Emulation Lodge of Improvement is a Lodge of Instruction which first met on 2 October 1823, and is held under the sanction of Lodge of Unions No. 256 in the English Constitution. It restricts admission to Master Masons in good standing. The aim of the lodge is to preserve

Masonic ritual Masonic ritual is the scripted words and actions that are spoken or performed during the degree work in a Masonic lodge. Masonic symbolism is that which is used to illustrate the principles which Freemasonry espouses. Masonic ritual has appeared ...

as closely as is possible to that which was formally accepted by the newly formed

United Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales, and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic Grand Lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron ...

in 1816 and as amended since.

History

After the Union of 1813 (in December of that year) that formed the

, it was necessary that the ritual be standardised, with approval of the Grand Lodges of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. A result of this was the International Compact, which governs relations between the three Grand Lodges.

Emulation Ritual

The ritual to be used in United Grand Lodge of England''Emulation Ritual'' pub 1991, London. and in Lodges under that constitution were produced by the Lodge of Reconciliation, formed following the union of the Antients and Moderns Grand Lodges in

1813 Events January–March * January 5 – The Danish state bankruptcy of 1813 occurs. * January 18– 23 – War of 1812: The Battle of Frenchtown is fought in modern-day Monroe, Michigan between the United States and a Britis ...

, approved and confirmed by Grand Lodge in June 1816. This has formed the basis of Emulation Working since its inception in 1823. It has been the policy of the committee of the Emulation Lodge of Improvement to preserve the ritual as nearly as possible in the form in which it was approved by Grand Lodge, allowing only those changes approved by Grand Lodge to become established practice. The ritual, however, takes its name from the Emulation Lodge of Improvement, not the other way around. The most notable changes were made in 1964, when an alternative form of reference to the ancient penalties was approved, and again in 1986 when a resolution from UGLE decreed that the so-called ‘blood oaths’, or symbolic penalties, were to be removed from the obligations taken by candidates for the three degrees or installation as a master.

Lectures of the Craft

When the regular demonstrations of the " Lectures of the Craft" by the Grand Stewards' Lodge ceased in the 1860s, the Emulation Lodge of Improvement also became the leading body regularly working these. The Emulation Lodge of Improvement has demonstrated the system of

Lectures A lecture (from ) is an speech, oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical information, history, backgroun ...

in question and answer form continuously since 1823, although rehearsal of the Emulation Ritual has always been its main work.Lectures of the Three Degrees in Craft Masonry, Kessinger Publishing, 2010 ()

The silver matchbox

When a Brother acts as Master for any of the demonstrated ceremonies and delivers the work without need of prompt or correction, he is awarded an inscribed silver matchbox on the first occasion, with additional inscriptions added for each of the four Emulation ceremonies worked.Dyer, Colin F.W. ''Emulation: A Ritual to Remember'' London: A. Lewis, 1973. p.16.

References

{{UGLE United Grand Lodge of England Masonic Lodges