Has the Internet Destroyed a Key Masonic Privilege?

Many brethren who’ve been Masons for longer than I’ve been alive say one of the privileges of Freemasonry is being connected to a global community of like-minded men from every walk of life.

But, in 2004 the internet achieved ubiquity and social networks emerged. We entered the era of Web 2.0, which meant every person with an internet-connected device, could now be part of a global community of like-minded men, and for any topic of their interest.

Once a unique and exclusive privilege of being a Mason, that global network was gone in very the 30 seconds it took for a dial-up modem to connect. Freemasonry used to bridge thousands of miles of distance, but today is only 3 nanometers.

Imagine a Soccer ball, picture its size. Now think about how large the Earth is compared to that ball. Well, the semiconductors that allow your smartphone to connect you to any person within a fraction of a second are as small as that soccer ball.

Naturally, this now leaves us to question whether or not in today’s world of hyper-connectivity Freemasonry is still relevant and whether Freemasonry will survive.

But, did you know that Men aged between 35 and 64 have the highest rate of mental health issues?

It’s only getting worse. The internet is now the most common way to socialise and connect with other people. The internet has taken us away from face-to-face contact and genuine and heartfelt connections. It’s making us more depressed and lonely than ever before. Sharing a laugh with someone, a meal, a drink, a story in person, or even shaking their hand is becoming as uncommon as travelling to work by horseback.

With the only brightness seeming to be coming from your smartphone screen or computer monitor, there is a Blazing Star out there in the night sky that has been burning brightly since time immemorial.

One of the secrets of Freemasonry, one that we often forget, is its timeless nature. How can Ancient, Free and Accepted Masonry be still relevant today in such a hyper-connected world?

See what makes Freemasonry timeless, is that it has always given Men just what they need in the modern day, whether that is the modern day of 1888, 1979 or 2024.

Men today don’t need another Facebook or WhatsApp group or a Zoom meeting.

They need a physical tangible connection to a local group of like-minded men. Men who live just down the road, on the other side of the bridge or the next town over.

They need to be amongst their peers who want the best for them, who encourage them and who hear them out when they’re having trouble.

They need to go to a place where it’s ok to be a Man, it’s ok to believe in a Supreme Being, and it’s ok to believe that you earn your progress through your merits.

If only there was a place like that.

Gentlemen, there is such a place.

This place has been hiding in plain sight with the square and compass proudly shining on the front.

That place is in your local Masonic centre, the Masonic Centre over the Ryde Bridge, or down the M4.

Some nights, like tonight that place goes by the name of Lodge Challenge, other nights it’s The Leichhardt Lodge, Lodge Chelmsford Technology or the many names of each of the Masonic Lodges, Royal Arch, Scottish Rite Chapters or Other Orders.

But there is only one way to access such as place. Becoming a Mason and Visiting.

Brethen the antidote to the loneliness of the hyper-connected world is real-world connections to your local community. With an ancient, timeless and peculiar system of morality taught through allegory and symbols. There isn’t a better place in this world to combat all of the woes of modern man, and there isn’t a distance that the grip of brotherly love can’t close.