Coronavirus – Update from the Grand Maser Mason – 28 August 2020
Brethren 28.08.2020
It’s hard to believe that this is the 31st weekly update. It has been a difficult and at times frustrating six months for us all but how heartening it has been to learn week on week about the tremendous amount of good works being carried out by Scottish Freemasons here at home and in all our Lodges scattered over more than 40 countries world-wide. The effort of Brethren in so many communities has done much to promote all that is good in Freemasonry and I thank you all in the sincerest of terms for all that you have done, for all that you are doing and, there is no doubt, that we’ll need to keep doing in the weeks and months ahead. As we enter September I appeal to you all to keep the flame of Masonry burning brightly by continuing your Zoom meetings, your lecture nights, your quiz nights and all the other initiatives that have materialised over the months. Please make a special effort to contact those who have no way of accessing zoom, email or any other platform – just a wee two-minute phone call to those on their own will make a world of difference to them. We will get back to our meetings and we all look forward to that albeit for those of us in Scotland, that’s going to be a wee while yet. I was speaking to Brother Kalpesh Shah in Nairobi last night and he tells me that subject to Government approval, they hope to have an outdoor meeting in the expansive grounds of Lodge Mount Longonot in Naivasha during September – another excellent initiative to keep that flame burning. I’d be delighted to hear of any other initiatives taking place.
On Saturday 5th September we will be holding our first ever joint PGM / DGM meeting. Full details will be circulated to all PGM’s and DGM’s next week.
Latest news from the Scottish Constitution Freemasonry Supports Facebook page is as follows –
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Scottish.Constitution.Freemasonry.Supports/
SCFS Overseas Report
We had 30 Overseas Brethren recorded this week, bringing our Overseas Membership of the SCFS Group to 840.
We had new members from Barbados, Central South Africa, Lebanon, Malta, Mauritius, Middle East, Namibia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and The Gambia, Togo, Western Australia.
The largest increase was seen from the District of Namibia (Brethren joined from 4/5 of the Lodges … Lodge Dunedin Star, Lodge Zun Kreuz des Sudens, Lodge Benguela and Lodge Zur Hoffnung) and Togo (Lodge of Togo)
Now that all District Grand Lodges, Lodges under Grand Superintendents and Lodges under the Supervision of Grand Lodge are represented in the SCFS Group, the SCFS Team looks forward to receiving a large and wide variety of posts showing the excellent support which is undoubtedly being provided by our Overseas Brethren.
The SCFS Team has introduced a series of ‘Spotlight Videos’ which will concentrate on posts which have appeared on the group page, fall within a particular category and have a common theme or connection, beginning this week with a video entitled, “Spotlight on the District Grand Lodges.”
The support of the SCFS Group continues to be extended to our Brethren in the District of Lebanon. Those Brethren, and their loved ones, remain in all of our prayers.
(Details of the online contribution page, incorporating a link to facilitate donations, have been published.)
I am delighted to report that Brother William Semple will commence duty as our new Grand Secretary on Monday 14th September 2020. I look forward to working with Brother Semple and I’m sure that you would wish me to convey the best wishes of all Brethren as he takes up his new post.
Brethren, in the figures published by the Scottish Government yesterday, 68 new cases of Covid-19 were reported and, as I reported last week, the numbers have been rising at an alarming rate in many of our District Grand Lodges. This virus is still very much in our midst – please stay alert, look after yourselves, your families and the Brethren who are in any of the vulnerable categories.
Kindest regards
Ramsay McGhee
Grand Master Mason