Masonic Groups in SocMed

6. Large “anything goes” groups – these are groups with large membership and may include Brethren from different jurisdictions. These groups may also include non-masons.

Quarantine restrictions on mass gatherings at the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic last year have left the GLP with no other choice but to suspend all monthly stated meetings and other masonic activities indefinitely and allow Lodges to meet virtually through online masonic conferences.

Circular No. 41 – MW Suan issued last May 27, 2020 outlined the reasons why, when, and how online masonic conferences should be conducted.

With this development, the Brethren took to various video conferencing platforms such as Zoom, Google Meet, and Facebook Rooms - just to name a few. These platforms were very much embraced by our Brethren not only in the conduct of official online masonic conferences , but also for more informal meetings and fellowship such as “Online Kamustahan” or “E-numan” sessions.

As vibrant as these masonic social media groups are now in the midst of the pandemic, there are still challenges that face them in terms of management and quality of experience. Probably the greatest challenge of these groups is keeping them “tyled’ (strictly masons only). There are quite a number of instances where members would inadvertently discuss topics that would best be opened up in a tyled Lodge, oblivious to the fact that there may be cowans and eavesdroppers in these groups. This issue may be solved by strict admission policies and regular purging of membership.

There is also the issue of overwhelming volume of posts. Sometimes because of the enthusiasm of some members, groups may post way too frequently, overwhelming members who tune out eventually. This may be solved by the group admin with a well thought out approval process, striking a healthy balance between group inertia and boredom. For video-conferencing platforms, some of the challenges that our Brethren faced included: difficulty in connecting, video issues, sound issues, and background noise issues. Eventually, we have learned to use these platforms with ease.

Whatever the challenges may have been, technology has provided our Brethren with fast, easily-accessible, and relatively cheap means of communication with each other. This kind of interaction is definitely here to stay and will comprise part of our new normal even long after the COVID-19 Pandemic.

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