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Where Are We Now?

X~               by Cabell F. Cobbs, MPS

Brothcr Cobbs is a Past Grand Master of the
Grand Lodge of Virginia. In this sectionof his
lecture, Brother Cobbs analyzes the decline in
Masonic membership and describes some of the
things others have suggestedfor increasing and
rctaining membership in our modcrn socicty. He
also analyzes ccrtain trends in todays life-style
that may discouragcMasonic membcrship. The
ncxt section of thc Iccturc, to bc published next
month, givcs his thoughts about how to makc
that rcversal.

Some thirty-odd years ago, it became
apparent to the various Grand Lodges in
the United States that their membership
had begun to decline. As the years
passed, losses in Masonic membership
accelerated and now exceed 57.8% of
our 1960 strength. Masonic leaders
began almost immediately to cast about
for remedies to the drain on their
strength, future financial resources, and,
indeed, what a few doom-sayers claimed
was the foreseeable end to our Craft.

Appendant bodies early awoke to the
dangers inherent in these losses and
began to exert not always subtle pres-
sures on the Craft Grand Lodges to make
changes in Masonic practices and proce-
dures, which various exponents claimed
would produce a turnaround in these
digressing statistics. On December 17,
1987, a committee report delivered by
IllustriousJohn D. Blankinship, 33,to
the Supreme Council, Ancient and Ac-
cepted Scottish Rite, SouthernJurisdic-
tion, recommended the appointment of
a Masonic Task Force to include repre-
sentatives of the Northern and Southern
Jurisdictions, the Shrine, and of "some
progressive-minded Grand Lodges" to
conduct a self-analysis of Masonry for
the purpose of diagnosing "the ailment
and [suggesting] a cure."

The Shrine leadership took even more
drastic steps. It amended its by-laws to
provide that a sentence to be expelled
from C raft Lodge would not be final with
respect to the Shrine member if he ap-
pealed to the Imperial Council and the
appeal was sustained.2

The Imperial Potentate hoped the

amendment would lead the Grand
Lodges " to respect the needs of other and
. . .a refusal to just sit still on the right
track of past successes. "

In addition, chiefly because of mem-
bership losses and friction with several
Grand Lodges over the application of
various Masonic laws to Shrine behav-
ior, the Imperiar leadership has unsuc-
cessfully sought to end the requirement
of Masonic membership as a prerequi-
site to election to the organization.

In part because of these pressures, var-
ious measures have been adopted over
the years by which it is hoped to attract
new members, to reduce our losses by
demit and non-payment of dues, and
generally to improve attendance at the
Symbolic Lodges. These steps range
from placing Masonic Lodge identifica-
tion signs at city limits, encouragement
to improve the physical appearance of
the lodge hall, better officer training and
Masonic education, to elimination or
shortening of catechism memory work,
publication of public information pam-
phlets and videotapes, taking steps
against racism, institution of community
service programs, presentation of
awards to non-Masons for public ser-
vice, permitting solicitation, and many
other related actions. One Grand Lodge
has even, for t~wo successive years, con-
ferred Blue Lodge degrees on exemplars
only, with large numbers of candidates
being mere spectators, as is the practice
in the Scottish Rite. Thus all three de-
grees are conferred in one day!4 Another
jurisdiction has by dispensation permit-
ted conferral of degrees on classes of can-
didates on a more limited basis. 5

The institution of radical changes as a
reaction to membership losses was early
foretold by the late Dwight L. Smith,
Past Grand Master and Grand Secretary
of Indiana, in a series of articles pub-
lished in the The Indiana Frcemason in
1962. Republished in 1963, and since
reprinted on numerous occasions, Most
Worshipful Brother Smith pointed to the
need to remember who and what we are
in attempting to confront the problems
we faced.6 His work was entitled
"Whither are we traveling?" Thirty
years later, Brother Smith's thoughtful
query leads me to ask: Whcrc arc wc now?

A number of jurisdictions having made
extensive changes, many of them in tra-
ditional Masonic practices it behooves
us first to examine the resuits after these
many years have passed.7 What have
they done for Freemasonry and what
have they done to Freemasonry?

