What Happens at a Masonic Funeral?

The first Masonic funeral I attended was for a brother named Harold. He had been a Mason for fifty two years, and he was the man who sat next to me at my very first lodge dinner and showed me which fork to use. I had been raised only eight months earlier. I remember standing in a line of men in white aprons at the graveside, holding a sprig of green, and thinking: so this is what it means to belong to something.

If you have been invited to a Masonic funeral, or if someone in your family was a Mason and you are wondering what the lodge might do, here is what to expect.

§What a Masonic funeral is

A Masonic funeral, sometimes called a Masonic memorial service or Masonic rites, is a short ceremony performed by members of a lodge in honour of a deceased brother. It does not replace a religious funeral. It is usually held alongside one, either at the funeral home the evening before, at the end of the church service, or at the graveside.

The service typically lasts fifteen to twenty minutes. It is open to the public. Family, friends and anyone attending the funeral are welcome to be present, and nothing about it is secret.

§Who can have one

Any Master Mason in good standing is entitled to Masonic funeral rites if he or his family requests them. Many Masons note their wishes in advance, sometimes in a letter left with the lodge Secretary. If not, the family can simply contact the lodge, and the lodge will arrange everything at no cost. It is one of the ways a lodge cares for its brothers to the very end, and one reason Masons call each other brother.

§What happens during the service

The exact form varies between jurisdictions, but the main elements are usually these.

• The brethren enter together, wearing dark suits and white lambskin or cloth aprons.
• The Worshipful Master, or a brother he appoints, leads the service from a short printed ritual.
• Prayers are offered, usually non denominational, honouring the brother's faith and the Great Architect.
• The white apron is explained as the emblem of innocence and the badge of a Mason, often placed on or with the casket.
• Each brother may place a sprig of acacia, or a sprig of evergreen, as a symbol of the immortality of the soul.
• The service ends with words of comfort to the family and a final farewell to the brother.

§The white apron

Every Mason receives a white lambskin apron at his initiation and is told it is more ancient than the Golden Fleece or Roman Eagle. Many brethren keep that first apron carefully for the rest of their lives, and it is often buried with them. Seeing it at a funeral can be very moving for families, who may never have seen it before. The Masonic Apron: What It Means explains its full significance.

§The sprig of acacia

Acacia is an evergreen tree, and in Masonic symbolism it stands for the hope of eternal life. The story behind it comes from the third degree, the Master Mason degree, which teaches lessons about faithfulness and mortality. You do not need to know the story to understand the gesture. When the brothers drop their sprigs, they are saying that the brother's memory, and his soul, live on.

A lodge that honours its members this way is a lodge worth finding. Take the free Readiness Quiz and see if you are ready to start the journey.

§What guests should do

• Nothing special. Stand or sit quietly as you would during any part of a funeral.
• You do not need to participate in the responses unless you wish to.
• If you are a Mason from another lodge, you are usually welcome to join the line. Speak to the lodge Master beforehand.
• Photography is generally discouraged unless the family requests it.

§Does the lodge help the family afterwards?

In most lodges, yes, quietly and practically. Widows of Masons are often kept on the lodge's mailing list, invited to dinners and holiday events, and checked in on by brethren. Some lodges and Grand Lodges have relief funds for families in genuine hardship. Many widows find comfort in the Order of the Eastern Star too, which The Order of the Eastern Star describes. Will My Family Be Welcome? covers how lodges look after families more generally.

§If your father or grandfather was a Mason

If you are planning the funeral of a relative who was a Mason, and you are not sure whether he was still a member, the lodge can check its records. Even men who stopped attending years ago are often still on the rolls. The lodge will be glad to hear from you, and the service is a dignified way to honour a part of his life you may not have fully known. Some sons find, as I have heard more than once, that standing at that graveside is what eventually leads them to the lodge door themselves. Can You Join Without Any Masonic Connections? explains that you do not need a relative to petition, but many do have one.

§What it taught me

Harold's funeral changed how I thought about Freemasonry. Before it, I thought about what the lodge could give me: friends, learning, purpose. After it, I understood that it is also a promise. Whatever happens, these men will be there. They will stand at your graveside and tell your family you mattered. That is not a small thing to be part of.

If you are still early in your journey, Your First Year in Freemasonry shows what life inside the lodge is like long before days like that one.