If you have spent any time over the last couple of days hanging out with Masons on Social Media you’ve no doubt noticed the Grand Lodge of California’s ‘I’m A Mason’ campaign.
It encourages Masons everywhere to:
-Make a text based post about what Masonry means to us as individuals.
-Place an ‘I’m A Mason’ badge on our Social Media profiles.
-Invite questions from those who might have them.
-Use the hashtag #ImAMason
-Post a short video explaining why we are Masons, and what we get out of Masonry.
We are asked to do these things through the first half of this month.
I thought that we should discuss it…
Do you feel that this sort of online outreach is helpful or harmful to our Craft? If you do see a harm, is there something we can do to minimize it?
Here in Washington we do paid outreach on television and radio, should we be doing the same on Social Media platforms?
If we are to do this work on Social Media platforms what is better, individual efforts such as this one being spearheaded by California, or professional and paid efforts? Some combination of the two?
We had a lodge in my jurisdiction that stopped posting their events in the local news paper after a local preacher and his congregation started issuing death threats to the lodge members and their family. While I'm not hesitant to post and share about my activities, to my direct friends and family. To the general public, I don't advertise the Fraternity nor my membership. My social media accounts are limited, who can see what is restricted. I share my fraternity membership, No more than I expound on my personal life. It dangerous and frankly none of their buisness. Imho.
“We had a lodge in my jurisdiction that stopped posting their events in the local news paper after a local preacher and his congregation started issuing death threats to the lodge members and their family.”
I just read this, and it just boils my blood. Not because it’s a new development for me, but because it’s just the latest in way too many instances where a local church is spreading hate, rather than the Love of the Gentle Teacher.
I admit there was one time where a regular customer overheard some Brothers talking business in my shop, and started bad-mouthing the Freemasons. I lost it. I immediately said, “What is your problem with these Freemasons? Did they do anything to you? Where did you get your information about the Freemasons? From research, or your pastor?” The customer was taken aback by my response, but I just kept going. I knew I was going to lose him as a customer (which actually didn’t happen, his moving out of state ended that.), but I was just tired of people talking badly of others based on faulty information. Now I will also admit I didn’t personally attack his character or use foul language, but I wanted to make absolutely sure he needed to do a little more personal research before voicing a negative opinion of people in a public business.
That was one thing, but death threats from a church congregation? I never ran across that, and it’s absolutely unacceptable. Isn’t it also illegal? It’s too bad the Lodge couldn’t take punitive action against this church, at least to avoid one of the congregation taking the threats seriously and actually killing a Brother or one of their family members.
And, like what was mentioned in an earlier post, there’s the factor of Tyling our Lodges...
I am very sorry to hear that the Lodge had to deal with this. I've never experienced anything negative because of Masonry, but I know that others have.
I only point it out because membership introduces risk to some. I'm in the south east. Wish those days were behind us. But alas, The ignorance of the profane world. Still, freemasonry lives.
My Brother, I am glad you pointed it out. I apologize for jumping on this so harshly, but as you can see, it can also happen in the Northwest as well. But as you also note, we’re still around. We need to be still around.
Like one of our Past Grand Masters noted, we need to Reclaim the Narrative. While we might not be able to change the minds of the old-school pastors, we can certainly educate the average citizens. We can alleviate some of that ignorance of the masses, a little at a time. And a little at a time is better than none at all.
I often think about how lucky I am to live in a place that is so accepting of our Craft. I've done a bit of traveling in places where it is not nearly so well accepted, and that would make everything so much more difficult.
Sharing your personal experiences with people in your sphere of influence can be a very powerful way to provide information about Masonry. The down side to a program like this is the differing answers to the questions that are asked, and it only takes one brother to set Masonry back. I like the way the GL of Washington shares Masonry. The videos have been very professional and provide great information. Both programs can be good for our gentle craft but we certainly need to be fully prepared to guard the west gate.
I've been watching it fairly closely over the past couple of days. It certainly has been spreading rapidly which will help plenty of people to see that we remain an active and vibrant Fraternity.
On the other hand, as you mention, if we are inviting questions, it is important that we have correct answers to give. I did see one Brother give an incorrect answer on a fairly vital question, showing that the downside you mention is certainly a concern.