A M asonic Questionnaire

A questionnaire was prepared and sent
out through the Grand Lodge of Virginia
to each GrandJurisdiction in the United
States regarding the steps which each
had taken to attract new members, to
retain old members, and to improve at-
tendance. Sixty-six percent responded.8
Of those answering, 9 % had eliminated
memorization of catechisms; 33% had
eliminated part of the catechetic memory
work; 12% use written monitors in de-
greework; 57.5% publishedaninforma-
tional pamphlet for the public; 36.3%
instituted community service programs;
30.3% began making community ser-
vice awards to profanes, 54.5% com-
menced "Bring a Friend" Nights;
69.6% holdOpenHouse; 27.2% permit
some form of solicitation9; 6% have ab-
breviated degree work, 30.3% advise
candidates that the penalties in the obli-
gations are symbolic; 9% have adopted
programs to attract members in the na-
ture of Pennsylvania's Solomon II;
21. 2 % post lodge signs at the city limits ;
54.5% have urged lodges to renovate
lodge halls; 3% have abolished investi-
gationofpetitions; 12.1% requiremore
than one black ball to reject a candidate;
9% permit a negative ballot to be ap-
pealed to the Grand Master and set
aside, if the rejection was on the grounds
of race, creed, or color, or for reasons
otherthanmoralfitness, and 15% have
adopted other measures designed to im-
prove membership attraction and atten-
tion. 63.6% adhere to the Preston-

Thc Philalcthcs, April 1994
Webb-Cross adaptations of the English
Ritual in the traditional sense. The bot-
tom line is, in not a singlc case was member-
ship improved!

In 1960, our strength in the United
States stood at 4,099,925; at the end of
1992 it was 2,372,042, a figure below
any since 1920! Even in 1935, in the
depths of the Great Depression, our
membership was 2,661,942.1 These
statistics are depressing indeed, but the
late Dwight Smith so many years ago told
us that neither gimmicks nor "prescrip-
tions of the Masonic Medicine Men"
would ever solve our problem. 11
The Masonic Task Force

We cannot, however, as either Masons
or men merely throw up our hands and
say "Nothing is working right. Let's just
give up. " We should recognize our faulty
thinking and take a good look at the
w.orld around us. The Masonic Task
Force formed by the Scottish Rite and
Shrine a number of years ago has at-
tempted to do so. I suggest, however, that
lts sponsors' preoccupation with num-
bers and making the Craft attractive to
busy modern man has, sometimes, with
the best of intentions, been allowed to
lead it astray.

The most valuable work of the Task
Force has been in the professional sur-
veys regarding Freemasonry. The first
dealt with the attitudes of non-Masons
toward joining organizations such as
ours. The second dealt with the attitude
of Masons themselves toward the Frater-
nity. 1 2

The poll of Masons established that
87 % of those who are now Masons were
satisfied with the Fraternity. Most of
their complaints are probably familiar to
you--poor attendance, not enough
young members, too much emphasis on
ritual, and so on. Significantly, 94% felt
the most important reason for being a
Mason was that it gave meaning and
perspective to life, and 92% believed it
provided moral and ethical develop-
ment.

Maybe we are doing a good job after all!

The survey of non-Masons demon-
strated no real antipathy toward the
Craft, but established three notable
facts.

First, only 2 % of the male population
is definitely interested in Freemasonry;
secondly, 85% of American males do
not belong to any organization; and fi-
nally, only 25% know anything about
us.IJ For the optimists among you, an
additional 22. 2 % indicated they might be
interested in joining. 14

The survey concluded there was an
"available market" for Freemasonry,
consisting of 16 million males over the
age of 21, which is constantly being re-

The Philalethes, April 199~

newed. At the same time, it found that
there were valid societal reasons why
membership has declined in the Craft,
that potential members have "well-de-
fined expectations and conditions for
joining,"and some consider it "out of
touch and unable to meet their needs. "
Finally, "there is a segment of the male
population that will be a very difficult
market for Masons to penetrate."15
These findings are not unlike the current
situation of the mainline churches in this
nation. In 1962; Presbyterians num-
bered 4,200,000. At the end of 1992,
communications had declined tc
2,800,00, a loss of 33%. The United
Methodist Church declined from
11,000,000 to 8,700,000 in the same
period. The five other mainline churches
similarly lost members. We can take
small comfort from the fact that the
fundamentalist churches have bur-
geoned, in view of their general attitude
toward our fraternity, nor can we find
much hope in th~e~fact that, more and
more, young people turn to a New Age
sort of " church, " in which one finds little
traditional Christianity, but hundreds o:~
recovery and other special interest pro-
grams which have attracted youthful at-
tention. 16

There is something terribly familiar
about Kenneth L. Woodward's conclu-
sion in a recent Ncwsweek article on the
major denominations ' future:

Mainline Protestants were bred for big-
ger things. For more than a century,
these seven denominations helped define
America and its values. Now they are
struggling to define themselves in a
world where adjectives like "Method-
ist" or "Presbyterian" no longer mean
anything to most Americans. 17 One
might also say the word "Masons" no
longer means much to this generation.

It would appear we all have missed the
basic reason for the decline in our mem-
bership, even as did our religious
brethren in seeking to meet the similar
challenge thrust upon them.

