Country membership

[Ian B]

Only full members can progress through the offices

That could only be so if it's in your lodge's by-laws but I doubt that your PGM would allow such a by-law.
If this is a problem for you, then I suggest you take it up with your lodge Master and the secretary, thence to your Provincial G Sec and then to the G Sec until it can be explained legitimately.

True - but it could also be argued that country members are not in the position of being able attend regularly enough to fulfill the obligations inherent with accepting office.

When I joined my mother Lodge I lived in walking distance of the lodge, however we had to move with my wife's job. I continued to be a member and attended every meeting with a long drive, and usually some extra passengers to visit, progressing through all the offices and through the chair. It was only after many years past the chair that I had to resign due to the high cost of the annual fee and a change in my circumstances.

I think the high fee was due to the fact that the centre charged a capitation fee for the lodge based on the number of members rather than the number attending. This differed from my father's lodge where they did offer country membership if you lived more than 25 miles away from the lodge as they owned the building that they used.

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[mindmagic]

We are a London lodge. Our Assistant Secretary relocated to Eastern Europe but carries out his duties from there.

[Trouillogan]

Those would be the arguments that Postiebear lays out in the course of the process I mention in dealing with the lodge, the province and the G Sec, if you get that far. Such a matter cannot be determined in any other way, if you think about it, whatever you may think about the rights and wrongs of the case.