Jurisdictions
From About Freemasons
In Freemasonry, jurisdictions are the areas into which Freemasonry is divided for the purposes of governing. Each jurisdiction has a Grand Lodge and Craft lodges. All the Craft Lodges of a specific jurisdiction are answerable to and governed by the Grand Lodge in that jurisdiction.
In order to understand jurisdictions within Freemasonry, you need to understand regularity. In Freemasonry, regularity is the process through which Grand Lodges recognize other Grand Lodges. This allows Masons from different jurisdictions to visit lodges in different geographical areas.
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History of jurisdictions
A number of jurisdictions in Freemasonry consider themselves “regular” or traditional and therefore deem other jurisdictions to be either a regular or irregular. Since there is no central governing body for Freemasonry, however, what is described as regularity or irregularity varies widely from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Each Grand Lodge decides for itself which jurisdictions to recognize and which Grand Lodges to not recognize.
The first debate over regularity took place in 1753. That year, a group of Masons called the Antients established the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of England. This was done to create a rival Grand Lodge to the Premier Grand Lodge of England, already in existence. After 1753, Freemasons were either Free and Accepted Masons or Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, depending on which Grand Lodge they recognized. The two lodges did not recognize each other, each arguing that the other Grand Lodge was not a part of Freemasonry. The debate lasted until 1813, when the two lodges were united together to create the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE). Today, the largest group of Grand Lodges that all recognize each other are those lodges that are recognized by the UGLE.
UGLE jurisdictions
UGLE, the Grand Lodge of Scotland and the Grand Lodge of Ireland have sometimes been known as the Home Grand Lodges and in 1929 they established a number of criteria for determining regularity. They decided that:
- Regularity comes from an established and recognized Grand Lodge or at least three regular Craft Lodges.
- A belief in the Supreme Being is essential for regularity.
- To be regular, a Lodge must have members take oaths on Volume of the Sacred Law.
- Regular lodges and Grand Lodges only admit men.
- Grand Lodges will have complete and the only control over the Lodges in their Jurisdiction.
- The Volume of the Sacred Law, the Square, and the Compasses will always be visible when men meet as a Lodge
- Lodges will not discuss religion and politics.
- Antient Landmarks, rituals, and customs will be carefully observed.
Any lodges or jurisdictions not following these rules were generally not recognized or considered regular.
France’s jurisdictions
France has 12 national Grand Lodges, each with its own jurisdiction. UGLE only recognizes The Grande Loge Nationale Francaise (GLNF) and its jurisdiction as regular. Until the 1800s, most Grand Lodges recognized The Grand Orient de France (GOdF), but after that date many US Grand Lodges no longer chose to recognize it. In 1877, the GOdF decided that lodges no longer needed to believe in the supreme being. As a result of this decision, UGLE and many other Grand Lodges decided to withdraw recognition of the GOdF.
Belgium jurisdiction
While there are several Grand Lodges in the country, UGLE only recognizes The Regular Grand Loge of Belgium (R.G.L.B.) and its jurisdictions. The Grand Orient of Belgium (G.O.B.) had UGLE recognition until it decided to not require masons to believe in he supreme being. After the GOB lost recognition, five lodges from its jurisdiction formed the Grand Lodge of Belgium (G.L.B.). In 1979 the G.L.B. also lost recognition by UGLE. In 1979, five lodges that were part of the GLB and were upset by the lack of recognition formed the Regular Grand Loge of Belgium.
United States jurisdictions
In the United States, each state has its own "regular" or "mainstream" Grand Lodge and each of the state’s Grand Lodges recognizes the "regular" or "mainstream" of every other state. All of these are recognized by UGLE. Most States have a Prince Hall Grand Lodge. These lodges were founded by African-Americans who at one time were not able to find membership in most mainstream Grand Lodges or their jurisdictions. Historically, the state's Grand Lodges have not recognized Prince Hall Freemasonry. However, most states’ Grand Lodges today recognize their Prince Hall counterparts and their respective jurisdictions. Despite this, not all Prince Hall Grand Lodges recognize each other, due to internal strife between the lodges in the 1800s. UGLE recognizes those Prince Hall Grand Lodges that are recognized by the mainstream Grand Lodges for that jurisdiction.
