The Religion thing...

So lets put the Religion thing to bed (as so many seem to use it as a reason to not to join Canoblas Lewis & other Masonic Lodges)

OK, Many people say that Masons can not be Catholic. Wrong
Some say that Masonry is for Protestants only. Wrong, again.
You may hear other say that If you are married to a Catholic, you cannot join a masonic lodge. Wrong yet again!
Others say that You must Spill Catholic blood to join. Wrong again. Very Wrong. Ask yourself; Who would want to hangout with any men that earned the right to join a group by assaulting others? This is just plain Wrong on just so many levels.

ALL the guff you have heard probably heard or read on the internet along the above issue 100% WRONG.

Therefore, TO SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT:
All Christian denominations are Welcome to join Lodge Canoblas Lewis. Catholics from St Marie's are welcome, as are Anglicans from St Barnabas's & Methodists & the uniting Church Adherents and all the others...
Coptic Christians are fine to join
Orthodox Christians are most welcome too
All Jews are welcome too.
As Are the Buddhists of the Central West...
Just like the Hindus, Sikhs, Zoroastrians, Jains are all welcome to come & join a lodge
AND Muslims of the Orange District are welcome as well.

All are Welcome...

The Above picture was stolen from HERE but it shows the acceptance of all Faiths

Further, nothing that happens in Lodge is Offensive to ANY religion; indeed, such behaviour would earn censure.

The requirement to have a religion (of some description) is needed to Join Canoblas Lewis (and all other Masonic Lodges for that fact) BUT, apart from that WE NEVER TALK ABOUT IT!
Are you kidding; we go to Lodge to get away from the arguments & strife & bickering; why on earth would we want to introduce something that will cause arguments, strife & bickering talk about Religion or Politics???

It is a great Irony of Freemasonry; You have to have a religion, but we don't want to know anything about it once you are in lodge!

Freemasonry: Open to all good men; 18 years or older, With a Religion.

Despite the fact that many Google search "Lodge in Orange NSW" find references to the very secular Orange Order, please do not think that Canoblas Lewis (or any other Masonic Lodge for that matter) is affiliated with any group that is not aimed at uniting Men in an egalitarian fraternity.

Harmony & Peace Brother. We've been saying that for a lot longer than the Hippies of the 1960's!

So Mote it Be!

I have Found some masonic paraphernalia; Can you tell me about it?

Frequently, a member of the public will find some Masonic Apparel when they are at a family members house; the answer is usually "... oh yes, your grandfather was a freemason; that is his apron"; this usually gets them wondering about this Paraphernalia & their relative/friend who owned it.
Then, after a time, They then ask "what the Heck does all this mean?"

Unfortunately, unless you have friends who are Masons, you will not get an answer...

So What the Heck does all this Masonic stuff mean?
Masonic paraphernalia is deeply symbolical; the fact that your family member/friend was a mason shows that he was a good man & he valued the company of other good men. The differing pieces of Paraphernalia signify differing aspects of his Masonic Career.

There were some Masons at my Grand fathers Funeral; What was that about?
In the past, being a Member of a Masonic Lodge (like so many things) was a highly guarded secret; in some cases, children didn't know that their father was a member of a lodge; thus, some people get a shock when a group of Masons mourn together at a funeral - many of whom are unknown to the family at the time. As a member of a Masonic Lodge, we remember our fellow Freemasons in a dignified Masonic ceremony (referred to as a Lodge of Sorrow/Mourning). You would have seen some of his fellow masons paying their respects to a dear friend, be assured that they will miss him deeply also.

I have Found some masonic paraphernalia; Can you tell me about it?
Yes. Quite frequently, members of a family find out that their Father/Grandfather/Uncle/Close Friend was a Mason when they see the Familiar Square & Compass symbol, or the light blue apron.

What Does all this Masonic Stuff mean?

If you would like a Mason to take a look at your items & tell you what they meant, please come along to our Lodge with your Item (preferably on a practice night) & we will happily assist you where we can

Be assured; these Items are the personal property of your loved one & are now yours. We will not take them from you when we appraise them & you will take them away with you as a memento of your loved one.

Be aware that in the past, there were many other non-masonic Lodges operating around the Central West of NSW; including the Oddfellows, The Buffalos, The Foresters to name but a few. Many of these orders have paraphernalia that is similar to a Freemasons, but we must point out that they are different bodies with different governing rules; that being said, we may be able to point you in the right direction.

