Gregorios Installation and Open Investiture 2023
On Sat 11 February, the Gregorios Lodge Installation will include an open Investiture of Officers. That probably does not mean much to anyone who is not a Freemason, so this is brief description of what this is all about.
Every year, each Lodge elects a member from its ranks to lead the lodge for the next year, to act as Worshipful Master of the Lodge. The master is “installed” into that role in a ceremony not unlike the degrees of the craft.
To ensure that a Lodge is at all times properly governed, the outgoing Worshipful Master (WM) hands control of the Lodge to an Installing Master, who then proceeds to replace the entire outgoing team with other past masters, effectively taking over the governing of that Lodge. All members who are not WMs or Past Masters (with the exception of the new master to be installed) are then asked to leave, and the installation of the new WM takes place. Everyone is brought back in and, finally, the new officers are invested in their positions before the lodge is finally closed.
It is an honour when Grand Lodge accepts and invitation to act as the installing team, and this is what is happening this year. It is even more of an honour (and far less common) for them to agree to what is oftern referred to as an “Open Installation”. That is a bit of a misnomer — the installation itself is not open, but the investiture of the officers is.
What will happen is that Grand Lodge (the acting Deputy Grand Master represeting the Grand Master accompanied by the current Grand Lodge ceremonial Team) will come in and take charge of the Lodge, proceeding with the installation of the new WM as above. At the same time, one or more Grand Lodge officers will entertain our non-member friends (male and female) in an adjoining Lodge room, giving them a great introduction to what Freemasonry is about, explaining some of the symbols that they see around them in the Lodge room, the meaning of the installation ceremony and what is going on, and what they will see when they are admitted. The fanfare and spectacle of a Grand Lodge entrance is quite impressive with all the regalia, the trumpets and so on.
When the new WM has been installed, the Lodge is quickly closed, and the members inside are invited to go and escort their ladies and friends into the Lodge. Everyone comes in and sits around the Lodge with all the members. Then the new WM appoints his team, and the GL team invests each new officer and places him in his position.
Then we all make our way to the dining hall, where there is a good meal provided. The first part is the formal component, where there are a number of toasts and speeches (which are thankfully usually quite short). Then we have music (a DJ) and there will be dancing and hopefully much revelry.
The key facts are:
| Date | Sat 11 February 2023 |
| Time | 3:00 pm |
| Finish | around 11:30 pm |
| Dress | Not mandated and will vary, but a shirt and jacket (or suit) is probably approriate. We would never presume to tell ladies how to dress, but they usually take the opportunity to dress up. |
| Cost | $80/head all inclusive Bookings via Trybooking at: https://www.trybooking.com/CFAEE |
It is important to restate the fact that Freemasons never try to recruit, and nobody tries to sell membership in any way, so rest assured nobody is going to try to get anyone to “sign up”, either on that night or indeed ever, under any circumstances. However, these events are a rare chance for non-members who have some interest in Freemasonry to get a gentle exposure to the craft, so non-members are made especially welcome.
If this sounds at all interesting, please make contact as quickly as possible, as we expect this night to be a sell-out and so bookings are essential.