I'm also hopeful that we don't see the 'I'm A Mason' hashtags or badges show up on pages that spread division in our society.
Good concept overall. The big problem is that many brothers aren’t well versed in explaining Freemasonry. I’ve seen multiple reply’s from brothers that miss the mark. Marketing is very important as long as you put out the correct message. I would trust some brothers to handle inquiries, and many others, I would prefer they not give out incorrect information. And this is coming from a brother who has worked for years in Shriners International membership team, in Demolay and lodge. I’ve lost count Of how many petitions I’ve signed the last 40 years, but I’ve also helped restore dozens of brothers by showing interest when others didn’t. Every Mason owes his lodge the help it needs to grow. You can’t just pawn it off on other brothers because it isn’t your thing. When you join, you’re asked if you’re a seeker of knowledge. Well? Keep learning and growing and also help others learn and grow. Be a part of the solution to membership. Be aware of how you speak to others. Be humble, not arrogant. Be empathetic to others. It makes a difference. Listen to their inquiries and study your history and philosophy of masonry so that you can help
Social media is the future. In order to stay relevent, we must adapt. I barely see Facebook used. We arent using instagram, twitter, or the rest. Sooner then we would like, we will be having discussions of lodges held in the metaverse.
Grand lodges need to be forward thinking, while keeping our rich history, ritual and traditions safe.
I agree that every Lodge needs a Social Media presence if it is to survive. Not just a dull page, but an active page, with new and interesting things posted daily. Surely doing so would be extremely easy, if the Lodge made plenty of members admins, and encouraged members to post.
Most of our Lodges that do participate on Social Media seem to focus exclusively on FB, but I'm not sure that is the best idea. We should have content on FB, but also Twitter, Insta, Reddit, and the rest. If some of our Lodges were on one, others on others, surely the positive messages we post would be seen by more people.
Your quite right. Branding and consistancy is important. A lodge that is known for something, anything positive, will help draw visiting brothers and potential candidates. We need to leverage every site to do that.
Thanks to the WWW we have easier ways to communicate and between brothers in privacy things can work BUT there are thousands of these examples that show how no matter how hard we try this is not going to stop.
I fear that I agree. We'll never be able to convince the nuts that we aren't evil. But I think that is a problem that has plagued our Fraternity since time immemorial. All we can do is get our message out to those who are ready and able to hear it.
We had a lodge in my jurisdiction that stopped posting their events in the local news paper after a local preacher and his congregation started issuing death threats to the lodge members and their family. While I'm not hesitant to post and share about my activities, to my direct friends and family. To the general public, I don't advertise the Fraternity nor my membership. My social media accounts are limited, who can see what is restricted. I share my fraternity membership, No more than I expound on my personal life. It dangerous and frankly none of their buisness. Imho.
“We had a lodge in my jurisdiction that stopped posting their events in the local news paper after a local preacher and his congregation started issuing death threats to the lodge members and their family.”
I just read this, and it just boils my blood. Not because it’s a new development for me, but because it’s just the latest in way too many instances where a local church is spreading hate, rather than the Love of the Gentle Teacher.
I admit there was one time where a regular customer overheard some Brothers talking business in my shop, and started bad-mouthing the Freemasons. I lost it. I immediately said, “What is your problem with these Freemasons? Did they do anything to you? Where did you get your information about the Freemasons? From research, or your pastor?” The customer was taken aback by my response, but I just kept going. I knew I was going to lose him as a customer (which actually didn’t happen, his moving out of state ended that.), but I was just tired of people talking badly of others based on faulty information. Now I will also admit I didn’t personally attack his character or use foul language, but I wanted to make absolutely sure he needed to do a little more personal research before voicing a negative opinion of people in a public business.
That was one thing, but death threats from a church congregation? I never ran across that, and it’s absolutely unacceptable. Isn’t it also illegal? It’s too bad the Lodge couldn’t take punitive action against this church, at least to avoid one of the congregation taking the threats seriously and actually killing a Brother or one of their family members.
And, like what was mentioned in an earlier post, there’s the factor of Tyling our Lodges...
