By Chu The Cud | November 12, 2026
Tonight, with a heavy heart, I demitted from North Hollywood Lodge No. 542, a Lodge I had the honor of serving as Worshipful Master twice, in 2018 and 2024. A Lodge into which I poured my heart and soul, dedicating my time and energy week after week until the end of last year.
I entered Freemasonry in 2008 seeking fellowship among men of honor and integrity. I did not expect perfection, but I did expect a sincere effort to practice the virtues we teach.
Freemasonry teaches us brotherly love, relief, and truth. These are not merely words to be recited in ritual but principles to be demonstrated through our actions. When personal interests, favoritism, and division take precedence over integrity and accountability, the very foundation of our fraternity is weakened.
Unfortunately, I have witnessed conduct and decisions that I believe are inconsistent with the obligations we have taken and the principles we profess to uphold.
Recently, I attended Lodge alongside twelve other brethren, many of whom had not attended regularly throughout the year. Rather than being welcomed back into the fellowship, we were subjected to disrespectful remarks from the sitting Master in open Lodge.
That same evening, I witnessed our Treasurer make statements in open Lodge that I knew to be false. Of all the brethren present knew the truth, only one had the courage to stand and correct him.
That moment spoke volumes.
What troubles me most is not simply that someone would misrepresent the truth, but that so many who knew better chose to remain silent.
We are taught to whisper good counsel in a brother’s ear, to correct our errors, to subdue our passions, and to practice the virtues we profess. Yet those teachings mean little when they are abandoned the moment they become inconvenient.
I have given much of myself to this Lodge, not for recognition, compensation, or personal advancement, but because I believed in what Freemasonry was intended to represent.
I still believe in Freemasonry. I still believe in its teachings, its obligations, and the good men who genuinely strive to live by them.
But loyalty to a Lodge should never require a man to compromise his principles or remain silent in the presence of conduct he believes to be wrong.
I leave with sadness, but without regret. My conscience is clear, and my commitment to the principles of Freemasonry remains unchanged.
A Lodge is not made great by its building, its officers, or the titles its members hold. It is made great by the character of the men within it.
— Chu The Cud © 2026. All Rights Reserved.
