I think that for the good of our Lodges, we must carefully consider the Progressive Officer Line, and how it should be utilized.

Masonry utilizes the Progressive Line for a number of reasons.

First of all, it is a leadership development tool. By moving through the Chairs, a man is able to slowly learn the requirements for leading a Masonic Lodge. He is able to observe and closely witness practices that he will want to emulate or avoid when his own time in the East arrives.

Secondly, it offers all who are interested an opportunity to lead. Being open to everyone, and regular movement through the Chairs, ensures that any Mason who seeks to lead a Lodge can have the opportunity to learn to do so.

Thirdly, it prevents a man from ever being able to take over a Lodge and with the support of his friends become dictator of it. It ensures regular leadership changes as men move through the Chairs each year.

Lastly, but I fear that this has been forgotten by the vast majority of our Lodges, it gives the Lodge an opportunity to evaluate the leadership skills of the men moving through the Chairs, and their willingness to actually learn those things that are required to properly lead a Masonic Lodge.

The Progressive Officer Line can be an excellent method of Lodge Officer selection, if we utilize it correctly, incorporating all of the four points listed above.

If however we forget the fourth point, or we skip over it because we don't want to hurt a man's feelings, well then we do great harm to our Lodge. Harm that can take years to repair.

We can not use the Progressive Officer Line as an excuse to place an unsuitable man in the East.

If a man can not learn those things that are required to lead a Lodge well, or if he is not willing to do the work needed to learn those things, then he must be bounced out of the line, not seated in the East.

Long practice in many Lodges could make it appear that the Progressive Officer Line was designed to be almost automatic. Alas though, that is not how it was designed. The fact that we actually hold elections for Wardens and Masters each year proves that to be true.

When selecting our Lodge officers we must remember the sad fact that a Lodge can be humming along, doing great, for years, but be wrecked in one single year if an unsuitable man assumes the East. When this happens the hard work of years is lost, and it can take a great many more years to fix the damage that was done.

No unsuitable man should ever be made Master of the Lodge.

We can not allow concern over hurting a man's feelings destroy a Lodge.

Due to the pandemic, no Lodges in Washington have yet held elections this year. When those elections do happen, I hope that our Lodges will carefully consider the men they are electing into leadership, having the fortitude needed to drop an unsuitable man from the line if there is such a man in the Lodge.

I sincerely hope that as our Washington Lodges contemplate their future officers, they will remember the wise words of Worshipful Brother Andrew Hammer:

“A progressive line should only function when the next man down has the full faith and trust of his fellows that he will rule and govern his Lodge properly, because he has properly learned the requirements of his office. Of course, human nature is what it is, and mistakes can always happen, but they can be mitigated if such a standard is put in place, because no one advances until and unless they are ready to do so. The only way to justify a progressive line is if every officer is carrying his weight to the extent of his office, while at the same time preparing himself diligently to advance to the next one. Lodges ignore this step at their own risk.”

#Lodge #LodgeElections #ProgressiveLine #AndrewHammer

-Cameron

Cameron M. Bailey Past Grand Master The MW Grand Lodge F&AM of Washington

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