Masonic Weddings

An interesting item crossed my desk a few years ago when I was editor of the Missouri Freemason magazine. It was an article a Brother submitted for inclusion in the magazine giving the account of a man in the St. Louis area who had a few weeks before been raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason. Then, just a few days afterward, that Brother and his fiancee were married in the same Lodge room where he received his degrees.

An ordained pastor who was a member of another Lodge in the area conducted the ceremony, which was attended by members of the families of both the bride and groom, their friends, and many of the Brethren from the Lodge.

I had been in the Lodge room where the ceremony took place and have always considered it to be one of the most attractive and well-appointed Lodge rooms I have ever seen. Just knowing that I knew it must have been an interesting and beautiful setting for a wedding.

Going through the article raised my curiosity. I wondered how rare a wedding in a Masonic Lodge might be, so I consulted that great oracle of all truth and knowledge – the internet. Seriously, my quest for information about Masonic weddings and some questions I asked at various online sources yielded some interesting information.

It turns out weddings in Lodges are not very common, but they do take place now and then. And the old Masonic Temple in Detroit bills itself as a high-end wedding venue whether or not the couple has ties to the fraternity.

Weddings in Lodges seem to have been more common in the past and also more common in Europe. French brothers who responded to my inquiries said they frequently have a "conjugal recognition" ceremony, which is not actually a wedding

I also learned some jurisdictions require dispensation before allowing such ceremonies. If they are allowed one advantage of holding a wedding in a Lodge is that it might be a much more economical venue than some of the ritzy places where I've attended weddings. Save the money for the honeymoon.

Finally, one brother sent me a the full text of a Masonic wedding or recognition ceremony from Turkey, which seemed nearly book length. Not being one for long ceremonies I decided if I'm ever invited to a Masonic wedding there, I might just skip the ceremony and head for the reception.