Editing Freemasonry (section)

==== Initial approach ====
In the early days of Freemasonry, one had to be approached and "co-opted" to the Fraternity by an existing member but had to do it of his "own free-will and accord".<ref>https://www.thelaudablepursuit.com/articles/2015/8/17/of-my-own-freewill-and-accord#:~:text=That%20a%20person%20enters%20of,moral%20judgment%20and%20to%20defend {{Bare URL inline|date=May 2025}}</ref> This tradition continues in many jurisdictions mainly in Europe, Africa and South America. However, many obediences have adapted their approach methods, now allowing those without prior Masonic connections to express interest through online forms or during public events such as Masonic exhibitions and open conferences.<ref>[http://www.godf.org/index.php/pages/details/slug/foire-aux-questions "FAQ"], ''Grand Orient de France'', Retrieved 23 November 2013</ref>
<ref>https://freemason.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Opening-the-Door-Guide-to-Masonry.pdf {{Bare URL PDF|date=May 2025}}</ref><ref>https://www.scgrandlodgeafm.org/uploads/1/9/0/8/19088243/textbookofmasonicjurisprudence-mackey-1865-7thed.pdf {{Bare URL PDF|date=May 2025}}</ref>

A consistent rule throughout most Jurisdictions worldwide is that Freemasonry is not allowed to blindly recruit members. The prospective candidate must be qualified and either contacted by a member or reach out on his own. 

In some Lodges the candidate is allowed to meet the members of the lodge they wish to join before being proposed for initiation; this allows all of the members to meet and get an idea of the candidate. While in other Lodges it is strictly prohibited for a non-mason (profane) to meet the members of the Lodge (besides the Master and proposer) before initiation in order to protect the identity of the members.

An old masonic term for the brother that proposes a candidate to a Lodge is that he becomes his 'Godfather' after invitation. This term is found in one of the earliest Masonic exposures "Reception of a Frey-Macon, 1737": 
::"the recipient is led by the Proposer, who becomes his Godfather, into one of the Lodge's rooms, where there is no light, & where he is asked if he has the vocation to be received."
<ref>https://freemasonry.bcy.ca/anti-masonry/expose.html {{Bare URL inline|date=May 2025}}</ref>