Freemasons at BU prepare to return, build membership

After a 13-year hiatus, the Boston University Lodge of Masons is expected to renew its charter June 23.

A. David Brown, treasurer-elect of the BU Lodge, said 35 people submitted first-year dues.

“Once we get the charter, we are hoping to increase that number. There are a lot of people on the side waiting,” the College of Engineering Career Development Office assistant director said.

Brown said BU Lodge is for any male BU students, faculty, staff or alumni.

“We hope to have a steady stream of new members joining every year, but what is really important is that the people who are members get really involved,” Brown said.

While the Lodge is not receiving any funding from BU, members want to serve the community, Brown said. Members set plans to reinstate the scholarship program the Lodge provided for students once they secure enough funds.

“We want to be keeping to the University, not the other way around,” Brown said.

The Lodge was originally founded by President Daniel Marsh in 1925 and lost its charter in 1999 due to a “decline in interest,” according to the Grand Masonic Lodge of Massachusetts website.

“What we’ve noticed is that once the Vietnam era hit, sons didn’t want to follow in the steps of their fathers, and there was a decline,” said Master-Elect Scott Sherman, a School of Management class of 1986 alum. “We’ve always been the quiet fraternity, and the message got lost.”

The re-constitution of the Lodge has been in progress for nearly three years, Sherman said. The initiative was partly inspired by the masonic regalia from the previous building found at the Grand Lodge.

“Many of the group’s Masons from other lodges saw it . . . and said they would like to see if it could work again,” he said.

Brown said Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore and other officials expressed support for the BU Lodge.

Elmore declined to comment on the BU Lodge and Freemasonry.

Jamie Gorton, a second-year law student at BU’s School of Law, said the interest in Freemasonry appears to have increased in society recently.

“Freemasonry is becoming more popular in pop-culture through ‘National Treasure’ and Dan Brown books,” Gorton said in a phone interview.

However, Gorton said he hopes the core tenants and philosophy of Freemasonry are what draw members in. Though it may not have a large impact on campus, he said it could influence Freemasonry in the state.

BU spokesman Colin Riley said while the organization is in its infancy, most organizations begin with a small core of interested members until they grow.

“For those members of the BU community interested in joining, it will likely strengthen their relationship with BU,” Riley said via email.

Brown said a group of 35 men is a good start for a Lodge, and they are hoping to reach 100 members once they get their charter back.

Out of those who signed up, only two are undergraduates, Gorton said. However, members planned to be “young and hip,” despite the stereotypes of Freemasons.

“Freemasonry is not for everybody,” Gorton said. “Some will think it is old, stodgy and for their grandfathers. Students will be interested in approaching Freemasonry because they are intrigued by the history of it.”

One of the undergraduate students involved with the Lodge, SMG senior Jehan Hamedi, said the BU Lodge will eventually attract a younger demographic, provided that applicants are of good character and “believe in any supreme being.”

“These are honorable, honest guys who want to make themselves better,” Hamedi said. “You need to believe in something above you, you are not the end all be all.”

CORRECTION: The article quoted Jehan Hamedi saying he thinks the university will eventually attract a younger demographic, but Hamedi’s statement referred to the BU Lodge specifically.