Courtesy Conferment of Degrees by Bro Kent Henderson

Part 3 of an excerpt from The Masonic World Guide (Lewis Masonic, London. 1984) -by Kent Henderson. Pages 6-14.

"Courtesy Degrees

Most regular Grand Lodges of the world, upon a written request from a recognized sister Grand Lodge, will confer 'courtesy degrees' upon a Mason from that sister jurisdiction. Courtesy degrees are the term used to describe the conferment of degrees upon a Mason from another Jurisdiction in a lodge under a host jurisdiction.

In many cases, only the second and third degrees can be conferred, but some jurisdictions, notably in the United States, will confer any or all of the three Craft degrees by courtesy.

A Mason traveling to another country or area, and who has not taken all the three Craft degrees, may wish to have a degree, or degrees, conferred upon him in another jurisdiction. This course of action may well suit a Mason who has been transferred to another locality in the course of his employment. For courtesy work to be carried out, a Mason will need to be in the host jurisdiction for at least several months. A quick tourist visit rarely affords enough time for courtesy work to be effected.

A Mason wishing to receive a degree by courtesy must follow a standard procedure. The steps to be undertaken are as follows:

1. On a brother's behalf, his Lodge secretary will write to his Grand Lodge office informing his Grand Secretary of the brother's desire in the matter. The letter will set out all the relevant details including the country to be visited by the brother, his residence therein, his current Masonic rank, and the dates of his residency.

2. Assuming that:

(i) a regular Grand Lodge exists in the country to be visited by the brother, and(ii) this jurisdiction will normally conduct courtesy work, and(iii) his Grand Secretary is satisfied that the brother's circumstances and reasons warrant the conferment of a courtesy degree, and(iv) the ritual forms used by the proposed host jurisdiction are somewhat comparable with local practice: then the brother's Grand Secretary will communicate with the Grand Secretary in the jurisdiction concerned, requesting that he act on behalf of the brother.

3. Invariably, such a request will be met, and the host jurisdiction will prevail upon one of its constituent lodges close to the place of temporary residence of the brother, to confer upon him the appropriate degree, or degrees.

4 .The brother's Grand Secretary will then be informed of the arrangements made by the hosting jurisdiction, and he will see that this information is passed back to the brother. Generally, the brother will be contacted by the hosting jurisdiction, or hosting lodge, and informed of the final arrangements. This will occur after he has taken up residency within its area.

Courtesy degrees, when conferred, have the full force of the conferment of degrees in the normal way. Upon receiving the Master Mason degree, a brother's home Grand Lodge will issue him his Master Mason's Certificate.

The Limitations of Courtesy Conferment

Several limitations apply to the conferment of courtesy degrees. The American Grand Lodges also publish a list of lodges, variously called a Roster, Directory, and a variety of other names. However, some of the smaller US Grand Bodies simply produce their lodge meeting details towards the rear of their annual Grand Lodge Proceedings.

A number of jurisdictions regularly publish a magazine/periodical for general distribution to their memberships. Most are produced bi-monthly or quarterly. They contain a wealth of information concerning the jurisdictions that publish them, and they will be of interest to the traveling Mason. Most are available on twelve month subscriptions.

Travelers desiring to purchase such a subscription can make inquiries at their own Grand Lodge office, and arrangements will be made with the jurisdiction concerned on the brother's behalf. In addition, most Grand Lodge libraries around the world subscribe to a range of foreign Masonic periodicals, and these are readily available for consultation by the intending visitor."