Annual Proceedings

Annual Proceedings. For many years, all Grand Lodges of the United States and most of those in other parts of the world, have annually printed and published their proceedings for the year. These vary in character but they usually contain the report by the Grand Master of his acts and transactions and decisions during the past year, some of which require examination and confirmation by the Grand Lodge. There is often a Grand Oration, a Necrology report or memorial service, various statistical and accounting reports from the Grand Secretary and Grand Treasurer, and the reports of various committees, some of which recommend or require action by Grand Lodge. Of these committee reports, one of the most voluminous and important is that of the Committee on Correspondence which, among other things, attempts to keep account of the trend of Freemasonry all over the world, examining and commenting on the doings of the various Grand Lodges and on the reports of similar committees of other Grand Lodges. The purpose and effect is to encourage, at least, uniformity and consistency in Freemasonry and to confine it as much as possible to the zone of accepted doctrine, simply by calling attention to, or warning against, action or intended action which seems to transgress the boundary line of the Fraternity. Such report of the Correspondence Committee has no sanction behind it, except that, when the committee feels that some Grand Lodge has strayed from the true path, it may recommend withdrawal for recognition--in short, that the Grand Lodge cease to deem the offending body Masonic and to discontinue fraternal correspondence with it.

In former years, Correspondence Committees of some of the Grand Lodges of the United States were headed by Masonic students of learning and power, such as Dr. Robbins of Illinois and S. H. Goodwin of Utah, both colorful characters, facile writers, and Freemasons of firm convictions. With the growth of lodges and members in the several jurisdictions, there has been a tendency to turn eyes inward and concentrate on the numerous internal problems of growth and changing conditions. Then, the functions of the Correspondence Committees in the United States have been to some extent superseded by the Conference of Grand Masters held annually in Washington, D. C. (q.v.), so that there has been some tendency to ignore the importance of having world Freemasonry reviewed annually in the printed Proceedings of each Grand Lodge.

Macoy Collector's Note: Coil makes an astute observation here regarding the shift in American Masonic governance, noting how the Conference of Grand Masters gradually assumed the role of maintaining national consistency that once belonged to the rigorous, individual reviewers on the Committees on Correspondence.