I am very sorry to hear that the Lodge had to deal with this. I've never experienced anything negative because of Masonry, but I know that others have.
I only point it out because membership introduces risk to some. I'm in the south east. Wish those days were behind us. But alas, The ignorance of the profane world. Still, freemasonry lives.
My Brother, I am glad you pointed it out. I apologize for jumping on this so harshly, but as you can see, it can also happen in the Northwest as well. But as you also note, we’re still around. We need to be still around.
Like one of our Past Grand Masters noted, we need to Reclaim the Narrative. While we might not be able to change the minds of the old-school pastors, we can certainly educate the average citizens. We can alleviate some of that ignorance of the masses, a little at a time. And a little at a time is better than none at all.
I often think about how lucky I am to live in a place that is so accepting of our Craft. I've done a bit of traveling in places where it is not nearly so well accepted, and that would make everything so much more difficult.
Sharing your personal experiences with people in your sphere of influence can be a very powerful way to provide information about Masonry. The down side to a program like this is the differing answers to the questions that are asked, and it only takes one brother to set Masonry back. I like the way the GL of Washington shares Masonry. The videos have been very professional and provide great information. Both programs can be good for our gentle craft but we certainly need to be fully prepared to guard the west gate.
I've been watching it fairly closely over the past couple of days. It certainly has been spreading rapidly which will help plenty of people to see that we remain an active and vibrant Fraternity.
On the other hand, as you mention, if we are inviting questions, it is important that we have correct answers to give. I did see one Brother give an incorrect answer on a fairly vital question, showing that the downside you mention is certainly a concern.
I'm also hopeful that we don't see the 'I'm A Mason' hashtags or badges show up on pages that spread division in our society.
Good concept overall. The big problem is that many brothers aren’t well versed in explaining Freemasonry. I’ve seen multiple reply’s from brothers that miss the mark. Marketing is very important as long as you put out the correct message. I would trust some brothers to handle inquiries, and many others, I would prefer they not give out incorrect information. And this is coming from a brother who has worked for years in Shriners International membership team, in Demolay and lodge. I’ve lost count Of how many petitions I’ve signed the last 40 years, but I’ve also helped restore dozens of brothers by showing interest when others didn’t. Every Mason owes his lodge the help it needs to grow. You can’t just pawn it off on other brothers because it isn’t your thing. When you join, you’re asked if you’re a seeker of knowledge. Well? Keep learning and growing and also help others learn and grow. Be a part of the solution to membership. Be aware of how you speak to others. Be humble, not arrogant. Be empathetic to others. It makes a difference. Listen to their inquiries and study your history and philosophy of masonry so that you can help
>>>Every Mason owes his lodge the help it needs to grow.
Point very well taken. Thank you Brother!
Social media is the future. In order to stay relevent, we must adapt. I barely see Facebook used. We arent using instagram, twitter, or the rest. Sooner then we would like, we will be having discussions of lodges held in the metaverse.
Grand lodges need to be forward thinking, while keeping our rich history, ritual and traditions safe.
I agree that every Lodge needs a Social Media presence if it is to survive. Not just a dull page, but an active page, with new and interesting things posted daily. Surely doing so would be extremely easy, if the Lodge made plenty of members admins, and encouraged members to post.
Most of our Lodges that do participate on Social Media seem to focus exclusively on FB, but I'm not sure that is the best idea. We should have content on FB, but also Twitter, Insta, Reddit, and the rest. If some of our Lodges were on one, others on others, surely the positive messages we post would be seen by more people.
Your quite right. Branding and consistancy is important. A lodge that is known for something, anything positive, will help draw visiting brothers and potential candidates. We need to leverage every site to do that.
Thanks to the WWW we have easier ways to communicate and between brothers in privacy things can work BUT there are thousands of these examples that show how no matter how hard we try this is not going to stop.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsrFQs2L-U8
And many, many more just on youtube.
I fear that I agree. We'll never be able to convince the nuts that we aren't evil. But I think that is a problem that has plagued our Fraternity since time immemorial. All we can do is get our message out to those who are ready and able to hear it.
Yes I agree with you MW