conjures up images of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I have a dream"
speech. No longer would segregated schools and racial discrimination in
this great land of ours be tolerated. Now, there were laws on the books to
prevent this type of discrimination against others because of their race.
Today, these laws are also being applied with respect to gender. Recent
developments in the law provide that one cannot discriminate against an
individual because she happens to be a woman. Examples of this are the U.
S. armed forces and the B.P.0. Elks. Today, both must accept women among
their ranks. This new outlook was to have a profound influence on not only
Freemasonry, but other fraternal organizations and private clubs
throughout the United States.
Results of this change - tax code, public
accommodation laws, disdain for private groups
The social engineers of the 60's saw this as an
opportunity to re-mold our society and change things to dismantle the old
ways of doing business. This was the beginning of a new attitude toward
private groups and fraternal organizations. These groups were seen as
hotbeds of racial discrimination and no longer of use to a civilized
society where everyone was supposed to be equal. It was thought that
because these groups selected those with whom they wanted to be associated
with by ballot of the membership, this was tantamount to discrimination.
It was also a well known fact that membership in certain of these
organizations benefitted the members in their business endeavors.
Frequently, business meetings were held within the rooms of private clubs.
Thus, the social engineers asked, "why should members of private clubs be
permitted to use their memberships in these clubs to benefit themselves
financially?" They saw this as the epitome of an "old boy's" network, to
which those who were not white male Caucasians were excluded from
participation.
With this general analysis as a base, new laws were
promulgated. The result is the familiar rubric of Internal Revenue tax
code regulations concerning what a tax exempt organization can and cannot
do with respect to retaining its tax exempt status. Also, the public
accommodation laws on the federal level came into being, severely
restricting what a private group could do if it wished to remain private
and keep its Constitutional First Amendment right of freedom of
association. To quote from coverage of the General Governor's report
contained in the August/September 1997 issue of Moose Magazine,
which is the international publication of the Loyal Order of Moose: "The
Private Policy, which essentially states that only members of the Loyal
Order of Moose and the Women of the Moose may enjoy full Social Quarters
privileges within our Lodges, was emphasized throughout the General
Governor's report [to the 109th International Convention].
He noted that in the U. S., the Internal Revenue Service has
recently stiffened enforcement and penalties against fraternal and
veterans' organizations that sell merchandise to non-members. 'Sales to
non-members threaten a Lodge's right to privacy and its not-for profit
status,' said [David A.] Chainbers [the out-going General Governor]. 'The
rule is simple; you are either a member or a guest, but you cannot be
both. Non-members cannot make purchases in our Lodges. In other words,
non-members cannot spend one penny. Moose Magazine, p. 14. [emphasis
ill original]. From all of this, it is very clear that our Federal
Government has a complete disdain for private organizations for many of
the reasons outlined above.
Case in point - Judge David B. Sentelle.
President Reagan nominated judge Sentelle on February
2, 1987, to be a U. S. circuit judge for the United States Court
of Appeals for the District of Columbia circuit. judge Sentelle happens to
be a prominent Mason from North Carolina, having been unanimously
confirmed by the U. S. Senate on October 16, 1985, to be a U. S.
District Court judge for the Western District of North Carolina. It seems
that this time, his membership in the Masonic fraternity became of issue
during the nomination and confirmation process in the Senate. The issue
raised there should be very familiar to everyone by now: invidious racial
discrimination. After a lengthy discourse about what the fraternity
represents, a tally of present and past U. S. Presidents and legislators
as being Masons, and a reference to our own Sovereign Grand Commander
advising that Freemasonry does not discriminate based on race, color or
creed, judge Sentelle was confirmed. Freemasonry was under attack in the
United States Senate of all places! I recommend as required reading the
Senate proceeding, which contains the details of this account. It can be
found in the 100th Congress, First Session, p. S-1 1868 to
11870, which was re-printed in Transactions, The American
Lodge of Research, F &A M., Vol XV, No. 3 - 1983.
