THE ARCANE SCHOOLS - Fort Myers Beach Masonic Lodge No. 362

Grand Lodge.
A few Grand Lodges have denied the right of a Mason permanently to
demit
from the Order. Texas, for instance, has declared that "it does not
recognize the right of a Mason to demit or separate himself from the
lodge
in which he was made, or may afterwards be admitted, except for the
purpose of joining another lodge, or when he may be about to remove
without the jurisdiction of the lodge of which he may be a member."[93]
A
few other Grand Lodges have adopted a similar regulation; but the
prevailing opinion of the authorities appears to be, that it is
competent
to interfere with the right to demit, certain rights and prerogatives
being, however, lost by such demission.
Arkansas, Missouri, Ohio, and one or two other Grand Lodges, while not
positively denying the right of demission, have at various times levied
a
tax or contribution on the demitted or unaffiliated Masons within their
respective jurisdictions. This principle, however, has also failed to
obtain the general concurrence of other Grand Lodges, and some of them,
as
Maryland, have openly denounced it. After a careful examination of the
authorities, I cannot deny to any man the _right_ of withdrawing,
whensoever he pleases, from a voluntary association--the laws of the
land
would not sustain us in the enforcement of such a regulation; and our
own
self-respect should prevent us from attempting it. If, then, he has a
right to withdraw, it clearly follows that we have no right to tax him,
which is only one mode of inflicting a fine or penalty for an act, the
right to do which we have acceded. In the strong language of the
Committee
of Correspondence of Maryland:[94] "The object of Masonry never was to
extort, _nolens volens,_ money from its votaries. Such are not its
principles or teaching. The advocating such doctrines cannot advance
the
interest or reputation of the institution; but will, as your committee
fear, do much to destroy its usefulness. Compulsive membership deprives
it
of the title, _Free_ and Accepted."
But as it is an undoubted precept of the Order that every Mason should
belong to a lodge, and contribute, so far as his means will allow, to
the
support of the institution, and as, by his demission, for other than
temporary purposes, he violates the principles and disobeys the
precepts
of the Order, it naturally follows that his withdrawal must place him
in a
different position from that which he would occupy as an affiliated
Mason.
It is now time for us to inquire what that new position is.
We may say, then, that, whenever a Mason permanently withdraws his