Fraternal Art Symposium

I.O.O.F. Certificates: A Lost Art by Scott Robinson

The Independent Order of Odd Fellows is steeped in traditions and a rich history. Being one of the oldest surviving Fraternal Orders in the United States, it is a fascinating study of “lost arts.” What do I mean by “lost arts”? One only has to examine our own fine documents to see skills and pride that our modern society has all but forgotten about.

You can run on for a long time.

Cash is from my state: Arkansas. In fact my dad was born in the same community in the 1940’s, although the families did not know one another. And Arkansas, we have a particular reverence for the darkness and irony sometimes found in his music. (Lyrics found below video) MASHUP POETRY: Red letter Odd Fellow and […]

The Black Keys – In Time

Lyrics are below. Philosophy of Odd Fellowship can be noticed in many places. “In Time” Where do we go? And all the people, they sure don’t want you to know They don’t want you to know, oh Livin’ in chains, the heart’s rearranged You gotta lure it back, all of the time Now tell me […]

New Music: Odd Fellows Hymn

I wrote/recorded/made the video all in one day just to force myself to complete something in a small window. I had written the words a few months ago. I wanted to capture the disorientation and mystery that someone goes through during initiation. All sound effects are authentic and come from my Lodge. Even the creaky 17th step!

The Common Good: Mad Max and Little Lord Fauntleroy

The Common Good. “It is possible that people should combine for the common good; hence we have societies…united by a compact, which protects their members.” There are several things in the above quote that an Odd Fellow can observe. However, I’ll focus specifically upon the idea, put forth in the quote, of a social contract. […]

Bro. Mathew Yingling and the “Columbus Factor”

While it is true that idle curiosity caused me to join, what I found in the organization is what kept me coming back. It kept me going to meetings, researching, looking for ways to improve myself and my Lodge. My Lodge and the Order it belongs to impressed me in a way that nothing in the world ever has. It has presented me with the privilege to meet some of the greatest people I have ever met. Doing the work of the order and moving through the chairs has been one of the greatest honors I have ever been able to experience outside of fatherhood and my marriage to Jessica who shares in Odd Fellowship with me.

Attracting Attention to Your Lodge for Potential Members

While I can’t guarantee it will work for everyone or every lodge situation… this is what I have witnessed from successful Lodges and my own personal lodge experience. Also, of the things listed below, so much of it depends on determining the culture of your lodge and what kind of members you are aiming to attract. I wrote a post about that you can check out on the blog. I am sure a lot of these are obvious and you probably already know all this too… but here goes.

Odd Fellows Hall, Digital Painting, Young Poets

In the video below we learn that our buildings continue to help communities express themselves, even though the lodge membership is long gone. The 99Angles Project is a multimedia artistic proposal that links digital writings to intervention’s methods in the public space. These 3 buildings, selected together with local artists, represent the past and […]

On the Edge of Revival

My theory is that the Gen X and Millennial generations are looking for something outside of formal religion that is fun, mysterious, and meaningful to help make sense of the chaotic world we live in today. People like me got intrigued by the history and the mystery of all of the symbols and rituals and it drew me to the order. I needed to feel like I was a part of something larger than myself. Something that was serious but didn’t take itself too seriously. Something that helps the community. Something that gives me a purpose and reminds me to do the right thing. Odd Fellows is all of those things and more.

Odd Fellows by Tomahawk

Lyrics: Pit Vipers Golden Dawn Old straw nerves Burning Strong They call us oddfellows We’re dancing on the gallows Who will judge you tomorrow? From the hills, Here they come Cold magic Please behold We only know the odd way

The Culture of the Lodge: Advice on Growing a Strong Lodge

Two years ago when my Lodge was working toward being reinstituted, I was given some of the best advice by Eric Smith PGM while he was serving his term as Grand Master of Illinois. He told me that we had to choose the “Culture of the Lodge”. What does that mean? Shouldn’t joining in arms under the umbrella of Odd Fellowship be enough? If that were so, then fans of sports wouldn’t have a favorite team to rally behind or lovers of the arts have a preferred style. It would be like going to the awkward family reunion where you don’t have anything else in common with your kin than a name or blood and everyone just makes polite small talk.