Government being the answer to
everything
The liberal view of government also embraced the concept
that government was the answer to everything. No matter what the problem
was, it could be solved by establishing another government agency on the
federal level. All we had to do was give this new agency money to address
whatever happened to be the problem of the day. A perfect solution would
be found and implemented by the agency and all would be well with the
world. This attitude began with Franklin D. Roosevelt's "New Deal" era,
later to be refined during Lyndon B. Johnson's "Great Society". Indeed,
government also grew in latter years during George Bush's administration
with tax increases and more government regulation imposed on the
people. It was not until the late 60's where we finally
achieved deficit spending on the federal level on a recurring basis. The
belief was, and still is today, that we can spend and tax our way out of
all the problems facing us. High taxes are necessary to maintain a large
and strong central government. This Is one reason why it takes two incomes
to accomplish today what one income could do in the 1950's. The
general public is generally thought to have insufficient knowledge to know
what is best for them. Thus, the need for a large and strong central
government. After all, someone needs to protect the people from
themselves.
Vietnam era protests, anti-establishment views
The protest movement surrounding the Vietnam War added
fire to this new liberal view of government. The post World War II baby
boomers growing up in the 50's and 60's did not want to
fight in this unpopular war in Southeast Asia. Many asked: just what was
the U. S. really doing there in the first place? These young people saw
those running our country as the establishment and they wanted change.
Many saw versions of socialism as the answer to all of our, problems. Not
coincidentally, the belief was that private groups and clubs, such as
Freemasonry, were part of the establishment. In the eyes of these baby
boomers, this was considered bad. We had a big central government now to
take care of all our needs. Private groups and clubs were no longer
considered relevant in this newly re-engineered society. Another thing
that did not set well with these baby boomers was the way in which our
returning Vietnam Veterans were generally treated by our society. They
were openly criticized and, for the most part, not welcomed back after
serving in the armed forces. This was quite a stark contrast from the
welcome that awaited those returning from military service after World War
11. It is interesting to note that today, many of these baby boomers are
now running our country. It is no small wonder that they feel the way they
do about private organizations such as ours!
The Re-engineering of our Educational
system.
Concerning perceptions gained by our youth regarding
fraternal organizations, there is one other dynamic that comes into play
and that concerns how our children have been educated in the recent past.
The social engineers also were able to influence our institutions of
higher learning, convincing educators that the new liberal view of
government was good for the country and would vastly improve the standard
of living for everyone - particularly those who were poor or
disadvantaged. The siren call was irresistible. Who could possibly be
against helping the poor and enhancing educational and occupational
opportunities for the disadvantaged? Opposing these ideals would be
un-American! Thus, we instituted a socially responsible curriculum in
America's schools and colleges. Those of us who grew up under this new
system were taught all about the evils of race discrimination and how the
government was there to help us, doing many great things for the people.
We were also taught that collective bargaining was good for America and
that, generally, big business was greedy and had no interest in its
workers' well being. We were also taught that the Keynesian theory of
economics was the universal and accepted way of studying business and
economic cycles in America. Let us not forget the concept of new math -
also a product of the 60's. None of our educational materials ever
mentioned Freemasonry, the Moose, Elks, the American Legion, V. F. W., or
the many other worthy organizations in existence at the time. Only one
time do I recall a passing reference to the Grange and its relationship to
farming being mentioned in connection with a social studies course I had
in grade school. None of the schools I attended ever had any programs
where groups such as these ever conducted a program or presentation for
the students. I had never heard of Freemasonry until I was a junior in
high school and then I happened upon it only because I was a stamp
collector. To make matters worse, I could find nothing in my high school
or university libraries that would tell me what Freemasonry was! (Note: I
grew up in the Northeast.) This raises an interesting question: How can
fraternal organizations encourage people to join them if prospective
members have no clue as to what a fraternal organization does and has to
offer? Put another way, people will not enter a store unless they perceive
that there is something within that store which they can obtain to fulfill
a need. Remember, however, that one major reason for this lack of
available information was that private groups were seen as being part of
what was wrong with America!
Change in corporate culture
and financial rewards to
employees.
