Some Lodges, and Grand Lodges require that a criminal background check be performed before a candidate can be elected to receive the Degrees of Masonry. Others do not. What is the best practice?
Certainly a thorough background should always be completed. I’ve seen backgrounds that have been very complete and others that have been done quickly. Some trust should be placed in the three brothers that sign the petition but there have also been instances when a brother will sign a petition and then hand it to two additional brothers for signatures. A criminal background check will typically only show if a petitioner is on a registry (I’m not down playing that information). I don’t know when the interview questions were last updated but that’s an area that should frequently be looked at. When I first started doing background investigations on potential new deputies, asking about child pornography, sexting, checking a persons social media sites wasn’t really on the radar. A 4-5 page questionnaire turned into a 15 page questionnaire that covered everything from cheating on school exams, shoplifting, financial crimes, crimes against children, etc. Backgrounds are an important part of the process but so is learning about a petitioner’s character. Mistakes will always be made and then the fraternity has to live with it. We can’t gloss over the background process just to increase our membership numbers. Programs like the 6 Step program will reveal more about a potential candidate than most background investigations.
There needs to be some standardized system in addition to the six step program. I fear that there will be a rush for quantity of members ($) after the pandemic rather than quality of Brothers.
I could not agree with you more, RW Cameron! Fortunately for 311, both candidates are active duty Navy, so the military has already done the legwork for us as far as a criminal background check. Our investing committee will take care of the rest.
I’ve often wondered if the first two degrees shouldn’t be similar to a probation period. That after being initiated, and prior to receiving the Third Degree, a vote of the members to allow the brother to move forward, to maintain the integrity of the fraternity when someone slips through.
RW, thank you for sharing 20.04BL. I think taking more time between degrees can be a positive path if the lodge has an educational program for the brother to enhance his experiences, not just a time line to follow.
Certainly a thorough background should always be completed. I’ve seen backgrounds that have been very complete and others that have been done quickly. Some trust should be placed in the three brothers that sign the petition but there have also been instances when a brother will sign a petition and then hand it to two additional brothers for signatures. A criminal background check will typically only show if a petitioner is on a registry (I’m not down playing that information). I don’t know when the interview questions were last updated but that’s an area that should frequently be looked at. When I first started doing background investigations on potential new deputies, asking about child pornography, sexting, checking a persons social media sites wasn’t really on the radar. A 4-5 page questionnaire turned into a 15 page questionnaire that covered everything from cheating on school exams, shoplifting, financial crimes, crimes against children, etc. Backgrounds are an important part of the process but so is learning about a petitioner’s character. Mistakes will always be made and then the fraternity has to live with it. We can’t gloss over the background process just to increase our membership numbers. Programs like the 6 Step program will reveal more about a potential candidate than most background investigations.
There needs to be some standardized system in addition to the six step program. I fear that there will be a rush for quantity of members ($) after the pandemic rather than quality of Brothers.
I could not agree with you more, RW Cameron! Fortunately for 311, both candidates are active duty Navy, so the military has already done the legwork for us as far as a criminal background check. Our investing committee will take care of the rest.
I’ve often wondered if the first two degrees shouldn’t be similar to a probation period. That after being initiated, and prior to receiving the Third Degree, a vote of the members to allow the brother to move forward, to maintain the integrity of the fraternity when someone slips through.
RW, thank you for sharing 20.04BL. I think taking more time between degrees can be a positive path if the lodge has an educational program for the brother to enhance his experiences, not just a time line to follow.
Those are both great suggestions!