The Masonic Task Force survey points
to the real cause of our woes. First, it
makes it clear it will be difficult to pene-
trate a segment of the potential market;
secondly, that there are valid societal rea-
sons for the decline of our membership;
and, finally that programs of renewal
which do not address the real needs of the
American male will not meet with much
success.

Characteristics of the
Current Generation

The current generation and their chil-
dren are a product of the rebellious Six-
ties, and many of the values they hold are
at odds with both organized religion and
related institutions. They have grown up
in a age of prosperity, totally immersed
in home entertainment and bombarded
with instant gartification. With a divorce
rate in excess of 50%, related without
discipline or respect for law, these rebels
of yesterday have become the fathers and
young men of today.

It is not accidental that many of our
high schools are surrounded with high
fences, with armed guards patrolling the
halls. It is a product of this new society
in which we perforce must live. They and
their children attended there. Many of
these young men are obsessed with the
idea of business success and financial
security. By and large, they appear to be
interested more in materialism than in
matters of reflective philosophy. Self-
gratification rather than self-discipline
characterizes them. They grew up with
both parents working and generally
reared themselves. They have only
about five hours per month to devote to
an outside organization, and it is likely
to be career-oriented. 18

Speaking in marketing terms, our
product seems unsuited for the apparent
needs of the American male under forty.

Forty-two percent remain religious
dropouts. About 25% have returned to
the church, provided they find it to be
" seeker-friendly, " i . e., offering a super-
market of counseling sessions, self-help
groups, and related concepts--about ev-
erything except classical Christianity.

These churches are founded on mar-
keting strategies, are "customer ori-
ented, " non-denominational, and ap-
pear to be designed more for the gratifi-
cation of man than the glorification of
Our Lord.l9 Can we afford to abandon
every principle on which our symbolic
Temple is erected to cater to the desires
of these new generations?

Feminism is another force with which
we must reckon. Today's young wife be-
lieves not only in economic equality, but
expects to be welcomed as an equal any-
place her husband may go. She has per-
force become a breadwinner with her
husband, either through the stress of
modern economic circumstances or be-
cause she wishes an independent career.
She may well object to his spending his
little free time in an organization which
offers little or no opportunity for her to
be with him. The service clubs' mainte-
nance of their membership depends in
part upon the fact that they now accept
female members. Should we lay aside
our most treasured foundation stone--
that of making Masons of men only--in
order to cater to this new phenomenon
in our culture?

Despite those who pooh-pooh this
issue, television is a major influence on
our life-style. Coming into its own with
the development of practical color recep-

33
tion in the Sixties, it has become the most
influential element in the modern home.
Politicians, religious savants, and all
major commercial interest are only too
aware of its pervasive effect. Modern
campaigning has abandoned the whistle-
stops for the television debate and the
sound-bite advertisement. We have been
treated to literally hours of commercials
designed to attract our attention and per-
suade us to buy everything from toilet
paper to Cadillacs. Millions of dollars
are spent on selling us, entertaining us,
and informing us each day.

We have also seen the development of
commercial cable television in our
homes, by which we can receive, for a
fee, not only our favorite programs, but
also new motion pictures and major
sporting events. In addition, cable tele-
vision offers information and shopping
services unimaginable thirty years ago.
Its importance can only increase with the
development of currently available tech-
nology such as fiber optic cables and the
proposed "information superhigh-
ways.'~ And we find our target male
taking full advantage of its availability.
He comes home from work, finds his
children occupied with the tube, eats din-
ner, helps his wife, and finds his favorite
sport, movie, or program, without hav-
ing to stir from his living room. This
in-house medium has largely supplanted
the movie theater and other forms of
entertainment. Why sit in an uncomfort-
able field house or stadium when you can
watch your team in the comfort of your
own home? It will take a lot to get this
possible applicant away from his " Block-
buster Movie" or Monday Night Foot-
ball. There are, therefore, enormous
barriers confronting our attempts to
solve our membership problems. Expe-
rience has proven that departure from
conventional practices has not helped.
Our piecemeal efforts at publicity are
met with rejection or smothered by the

ridiculous assertions of those who attack
us on a religious basis. Remember, only
bad news is news. Our principles are
simply not geared to the desires of the
present generation; nor can we, in my
opinion, afford to abandon the founda-
tion stones of our Craft to become just
another meaningless organization to
which all comers, regardless of sex or
character, are welcomed.

I~lotes

l."Report of the Committee on the State of the
Order and Unfinished Business, " Thc Ncw Agc,
January, 1988, 34 et seq. Apparently the
Committee's motivation to recommend the ap-
pointment of an "independent" task force was
the belief the "Symbolic Lodges have become
hamstrung by slogans such as the fetish about
' ancient landmarks ' and by self-destructive laws,
such as their prohibition against innovation in
the body of Masonry'....[wmch]...are almost
universally interpreted as requirements that its
teachings and teaching methods must remain
frozen in the 18th century." Ibid, 36.

