I have just been forwarded documents from the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia concerning the actions against homosexual members in the Grand Lodges of Georgia and Tennessee. These are official decisions of Grand Master Kenneth D. Fuller, and letters to the GMs of those two states.
The pertinant upshot is that the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia has suspended fraternal relations with the Grand Lodges of Georgia and Tennessee, and no official deputation of those Grand Lodges or their constituent Lodges shall be received by any Masonic body meeting in the District of Columbia.
It is unclear from the documents I have received if this means that individual Masons from the GLofDC traveling in those states are still allowed to visit their lodges. If you are a GLofDC Mason, I recommend contacting your Grand Secretary for clarification.
To quote in part from MWBro. Fuller's letter to Georgia:
"Our ritual, obligations, and ancient traditions demand that we recognize the universality of Freemasonry, and its attendant principles. Among these are to regard the whole human race as one family, acknowledging the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man; and that no Lodges of Tennessee and Georgia to make sexual orientation a criterion for membership injects one religious or political interpretation of morality into our fraternity.
"The concept of prohibiting membership, or expelling brothers, on the basis of sexual orientation or for possessing certain immutable traits unrelated to the independent moral character of an individual is incompatible with our precepts.
"The suggestion that a certain religious order's dislike or disagreement with the lawful conduct of brothers or individuals should be the basis of Masonic law is to fundamentally misunderstand and misapply the foundational philosophy of Freemasonry. This unfounded break with Masonic law places the Grand Lodges of Tennessee and Georgia in a state of disharmony that threatens our entire Masonic family.
"On a personal note, as an ordained Christian minister who holds deep religious convictions, I find the actions of these Grand Lodges all the more troublesome. Many faiths, including my own denomination of Christianity, are divided on several social and moral issues, yet it is our duty as Masons to ensure these disagreements do not spill over into our fraternity and sow disharmony.
"In closing, let me reiterate the words of my predecessor and approved by our entire Grand Lodge: we are open to all men of faith based upon their personal merit and good character, without reference to race, creed, sexual orientation, specific religion or national origin.
"I hope, pray, and trust that the hand of providence and the light of wisdom will guide our fraternity to a swift resolution to this unfortunate matter."
Copies of the Official Decisions with details are as follows (click images to enlarge):
UPDATE 3/11/16: The Grand Master of the District of Columbia has added a similarly worded public letter about the subject to the Grand Lodge website. CLICK HERE.