My Grandfather/Uncle/Father was a Mason; Can you tell me more about his Masonic Career?
Possibly, In this case if he was not a member of Lodge Canoblas Lewis, we may not know all that much about him. We can assist by pointing you to the enquiries area of the United Grand Lodge of NSW & ACT - UGL NSW ACT.

I have My Fathers Masonic Apron; What do I do with it?
Keep it! I have seen some framed on the walls of "the Man-Cave", Whilst others have just been a keepsake. It is yours after all.

However, this is not all you can do; If you are a man, may I suggest that you contemplate joining our lodge? Hopefully you would enjoy freemasonry as much as He did & having his apron would certainly be a nice part of your masonic journey. If you let us know in advance that you are interested in joining, we can give you information on joining on the night.

If you are the daughter of a Mason; do you have a Husband, a Son, a Nephew, or a dear Friend that would benefit by joining our Lodge? If so bring them along with the apparel to meet us; for many men, having deeply personal masonic Apparel adds to the meaning of Masonic ceremonies

The Final Unashamed Plug:
If the hitherto undiscovered presence of a Freemason in your Family has sparked your interest in the Craft; why not come along, see what your family member was up to & join in?
We are sure that you will find it as fun & rewarding as your family member did.

So Mote it Be!

Regular Meetings

Lodge Canoblas Lewis # 806 Meets on the Second Monday of the month.

The Members will be at the Hall from around 7:00 PM; with the Lodge Tyling at 7:30

We welcome all fellow Freemasons to our meetings.

Dress Standards
As an Evening Lodge, The Brethren  generally wear a Dinner Suit, however, Visiting brothers should wear the attire of their own lodge; Thus, Daylight lodge Members are welcome to wear a Lounge suit, Members of other types of Lodges may wear the standard uniform of their lodge (for example, Motorcycling Lodges may wear their lodges Vests, or Leather Jackets when appropriate). Unattached or Called Off Masons may wear Lounge Suit or Dinner Suit.

The Apron: an Essential piece of a Freemasons Uniform

The Evening:
We like the Masonic Traditions, as these centuries old rituals unite Masonry & give a real purpose to the Evening

Lodge Canoblas Lewis takes pride in the Standard of our Masonic Work & we do our work properly & with all due reverence; however, Our prime Focus within the Lodge is in the Sincerity of the Work

As a Lodge, we accept that we are all on our own Masonic journey , thus we do not interrupt or compromise the work of others of the evening as we like to see that work is completed in a timely manner!

Our Lodge is formally closed with the Singing of Advance Australia Fair.

The South
With the formal part of the evening over, we retire to the buildings South for a light supper.

During Supper, there will usually be short speech, typically by a Lodge Member (for 5 or so minutes) on a topic that the Brethren will find interesting, however, we frequently have guest speakers doing more in-depth talks.

The Junior Warden will hold a Raffle for the evening, the price of the tickets is $5, proceeds go to the Lodges Charity Account

Food is predominately Finger Food (this varies from month to month).

In addition to Beer & Wine, Tea & Coffee are served, as are a selection of soft drinks; which include diet soft drinks.

We try to link the Supper & the Work of the evening to ensure that the entire evening is a positive one.

Closing:
We Close the evening formally by the singing of the Junior Wardens Toast, Followed Immediately by Auld Lang Sine (as we like the Scotch language of Robbie Burns!).

After the formal closing, members & visitors can stay on & enjoy each others company whilst the South is cleaned up by the Stewards.

So Mote it Be!

Practice Nights

Lodge Canoblas Lewis has 2 practice nights each month

These nights are optional attendances for members, & they are aimed at social interaction as well as practicing the Masonic Rituals of the formal lodge. We also plan future Lodge events, Visits Social gatherings & Lodge Management at these nights

We hold the Practice nights on the two Mondays prior to a regular meeting; meaning the last Monday of the month & the First Monday of the Month

Practice starts at 7:30

Dress for the evening is casual (please be clean!)

We usually finish the night with a casual conversation & a Port in the South

So Mote it Be!

Orange Masonic Centre

The Orange Masonic Centre is the name that the Hall that Lodge Canoblas Lewis meets in.

It is located at 25 Moad St Orange.

The Hall is in the Same street as the Orange Hockey Complex

There building is a modern one & has secure off street parking; Handicapped parking is directly in front of the main door.

The Masonic Lodges in Orange all relocated to this building after the Sale St building was sold

Phone Number: (02) 6362 2002 (it is best to call when a Lodge is being held)

So Mote it Be!