How do I join Freemasonry?

One question that I frequently get e-mailed is,
"How to I join or become a member of Freemasonry?"

In this page I will attempt to explain the joining process in hopes that it clarifies a few things. But before you decide to join I think it is important to understand general what you are attempting to join. Reading the pages of this website should give you a good deal of information, but that information can be a bit overwhelming from the outside looking in. I would suggest that you take a look a decent three part article about Freemasonry to give you a general picture of the Fraternity.

Freemasonry Prerequisites:

• Believe in a Supreme Being
• Be 21 years of age
• Being a man, freeborn, of good repute and well-recommended
• Come to Freemasonry of their "own free will and accord"

Supreme Being

Freemasonry accepts members of all faiths, creeds and religions, however one of the basic tenants of Freemasonry is the believe in a "supreme being". The terms supreme being is used to represent the name of your God or Deity. You will not be asked which religion you subscribe to and all oaths can be taken upon your own holy scripture.

Age

In most areas of the world the age required to join Freemasonry is 21. There are some jurisdictions which change slightly and there are ways to join at 18 if your Father is a Freemason, however for most the minimum age to become a Freemason is 21.

Being a man, freeborn, of good repute and well-recommended

Freemasonry is a Fraternal organization that is comprised only of men. That is not to say that your family, wife, children do not play an active role, but the doors of the Lodge are men only. Men who apply for membership should be of good character and will be questioned and interviewed by the applied to Lodge. After the interview process someone must recommend you to the Fraternity, often someone will volunteer to do this if you have no prior ties to Freemasonry. I am often asked about the eligibility of persons with a criminal charge, which I have mentioned here.

Come of their "own free will and accord"

When joining Freemasonry you are making a decision that will impact your life in a positive direction and it is important to take the first step on your own. You should not be enticed to join or asked, you should join because you feel it is the right thing for you.

What Freemasonry is NOT

It has been a long held public believe that Freemasonry is a Mens Club with social benefits in terms of financial gains, circumventing laws and generally being treated differently for your association with the Fraternity. If you are joining for the purpose of social networking and business you have come to the wrong place. Freemasonry helps you to develop spiritually along a positive path with ancient teaching techniques and wisdom, it is very much a personal experience. You will undoubtedly meet many wonderful people from a vast cross-section of society but they are not there to be your get out of jail free card.

How do I contact the Freemasons?

Often people that have no previous family ties to Freemasonry wonder how to join when they don't know anyone who is a member. Freemasonry is a world-wide fraternity with members in almost every country in the world. The simplest way to find a contact is to search the internet for "Masonic Temple (Yourcity)" or "Freemasonry (Yourcity)". This will give you the name of the local "Lodge" or "Temple" and more than likely provide you with meeting times, contact phone numbers for the secretary or an e-mail address for further information.

Should you be unable to find a local building you can often find more information on the "Grand Lodge" website for your area. In Europe most countries have a single Grand Lodge which can be found be searching for "Grand Lodge of (Your Country)", in some larger countries the Grand Lodges are broken down in to smaller Provincial or State Grand Lodges such as in Canada or the USA. In North America you can find the Grand Lodge by searching for "Grand Lodge of YourState" or "Grand Lodge of YourProvince".

Knock upon the door

If you want to know more about Freemasonry I highly suggest that you get in touch with a local Freemason in your area by contacting a lodge or grand lodge as I mentioned above. Sometimes they have pamphlets or can help to answer your more specific questions.

I'm always happy to answer e-mails and questions also.