General Grand Master\’s Update
David A. Grindle

Greetings Companions,

Here we are half way through the Triennium, and we are a year into sending this electronic Newsletter. Our desire was to have a group of articles to send out every week. Initially, we were right on track, and then it slacked off for a while. Now we are closer to the desired communication level because we are more in the habit of writing an article and gathering the other information of interest to the craft.

On January 12th, the Regional Deputy General Grand Master for Europe, RPC Norman R. Draine, met in Frankfurt with the newly selected officers of the Supreme Grand Council of Cryptic Masons of Germany for their institution as a Grand Council Under Dispensation. Let us welcome them to the family.

By the time you read this, I will have completed 39 daily visits lasting 15 minutes to the machine pictured here:

My hope is that it has killed the remnant of Prostate Cancer that cropped up in May of 2017.  As one companion mentioned to me, I would glow in the dark after the first 15 treatments and not need a night light to get up at night; I\’m still waiting on the glow.

I have several times talked about the four types of Masonic Members. These apply to all levels of Masonry, Blue Lodge, Scottish Rite, York Rite, etc. They are Members, Attenders, Participators, and Enthusiasts.

1. Members. These are the card carriers that pay their dues on time and generally don\’t attend the meetings. They may not even know that their dues have been paid because their significant other pays them when the notice arrives and then they receive their new dues card.
2. Attenders. These are the members that attend for the camaraderie and relationship, but do not desire to take an office in the Masonic body. They will generally do other work that does not involve being an officer like cleaning up after meals, setting up the meeting room, and helping with other paraphernalia.
3. Participators. These are the members that regularly attend and take an active role in the body\’s activities. They take offices that will culminate in the leadership position of the body. They take parts in the conferrals and possibly learn new parts. These are the members most likely to become the next level of member.
4. Enthusiasts. Other names for this member is Fan, Fanatic, Advocate, or Disciple. Yes, I said \”Disciple\”. Disciple means a follower or student of a teacher, leader, or philosopher. Synonyms are follower, adherent, believer, admirer, devotee, … In our case, I would classify a Masonic Disciple as a devotee to our Masonic morals and dogma. In a past message from our Pastor, she described the seven marks of a disciple, and when I heard them, I tried to determine a way they could be applied to Masonic Enthusiasts/Devotees/Advocates (Disciples). The seven marks are:

David A. Grindle
General Grand Master