The gradual shift in the moral perception of society is
reflected in the new corporate culture in existence today. In the years
that my father pursued his career, loyalty and hard work were usually
rewarded by promotions and the ability to climb the corporate ladder to
success. This made career planning relatively easy. Also, many companies
shared their profits with the employees because, after all, they were the
ones who made the wheels turn generating corporate earnings. When the
company did well, so did the workers. Profit sharing today, generally, is
now relegated to the top corporate executives and the shareholders of a
corporation. When the workers do get profit sharing, it is not as generous
as the way it was in the old days. A case in point is this: A neighbor who
lived across the street from me while I was growing up received a profit
sharing' bonus in the early 1950's amounting to $30,000 from her
employer. (Note: that is $30,000 in early 1950's dollars. Think
about what that would be worth today.) At the time, she was an executive
secretary for a mining firm that mined Molybdenum, a mineral used in the
steel making process. The company she worked for was a predecessor to
another company, which is known today as Amerax. She informed me that
everyone in the firm received bonuses like this that particular year,
according to position and years of service. When she received her bonus,
she was called into the President's office, made to feel comfortable, and
told that the firm was grateful for her services as an employee. It was at
that time she was handed the envelope containing the $30,000
check. In the years following, the bonuses were smaller, more
typically amounting to anywhere from one half to 100% of her salary for
the previous year. The story nowadays is different. While profit sharing
does exist today, it rarely reaches heights such as in this example just
described. There are, of course, exceptions - such as securities firms on
Wall Street after an extraordinarily successful bull market year. As for
wages in general, it should be noted that the relationship between a top
executive's pay and the average worker's pay today continues to grow in
disproportionate ways. This is a matter of public record. just pick up a
proxy statement for almost any public corporation and this fact becomes
very evident.
Loyalty generally goes
unrewarded, employment security
suffers.
Today, we are in an era of mergers and acquisitions,
resulting in a constant re-engineering of a company's reason for
existence. This generally means that downsizing for competitiveness is in
order. This includes layoffs to make way for productivity advances through
the use of technology and automation. Loyalty is generally no longer a
part of the equation. An employee's loyalty to company A is meaningless
when company B steps in and acquires company A. There is no longer
employment security, especially after a merger has taken place or when an
economic recession grips the economy. This is evidenced by the sheer
number of workers who job hop regularly. The economic fortunes of a
company are more tenuous today as well. For example, look at the Hudson
Foods scare, where E.Coli bacteria was found in meat processed by this
firm. This resulted in an expensive recall of processed meat, ultimately
resulting in the company being sold to another corporation. One can only
wonder if the owners of Hudson Foods received a fair price for their
company! Consider also the number of jobs that were lost after Wells Fargo
Corporation acquired First Interstate Bank Corp. and the former began
downsizing the product of the two combined organizations. These are just
two of many examples one could cite.
Civility in business is
lacking.
Civility in competition between business existed in the
60's when I was growing up. Rarely did one see a business deprecating its
competition in advertisements during that era. Today, one hears it on a
daily basis. A case in point is the current burger war between McDonald's
and Burger King. The tatter introduced a burger that is very similar to
one marketed by McDonald's and has been advertising that "the Big King is
better than the Big Mac because it's bigger and more tasty." Back then,
this was just not done. The competitor was simply referred to as "brand
X"
Freemasonry in
prospective.
As Masons, we are all aware of what Freemasonry represents
and what it teaches. I need not reiterate them here. Our ceremonies are
beautiful and the lessons taught in them are great. There is no doubt
about this. However, look at modern life today. We have experienced a
decline in civility, increase in crime, and a general lack of concern for
others. Would this condition exist today if our fraternity were as
powerful and influential as it was years ago? That, unfortunately, is a
question that none of us can really answer. We would all hope that the
answer is a resounding "no." We must all attempt to find a way to make
Freemasonry relevant and applicable to our fellow man in today's society.
Failure to do this will mean Freemasonry's eventual extinction in future
years.
Masonic Renewal Success is
a journey, not a
destination
A lot has changed in the United States in the last 40
years. Unfortunately, we in the Masonic Fraternity were not paying
attention to these changes over those many years. One of the great things
we have established in the fraternity, which is long overdue, is a Masonic
Renewal Plan. We are attempting to define Freemasonry as it applies to
society today. No longer is it possible for us to continue doing things as
they have been done in the past. Today, we must identify benefits that we
can confer on our new members, find new ways to satisfy their needs for
associating with their fellow men, and new ways to benefit new Masons'
families and their communities. Do we know what these needs are and how to
fulfill them? After all, isn't this what we are really "selling" in our
Masonic "store"? The only way we will be able to restore Masonry to its
former position of respect in society is through hard work, good public
relations, and providing solutions to the needs of today's society. We
have some very capable brothers behind this effort, along with some very
talented professionals to help us implement the plans. My prayers are that
these efforts will pay off. However, the results will be hard won and will
certainly come slowly. We must remember that true success is a journey and
not a destination. There is no such thing as instant success in any field.
We all must do the best we can if we want to preserve the rich heritage of
our fraternity for those who will follow us in the years to
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