2. Russell H. Anthony; 'rProposition 5, a Step
Back to the Futurer" Knight Tcrn~lar, February,
1988. Brother Anthony relates the history of the
amendment because of an " unwillingness to am-
icably existing differences in a friendly, cordial
and proper discourse. " These differences appear
to have been violations of Masonic laws regard-
ing alcohol and fund raising which the Shrine
regards as outdated.
3 . [The manuscript has no note 3 . 1

4. The Voice of Freemasonry, An Official Publi-
cation of the Grand Lodge of the District of
Columbia, 10, No. 2 (Fall, 1993), 12, announc-
ing such a class for the evening of November 5
and the following day, November 6, 1993. On
the following weekend, the York Rite Bodies
offered all the York Rite Degrees in a similar
manner, and, on November 20, Scottish Rite
Degrees were offered to this same class. Those
who petitioned the Shrine were then invited to
Almas Temple for the Fall Ceremonial. The
liberals in appendant bodies cannot argue with
the procedures followed in this Grand Jurisdic-
tion!

5. According to information circulated to the var-
ious Grand Lodge by Imperial Potentate Tony
Bukey of the Shrine, and confirmed in part tele-
phonically by a Past Grand Master of that juris-
diction, the Grand Master of Kansas authorized

such classes in various lodges at their request,
involving both those who had been laggard in
completing individual degree work and new can-
didates as well.

6. Dwight L. Smith, Whithcr Arc Wc TraDc~ing? 8th

ed. (Silver Spring, MD: The Masonic Service
Association, 1987). Another series of articles of
the same subject were published by the author in
1964; ibid., Why This Confusion in thc Tcmpk?
(Silver Spring, MD: The Masonic Service Asso-
ciation, 1970). They likewise are worthy of close
scrutiny before programs of radical change are
instituted.

7. Membership statistics for 1993 were not avail-
able at the time that this paper was prepared and
delivered. Accordingly, the final figures used are
those of 1992.

8. Polling experts consider this an excellent re-
sponse. Several include thoughtful comments on
our problem. Not all of the questions were ad-
dressed to membership issues, but involved
other, peripheral inquiries not pertinent here.

9. These normally take the form of a neutral ap-
proach to a friend who one believes has the
qualifications to become a good Mason.

10. It fell to a low of 2,457,263 in 1940, and rose
thereafter until 1960. Membership statistics are
taken from Masonic Service Association sources
and from S. Brent Morris, Boom to Bust in thc
Twcnticth Ccntury, A Radical in thc East (Des
Moines, IA: Research Lodge No. 2, 1993).

11. Smith, see note 5.

12. Conducted in 1988 and 1989, and reported to
the Conference of Grand Masters in February
1989 and February 1990, respectively. Published
as Masonic' Rcncwal Task Forcc Rcports (Silver
Spring, MD: Masonic Service Association,
1990). The statistics are taken from that publica-
tion.

13. An optimistic note is sounded by the fact that
only a statistically insignificant percentage of
respondents did not approve of organizations
such as Freemasonry.

14. The man who might be interested or is vaguely
interested in the Craft, in my opinion is not likely
to come to us of his own will and accord, nor,
despite those who fervently believe we must seek
out prospects, are we likely to do so. Quacrc: Did
the pollster's sample cross racial line, etc. ?

15. Masonic Rcncwal Task Forcc Rcports; see note 11.

16. See Kenneth L. Woodward, "Dead End for
theMainline," Ncwswcck, August9, 1993, 46-48
for an authoritative discussion of the phenome-
non.

17. Morris, note 9, p. 31. Morris quite under-
standably compares Freemasonry's losses to
those of other fraternal organizations over the
period, particularly those of the Odd Fellows.
Unlike Freemasonry, however, which it closely
resembles, the Odd Fellows' losses began in the
midst of the Depression (1935) and have never
since demonstrated improvement. It appears
likely that the tremendous growth in our initiates
included those who might have petitioned else-
where.

18. Rotary membership in the United States in
1965 was 295,921. By 1993, it grew to 458,079.
Telecon with Rotary International, Evanston,
IL, January 6, 1994. Kiwanis has had more
modest growth--from 251,011 to 260,958--in
the same period, but growth nevertheless.
Telecon with Secretary's Office, Kiwanis Inter-
national, Indianapolis, IN, January 6, 1994.

19. See Richard N. Ostling, "The Church
Search," Timc, April 5, 1993. Lile E. Schaffer,
Kim A. Lawton, and John Vaughn,
"Megachurch! Marketing Savvy and Jumbo
Parking Lots Have Combined to Produce a New
BreedofChurches," Christianity Today, March5,
1990, 20.

The Philalethes, April 199
